I just LOVE that Platt's sermon's are available for us to connect to, along with the study questions. Each week I am finding myself excited to open my Bible and let Him read directly TO ME! Anyone else?
Another must watch: http://itunes.apple.com/podcast/brook-hills-video/id319699836 follow this link and click on #116: Chapter 1: Believing God. And here are some questions to chew on to follow!
PART 1: REDEMPTION PROMISED TO A NEW COVENANT PEOPLE
Chapter 1: Believing God
CONNECT: Think about a time when you received a promise that was not fulfilled for a long time. Describe your attitude during the time of waiting. Today we will talk see how Abraham’s obedience was immediate even though God’s promises were not fulfilled in his lifetime.
Review the MESSAGE: In His holiness, God demonstrates grace to sinners.
• God’s desire is for redemption.
• God’s desire is for the nations.
• God’s desire is to work through His people.
DISCUSSION:
• Re-read Genesis 12:1-9
• What great acts of judgment had God completed prior to Genesis 12? Why were His actions just?
• His most recent act of dispersing people throughout the world helped to accomplish His command to multiply and fill the earth. How is creating a nation for Himself from Abraham actually an act toward redemption of the judged world?
• Did God need Abram in order to build a people for Himself?
• Looking even further into Genesis (Chapter 13, for instance) how did God show grace in continuing to work through Abram?
Application:
• Why do some of us see the God of the Old Testament solely as a judgmental God? Why is this view dangerous?
• Why is it important for us to see God’s redemptive nature from the beginning?
• How can we align our lives with God’s desires for the world?
• What responsibility do we have to be available for God to work through us? How can we make ourselves more available?
God calls His people to Himself, that He may bless them.
• God’s call demands complete dependence upon Him.
• God’s call demands our obedience in the face of the unknown.
• God’s call demands we trust in His promises.
• God’s call is for a global purpose.
FURTHER Discussion:
• How would God’s call disrupt Abram’s life?
• In what ways did God’s call on Abram’s life make him rely completely on God? What securities did Abram have to leave behind?
• Describe the directions that God gave to Abram. How much of the details did Abram know before he began to move?
• Re-read Genesis 11:29-30. How did Abram have to trust God to make a great nation of him if he had no children? If he did not trust this aspect of God’s promise, how would the rest of the covenant be affected?
• What was God’s ultimate purpose in blessing Abram and calling this nation to Himself as His chosen people?
• How is God’s heart for the nations revealed in this covenant?
Application:
• Why is relying on God so difficult for us? Why is it scary?
• How can our fear to obey illustrate our distrust in God’s ability and/or His character?
• How do we often ignore God’s calling on our lives under the disguise of not having enough information?
• What things or people are we not willing to leave in order to be obedient to God?
• How do our actions demonstrate our belief or disbelief in God’s ability to fulfill His promises?
God’s call requires a response to His invitation:
• Our obedience to God’s call ensures we will live for His purpose.
• Our worship of God rightly gives Him glory.
Discussion:
• Re-read Genesis 12:4-9 again.
• How did Abram demonstrate his trust in God?
• Remember that Jesus was ultimately born through the line of Abraham.
• By obeying God completely, how did Abram become a part of God’s plan to redeem humanity?
• How did Abram respond to God’s covenant as he journeyed through Canaan? How did this worship demonstrate his belief that God was the true God and worthy of the worship of all of the families of the earth?
Application:
• If God does not need us for His work, why should we want to be a part of it?
• How can we be encouraged that God uses sinners?
• Which areas of life are the most difficult to obey God?
• How does our obedience testify to our relationship with Him?
• Why do we do missions? When can missions become a means to our own glory?
• Why must obedience and worship go hand-in-hand?
Where have you seen God's grace in your life today?