January Discussion Questions – Short Version
by James Castruccio
Mike talked about the first 3 beatitudes being about tearing down and the last 5 about building up. There is new construction, renovation, and rebuilding. In order to rebuild, something must be torn down. Sometimes it can just be a wall, or taking a room down to the studs. Sometimes the whole things needs to come down.
2 Corinthians 5:17 (ESV)
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.
“Find your 10% and own it 100%.”
We need to be bold and ask the Lord to search our hearts and reveal any unfit ways within us. If we earnestly seek Him in this there is a good chance He will reveal more than 10%.
Psalm 139:23-24 (NIV)
23 Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
Find your pack. Expect attack. Have their back.
Luke 17:17-20 (NIV)
17 One day Jesus was teaching, and Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there. They had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with Jesus to heal the sick. 18 Some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus. 19 When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus. 20 When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.”
In the parable of the Sower, we talked about seasons in our lives. Each of us is in a season right now; some are flourishing while some are struggling. That doesn’t make us different than each other; but it does make us rely on each other.
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 (NIV)
1There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:
2 a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3 a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build,
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
6 a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away,
7 a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak,
8 a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.
Today we are going to put our money where our mouth is.
We have some among us that are really struggling. We want to gather together so we can uproot, tear down, weep, mourn, embrace, search, tear, and mend. We can be silent while others speak (pray) for and over us and love on us. This is a time for war and we will start the fight on our knees.
We are not the heroes, we are simply lowering our brothers through the roof to our Savior.
Matthew 11:28-29 (NIV)
28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”