God’s Powerful Love
Daniel 7:15-28 - New International
Version (NIV)
15 “I, Daniel, was troubled in spirit, and the visions that passed
through my mind disturbed me. 16 I approached one of those
standing there and asked him the meaning of all this.
“So he told me and gave
me the interpretation of these things: 17 ‘The four
great beasts are four kings that will rise from the earth. 18 But
the holy people of the Most High will receive the
kingdom and will possess it forever—yes, for ever and ever.’
19 “Then I wanted to know the meaning of the fourth beast, which was
different from all the others and most terrifying, with its iron teeth and
bronze claws—the beast that crushed and devoured its victims and trampled
underfoot whatever was left. 20 I also wanted to know
about the ten horns on its head and about the other horn that came up,
before which three of them fell—the horn that looked more imposing than the
others and that had eyes and a mouth that spoke boastfully. 21 As
I watched, this horn was waging war against the holy people and defeating
them, 22 until the Ancient of Days came and pronounced
judgment in favor of the holy people of the Most High, and the time came when they
possessed the kingdom.
23 “He gave me this explanation: ‘The fourth beast is a fourth
kingdom that will appear on earth. It will be different from all the other
kingdoms and will devour the whole earth, trampling it down and crushing
it. 24 The ten horns are ten kings who will come from
this kingdom. After them another king will arise, different from the earlier
ones; he will subdue three kings. 25 He will speak against
the Most High and oppress his holy people and try to change the set
times and the laws. The holy people will be delivered into his hands for a
time, times and half a time.
26 “‘But the court will sit, and his power will be taken away and
completely destroyed forever. 27 Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of all the
kingdoms under heaven will be handed over to the holy people of the
Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all
rulers will worship and obey him.’
28 “This is the end of the matter. I, Daniel, was deeply
troubled by my thoughts, and my face turned pale, but I kept the
matter to myself.”
How did Daniel’s visions affect him (verse 15)?
What did Daniel do (verse 16)?
What are the “four great beasts” (verse 17)?
Who will “receive the kingdom and will
possess it forever-yes, for ever and ever” (verse 18)?
How was the fourth beast “different from all
the others” (verse 19)?
What horn “looked more imposing than the
others and that had eyes and a mouth that spoke boastfully” (verse 20)?
What was this horn doing (verse 21)?
When did this horn stop (verse 22)?
What will the fourth kingdom do (verse 23)?
Who is the “other horn” (verse 24)?
Who will be “delivered into” the other
horn’s hands (verse 25)?
What will happen to the other horn’s power
(verse 26)?
What will happen to the “sovereignty,
power and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven”
(verse 27)?
How did Daniel react to this information (verse
28)?
In
your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?
In your opinion, where is God’s power
demonstrated in this passage?
John
8:21-29 - New
International Version (NIV)
21 Once more Jesus said to
them, “I am going away, and you will look for me, and you will die in
your sin. Where I go, you cannot come.”
22 This made the Jews ask, “Will
he kill himself? Is that why he says, ‘Where I go, you cannot come’?”
23 But he
continued, “You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I
am not of this world. 24 I told you that you would die in
your sins; if you do not believe that I am he, you
will indeed die in your sins.”
25 “Who are you?” they
asked.
“Just
what I have been telling you from the beginning,” Jesus replied. 26 “I
have much to say in judgment of you. But he who sent me is
trustworthy, and what I have heard from him I tell the world.”
27 They did not understand
that he was telling them about his Father. 28 So Jesus
said, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will
know that I am he and that I do nothing on my own but speak just what the
Father has taught me. 29 The one who sent me is with me;
he has not left me alone, for I always do what pleases him.”
Who was talking (verse 21)?
Where is He going (verse 21)?
What will happen to the listeners (verse 21)?
In your opinion, why did the Jews ask “will he
kill himself” (verse 22)?
What is the difference between Jesus and the people
listening to Him (verse 23)?
What will happen to the people who are listening if
they “do not believe that I am he” (verse 24)?
How did Jesus answer the question “who are you”
(verse 25)?
What does Jesus have much of (verse 26)?
Who was Jesus telling them about (verse 27)?
When will they know that Jesus has done nothing on
His own (verse 28)?
What does Jesus always do (verse 29)?
In your opinion, what is the basic message of this
passage?
In your opinion, where
is God’s power demonstrated in this passage?
In
your opinion, how is Jesus’s statement “if you do not believe
that I am he, you will indeed die in your sins” in John 8:21-29 related to the kingdom
that Daniel was told “the holy people of the Most High will receive the
kingdom and will possess it forever—yes, for ever and ever” in Daniel 7:15-28?
1 John 4:18-5:4 – New International Version (NIV)
18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out
fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not
made perfect in love.
19 We love because he first
loved us. 20 Whoever claims to love God yet hates a
brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother
and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not
seen. 21 And he has given us this command: Anyone who
loves God must also love their brother and sister.
5 1 Everyone who
believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone
who loves the father loves his child as well. 2 This is
how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and
carrying out his commands. 3 In
fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not
burdensome, 4 for everyone born of
God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the
world, even our faith.
Where
is there no fear (verse 18)?
What
does perfect love do (verse 18)?
Why
do we love (verse 19)?
Who
is a liar (verse 20)?
What
command have Christians been given (verse 21)?
Who is “born of God” (verse 1)?
How do we “know that
we love the children of God” (verse 2)?
What is “love for
God” (verse 3)?
Who overcomes the world
(verse 4)?
What is “the victory
that has overcome the world” (verse 5)?
In your opinion, what
is the basic message of this passage?
In your opinion, where is God’s power
demonstrated in this passage?
In your opinion, how is
the promise from 1 John 4:18-5:4 that “everyone born of God overcomes the
world” related to the transfer of power from Daniel 7:15-28 which says “the sovereignty, power and greatness of all the
kingdoms under heaven will be handed over to the holy people of the
Most High”?
In
your opinion, where in John 8:21-29 do you gain understanding of what 1 John 4:18-5:4
means by “we love because he first loved us”?
Revelation 12:1-12 – New International
Version (NIV)
1 A great
sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon
under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. 2 She
was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth. 3 Then
another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven
heads and ten horns and seven crowns on its heads. 4 Its
tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them to the
earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth,
so that it might devour her child the moment he was born. 5 She
gave birth to a son, a male child, who “will rule all the nations with an iron
scepter.” And her child was snatched up to God and to his
throne. 6 The woman fled into the wilderness to a place
prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days.
7 Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against
the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8 But
he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. 9 The
great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the
devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled
to the earth, and his angels with him.
10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:
“Now have come the salvation and the power
and the kingdom of our God,
and the authority of his Messiah.
For the accuser of our brothers and sisters,
who accuses them before our God day and night,
has been hurled down.
11 They triumphed over him
by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony;
they did not love their lives so much
as to shrink from death.
12 Therefore rejoice, you heavens
and you who dwell in them!
But woe to the earth and the sea,
because the devil has gone down to you!
He is filled with fury,
because he knows that his time is short.”
What was the “great sign” that appeared in
heaven (verse 1)?
Why
did the woman cry out (verse 2)?
What
was the next sign that appeared in heaven (verse 3)?
Why
did the dragon stand in front of the woman (verse 4)?
What
happened to the child that was born (verse 5)?
Where
did the woman flee to (verse 6)?
Where
did war break out after the woman fled (verse 7)?
What
did the dragon and his angels lose (verse 8)?
Where
were the devil and his angels hurled (verse 9)?
Why
did the loud voice from heaven say “now
have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the
authority of his Messiah” (verse 10)?
How
have “our brothers and sisters” triumphed (verses 10 and 11)?
Who
should rejoice (verse 12)?
Why
is there “woe to the earth and the sea” (verse 12)?
In
your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?
In your opinion, where is God’s power
demonstrated in this passage?
In your opinion, how is triumph in
Daniel 7:15-28 different from the triumph of Revelation 12:1-9? How is the battle of Daniel 7:15-28 similar
to or different from the battle of Revelation 12:10-12?
In your opinion, how does Jesus in John
8:21-28 anticipate the crisis of Revelation 12:1-9? How does He anticipate the triumph of
Revelation 12:10-12?
In your opinion, how does 1 John 4:18-5:4
demonstrate that the people of the world can have victory in the cosmic battles
portrayed in Revelation 12:1-12?
In
your opinion, what do these passages from Daniel, John, 1 John and Revelation teach
us about God’s power in the battle with Satan?
In
your opinion, how can we move from being troubled like Daniel to fearless as
described in 1 John?
(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)
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