Sunday, November 29

Advent: The Mystery of Hope

Matthew 1-2:1a
Richard Dahlstrom, Senior Pastor, www.spiritsoulbody.org

1. Blowing Up Assumptions
2. Invoking Patience
3. Creating Hope

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Discussion Questions
Before questions, attempt to give the group a bit of a summary of the main points of the sermon and then choose a few questions that fit your group’s needs and style. We don’t intend for you to use all of these. Three to five questions may be a good number.

• Who stands out in your family genealogy, for good or bad?
• Watch the Advent Week 1 Video – Mystery of Hope (6 mins)
• In what ways do you lean to the two directions of cancel culture and culture of hypocrisy?
• What threat does cancel culture pose to how we view things? (i.e. grace without truth)
• What threat does taking our failures underground have? (i.e. truth without grace)
• Pastor Richard reminds us that with a snapshot you can build a case to condemn anyone. How have you experienced that either as a recipient or the one taking a snapshot?
• Knowing that Adam heard God’s voice and hid from him but God came looking for him, what are you running and hiding from due to a sense of shame and unworthiness?
• Pastor Richard poses that If God is shouting anything through the examples of genealogy - it’s that you are loved - and because you’re loved, you’re invited to be part of a story of hope/beauty.
• Post this link in the chat to the Identity Truths handout:
• https://www.churchbcc.org/Content/GreenLake/Identity_Truths_2019_print.pdf
• Allow a moment to read through the handout and have each person select one identity truth that stands out to them.
• Ask, can you commit to praying through that truth throughout the week?
• Why is it dangerous to believe that if we are chosen by God there is no longer a need to ever change? What does selective transformation look like?
• Knowing that God’s promises are collective and it’s our calling to carry the baton for our section of the race, how does that change our individual-oriented viewpoint on what your calling is?
• What are you waiting for in this season? (ex. healing, direction, a vaccine, a breakthrough in a relationship?) What does healthy waiting look like?
• Juxtaposing our family of origin, which has a way of shaping and affecting our lives, and a posture of embracing hope, how can your life live out from this redemptive family of God?