Discussion for 19 October 2014

Isaiah 45:1-7

45Thus says the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus,
   whose right hand I have grasped
to subdue nations before him
   and strip kings of their robes,
to open doors before him—
   and the gates shall not be closed:
² I will go before you
   and level the mountains,^*
I will break in pieces the doors of bronze
   and cut through the bars of iron,
³ I will give you the treasures of darkness
   and riches hidden in secret places,
so that you may know that it is I, the Lord,
   the God of Israel, who call you by your name.
⁴ For the sake of my servant Jacob,
   and Israel my chosen,
I call you by your name,
   I surname you, though you do not know me.
⁵ I am the Lord, and there is no other;
   besides me there is no god.
   I arm you, though you do not know me,
⁶ so that they may know, from the rising of the sun
   and from the west, that there is no one besides me;
   I am the Lord, and there is no other.
⁷ I form light and create darkness,
   I make weal and create woe;
   I the Lord do all these things. 

For Consideration

-Should we reject outright someone like Cyrus to play a messianic role for God's people?

-How could this passage serve as instruction for our church?

-How do you think the people of Israel felt about Cyrus being anointed by God?

Discussion for 12 October 2014

PHILIPPIANS 4:1-9

¹Therefore, my brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, my beloved.

²I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. ³Yes, and I ask you also, my loyal companion, help these women, for they have struggled beside me in the work of the gospel, together with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life.

⁴Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. ⁵Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. ⁶Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. ⁷And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

⁸Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. ⁹Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.





For Consideration:

-Just what is required of followers of Jesus Christ?

-What difference does becoming a follower of Christ make in one’s daily life?

Discussion for 5 October 2014

PHILIPPIANS 3:4B-14

^4bIf anyone else has reason to be confident in the flesh, I have more: ⁵circumcised on the eighth day, a member of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; ⁶as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless.

⁷Yet whatever gains I had, these I have come to regard as loss because of Christ. ⁸More than that, I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and I regard them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ ⁹and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but one that comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God based on faith. ¹⁰I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death, ¹¹if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead.

¹²Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal; but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. ¹³Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, ¹⁴I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.

For Consideration

-In this text, what does Paul write that says his love in Christ is just as real as the message he delivers?

-In this day of texting, Twitter, email, Facebook and many other types of communication what would be the best way to deliver this message today?

Discussion for 28 September 2014

PHILIPPIANS 2:1-13

¹If then there is any encouragement in Christ, any consolation from love, any sharing in the Spirit, any compassion and sympathy, ²make my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. ³Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. ⁴Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. ⁵Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, 

⁶   who, though he was in the form of God, 
          did not regard equality with God 
          as something to be exploited, 
⁷   but emptied himself, 
          taking the form of a slave, 
          being born in human likeness. 
     And being found in human form, 
⁸        he humbled himself 
          and became obedient to the point of death — 
          even death on a cross.

⁹   Therefore God also highly exalted him 
          and gave him the name 
          that is above every name, 
¹⁰  so that at the name of Jesus 
          every knee should bend, 
          in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 
¹¹  and every tongue should confess 
          that Jesus Christ is Lord, 
          to the glory of God the Father.

¹²Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed me, not only in my presence, but much more now in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; ¹³or it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

For Consideration

-In verse 12 Paul says we need to work out our salvation with fear and trembling. Why would we shake and be afraid of being like Christ for our own salvation?

Discussion for 21 September 2014

 PHILIPPIANS 1:21-30

²¹For to me, living is Christ and dying is gain. ²²If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me; and I do not know which I prefer. ²³I am hard pressed between the two: my desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better; ²⁴but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for you. ²⁵Since I am convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with all of you for your progress and joy in faith, ²⁶so that I may share abundantly in your boasting in Christ Jesus when I come to you again.

²⁷Only, live your life in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that, whether I come and see you or am absent and hear about you, I will know that you are standing firm in one spirit, striving side by side with one mind for the faith of the gospel, ²⁸and are in no way intimidated by your opponents. For them this is evidence of their destruction, but of your salvation. And this is God’s doing. ²⁹For he has graciously granted you the privilege not only of believing in Christ, but of suffering for him as well — ³⁰since you are having the same struggle that you saw I had and now hear that I still have.

For Consideration

-Does this passage question the hope of the reality of heaven?

-How would this passage help in times of complete bewilderment and despair?

Service for 14 September 2014

We will  not meet int he Chapel next week. Please plan to join our sponsored missionaries, the Welches in the Fellowship Hall during the Sunday School hour.

Also, thank you to the volunteers agreeing to help with Fellowship for the next three Sundays.

14 Sept.ember   Penny Green
21 September    Pam Hanners, Carolyn & Buddy Fisher
28 September     Argie Satterwhite

Discussion for 7 September 2014

ROMANS 13:8-14

⁸Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. ⁹The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery; You shall not murder; You shall not steal; You shall not covet”; and any other commandment, are summed up in this word, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” ¹⁰Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore, love is the fulfilling of the law.

¹¹Besides this, you know what time it is, how it is now the moment for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers; ¹²the night is far gone, the day is near. Let us then lay aside the works of darkness and put on the armor of light; ¹³let us live honorably as in the day, not in reveling and drunkenness, not in debauchery and licentiousness, not in quarreling and jealousy. ¹⁴Instead, put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.

For Consideration

--What does love as fulfilling the law/commandment mean?

-How does love fulfill the law/commandant?

-How does love give us the right to disobey the law when law and authorities violate the demands of love?