CCCTO | Semi Pro Fellowship

Passage for Chapter 4: Ecclesiastes 4:1-16

Themes/Concepts - Ecclesiastes 4:1-16

v. 1-3 - description by the Preacher of the evil and magnitude of evil seen in “under the sun”; it’s so bad that better “...is the one who has never been born” (v. 3)

v. 4-6 - Preacher identifies one of the root causes of the evil and oppression we see: individuals seeking to gain because of the envy of others.

v. 7-8 - description from the Preacher of what happens when an individual achieves his/her ambitions (“lasting gain”) but is alone and has no one to share this “wealth” with.

v. 9-12 - description of the practical benefits that come with working with others, sharing with others, thinking of others, etc. which avoids the perils seen in v. 7-8.

v. 13-16 - the Preacher illustrates the perils of upward mobility (”advancement”) where the ultimate result is “meaningless”.

Themes/Concepts - Chapter 4 (Living a Life Less Upwardly Mobile)

“We over me” - thinking more about others than exclusively thinking of one’s self and self-ambitions.

This approach has practical benefits as it provides a better and more joyful way living

A root cause of the evil we see surrounding us is the “...envy of another” (v. 4) which can come in the form of “hating our neighbor”.

We can avoid “hating our neighbor” and live out “We over me” through avoiding both extremes of laziness and busyness and finding an appropriate “middle path”.

The perils that still remain when one pursues and “achieves” his/her attempt at “lasting gain” even though these are outside of one’s control and outside of one’s limitations.  

Discussion Questions

Do you think it’s true that we spend most of our time thinking about ourselves?

How does Ecclesiastes help us to guard against being “trite and simplistic” as we try to help those immersed in a world of pain (see p. 69)?

What are the things that, in your worst moments, you envy in others?

What practical steps can you take to help prevent laziness or being overly busy? What might it look like for you to take the “middle road”?

Questions for Personal Reflection

Work out how much time you spent working last week and how much time you spent relaxing with others.  Could you spend more or less time on each of those?

Passage for Chapter 3: Ecclesiastes 3:1-22

Themes/Concepts - Ecclesiastes 3:1-22

v. 1-8 - set of contrasting statements (positive and negative) covering the spectrum of life in this world “...under the heavens” (v.1)

v. 11-14 - distinction that humans are bounded or constrained by time but God “endures forever” (v. 14)

v. 15-17 - the “Preacher” incorporates how God will “...call the past into account” (v.15) and God will judge “...every deed” (v.17)

v. 18-21 - reinforcing broader themes from Chapters 1 and 2 that death is the only guarantee, humans enter and exit the same (no different than other creatures)

v. 22 - reinforcing broader themes from Chapters 1 and 2, along with v.12 and v.13 to enjoy their work and find satisfaction as a gift from God

Themes/Concepts - Chapter 3 (Living Life Backward)

There is a time and a season for all things (v.1-8) that is ultimately controlled by God and not us despite our futile efforts. 

Humans are bounded and constrained by time but God is not bounded/constrained by time.  God knows the “end from the beginning” (v.11), God “endures forever” (v.14) and God “made everything beautiful in its time” (v.11)

Because God is “outside time”, He will call everything into account and judgment. 

Knowing our limitations, accepting our limitations and trusting that God knows what is best for us, similar to a loving parent and his/her child. 

Discussion Questions (from Chapter 3 of the book, p.62)

What things do you seek to control? What might it look like to surrender control?

How could you have a wiser perspective on your time?

What might it look like to “grow small” (see p.58)?

How can we help one another to “embrace the fact of change in advance” (see p. 61)?

“Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.  Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you”  Matthew 5:10-12

This past Sunday, Pastor Curtis went over the last of the contrasting (or cause and effect) “statements” in this part of the Beatitudes.  Matthew 5:10-12 contains the contrast, or “paradox”,  for followers of Christ to “rejoice and be glad” when facing “persecution because of righteousness” as the same happened to the “prophets who were before you” with the eternal outcome being “great is your reward in heaven”.

From Pastor Curtis’s sermon, he defines and describes these notable terms from this passage: 

Blessed (v.10): joy, happiness

Persecution (v.10): being “pursued” and “chased to be harassed”.

Righteousness (v.10): as “being Christ-like”, “imitating Christ” and “doing the right things”

Rejoice (v.12): be immeasurably glad

Other points made by Pastor Curtis in his sermon:

Being persecuted is a blessing.

Persecution is inevitable, yet is a blessing.

Living the Christian life will include persecution.

Similar to an athlete training for a race and a student studying for a test, we should view persecution as a “price to pay” for something “great”.

Persecution is evidence of our faith in God.

God wants us to endure through suffering through trust.

Discussion Questions:  

Have you experienced persecution for your faith in Jesus?  Please share (if you are comfortable sharing).

Is there a difference between persecution and suffering?  If so, explain.

Using the comparison of persecution with physical training and academic studying, why would we fear persecution more than training/studying?

As Jesus faced and endured persecution (and ultimately crucified) because of His righteousness, who was doing the persecuting?  What does this say about “where” our persecutions may come from?

Read 1 Peter 1:6-7 and 2 Corinthians 4:8-9.  How do we rejoice amid persecution?

Why is it difficult to “rejoice” when facing persecution?

“Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called sons of God” - Matthew 5:9

“Let there be peace on Earth...let it begin with me”

This past Sunday, Pastor Curtis continued through the Beatitudes and covered the relationship (or cause and effect) between peacemakers and being called sons of God in Matthew 5:9.   

From Judges 6:23-24, Pastor Curtis describes peace (”shalom”) as a complete, fulfillment with God in our heart, a pure life and relationship with Jesus in our own heart.  Pastor Curtis also highlighted the difference between “peacemaker” and “peacekeeper”.

What is the difference between a “peacemaker” and “peacekeeper”?

What is the source of peace? How can we get peace? 

Pastor Curtis describes and highlights the attributes of being a peacemaker which may require the following in our personal interactions:

Confrontation

Bringing up and discussing difficult topics or subjects

Honesty

Admitting our own failures and shortcomings

Not being quarrelsome, defensive, harsh, mean, vengeful

What are risks of being a peacemaker as described above?

Why is it difficult to be a peacemaker, as described above, in our respective circles (e.g. family, relationships, friends, work, church, society in general)?

The effect (or reward) of being a peacemaker is to be called a son (or daughter or child) of God.  From Galatians 3:26, we are children of God through faith in Jesus Christ.  Being, or the pursuit of being, a peacemaker is one of many ways and extensions of our belief and faith in Jesus Christ.

Read Matthew 5:43-47.  From this passage, what should we do to be “children of our Father in heaven” in v.45?  

Why is that significant given v.46-47?

Questions for Personal Application

Did the study of this Beatitude change your initial thoughts and perceptions of “peacemakers”?

How can you be a peacemaker among your respective circles?

“Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God” - Matthew 5:8

This past Sunday Pastor Curtis preached on the eighth verse of the Beatitudes, this time dealing with the relationship between purity and seeing God. 

Purity is to be Holy as God is Holy (Leviticus 19:2, 1Peter 1:15-16)

Power to be pure is found in God’s love (1Peter 1:22)

Promise of purity is seeing God (1John 3:23)

In essence these points add up to a lifestyle that relates to further separation from sin and a closer relationship to God. The study today will go deeper into the verse, carefully going into each word of verse 8. This will hopefully lead to a deeper conviction and understanding of how a pure heart and seeing God relate to one another. 

Context and Recap 

Read and discuss verses 3-5. What do these verses establish about the blessed person’s state on earth? How would you sum it up in a word?

Read and discuss verse 6. What does it mean to be righteous? (recap from 3 weeks ago)

Interpretation

Pure - katharos in greek, means pure, clean, clear, ethically from corrupt desire, guilt

Heart - kardia in greek, means the heart, thoughts or feelings, the middle, center

See - horao in greek, to stare at, discern clearly, to experience

What does it mean to be “pure”? Read Titus 1:15-16, James 1:27 and 1 Peter 1:22. How do these verses help you to possibly understand what it means to be pure? 

What does the “heart” refer to? Read Matthew 5:28, 6:21, 12:34. What does Jesus seem to imply from these verses regarding the heart? 

What does it mean to “see” God? Read John 11:40 and Hebrews 12:14.  how is one able to see God from these verses? 

Now knowing the definitions of “pure in heart” and to “see” God, how would you try to articulate the relationship between the two without using the words “pure” or “see”? 

Application

Would you ever say you have “seen” God? What did that look like? 

What are some things that are stopping you from being “pure”? 

What are some practical things we can do to strive for purity? 

“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.” -Matthew 5:7

“You, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness” -Psalm 86:15

This past Sunday Pastor Peter preached on what it looks like to receive mercy and grace in everyday life. While this verse only speaks of mercy, the two (being mercy and grace) do go hand in hand although as Pastor Peter said they are not just two sides of the same coin. There are important distinctions to be made between mercy and grace and knowing the definition of both terms will help to understand the gospel picture a little better (which will hopefully lead to a more gospel centered life!). 

For the purposes of this study however we will be discussing primarily mercy. More than likely the topic of grace will likely come up since the two terms are closely related. 

From Greek, merciful is the english translation of the Greek word eleemon. Eleemon means to be “actively compassionate”.

Eleeos which is the Greek for mercy means “having been shown pity or mercy”

Context and Recap

Read and discuss verses 3-5. What do these verses establish about the blessed person’s state on earth? How would you sum it up in a word? 

Read and discuss verse 6. What does it mean to be righteous? (recap from two weeks ago)

Main Verse Study

Knowing that Jesus is now talking about those who thirst for righteousness, how are verses 6-11 related? 

What does it look like in your mind to be merciful? Read Matthew 18:23-35. How does this parable align with your view of mercy?

What are some other instances of God showing mercy in the Bible? 

How can God be merciful to us and yet also be just at the same time?

Read Matthew 9:13 and 12:7. Jesus seems to be saying that there is an opposing trait to mercy and its sacrifice, what does this mean?  

Application

What is an effective way to be more merciful to others?

Does God call us to be merciful in every case and situation? For instance should punishments be withheld from a crime? 

Is God requiring to show mercy as means to earn salvation? If not then how are we to be merciful in light of our salvation?

mercy - when we deserve punishment, he doesn’t punish us; withholding of just condemnation

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they shall be satisfied.” - Matthew 5:6 

This past Sunday Pastor Curtis continued his series on the Sermon on the Mount with Matthew 5:6. He highlighted the fact that we all have a longing for something greater in our lives and that righteousness is the everlasting food that can satisfy our hunger and thirst. How can one live this out on a daily basis? Hopefully after tonight’s study we can come away with a better understanding of what it looks like to be “satisfied with the food of righteousness.”

We’ll be looking at four words in this verse to help us come away with a better understanding of the meaning of the verse. 

1. Hunger and Thirst

Metaphorically “to crave ardently, to seek with desire”

What does it look like to “hunger and thirst” for something? (maybe the three previous verses can help?, what did Pastor Curtis mention?)

Read Ecclesiastes 3:11. What does God putting “eternity onto our hearts” mean? What does that have to do with “hunger and thirst”?

How can we explain human nature based on our responses to the questions above? 

What could cause someone to hunger and thirst for righteousness? 

2. Righteousness

Literally “equity” 

The Bible (especially Matthew) mentions “righteousness” and ascribes righteousness to Pharisees and non-Pharisees. 

Read Matthew 6:1, 23:28. What type of righteousness is ascribed to the Pharisees? 

Read Matthew 5:20, what is true righteousness? (Glancing over the following passages in Chapter 5 helps)

So what’s the difference between the two? 

3. Satisfied

Literally “gorged”, feed, to fatten, to be filled

Describe a moment when you felt that something was going to make you VERY happy. Did it?

Last week was an introduction and overview of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) where Jesus was tempted in the wilderness, called his first disciples and started his ministry through healing the sick which led to large crowds following Jesus and his disciples.

This week we’ll cover the first of the eight Beatitudes where the statement is of a contrasting structure starting with a “negative” and ending with a “positive”.  

Matthew 5:3: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”  

As we go through each of the beatitudes in the coming weeks, these are inter-related and inter-connected with each other; there is a reason and purpose this beatitude comes first.  

Questions for Discussion

In this first Beatitude, what does it mean to be “poor”?

Why is it hard for us (Christians and non-Christians) to acknowledge they are poor or to say “I am nothing?”

How does this approach to be “poor in spirit” contrast to the attitudes of the secular world?

From these verses, how was Jesus “poor in spirit”?  How did he demonstrate being “poor in spirit” in His life and ministry?

2 Corinthians 8:9

Philippians 2:5-7

Romans 8:3

Matthew 8:20

Luke 4:18

From these verses below, which of these examples of being “poor in spirit” resonates the most with you?

Isaiah the Prophet (Isaiah 6:5)

Simon Peter (Luke 5:8)

Paul (1 Corinthians 15:9)

Tax Collector (Luke 18:13)

Thief on the Cross (Luke 23:42)

Why do we need to reach the point of being “poor in spirit” to receive God’s blessings and inherit the kingdom of God?  Why can’t we “rich in spirit” and inherit the kingdom of God? 

What does being “poor in spirit” look like to you? 

As Pastor Curtis stated on Sunday, the Sermon on the Mount is perhaps the greatest sermon ever preached. Jesus attracts a crowd of followers along with his disciples and preaches on several things of which we’ll be going over at church in the coming months. What’s the best way to understand the coming lessons? How does a Sermon preached 2000 years ago apply to our lives today? After tonight we’ll hopefully gain a good perspective on our approach to reading and understanding the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) which will lead to a more wisdom filled, purposeful Christian life. 

Questions:

Observation

What “literary type” (i.e. poem, story, letter) best describes Matthew? How will this affect the way you read the Sermon on the Mount? 

What were some of the events that happened before the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 4)? 

Describe the immediate events that lead up to the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 4:23). 

To whom was Jesus addressing his Sermon to? Knowing the events that led up to this Sermon in Question 2, who might be some of those in the “Crowds”?

Interpretation

What exactly is a “disciple”? Do you consider yourself to be a “disciple”?

What do you think was Jesus’ goal in delivering this Sermon to his disciples?

What does it mean to be “poor in spirit”? (Luke 18:10-13 may provide an illustration)

What is the kingdom of heaven? (Romans 14:17, Luke 17:20-21 may provide some clue). How does the Kingdom relate to us now? 

Read Matthew 7:28-29, what is the significance of Jesus speaking with “Authority” unlike the scribes or “religious teachers”? How may this affect the way you read the Sermon on the Mount? 

Application

This past Sunday Pastor Peter preached on the main contents and applications of Paul’s letters to the Roman, Galatian and Corinthian Church. Below are some of the main contents that were highlighted by Pastor Peter.

1 Corinthians Main Contents:

Encouragement to have unity among those who were discipled under different leaders

advice to not fellowship with Christians who are in active sin in order to shame them to change

Commands to avoid sexual immorality and idolatry

Appreciate and use all of our spiritual gifts to help grow the church

View love as greater than any spiritual gift and to focus on that

remember the simple gospel message of Christ dying for our sin and resurrecting from the dead

Lifting up the major importance of Christ’s resurrection

Remember that Christ is coming back soon.

Galatians Main Contents:

Surprised they have adopted a false gospel

explaining the futility of going back to works of the law instead of remaining in Christ’s grace.

Take joy that now all classes, races, and sexes can be saved by Christ.

Avoid living by the Sinful Nature and instead live by the Holy Spirit

Romans Main Contents:

Reflecting that the gospel’s power can save anyone.

Explaining the inability of the Law to save anyone.

Teaching about the effectiveness of the sacrificial atonement of Christ, justification by faith in Christ’s work, and not to trust in the Law for salvation.

Explaining why there is no condemnation and wrath for those in Christ Jesus.

Reminding that God’s love for us is everywhere and greater than anything on Earth

Sharing that the purpose of being saved from sin is to live for righteousness (of Christ)

Instructions to the use of all our spiritual gifts to grow the body of Christ.

Encouragement to keep praying for believers around the known world.

Questions for Discussion

After reading some of the main contents, do you have any questions on any of these points?

Read 1 Corinthians 15:1-5 and Galatians 2:15-16. After reading these verses, what do you feel the scriptures say about what it means to be a Christian?

Read Galatians 5:16-17, what does this verse say about the relationship between the sinful nature (or flesh) and the Holy Spirit? How might this be an encouragement in your life as a believer?

Read Galatians 3:1-3, how is it impossible for good works to continue to “make you perfect”?

Reading: Chapter 1, pages 1-12

Summary

On Sunday, Pastor Peter discussed a question asked often of Christians, “What happens to those who have never heard about the Gospel?” This is a question often asked by non-Christians and Christian that can be expressed in positive (e.g. caring, curious, etc.) and negative (e.g. accusatory, hostile, etc.) tones.  A modification of this question is “Does everyone get a chance to hear the Gospel before they die, even if they live in very remote places?”

If you have problems answering this question, you are not alone.  Many prominent Christian scholars and theologians throughout the centuries like Justin Martyr, St. Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, John Calvin and many others had differing answers to this question.  Pastor Peter divided the range of answers into four categories:

1. Universalism: everyone goes to heaven no matter what; hell is only temporary and rehabilitative

2. Inclusivism: those who are good according to their own culture and religion goes to heaven. Hell is for those who do “bad” according to their respective culture and religion.

3. Anonymous Exclusivism: they know who the one true God is but they don’t know his messenger. Those who believe in the one true God (Creator), make animal sacrifices for forgiveness of sins and desire to know God can get into heaven.  

4. Traditional Exclusivism: only those who have heard and believe in the Gospel of Jesus Christ will be saved and go to heaven.  Those who haven’t heard or believed will go to hell.  

Pastor Peter eliminates Universalism and Exclusivism using these passages (Matthew 7:13-14, John 14:1, 6-7, Acts 4:12, Romans 10:9, 12-17).  “Traditional Exclusivism” teaches that those who desire to know God the Creator personally will have a chance to hear the gospel of Jesus through “non-miraculous” means (Acts 8:26-39, Acts 10, Acts 16:7-12). Traditional Exclusivism is better supported over Anonymous Exclusivism through these passages and it also represents CCCTO’s Statement of Faith.  

Pastor Peter concludes with a two-part answer to the question “What happens to those who never heard the Gospel?”

1. If they want to know God more personally, they will get the chance to hear through miraculous ways or non-miraculous ways.

2. If they don’t want to know God more personally, then they will enter hell through their sins when they die.

Even with answers to questions like this where we are not exactly “100% sure”, we can trust in a God who is perfectly loving and who is perfectly just for a righteous outcome to questions like this.

Questions

1. Have you ever been asked the question: “What happens to those who live in remote areas who die without hearing the Gospel?” What was your answer? Was it effective?

2. Read Romans 1:18-20.  From Acts 17:24-31 and Romans 1:18-20, how do those two passages disprove the possibility that there will be those who will never “hear the Gospel” in their lifetime?

3. How did you first hear of the Gospel? From your answer, would you consider those ways as “miraculous” or “non-miraculous”?

4. “Traditional Exclusivism” teaches that those who desire to know God the Creator personally will have a chance to hear the gospel of Jesus through “non-miraculous” ways (Example: Cornelius as described in Acts 10).  Have you witnessed or experienced someone coming to Christ through ways like this?

On Sunday, Pastor Curtis concluded our verse by verse sermon series on Ephesians. Last week was spent talking about our defensive armor against the spiritual powers of this real while this past Sunday was spent talking about one of our few “offensive” weapons against the spiritual powers. This weapon of course is prayer! How exactly do we use this weapon? This will be the focus of tonight’s talk. 

It was mentioned that we should be praying at all times...(per v.18-20)

in the Spirit

With Variety

With perseverance 

For others with specific requests

Questions:

What is your definition of prayer? 

What does it mean to pray at all times in the Spirit? (Can look to Romans 8:26-27 for help)

What does it look like to pray with perseverance? (Let’s read Luke 11:5-13 and Luke 18:1-8)

What do you suppose is the purpose or goal of prayer if God already knows what we are going to say? 

What are some things that you feel you can add to your prayers?

How should we react when our prayers don’t seem to be answered?

Summary

On Sunday, Pastor Curtis continued through Ephesians 6:10-17, describing the spiritual battlefield we face with Satan.  With the Church as Satan’s target, Christians (believers and followers of Christ) are Satan’s bullseye for Satan’s various schemes and tactics to bring us down and apart from God.

Pastor Curtis made three key points through Ephesians 6:10-17:

1. Our strength and might is only “in the Lord”, not from any other source (v.10).  (Ephesians 1:15, 2:21, 5:8, 6:1, 6:10).

2. Our strength and might fights against an invisible and evil enemy (v.11-12) – while invisible and evil, Satan is not invincible as he is a fallen angel created by God but is a defeated enemy (Colossians 2:13).  If you want to grow in faith, be ready and prepared for harder struggles (“hand to hand combat”), problems and temptations.  

3. Our strength and might requires armor to be worn all the time (v. 13-15).  

Pastor Curtis goes on to identify and describe the 6 tools that make up the “full armor of God”:

1. Belt of Truth – the absolute truth in the form of scripture (Bible)

2. Breastplate of Righteousness – made and designed for you and given to you by Jesus. (Isaiah 59:15-17, 1 Corinthians 1:27-30)

3. Feet fitted with the Gospel of Grace – described as similar to cleats on shoes for better traction and movement.  The objective of these “battles” is not to kill or destroy our enemies but to bring peace in our lives and convert our enemies.  

4. Shield of Faith – this brings protection to our lives (Proverbs 30:5, I John 5:4-5)

5. Helmet of Salvation – assurance of mind of Jesus’ promises, salvation and protection (Romans 8:38-39)

6. Sword of the Spirit – assurance of victory through God’s word.  Be deep and fully consumed in God’s word. (1 John 2:14)

Through all of this, Pastor Curtis pointed out that in this battlefield with God and Satan, we have a choice.  God won’t force us to do what is “right” and Satan cannot make us sin; it is up to each individual to choose between following God through Jesus Christ or succumb to Satan’s temptations, tactics and schemes.

Questions

1. What are examples of the spiritual “war” and “battlefield” you see going on right now?

2. From Verse 10, what is the significance of being “in the Lord” as we in Verse 11 “put on the full armor of God” and take a stand against the “devil’s schemes”?  

3. From Verses 11 and 12, what do you think are some examples of the “…devil’s schemes” (v.11) and “…spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (v.12)?

4. Identify the number of times “stand” (or “withstand” depending on Bible translation) is used in Verses 13 and 14.  What is the desired purpose of the “full armor of God” (v.13) through these multiple references of “stand/withstand”?      

This past Sunday, Pastor Curtis preached on verses 5 through 9 in Ephesians 6. These verses focus on the proper relationship and conduct between a Master and the Slave. If we recall back to Chapter 5, we can begin to understand how this relationship fits into the overall theme.

Read Chapter 5, verse 1 and verse 21 and remember what the theme of the passage. 

It would be difficult to analyze this passage in verses 5-9 without first addressing the aspect of slavery. Below are some excerpts from the ESV study bible notes that you may read. 

The TL;DR version is: 

Slavery as we conventionally think about it (American Chattel Slavery) is not the slavery that existed in Greece when the letter of Ephesians was written.

In this passage, the behavior of a slave/master is addressed, not the morality of slavery.

As with all relationships, we submit as Christians unless submission calls us to disobey and disregard God’s commands. 

From the ESV Study Bible:

The Roman institution of being a “bondservant” or “slave” (Gk. doulos) was different from the institution of slavery in North America during the seventeenth through the nineteenth centuries. Slaves (bondservants, servants) generally were permitted to work for pay and to save enough to buy their freedom (see Matt. 25:15 where the “servants” [again Gk. doulos] were entrusted with immense amounts of money and responsibility). 

The NT assumes that trafficking in human beings is a sin (1 Tim. 1:10; Rev. 18:11–13), and Paul urges Christian bondservants who can gain … freedom to do so. The released bondservant was officially designated a “freedman” and frequently continued to work for his former master. Many extant inscriptions from freedmen indicate the tendency to adopt the family name of their former master (now their “patron”) and to continue honoring them.

It is estimated that slaves (or bondservants) composed about one-third of the population of a city like Ephesus. They were considered an integral part of a family, so Paul’s instructions for bondservants were a natural part of his dealing with family relationships.

In both Greek and Roman culture, bondservants had limited rights and were subject to exploitation and abuse. Paul does not condone the existing system of servitude but instead provides instructions to believing masters and bondservants regarding their relationship to each other in the Lord, and how this should be lived out within the bounds of their social and legal culture. 

The result, as is often observed, is that this kind of servitude slowly died out in antiquity through the influence of Christianity. The principles in this passage apply today in terms of submission to any lawfully constituted authority, the only exception being if such a lawfully constituted authority were to require a believer to disobey God’s Word or to fundamentally compromise one’s commitment to Christ (as in the case of Acts 4:19, 20). It would be natural for Christian bondservants to despise their earthly masters in the name of their heavenly one; however, fulfilling one’s earthly obligations is, in fact, service to the Lord (cf. Eph. 6:6–7).

The best analogy that we have today is one in which Pastor Curtis touched on which is the relationship between a employer and employee. Below are some questions that will relate to that circumstance. 

Questions:

If you’re currently employed or have been employed, describe your current or past relationship with your boss. What made them good? What made them bad? 

With respect to the previous question, how would you describe your attitude towards your boss? 

What does it mean that bondservants should obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling?

How is verse 6 an analogy to the Christian and his interaction with God and people? 

In Verse 7, what must one do before serving their employer to their fullest? 

Can one truly please their boss and meet their every expectation? If so, how? but if not, what then? What should our attitude be? 

Can you say that you do your best work for your boss? How may you start to change? 

Passage: Ephesians 6:1-4 (NIV)

1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.

2“Honor your father and mother”—which is the first commandment with a promise—

3“so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.”

4 Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.

Passage: Ephesians 5:21 (NIV)

21 Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.

Summary

On Sunday, Pastor Peter covered Ephesians 6:1-4 where Paul continues to provide instructions for the Christian household; this part focuses on children and parents.  In Verse 1, Paul instructs children to “…obey your parents in the Lord” and in Verse 2 to “Honor your father and mother…”.  Verse 3 illustrates and benefits and rewards of following Verses 1 and 2.  Verse 4 pivots to Paul’s instructing the father to “…not provoke your children to anger but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord”.

On the way towards achieving this Christian “harmony” between children and parents, there are gaps that prevent us from fully achieving Paul’s instructions in this passage. Pastor Peter described these gaps as generational, spiritual and cultural which apply during present-day times as Chinese-Americans and during the time at Ephesus when Paul was writing this letter.  It can be difficult to follow, but Ephesians 5:21 established the proper priority of pleasing Christ first which should drive us to follow the instructions in Ephesians 6:1-3.  

Questions

1. Pastor Peter identified three types of “gaps” preventing Chinese-American families from fulfilling Ephesians 6:1-3: generational, cultural and spiritual.  What are examples of these “gaps” that are prevalent among your family?  What examples of this do you see within the Chinese-American culture?

2. Pastor Peter also applied those three “gaps” (generational, cultural and spiritual) to the time at Ephesus when Paul wrote this letter.  What were examples of these “gaps” in and around Ephesus “society” at that time?

3. From Ephesians 5:21, how should that verse help us as children to carry out Paul’s instructions in Ephesians 6:1-3 to our parents?

4. Read Exodus 21:15 and Exodus 21:17.  What context and background do those verses serve in Paul’s instructions for children in Verses 1-3?

Marriage in some cases seems like a simple proposition, a man loves a woman, woman loves a man, they love each other SOOO much and then they get married. After reading these passages in Ephesians 5:22-33, it seems that perhaps there is more to marriage than simply “loving” each other. It can be said that what the Bible says about marriage is complicated, too structured, etc. Hopefully we can see that from reading these passages, one can say that marriage is not something different or contrary to the Christian life but merely an extension of it. We trust what the Bible says on many life issues, let’s hear what it has to say about the married life.

What are some reasons you’ve been told or have led to believe in the past are the reasons to be married? 

How would you describe a Christian marriage in a couple of sentences?

What is/was your idea of what a wife should be? How does that compare to verses 22-24? How does a church submit to Christ? (What does that look like to you?)

What is/was your idea of what a husband should be? How does that compare to verses 25-31? What are the roles/duties of the husband according to verses 25-31?

According to v.32, what relationship should the “perfect” marriage emulate? How does that compare to how we typically think of marriage?