10.23.21 - Hebrews 10.19-39: The Long Rescue (Kenny Camacho)

SCRIPTURE: Hebrews 10.19-39

“Here’s the truth: when things are hard in the world, when it seems like God’s plan is either failing or taking far too long, we have to lean on each other if we’re going to really remember the promises our hope is built on. We can’t trust them on our own, because the best evidence we have to support what we believe is the love and the transformation we see in others. It’s hard for me to see what God is doing in me! But I can see what he’s doing in you. I can see resurrection in your story. I can be reminded that God isn’t bound by the game clock in your life...and so he’s not bound by it in mine, either.”

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

  1. Have you ever wondered why things aren’t better in the world? Where does that question lead you? What fears does it uncover? What can help you face them?

  2. Kenny said that there are two big temptations we often face when we think about God in light of these questions: the first is that we think of him as a “disinterested watchmaker” who cares little for his Creation. The second is that we think of him as a riddle we’re supposed to solve: if we pray the right way or do the right things, he’ll do what we ask. Have you ever been tempted by these views? What might be dangerous about them?

  3. If Jesus’s work actually restores our access to God, why don’t we tend to take more advantage of that? How might you pursue that relationship?

  4. What is so doggone important about Jesus’s resurrection? What does it change for us, in terms of our fears about how long it seems to be taking for the world to change?

  5. When have you been “stirred up” for love and good works in the past? What did the trick? How can you motivate and encourage others in this way?

  6. Kenny said that it is absolutely critical for us to keep meeting together, to be present with each other, because we just can’t keep the faith without each other. What do you think he meant by that? What sometimes gets in the way of your presence in our church community? What would growth look like for you in this area?

Kenny Camacho