Faith Promise Blog

Main Idea:
It’s not what is happening on the outside, but what is happening on the inside that matters.

Discussion Starter:
Have you ever felt trapped? Perhaps by a job you dreaded going to every morning or a class you felt wasn’t worthwhile. Maybe you were trapped in a relationship, or an illness or disability kept you from achieving your desires and finding peace. Share with your group how this experience and feeling trapped affected you.

Introduction:
Watch this brief intro together with your group (click picture below):

This week Faith Promise continues in At the Movies with Disney’s Aladdin. Aladdin and Jasmine both feel trapped in their circumstances, while Genie is physically trapped in his lamp. Disney capitalized on a feeling common to the human condition: God put in us an innate desire for the perfection He created in the Garden of Eden, and as humans we often believe the lie that if we can just achieve the right circumstances then that perfection will be ours again. God has a better life in store for us, but the way to this new life is through placing our faith within on our Creator above, rather than a change of circumstances on the outside.

Encounter God

Primary Scriptures: 1 Samuel 16:7, Mark 5:25-43

Discussion Questions:
1. Aladdin wishes for the Genie to make him a prince, but ultimately this doesn’t make him happy because it is not who he truly is. Read 1 Samuel 16:7. How have you been deceived by the appearances of others or deceived yourself based on outward appearances or circumstances? What steps can we take to stay grounded in God’s truth about who we are?

2. When have you treated God like a genie in a bottle? Maybe you prayed to get out of a speeding ticket or to do well on a test for which you didn’t study. What does real faith ask for, hope for, and believe in?

3. Read Mark 5:25-43. This woman pursued healing for years and from different doctors. However, when in the presence of Jesus, she had faith that if she could just touch him, she would be healed. How has God’s presence changed your life?

Discovery Bible Method:
For deeper study, as an alternative to the questions above, read Mark 5:21-43 and use the Discovery Bible Method to explore the passage.

Main Idea:
In Black Panther a young king struggles to find the right path for his people–a struggle that can be compared to seeking how to share the gospel of the real love of Jesus Christ.

Discussion Starter:
Why do people hide or not share their beliefs and faiths with those around them? Are these good reasons or just excuses?

Introduction:
Watch this brief intro together with your group (click picture below):

Black Panther’s King T’Challa was devoted to his country Wakanda and his people, while at the same time, he wanted to help people in the world around him. Some might share this conflict about about being too outside-focused, instead of having more inside-focused Bible studies, groups, and activities. In reading Scripture we find that one of our foremost responsibilities as a Christ-follower is to tell about and demonstrate how much God loves people.

Encounter God

Primary Scripture: Matthew 7:15-24, Revelation 2:2-7

Discussion Questions:
1. Why does the pursuit of a deeper understanding of the Word sometimes lead people to think that telling people about Jesus is less important?

2. Why is it so important for followers of Christ tell others of Him?

3. Read Revelation 2:2-7. The angel wrote to the church in Ephesus that God is aware of the good things they have done. However, God wants them to also listen and obey and do what they did at first. What lost first love is God talking about?

Discovery Bible Method:
For deeper study, as an alternative to the questions above, read Ephesians 2:1-10 and use the Discovery Bible Method to explore the passage.

Main Idea:
We can have greater intimacy with God and enter His glory because we have the glory residing in us through Jesus’ shed blood.

Discussion Starter:
Share a time when you took something apart to see how it worked.

Introduction:
It’s one thing to take a tour, yet quite another when you have a tour guide to explain the things you are seeing. This week Pastor takes us on a tour of the tabernacle. This is an illustrative journey of praying through the tabernacle. We learn that we can enter God’s glory, because Jesus allows the glory to reside in us through the shedding of His blood.

Encounter God

Primary Scriptures: 1 Peter 2:9 and Psalm 100

Discussion Questions:

Read Psalm 100 aloud as you prepare to journey through the tabernacle.

1. Pastor began our journey through “the tabernacle prayer”, with the outer courts. The outer courts were for preparation. Each stage moving closer into the tabernacle created greater intimacy with God. As these steps brought greater intimacy with God, fewer people took these steps. Why do you think this is so?

2. The brazen altar was used for sacrifices. We are to offer ourselves as living sacrifices. What is the main problem of offering a living sacrifice? Discuss how this obstacle can be overcome.

3. Next is the bronze laver (bath time!), which is like a full mirror investigation of ourselves. Here we learn how we appear in the eyes of the Lord. The ten commandments and the question of whether we measure up to them were used in Pastor’s example. We know there is no human that can keep all ten commandments, so discuss how this aids in our assessment of ourselves.

4. We move on to the Holy Place and the table of showbread. Jesus is the bread of life. Discuss what you feel this means and how it affects your life.

5. The altar of incense is up next. Incense could only be offered up to God. The aroma of the burning incense would be pleasing to God and accompany the sacrifice. Praise and prayer would rise with the smoke and fragrance. Discuss how this form of worship is similar to and different from our worship today.

6. The final stop on our journey is the Holy of Holies. Only the high priest could enter this most sacred of places. The Ark of the Covenant (containing the mercy seat of God) resided here. Once Jesus was crucified, the veil was torn and men were no longer separated from God. Now we are able to enter the presence of God and worship. Jesus was the once and for all sacrifice that bridged the gap between man and God. Reflect for a few moments on how this forever changed our relationship with God. Share your thoughts with the group.

Discovery Bible Method:
For deeper study, as an alternative to the questions above, read 1 Peter 2:4-12 and use the Discovery Bible Method to explore the passage.

Getting Started

Main Idea:
God is Calling us to BE the River of Provision to our world THROUGH the Holy Spirit in us.

Discussion Starter:
Share a time when you were able to provide something that a person needed and how that made both you and him/her feel.

Introduction:
This weekend, Pastor Zac shared how Faith Promise Church is equipping our fpStudents to help real people with real problems find the real love of God. He explained these students are not the Next generation but the Now generation. When we as a church, both young and old alike, live out our values we will be a massive Movement-all 8000 of us! Recall our Biblically-based values from the previous weeks: We put God first; We tell them of Him; We grow together; We give generously; We serve others; We elevate those around us. Sometimes as Christ-followers, we think we need to wait on God to do the supernatural, but God has elevated us to be the River of Provision to this hurting and dying world. He has given us His Spirit to empower us to do His work! The only way to be a Movement is to start moving; you can’t sit still and see revival. The Kingdom will come when we GO!

Encounter God

Primary Scripture: Primary Scripture John 7:37-39

Discussion Questions:
1. Jesus boldly declares that whoever is thirsty only needs to come to Him to drink. What makes people thirsty today? How do people try to quench their thirst?

2. To place Jesus’ invitation to thirsty sinners in context, He shouted this on the last day of the Festival of Tabernacles, which commemorated the end of wandering in the desert as the Israelites entered the Promised Land. On the first seven days, the priest poured out water from a golden pitcher, and the people said, “With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation” (Isaiah 12:3), and according to rabbinic tradition, these words pointed to the Messiah. In contrast, on the 8th day of the festival, no water was drawn symbolizing that the Israelites were no longer in a desert but drank from the rivers of Canaan. The Israelites were reenacting a tradition that could never satisfy the heart, but Jesus offered them living water and eternal satisfaction! Can you describe how your life was like a spiritual desert before you came to the Lord? In what way has your life changed since you drank from the “wells of salvation”?

3. Jesus offers Himself as the living water. Temple symbolism pointed to this, and He compared His body to the temple itself (John 2:19-22). He also spoke of himself as the rock, that when struck (Exodus 17:1-7) gives not merely water but the living water of eternal life (John 4:13-14). This drinking water is symbolic of the gift of the Holy Spirit. Just as water satisfies thirst and produces fruitfulness, the Holy Spirit satisfies us and enables us to bear spiritual fruit (Gal 5:22). In what ways are you bearing fruit for God? What is holding you back from fully realizing God’s purpose for your life? How will you pray to fully trust the power of the Spirit that lives in you?

4. These verses describe the streams of living water as “flowing”. The promise is not only that we will be satisfied, but that we will be satisfying. When we drink the living water of Jesus, we not only fill our cup, but we become a river that overflows. How does the use of the word “flow” affect the way you see the power of the Holy Spirit? How will you allow God the Spirit to work through you as a River of Provision for this hurting and dying world?

Discovery Bible Method:
For deeper study, as an alternative to the questions above, read John 7:37-39 and use the Discovery Bible Method to explore the passage.