Small Group Guide: Week of 11/2
To view this guide as a PDF, click here.
Acts of the Spirit: Faithfulness When the System is Broken
Acts 25:1-22 (CEB)
Three days after arriving in the province, Festus went up to Jerusalem from Caesarea. 2 The chief priests and Jewish leaders presented their case against Paul. Appealing to him, 3 they asked as a favor from Festus that he summon Paul to Jerusalem. They were planning to ambush and kill him along the way. 4 But Festus responded by keeping Paul in Caesarea, since he was to return there very soon himself. 5 “Some of your leaders can come down with me,” he said. “If he’s done anything wrong, they can bring charges against him.”
6 He stayed with them for no more than eight or ten days, then went down to Caesarea. The following day he took his seat in the court and ordered that Paul be brought in. 7 When he arrived, many Jews who had come down from Jerusalem surrounded him. They brought serious charges against him, but they couldn’t prove them. 8 In his own defense, Paul said, “I’ve done nothing wrong against the Jewish Law, against the temple, or against Caesar.”
9 Festus, wanting to put the Jews in his debt, asked Paul, “Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem to stand trial before me concerning these things?”
10 Paul replied, “I’m standing before Caesar’s court. I ought to be tried here. I have done nothing wrong to the Jews, as you well know. 11 If I’m guilty and have done something that deserves death, then I won’t try to avoid death. But if there is nothing to their accusations against me, no one has the authority to hand me over to them. I appeal to Caesar!”
12 After Festus conferred with his advisors, he responded, “You have appealed to Caesar. To Caesar you will go.”
13 After several days had passed, King Agrippa and Bernice arrived in Caesarea to welcome Festus. 14 Since they were staying there for many days, Festus discussed the case against Paul with the king. He said, “There is a man whom Felix left in prison. 15 When I was in Jerusalem, the Jewish chief priests and elders brought charges against him and requested a guilty verdict in his case. 16 I told them it is contrary to Roman practice to hand someone over before they have faced their accusers and had opportunity to offer a defense against the charges. 17 When they came here, I didn’t put them off. The very next day I took my seat in the court and ordered that the man be brought before me. 18 When the accusers took the floor, they didn’t charge him with any of the crimes I had expected. 19 Instead, they quibbled with him about their own religion and about some dead man named Jesus, who Paul claimed was alive. 20 Since I had no idea how to investigate these matters, I asked if he would be willing to go to Jerusalem to stand trial there on these issues. 21 However, Paul appealed that he be held in custody pending a decision from His Majesty the emperor, so I ordered that he be held until I could send him to Caesar.”
22 Agrippa said to Festus, “I want to hear the man myself.”
“Tomorrow,” Festus replied, “you will hear him.”
Opening Discussion
Introductions & check-in
Introductions: If you have new folks, do a round of name intros.
Icebreaker suggestion: What’s your favorite sandwich and why?
High/Low exercise
Go around the group giving each member a chance to share highs and lows. Feel free to use a different check-in structure if helpful.
Additionally or alternatively, you can invite the group to share a word or phrase to describe how they’re coming into the group this week.
Community Care
Share any established community care practices, expectations, or discussion guidelines. Consider inviting the group into conversation, asking for feedback or additional suggestions. (Find more on community care practices here.)
Digging Deeper
This Week’s Sermon
Consider reading this week’s text aloud. (Options: listen to it read aloud on an app/YouTube; one person in the group reads; each person in the group reads a section or a few verses).
From Sunday’s sermon:
What resonated with you? What comforted/challenged you?
Did you learn something new?
What image, story, or line from the sermon stayed with you most and why?
Truth-Telling and Faithfulness: We’ve seen a theme of truth-telling in the last couple of chaters. In Acts 25, Paul keeps speaking the truth even when it doesn’t seem to change anything.
Where in your life—or in our world—do you sense God inviting you to tell the truth?
What might it look like to tell that truth “wise as serpents and innocent as doves,” with both courage and compassion?
Faithfulness and Power: Paul uses his Roman citizenship to appeal to Caesar—not because Caesar is good, but because he trusts God’s purpose.
What “privileges,” “access,” or “resources” do you have that could be used for good?
How might God be inviting you to steward those things differently?
Desperate Citizenship: Willie Jennings writes that disciples should be “desperate citizens”—hungry for God’s kingdom and unwilling to settle for empire’s promises.
What does “desperate citizenship” look like in your life right now?
Where do you feel called to “press against captivity” in your city, workplace, or community?
Learning from Modern Witnesses: Bryan Stevenson, Jerry Mitchell, and Tish Taylor each model faithfulness in different ways—truth-telling, advocacy, and endurance.
Which of their stories resonates most with you?
What might their example invite you to do or pray about this week?
Faithfulness in Small, Steady Steps: Bob Moses said, “Do what you think needs to be done, set an example, and hope your actions will click with someone else.”
What’s one small, concrete act of faithfulness you can take this week—in your neighborhood, your relationships, or your church community?
Prayer
Praying for one another regularly is an essential part of small groups. You’re welcome to design your gathering however you’d like, but encourage you to include prayer time each week.
Prayer Requests
Give the group a chance to share prayer requests. If it’s helpful, utilize categories like praises/requests.
Spend time praying for one another and the requests made.
Depending on the group size, it can be helpful to break into smaller groups to share requests and pray for one another.
Some groups use prayer partners throughout a semester.
Community Updates
Upcoming Events
Men’s Prayer Breakfast - Saturday, November 8 at 9:30a
All Christ City guys are invited to share a breakfast together, get to know other CCC men, and pray together on Saturday, November 8 at 9:30a. Sign up at go.christcitydc.org/cccmen.
ABI/DE Training - Sunday, November 9 from 2-4p
Christ City is hosting a virtual Active Bystander Intervention and De-escalation Training with the DC Peace Team. We wanted to provide an opportunity to practically help us live out our call to love our neighbors—not just in words, but in action—by learning ways to respond to tension or harm with courage, compassion, and wisdom. The training will also include guidance on how to engage safely and nonviolently with law enforcement officers, including ICE. Space is limited to 25 participants, so if you’d like to join, please sign up today: go.christcitydc.org/bystander
Christmas Choir - Rehearsals starting Sunday, November 9
Join the Christ City Christmas choir! The holiday season is approaching and Christ City is looking for individuals who would like to participate in our Christmas Choir for our December 14 service. Previous choir experience is helpful, but not necessary! The first practice will be on 11/9, so please send a message to josh@christcitydc.org to request to join or receive more information.
Miner PTO
Christ City is working with Miner Elementary to provide childcare during their monthly Tuesday PTO meetings. This allows Miner parents to attend and be engaged at the school and in their child’s education.
We’re hoping small groups can mobilize to provide childcare from 5:45-7:30p. Christ City will provide craft materials and pizza! Once you choose a week with your group, sign up HERE.
Missional Grants
The vision behind Missional Grants is to provide funding for neighborhood outreach efforts that those within the Christ City Church community feel led to initiate, support, engage, or elevate. The aim of this is to spark a movement of neighbor and neighborhood blessing that emerges from within the Christ City Church family. We want to empower you - those that call Christ City home - to be agents of God’s Kingdom in your communities and neighborhoods and we see Missional Grants as a tool - not the only tool - but a tool for that.
If you want to
Host a block party or neighborhood cookout
Provide a meal, or needed items for a neighbor in need (elderly, new parents, etc).
Put together care packages for neighbors experiencing homelessness
Hold front porch concert with neighborhood musicians
Sponsor a neighborhood clean up / clean up along Anacostia Trail
Resource the local community garden
Support back to school needs for your children’s school
Or some other idea that the Spirit has been beckoning you towards…we want to encourage you to apply for a Missional Grant. Encourage those in your small group to consider what they can do in their community and have small groups serve together!
You can find a flyer with additional information and links to the application out on the hospitality table. And you can apply at: go.ChristCityDC.org/MissionalGrants.
