Seeds of Faith Podcast

The text for this lesson is Genesis 1:26-2:25

Key Points

• God made us in His image, provided all things for our good, and made us rulers over the earth and everything in it.
• Law: God expects me to wisely rule His creation for His glory and the good of others.
• Gospel: God in Christ offers me forgiveness when I exploit, waste, or spoil His creation, and He mercifully grants all that I need in body and spirit.
• Law: I sin when I view the creation to be more important than humankind.
• Gospel: God created all things for my good and in Christ forgives me when I place the creation higher than humanity.
• Law: I sin when I worship the creation and not the Creator.
• Gospel: God in Christ forgives my sins of self-idolatry and offers me eternal life with Him.
 

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Discussion Points

1. Of your many earthly gifts from God, which are the most important to you? How does the creation account demonstrate which of His creatures should be most important?
2. “Do you think that many people today believe that God instituted marriage? In light of the creation account, should same-sex marriage ever be recognized by the Christian Church?
3. The creation myths of ancient Babylon teach that humans were created to serve God’s needs. Is this view compatible with Genesis? Why did God create humankind?
4. One aspect of the image of God is righteousness, that is, being without sin. Just as God is without sin, so humankind was created sinless and righteous. When Adam and
   Eve sinned, did they completely lose the righteousness that they originally had from being created in the image of God? Instead of original righteousness, what is each of us born with? How does God restore us to righteousness and His image? See Colossians 1:15–20 and 1 Corinthians 1:30.
5. A second aspect of the image of God is dominion, that is, control and rule or lordship. Read Genesis 1:26 carefully. What is the connection between humankind being created in God’s image and God’s command for us to rule over the world? How does a good ruler or lord treat his subjects? How, then, should people rule over the world? How has the fall affected our understanding of dominion? How does our Lord Jesus Christ rule us? See Matthew 20:25–28.
6. A third aspect of the image of God is that we have the breath of life from God. We confess in the Nicene Creed that the Holy Spirit is “the Lord and giver of life.” Read Genesis 2:7. How does the Spirit give us life? What does the word inspiration mean in Christian theology? Read John 6:63. Whose words are inspired? Read John 20:19–23. How does God breathe new life into people who are dead in sin?
7. God created the first man and woman in His image to share in a perfect relationship of love. Love is expressed in community. An aspect of the image of God is community. Read Genesis 2:18. Why was it not good for Adam to be alone? Why did he need a suitable helper? How does God dispel loneliness and provide community through the institution of marriage? Read Ephesians 5:22–33. How does Christian marriage provide a picture of Christ’s love for His Church and of the Church’s love for Christ?
8. As Christians, we believe that Genesis 1–2 describes God’s intentional and loving creation of humankind. How does what we believe about creation affect our view of the dignity of every living person? How does what we believe about Jesus’ once-for-all sacrifice affect our view of each other? See John 3:16.
9. Read Genesis 2:16–17. By giving this command, God was telling Adam that he was to trust and believe in Him only. What kinds of created things or people do we make into gods? Ultimately, what becomes of us if we create our own gods? See Isaiah 44:9–10.
10. Read Genesis 2:15. Was the need to work part of God’s perfect creation or the result of sin? Why is work sometimes such a difficult and joyless thing? Why would a life of idleness not be God-pleasing? How does our work serve God?
11. Read Genesis 1:28. When God says, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth,” what is He telling Adam and Eve to do? Read Psalm 127:3–5. What does God’s Word tell us about children? How do these verses contrast with many people’s views of marriage and childbearing today?

The text for this lesson is Luke 23:26–24:12

Key Points

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Discussion Points

1. “Christ is risen!” “He is risen indeed! Alleluia!” Perhaps you have already used this traditional exchange today. What does alleluia or hallelujah mean? Why have we refrained from using alleluias during the forty days of Lent only to resurrect its use today?

2. When we celebrate the Lord’s Supper, we “proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes” (1 Corinthians 11:26). Even in heaven, He is the “Lamb who was slain” (Revelation 5:12). A crucifix helps us see with our eyes the message of the preceding verses. How does a crucifix also communicate the reality of the Christian’s earthly life more clearly than an empty cross does?

3. Compare Luke 23:32–33 with Luke 22:37. How does the crucifixion scene fulfill this prediction of Jesus? Read Isaiah 53:11–12. What additional knowledge does this prophecy of Isaiah give us concerning the significance of Jesus being numbered with the transgressors upon a cross?

4. In Luke 23:40–42, what remarkable confession does the criminal make about himself and Jesus? What words of Jesus might have brought the criminal to faith? How does the criminal provide an ideal pattern for us?

5. In Scripture, darkness and light are often contrasted. For example, we read in 1 John 1:5, “God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all.” Darkness usually represents evil things, such as sin, death, and hell. Sin is darkness, for Solomon states that “the way of the wicked is like deep darkness” (Proverbs 4:19). Death is darkness, as David describes those who “sit in darkness like those long dead” (Psalm 143:3). So also, hell is darkness, for Jesus says that those who reject His Gospel will be “thrown into the outer darkness” (Matthew 8:12). In Genesis 1:2, the earth was chaotic and in darkness before God said, “Let there be light.” In view of what we know about the biblical use of darkness, how are Luke 22:3 and 22:53 related to the darkness described in Luke 23:44? What does the darkness suggest is happening to the world during Jesus’ crucifixion? According to Revelation 21:22–23, what did Jesus’ death and resurrection ensure for our new Jerusalem in heaven?

6. Luke emphasizes the innocence (righteousness) of Jesus throughout his Passion Narrative. When Jesus is first brought to trial in Luke 23:4, Pilate says, “I find no guilt in this man.” According to 23:15, neither did Herod. Pilate wanted to release Jesus (v. 16). He pleaded with the Jews to let him free Jesus, and he continued to maintain His innocence (vv. 18–22), but finally he gave into their vociferous demands (vv. 23–25). The criminal confessed Jesus’ righteousness (v. 41), and when He died, the centurion said, “Certainly this man was innocent” (v. 47). We also see Jesus’ perfect trust in His Father when He cried out, “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit!” (v. 46). Luke emphasizes through these things that Jesus was the righteous one who committed no sins at all and did not deserve punishment. According to Leviticus 18:4–5, what would result for one who perfectly obeyed God’s Law? What is the relationship between that promise and Jesus’ resurrection?

7. To justify something is to declare it righteous or innocent. Pilate, the criminal, and the centurion all justified Jesus by declaring Him innocent. Yet God alone can truly declare someone innocent (Romans 8:33), and by raising Jesus from the dead, He declared to the world that His Son is the Righteous One. According to Romans 4:24–25, what else happened in Jesus’ death and resurrection?

8. According to Romans 6:3–5, what is the connection between Baptism and Christ’s death and resurrection?

9. We read in Luke 23:56 that the women remained faithful to the Old Testament Law, which said that they could not handle a dead body on the Sabbath. The women were still living under the Law. Since Jesus, God’s righteous servant, obeyed the Law perfectly, what did Jesus’ Sabbath rest in the tomb symbolize? According to Romans 10:4, how does Christ change our relationship to the Old Testament Law?

The text for this lesson is John 6:1–14 .

Key Points

• In His love, God promises to care for all our physical and spiritual needs and gives us the greatest treasure: His Son and the gifts of forgiveness, life, and salvation.
• Law: Like the disciples, I am of little faith, lacking trust in God to give me all good things. In sin, I seek earthly treasure and security. Earthly goods are part of this world of sin; they will pass away.
• Gospel: God promises to provide for all my needs according to His will and riches. God has promised me much more, granting me eternal life in His Son, Jesus. God gives me the greater thing: faith in Jesus and eternal life in heaven with Him.

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Discussion Points

1. What does John 6 teach us about the difference between seeing miraculous signs and believing Jesus’ words? What can the Church learn from this?

2. In John 6:3, we are told that Jesus “went up on the mountain.” In Matthew 5–7, Jesus also goes up on a mountain to teach. What Old Testament figure was frequently found on a mountain? (See Exodus 19:3–4.) What might this bit of information tell us about how John and Matthew portray Jesus?

3. Read John 6:48–58. How does the preceding discussion concerning the Passover and the manna in the wilderness provide insight into the meaning of this passage?

4. Philip, Andrew, and Moses had much in common when it came to dealing with large-scale hunger problems. What had all three of them failed to see? What do we have in common with Philip, Andrew, and Moses when it comes to dealing with our problems?

5. We read in John 6:4 that the Passover was near, which means that the feeding of the five thousand occurred in the springtime. This is supported by John 6:10, “There was much grass in the place.” Mark 6:39 says that the grass was green. Jesus had the crowd sit down in green fields before He fed them “as much as they wanted” (John 6:11). To what might this scene be an allusion?

6. Compare John 6:11 and Luke 22:19. What might the similarity of these verses teach the Church about the feeding of the five thousand?

7. After seeing Jesus perform the miraculous sign, the people said that Christ was the prophet who had come into the world. Read Deuteronomy 18:15–19. Who would this prophet be like? According to John 1:17, what would be the greatest difference between Jesus the Prophet and the one who came before Him?