Monday Discussion ~ Believing the Story ~ Luke 1:5-25

Each Monday I will be posting reflections from the sermon and discussion questions for any groups working through the sermon texts with us.

We began Advent last Sunday looking at the story of Zechariah, the father of John the Baptizer. Zechariah was a priest, educated and influential in his community. Yet, he was filled with disappointment. His faith in God was trembling because his people hadn't heard from God in centuries. No prophets had arisen and miracles were few and far between. Even worse, Israel was now under oppression by Roman rule. It seemed that God was silent and distant and all Israel was waiting.

And beneath all that disappointment, Zechariah had a secret hope that had gone unfulfilled. He and his wife were childless. Together, they suffered in silence - a private disappointment that lay alongside all the other disappointments.

We think of the Christmas characters as witnesses of wonder and astonishing miracles. But mostly, these people were more like you and me ~ Living with disappointment and learning to live by faith in a promise that doesn't seem possible. Let's look at Zechariah's story in Luke 1:5-25.

1:5 In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah. And he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord. 7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years.

8 Now while he was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty, 9 according to the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. 10 And the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense. 11 And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. 12 And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him. 13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. 14 And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, 15 for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb. 16 And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, 17 and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”

18 And Zechariah said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.” 19 And the angel answered him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. 20 And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.” 21 And the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they were wondering at his delay in the temple. 22 And when he came out, he was unable to speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple. And he kept making signs to them and remained mute. 23 And when his time of service was ended, he went to his home.
24 After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she kept herself hidden, saying, 25 “Thus the Lord has done for me in the days when he looked on me, to take away my reproach among people.”     

Introduction Question
Do you recall a Christmas gift that you were really anticipating? Did you get it? What happened after you received it/ didn't receive it?

Questions
1. What do we learn about Zechariah in this story? What do you think his prayers might have been for? What do you think his frustrations might have been?

2. What are your prayers and frustrations as you enter into the Christmas season?

3. When Gabriel the angel appears, he promises joy and gladness for Zechariah as well as for many others. What is the good news he promises?

4. What promises do you feel like God has made to you? Any?

5. When Zechariah comes out of the temple, he cannot speak. What do you think he did and thought in those following months?

Practical Questions:

6. You are talking with a friend who has had a lot of financial trouble. They have been on and off of welfare, and have overcome a drug habit about a decade ago. They come to you one day and tell you that they feel like God is calling them to start a trucking business. He shows a pretty decent business plan - 2 trucks and a plan for marketing. This is not a person who talks a lot about 'God's plan' - they are usually pretty timid. This vision seems genuine.

The reason he wants to start the business is because his daughter is getting older and he wants to provide a home for her. His step-daughter is also moving home and he needs a bigger place.

"There are just too many obstacles," he says. "I don't have a degree. I don't have the money. I don't know where to start. I feel like God has given me this dream, but I don't know how to make it happen."

How will you counsel your friend?

What not How...

The poem from George MacDonald, quoted in last night's sermon. A great Christmas reminder that God makes his promises before he reveals his plan. God's WHAT comes before the HOW.

Are there promises you are waiting on? Things you hope God will do, but don't seem possible right now. Remember that Mary and Zechariah and all the Christmas characters received a promise that seemed impossible every step of the way. The answer is not HOW is this going to happen, but WHO is at work.

When you get anxious about the HOW, spend some time thinking on the WHO.

They all were looking for a king  

  To slay their foes and lift them high:  

Thou cam'st, a little baby thing  

    That made a woman cry.  

O Son of Man, to right my lot          

  Naught but Thy presence can avail;  

Yet on the road Thy wheels are not,  

    Nor on the sea Thy sail!  

My how or when Thou wilt not heed,  

  But come down Thine own secret stair,   

That Thou mayst answer all my need—  

    Yea, every bygone prayer.

George MacDonald

Amounting to Much

Spending a year as a chaplain at Matheny, a hospital for severely disabled children, was one of the most frustrating years of my life. Sure, it was sad and hard and tiring. But most of all, it frustrated my sense of accomplishment. I couldn't help these kids, fix them or help them become better people. Most were going to die young, with no hope of 'making a difference'. I could only love them  and that imperfectly.

I had been used to serving the high achievers. The people who were going to make a difference in the world. In these relationships, even as we talked about grace, we all knew that we had were supposed to do something great.

A harsh law that hangs over all of us raised in a culture of success - where doing good and doing well are equally demanding competitions. We must amount to something. People like the kids at Matheny reminded me that our achievements are not our final metric.

That’s why I loved this story on Slate. Cristina is a single mum raising her daughter, Eurydice, who has Down Syndrome. The whole article is a great read as a carefree and upwardly mobile woman comes to grips with the pain and joy of raising her daughter. But the part that jumped out at me was when she talked about her daughter's accomplishments. She says;

"Am I “cheerily generalizing” as [another author] says of other Down syndrome parents, “from a few accomplishments” of my child? Perhaps I am. But one thing I've learned these last four years... All of our accomplishments are few. All of our accomplishments are minor: my scribblings, his book, the best lines of the best living poets. We embroider away at our tiny tatters of insight as though the world hung on them, when it is chiefly we ourselves who hang on them."

When we can release on our pride in our achievements, we can focus on using our abilities great and small to love one another. That's a God perspective. Even our great achievements are pretty small in the scheme of things. But what if we already did amount to something? Not because we did something great - but because we were loved and got to love in return.

The joy Eurydice takes in each detail of life is the most infectious quality I’ve ever known. When she flings her arms around my neck as she does every day, every night, my most recurrent fear is no longer relapsing cancer, no longer early dementia or heart disease or hearing loss—or even the fact that Eurydice is growing up too slowly. It is a testament to how radically this child has transformed me that my most recurrent fear may be that she’s growing up too fast—that one day she could be too mature to give me those massive, resplendent, full-body hugs.

In our church, we are blessed with people who are very successful in the eyes of the world. And with people who don’t amount to much in the eyes of the world. But in truth, none of what we do amounts to much. It's what God has done that makes us amount to anything.

Glorify God Together with One Voice

A mark of the faithful church is singing praise to God together in unity. But worship can be one of the divisive practices of a church. We sing different songs, in different ways. When worship is about our preferences, it divides. When it is about God, it unites us.

As OCC grows, we are prayerfully seeking ways to unite our voices together in song, across the many styles that we bring together. So, each week, David is going to post a new song with a link that you can get to know so we can sing together on Sunday.

This week, we are trying something new! Instead of speaking our 'Call to Worship', we are going to sing it, in a call and response fashion.


Here's the words...

Congregational Response
Lord, our God
we give you praise!

From the rising of the sun to the setting of the same,

Lord, our God
we give you praise!

Leader:
Attend dear Lord
to Your people now...

Response

Leader:
There is none
like our God Jehovah!

Response

Leader:
Such mercy!
Your blood like cleansing rain has washed away our stains

Leader:
Humbled, dare we
gather to approach Thee...

Response

Leader:
Welcomed by the blood You've shed so freely!

Response

Leader:
Your grace is
sufficient for my case
my failures you’ve erased!

© 2012 by David Sovereign

Monday Discussion ~ A Work of God ~ Ephesians 4:30-32

Each Monday I will be posting reflections from the sermon and discussion questions for any groups working through the sermon texts with us.

Last week, Larry preached on Ephesians 4:30:32.

And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.  Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

Paul finishes his call to maturity with a simple reminder. We are now in a new relationship. We are not talking about some abstract law or philosophy. God in Jesus has come close to us. More than that, through the Holy Spirit he has come to live with us. 'Do not grieve' the Holy Spirit! It's personal! Relationships are more powerful than rules every time*. A law can stop me from stealing or trespassing. But no law can make me sacrifice for my wife or my children. That's something I will only do out of love and affection. And so it is with God. We don't need more rules. We need a closer relationship.

QUESTIONS

1. How do you respond to this phrase 'grieving the Holy Spirit'? Can you imagine God grieving?

2. How might you try to see your obedience to God as a matter of relationship rather than rules?

Rules may help set boundaries and keep things clear. But no relationship can live by rules alone. I once knew a woman who had bought a TV with her 'allowance' from her husband. And since she had bought the TV with 'her' allowance, 'he' was not allowed to watch that TV. Her husband treated her legalistically, and she responded in the same way. Abundant grace only arises when we start to experience abundant grace. Deep, 'letting go' forgiveness only arises when we experience that kind of forgiveness.

Read Matthew 18:21-35

3. What law did the unforgiving servant break?

4. The servant was forgiven his debt, but he didn't receive forgiveness. What clues do you see in the story that the man never understood how much he had been forgiven?

5. How does the king respond to the unforgiving servant? Is this an overreaction?

PRACTICAL QUESTION

6. Greg is a member of your team at work. He is constantly critical of your performance. He sends emails that are rude, makes snarky comments during meetings and has talked about you behind your back. Your boss and co-workers are familiar with Greg's approach and they chalk it up to personality difference, so there is no substantial impact on your reputation at work. But the truth is, Greg just bugs you constantly. He's not a Christian, and you don't have any contact outside of work? How should you respond to him?

Javier is a member of your congregation. He attends Bible study with you. Javier has a short temper, and has sent 2 or 3 nasty emails to you, criticizing you. On one occasion, he yelled at you. Should you respond to Javier any differently than you would respond to Greg, as a Christian?

* An interesting TED talk reveals how increased legislation has failed us. What is needed is more wisdom from people who know the cases before them.

Kyrie Elieson

Lyrics to Kyrie Elieson

Last night we sang a 'Kyrie' which is an ancient song sung by Jews before Christ, and then adopted by the early church. It simply means 'Lord have Mercy'. similar to the expression Jesus quotes in Matthew In Rome and elsewhere it became a part of the formal liturgy of the church.

Together, these words summarzie the heart of the faith - Jesus is Lord, yet, he offers mercy.

Throughout the centuries Christians have sung these words to a multitude of tunes with additional words around it. Here is the version we sang last night. Getty is focusing on our communal sin and need to repent for our lack of justice.

CHORUS:
Kyrie Eleison, have mercy
Christ Eleison, have mercy;
Kyrie Eleison, have mercy,
Christ Eleison, have mercy.

VERSES:
As we come before You with the needs of our world,
We confess our failures and our sin,
For our words are many yet our deeds have been few;
Fan the fire of compassion once again.

When the cries of victims go unheard in the land,
And the scars of war refuse to heal;
Will we stand for justice to empower the weak
Till their bonds of oppression are no more?

 If we love our God with all our heart, mind and strength,
And we love our neighbors as ourselves;
Then this law of love will heal the nations of earth
And the glory of Christ will be revealed.

 Lord, renew our vision to be Christ where we live,
To reach out in mercy to the lost;
For each cup of kindness to the least in our midst
Is an offering of worship to the throne.

 Kyrie Eleison (Lord Have Mercy) Words & Music by Keith Getty and Stuart Townend © 2010 Thankyou Music & Gettymusic

 See Keith Getty's website for more info.

 See this for another version we won't be singing.

Study on Ephesians 4:17-28

Study on Ephesians 4.2