Marloes

Q1. (2 Corinthians 5:16-17) What does verse 17 teach us about the nature of a new believer? He can reconcile with God now. What changes in a person when he puts his faith in Christ? When you put your faith in Christ, the Spirit comes to live in you. This gives another focus and hope. Why don’t old habits disappear immediately if everything has become new? It's not the habit that changes, but your view on it. Maybe you didn't even realize it's a bad habit, and you only learn this by the Bible. Or you need divine help to overcome it.

When I die, I'm going to heaven, so I don't have to fear death. Christians believe to go to heaven when they die. If we die before Christ returns, we also go to Him directly, and not first sleeping somewhere else. When Christ returns, we'll also get a new body. The living Christians will be taken up directly.

Tents are meant to live in temporarily - just like our bodies. We'll all die, and get a new body in heaven: the house not made with hands. It's living with the Lord forever! If we know this, we're less focused on money or daily problems.

Q4. (2 Corinthians 4:8-12) How does it encourage you to know that Paul went through tremendous stress and pressure? What effect did these sufferings have on the way people could see Christ in Paul? Why is pain necessary to spiritual growth? How does our pain allow others to assess our authenticity as Christians? 1. To me, this is an important argument why the Bible is true. People don't suffer for fun, only if they can't help it. 2. Persecuted christians can stop all pain by denying Christ. But Paul was in Christ so much he couldn't do that. 3. In my darkest periods, I prayed more. Pain helps to see "I am weak but though are strong", how dependent we are. 4. So nobody will say this: Job 1:9-11 9 Then Satan answered Yahweh, and said, “Does Job fear God for nothing? 10 Haven’t you made a hedge around him, and around his house, and around all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land. 11 But put forth your hand now, and touch all that he has, and he will renounce you to your face.”

We are the pottery jar, meaning we are weak, and just a vessel for something important, and are not that important ourselves. The treasure is the gospel. Meaning we have to serve and spread the gospel.

Satan is strong, but God is stronger. Paul was the blindest of all, but God made him a christian anyway. If we think people are blind by a splinter in their eye, we first have to check if we don't have a whole tree-thing in our own. You can do that y praying, reading the Bible, and discuss it with other people. For other people you can do intercession prayer and live as a good example.

Moses' face glow because he met God face to face and asked Him to show His glory. He covered his face, because he frightened the peoplr. Now I guess most people weren't looking for God, and didn't care about Him. In Moses' days, the Spirit came on people every now and then. In our days, the Spirit comes to stay in Christians.

My sisters aren't interested in God; when people talk about Him, they feel aggravated. So to them 'this fragrance is repugnant'. Therefore I rather evoke the subject. Maybe this is suppression of 'fragrance'? On the other hand, my stepgrandmother is a God-fearing woman. How do you call that in English, stone squares with Bible-quotes on them? Anyway, she has lots of them on the wall. But I don't think I'm going to do that... Well, this question shows that this is still a nowadays problem!

Without leaders, everyone does as he pleases, so you get anarchy or sects. Then the leaders have a state of their own, being extremely rich, while the believers are left in the dark. Then people have no more trust in the church. Ehm... not really. Obedience makes unity. No obedience means no unity. This happened in Constantinopel; because the christians were divided, the Turks could easily take over.

We don't know how prayer works, but Paul is most certain it works and is necesary. He couldn't do without this support. First I thought I had no gifts, but then someone told me that I pray a lot for persecuted Christians, and that this is also a gift. I don't understand all of this, but it feels like something that doesn't come just out of myself.

Does Paul ask it because it's scriptural? Or is it scriptural because Paul asks it?

Q2. (2 Corinthians 1:9-10) How does facing a harrowing crisis help us grow in the Lord? How has a crisis helped your spiritual life? What is the value of learning not to rely on ourselves? What does this do to our pride? How does this improve our effectiveness as God’s servants? Often we try to solve our problems by ourselves. However, when things are really bad, we have to omit we can't solve it, and only then we turn to God. This humbles us and learns us we're completely dependant on God. This makes us more effective as God's servants. If we realy on ourselves, we're still proud, and don't completely trust in God.

Q1. (2 Corinthians 1:3-7) What kind of comfort do you receive from your faith in God? From your personal daily relationship with God? How might you share the blessing of this kind of comfort with a friend or relative who is currently suffering? What words of comfort can you bring to others? I know God is there, also when I don't feel His presence. I'm not alone and He'll help me. Every day God is a life buoy. When you're alone, or feel tired, or don't know what to do He's there to help you through the day. We can't see God, but by reading or hearing things like this we hear about Him. So like Paul - who knew all kinds of trouble - comforts us, we can use this knowledge to comfort others.

God told Moses to SPEAK to the rock (verses 7-8). Moses however STROKE the rock (verse 11). So Moses didn't follow God's instructions, and besides this he also took the honour. Now Moses must have been tired of those people, and I guess he rather would have hit them with the rod. So it was anger and frustration that made him do that. When leaders sin, they must repent, just like other people.

What was the root cause of Korah's rebellion? He wanted to be the leader himself. Which of their accusations were true or partially true? that Moses didn't listen to the assembly Why is challenging the authority of a spiritual leader so dangerous to the challengers? It can be challenging God Himself How is intercession for a sinful people such an important part of a leader's job? God acts on our prayers, and we all need intercession. Besides this, a leader must love his people, and set an example.

Moses is frustrated because: a. he can't provide the food b. he can't handle the people He must be tired, both emotionally and physically. Ofcourse he feels stressed, perhaps with a big headache. Well, Moses has grounds, but he utters them the wrong way. He shouldn't have complained, but asked the Lord in a more trusting way. This can't be a model prayer. We're just shown that God always listens, but gets angry when we're rude. God did give Moses the things the people needed! Better: Lord, thanks for bringing us out of Egypt. This shows how powerfull you are. However, the people are complaining again. Please send me some help to handle them! Please give them meat, so they can see that you provide, so they can really trust you.

Laying hands is to pass the sins. Slaying the animal is slaying your own sins. Other people aren't responsable for my sins. Only blood can wash sins away. That way, Jesus' blood washes all sins away.

1. We enter this place/ prayer. 2. The bronze altar is for forgiveness of sins - like we have to confess our sins when we want our prayer to be effective. 3. The bronze basin is forgiveness - like our confession leads to forgiveness. 4. The lamp and incense are for praise - like we have to praise God in our prayers. 5. Only then, we can meet God.

The Ark is the throne of God, and contains the Torah. So the Holy o Holies is a logic place for it. It represents God's presence, and authority: Him being King. It's importance is in it's symbolism.

It was laid out that way that God's place was in the centre. This teaches them and us that God should be the centre of our lifes. The Levites had to serve in God's place. Therefore they had to live extra close.