Knowing God Week 3 Discussion Guide
KNOWING GOD MEETUP: A 3 WEEK INTRO TO THE CHRISTIAN FAITH—WEEK 3
Intro: This is a 3 Week introduction to the Christian Faith. We are using the concept of “Knowing God” as a way to explain and summarize what we as Christians believe. When I say, ‘what Christians believe,’ I mean the basics of what anyone who claims themselves to be a Christian would affirm. Over 3 weeks we’ll consider this: 1. The heart of what Christianity is about a personal knowledge of ‘The God Who is There’; 2. “What Hinders us from Knowing God;” and 3 How Does Jesus bring us into KNOWING God.
ENCOURAGEMENT: Share your questions; Be open to see things a new way; Ask God to reveal Himself to you.
FORMAT: Our format is study and discussion, with the hope that we will have lots of opportunities to ask questions and have discussion. Each week we’ll consider a few verses, think about a few ideas, and have lots of discussion.
THIS WEEK’S TOPIC: How Jesus Brings us Into Knowledge of God
RECAP of Week 1 and Week 2.
OPENING QUESTION: When you think of Jesus, how does he relate to the question of knowing God?
Analogies from human experience of Solution to Knowledge Problem:
1. If there is someone I want to know but can’t speak his/her language, how do I remedy this situation? (translator, who tells us the truth)
2. If I want to have relational knowledge of someone that I wronged and been cruel to, how might this be fixed? (repentance/change on my end, and willingness on the other end to show mercy and grace)
3. If it would be good to have knowledge of someone or thing, but my heart is prejudiced against the person and closed to what they might reveal about themselves and me, what could possibly fix the situation? (I need someone to come and rescue me, change my heart)
3 False solutions:
1. There is no problem with sin, our relationship with God is fine. (wrong because the Bible tells us there is a real problem)
2. God is whoever we perceive Him/her/it to be. (wrong because if we approached God this way we would have an imaginary God)
3. If I work hard enough then I can be reconciled to God and accepted by Him and enter into knowledge of Him. (wrong because of God’s infinite holiness and our total inability to change ourselves).
HOW DOES JESUS BRING US INTO KNOWLEDGE OF GOD?
- In Jesus, God _________________ ________________ to us in _____________
– 1 Tim 1:15a “The saying is true and worthy of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.”
Rom 5:8 “God demonstrates his love toward us in this, that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
In Jesus, we have a ______________________________ between us and God
-1 Tim 2:3b-6 “God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.”
- Jesus alone brings us into _________________________ of God
-John 3:16 “God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him would not but perish but have eternal life.”
–John 14:6 “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No comes to the Father, except through me.”
–John 17:3 “This is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.”
CONCLUSION: Jesus brings us into knowledge of God. The Bible says that we enter into this knowledge of God through turning away from our sin and by placing our faith in Jesus Christ, the mediator between God and humanity.
QUESTIONS:
-What questions do you have about our study? What questions do you have about the concept of KNOWING God?
-What is stopping you today from turning away from your sin and placing your faith in Jesus?
