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Monday, October 31, 2016

Scripture & Questions for Sunday (10/30/16)

Announcements
We will have a congregational meeting Sunday November 6th to elect a nominating committee who will nominate elders for the class of 2019.

Scripture
1 Kings 17:8-24 (ESV)  
Then the word of the Lord came to him,  [9] "Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to feed you."  [10] So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, a widow was there gathering sticks. And he called to her and said, "Bring me a little water in a vessel, that I may drink."  [11] And as she was going to bring it, he called to her and said, "Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand."  [12] And she said, "As the Lord your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. And now I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it and die."  [13] And Elijah said to her, "Do not fear; go and do as you have said. But first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterward make something for yourself and your son.  [14] For thus says the Lord the God of Israel, 'The jar of flour shall not be spent, and the jug of oil shall not be empty, until the day that the Lord sends rain upon the earth.' "  [15] And she went and did as Elijah said. And she and he and her household ate for many days.  [16] The jar of flour was not spent, neither did the jug of oil become empty, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah. 
[17] After this the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became ill. And his illness was so severe that there was no breath left in him.  [18] And she said to Elijah, "What have you against me, O man of God? You have come to me to bring my sin to remembrance and to cause the death of my son!"  [19] And he said to her, "Give me your son." And he took him from her arms and carried him up into the upper chamber where he lodged, and laid him on his own bed.  [20] And he cried to the Lord, "O Lord my God, have you brought calamity even upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by killing her son?"  [21] Then he stretched himself upon the child three times and cried to the Lord, "O Lord my God, let this child's life come into him again."  [22] And the Lord listened to the voice of Elijah. And the life of the child came into him again, and he revived.  [23] And Elijah took the child and brought him down from the upper chamber into the house and delivered him to his mother. And Elijah said, "See, your son lives."  [24] And the woman said to Elijah, "Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is truth." 

Questions for Reflection
1. What two requests did Elijah make of the widow at Zarephath? (17:10-11)
2. What did the widow consider inevitable for herself and her son during the drought in Israel? (17:12)
3. What step did Elijah ask the widow to take in faith? (17:13)
4. What was unusual about the ways God chose to provide for Elijah during the drought?
5. What kind of faith is required for living with just enough for each day and no more?
6. How would the miracle of the flour and oil have appeared to the widow in retrospect if her son had died?
7. In what way do you find it easy or difficult to obey God when you don’t know what the outcome will be?
8. In what peculiar but sufficient ways is God meeting your needs today?

Monday, October 24, 2016

Scripture & Questions for Sunday (10/16/16)

Scripture for Sunday
2 Samuel 7:1-17 (ESV)  
Now when the king lived in his house and the Lord had given him rest from all his surrounding enemies, [2] the king said to Nathan the prophet, "See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells in a tent." [3] And Nathan said to the king, "Go, do all that is in your heart, for the Lord is with you." [4] But that same night the word of the Lord came to Nathan, [5] "Go and tell my servant David, 'Thus says the Lord: Would you build me a house to dwell in? [6] I have not lived in a house since the day I brought up the people of Israel from Egypt to this day, but I have been moving about in a tent for my dwelling. [7] In all places where I have moved with all the people of Israel, did I speak a word with any of the judges of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, saying, "Why have you not built me a house of cedar?" ' [8] Now, therefore, thus you shall say to my servant David, 'Thus says the Lord of hosts, I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, that you should be prince over my people Israel. [9] And I have been with you wherever you went and have cut off all your enemies from before you. And I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth. [10] And I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, so that they may dwell in their own place and be disturbed no more. And violent men shall afflict them no more, as formerly, [11] from the time that I appointed judges over my people Israel. And I will give you rest from all your enemies. Moreover, the Lord declares to you that the Lord will make you a house. [12] When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. [13] He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. [14] I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men, [15] but my steadfast love will not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you. [16] And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.' " [17] In accordance with all these words, and in accordance with all this vision, Nathan spoke to David. 

Questions for Reflection
1. In what way do you think church buildings should reflect our humility? our esteem for God?
2. What contrast bothered David after he was well established in Jerusalem? (7:1-2)
3. What was Nathan’s initial reaction to David’s instinct to build a house for the ark of God? (7:3)
4. According to the word Nathan received from the Lord, how did God feel about the fact that no permanent house of worship had been built? (7:5-7)
5. Initially, did David’s concern for the house of God sound pious or presumptuous?
6. Why is it significant that Nathan heard from God immediately after he had spoken with David?
7. What is the most reassuring aspect of God’s covenant with the house of David?
8. What is the most important “temple” you can offer to God, and what is one thing you can do to offer it?

Friday, October 14, 2016

Scripture & Questions for Sunday (10/16/16)

Scripture for Sunday
1 Samuel 3:1-10 (ESV)  
Now the young man Samuel was ministering to the Lord under Eli. And the word of the Lord was rare in those days; there was no frequent vision. [2] At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could not see, was lying down in his own place.  [3] The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was.  [4] Then the Lord called Samuel, and he said, "Here I am!"  [5] and ran to Eli and said, "Here I am, for you called me." But he said, "I did not call; lie down again." So he went and lay down. [6] And the Lord called again, "Samuel!" and Samuel arose and went to Eli and said, "Here I am, for you called me." But he said, "I did not call, my son; lie down again."  [7] Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him. [8] And the Lord called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli and said, "Here I am, for you called me." Then Eli perceived that the Lord was calling the young man.  [9] Therefore Eli said to Samuel, "Go, lie down, and if he calls you, you shall say, 'Speak, Lord, for your servant hears.' " So Samuel went and lay down in his place. [10] And the Lord came and stood, calling as at other times, "Samuel! Samuel!" And Samuel said, "Speak, for your servant hears."  

Questions for Reflection
1. How have the relations of children to adults changed since you were a child?
2. What are some examples of a child’s refreshing naiveté about God?
3. How would you characterize Samuel’s relationship to Eli? (3:4-5)
4. What did Samuel assume about the voice he heard in the night? (3:5)
5. How did Eli instruct Samuel to react to the voice he heard? (3:9)
6. What was Israel’s relationship to God at the time of this story?
7. How would you characterize our day and age with regard to people hearing from God?
8. What characteristics of the boy Samuel made him a suitable person to hear from God?

Monday, October 10, 2016

Scripture & Questions for Sunday (10/9/16)

Scripture
Exodus 32:1-14 (ESV) 
When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered themselves together to Aaron and said to him, "Up, make us gods who shall go before us. As for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him." [2] So Aaron said to them, "Take off the rings of gold that are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me." [3] So all the people took off the rings of gold that were in their ears and brought them to Aaron. [4] And he received the gold from their hand and fashioned it with a graving tool and made a golden calf. And they said, "These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!" [5] When Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it. And Aaron made proclamation and said, "Tomorrow shall be a feast to the Lord." [6] And they rose up early the next day and offered burnt offerings and brought peace offerings. And the people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play.
[7] And the Lord said to Moses, "Go down, for your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves. [8] They have turned aside quickly out of the way that I commanded them. They have made for themselves a golden calf and have worshiped it and sacrificed to it and said, 'These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!' " [9] And the Lord said to Moses, "I have seen this people, and behold, it is a stiff-necked people. [10] Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them, in order that I may make a great nation of you."
[11] But Moses implored the Lord his God and said, "O Lord, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? [12] Why should the Egyptians say, 'With evil intent did he bring them out, to kill them in the mountains and to consume them from the face of the earth'? Turn from your burning anger and relent from this disaster against your people. [13] Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, to whom you swore by your own self, and said to them, 'I will multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised I will give to your offspring, and they shall inherit it forever.' " [14] And the Lord relented from the disaster that he had spoken of bringing on his people.

Questions for Reflection

  1. What are some modern-day idols you see people worshiping?
  2. What did Aaron do with all the people’s gold? (32:2-4)
  3. What happened after Aaron built an altar for the golden calf? (32:5-6)
  4. When the Lord saw what had happened, what did He say to Moses? (32:7-10)
  5. How did Moses respond to the Lord’s anger? (32:11-13)
  6. How did the Lord relent His anger? (32:14)
  7. What type of emotions do you think Moses felt when he saw the calf?
  8. Why is it easy to forget what the Lord has done for us?
  9. How was God justified for being angry at the Israelites?
  10.  What are ways that people worship people or things they’ve made instead of Jesus Christ?