Today’s Reading:
Read Acts 15-16
Parents, spend some time today talking to your family about decisions. How does your family make big decisions? Who do you talk to for advice when you make decisions? Wise counsel is important! When we are making a big decision, it is a good idea to ask people we trust for advice.
As the New Testament church was growing, there were a lot of decisions that had to be made. The apostles, God’s chosen leaders of the church, gathered together in Jerusalem to discuss how to handle new believers. The Israelites, God’s Chosen People who were all descendants of Abraham, were now referred to as Jews. The Jewish nation followed the Torah, which was the name of the law that was given to Moses on Mt. Sinai. However, when Jesus was with the Disciples, He made it clear that the salvation He offered was not just meant for the Jews. It was meant for everyone!
Some of the Jewish leaders believed that for someone to receive the gift of salvation from Jesus, they had to follow the law of the Torah and become a Jew first. Peter, James and Paul all disagreed with this. Based on their firsthand knowledge of Jesus’ teachings, they told the leaders that the salvation that Jesus offered was offered to everyone who believed and that no works were necessary for salvation! The group that gathered in Jerusalem all agreed and began to teach Jews and Gentiles (non-Greeks) the good news of salvation that comes by faith alone!
Application/Prayer:
Thank God for sending Jesus to save EVERYONE who believes! Is there someone in your life who needs to hear this good news? Ask God to open your eyes to the people around you who need to hear about Jesus. Be bold and share your faith in Jesus with them today.
November Memory Verse:
“The grass withers, the flowers fade, but the word of our God remains forever.”
Using the daily reading prompts from George H. Guthrie’s Read the Bible for Life, here’s how to use this devotional:
- Bring your Bible! Your kids need to see that everything you are reading to them or learning about comes from an actual Bible!
- Each day starts with a reading prompt. Read the selection as a family. If your kids are readers, encourage them to read along with you.
- After you’ve read the passage, read the short devotional thought that goes along with each passage.
- Prayer and application are important any time we read God’s word! After each devotional, there is a challenge to help apply what your family has read that day.
- There is a reading for six days of the week. The last reading of the week is a Gospel Conversation Prompt to help you connect the reading from the week with God’s plan for salvation.
Other Resources:
November memory verse coloring sheet
November Fill-in the blank activity