God is Good and Forgiving!
Discipleship Questions for
Sunday July 20, 2008
Scripture Readings:
First Reading: Wisdom 12:13,16-19
Psalm Reading: Psalm 86
Second Reading: Romans 8:26-27
Gospel: Matthew 13:24-43
Wisdom 12:13, 16-19
A reading from the Book of Wisdom
You give repentance for sins.
There is no god besides you who have the care of all,
that you need show you have not unjustly condemned.
For your might is the source of justice;
your mastery over all things makes you lenient to all.
For you show your might when the perfection of your power is disbelieved;
and in those who know you, you rebuke temerity.
But though you are master of might, you judge with clemency,
and with much lenience you govern us;
for power, whenever you will, attends you.
And you taught your people, by these deeds,
that those who are just must be kind;
and you gave your children good ground for hope
that you would permit repentance for their sins.
Psa. 86:0
A prayer of David.
Psa. 86:1
Hear, O LORD, and answer me,
for I am poor and needy.
2 Guard my life, for I am devoted to you.
You are my God; save your servant
who trusts in you.
3 Have mercy on me, O Lord,
for I call to you all day long.
4 Bring joy to your servant,
for to you, O Lord,
I lift up my soul.
Psa. 86:5
You are forgiving and good, O Lord,
abounding in love to all who call to you.
6 Hear my prayer, O LORD;
listen to my cry for mercy.
7 In the day of my trouble I will call to you,
for you will answer me.
Psa. 86:8
Among the gods there is none like you, O Lord;
no deeds can compare with yours.
9 All the nations you have made
will come and worship before you, O Lord;
they will bring glory to your name.
10 For you are great and do marvelous deeds;
you alone are God.
Psa. 86:11
Teach me your way, O LORD,
and I will walk in your truth;
give me an undivided heart,
that I may fear your name.
12 I will praise you, O Lord my God, with all my heart;
I will glorify your name forever.
13 For great is your love toward me;
you have delivered me from the depths of the grave.
Psa. 86:14
The arrogant are attacking me, O God;
a band of ruthless men seeks my life—
men without regard for you.
15 But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God,
slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.
16 Turn to me and have mercy on me;
grant your strength to your servant
and save the son of your maidservant.
17 Give me a sign of your goodness,
that my enemies may see it and be put to shame,
for you, O LORD, have helped me and comforted me.
Rom. 8:26
In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will.
Rom. 8:28
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
Matt. 13:24
Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field.25But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away.26When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared.
Matt. 13:27
“The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’
Matt. 13:28
“ ‘An enemy did this,’ he replied.
“The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’
Matt. 13:29
“ ‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may root up the wheat with them.30Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’”
Matt. 13:31
He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field.32Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches.”
Matt. 13:33
He told them still another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough.”
Matt. 13:34
Jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say anything to them without using a parable. 35 So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet:
“I will open my mouth in parables,
I will utter things hidden since the creation of the world.”
Matt. 13:36
Then he left the crowd and went into the house. His disciples came to him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.”
Matt. 13:37
He answered, “The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man.38The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one,39and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.
Matt. 13:40
“As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age.41The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil.42They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.43Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.
Discipleship Questions:
1. Please read the Scripture readings for today and look for what they tell us about our God. See if you can isolate a few “descriptor” words that capture the fundamental theme or themes of these readings.
2. The fundamental question that these readings confront us with is this: Is there really a God and is He sovereign and good and if all of this is true what does that mean to me and my living out this life on earth? Discuss these fundamental questions in light of the Scripture readings.
3. Discuss the following statement that I made in my sermon notes: “We can either believe that as fact or live out our lives always wanting to be convinced of that fact but skeptical and cynical that in some cases evil wins out over goodness. Many more people than care to admit it live out their lives in this muddled mindset. In this mindset God is always in the “dock.” Always suspect – never quite fully trusted.”
4. “If we can be brought to the point of totally trusting in our God then we come to a sublime sense of comfort and peace – that state which we lost at the Fall in the Garden of Eden.” What do you think about the preceding statement?
5. Now please tease out how each of our readings addresses some aspect of God’s sovereignty, mercy, goodness and kindness.
6. Please read the following and discuss: “Now let’s really take all of this to a deeper level – from the ears to the mind and then to the soul so that we not only just hear this but it becomes what we believe and what subsequently governs our lives and therefore our behavior. Sermons like this can end too quickly with a simple call to accept all of this and get on with our lives but this morning I think God wants to get personal with each of us. Yes, God loves us that much that He doesn’t want us to remain in our little prisons. Make no mistake to the extent that our lives aren’t absolutely governed by Him – by love, this is the extent to which we are in our own personal jails – tormented by our personal failings, our insatiable longings, our daemons, addictions, and fears. No insurance policy, no million dollar savings account, no massive investment portfolio is enough to protect us from ourselves when we are not submitted to the God of all! When we are playing God In our lives we are ultimately subject to fear – the fear of unexpected loss. A world not governed by a merciful God is ultimately a frightening world that can’t be ignored or run away from but a world governed by a good and personal God with whom we are in good standing thanks to His mercy and our submission to His rule – this is a world in which we can live with joy and peace certain that our good God will do what is good and right and best for us and for all! This is the God in whom I rest my soul – my absolute trust – how about you????”