Welcome to the Gospel One Psalm At a Time, our small group study for the Winter and Spring. This is week 2 of our study utilizing Paul David Tripp's "Book at Time" material for our study. Here's the plan:
After the first 2 week introductory sessions, we will begin studying 3 psalms a week for 15 weeks. Throughout the week prior to your group's meeting, take some time to:
1) Prayerfully read and study the week's Psalms;
2) Watch the short videos that will be posted here on our website - they are also available on PDT's Youtube channel; and
3) Answer the questions in preparation for a conversation in your small group.
It's a simply ryhthm...
First Psalm: Pray - Read - Watch - Answer - Pray.
Second Psalm: Pray - Read - Watch - Answer - Pray.
Third Psalm: Pray - Read - Watch - Answer - Pray.
My prayer this is a great season of spiritual growth for you and our church as we invest in this together!
All for Jesus!
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1. What has God entrusted you with? Where has he given you dominion? What is he asking you to manage? Write down or share with others a list of the spheres of your influence. What would it look like to be a good steward in these areas? How can you glorify God? Be specific. What are some of the challenges of life in a fallen world that make stewardship difficult? What are some of the selfish temptations of your heart that will distract you? How can you partner with and learn from other Christians in similar spheres of influence to better exercise dominion over what God has entrusted you with?
2. How can you glorify God by recognizing and affirming the dignity, honor, and value of the lives of people that he has placed in your sphere of influence? Who do you know who feels worthless? How can you encourage and uplift them? Who do you know who is alone? How can you be hospitable? Who doesn’t have a home or feels like a stranger? How can you welcome them and greet them in the name of Christ? Who doesn’t have a voice? How can you fight for the oppressed, the forgotten, and the unborn?
1. In what ways has your culture grown increasingly hostile towards Christians and Christianity over your lifetime, or in recent years? What are some fresh examples of your culture denying the existence of God or rejecting his law and created order? What is your emotional reaction toward this? Are you afraid, angry, defensive, or aggressive? How does Psalm 3 instruct our response?
2. How can you equip yourself to engage winsomely in your cultural context? What resources are available to help you understand the issues of the moment and how Christian apologetics speaks to them? Where are you tempted to back away from the gospel message because of fear of conflict? In what ways have you been willing to compromise on biblical truth because of cultural pressure?
1. Prior to watching this video on Psalm 14, how would you have defined foolishness or identified a fool? Who are some people in your life that you would name as fools, and why are their life decisions or lifestyle foolish? More specifically, how have you, or why do you, distance yourself from them? There is an abundance of Proverbial wisdom and instruction is avoiding fools! (See Proverbs 14:7, 23:9, and 26:4-5 for just a few examples) But, in the context of this study on Psalm 14, how have you self-righteously, like the Pharisee in the temple (Luke 18:11), distanced yourself from fools in your life and considered yourself more righteous, by your own merit and works, than you actually are?
2. How have you acted “like a fool” – according to the definition of Psalm 14 – this week? Identify at least one area of your life where you operated as if God did not exist, or that you did not need him, or that his law did not matter. Be specific. How did you think, what did you desire or dream about, how did you act, or what did you say, that was only possible because you acted in isolation, like a fool, as if God was not present in that time and place? What were the consequences of that foolishness? Have you confessed and repented of your foolishness, both vertically to God and horizontally to the person you sinned against in your moment of foolishness? How can you act wisely when the same or similar situation repeats itself in the future?