Meeting 4 | Discipleship Pathway

MODULE 7

Discipleship : Meeting 4

DISCUSS the series of essays “Finding God in the Workplace” and “Finding God in Rest,” using the following questions as a guide.

The goal of this meeting is to discern the ways we can become aware of God’s presence in two large areas of our life: our work and our rest.

1. What is the difference between a Biblical view of work and a “Babylonian” view of work? Which view best describes how you approach your work? If you need a reminder, take another look at “A Biblical View of Work.”

2. What difference does it make to understand that we were created as royalty instead of slaves?

3. Think about your work. This doesn’t necessarily have to be a “job,” but it could simply be the public space where you spend much of your time. Do you see this as a place where God is moving? Or does it seem “godforsaken,” as Abraham thought of Gerar?

4. If you don’t see God moving at your work, what are some specific prayers you could pray that

might help with that?

5. Think about the people you work with. Can you imagine God working in their hearts? Think of one person in particular. How might you be able to join God by showing that person the love of Jesus?

6. Recall your discussion on Sabbath from Module 3. How is your sabbathing going? When was the last time you stopped everything you were doing with the sole purpose of resting in God?

7. “Those other ‘gods’ created palaces to themselves where they could be served by human slaves. Our God? He created the weekend.” God created a holy day which he invites us into, rather than a holy palace where we don’t belong. What does this tell us about him?

8. What does it mean for you to meet God in his “palace of time?” In other words, what does it look like for you to bring God into your sabbath days, so it’s not just a “day off,” but a day of worship?

9. Before you leave this meeting, try to articulate 2 goals:

What are some specific ways you will engage with God’s movement in the place where you work this week?

What are some specific ways you will continue to engage with God from a place of quiet rest?

Discussion

Questions

ASSIGNMENT: Read the Sharing Jesus essay located below as you begin Module 8: Hospitality. Come ready to discuss it at your next meeting.

Sharing Jesus

By Phil Wiseman

Module 8 is all about hospitality. For a Christian, this means welcoming people into the family of God. At the heart of this is sharing the good news of Jesus Christ—or, “the gospel.”

PART 1: WHAT IS THE GOSPEL?

There is a word that Christians often say but rarely define: the word “gospel.” What exactly do we mean by it? In the Bible, the word used for “gospel” simply means “good news.” This Greek word, euangelion, is not unique to the Bible, but is used in many places to proclaim all sorts of news that was considered “good.” For example, we have ancient writings celebrating the “good news” (or “gospel”) of Caesar Augustus after he had just won a great battle. Often, this word was used to announce the fact that a ruler had just won a battle, and their kingdom was therefore advancing.

This context helps us make sense of what’s happening when we see Jesus preaching the good news, or gospel:

Later on, after John was arrested, Jesus went into Galilee, where he preached God's Good News. "The time promised by God has come at last!" he announced. "The Kingdom of God is near! Repent of your sins and believe the Good News!" (Mk. 1:14–15 NLT)

In other words, Jesus is proclaiming the fact that God’s kingdom is advancing, so we’d all better get in line with it! The battle is being won, with the decisive victory being the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

With this in mind, perhaps we can attempt a simple definition of the gospel:

The gospel is the good news that God’s kingdom has come through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, who now rules over all. Therefore, we can be forgiven for our rebellion and enjoy a life with God in His kingdom.

Now that’s good news!

Go to the next slide for Part 2.