Incarnation #5 (Advent 2023)- Study Questions
The Same God and The Same Plan
Gen. 3:15; Ps. 2:7; 2 Sam. 7:12-15
INTRODUCTION: Over our Advent series we have talked about how Advent is a season where believers are invited to practice the active discipline of remembering. Specifically, we are invited to remember how God has provided in the past, so that we will be prompted to trust him for the future. And what has God done in the past? Many things, but chiefly, he sent his one and only Son as he had promised to do. Rebecca McLaughlin helps us to understand just how powerful that reality is when she writes,
“John’s Gospel doesn’t mention Jesus’ birth. It starts much further back: before the birth of the universe itself. John’s stunning opening presents a figure whom he calls “the Word”: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. (John 1:1-3)
This “Word” was God and was with God from the very first. And as John’s story unfolds, we find that this “Word” is Jesus. God himself has been funneled into flesh: like a tornado touching down but bringing life instead of death. The Bible teaches that there is one God in three Persons—Father, Son, and Spirit—who have always existed in perfect love together. But at a particular point in time, God the Son became a human being: Jesus Christ (John 1:17), “the only Son from the Father” (v 14). John says that Jesus is God’s everlasting Word—the great story that God’s been telling since before the universe hatched from its cosmic egg, the argument against a meaningless world, the light shining in the darkness.
Against the bleak midwinter of a world without God, John tells a story in which our lives are part of a cosmic plan. John presents Jesus as the author of the story—and its protagonist. In Jesus, we see the playwright stepping onto the stage. We see the God who made the universe itself coming down to our backwater planet so that we might become his children. But instead of being applauded, Jesus was rejected. Instead of being worshiped, he was executed. And this wasn’t a tragic accident. It was written into Jesus’ script from the first. But why? The answer is the best news and the worst news we could ever hear. You see, if there is a God who made us and loves us, that’s wonderful news. It means that our lives are meaningful, that there are such things as good and evil, and that justice and love will win in the end. We’re not just debris floating in a pointless cosmos. We matter. But according to the Bible, this is also terrible news, because it wasn’t just the people of Jesus’ day who needed saving from their sins. We all need saving from our sins and from the judgment of God that they rightly deserve.”[1]
The beauty of the Christmas story is that God would do this for us. And when we examine the OT, we come to see that God’s character didn’t change with Jesus. With a little study, we will come to see that all along the way, God had graciously long purposed to bring about rescue for humanity.
GETTING STARTED – As a group, share what your first impression of God was. Did you see him as kind or mean? Helpful or vindictive? And, what did God reveal to you to help you see him correctly? Or, how have you come to grow in your understanding of his character?
IN THE WORD – Let’s dig back into the passage(s). It is important to strengthen our muscles in reading God’s Word. On Sunday, we walked through the passage in the sermon. Hopefully, that helped you to see the landmarks of the passage with fresh eyes. Now, with your group, go back through it and see what God is saying to you specifically.
First, before you read the passage, take a moment to ask God’s Spirit to quiet your mind and heart and to illuminate the text to you. Second, read the passage aloud to the group. Then, follow the simple method below. (O.P.A)
Observe: Make 8-10 observations from the passage. Pay close attention to observe and note repeated words and phrases, names, places, and themes.
Principles: From your list of observations, what patterns or big ideas do you see emerging? Can you distill it down into 2-4 big idea truths?
Apply: Moving from your list of principles, it is time to apply God’s Word. Remember, we believe that God’s Word is living and active and that it can change the way we live Monday- Friday. What is one tangible way to apply a truth from your list above?
Note: Another way to approach your time together is to talk through the following questions.
- Which of the three passages that we looked at stand out to you the most? And what was illuminated for you about that passage?
- Have you thought of the Old Testament being centered on grace before? If so, what passages helped you see that? If not, how does Leviticus 16:31-33 help speak to that idea?
- If someone told you that they thought God’s character changed from OT to NT, how would you respond?
- Consider these reflection questions from the sermon:
- If God’s character hasn’t changed and he is trustworthy and gracious, do I respond to his commands and instructions with those characteristics as my lens?
- If God has made good on his promises in the past, what keeps me from trusting him for the future?
- Do I actively spend time remembering what God has done and how he has provided for me in the past?
- Remember, when we miss or forget all the little things, we will miss a mountain of evidence of God’s goodness.
[1] McLaughlin, Rebecca. Is Christmas Unbelievable?: Four Questions Everyone Should Ask About the World’s Most Famous Story . The Good Book Company. Kindle Edition