The Holy Spirit Guides the Apostles
New Testament 5
Weekly Bulletin Notes
Help parents and others stay connected to your Sunday School with these weekly bulletin summaries of the Bible lesson for the week. An electronic version for placement in your church bulletin is also available online: cph.org/sundayschool. 

Lesson 1
Today’s Sunday School lesson taught the children that at Pentecost, God sent the Holy Spirit to His Church (Acts 2:1–21). Now, through Word and Sacrament, God gives us His Holy Spirit to create and sustain saving faith in Jesus. Ask the children to tell you about what happened at Pentecost. Ask them when they received the Holy Spirit (in Baptism). 

Lesson 2
In Sunday School today, the children learned how each of us is like the lame beggar as we stand before God (Acts 3). Yet through the Means of Grace, God’s Word and Sacraments, God bestows on us what Christ accomplished on the cross: forgiveness of sins. In your family discussions, talk about what it means to have the “forgiveness of sins.”

Lesson 3
In learning the story of Stephen (Acts 6–7), the first martyr, the children in Sunday School learned how we are crushed by and enraged at the accusations of God’s Law, but the Gospel comes to bring peace and quietness with the forgiveness of our sins. Talk with your children and point out that in church we hear from the pastor the same Word of God that Stephen preached: “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.”

Lesson 4
In Sunday School today, the children learned that as Jesus came to the Ethiopian (Acts 8:26–40), He comes to us in our weakness, for we cannot by our own reason or strength come to Him. In your family faith talks, discuss how the Holy Spirit calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies us, keeping us with Jesus Christ in the one true faith.

Lesson 5
Today in Sunday School, the children studied “The Conversion of Paul” and learned that as God did with Paul, so God does with us. Through the Law, we are crushed by the weight of our sin and are helpless. As God revived Paul through Ananias (Acts 9:1–31), He revives us through our pastors with the proclamation of His Word and the administration of His Sacraments granting forgiveness, life, and salvation to all who believe. Talk to your children about how the Sacraments and God’s Word revive you so that you may live as God’s child.

Lesson 6
Today, the Sunday School lesson focuses on Acts 9:36–43, the story of Dorcas. Discuss how Dorcas used her gifts and talents to support the mission of the Early Church. Who would you consider a Dorcas in your congregation?  

Lesson 7
In Sunday School, the children learned the story of Peter and Cornelius (Acts 10) and how the Good News comes to us as it did to them. Talk about how in church we receive the Good News that, although we are judged unrighteous and deserving of death, God mercifully declares us holy, righteous, and innocent because of Christ. “What does this mean for our daily lives?” is a good question to discuss as a family.

Lesson 8
As it was for Peter, so it is for us is the message of today’s Sunday School lesson (Acts 12). The Word of God is never proclaimed in vain. Though we suffer because of the sin of others, God’s will is done. Talk with your children about modern-day persecution of the Church of God and how, even in the midst of persecution, God sustains and increases His Church. How does God’s Word break through the chains of our sin and the suffering it causes?

Lesson 9
In Sunday School today, students learn the story of “Paul’s First Missionary Journey.” Just as God sent Paul and Barnabas to spread the Gospel, so today He sends pastors to preach the Gospel, baptize, and feed Jesus’ body and blood to His children, against whom the gates of hell cannot prevail. Consider discussing, “Who gave Paul directions on where to travel? What was Paul’s message?”

Lesson 10
The story of “Paul and Timothy” serves as the focus of Sunday School today. Just as many in Paul’s day thought, we think we must do something to be saved. Yet the answer is always Jesus, Jesus, only Jesus, whose resurrection from the dead sealed our salvation and absolved the world. Questions for discussion include “How are you like Timothy?” and “How are we saved from our sin?”

Lesson 11
The Sunday School students study the story of “Lydia” today. Just as God worked His miracle beside the river, clothing Lydia with Christ in Baptism, so God works His miracles in pulpits and fonts around the world today, destroying the work of Satan, ripping believers from the jaws of death, washing away sins in water tinged with Jesus’ blood, and clothing believers with His righteousness. Parents could ask, “How did God use water to save Lydia and us? Who does God use to reveal His Word to us today?”

Lesson 12
The account of “Paul and Silas in Prison” serves as the focus of Sunday School today. Just as God freed Paul and Silas from prison, granting them life out of death, so Christ by His crucifixion and resurrection frees me from the prison of my sins and grants me life eternal. Questions for discussion include “How is this event more than just a story about Paul’s escape from prison?” and “How has God rescued us from the prison of sin?”

Lesson 13
Today, the Sunday School students study the account “Paul Sails for Rome.” As Christ was with Paul and His companions, so He is with me, holding me up, keeping me with Him in the ship of the Church, and casting all my sins into the depths of the sea. Parents could ask, “Who and what did God use to keep Paul safe? How does God keep us safely with Him?”

Cross Explorations® NT5 Director CD © 2017 Concordia Publishing House. Scripture: ESV®. Reproduced by permission.