Quiz Meet This Weekend!

WHAT: Quiz Meet at Essex Fells, NJ
WHEN: Saturday, December 2, leaving the church at 7 AM
COST: $6 ($4 for pizza, $2 for gas)

This weekend we will be going to Essex Fells, NJ for a Quiz Meet. We're leaving the church at 7 AM and returning between 3 PM and 4 PM. We will be quizzing on Acts Chapter 1 thru 13.

PLEASE NOTE There is no Quiz Meet in Trumbull this year.

Health is not always happy

DID YOU KNOW: Feast of Unleavened Bread

Did you notice this little phrase in the middle of Acts 12?

When he saw that this pleased the Jews, he proceeded to seize Peter also. This happened during the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
Acts 12:3

The "Feast of Unleavened Bread" sounds awfully strange, but in actuality it is the Jewish holiday that these days is commonly referred to as "Passover". The Passover, you may recall, refers to when the Angel of Death passed over the Israelites in Egypt but killed all the Egyptian first-borns. This finally broke the will of the Pharoah and allowed the Israelites to leave slavery. But in their rush to escape Egypt there was not time to allow the bread to rise, and they had to flee with "unleavened" bread - bread without yeast, basically flat bread.

You may remember that Christ also died the day after the Passover meal. This means the events of Acts 12 happened on or about the anniversary of Christ's death and resurrection! The first Passover was freedom from Egypt, the second Passover was about freedom from Sin.

OFFICIAL Rock the Sound Photos

You have seen the pictures that we took at Rock the Sound. Now check out the OFFICIAL pictures that Rock the Sound has compiled! Click on the image below.

ANNOUNCEMENT: Quiz Team Christmas Party!

WHEN: December 15, 2006
WHERE: Calvary Evangelical Free Church
WHAT TO BRING: A Potluck Dish (contact Jim for specifics) & a $10 grab bag gift

This year, we are doing something a little something different. We will be having our Quiz Team Christmas party in the church (room to be annouced). On December 15 in the evening, we will be getting together to share a meal, have some fun, and do the usual Christmas Grab Bag Gift Game. Remember to bring a wrapped gift worth aproximately $10 that can be given to a guy or a girl. We will also be doing a potluck dinner so be thinking about what you may like to bring.

Technology and the Bible

Acts Chapter 12 Study Guide is ONLINE

You have given thanks and eaten your fill, so now it is time to digest and to start preparing for the next week of Quizzing. This week we are studying Acts Chapter 12 and ths study guide is already online and ready for your review. Click on over for a quick devotional by head coach Jim, and an outline to get you started on your understanding of this interesting and sometimes funny chapter.

DID YOU KNOW: The History of Thanksgiving

When we talk about Thanksgiving in school, there tends to be an impression left that we celebrate the holiday the same way it has been celebrated all the way back to the Pilgrims. But in reality, the modern celebration of Thanksgiving evolved very slowly and in many fits and starts.

"Thanksgiving" celebrations - celebrations where one gave thanks to God - were proclaimed in pre-Revolutionary times after various events, generally as harvest festivals to thank God for crops. During the Revolutionary War, first the Continental Congress began the practice of proclaiming a formal "Thanksgiving" and later George Washington proclaimed one for the troops to celebrate the victory at Saratoga. However, these celebrations could be in Spring, Winter, Summer, or any time that politics made one convenient. This practice was followed by the first presidents (Washington and Adams) and when the presidents stopped proclaiming it, most state governors took up the tradition by proclaiming days of thanks for their respective states. But again, few fell in Autumn and it was rare for two states to share the same date for thanksgiving.

It was only during the Civil War that President Lincoln, inspired by a series of editorials written by Sarah Josepha Hale, declared the last Thursday in November to be the national day of Thanksgiving. And later Franklin D. Roosevelt changed this to the next-to-last Thursday in November. Finally, to avoid confusion with various state calendars, Congress in 1941 declared the "fourth Thursday in November" would be the official day of Thanksgiving.

Who thought something as simple as giving thanks to God for the blessings of the nation would be so complicated to work out?

A Little Pre-Thanksgiving Humor

Happy Birthday, Matt!

From all of us here at QuizPad, a VERY happy birthday wish and prayer for Coach Matt!

Leave your birthday wish for Matt below in the comments, or over in the chat area.

Pictures from Saturday's Quiz Meet

For complete coverage of this past weekend's quiz meet, click on the image below!

Congratulations!

Congratulations to Quiz Team friends Russ and Renee Boronow on the birth of his first daughter! Russ was never on the team, but did design and print our black t-shirts and sweatshirts. And perhaps we can help him to convince his daughter - after a few years - to consider Bible quizzing in her future!

Pictures including Renee to come in the near future.

A History of Quiz Time

Every week we practice quiz with a red box and a set of pads. Have you ever wondered where they came from, and what their history may be? Well, Quiz Time has posted a history of the pads and their company. And it shows how even doing a small thing for God can lead to big things.

Don didn't realize it would become a business, since only YFC groups were quizzing. Then some church denominations began, and so did several schools. He made pretty much everything from scratch and almost single-handed (including sawing, gluing and covering the wood cases with red fabric), along with some help from his parents and sister. While Ibba continued teaching school another nine years, the Teenarena was built in 1968 next to their home. Quiz-O-Ramas were held one weekend before each monthly rally at the High School, and the top 20 quizzers then competed on stage.
Making the quiz boxes battery-operated was a wise decision, since they can be used indoors or outside, and no electrical adaptor is needed when used overseas.

Take a moment next time you're quizzing to think about all the people who worked to make it happen.

A Different Look at the Moses Story

Schedule Reminders: Saturday and Upcoming Practices

Parents and teens, Please keep these dates in mind!

Saturday, November 18:
Quiz Meet at Essex Fells!
We leave the church parking lot at 7 AM.
Bring $9 ($5 for gas, $4 for pizza lunch)
We'll be back at the church between 3 PM and 4 PM

Wednesday, November 22:
NO QUIZ PRACTICE!
Study Acts 1 - 5, and consider attending the Wednesday night family service

Wednesday, November 29:
Quiz Practices Resume. We will be quizzing on Acts 12

Saturday, December 2:
Quiz Meet at Essex Fells! (NOT in Trumbull)

Acts 11 Knowledge Quiz

Not sure if you are ready for practice tonight? Try out this quick knowledge test, and see if you really are or if you need a little more studying.

1. Who was Agabus?
a. One of the disciples who objected to Gentiles being converted
b. A prophet who from Jerusalem who came to Antioch
c. An angel who spoke to Peter
d. A witness to the stoning of Stephen

2. Fill in the blank: “So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the ________ believers criticized him.”
a. Uncircumcised
b. Angry
c. Jerusalem
d. Evangelical

3. How many “brothers” went with Peter to Caesarea?
a. Three
b. Five
c. Six
d. Ten

4. Fill in the blank: “Now those who had been scattered by the persecution in connection with Stephen traveled as far as ____________.”
a. Phoenicia
b. Cyprus
c. Antioch
d. All of the above

5. How many times did God tell Peter to eat?
a. Once
b. Twice
c. Three times
d. Four times

6. Fill in the blank: The disciples were called __________ first at Antioch.
a. Follows of The Way
b. Apostles
c. Uncircumcized
d. Christians

7. Situation Question: Who said it? "So then, God has granted even the Gentiles repentance unto life."
a. Peter said it
b. They (the circumcised believers)
c. They (the church at Antioch)
d. Barnabus

8. Then Barnabas went WHERE to look for Saul?
a. Antioch
b. Cyrene
c. Tarsus
d. Cyprus

9. FOUR PART ANSWER: I looked into it and saw WHAT?
a. Quadrapeds, untamed animals, lizards, and flying birds
b. Four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, reptiles, and birds of the air
c. Cattle, wolves, crocodiles, and storks
d. Four-footed animals of the earth, beasts, lizards, and flying creatures

10. What did Agabus prophesy about?
a. God would accept not only the circumcised but also uncircumcised believers into the kingdom of God
b. Saul would become the apostle for the Gentiles
c. A severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world
d. The disciples would be called Christians

Answer key: 1b, 2a, 3c, 4d, 5c, 6d, 7b, 8c, 9b, 10c

DID YOU KNOW: They were first called "Christians" at Antioch

"Christian" means "follower of Christ". So why did it take all the way until Acts 11 for anyone to call them by that name?

It is not obvious in the English, but Christ is actually a Greek word. The Hebrew (Jewish) word is "Messiah." Before Acts 10, all Christians were Jewish and considered themselves to be a sect of Judaism. Converts generally became circumcised and followed the Jewish Law. It was not until Peter's vision that it became clear that God had changed the rules, allowing all nations into his kingdom. Up until this time, tradition says that Jesus followers were actually called "Nazarenes" - referring to Jesus's home town of Nazareth. This reflects the Jewish scorn for the new faith - as Nazareth was generally viewed with scorn and therefore being called by that name was an insult.

Philip found Nathanael and told him, "We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph."
"Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?" Nathanael asked.
"Come and see," said Philip.
John 1:45-46 NIV

So, when the disciples started being called "Christians", it marks the time when Gentiles (who spoke Greek) started noticing that they existed. It is another mark of the transition from the religion of Jesus being Jewish to being a world-wide religion.

WHERE AM I: Antioch and "Christians"

Acts 11:19-20: Now those who had been scattered by the persecution in connection with Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus[1] and Antioch[3], telling the message only to Jews. Some of them, however, men from Cyprus[1] and Cyrene[2], went to Antioch[3] and began to speak to Greeks also...
Acts 11:25: Then Barnabas went to Tarsus[6] to look for Saul

Rock the Sound Pictures

Did you make it to Rock the Sound this past week? If not, you can capture a bit of the magic by clicking on the picture below to see the whole night from Mark's perspective!

Always Be Prepared

Happy Birthday, Darth Nader!!!

I don't catch all of these, but I am trying to catch those I can. If your birthday is coming up, drop me an e-mail!!!

Acts 11 Study Guide is ready for review

This week's study guide is up and ready for your review. This week's chapter is mostly a review of the events of Acts 10. But it allows us to better understand how the Christians of the time felt about the big changes. Do you understand why God did what He did? Do you think it was fair to the Jews of the time?

Improving Your Quizzing Performance

Our "pop quiz" knowledge test and the keyword quiz last night showed who had studied and who might benefit from some additional study time. If you did not achieve what you had hoped for, remember that there are LOTS of resources to help you improve!

First, for your keyword quizzing skills, you can either click here for a chapter-by-chapter list of keywords, or you can click here for an alphabetical list of once-used-words.

Second, remember the paper that is available to you from Jim and Michelina: the puzzle worksheets handed out each week and the list of questions for the previous week. If you do are missing any of these, talk to Jim or Michelina!

Third, for your general quizzing edification, remember that (1) the weekly study guide (Chapter 11s will be out tomorrow), (2) the Finish-the-Verse list and (3) the Reference Question List.

If you are still stumped on how to improve e-mail the coaches for more ideas.

FTVs in Acts 10

Finish the Verse: He saw // heaven opened and
something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners. It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, as well as reptiles of the earth and birds of the air. Then a voice told him, "Get up, Peter. Kill and eat." [Acts 10:11-13]

Finish the Verse: The voice // spoke to him
a second time, "Do not call anything impure that God has made clean." [Acts 10:15]

Finish the Verse: He said to them: "You //
are well aware that it is against our law for a Jew to associate with a Gentile or visit him. But God has shown me that I should not call any man impure or unclean. [Acts 10:28]

Finish the Verse: Then Peter began // to speak:
"I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts men from every nation who fear him and do what is right. [Acts 10:34-35]

Finish the Verse: You know // what has happened
throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached--how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him. [Acts 10:37-38]

Finish the Verse: We are // witnesses of everything
he did in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They killed him by hanging him on a tree, but God raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen. [Acts 10:39-40]

Finish the Verse: He was // not seen by
all the people, but by witnesses whom God had already chosen--by us who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. [Acts 10:41]

Finish the Verse: He commanded // us to preach
to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. [Acts 10:42]

Finish the Verse: All the prophets // testify about
him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name." [Acts 10:43]

Finish the Verse: The circumcised // believers who had
come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles. [Acts 10:45]

Reference Questions in Acts 10

Q: According to Acts 10:31, God has what?
A: Heard your prayer and remembered your gifts to the poor

Q: According to Acts 10:36, you know what?
A: You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, telling the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all

Q: According to Acts 10:37, you know what?
A: You know what has happened throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached

Q: According to Acts 10:39, we are witnesses of what?
A: Everything he did in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem (he/Jesus of Nazareth)

Q: According to Acts 10:42, he is what?
A: The one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead

Q: According to Acts 10:44, the Holy Spirit came on whom?
A: All who heard the message

Q: According to Acts 10:47, who received the Holy Spirit?
A: They - the Gentiles

DID YOU KNOW: Acts 10 and Kosher

In Acts 10, Peter has a vision having to do with food.

About noon the following day as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the roof to pray. He became hungry and wanted something to eat, and while the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance. He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners. It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, as well as reptiles of the earth and birds of the air. Then a voice told him, "Get up, Peter. Kill and eat."
"Surely not, Lord!" Peter replied. "I have never eaten anything impure or unclean."
The voice spoke to him a second time, "Do not call anything impure that God has made clean."
This happened three times, and immediately the sheet was taken back to heaven.
Acts 10:9-16

The logical question comes to mind, what is this all about? Why should God care what Peter is eating, and why should Peter care if God offers up an impromptu picnic?

In Old Testament Law, there were a number of rules and regulations about what a Jew can and can not eat. The law is called "Kosher" in English or Kashrut in Hebrew. This is a very strict set of guidelines which goes beyond something as simple as "Don't eat meat on Fridays." Shellfish could not be eaten, only animals with a split hood which also chews cud could be eaten, and the preparation of food was as important as the food itself. A proper animal improperly prepared was as unclean as an improper animal.

Why did God require these things of the Jews? Some aspects were clearly for their own protection, as they enforced hygiene and cleanliness in an age before soap. Some aspects were to make sure the Jews remained set apart from other peoples, so that they were always God's distinct people. And some were purely an obedience to God.

So what did Peter's vision mean? Was God saying that "eating kosher" was not a good thing? No. Instead, it was an illustration of how the Law of Christ was different from the Law of the Old Testament. In the OT, separation and cleanliness were the name of the game. In the NT, we see Christ being our way to being clean and we see God reaching out to all people, regardless of their pasts or how "clean" the rest of the world say them.

What does Acts 10 tell us about those who haven't heard?

In surfing around the web this week, I found this article on prejudice and the Christian life which has an interesting take on the question of "What about people in other cultures who don't know about God?"

On this particular day Cornelius was praying at the ninth hour (3:00-4:00 pm) when he saw, in a spiritual vision, an angel of God who came to him and called out his name. Cornelius stared at him in alarm. But note this soldier's response: "What is it, Lord?" The angel told him that God the Father had accepted his prayers and alms as a memorial before him. "God knows your name, and he knows your heart, that you are seeking him. He hears your prayers and sees your good works." The Lord God knew that this man hungered to know him. He knew he was a spiritual fetus, so to speak, having a form of life but still needing to be born again.

I am intrigued by what this passage shows us about how aware God is of all who fear him and of their need to be saved. This story of Cornelius and many more like it in the Scriptures should put to rest the question most people have thought of at least once in their lives: What happens to all the men and women in the world living in different cultures, under different governments, and in pagan religious systems who have never heard of Jesus? Will they go to hell when they die? The answer is found in Hebrews 11:6: "And without faith it is impossible to please [God], for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him." As this soldier was drawing near to God, God was drawing near to him (James 4:8). And the reward would be an introduction to his son Jesus and the offer of eternal life through him.

As we move through the book of Acts, we should keep in mind that we are not just learning history, but also answers to many of the questions that life brings before us.

WHERE AM I: Peter in Acts 10

Acts 10:1-33 - There was a man in Caesarea [7] by the name of Cornelius...

Acts Chapter 10 Study Guide is out there!

The Act chapter 10 study guide is up and ready for your perusal. This week's devotional is written by Coach Michelina and reflects on the need for obedience in the lif of Peter and others in Acts 10, even when we don't understand.

Watch for Unrealistic Expectations

Bible Crossword

Some days, we need to be absolutely serious and on-task here at QuizPad, focussing on bringing you the latest in study tools and commentary. And then there are days like today, when it is nice to have a momentary break. For those ready for something other than Acts, check out this site which has a Java-based bible-themed crossword. Extra points for anyone who can solve it today, and bring a printout copy of the completed puzzle to Quiz Practice!