{"id":233,"date":"2013-06-26T21:22:03","date_gmt":"2013-06-26T20:22:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/?p=233"},"modified":"2013-06-26T21:22:03","modified_gmt":"2013-06-26T20:22:03","slug":"hope-in-a-hope-starved-world-bible-study-notes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/?p=233","title":{"rendered":"Hope in a hope-starved world – Bible Study Notes"},"content":{"rendered":"

So many Bible studies on hope are merely theoretical. These studies ask what difference our Christian hope should make to OUR lives every day?<\/p>\n

Hope 1 \u2013 Hope in my life\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

1.\tAsk the Group, \u201cWhat is hope?\u201d<\/p>\n

2.\tRead the following expanded definition of hope to the Group
\n\u201cHope is the combination of expectation and desire. I might love to visit Australia but since I have no expectations whatsoever of being able to do so this summer I cannot say \u201cI hope to go to Australia this summer.\u201d I expect to go to the dentist next week but since I have no desire to make that visit it would be incorrect to say that a visit to the dentist is something I hope for.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now ask the Group each to consider for themselves, \u201cWhat are you hoping for in your life?\u201d Expand the question by inviting the Group to think about their own lives and ask:
\n What circumstances would you hope will be different in the future?
\n What relationships would you hope will be different in the future?
\n What aspects of your character would you hope will be different in the future?
\n What do you hope to achieve in the next five years?
\n What do you hope to achieve in the rest of your life?
\nInvite the Group members to share their hopes, dreams and aspirations. <\/p>\n

3.\tFor the specific examples of hopes folk have shared, ask \u201cWhat can WE do to make these things possible? Are our hopes based on what we might achieve by our own efforts? What are we looking for God to do to bring these hopes to reality? Pray for these now or later.<\/p>\n

4.\tRead Ephesians 1:18-21. What is the hope to which God has called us?<\/p>\n

5.\tOur Christian hope starts with and rests on the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Read 1 Corinthians 15:12-22. Paul writes \u201cIf Christ had not risen from the dead \u2026..\u201d What would be the consequences Paul suggests, if the resurrection had not happened. What other consequences can we think of? What difference does the resurrection of Christ actually make to our daily lives in the here and now?<\/p>\n

6.\tRead Colossians 1:3-6 and Romans 15:13. What blessings does a living hope bring to us? How has your Christian hope affected your life in the last few weeks? <\/p>\n

Hope 2 \u2013 Hope for the world\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

1.\tInvite the Group to look ahead and consider:
\nHow would you hope our world will be different in 5 years, 10 years, 25 years, 100 years?
\nHow would you hope our town will be different in 5 years, 10 years, 25 years, 100 years? <\/p>\n

2.\tWhat can WE do to make these changes possible? What are we looking for God to do to make these things happen?<\/p>\n

3.\tMany people believe that in our post-modern world, \u201cEvery day in every way things are getting better and better.\u201d The Biblical picture is NOT of evolutionary optimism but rather of increasing rebellion against God. Read Matthew 24:1-25. What pictures does Jesus give us of the end of the world, and the way the world is going now? What signs can we see of Jesus\u2019s words being fulfilled in the world around us?<\/p>\n

4.\tRead Romans 1:18-32. Is Paul\u2019s picture of our fallen world optimistic or gloomy? <\/p>\n

5.\tRead Revelation 9:13-21. What picture of the end of the world do we find here?<\/p>\n

6.\tIn the light of these Scriptures, what hope can we as Christians offer to this fallen world? When people around are cheerfully assuming that everything is getting better and better, it is not an option to remain silent about the truth that the world is on a downward slide to disaster. The old-style message \u201cPrepare to meet thy doom\u201d is more relevant than ever!<\/p>\n

7.\tRead Romans 8:18-25. What hope does the Bible promise for the created world? When will this hope be realised? What hope does this give US in today\u2019s gloom-filled world?<\/p>\n

Hope 3 \u2013 Hope for the church\t\t\t<\/p>\n

1.\tInvite the Group to look ahead and consider:
\nHow would you hope North Springfield Baptist Church will be different in 5 years, 10 years, 25 years?
\nHow would you hope the world church will be different in 5 years, 10 years, 25 years?<\/p>\n

2.\tWhat can WE do to make these things possible? What are we looking for God to do to make these things happen?<\/p>\n

3.\tRead Matthew 24:9-14. What picture does Jesus give us of the kind of life Christians can expect in the future?<\/p>\n

4.\tRead Revelation 6:9-11 and 13:5-10. What pictures do we find here of the destiny of Christians and the church?<\/p>\n

5.\tThe dominant Bible pictures of the Church in the last days are NOT of the kingdom of God gloriously breaking in or of a triumphant church, but rather of a suffering persecuted church. Can you think of some of the ways in which triumphalism is distorting the gospel message? (e.g. the whole health, wealth and prosperity heresy assumes that we are guaranteed to experience the blessings of heaven here and now.) What dangers are there in an over-triumphant \u201crosy-spectacled\u201d view of the Christian life?<\/p>\n

6.\tFacing such grim prospects, what hope does the Bible offer for the church today?<\/p>\n

Hope 4 \u2013 Hope in times of suffering\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Studies 2 and 3 have demonstrated that the Bible pictures of the world and the church as history draws to a close are not cheerful! In particular \u201cthe normal Christian life\u201d is not likely to be easy, comfortable and filled with victory but rather hard, painful and sharing the sufferings of Christ. <\/p>\n

Studies 2 and 3 were deliberately downbeat and discouraging! We will only experience the fullness of Christian hope when we are also experiencing the fullness of suffering for Christ.<\/p>\n

1.\t\u201cChristian hope\u201d means relatively little to us in North Springfield because our lives are easier and more comfortable than the lives of most Christians who have ever lived. Discuss\uf04a<\/p>\n

2.\tHow has the gospel given hope to suffering believers through history? You might want to share stories about Christian martyrs through the ages, or the persecuted churches in USSR, China or various Islamic countries over the last century and still today.<\/p>\n

3.\tWe have much to learn from the suffering of Negro slaves and the faith and hope expressed in Negro spirituals. What do this lullaby and this song tell us about Christian hope? (Remember, hope is not only understood but also experienced as a feeling!)<\/p>\n

Hush little baby, don\u2019t you cry, <\/p>\n

You know your Mama was born to die.
\nAll my trials, Lord, soon be over.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve got a little book with pages three,
\nAnd every page spells liberty
\nAll my trials, Lord, soon be over.
\nToo late my brothers,
\nToo late, but never mind;
\nAll my trials, Lord, soon be over.<\/p>\n

If living was a thing that money could buy
\nYou know the rich would live but the poor would die
\nAll my trials Lord, soon be over.<\/p>\n

There grows a tree in Paradise,
\nAnd the pilgrims call it the Tree of Life;
\nAll my trials, Lord, soon be over.
\nToo late my brothers,
\nToo late, but never mind;
\nAll my trials, Lord, soon be over.<\/p>\n

I’m gonna lay down my burden, down by the riverside,
\nDown by the riverside, down by the riverside
\nI’m gonna lay down my burden, down by the riverside,
\nI’m gonna study war no more<\/p>\n

I ain’t a gonna study war no more, I ain’t a gonna study war no more
\nI ain’t a gonna study war no more, I ain’t a gonna study war no more
\nI ain’t a gonna study war no more, I ain’t a gonna study war no more<\/p>\n

Well, I’m gonna put on my long white robe,
\n(Where?) down by the riverside (Oh)
\nDown by the riverside, down by the riverside
\nI’m gonna put on my long white robe,
\n(Where?) down by the riverside I’m gonna study war no more<\/p>\n

I ain’t a gonna study war no more, I ain’t a gonna study war no more
\nI ain’t a gonna study war no more, I ain’t a gonna study war no more
\nI ain’t a gonna study war no more, I ain’t a gonna study war no more<\/p>\n

Well, I’m gonna lay down my sword and shield,
\n(Where?) down by the riverside
\nDown by the riverside, down by the riverside
\nI’m gonna lay down my sword and shield,
\n(A-ha) down by the riverside I’m gonna study war no more<\/p>\n

I ain’t a gonna study war no more, I ain’t a gonna study war no more
\nI ain’t a gonna study war no more, I ain’t a gonna study war no more
\nI ain’t a gonna study war no more, I ain’t a gonna study war no more<\/p>\n

4.\tRead 1 Corinthians 13:13. Paul memorably links \u201cfaith, hope and love.\u201d Why?
\nRead Hebrews 11:1. What is the relationship between faith and hope? See also Romans 4:18-21.<\/p>\n

5.\tRead Colossians 1:27. What does \u201cChrist in you, the hope of glory\u201d mean? What difference does \u201cthe hope of glory\u201d make to our daily lives?<\/p>\n

6.\tRead Romans 5:1-5. What does Paul mean here by \u201cthe hope of the glory of God\u201d? How does such hope strengthen us in times of suffering? Encourage the Group to share their own experiences of times when Christian hope has strengthened them personally.<\/p>\n

Hope 5 \u2013 Hope of Heaven\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

1.\tWhat are you looking forward to most about heaven?<\/p>\n

2.\tWhat is heaven going to be like? Read Revelation 21:1-5, 22:1-5 and 7:9-17. <\/p>\n

3.\tRead 1 Peter 1:3-9. What is the \u201cliving hope\u201d which God has given us? How does this hope sustain us in times of suffering and testing?<\/p>\n

4.\tBack in our first study we defined hope before as \u201ca combination of expectation and desire\u201d. Even this does not make clear the Bible sense of the word hope. Sometimes when we say \u201cI hope to do something\u201d we are only expressing a vague aspiration of something we might possibly do. But in the Scriptures our hope in God is a matter of certainty, and some translations express the idea of the \u201chope of heaven\u201d with the much stronger \u201chappy certainty of heaven\u201d and the \u201chappy certainty of sharing the glory of God\u201d.
\nHow does the \u201chappy certainty\u201d of heaven affect our lives here and now?
\n(Again reflecting back on Question 1 in Study 4, it may be that the hope of heaven means less to us than it has to some Christians through the ages because our lives in the here and now are just too comfortable!)<\/p>\n

5.\tRead 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18. Why is grieving different for Christians? How does the happy certainty of heaven change our feelings about a loved one who has died? <\/p>\n

6.\tHow does the happy certainty of heaven change our attitudes towards our mortality and our own inevitable death? Read Philippians 1:20-25. Do we share Paul\u2019s attitudes that For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain, or I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far ? If not, why not?<\/p>\n

Hope 6 \u2013 The Jesus Hope: the return of Christ\t<\/p>\n

1.\tAsk the Group, \u201cWhat difference does it make to your life day by day that Jesus Christ is going to return?<\/p>\n

2.\tWhy do Christians believe that Jesus will return? See John 14:1-6; Acts 1:9-11; Matthew 24:30-31; John 21:22-23.<\/p>\n

3.\tRead Titus 2:11-14. How should our hope in Christ\u2019s return affect our daily living here and now?<\/p>\n

4.\tRead 1 John 3:1-3. Just HOW does our hope of Christ\u2019s return purify us?<\/p>\n

5.\tRead 2 Peter 3:3-15. What does this passage tell us about what will happen at the end of time?<\/p>\n

6.\tHow then should we be living as Christians today (2 Peter 3:11-14). In what ways can our lives \u201cspeed the coming\u201d (verse 12) of the day of God?<\/p>\n

7.\tWhat have you learned together in this series about the hope we have as Christians. How has it changed your life? Pray about these things.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

So many Bible studies on hope are merely theoretical. These studies ask what difference our Christian hope should make to OUR lives every day?…<\/span><\/p>\n

Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/233"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=233"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/233\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=233"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=233"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/pbthomas.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=233"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}