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Friday, May 31, 2013

Scripture & Questions for Sunday (6/2/13)

Men's Breakfast Saturday Morning at 8:00am

Please Read Chapter 13 The King Who Had It All, Psalms 23, 32, 51, 1 Kings 1-8, 10-11, 2 Chronicles 5-7, Proverbs 1-3, 6, 20-21

Timeless Truth:  Complete your walk – finish faithful.  

The “man after God’s own heart” had known seasons of triumph and tragedy, yet his legacy is marked by overall faithfulness and trust that God would keep His word. David’s story closes with instruction and warning for his son, Solomon, who was already poised to carry on the heritage. David charged the new king with the divinely appointed task of leading God’s chosen nation and urged him to “walk in His ways,” so their family would “never fail to have a man on the throne of Israel,” as God had promised. 
 
Solomon’s reign began with a series of defining events. He married the daughter of the Egyptian Pharaoh, and ironically, the nation that had once enslaved Israel now sought the good graces of God’s people. Then God appeared to Solomon in a dream and offered to grant his heart’s desire. Solomon asked for wisdom to lead, and God was pleased to grant this request and gave him wealth and honor as well. His wisdom was quickly tested when two prostitute mothers fought over a son. Solomon correctly judged in favor of the true mother, and his people held him in awe. Solomon’s keen wisdom became the hallmark of his reign and gave him insight into human nature. He penned thousands of proverbs that gained him an international reputation. People from around the world sought him out, and Abraham’s descendants became a blessing to the whole world as Solomon demonstrated that the cornerstone of all wisdom is a holy fear of God. 
 
During Solomon’s reign, peace prevailed in the Promised Land. The time had come to build a temple for God. The construction project was massive and followed the pattern of the tabernacle that had been used since the days of Moses. The end result was as majestic as one could imagine.  With great reverence, Solomon had the ark placed in the Most Holy Place.  The temple was filled with a cloud of God’s glory, and Solomon humbly realized that even a magnificent temple could not sufficiently contain Him.  Still, the temple would become the enduring focal point of worship and life for God’s people. 
 
Following the dedication of the temple, God appeared to Solomon and warned him of the consequences Israel would face if they turned away from Him. If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and forgive their sin and heal their land. (p. 154)  He also promised Solomon a royal dynasty in Israel if the king remained faithful.  But if Israel followed other gods, God’s people would be cut off from the land.  
 
King Solomon experienced phenomenal success. His wealth and wisdom were legendary. His reign was marked by peace and prosperity. But all of Solomon’s insight and riches could not make up for his choice to collect wives like gold. He married hundreds of women, many of them foreigners. Just like God had said, his foreign wives “turned his heart after other gods.” This single decision shaped the future of his descendants and of the nation of Israel.
 
Solomon’s story began with great promise, incomparable wisdom and magnificent achievement. His father and grandfather had also started out well, but the way each of them ended was disappointing.  There are no final words of wisdom recorded for the wisest king of all time.  Instead, his closing chapter reveals that the kingdom would be torn in two. Solomon spent his last days fighting off enemies and rebels. His splendor and his legacy were tarnished by disobedience and idolatry.  What a sad ending for the king who had it all, but ultimately failed in the only thing that really mattered:  finishing well.     
 
Questions:
  1. How did Solomon (and other Israelites) show love for the LORD in the Old Testament?  How does this differ from New Testament believers?  (See John 14:15, 15:12, 1 John 5:2-3)
  2. Look at Solomon’s prayer of dedication.  What does this teach you about how you should approach God?
  3. Solomon authored many proverbs that teach general principles of wise and practical living.  Some examples are found on pages 146-150.  Choose one that you particularly like or one that resonates with you.  What is the main point that it communicates? How might your life be different if you applied the proverb? 
  4. Using what you have learned about Israel’s history in previous chapters of The Story, why did Solomon make the dedication of the temple such a big event?  What would it have been like to experience it firsthand?
  5. Compare God’s promises to Solomon with His promises to David (p. 129).  Which promise(s) had God faithfully fulfilled?  What would Solomon and his descendants need to do to keep a successor on the throne (p. 144, 154)? How could Israel avoid captivity (p. 154-155)?
  6. Solomon accumulated unprecedented riches.  Look up Deut. 17:15-17 and Deut. 28:1-14.  Did Solomon go too far?  Is extreme wealth a good thing or a bad thing?
  7. As Solomon grew older, he was a rich and established ruler, but he did not apply the wisdom that defined his early career.  How can you continue to seek wisdom, even after you have experienced success?
  8. Solomon’s failures began when he married women who served other gods.  Why is it important for a husband and wife to both be committed Christians?  What advice would you give someone who is considering dating a non-Christian?

Friday, May 24, 2013

Scripture & Questions for Sunday (5/26/13)

Please Read Chapter 12 Trials of a King, 2 Samuel 11-12, 18-19, 1 Chronicles 22, 29

Timeless Truth: 
Sin has its consequences, but redemption is always near.

David was voted least likely among his brothers to be anointed king.  He was the last person on the battlefront you’d pick to play the hero’s part, but David was the underdog who overcame. He confronted lions, giants and kings with bare hands and bold faith.  At last, the man after God’s own heart became the man on Israel’s throne.
 
But kings who stay home from battle are seldom at rest.  David’s eyes wandered and so did his heart.  He summoned the very lovely and very married Bathsheba to his palace and then into his bed. When Bathsheba sent word she was pregnant, David turned his strategy tactics toward her husband, Uriah. 
 
He called Uriah home from the battlefield to visit his wife, expecting a night together would position Uriah as the father-to-be. The plan failed, so David concocted a surefire Plan B.  He sent Uriah back to the frontlines carrying his own death warrant: an order for General Joab to engineer a battlefield “accident” and guarantee Uriah’s death.  The plan worked.  David married Bathsheba and went back to the business of the kingdom.
 
Then Nathan, the prophet, came to the palace. Guilty kings never fare well when prophets arrive for a visit.  Nathan told a parable and pointed the finger of blame squarely in David’s face.  He asserted, “You are the man!” and David knew he’d met his match.  The man after God’s own heart had become the man with blood on his hands. David and Bathsheba’s marriage feasting turned quickly into mourning the death of their son. David repented of his sin, and God forgave him.  They had a second son named Solomon, which means peace. 
 
Sadly, David was a better king than father.  David’s sin was forgiven, but its aftermath was calamitous.  His son, Absalom, attempted to usurp the throne, and his rise to power resulted in a rebellion.  David instructed his troops to be gentle with his proud son, perhaps because he connected the dots between Absalom’s behavior and his own failures as a father.  But the clash between David’s army and Absalom’s rebels was brutal.  When Absalom was found hanging from a tree limb, Joab seized the moment and killed the conspirator.  King David mourned in anguish when he heard the news.
 
David’s closing chapter turns the page from battles to building.  He knew that his son, Solomon, would build a house for God, so he did all he could to prepare the way.  From the overflow of David’s heart came the emptying of his bank account.  Others followed the king’s example and gave willingly to build God’s temple.  King David’s story draws to a close with poetic psalms of praise, reminders of faithfulness to Solomon and his sights set on living “in the house of the LORD forever.” 
 
David’s Lower Story places the spotlight on one man’s sin and its tragic consequences.  Yet it also beams with the offer of forgiveness and redemption. God’s grand Upper Story reminds us that no one is righteous on their own.  God’s promise to David (p.129) pointed across a millennium to a sinless King of Kings; no end of righteousness, no end of peace, and the redemption of all things. 
 
Questions
  1. What were the steps in David’s sin and cover-up?  Compare David’s steps leading to sin with Eve’s (p. 4).  How can your group help hold each other accountable to guard against the same pathway?
  2. Which Ten Commandments did David break in his sin with Bathsheba and Uriah?
  3. Why did God take the life of the child when it was his father who sinned?  How do you feel about God’s decision?  
  4. Does God’s punishment of David (and all his family) fit the crime if God truly forgave him?  
  5. Psalm 32 describes what David felt before and after his confession. (p. 135)  If all our sins were forgiven by Christ dying on the cross, then what value does confession have today?  Why is it so important? 
  6. Who did David sin against—Bathsheba, Uriah or God?  Find examples in the text that prove your point. What does this teach us about sin?
  7. Compare David’s reaction when hearing the news that his baby had died to his reaction when his son Absalom had died.  Discuss with your group some explanations that could account for the differences.
  8. Following his sin, David’s family unraveled.  He was betrayed by his son Absalom and deeply mourned his death.  How have you responded to betrayal? 
  9. How did the people feel about giving to the work of the temple that Solomon would build?  Why were they so willing?
  10. Look back at Psalm 23.  Why do you think this passage continues to be so meaningful to people?

Friday, May 17, 2013

Scripture & Questions for Sunday (5/19/13)

Please read Chapter 11 From Shepherd to King and 1 Samuel 16-18, 24, 31, 2 Samuel 6, 22, 1 Chronicles 17, Psalm 59

Timeless Truth:  The LORD accepts according to the heart.
 
Saul was a man’s man. He was tall, handsome, kingly and impressive…a likely choice for a king.  He was just what Israel wanted.  Trouble was, Saul was not God’s man. King Saul cut corners on God’s commands, so God cut Saul out of the picture and set His sights a king who was, at the moment, singing songs and tending flocks in a nearby pasture. 
 
God’s ordination began in the unlikeliest of places:  the humble house of Jesse in a less than notable village called Bethlehem.  Seven of Jesse’s sons were paraded before Samuel, but none were chosen.  The youngest brother, David, had not been invited but was easily found with among the sheep. After being summoned from the fields, the choice was immediate: David was anointed by Samuel to replace King Saul.  The boy then did what any responsible shepherd would do:  he returned to tending his sheep. 
 
Life was quiet for the newly anointed boy king until he was once again called from the fields, this time to supply his brothers on the frontlines of battle against the Philistine army.  When he arrived, David saw what everyone else did not:  an opportunity for God’s power to be displayed.  Armed with a slingshot, five pebbles and an extraordinary faith, he faced down Goliath…and won. The Philistine’s superhero lost his head while his army lost their courage and ran!
 
David’s days in the pastures were over. Saul brought him into the king’s court and assigned him a high rank over military operations. David was well liked and successful in all his pursuits. He eventually married Saul’s daughter, Michal, and became best of friends with Saul’s son, Jonathan.  But his success planted an irreversible seed of jealousy in Saul, to the point where he tried repeatedly to murder David. 
 
David fled for his life, and days in the palace came to a close. Still, his popularity grew. Unfortunately, so did Saul’s fear and irrational behavior. His thirst for David’s blood quickly turned to obsession. Saul and his army pursued David and killed 85 Levite priests in the process because they had fed and sheltered the fugitive.  On one occasion, David had an opportunity to kill Saul, but he refused out of respect for the man whom God had anointed king.  He chose, instead, to extend mercy and grace to Saul who tearfully confessed, “You are more righteous than I. …I know that you will surely be king…” (p. 124)  Saul’s new lease on life was as short as his fuse, and the chase quickly resumed.  
 
David found consolation by journaling his fears and his faith in his psalms.  Saul’s obsessive pursuit of David blinded him to the fact that the Philistine armies were once again on the attack. They prevailed, and Saul and his sons were killed.  Israel was defeated, and David was left to mourn the staggering losses. 
 
It was another seven years before David was recognized as king over all Israel. He became the military, civil and spiritual leader. He conquered the city of Jerusalem, made it his capital city, and then brought the Ark of the Covenant there with great fanfare.  All Israel joined him except his wife Michal, whose empty heart left her with an empty womb. 
 
David was home at last. His first desire was to build a house, a temple, for God. Instead, God told David, “The LORD will build a house for you.” (p. 129).  God made a covenant with David and promised him a house (an eternal dynasty), a throne (royal authority) and a kingdom (rule on earth). David responded as usual with awestruck worship and gratitude, knowing that distant generations of his own family would welcome the King whose reign would never end.  Though David may not have fully recognized it at the time, he had indeed built a house for God…the temple of his heart. 
 
Question: In your childhood, when a team was chosen, were you closer to the first one chosen or the last?  
  1. When Saul disobeyed God at the end of chapter ten (p. 116), Samuel told Saul that the LORD had sought out a man after God’s own heart and appointed him as the ruler for His people.  What does it mean to be a man or woman after God’s own heart based on David’s example?  (see Acts 13.21-22)
  2. In his battle with Goliath, “David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him.” (pg. 121).  When have you had the courage to face down an impending conflict?
  3. Contrast Saul’s downward trajectory and David’s upward trajectory.  Where do you see the inverse of Saul in David?
  4. What was the fundamental reason for David's choice to spare Saul's life in their encounter at En-Gedi (p. 123-124)? How does this choice reflect David's view of submission, and of God? 
  5. What do you learn about God’s character and His ways from the episode of David and the ark? (p.126-128)  (For further insight, see Ex. 25:14 and Num. 4:15.)  Would you characterize your own worship as reserved or unbridled?
  6. In humility David offered to build a house for God, but instead God promised to build a “house” for David.  What prompted David’s concern for God’s dwelling place?
  7. Through no merit of his own, David received God’s grace through God’s covenant with him. (p. 129)  What specific covenant promises did God make with David?  How is this covenant with David later fulfilled in Christ? (Lu. 1:32-33) 
  8. Identify some episodes from David’s life that demonstrate David’s clear view of God’s Upper Story. How were his choices influenced by that macro view?

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Scripture & Questions for Sunday (5/12/13)

Please Read Chapter 10 Standing Tall, Falling Hard
and 1 Samuel Chapters 1-4, 8-13, 15

Timeless Truth:  Obedience matters.
Chapter Summary (Have someone in your group read the summary section.

Blessing. This was meant to be the distinguishing mark of the people of God. God’s covenant with Israel required obedience and promised ultimate blessing. Yet, the period of the judges is anything but a time of obedience and blessing in Israel. More fitting descriptions are: Barrenness.  Blindness.  Battles.  Bereavement.  Blessing was hard to come by in those days. God’s people had abandoned God Himself, and “everyone did as he saw fit.” (Judges 21:25)  Few remembered God’s commands. Even fewer obeyed. 
 
But God always has a few. One was a woman named Hannah. She had long endured the grief of childlessness accompanied by the taunts of her husband’s other wife. On one of her visits to worship at God’s house in Shiloh, Eli, the priest, mistook her devotion for drunkenness. She had poured out her heart first in desperate prayer and then to Eli and vowed that she would dedicate her son to the LORD. Eli assured her that her prayer would be heard.  God did give Hannah a son, and she kept her word. She named the boy Samuel and took him to serve in the tabernacle under the High Priest, Eli. 
 
God spoke to Samuel one night when he was still a boy. God told Samuel that Eli and his sons would be judged and his priestly line would soon end.  And as it always does, God’s word came true, this time through the Philistines. Israel lost their first battle with the Philistines at Aphek and blamed their loss on the absence of the ark of covenant. Their own absence of obedience went unnoticed. They faced the Philistine army again, this time with the ark as their good luck charm and lost both the battle and the ark. Eli had grown old and blind, and the devastating news of Israel’s defeat, the death of his sons and the loss of the ark of covenant left Eli dead on the spot. 
 
Samuel took Eli’s place, but Israel was dissatisfied and asked for a king. Samuel knew better and expressed his opposition. God knew He’d been rejected. Israel knew only that they wanted to be like their pagan neighbors, the very people they were not to emulate. God warned that their demand for a king would be costly; that he would exploit them to the point of slavery.  The people ignored God’s warnings and still insisted on having an earthly king to fight their battles. Saul was anointed by Samuel and began well. He was affirmed by miraculous signs from God.  He fought the Ammonites and gave God credit for their victory. Samuel reminded the people that God had not rejected them, even though they had turned away from Him. He encouraged them again to follow God and serve him from the heart, and God affirmed Samuel’s words with unheard of thunder and rain during harvest. 
 
Saul’s honeymoon as king was short-lived.  During another battle with the Philistines, Saul got nervous; Samuel was late. So Saul took his authority too far and took matters—and offerings—into his own hands, violating the role God had reserved for the priests. Samuel confronted Saul; he backpedaled, made excuses, and tried to justify his sin, but wound up losing a dynasty. Saul’s path of half-hearted obedience and fear-based leadership grew longer by the year and more twisted with every step. 
 
God rejected Saul as king. Saul’s reign was Israel’s opportunity to see that monarchy is no better than anarchy when a man after God’s own heart is not on the throne. God had already chosen such a man, an unlikely shepherd boy who would one day become Saul’s successor.  His throne would endure and would point God’s people again to the Shepherd King who was yet to come. 
 
Questions:
  1. Eli’s encouragement helped Hannah move from deep sadness to hope.  Share about a time when someone deeply encouraged you. 
  2. What can we learn about prayer from Hannah and Samuel?
  3. Compare the three fathers in the story: Elkanah, Eli and Samuel.  What were their best and worst traits?  Which of these traits do you wish you had more of?  
  4. Samuel was probably about 12 years old when God called him to be a prophet to Eli and all of Israel.  He was required to speak the truth in love to his mentor and friend.  Have you ever been in this position?
  5. The Israelites and the Philistines both treated the Ark of the Covenant more like a good-luck charm than the sacred presence of the LORD.  How might people today try to manipulate God for similar gain?  
  6. Samuel is hurt when he sees that the Israelites want a king like other nations, instead of recognizing God as their king.  Do you ever struggle with a desire to be like the culture around you, instead of letting God rule your life?
  7. You are on the search committee for the first king of Israel.  What would you look for in your applicants?  What were Saul’s actual qualifications?
  8. How do you think Samuel would have described the “state of the union” at the end of his time as judge?  Where do you see God’s grace in his statement after the battle with the Ammonites?
  9. Imagine you have a friend like Saul, who keeps taking matters into his own hands and ignoring what God’s word teaches him.  What advice would you give him? 
  10. Chapter 10 opens with the beautiful story of Elkanah’s love and leadership of his family. The chapter closes with the story of Saul’s poor leadership of Israel and his self-love.  Compare and contrast the leadership styles of these two men.  In what ways is your leadership style similar to either one?  In what areas can you improve?  

Friday, May 3, 2013

Scripture & Questions for Sunday (5/5/13)

Don't forget Men's breakfast tomorrow morning at 8:00am

Timeless Truth:  God’s gracious redemption extends to all.
The story of Israel’s judges closes with a line that could just as well be the opening for the story of Ruth: “In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as they saw fit.” (Judges 21:25) God’s chosen ones looked more like a reality show gone wrong than a holy beacon of hope. They had abandoned God’s plan (again) and had become moral misfits and spiritual adulterers. The light had gone out on God’s people. Then a foreigner stepped onto the stage and a candle of hope flickered once again.  
 
The story of Ruth is a literary and redemptive gem that glimmers against a backdrop of blackness. In the opening scene, Naomi’s family caravanned away from the Promised Land where famine had left them hungry for food and for hope.  They settled in Moab where idol worship was the prevailing ritual and God seemed far away.  Naomi’s two sons married Moabite women, Orpah and Ruth.  The weddings were too quickly followed by funerals—three of them. Naomi’s husband died first.  Soon after, both of her sons died too.  And all that was left was three widows, no children and no prospects.  The prospects were indeed grim.
 
Naomi heard the famine had lifted and decided to return to Bethlehem.  She sent her daughters-in-law back to their homes where they might find new husbands.  Ruth expressed her strong will and even stronger faith by refusing to leave.  Her poetic declaration of loyalty and commitment offers the first sign of hope: “Where you go, I will go; your people will be my people and your God my God.” (p. 100)  The duo of widows made the journey back to the Land of Promise where the only hope was mere survival. 
 
Once there, Ruth exercised a widow’s right to gather the extra grain from the fields.  Her field of choice just happened to be the farmstead of a godly man named Boaz.  He also happened to be a family guardian who could carry on the heritage of Naomi’s deceased husband and sons. He noticed Ruth from the start and admired the way she worked to provide for her aging mother-in-law. Boaz offered his help and protection; Ruth noticed him too.
 
Jewish law required a family guardian to redeem both a widow and her land to preserve the family line.  So, as was the custom, Naomi told Ruth to offer herself in marriage to Boaz.  He was delighted but also knew of a closer relative who had the right of first refusal.  That man chose to forfeit Naomi’s land since it also meant he would have to marry Ruth, which might threaten the inheritance he would pass along to his own children.  Neither Boaz nor Ruth was disappointed by his choice since his refusal paved the way for Boaz to fulfill his role as a family guardian or “kinsman redeemer.” Boaz gladly married Ruth and redeemed the family’s land. God cheerfully restored Naomi and planted a family tree: Ruth and Boaz à Obed à Jesse à King David à Jesus. 
 
There’s no denying this story as a great romance. But even more, it brings us to a defining episode in the greatest love story ever told.  Boaz’ love for Ruth is a mirror image of the heart of God.  Boaz steps in as a willing kinsmen redeemer and foreshadows One who would step in as the Redeemer for all people.  So it turns out the even the “not so chosen” are chosen after all.  God’s plan will overwhelm every obstacle, overturn every injustice and overcome completely in the end.  Soon, we’ll see that God is writing a happily ever after for this story after all. 
  1. Meanings of Biblical names are always significant. Elimelek’s name meant “my God is King.”  Naomi’s name meant “my pleasantness,” but later asked to be called Mara, meaning “bitterness.”  Ruth’s name meant “friendship.”  Boaz’ name meant “swift strength.”  Who best lived up to their names and who did not?
  2. Compare Naomi’s attitude at the beginning and end of this story.  How does her view of God and the Upper Story change?   
  3. Look at Ruth and Boaz’s interaction with Naomi. What can you learn about the challenges and benefits of caring for an aging parent? What challenges do you face with your parents? 
  4. The period of the Judges was marked by weak faith and irresponsible living, but this foreign woman gives hope. What specific examples of strong faith and responsible living can you find in the characters of Ruth and Boaz? 
  5. The story of Ruth demonstrates laws that God had given Israel to take care of marginalized people (Deut. 25:5-10, Lev. 25:25, Lev. 19:9-10).  What do these laws and customs reveal about the heart of God for the poor, the widow and the orphan?  How could your group care for the less fortunate and thereby reflect the heart of God?
  6. The love story of Ruth and Boaz stands in contrast to many of the “love” stories we hear today. What can single men and women learn from their example (note Ruth’s reputation in the community, p. 101, 102)  
  7. The word for redeem is used twenty times in this story, making it a key theme.  What does it mean to be redeemed? How does Boaz’s redeeming of Ruth compare to our redemption found in Christ? 
  8. What some people might call coincidence others call divine providence.  What are some key examples of God’s divine providence in this story?