Work, the Fruit of Love
Ezra
3:8-13 - New International Version (NIV)
8 In the second month of the second year after their arrival at
the house of God in Jerusalem, Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, Joshua son of
Jozadak and the rest of the people (the priests and the Levites and all who had
returned from the captivity to Jerusalem) began the work. They appointed
Levites twenty years old and older to supervise the building of the house
of the Lord. 9 Joshua and
his sons and brothers and Kadmiel and his sons (descendants of Hodaviah) and
the sons of Henadad and their sons and brothers—all Levites—joined together in
supervising those working on the house of God.
10 When the builders laid the foundation of the temple of
the Lord, the priests in
their vestments and with trumpets, and the Levites (the sons of Asaph)
with cymbals, took their places to praise the Lord, as prescribed by David king of Israel. 11 With
praise and thanksgiving they sang to the Lord:
“He is good;
his love toward Israel endures forever.”
And all the people gave
a great shout of praise to the Lord,
because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid. 12 But many of the
older priests and Levites and family heads, who had seen the former
temple, wept aloud when they saw the foundation of this temple being
laid, while many others shouted for joy. 13 No one could
distinguish the sound of the shouts of joy from the sound of weeping,
because the people made so much noise. And the sound was heard far away.
When
did the work begin (verse 8)?
Who was appointed to supervise (verse 8)?
What happened when they “laid the foundation
of the temple of the Lord” (verse 10)?
How did the people respond after the song “He
is good; his love toward Israel endures forever” (verse 11)?
In your opinion, why did “many of the older
priests and Levites and family heads” weep aloud (verse 12)?
Why could no one “distinguish the sound of
the shouts of joy from the sound of weeping” (verse 13)?
Where was the sound heard (verse 13)?
In
your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?
John 1:35-42 - New
International Version (NIV)
35 The next day John was there again with two of his
disciples. 36 When he saw Jesus passing by, he said,
“Look, the Lamb of God!”
37 When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed
Jesus. 38 Turning around, Jesus saw them following and
asked, “What do you want?”
They said, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you
staying?”
39 “Come,” he replied, “and you will see.”
So they went and saw where he was staying, and they spent that day
with him. It was about four in the afternoon.
40 Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what
John had said and who had followed Jesus. 41 The first
thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the
Messiah” (that is, the Christ). 42 And he brought him to
Jesus.
Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You
will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter).
Who
was there “the next day” with John (verse 35)?
What did John say when “Jesus was
passing by” (verse 36)?
Who followed Jesus (verse 37)?
What did they say when Jesus ask “what
do you want” (verse 38)?
How did they respond to Jesus’s
invitation to “come” (verse 39)?
Who was Andrew (verse 40)?
What did Andrew tell Simon (verse 41)?
Where did Andrew bring Simon (verse 42)?
What did Jesus tell Simon (verse 42)?
In your opinion, what does Peter mean
(verse 42)?
In your opinion, what is the basic
message of this passage?
In your opinion, what
does this passage show us about the importance of work and our relationship
with God?
1
John 2:10-14 –
New International Version (NIV)
10 Anyone who loves their brother and sister lives in the
light, and there is nothing in them to make them stumble. 11 But
anyone who hates a brother or sister is in the darkness and walks around
in the darkness. They do not know where they are going, because the
darkness has blinded them.
12 I am writing to you, dear children,
because your sins have been forgiven on account of his
name.
13 I am writing to you, fathers,
because you know him who is from the beginning.
I am writing to you, young men,
because you have overcome the evil one.
14 I write to you, dear children,
because you know the Father.
I write to you, fathers,
because you know him who is from the beginning.
I write to you, young men,
because you are strong,
and the word of God lives in you,
and you have overcome the evil one.
Where does the one who loves “their brother and
sister” live (verse 10)?
What does the one who hates “a brother or sister” do
(verse 11)?
Why is John writing the “dear children” (verse
12)?
Why is John writing the “fathers” (verse 13)?
Why is John writing the “young men” (verse 13)?
Why is John writing the “children”
(verse
14)?
Why
is John writing the “fathers” (verse 14)?
Why
is John writing the “young men” (verse 14)?
Where
does the “word of God” live (verse 14)?
In
your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?
Revelation
2:1-7 – New International Version (NIV)
1 “To the
angel of the church in Ephesus write:
These are the words of
him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven
golden lampstands. 2 I know your deeds, your hard
work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked people, that
you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found
them false. 3 You have persevered and have endured
hardships for my name, and have not grown weary.
4 Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at
first. 5 Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and
do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and
remove your lampstand from its place. 6 But you have
this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I
also hate.
7 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the
churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from
the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.
Who is John to write to (verse 1)?
Who are the words that John is to write from (verse 1)?
What is known (verse 2)?
What has not happened to the recipients of the letter
in spite of their having to persevere and endure hardships (verse 3)?
What had the recipients of the letter forsaken (verse
4)?
How are the people to respond after they consider how
far they “have fallen” (verse 5)?
Whose practices do they hate (verse 6)?
Who is to hear (verse 7)?
Who will receive the “right to eat from the tree
of life, which is in the paradise of God” (verse 7)?
In your opinion, what is the basic message of this
passage?
In your opinion, what does this passage
show us about the importance of work and our relationship with God?
In your opinion, how does the difference in the way
the foundation of the temple was laid in Ezra 3:8-13 and the way Jesus began to
lay the foundation of the church by naming Peter the Rock in John 1:35-42 help
us understand more about our relationship with God today?
In your opinion, how
does John in Revelation 2:1-7 challenge those who he wrote to and commended for
what they had accomplished in 1 John 2:10-14 to move beyond accomplishment?
In your opinion, what
did Andrew do in John 1:35-42 that the children, parents, or young of 1 John
2:10-14 did?
In your opinion, how
can the actions of Andrew and Peter in John 1:35-42 serve as a guide for those
who have fallen and need to do “the things” they did at first in
Revelation 2:1-7?
In your opinion, what do these passages from Ezra,
John, 1 John and Revelation teach us about the complex relationship between
receiving God’s love, doing God’s work, and loving God’s people?
In your opinion, how are we who have eaten “from
the tree of life” to work?
In your opinion, how are we who have eaten “from
the tree of life” to love?
(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)
