Took - Grace and Love

TOOK

We, the people of St. Nicholas Episcopal Church, are about to get back in our canoe and journey to a new place to worship our God, as we do so, we must prepare for some ‘good-byes’ as well.

1.    What is the most important thing we take with us?

2.    What are you looking forward to the most about the church’s upcoming changes?

3.    If you are worried about the upcoming changes, can you turn the worry over to Jesus?  

Book - grace and love

BOOK - Luke 21:5-19

Christ tells of the pending destruction of the temple, and the changes we will face in our lives. 

1.    How do you feel about the “opportunity” Jesus mentions in this passage?  

2.    Can you stand the thought of being hated by all?  

3.    We are told not to prepare for He will have the answers for us when we need them.  What is your reaction to this?

Luke 21:5-19

When some were speaking about the temple, how it was adorned with beautiful stones and gifts dedicated to God, Jesus said, "As for these things that you see, the days will come when not one stone will be left upon another; all will be thrown down."
They asked him, "Teacher, when will this be, and what will be the sign that this is about to take place?" And he said, "Beware that you are not led astray; for many will come in my name and say, `I am he!' and, `The time is near!' Do not go after them.
"When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for these things must take place first, but the end will not follow immediately." Then he said to them, "Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and plagues; and there will be dreadful portents and great signs from heaven.
"But before all this occurs, they will arrest you and persecute you; they will hand you over to synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors because of my name. This will give you an opportunity to testify. So make up your minds not to prepare your defense in advance; for I will give you words and a wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to withstand or contradict. You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, by relatives and friends; and they will put some of you to death. You will be hated by all because of my name. But not a hair of your head will perish. By your endurance you will gain your souls."

Look - grace and love

Saying good-bye can be tough.  Good-bye to a loved one as they lay dying.  Good-bye to a close friend who moves away to another continent.  Good-bye even to buildings as they get torn down and replaced by newer, bigger and better.  

1.        What are some good-byes that you’ve had to make in your life?  Which sticks with you the most, and why?  

2.        Will it be hard for you to say good-bye to IPA on Sunday mornings?  

3.        What, if anything, have you missed about being in a “real” church building?  

Book

The Sadducees want to hold Jesus accountable, Jesus responds by helping them examine their own understanding of eternal life.

1.             Do you think Jesus’ response helped to show the Sadducees that their rules were keeping them from the real intent of the Law (ie God)?  Why or why not?

2.             How does Jesus hold the Sadducees accountable in his response?

3.             What does Christ's answer mean to you?

Luke 20:27-38

Some Sadducees, those who say there is no resurrection, came to Jesus and asked him a question, "Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man's brother dies, leaving a wife but no children, the man shall marry the widow and raise up children for his brother. Now there were seven brothers; the first married, and died childless; then the second and the third married her, and so in the same way all seven died childless. Finally the woman also died. In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife will the woman be? For the seven had married her."

Jesus said to them, "Those who belong to this age marry and are given in marriage; but those who are considered worthy of a place in that age and in the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage. Indeed they cannot die anymore, because they are like angels and are children of God, being children of the resurrection. And the fact that the dead are raised Moses himself showed, in the story about the bush, where he speaks of the Lord as the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Now he is God not of the dead, but of the living; for to him all of them are alive."