1.  What would you consider to be the greatest blessings in your life?

2.  What are some of the truths that Job 1:21 force us to wrestle with?

3.  What would you say to Job when he lost everything?

4. How can you greater appreciate what God has blessed you with in light of Job 1:21?

1. Has there ever been a time in your life where you felt more spiritually alive than you do now?

2. What kinds of things usually rob us of our spiritual vitality?

3. What are you doing differently now, spiritually, than in the past?

4. What makes self examination easy to neglect?

5. What do you need to start doing more?

1. What do you think caused David to keep going from bad to worse?

2. Why do people so often keep piling up bad decisions?

3. What does it usually take for people to wake up and face their patterns of bad decisions?

4. Why do people tend to emphasize David’s adultery as such a big deal while treating his murder almost as an afterthought?

Week 1 Message

Introduction

Simon Peter was one of the most fascinating characters in the Bible. He was a fisherman who became a disciple of Jesus, who was then hugely instrumental in leading the early church. He is mentioned in the Gospels more than anyone else other than Jesus Himself. He often put his foot in his mouth (Jesus once called him “Satan”), he publicly denied knowing Jesus when He was taken to be killed, but he was also the one who initially tried to defend Jesus with a sword when He was being taken. He was also the only one who walked on water with Jesus. Jesus committed Peter personally with feeding His sheep before He ascended into heaven, and Peter was chosen to be the first Christian evangelist on the day the Holy Spirit was given, as he preached to thousands of people in Jerusalem. Later he also became the first to bring the Gospel to the Gentiles.

But with all Peter’s highs and lows, the thing that maybe stands out the most about him is that he is real. You never had to wonder what he was thinking. He might offend you at times, and he was far from perfect, but he didn’t beat around the bush, and he didn’t leave you guessing. With Peter, what you see is what you get. And that makes him a refreshing character.  And in the midst of reality, Peter never gave up hope. We need his reality and hope today.

Peter wrote this book of First Peter probably more than 30 years after Jesus ascended. It reflects decades of experience as a leader in the church. Paul was likely already dead by this time, after having written probably 14 books of the New Testament and having established churches throughout Asia Minor and Greece. Now Peter is writing to a church that is in crisis. Persecution is spreading throughout the Roman Empire and the Christians are being scattered. These were difficult times. And when you find yourself in difficult times, and your beliefs are increasingly contrary to modern culture, and you are being blamed for everything that’s wrong in the world, it really helps to get some real talk from a real person who’s seen a lot, will tell it like it is, and can help you find a reason for hope.

Peter is a voice we need today. As we are surrounded by a collapsing culture, and we see even those who claim to follow Jesus imitating the phoniness of the world, Peter gives us a perspective we need. We need hope more than ever before. Lots of people offer hope that isn’t based in reality. They tell us what we want to hear but offer a short term hope based on delusions. So let’s spend the next ten weeks listening and learning from the real Peter, telling us about a genuine living hope.

January 26, 2023

Week One

“Our Rich Inheritance”

1 Peter 1:1-12

Vs. 1-2 Our identity- pilgrims disbursed but chosen by a Triune God.

Vs. 3-5 Our hope is in our inheritance

Vs. 6-8 Trials test our joy

Vs. 9-12 We are a fulfillment of prophecy

Discussion Questions 

1. When in your life have you felt most like a pilgrim? Like you didn’t really fit in?

2. How does being rejected by others give us more of an appreciation that we were chosen by God the Father, God the Holy Spirit, and Jesus?

3. What have you inherited in your life? How did it affect you, positively and negatively?

4. What will you inherit from God? What does that mean to you now?

5. Have you ever seen someone go through trials and maintain their joy?

6. Have you ever gone through a trial that sucked the joy right out of you? If so, how did you recover?

7. What would we become if our joy was never tested, and we never went through trials?

8. How does it make you feel to know that you are personally a fulfillment of God’s divine plan throughout history?

Memory Verse:  Print 1 Peter 1:13 below.  Underline and define all the keywords.

1. Has there ever been a time when someone took advantage of your kindness and vulnerability by shaming you?

2. Have you ever had a time when you thought somebody had your back but they let you down?

3. What are some of the biggest battles you face on a regular basis?

4. Who in your life has your back?

5. Has there ever been a time in your life when only Jesus had your back?

1.What are you most afraid of as you consider the future?

2.Are you expecting 2023 to be a good year or bad year? Why?

3.What was your biggest disappointment last year?

4.In what ways have you seen God make seemingly negative events beautiful in time?

5. What do you think it means when Solomon says, “He has put eternity in their hearts?”

1.Who comes to mind when you think of celebration?

2.Why do you think God is into our celebrations?

3.What things keep you from being a person who celebrates?

4.How can your holidays be different in light of this story and miracle?

1.Have you ever taken the time to remember people from your past who helped get you where you are?

2.Are there people you’ve connected with who you only know because they are related to someone who meant a lot to you?

3.Have you ever had a disabled person you were close to? What did “treating them normal” look like?

4.Have you ever had someone contact you because you were connected to someone who had helped them?

1.Can you describe your life’s calling in one or two sentences?

2.What are you doing to focus your time, energy and resources on your calling? What in your life needs to be minimized or eliminated in order for you to fulfill your calling?

3.Have you ever had something that you once thought was your territory but you have since realized it wasn’t?

4.In what sphere is your life most fulfilled?

5.What are your key partnerships in fulfilling your life’s calling?

1.Whose legacy are you? (Who came before you to help make you who you are?)

2.In what ways are you trying to leave a legacy?

3.Do we ever seem to value buildings above true legacy? Why do we do that?

4.If you could pass along one message for future generations what would it be? How are you passing that legacy along?