MISSION GROUP QUESTIONS FROM SPIRITUAL GROWTH SERIES - 25/04/10

Jeremiah 17:5-18 If God is Glorious then I don't need to fear

Many of us would agree that God is glorious – everything that is good, pure and holy, and beautiful is found most fully in Him. There is no one like him. Nothing can compare with him. But we don’t believe it at a day to day level –otherwise our lives would look different.

We sin by believing a lie that something is more glorious than God.  However we will fear whatever we think is most powerful.  Therefore if other people are the most glorious thing in our lives we will spend all our time:
• craving their approval,
• fearing their rejection,
• desiring their acceptance.

We can have a downward cycle of sin and fear in our lives:
I don’t share my faith because I fear others > Because I don’t share, I don’t feel God’s approval > Makes me want people’s approval

If you are a Christian we need God – ‘The Consuming Fire’ - to fill our gaze, let his glory, love, goodness and wrath invade our lives.  Biblical word for this is the ‘fear of the lord.’ To fear God means to treat him reverently with respect, worship, awe, trust and submission.  If you trust in Jesus’ death and resurrection our terror can turn to worship.  Also our fear of man can be defeated because Jesus broke the power of sin at the cross.

Mission Group Thoughts:

1) Can you think of a funny story that illustrates how much you can fear people?
2) What or what do you think is more glorious than God?  Or what are your biggest fears?
3) Study Jer 17:5-6.  Jeremiah says that if you trust in man, other people, or anything other than God you’re like a tree in the desert.  What does your fear produce in your life?
4) Study Jer 17:7-8.  How can you be like the tree by the River? what does that mean practically for you?
5) What does the bible (especially Proverbs) say about ‘The Fear of the Lord’?
6) How can the Fear of the Lord be a good thing? How can you grow in it?
7) How does Jesus’ life, death and resurrection set us free from the power of sin and fear?
8) What practical steps can you take to overcome fear in your life?
9) Is it sinful to be fearful?
10) Pray for each other.  Confess your fear, ask God’s forgiveness, pray for the Holy Spirit to set you free from it’s grip on your life, ask God to reveal his glory and acceptance to you.