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Print this pageJudges: | Gideon: | May 3-4, 2008 |
Growth Group Homework
For the week of May 4, 2008
QUICK REVIEW: Looking back over your sermon notes from Never Believe God the First Time?, what was most challenging, helpful, or interesting to you?
MY STORY
1. Has there been a time in your life when you knew God’s will but were afraid to follow it? What was it that made you fearful?
2. Over the years, have there been any religious practices or traditions that you participated in or observed in others that seemed meaningless to you?
Are there any that have become meaningful to you currently in your walk with God?
DIGGING DEEPER
1. Joshua is another person who was in a similar situation as Gideon. In Joshua 1:6-9 and Deuteronomy 31:7-8, what words of encouragement do Moses and God give to Joshua that you think could also help others deal with their fears?
Joshua 1:6-9
"Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their forefathers to give them. [7] Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. [8] Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. [9] Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go." [NIV]
Deuteronomy 31:7-8
Then Moses summoned Joshua and said to him in the presence of all Israel, "Be strong and courageous, for you must go with this people into the land that the Lord swore to their forefathers to give them, and you must divide it among them as their inheritance. [8] The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." [NIV]
Jesus tells us that He will be with us always in Matthew 28:19-20. How could the ongoing knowledge of God’s constant presence make a difference in our attitude or actions?
Matthew 28:19-20
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, [20] and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." [NIV]
2. Throughout the Bible there are numerous instances where, like Gideon, followers of God substituted religious rituals and obligations for an authentic relationship with Him. In the passages below, what rituals or obligations were they focused on instead of trusting God?
Isaiah 1:13-17
Stop bringing meaningless offerings!
Your incense is detestable to me.
New Moons, Sabbaths and convocations--
I cannot bear your evil assemblies.
[14] Your New Moon festivals and your appointed feasts
my soul hates.
They have become a burden to me;
I am weary of bearing them.
[15] When you spread out your hands in prayer,
I will hide my eyes from you;
even if you offer many prayers,
I will not listen.
Your hands are full of blood;
[16] wash and make yourselves clean.
Take your evil deeds
out of my sight!
Stop doing wrong,
[17] learn to do right!
Seek justice,
encourage the oppressed.
Defend the cause of the fatherless,
plead the case of the widow.[NIV]
Micah 6:6-8
With what shall I come before the Lord
and bow down before the exalted God?
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,
with calves a year old?
[7] Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams,
with ten thousand rivers of oil?
Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression,
the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
[8] He has showed you, O man, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God. [NIV]
Hosea 6:6
For I desire mercy, not sacrifice,
and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings. [NIV]
Ironically, in most cases the rituals described were practices God had instructed the Israelites to do to help them focus and depend on Him. Why do you think He’s now saying that He isn’t interested in these things?
Can you think of any religious rituals or practices that we could become more committed to rather than having an authentic relationship with Christ?
Looking back at the passages, what could be some indicators that our religious practices have become a meaningless ritual?
3. It’s comforting to know that “God always meets us where we are” but He also doesn’t want us to stay there. What help do the following verses give us to enjoy God’s acceptance and patience without becoming complacent?
Hebrews 5:11-13
We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn. [12] In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! [13] Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. [NIV]
Psalm 103:13-14
As a father has compassion on his children,
so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him;
[14] for he knows how we are formed,
he remembers that we are dust. [NIV]
James 4:17
Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins. [NIV]
TAKING IT HOME
1. Is there an area in your life where you feel the need to be “strong and courageous” that you’d like prayer for?
2. This weekend we heard five life lessons from the life of Gideon. Which one is the biggest need in your life right now? What step could you take to begin working that lesson into your life?