Discussion Questions for “The 11th Commandment”
by: Jinha Kim
"But those who drink the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life." John 4:14
Discussion Questions 21 Jan 2023
by: Jinha Kim
"But those who drink the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life." John 4:14
Have you ever felt the relief and gratitude of being forgiven?
I have.
I have said or done things that have hurt those I love, and as my heart weighed heavy with guilt, I have experienced the freedom that forgiveness brings.
Last week during our zoom sharing we explored this passage in Romans:
22 We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are. 23 For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. 24 Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins…27 Can we boast, then, that we have done anything to be accepted by God? No, because our acquittal is not based on obeying the law. It is based on faith. 28 So we are made right with God through faith and not by obeying the law. Romans 3:22-28
No mater who we are, we are made right with God through faith in Jesus. Faith in what? Faith in Jesus, that He has indeed freed us from the penalty for our wrongdoing by taking our place. Faith that God forgives – not once, not twice, but 70 times 7 times and more. Faith that our works (good or bad) are not what determine our salvation but our trust that God, who began the good work in us, will “continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns” (Philippians 1:6).
4 When people work, their wages are not a gift, but something they have earned. 5 But people are counted as righteous, not because of their work, but because of their faith in God who forgives sinners. 6 David also spoke of this when he described the happiness of those who are declared righteous without working for it: 7 “Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sins are put out of sight. 8 Yes, what joy for those whose record the Lord has cleared of sin.” Romans 4:4-8
I recently got a notice of infringement for going 5 km over the speed limit. $227. Imagine if they decide to erase the record – what joy, what relief!
That’s nothing compared to the joy of knowing all my sins have been forgiven, my life record made clean.
That kind of joy is life-transforming.
by: Jinha Kim
"But those who drink the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life." John 4:14
Last week my family and I went to the zoo. I don’t normally love zoos but I love Werribee Open Range Zoo because the animals have a bit more room to roam. My favourite animals are usually the African animals – meerkats, cheetahs, hippos, zebras, and giraffes. I love the safari that takes you through the park and gets you up close to some of the animals as they go about doing their own thing. Mostly the animals are just standing or lying around. For this reason, my husband is not a big fan of zoos. He finds it boring because the animals are not doing anything.
This trip to the zoo proved us both wrong.
by: Bronwyn
My favourite moment in the U.S. Presidential Inauguration was when Amanda Gorman, aged 22, recited a powerful poem about unity (full video here):
We close the divide, because we know to put our future first,
We must first put our differences aside.
We lay down our arms
So we can reach out our arms to one another…
Scripture tells us to envision
That everyone shall sit under their own vine and fig tree,
And no one shall make them afraid.
If we’re to live up to our own time,
then victory won’t lie in the blade but in all the bridges we’ve made.
What a courageous call to come together.
by: Jinha Kim
"But those who drink the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life." John 4:14
Last Tuesday the tragic explosion of ammonium nitrate in Beirut killed 135 people, injured over 5,000. and left more than a quarter of a million people without homes.
Amidst such devastating circumstances, the kindness of locals helping each other brings hope and healing for victims and their families.
by: Jinha Kim
"But those who drink the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life." John 4:14
Children run.
Last Sunday our family was able to go to Werribee Zoo and finally see the robotic dinosaurs Joshua had waited over 3 months to see.
He was so excited that as soon as we entered the zoo gates, he ran towards the exhibit, not stopping to see the impressive gorillas or cuddly koalas along the way. When he entered the exhibit, he squealed with delight and ran from one dinosaur to another, barely pausing until he got to his favourite – the large, roaring tyrannosaurus rex.
I had to run to keep up with him, amazed at how joy lit up his whole body.
by: Jinha Kim
"But those who drink the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life." John 4:14
“Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.(Colossians 4:6). What does it mean to speak with grace? What does it mean to be “salty” Christians who rightly represent Jesus to others?
So many times we don’t get to experience the fullness of God’s forgiveness because we fixate on the mistakes of the past or the challenges of the present. Explore how we can make the most of what God offers
Guest speaker Ryan Vidot shares lessons from the story of Zaccheus, a man everyone thought didn’t deserve forgiveness but whom Jesus believed in.