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A Future with Hope Mission Fund Campaign

Three Simple QuestionsBible Study Curriculum

GROUP WORKBOOK

Table of Contents

Session 1 Who Is God?.................................................................................................2Startup.............................................................................................................................2Bible Study......................................................................................................................3Book Review...................................................................................................................7Takeaway......................................................................................................................10

Session 2 Who Am I?..................................................................................................12Startup...........................................................................................................................12Bible Study....................................................................................................................14Book Review.................................................................................................................15Takeaway......................................................................................................................18

Session 3 Who Are We Together?.............................................................................19Startup...........................................................................................................................19Bible Study....................................................................................................................19Book Review.................................................................................................................24Takeaway......................................................................................................................26

Session 4 A Future with Hope...................................................................................27Startup...........................................................................................................................27Bible Study....................................................................................................................27Book Review.................................................................................................................30Takeaway......................................................................................................................31


Session 1 Who Is God?

StartupWho is God? How would your neighbors, coworkers, or relatives answer?

Check off up to five responses you think that group of people might have. Or, if they would say something entirely different, there’s blank space at the bottom.

___ Caring Parent ___ One who knows me thoroughly

___ Creator ___ Protector

___ Demanding Parent ___ Redeemer

___ Friend ___ Rewarder of good deeds

___ Inspirer of artists ___ Someone far off in heaven

___ Judge ___ Someone to pray to in times of need

___ Law-giver ___ Spirit that flows through everything

___ Life Force ___ The idea of something beyond

___ Old man with a long beard ___ Ultimate Truth

Other: _________________________________________________________________

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Who is God? What do you think? Check off up to three responses that would reflect the main ways you understand God.

___ Caring Parent ___ One who knows me thoroughly

___ Creator ___ Protector

___ Demanding Parent ___ Redeemer

___ Friend ___ Rewarder of good deeds

___ Inspirer of artists ___ Someone far off in heaven

___ Judge ___ Someone to pray to in times of need

___ Law-giver ___ Spirit that flows through everything

___ Life Force ___ The idea of something beyond

___ Old man with a long beard ___ Ultimate Truth

Other: _________________________________________________________________

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Bible Study

Acts 17:16-17In what two places is Paul “reasoning” with people?

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How would the people in those two places be different?

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Do you think his message would change as he moved between those two places? How?

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BackgroundIt was Paul’s practice to visit the local synagogue whenever he came to a new town. He was, after all, a Jewish rabbi with a great resume, and he could preach from the Hebrew Scriptures, showing how Jesus fulfilled prophecy. Not only would he convince many Jews about Jesus, but there were also a number of Gentiles who liked to attend synagogue services. They were known as God-fearers, and many of them were eager to hear Paul’s message, as you might expect.

But Paul didn’t stay in the synagogue. He went out to the marketplace and talked with whoever happened to be there. These would include people of all different religions or none at all. These people wouldn’t know or care about the Hebrew Scriptures. If Paul talked about Jesus as the Messiah, the Lamb of God, or the Suffering Servant, it wouldn’t mean anything to these Athenians. He had to find a different way to tell them about Jesus.

Acts 17:18What did the philosophers think about Paul’s marketplace message?

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Acts 17:22-23How does Paul begin? What does Paul say about the Athenians?

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What specific altar did he find in Athens?

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BackgroundThere are various theories about this altar and why it was there. Some say the city was spared from a plague and wasn’t sure which of its gods had saved them. Others say they just wanted to make sure they hadn’t left any gods out. We don’t have historical evidence for any of these theories, but the matter is open to speculation.

How does Paul use this altar to make his case?

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Let’s take a moment to transfer this message to our own world. Paul says he had walked through the city and had seen their “objects of worship.” Verse 16 calls them “idols.”

If Paul walked through our town today, shopped at our malls, surfed our Internet, what “objects of worship” do you think he might find?

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Do you think people “worship” these things as substitutes for the God they don’t know yet?

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Acts 17:24-28What do we learn here about God?

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Why are those two sentences in quotation marks?

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Why would he quote poems rather than Scripture?

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Acts 17:29-31Who is the “man he has appointed”?

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Take a peek at verse 32 and see how people responded. Do people still respond to Jesus that way?

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Book Review

We’re being led through these questions by United Methodist Bishop Rueben P. Job in his book Three Simple Questions. You are invited to read a chapter of this short book for each session of this Bible study, but we’ll also quote pertinent passages here and discuss them.

In answering this first question—“Who is God?”—for ourselves, Bishop Job writes, “each of us names our God by our actions—by how we choose to live. . . . Even agnostics and atheists follow some person, some value, some principle, some thing, or some overarching goal that determines the direction of their lives.”

Do you think this is true? How do people “name” their God by the way they live? How do our actions indicate the kind of God we believe in?

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Bishop Job refers to a book from the 1950s entitled Your God is Too Small. He adds, “I am forced to admit that, all too often, I . . . have been content with a god too small to be of any real consequence.”

What does he mean by that? How could our God be “too small”?

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From Three Simple Questions (pp. 17-18)


Far too often we are content with a god too small to be Creator of all that exists. We are content with our own form of a “tribal god” that belongs to us rather than a God who belongs to no one but who gives love, grace, and blessing to everyone.

Far too often we are content with a god too tame and domesticated to shake us to the very roots of our being and send us out of worship trembling in awe and amazement, clearly headed in a radical and countercultural direction.

Far too often we are content with a god who offers a band-aid for our wounded souls rather than the God of radical mercy, justice, and love—who forgives our sins and wipes them away just as soon as we offer that same forgiveness to those who may have wronged us . . .

Far too often we are content with proclaiming and following a god who is too unexciting to capture the minds and hearts of a world seeking healing for its deepest wounds, peace for its incessant wars, direction for its future, and companionship for its deep loneliness.

Far too often we are content to follow a god we can order around, insisting that our will be done . . .

Far too often we forget . . . that this loving God is a just God . . .Far too often we do not hear the simple call of Jesus, “Follow me,” and we

become lost in following lesser gods.

As you look at your own life, are any of these seven “far too oftens” true of you?

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Which one of them is MOST true of you?

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What can be done about this? How could each of us improve on this in our own lives?

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Are there things we can do as a group, or as a church, to help one another encounter God in better, bigger ways? Like what?

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What do you think would happen if every Christian in this church (or in this community, or in this state) changed their “too small” view of God in any of these seven ways?

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. . . How would that affect the way we reach out to our community?

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. . . How would that affect the way we alleviate suffering in our region—say, for those still recovering from superstorm Sandy or a similar disaster?

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. . . How would that affect the way we interact with international ministries?

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Takeaway

Maybe, right here, right now, we could start a conversation with God, committing ourselves to prayer and Bible study around this question.

Lord, who are you?

“Getting to Know You” Prayer

Lord, I want to know who you really are.

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Far too often, I’ve been content to worship a small god. I want you to show me more.

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[Grab any of these comments and develop them.]*I’ve seen you as a “tribal god” just for people in my group. Please show me the broad array of people you love.

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___________________________________________________________1 John 2:2

*I’ve tried to tame you, Lord. Please shake me.

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*I’ve treated you simplistically as a quick fix for problems. Show me the full extent of the transformation you want to achieve.

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2 Corinthians 5:17

*I’ve treated you as unexciting. Please show me your amazing self.

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*I’ve ordered you around. Please use me to do your will.

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*I’ve forgotten about justice. Please show me how much it matters to you.

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*I’ve followed false gods. Please lead me into your truth.

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As I get to know you better, let my behavior show it . . . in these ways . . .

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To you be all the glory. Amen.


Session 2 Who Am I?

Startup

Who are you?

Relationships

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Role

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Abilities

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Personality

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Past and Future

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Physical Characteristics

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3 Things to Share?

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Bible Study

Genesis 1:26-27What does it say about us?

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What do you think it means to be made in God’s image?

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Romans 3:23-24What does this tell us about our identity?

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Who’s included in the “all” in this verse?

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What has God done about this situation?

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This verse 24 has three huge words in it: justified, grace, and redemption. What do these words mean to you?

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Romans 7:19Have you ever experienced that sort of thing in your own life?

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Have you ever experienced that “testifying” of the Spirit? How? When?

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What does that mean to you, that you are God’s child?

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Book Review

Dietrich Bonhoeffer

weary and empty at praying, at thinking, at making,faint, and ready to say farewell to it all?

. . . whoever I am, thou knowest, O God, I am thine!

How would you describe Bonhoeffer’s emotional state when writing this poem?

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Do you think it’s a sign of weakness to wonder about your true identity, to doubt what others say about you?

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Do you think God knows our identity better than we do? If that’s true, how does it make you feel?

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Martin Luther King, Jr.

I have also decided to stick to love. For I know that love is ultimately the only answer to mankind’s problems. . . . I’m not talking about emotional bosh. . . . I’m talking about a strong, demanding love. . . . I have decided to love.

How would it affect your life if you decided to identify yourself as a person who loves? How would it affect those around you?

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How can we distinguish a “strong, demanding love” from “emotional bosh”?

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Walter Brueggemann

Prayer involves “the reception of identity . . . so that we do not forget who we are and who we are called to be.”

How does prayer do that?

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From Three Simple Questions (p. 46) Bishop Job goes on to say,We rise from prayer transformed because we have been intimately involved with the One who not only gives us life but also transforms our lives, while leading us further and further into that grand design that God has for each of us. Prayer helps us know who we are and where we find the nurture, comfort, guidance, courage, and strength to live as children of God—bringing love, justice, peace, and reward. The reward is knowing who we are and claiming our inheritance as children of God . . .

Is that what happens when you pray? Why or why not? Is there any secret to praying like that?

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Takeaway

Macrina Wiederkehr

Remind yourself often, “I am pure capacity for God.”

What does that mean to you? What’s “capacity”? How can God fill us up?

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How are we “filling up” with God?

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How are we “pouring God out” to others?

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Ephesians 3:14-19I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.


Session 3 Who Are We Together?

Startup

What brand names do you like to buy? Do you have certain favorites—in cars, peanut butter, shampoo, electronics?

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Why do you like these brands? What makes you choose one over the other? Quality? Price? Their commercials? Their reputation?

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Bible Study

John 13:34-35According to this, what is the defining characteristic for Christians?

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Do you think that’s really the way it is now? Do people associate Christians with love? If you took a random sampling of 100 Americans and asked them for one word to describe Christians, how many would say “loving”?

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Do we tend to make love a priority in the church? Or do we focus on other things as our main characteristics?

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What do you think that would look like, if all the churches in America—or even just the churches in New Jersey—became known for their love? What kind of difference do you think that would make?

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Acts 10:9-14In this trance, what was Peter being asked to do?

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How did he respond?

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Why would this be a problem for him?

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Imagine having a dream in which a voice from heaven told you to go and rob a bank. What would you think, what would you say, what would you do?

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Acts 10:15-20How did God respond to Peter’s objection?

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Is there any significance to the fact that this happened three times?

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What was the meaning of this vision? What did it have to do with the messengers at the gate or the centurion who sent them?

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Do we face any decisions like that in the modern church?

Is it easier to be a faithful-but-small club or to reach out to others who are different from us?

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If we Christians are characterized by the love of Jesus, how can we show his love to these “outsiders”?

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Ephesians 2:12-13Which group does he seem to be talking to?

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What does he say about their past life—Before Christ?

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What has changed for them?

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Ephesians 2:14-18What has Jesus destroyed (v. 14)?

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What has Jesus created (v. 15)?

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To whom has he “preached peace” (v. 17)?

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How do you think the people of the Ephesian church would have responded to this? With applause? With protests? Or with questions?

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Ephesians 2:19-21How is the church described here?

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What are we built upon?

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Think about your home (or your workplace, or our church). How many different materials were used in the building of it?

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Book Review

From Three Simple Questions (pp. 64-65) To say that I am a Christian is really quite simple, but to live as a faithful follower

of Jesus is another matter. Taking seriously the message of Jesus can be frightening and foreboding, because in my honest moments I know that on my own I cannot live the way of love that Jesus taught and lived.

. . . As my courage evaporates and my faith is exposed in its weakness, I realize that I cannot live on my own the faith I profess.

Then, like a fresh burst of wind, the realization breaks in upon me: I am not asked to do this on my own! I am asked to follow Jesus, and that means not only to do and be what Jesus calls me to do and be, but also to accept the power and presence of God to make me more than I am and enable me to live as a beloved child of God.

What’s the difference between saying you’re a Christian and living as a faithful follower of Jesus?

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Do you ever find it “frightening and foreboding” to take Jesus’ message seriously?

What is Bishop Job expressing in those first two paragraphs? Is he just being humble, or is he experiencing genuine self-doubt, or what?

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What perspective does he find in that last paragraph? Is that something that you have discovered too? How?

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How can we work together with other people who are just as weak, selfish, and sinful as we are?

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The book talks about three major things the church does together: Prayer, Worship, and Service. These aren’t the only things a church does, but it’s a helpful breakdown of key activities.

If we truly seek to become a church branded by the love of Jesus Christ, how will it affect what we do in these three areas?

. . . in our Prayer together?

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. . . in our Worship together?

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. . . in our Service together?

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Takeaway

Questions for my prayer time this week

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A Prayerfrom Three Simple Questions (p. 69)

Tender Shepherd,Gather us together as your flock,Defend us from division,Save us from sin,Lead us in paths of righteousness, justice, peace, unity, and love,Help us to discern wisely and well your will and way,And grant us grace to follow faithfullyWherever you may lead us,For we are yoursAnd want to follow you alone.Grant us grace to do so, we pray,In the Name and Spirit of Jesus Christ,Who taught us to pray . . .

[And now let’s join together in the Lord’s Prayer]


Session 4 A Future with Hope

Startup

What’s your favorite place?

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And what it is about that place you love so much?

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We’re going to be talking about several different places in today’s session.

The Jersey Shore. . . . slammed by Superstorm Sandy

Africa . . . a malaria epidemic

What can we do to help?

Bible Study

Acts 11:25-26Who was teaching the church at Antioch?

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Why do you think Barnabas went looking for Saul/Paul and brought him back to teach there?

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Acts 11:27-30What did the prophet Agabus predict? ______________________________________________________________________

How did the Antioch church respond?

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Do you think the church’s response had anything to do with good teaching they were getting?

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2 Corinthians 8:1-5He’s actually telling the Corinthians about how much some other churches gave. How does he describe the Macedonians’ generosity?

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How do you think the Corinthians felt about this?

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2 Corinthians 9:7-8How are we NOT supposed to give?

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What kind of giver should we be?

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Is verse 8 really saying that God will pay us back for whatever we give?

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2 Corinthians 9:12-15When Christians give to help those in need (especially other Christians), what happens?

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Some charitable organizations—even Christian groups—are known for manipulation and coercion in their fund-raising. They justify it by pointing to all the money raised and all the needs met. Based on 2 Corinthians 9, what would Paul say about that?

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Book Review

From Three Simple Questions (p. 74) . . . how shall we live in this broken, wayward, and wounded world? Each of us is

so small, weak, and easily distracted and disoriented by the power of the culture and the false gods that seek our allegiance, promising such stunning and shiny rewards that, when examined, are revealed to be empty—nothing but a sham or a scam. What, then, can we do?

We can remember who God is, who we are as individuals, and who we are together as part of God’s entire human family.

We know we cannot do everything to change the world, but we can, by God’s grace, each do our part. . . .

What “false gods” is he talking about? What are these promised, but empty, rewards?

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Takeaway

As you seek to “do your part” in addressing the needs of a “broken, wayward, and wounded world,” you might be prompted to pledge some money to the “A Future with Hope Mission Fund Campaign.”

The Greater New Jersey Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church is seeking to raise 12 million dollars—

$7 million to rebuild homes, communities, and churches damaged by Superstorm Sandy

$2 million to provide assistance for the malaria epidemic in Africa

$3 million to reinvigorate the ministry growth of local churches in this conference

The title for this capital campaign comes from a great passage in Jeremiah.

Jeremiah 29:11-14 NRSVFor surely I know the plans I have for you, says the LORD, plans for your welfare

and not for harm, to give you a future with hope. Then when you call upon me and come and pray to me, I will hear you. When you search for me, you will find me; if you seek me with all your heart, I will let you find me, says the LORD, and I will restore your fortunes . . .

It was written to Jews who had been forced from their homes and carried into exile. The prophet assured them that God had not given up on them.

This project aims to bring the same message to many who have suffered greatly. When people of faith reach out in love, those sufferers will glimpse “a future with hope.”


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