Pastor Ralph

Q15. (Luke 2:1-7) Why is it important for us to know who governed the area at the time of Jesus’ birth? What difficulties did Mary and Joseph face? What do you think God allowed such difficulties? Why does he allow difficulties in our lives?

Q14. (Galatians 4:4-5) Why do you think God sent Jesus into this world when he did? What does it mean that he “redeemed” you? What does it mean that he “adopted” you? What is your inheritance?

Q13. (Isaiah 11:6-10) Where is love most at home – in times of strife or in times of peace? What does our passage say about the emptiness of winning as our ultimate value? How can you bring peace from Jesus to your world? Who will it bless?

Q12. (Isaiah 11:3-5) Why do you think God has a special place in his heart for the poor and disadvantaged? Who are the unloved, overlooked, and looked-down-upon in your city? What are you doing to demonstrate Messiah’s love and justice to them?

Q11. (Isaiah 11:1-3). Why do we resist letting the Messiah govern our own lives? Why don’t we seek his counsel more often? Why is surrender to his wise leadership so difficult for us? What can we do about this hardness we find in ourselves?

Q10. (Psalm 110) According to verse 1, what is Jesus doing at present? What will he ultimately succeed in doing? What is the primary role of a priest? How does Jesus function as a priest who brings us to God? (verse 4).

Q9. (Psalm 2) Why does Jesus provoke such negative reactions from some people? Why do people tend to resist any kind of authority? What should we do when we detect resistance in our own hearts? What does it mean to “kiss the Son” (Psalm 2:12)?

Q8. (Matthew 1:18-25) What do these verses tell us about Joseph’s character? His faith? When he takes Mary home to be his wife, how does this affect his reputation in Nazareth as an upright Jew?

Q7. (Isaiah 9:6-7) Why is a never-ending Kingdom such an anomaly in world history? Why is just and righteous government so rare? What justice will Jesus bring to you when he comes?

Q6. (Isaiah 9:6) Paraphrase in your own words the amazing titles given to Jesus in Isaiah 9:6. How should knowledge of his titles affect our relationship to him?

Q5. (Isaiah 9:1-2) Why do people choose to live in darkness when light is available? (John 3:19). Why do people seem to resist the Light of Jesus? Why do you sometimes hesitate to step into Jesus’ full light? How did Light transform the reputation of Galilee? How has light transformed your reputation in your circle of friends?

Day 4 (Genesis 22:16-18; Galatians 3:16, 29) To whom are blessings promised through Abraham's descendant? In what way does Abraham’s sacrifice of Isaac prefigure the Father’s sacrifice of Jesus?

Day 3 (Genesis 49:10) What does the image of a lion tell us about Judah’s descendant? How does Jesus qualify for the promise of the ruling scepter? Why is obedience so hard for us? Why is it so important for us?

Day 2 (Luke 1:39-45) Why did the angel put Elizabeth and Mary together? How is Elizabeth a comfort to Mary? How is Mary an encouragement to Elizabeth? To whom has God sent you to give and receive comfort?

Q1 (Luke 1:26-38) What honor did God bestow on Mary? What would this honor cost her? What does her response to the angel indicate? What discipleship lesson can you learn from Mary’s response?

Q4. (Acts 12:5-17) Why do you think the Christians don’t believe their own prayers for Peter’s release? Don’t they believe in miracles any longer? Why don’t we pray with greater faith to the God who can do anything? How can we grow our faith in God so we can pray better?

Q3. (Acts 11:29-30) In what way does the monetary gift from the Antioch believers to the Judean believers exemplify the most basic directive of Jesus (John 13:35)? Why do you think that ministry to the poor and needy has become a hallmark of the Church down through the ages to our own day? What happens when we deemphasize this? What happens when we over-emphasize this?

Q2. (Acts 11:22-26) What qualifications did Barnabas have that made him an ideal missionary to the new Gentile believers in Antioch? What qualifications did Saul of Tarsus have that caused Barnabas to seek him out and enlist him to help in Antioch? Why do you think it took so long for Saul to get into active ministry in Antioch?

Q1. (Acts 11:19-21) Why do you think it took so long for the gospel to jump over from the Jewish “fishing pond” into the vast ocean of Gentiles who need Christ? What kind of preparation did God have to do among the Jewish Christians to get them ready for this?

Q5. (Acts 10:44-48) Clearly tongues were a sign to Peter that Cornelius’s household had been baptized with the Spirit. Does the Scripture support a doctrine that speaking in tongues is a “necessary sign” of the baptism of the Holy Spirit? If so, how? (Christians disagree on these matters, so be gentle as you share your thoughts with one another.)

Q4. (Acts 10:38) Since Jesus is God, why is he dependent upon the Spirit’s anointing? Are we dependent upon the Spirit’s empowerment in a similar way, or is it different for us?

Q3. (Acts 10:9-16) Why does God have to bring this noon-time vision to Peter? What prejudices did Peter have against Gentiles? How did his religion prevent him from reaching out to Gentiles? What specifically did God tell him about “common and unclean”? How does this revelation affect his attitude towards Jewish dietary laws?

Q2. (Acts 10:4) Why do you think your prayers and your obedient life are like incense that gives God pleasure? Do you think you can actually bring pleasure to God?

Q1. (Acts 10:2, 22) What do we learn about Cornelius’ character? Why do you think God chose to reveal himself to Cornelius, rather than the average pagan? Is he more worthy of salvation?

Q4. (Acts 9:32-43) How did God use healing and raising from the dead in order to begin a mighty regional revival? If you recognize that you have a spiritual gift of healing, are you willing to be obedient and let God use you in ministry?