LESSON 5 1/1/2023

THE CHURCH INCREASE IN POWER AND NUMBER

Suggested Hymns: G. H. B. 154, 155
Devotional Reading: Acts 3:11-26
Topic For Adults: Power to Grow the Church is Still Available
Topic For Youths: God Depends on You to Grow His Church
Topic For Intermediates: You too Can Grow In Power
Lesson Scriptures: Acts 2:41-47; 3:11-26; 4:1-4; 6:1-7; 1 Cor. 2:2; Ez 37:1-14

MEMORY VERSE: “Then the word of God spread, and the number of the disciples multiplied
greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were obedient to the faith”
(Acts 6:7) NKJV.

DAILY DEVOTIONAL READING

MON. 26/12/2022 GENUINE REVIVAL: CATALYST FOR CHURCH GROWTH ACTS 2:41-47
Revival is the spiritual reawakening from a state of dormancy or stagnation in the life of a
believer. When it happens, the love and fear of God are rekindled either in the life of an
individual or group of individuals. Love for God, His word and His work are vividly evident
to everyone. Passion for soul winning and love for sinners eventually bring about spiritual
and numerical growth. Revival most times, begins with an individual and then spreads to
others. When it happens genuinely, several souls are won to the kingdom of God. The reason
why there is lukewarmness in the church today is because the fire of revival has not been
kindled. If the church must grow, then, we need to pray for a repeat of genuine revival today
as it happened in the book of Acts where souls were added to the church on a daily basis. The
vision of the revival of dead bones in Ezekiel 37 is an indication that no life is too dead to be
revived.
POINT OF EMPHASIS: Fire of revival can start with you and spread to others.
PRAYER POINT: O Lord, kindle the fire of revival once again both in our individual lives and
in the church in Jesus’ name.
Reading The Bible Through in a Year: Morning: Acts 1; Evening: Judg. 19-21

TUE. 27/12/2022 OCCULTIC POWER BOWS ACTS 19:11-19

When revival takes place, different people of different background are brought to God. Old
and sinful lifestyle will be dropped as the scripture says; “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new
creation; old things are passed away; behold, all things have become new.” Occultic power will not
only bow but must surrender to the Lordship of Jesus. Some may want to either test their
powers or hurt the believers but they will always meet their waterloo. This will lead to the
conversion of their souls and the surrendering of their evil charms. The occurrence in today’s
text still happens today. We should be encouraged that the power of God is superior to the
power of the devil. Anyone who is still involved in diabolical practices should know that if
they refuse to repent, they will end up in hell.
POINT OF EMPHASIS: You cannot combine diabolical practices with holiness
PRAYER POINT: Lord, deliver as many as are still involved in occultic practices by mercy in
Jesus’ name.
Reading The Bible Through in a Year: Morning: Acts 2; Evening: Ruth. 1-2

WED. 28/12/2022 GOD’S WORD IMPACT MIGHTILY ACTS 17:10-12; 1 PET 2:2
The impacts of the word of God in the life of a believer and the church cannot be
overemphasized. As a matter of fact, as believers, the word of God is our compass and manual
for living. The word of God is useful for our doctrine, rebuke, correction and instruction. It is
what determines how we will grow and if we will please God by doing His will. We know
God’s will and God’s mind by studying the scriptures. The Berea brethren could not be tossed
to and fro by every wind of doctrine. They searched the scriptures daily to ensure what they
were taught were correct. Many people fall into errors because they assume their teachers and
pastors cannot err when it comes to the word of God. Each believer must make it his or her
personal responsibility to daily study, meditate on and obey the word of God. This should be
the correct attitude of every believer. The sincere word of God should influence every aspect
of our lives.

POINT OF EMPHASIS: Let the sincere word be the bases of your daily living.
PRAYER POINT: Lord, help me not to deviate from Your word; let it be my manual and
compass in Jesus’ name.
Reading The Bible Through in a Year: Morning: Acts 3; Evening: Ruth. 3-4

THUR. 29/12/2022 HEALTHY CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY ATTRACTS ACTS 11:13-22

One of the beautiful things believers enjoy is healthy Christian Community. A healthy
community is one where both the spiritual and physical needs of believers are met. No aspect
of our lives is neglected to suffer. We are both heavenly conscious and at the same time
relevant to the plan and agenda of God as long as we live. This kind of community does not
only benefit believers, it attracts unbelievers to be part of the community. Little efforts put
into evangelism will yield bountiful fruits for the kingdom of God. Our local assemblies and
denominations need to re-examine the kind of communities we are building. Is it the one that
attracts or repels sinners from Christ? Attitude of love must replace condemnation; sinners
must feel the love of God among the brethren. This was practised in the book of Acts and
resulted in bountiful fruitfulness. The same result can be experienced today if the conditions
are the same.
POINT OF EMPHASIS: To attract sinners, we must make our community conducive and
attractive to them.
PRAYER POINT: Lord, help us to get rid of everything that is repelling sinners from coming to
Christ in Jesus’ name.
Reading The Bible Through in a Year: Morning: Acts 4; Evening: 1 Sam. 1-2
FRI. 30/12/2022 SINCERE REPENTANCE GROWS THE CHURCH ACTS 16:25-34
Repentance is a sincere turning away from old ways to new ones. It is turning away from evil
to good; from sin to righteousness. No one becomes part of the church (the Body of Christ)
without repentance. It is the first step to becoming a member of the Body of Christ. Through
Peter’s impromptu message on the Day of Pentecost, about 3,000 souls were added to the
church. In today’s text, the keeper of the jail and his family, having seen the miracle that was
done, repented and gave their lives to Jesus. Until a man repents of his sinful life, he is not
part of the Body of Christ no matter how long he stays in the church. If the word of God is
adequately and genuinely preached, people will genuinely give their lives to Jesus and become
part of the Body of Christ.
POINT OF EMPHASIS: Until a man repents of his sinful life (past and present), he is not part of
the Body of Christ.
PRAYER POINT: Lord, we intercede for as many as are yet to know You, reveal Yourself to
them so that they can repent and belong to You in Jesus’ name.
Reading The Bible Through in a Year: Morning: Acts 5; Evening: 1 Sam. 3-4

SAT. 31/12/2022CHRISTOCENTRIC MESSAGE GROWS THE CHURCH ACTS 8:4-8; 1 COR. 2:2
There is no other message given to us besides the message of Jesus. Jesus is not only our
message, He is the Good News. The only need that is common to all men - poor, rich,
educated, illiterate, young, old, male and female -is salvation. If people must genuinely repent,
we must preach correct message. It is only when sinners repent that they are added to the
church and no one can be saved unless the gospel is correctly preached to him. Motivational
messages, prosperity message etc. will only produce worldlings Christians. Paul’s declaration
and other disciples gave examples of this by teaching and preaching only one message – Jesus
Christ. If we want to record the same result as they did, we must preach who they preached.
POINT OF EMPHASIS: Jesus is the only message that can genuinely grow the church.
PRAYER POINT: Lord, help us not to be distracted from preaching only You to the world in
Jesus’ name
Reading The Bible Through in a Year: Morning: Acts 6; Evening: 1 Sam. 5-6

SUN. 1/1/2023 OBEDIENCE: VITAL IN THE CHURCH ACTS 26:12-29

Obedience to the word of God is most important for every believer. The reason for teaching,
preaching, reading, studying, and meditating on the word of God is so that we can obey God’s
word. Also, when God speaks to us through any means, it is so that we can obey Him. God’s
blessing only rests on those who obey His word. It is not only individuals that are blessed
when we obey, the church is also blessed. Paul’s obedience first ensured he was saved and
then several others were and are still being saved through his life and ministry. Only God can
account for how many souls have been affected by his life and ministry just because he
obeyed. Though obedience could be painful and difficult sometimes, when we hearken, our
lives, families and the church benefit immensely.
POINT OF EMPHASIS: No matter how difficult and painful, it is always rewarding to obey.
PRAYER POINT: Lord, in Jesus’ name help me to obey you in all things no matter how difficult
.
Reading The Bible Through in a Year: Morning: Acts 7:1-36; Evening: 1 Sam. 7-8
 BACKGROUND
When Jesus founded His church in Matt 16:18, His declaration was that the gates of Hades
shall not prevail against it. This means no matter the opposition, the church will remain, grow
and fulfil God’s purpose. The church has suffered several onslaughts from the gates of Hades
but despite that, it has remained undefeated. Spiritual and physical growth have been recorded
in various dimensions. Many who were in chains and bondage have been liberated and
translated into the kingdom of God. Souls are being saved on a daily basis in rural and urban
centers of the world. If believers of today learn from the written examples given to us in the
scriptures, we can achieve much more for the kingdom of God.

NOTES ON THE LESSON

PART 1: EFFECTS OF GENUINE REVIVAL - ACTS 2:41-43; EZEK. 37:1-14
Revival is the restoration or recovery of life that was hitherto dormant or dead. It also
means to bring again into activity and prominence things that have previously lost their
relevance. A typical example of revival was recorded in the book of Ezekiel when the Lord
made dry, dead bones to become His mighty army. God does not abandon or discard His
people easily no matter their level of dormancy. He has plans to restore them to full fitness in
order to use them. Any sinner saved has simply been revived as we all were previously in
good relationship and fellowship with God before we lost it in the Garden of Eden in the loins
of Adam and Eve.
In Acts chapter 2, thousands of souls were added to the Body of Christ. These were lives
that had been previously lost to all manner of idolatrous and sinful acts. Through a simple
message preached by Peter, these souls became converted. It is interesting to note that many
of them became pillars in the Body of Christ. Stephen, Phillip and the other deacons were
part of the souls saved through Apostles of the early church. Paul, Barnabas, and Silas were
also saved and became mighty in the hands of the Lord. We may not realize the long term
effects of what saving a soul mean initially until later. First, it has reduced the vessels available
to the devil and at the same time increased the number of soldiers available to the Lord
God still counts on us to revive those dormant or “dead” lives to increase His soldier base.
Just as no situation is too bad to be revived, the same way, no life, marriage, ministry or
church is too dead to be revived. Our individual and corporate efforts must be targeted at
souls to ensure they are not lost. Individuals too can be encouraged not to give up on
themselves no matter how bad their spiritual life might have been. Backsliders, no matter how
long, can still be welcomed just like the proverbial Prodigal Son in the scriptures

PART 2: HEALTHY CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY PROMOTES GROWTH - ACTS

2:42-47; 6:1-7
The physical community or family determines how healthy the lives of people who grow
therein are. A child who grows in crowded, rough and crime prone community cannot have
the same upbringing with a child who grows in a well-organized community. This is because
they are exposed to different background and lifestyle. It is the same way it is in the Christian
community. It is the other way round i.e. Ths spiritual environment of each believer has a lot
to do with healthy spiritual growth. This is one of the reasons some believers grow better and
faster than others.
 A healthy community is one that gives room for each believer to have balanced growth. In
our text, the Apostles ensured the following among the brethren; (1). The Apostle’s doctrine
– the Apostles taught the sound, undiluted word that members needed (2). Fellowship – there
were regularly meetings for members to learn, worship God and enjoy one another. (3). There
was the breaking of bread from house to house. There was sharing of food with one another
and from house to house. (4). Regular prayer meetings were held among them to build their
faith and communion with the Father. (5). There was no segregation of any kind among them.
(6). Physical needs (welfare) of people were taken care of. (7). There was unity among the
brethren. In order to maintain this healthy environment, deacons were chosen (Acts 6:1-7) to
balance both the spiritual and physical needs of the brethren.
God’s idea of the church is to provide an enabling environment for each believer to grow
properly just like each part of our body grows as a unit. No one is born and saved to be idle.
What growth does is to enable each person to take his place and function properly in the Body
of Christ. The healthy environment in the book of Acts enabled disciples like Barnabas, Silas,
Paul, and Apollos among others to rise and function effectively. It is the responsibility of each
local assembly and denomination to ensure each of its members have access to all that can
help them to grow and be who God has called them to be.

PART 3: UNDILUTED MESSAGE BASED ON CHRIST GROWS THE CHURCH -

ACTS 3:11-26; 4:1-4; 1 Cor. 2:2
The miracle recorded in Acts 3:1-10 drew a crowd to Peter and John. They assumed these
men were extraordinary by performing this miracle. This is the same way miracles attract
people today. Peter and John ensured that they used this opportunity to share the Good News.
This way, they avoided being worshipped as gods. No matter what God does through our
lives and ministries, attention must not be on us or our local assembly but we must use these
opportunities to preach Jesus. Occurrences of miracles and signs are opportunities to preach
Christ and win souls. Miracles that do not lead to soul winning are useless. The miracle of
that day led to addition of thousands of souls to the church.
In 1 Cor. 2:2, Paul declared that he determined to know nothing among the Corinthians
except Jesus. To the Colossians he said, “Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every
man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus” (Col 1:28-29). Just like
Paul, our labour must be to see only Christ preached. When this is done, we will experience
the same result they experienced. The truth is, if Christ is not preached, we cannot expect
perfection, maturity and genuine growth in our local assemblies and denominations
We must realize that the Gospel message is all about Jesus, not prosperity, miracle,
breakthrough, killing of enemy as many preach today. Motivational preaching and all forms
of entertainment will not save anyone; it will only make us to be more worldly by the day.
Jesus commandment to His disciples was to make other disciples and teach what He had
taught them (Matt 28:18-19). We must focus on the life and teachings of Jesus. Jesus is both
the teacher (Matt. 11:29) and the curriculum (Eph. 4:20) for every believer. This means
whatever Jesus did not teach is secondary to our growth as believers.

CONCLUSION
It is the will of God that the church should grow but if it must grow, it is definitely not
going to grow automatically. The early church grew by the individual and collective
responsibility of the believers. Every ingredient needed for our growth has been provided and
this is evident by the experiences of the earlier believers. Their efforts are the reasons the
church still exists today and if the next generation will live as believers in their generation,
we, the present believers must play our roles effectively. The church in our days must grow
both spiritually and numerically to destroy the gates of Hades.

QUESTIONS
1. In what way is revival relevant to the growth of the church today?
2. Mention various practical ways by which the Christian Community can attract several
sinners in our contemporary days.
3. How does the church directly or indirectly repel sinners today and how can we guard
against it?
4. How does preaching only Christ help the church?
5. What are the factors that prevent preaching Christ alone on our pulpit today?