Acts - Chapter 12

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Acts 12:1-5 About that time King Herod Agrippa began to persecute some believers in the church. He had the apostle James (John’s brother) killed with a sword. When Herod saw how much this pleased the Jewish people, he also arrested Peter. (This took place during the Passover celebration.) Then he imprisoned him, placing him under the guard of four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring Peter out for public trial after the Passover. But while Peter was in prison, the church prayed very earnestly for him. (NLT)

Why do

people suffer?

1. God works through suffering to achieve His

purpose.

Acts 8:1b A great wave of persecution began that day, sweeping over the church in Jerusalem; and all the believers except the apostles were scattered through the regions of Judea and Samaria. (NLT)

2. God can transform our suffering into incredible

.

Acts 12:11 Peter finally came to his senses. “It’s really true!” he said. “The Lord has sent his angel and saved me from Herod and from what the Jewish leaders had planned to do to me!” (NLT)

3. God is not the

of the world’s sufferings.

John 10:10 “The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.” (NLT)

God gives us freedom of

.

God gives us freedom to

.

God gives us the freedom of

.

Romans 8:18-22 Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later. For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are. Against its will, all creation was subjected to God’s curse. But with eager hope, the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay. For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. (NLT)

4. God’s

is often seen in our suffering.

Hebrews 12:5-6 And have you forgotten the encouraging words God spoke to you as his children? He said, “My child, don’t make light of the Lord’s discipline, and don’t give up when he corrects you. For the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes each one he accepts as his child.” (NLT)

God’s

for us is always restorative.

5. Through our suffering, God opens doors to

others.

Romans 5:3-4 We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. (NLT)

The example of our life can become a

of

Reveal Answer

to others.

6. We may never know the

for our suffering.

Deuteronomy 29:29a The Lord our God has secrets known to no one. (NLT)

True Faith worships God in the midst of

and
in the midst of not

Reveal Answer

.

Bad things happen to good people, not because God is absent or indifferent, but because we live in a fallen world where free will and evil exist. However, God promises to be with us through our trials and use them for a greater purpose. As we see in Acts 12, whether through suffering or deliverance, God’s plan is always at work.