Note: The time signatures [00:00] below indicate the start of a question if you'd like to skip to a particular one of interest in the audio file.
Ice-Breakers:
[01:08] - Q: What is your favorite color?
A: Gray (Jeff), Royal/Navy Blue (Taylor)[02:19] - Q: What is your favorite book of the Bible and why?
A: OT - Ecclesiastes / NT - Romans (Taylor), OT - Ecclesiastes / NT - Revelation (Jeff), James (Matt)[04:40] - Q: What Christian book has made an impact on you that you would recommend to others?
A: See TBD - TBD
The Bible:[06:35] - Q: Does God still speak to us today?
A: See Hebrews 1:1-2 - Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.[10:06] - Q: Do you guys know anything about why certain books were included and others weren’t, such as other books found in Dead Sea scrolls? And what about books mentioned in Bible such as Enoch?
A: TBD
Old Testament:[12:22] - Q: Who was the third person on earth?
A: Cain[12:45] - Q: If Cain killed Abel, who did Cain marry? How did humanity continue?
A: His sister[14:05] - Q: Genesis 5:4 - The days of Adam after he fathered Seth were 800 years; and he had other sons and daughters. Thus all the days that Adam lived were 930 years, and he died. Who or what are the Nephilim?
A: See TBD[18:25] - Q: What is your stance on Psalm 83? Is it a war, a lament? If you believe it to be a war, is it a past war or yet future?
A: See TBD - TBD
New Testament:[19:55] - Q: In Matthew 7:13-14 Jesus talks about narrow & wide gates, one that leads to destruction & one that leads to life. He indicates that there will be few who find the narrow gate that leads to eternal life. Is Jesus revealing in these verses that proportionally speaking that most people born throughout the ages will go to hell compared to those that truly come to salvation through Jesus?
A: See TBD - TBD[24:25] - Q: The Bible says “Judge not, that you be not judged” (Matt 7:1), but there are other places like I Cor 2:15 where God says “but he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one”. Can you explain the seeming contradiction between these two verses?
A: See TBD - TBD[28:28] - Q: Can you discuss the Bema seat? I know it is a judgment for believers (good and not so good) that will take place post rapture for how we spent our lives on earth, but since God forgives our sins past, present, and future and wipes them from his memory once we confess our salvation in Him, why do we stand in judgment for things we did that are not so good?
Or is it just situations where we could have shared the gospel or helped someone and didn't do anything that will be called out and judged?
A: See 1 Corinthians 3:10-15 - According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it. For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.
2 Corinthians 5:10 - For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.
Potluck:[31:05] - Q: With as flawed, hypocritical, & inconsistent as we are as believers, why would God choose to limit Himself in such a way to effectively share the truth of His message to the lost world?
A: See - TBD[33:40] - Q: What does the Bible say about the use of Western Medicine example anti depressants, pain killers, medical marijuana, etc.?
A: See Proverbs 31:6 - Give strong drink to the one who is perishing, and wine to those in bitter distress...[35:15] - Q: Is drinking alcohol, using tobacco/ marijuana, or gambling all sins? Should a born again believer stop these activities?
A: See TBD - TBD[On the Blog] - Q: Why does God allow trials in my life to test my faith, if in His sovereignty He already knows how I’ll respond (positively or negatively)?
A: See 1 Peter 1:6-9 - In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.[On the Blog] - Q: Can you explain what Jesus means in Luke 14:26-27 where He says we can not be His disciples unless we hate our fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, children? This seems totally contradictory to His message for us to love one another as He has loved us.
A: See Matthew 10:37 - Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.
Any question that was missed due to time constraints during the service Pastor Jeff will address the answer on the blog.
Sermon Notes (PDF): BLANK
Small Group Questions (Whole Group):
Review the questions submitted above. Discuss any of these that stuck out to you, or that maybe your group finds particularly interesting.
Breakout Questions:
Pray for one another!