Community Group Discussion Questions For the week of March 8, 2020       Read Matthew 17:1-9 Pray that the Spirit would open your heart and mind to what He wants you all to see in this passage.     Discussion Questions: 1. Who does Jesus bring with him up to the mountain? Is there any significance in this?  2. In verse 2 Jesus is ‘transfigured’. How does the text describe this?  3. Who appears in the midst of them in verse 3?  4. Why do you think Peter wanted to build tents?  5. What does the voice from the cloud say to those gathered and what do you think the significance is of this?  6. What would have been like to be on the mountain with Jesus, Peter, James and John that day?  7. How does the meaning of the transfiguration help us on our journey through lent? 

Tsawwassen Alliance Church

Week 2: The Transfiguration

Week 1: The Temptation of Jesus

Patient and Prayerful

Community Group Discussion Questions For the week of February 16, 2020     Read James 4:13-5:6 Say a prayer that God would open your heart to hear His voice from the Epistle of James      Discussion Questions: 1. What confuses or puzzles you about this text? What would you like to understand more? 2. Why is it 'arrogance' to assume you know what tomorrow might bring? (verses 13-15) 3. In this passage (5:1-5), is the problem that it is wrong to be rich? Or, is it something else? 4. Why are the actions of the rich so problematic in this situation? 5. Consider this text in relation to the Old testament prophets, are there connections you can make? Does James sound 'prophetic' in this passage?

Arrogance

Community Group Discussion Questions For the week of February 9, 2020       Read James 3:13-4:12 Say a prayer that God would open your heart to hear His voice from the Epistle of James      Discussion Questions:   1.      In verses 13-18 James speaks about two kinds of wisdom; describe the differences between these two kinds of wisdom.  2.      How do you think verses 13-18 are connected to the previous passage 3:1-12 on taming the tongue? How do these verses (13-18) help us with the challenges of verses 1-12? 3.      Where does James root ‘quarrels and fights’ in the church? 4.      How would you summarise 4:1-10? What is the main message James is trying to communicate? 5.      There is a theme of submission in the text: submitting to passions and/or submitting to God. Try to articulate the difference between these two and the outcomes of each. 6.      What are you personally hearing for your own life from this text? How might God be calling you to grow, change, adjust the way you live? 7.      What might God be saying to us as a church through this text? 

Wisdom and Passion

Community Group Discussion Questions For the week of February 2, 2020       Read James 3:1-12 Say a prayer that God would open your heart to hear His voice from the Epistle of James      Discussion Questions:     1. Read verse 1-2. Why is it important for those who teach to control their tongues? Why are they judged more seriously?  2. What are the metaphors used for the power of the tongue in verses 3-6?  3. What are the characteristics used to describe the tongue in verses 7-8?  4. What is the contradiction between the blessing and cursing in verses 9-10. (Hint: Image of God.)  5. What do verses 11-12 tell us about the root causes of negative speech?  6. What are the implications for us in verses 11-12 about how we might be able to clean up our speech? What is the root problem? How do we deal with it?  7. What does this passage mean for you? Where has the Spirit convicted you as you have read and taken in these words? 

Tongues Of Fire

Community Group Discussion Questions For the week of January 26, 2020       Read James 2:14-26 Say a prayer that God would open your heart to hear His voice from the Epistle of James      Discussion Questions:   1. In verse 14, what does James mean by the question, “Can that faith save him?”    2. How does our passage today connect with the previous passages?    3. What is the relationship between faith and works in this passage? Can you have one without the other?    4. What is James trying to say by referring to the ‘shema’ (Lord our God is one) and shuddering demons?    5. What illustrations does James give from the Old Testament as examples of what true faith looks like? What words stick out to you in the passage that help to clarify the meaning for us?    6. What challenges does this text give you personally? 

Completing Faith

Community Group Discussion Questions For the week of January 19, 2020       Read James 2:1-13 Say a prayer that God would open your heart to hear His voice from the Epistle of James        Discussion Questions:     1. Sum up the different sections of the passage in your own words: 2:1; 2:2-4; 2:5-7; 2:8-13    2. In verse 1, it seems that showing partiality toward one person/group over another goes against the gospel of Jesus. Why is this? What is the contradiction between partiality and the gospel?    3. In verses 2-4 James highlights a distinction that is being made between the rich and the poor. While this will always be a problem (“The poor shall be with us always!”), what are some distinctions that are made in our church of which we may need to repent?    4. What do you think it means that the poor are ‘heirs of the kingdom’?    5. Why is what the rich are doing (vrs 6& 7) called ‘blasphemy’?    6. What is the connection between loving your neighbour as yourself and partiality (vrs 8-9)?    7. In this context what does it mean for ‘mercy to triumph over judgement’? 

Partiality and Faith in Jesus

Community Group Discussion Questions For the week of January 12, 2020       Read James 1:19-27 Say a prayer that God would open your heart to hear His voice from the Epistle of James      Discussion Questions:     1. What aspects of the passage confuse you or do you find interesting?    2. James is speaking about the ‘word’ being implanted in us (vs 21). What does this mean?    3. What illustration does James use to help us understand the relationship between ‘hearing’ and ‘doing’?    4. If the underlying encouragement James is offering is about the relationship between hearing and doing, how does that help us understand, or inform, verses 26 and 27?    5. After reading, thinking, and praying about this passage, how would you describe what ‘true religion’ is?   

True Religion

Community Group Discussion Questions For the week of January 5, 2020       Read James 1:2-15 Say a prayer that God would open your heart to hear His voice from the Epistle of James      Discussion Questions:   1. In your own words, try to sum up verses 2-4. Do the same with verses 5-8 and 9-11, respectively.    2. What is the connection between these verses?    3. If the background of the Epistle of James is that there are poor members of churches in Syria and Palestine, who are severely suffering their poverty, how does this help us understand our texts today?    4. What does James teach us about how to understand our trials?   5. How do our trials help us to mature?    6. What do verses 13-15 teach us about the way that sin works?    7. Allow every person in the group to share how this text has helped them (or not!). 

Trials, Wisdom, Wealth & Christian Maturity

An Introduction

The Wise Men's Journey - Watch at: https://vimeo.com/381807174

Christmas Eve Service

Immanuel

Community Group Discussion Questions For the week of December 15, 2019       Read Matthew 11:2-12 and Isaiah 35     Discussion Questions:   1. What sticks out to you about this passage? What strikes you as odd or seemingly out of place?    2. What is the question which John sends his disciples to ask about Jesus (v 3)? Why is he asking this question?    3. What was John expecting of a messiah?    4. In verses 4-6, why does Jesus answer in this way? (Read Isaiah 35 and use this text to reflect.)    5. How does this passage help us to prepare for Advent?

Is He The One?

Community Group Discussion Questions For the week of December 8, 2019       Read Matthew 3:1-12; Isaiah 40:1-5     Discussion Questions:     1.    How do these scriptures relate to each other? How does Isaiah 40 help us understand the role of John the Baptist?    2.    What is John calling his hearers to repent of in Matthew 3:2?    3.    What does John mean when he says (Matt 3:3) the Kingdom of Heaven is near?   4.    Why does Matthew include notes on John’s appearance? How does this help us understand him and his role?    5.    Why does John call the pharisees ‘brood of vipers’?    6.    In 3:9 John says that they should not rely on their status as Abraham’s children. What does this mean and how might this be applied to us as Jesus-followers?    7.    What does 3:11 tell us about how John understands himself in relationship to Jesus?    8.    What is the difference between the baptism of John and the baptism of Jesus (Matt 3:11-12)    9.    How does reflection on this passage help us as we prepare our hearts, this advent, for the coming of Jesus? 

Preparing The Way For A New Exodus

Weekly messages and other media from Tsawwassen Alliance Church in Delta, BC. Speakers include Pastor Steve Kroeker and guests.

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Tsawwassen Alliance Church

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