Discussion Questions | 14 February 2021

It has been almost a year since we have been physically gathering together on a Sunday. We have all been affected by the COVID restrictions and all felt the implications of these restrictions for living out our faith.

Now that services have recommenced, some of us are choosing to continue to engage online while others are back meeting together. But as restrictions appear to ease and the joy of seeing one another again is experienced … a deeper question prevails … NOW WHAT?

‘What are we doing here?’ What are we doing? Why should we gather? Who are we? Who am I in this? Who am I supposed to be? Where are we headed? What is this all about? What difference does this make? How do we connect with one another? How do we conduct ourselves?

We could just go back to the way things were pre-COVID … or has God been working through COVID to more deeply confirm and press into us some things?

Discussions

This week, Ron commenced our response to these questions in the first week of the NOW WHAT? series. He asked us to particularly examine what is said in Exodus 19:1-6 where our fathers and mothers of our faith were asking these same questions. With Exodus 19:1-6 the given explanatory introduction to the most important event in Israel’s history we are to take careful attention to what is being said:

1. Events of life have a purpose (Exodus 19:4; 32:10-11) – the metaphor of God bearing us forward on eagle’s wings is used.

2. God is bringing us to live in His very Presence (Exodus 33:14-16) – this is personal, conscious and known. Moses had encountered the very Presence of God at this mountain. He leads the people to the same place for an encounter with God. He does not want to go anywhere in the future without this same very personal Presence.

3. We are accepted and valued (Galatians 5:1, Romans 6:1; 6:22) – We are not to live as a slave of legalism and the keeping of rules as a way of being accepted and valued. We are not to live as a slave to having no rules saying we are never anything else but acceptable and valuable. We are accepted and valued and chose to respond as ‘slaves’ who live and are enlivened within the very Presence of God (Romans 6:22).

Discuss one or more of the following questions:

1. Entering into this week’s address, what did you most remember and why?

2. Through all the events of your past, in the good, the bad and the ugly, God has been graciously and wonderfully working to bring you to His very self:

a) Relate a welcome instance in your past where you recognise this happening.

b) Relate an unwelcome or painful event in your past that actually worked together to bring you to Himself.

c) What kind of events in your life bear you closer to Him?

d) How does the metaphor of God being as an eagle bearing her young apply to the events of your life? (Exodus 19:4; 32:11)

3. With ‘Legalism’ entailing being a slave to rules to be accepted and valued:

a) What does this mean?

b) In what relationship might you have ever tried to perform for approval?

c) What happens when you do not perform to the expected standards?

d) Does this performing to a standard to be accepted and valued happen with parents toward children or grown child toward parents? If so, how?

4. With ‘License’ entailing being a slave to having no rules for we are never anything else but acceptable and valuable:

a) What does this mean?

b) Does this happen in teenage years? If so, give an instance from your life.

c) Does this happen in marriage? If so, give an example from your life.

d) Does this happen in your relationship with God? How do you recognise this happening?

5. ‘We are accepted and valued and chose to respond as ‘slaves’ who live and are enlivened with the very Presence of God (Exodus 33:14-16, Romans 6:22).

a) What does this mean?

b) Outline what this will specifically look like in your relationship with God this week.

c) Give a specific example of what this might look like as you live among people this week.

d) Give a specific example of what this might look like in your home this week.