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Summer 2026: The Testimony of Faithful Witnesses
Unit 3: Faithful Witnesses Spread the Good News

This quarter will look at the examples of faithful witnesses from Scripture. These were people who heard the call of God, responded in faith, and testified to God’s mercy and fidelity to his promises through their words and deeds.

Faithful Witnesses Spread the Good News
The gospel spreads through the work of faithful witnesses. Stephen, the first martyr, serves God even in death (Acts 6:7–10, 7:54–60; see lesson 10). His boldness in proclaiming the message leads to the scattering of faithful witnesses throughout the region, enabling the gospel to disperse further.
After approving Stephen’s execution, Saul encounters the resurrected Christ (Acts 22:3–15; see lesson 11). This experience transforms him into the faithful apostle we now call “Paul.” He becomes a witness, sharing his firsthand experience with Christ Jesus. One of the recipients of Paul’s message is Lydia, a seller of purple cloth and a worshiper of God. After responding to Paul’s message, she is baptized and demonstrates hospitality as her own faithful witness (Acts 16:11–15, 40; see lesson 13).
Paul’s ministry also involves training and equipping others to proclaim the gospel. He encourages Timothy to remember the “gift of God” and the promises of Scripture that Timothy received from his mother and grandmother—promises that make one “wise” for salvation (2 Timothy 1:1–6; 3:14–16; see lesson 12).
Though the circumstances surrounding the commitments of these witnesses vary, their stories inspire us to trust and follow the way of Christ.

Lesson 9 Thomas, the Hesitant Believer John 11:14–16; 14:5–8; 20:24–29; 21:1–2
Tradition has labeled Thomas as a pessimist and skeptic. The Gospel of John refers to Thomas as “Didymus” three times (John 11:16; 20:24; 21:2). All these texts are under consideration in today’s lesson. Scholars have commented on this designation, which literally means “twin,” as meaning “double,” like “double-minded.” This interpretation has led to the conceptualization of Thomas as a doubter.
The reputation is not entirely fair, however, as it presupposes that Thomas’s questions and requests for evidence were extreme or his disbelief was unwarranted. The disciples had no idea that Jesus would return to life. Thomas’s desire for proof did not make him a “typical skeptic” because he alone, among the other disciples, had yet to see Jesus.

Lesson 10 Stephen, the Unwavering Martyr. Acts 6:7–10; 7:54–60
The book of Acts begins the story of the earliest church by focusing on its development within Jerusalem. The theme of “witnesses” in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8) is like of a “Table of Contents” for Acts as it sketches the birth of the church. The narrative starts with events on the Day of Pentecost (2:1–41). Predominant in the account is the divine power behind the dynamic Jerusalem fellowship. The church increased in number from only about 120 believers to more than 3,000 in a single day (compare 1:15; 2:41).
The number of believers in Jerusalem continued to increase over the weeks and months after Pentecost (Acts 2:47b; 5:14; 6:1). The expanding number of believers led them to develop habits for their gatherings and expectations for how they would treat each other (2:42–47a; 4:32–35). During that time, almost all followers of Jesus were of Jewish heritage. However, not all had the same cultural upbringing. Some had adopted elements of Greek culture while living in the Greek-speaking (Hellenistic) portions of the Roman Empire (compare 9:29), while others lived in Jewish regions of Palestine. The distinction between Grecian Jews and Hebraic Jews was revealed in a conflict regarding the treatment of widows (6:1).
To resolve conflict, the Twelve selected seven men “full of the Spirit and wisdom” to handle food distribution to the needy. These men included Stephen (Acts 6:3–5).

Lesson 11 Saul of Tarsus, the Unlikely Apostle. Acts 22:3–15
In about AD 58, at the end of his third missionary journey, Paul returned to Jerusalem for the final time (Acts 21:17). The centerpiece of that third missionary trip was his lengthy ministry in Ephesus (19:1, 8–10; 20:31), a stay marked by no little controversy. His forebodings and those of others did not indicate that his visit to Jerusalem would be any less controversial—quite the opposite, in fact (20:17–38; 21:4, 10–14). But Paul made the trip anyway.
Upon his arrival, Paul met with leaders of the Jerusalem church and reported on his ministry (Acts 21:17–19). Those leaders also warned Paul of the danger his presence posed (21:20–24). When that danger materialized, Paul was arrested on a false charge of defiling the temple (21:27). Had it not been for the presence of Roman troops to restore order, Paul probably would have been killed right then and there (21:30–36). After being rescued, Paul then surprisingly asked to address the mob that had just tried to kill him. The Roman commander gave permission (21:40–22:2), and that’s where our lesson text opens.

Lesson 12 Timothy, a Leader with a Legacy. 2 Timothy 1:1–6; 3:14–16
Paul
The persecutor-turned-apostle Paul is responsible for writing a large percentage of the New Testament epistles. He wrote letters to churches and individuals. “Writing” is a flexible term for an era without mail service, widespread literacy, or inexpensive paper. Several of his letters list coauthors: Sosthenes (1 Corinthians 1:1); Timothy (2 Corinthians 1:1; Philippians 1:1; Colossians 1:1; Philemon1:1); and Silas together with Timothy (1 Thessalonians 1:1; 2 Thessalonians 1:1). Paul also employed the help of specialized scribes, perhaps relying heavily upon them when he was confined in Rome. The writing secretary (called an amanuensis in Latin) sometimes carried the letter to its destination, delivering and interpreting the contents. For example, see the commendation of Tychicus in Ephesians 6:21 and Colossians 4:7. As far as we know, Paul had no children and never married. He had a sister and nephew (Acts 23:16), so he was an uncle. Scripture gives us little information about Paul’s parents, but we know he received high-level religious education, learned tent-making as a trade, and was a Roman citizen. We know he studied under the famous rabbi, Gamaliel, in Jerusalem (Acts 22:3). Paul’s relationship with Gamaliel as a spiritual father may have influenced his decision to consider Timothy as a son in the faith (1 Timothy 1:2).
Since Paul’s production of letters involved Timothy to a large degree and he thought of Timothy like a son, it is fitting that Paul would write to him when they were apart. Even as Paul endured imprisonment in Rome and his day of martyrdom drew near (around AD 67), he continued planning correspondences. Paul wrote two letters to Timothy while the younger man served as a pastor in Ephesus. Through them, he offered guidance, reassurance, and encouragement. Eventually, Paul requested that Timothy visit him in Rome and “bring . . . the scrolls [and] especially the parchments” (2 Timothy 4:9, 13). In some ways, 2 Timothy reads like a last will and testament, sent from a spiritual father to a spiritual son (4:6; compare Philippians 2:22). As any father would, Paul wished to see Timothy again before he died.

Timothy
Though Timothy is often perceived as a youth, he was approximately 40 years old when he received Paul’s second letter. Paul first met Timothy while traveling through Lystra (Acts 16:1–3). According to Acts 16:1, Timothy’s mother was Jewish, but his father was Greek. Strict Jews considered such a relationship dangerous and sometimes even sinful (compare Nehemiah 13:23–27; Ezra 9:1–10:44). Greek culture placed fathers as the head of the household (paterfamilias), and therefore, the one responsible for decisions regarding matters of religion. Timothy’s Greek paternity is evident in his lack of circumcision, which, as a Jew, should have occurred on the eighth day of his life (Acts 16:3; Leviticus 12:3). However, Timothy possessed some education in Jewish faith by way of his mother and grandmother (2 Timothy 1:5). Much of Timothy’s further ministry education and training came from the time he spent with Paul while they served as missionaries planting churches across Macedonia.

Lesson 13 Lydia, the Generous Hostess. Acts 16:11–15, 40
Beginning in Acts 13:1, the book of Acts focuses on the missionary travels of the apostle Paul. The church in Antioch commissioned Paul and Barnabas to carry the gospel beyond that Syrian city to the regions of Cyprus (a large island), Pisidia, Pamphylia, and Galatia. We often refer to this as Paul’s first missionary journey (Acts 13:1–14:28). On the next missionary journey (Acts 15:36–18:22), Paul and Silas visited the previous locations but also pushed farther west toward Roman Asia. This expedition was almost blown apart at the outset when Paul and Barnabas had a tense disagreement over the advisability of taking along John Mark, a relative of Barnabas (Colossians 4:10). Therefore, they divided into two teams: Barnabas and John Mark returned to the island of Cyprus (Acts 15:39), the home territory of Barnabas (4:36), while Paul recruited Silas, a respected church leader (15:22), to accompany him (15:40–41).
Paul then traveled to Lystra, where he met with Timothy and invited him to join the missionary journey (Acts 16:1–5). Paul and his companions then traveled through the regions of Phrygia and Galatia. They reached the port city of Troas, located at the northern end of the Aegean Sea, where Paul received a vision of an unknown man from Macedonia who invited the apostle to come to that region (16:8–10). It is at this point in Paul’s second missionary journey that we arrive at today’s lesson. The year is around AD 50, and it has been some 15 years since Paul’s encounter with the resurrected Christ (see lesson 11).

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What if Jesus wrote a letter to your church? This eight-session Bible Study helps us engage with the words of Jesus in the seven letters to the seven churches in Revelation.

Studying this Scripture allows us to ask some hard questions — of ourselves, of our leaders, and of the Lord. Jesus is pointedly honest with us. Whether we respond with a yawn or with a renewed pursuit of obedience is up to us

This bible study will run from 7/22/2026 – 9/9/2026