9/29 Sermon Recap & Discussion Questions

9/29 Sermon Discussion Questions

 

Recap:

Pastor Suzanne talked about the question, “Do I know how to have a conversation with God?” She argued that the kinds of conversations we feel comfortable having with God depend on the type of relationship we have with God and that these relationships are often based on three components: familiarity, authority, and trust.  (You can see the grid she used to illustrate this below). Moses, in the passage we read today, models a conversati...
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9/22 Sermon Recap & Discussion Questions

9/22 Sermon Discussion Questions

 

Recap:

Pastor Tony walked us through the whole Bible, highlighting the themes in the “Big Story” of God. He made the case that the main theme throughout scripture is that God wants to be with us. Tony walked us through the 5 main movements in scripture: CreationIsraelJesusThe ChurchNew CreationTony encouraged us to “just get started” in becoming more aware of God’s story.

 

Reflection Questions:

If someone asked me what the Bible was all about,...
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9/15 Sermon Recap & Discussion Questions

9/15 Sermon Discussion Questions

 

Recap:

Pastor Sara invited us to inspect our Bridge to God by looking at the question: “Do I know how to read and apply scripture?”She talked about the love that the Psalmist of Psalm 119 has for the word of God because it gives direction, hope, light, wisdom, and peace. She invited us to consider the following ways we could learn to love and understand the Bible better:Invest time into reading.Get tools to help you understand. Don’t just re...
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9/8 Sermon Recap & Discussion Questions

9/8 Sermon Discussion Questions

Recap:

Pastor Suzanne talked about the importance of literal bridge inspections in detecting problems and cracks early to keep bridges from collapsing.She then talked about the need to do regular, honest inspection of our lives: our walk with God, our knowledge and awareness of ourselves, and our relationships with others to see where there may be cracks that need to be repaired.The scripture passages we looked at told stories of two scenarios...
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9/1 Sermon Recap & Discussion Questions

9/1 Sermon Discussion Questions

 

Recap:

Pastor Sara wrapped up the sermon series on Deuteronomy, reminding us of themes we’ve seen throughout the book: following God’s directions leads to life, God’s care for the vulnerable, God put guardrails on power, God calls us to pass our faith along to coming generations, etc. Moses wraps up his sermon to the Israelites by calling them again to do the things God asked, and to love God, and promises that these things will lead to life ...
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8/25 Sermon Recap & Discussion Questions

8/25 Sermon Discussion Questions

 

Recap:

Pastor Suzanne talked about what the Bible means when it talks about valuing life. She spent time unpacking the Hebrew word for life “chayah.” This word has three different nuances to its meaning depending on its context: Protecting lifeNurturing lifeReviving lifeSuzanne argued that when we talk about pro-life policies around abortion, Christians are often known for emphasizing only the first of those three meanings. We need to get be...
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8/18 Sermon Recap & Discussion Questions

8/18 Sermon Discussion Questions

 

Recap:

Pastor Bep talked about the importance of taking tangible steps and physical actions to remember God’s faithfulness. She invited us to consider everything that God remembers - from history, from scripture, and from our lives. She emphasized how God remembers us - our whole life and our whole walk with him - and invited us to remember and respond to him from that awareness. We were then invited to respond to God by witness baptisms and...
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8/11 Sermon Recap & Discussion Questions

8/11 Sermon Discussion Questions

 

Recap:

Pastor Suzanne reminded us that we can often miss what is happening in a Bible passage because of our narrowed focus or preconceived assumptions.As we studied Deuteronomy 24: 1-5, Suzanne highlighted what this passage is not about: It is not a prohibition against divorce or remarriage. It is not anti-woman.The passage protects women against a cycle of abuse, by preventing her first husband from remarrying and taking advantage of her a...
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8/4 Sermon Recap & Discussion Questions

Recap:

Pastor Suzanne talked about how different Christians think about pacifism or justified violence. She reminded us that God’s ultimate desire is ultimately for peace, but that in a world that still contains evil and injustice, a faithful response to bring peace is complicated.Suzanne laid out arguments for both a “Just War” response and a pacifistic response. Just War Theory: Argues that sometimes to protect others and restore justice, war or violence is necessary and ...
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7/28 Sermon Recap & Discussion Questions

Recap:

Pastor Sara talked about how the instructions for kings in Deuteronomy can best be understood now as instructions for Christians who hold power and authority in any area of their lives. After looking at Israel’s history of kings, she reminded us that we are fallible and we will not hold power perfectly, so we need to keep practicing humility. Using the specific instructions in the passage, these are some of the principles for how we ought to operate when we have powe...
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7/21 Sermon Recap & Discussion Questions

Recap:

Pastor Suzanne talked about God’s heart for people experiencing poverty after examining the passage in Deuteronomy 15 that talks about cancelling debts and freeing servants every seven years. She talked about three groups that we may believe are responsible for helping those who are experiencing poverty. The poor themselves:While there is certainly a call in scripture for the poor to actively participate in their provision where they can (ex: gleaning from fields), t...
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7/14 Sermon Recap & Discussion Questions

Recap:

Suzanne talked about the ways in Deuteronomy that God set up daily, weekly, and periodic rhythms for Israelites to rest, worship, fellowship, and feast together. She talked about our concept of a day starting with waking up and working, but the Hebrew understanding of the start of the day was nighttime. That emphasizes God’s work and our rest as being the most important. She also talked about how God sets up rhythms to remind us to be joyful and enjoy community. She ...
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7/7 Sermon Discussion Questions

Recap:

Suzanne talked about the Hebrew word “ger,” which means immigrant, sojourner, or foreigner. (References to this word in the Bible can be found in the image below). Scripture instructs us to three main themes in verses about immigrants

Love the immigrant because God does and you were immigrants too

God creates systems and calls God’s people to care for immigrants who are vulnerable

God insists on equal access and equal responsibility for immigrants and citizens

Suzanne ac...
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6/30 Sermon Discussion Questions

Recap:

Suzanne started by acknowledging that talking about money and tithing can make us feel anxious, guilty, defensive, or confused. As we read the passage though, it was clear that when God talks about tithing in Deuteronomy, he does it to throw a party. He calls people to give and bring their food and animals to feast in his presence. Now that the Israelites are entering a land where they owned things, they need to be reminded that they belonged to God and to each other...
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6/23 Sermon Discussion Questions

Recap:

Tony addressed the “elephant in the room” - that this passage calls God’s people to destroy another group of people and to show them no mercy.Tony offered a few classic interpretations to this unsettling passage: 

God is showing other nations his superior power.

We don’t see the insidious evil of these other nations: child sacrifice, daughters being given as temple prostitutes, excessive violence. 

Israel is still in its infancy and is easily swayed. The presence of ido

...
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