Chosen By God
Daniel 2:24-30 – New International Version (NIV)
24 Then Daniel went to
Arioch, whom the king had appointed to execute the wise men of Babylon,
and said to him, “Do not execute the wise men of Babylon. Take me to the king,
and I will interpret his dream for him.”
25 Arioch took Daniel to the
king at once and said, “I have found a man among the exiles from
Judah who can tell the king what his dream means.”
26 The king asked Daniel (also
called Belteshazzar), “Are you able to tell me what I saw in my dream and
interpret it?”
27 Daniel replied, “No wise man,
enchanter, magician or diviner can explain to the king the mystery he has asked
about, 28 but there is a God in heaven
who reveals mysteries. He has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen
in days to come. Your dream and the visions that passed through your
mind as you were lying in bed are these:
29 “As Your Majesty was lying
there, your mind turned to things to come, and the revealer of mysteries showed
you what is going to happen. 30 As for me, this mystery has
been revealed to me, not because I have greater wisdom than anyone else
alive, but so that Your Majesty may know the interpretation and that you may
understand what went through your mind.
What had Arioch been “appointed” to do (verse 24)?
What did Daniel tell
Arioch (verse 24)?
When did Arioch take
Daniel to the king (verse 25)?
What did he tell the
king (verse 25)?
What was Daniel “also
called” (verse 26)?
In your opinion, why
was it important that Daniel answer the king’s question about the dream by
saying “no wise man, enchanter, magician or diviner can explain to the king
the mystery” (verses 26 and 27)?
Who “reveals
mysteries” (verse 28)?
Who showed the king “what
is going to happen” (verse 29)?
Why was the mystery
revealed to Daniel (verse 30)?
In your opinion, what is the basic message of this
passage?
Matthew 2:1-12 - New International
Version (NIV)
1 After
Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King
Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem 2 and
asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his
star when it rose and have come to worship him.”
3 When
King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 When
he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law,
he asked them where the Messiah was to be born. 5 “In
Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has
written:
6 “‘But
you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for out of you will come a ruler
who will shepherd my people Israel.’”
7 Then
Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star
had appeared. 8 He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go
and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so
that I too may go and worship him.”
9 After
they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen
when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child
was. 10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 11 On
coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed
down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him
with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. 12 And
having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned
to their country by another route.
When did the “Magi from the east” come to Jerusalem (verse
1)?
What did
the Magi ask (verse 2)?
What had the Magi seen (verse 2)?
Who was disturbed (verse 3)?
Who did Herod ask about “where the Messiah was to be born” (verse 4)?
Where was the Messiah to be born (verse 5)?
Who will come “out of” Bethlehem (verse 6)?
What did Herod secretly find out (verse 7)?
Why did Herod ask the Magi to report to him when they find the child
(verse 8)?
How did the Magi find “the place where the child was” (verse 9)?
What did they do when “they saw the child with his mother Mary”
(verse 11)?
How were the Magi warned not to go back to Herod (verse 12)?
In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?
In your opinion, what does this passage reveal about the challenges those
chosen by God may face in the world?
In your opinion, what do the revelation to king Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel
2:24-30 and the revelation to the Magi in Matthew 2:1-12 have in common?
Acts 13:5-12 - New International
Version (NIV)
5 When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of
God in the Jewish synagogues. John was with them as their
helper.
6 They traveled through the whole island until they came to Paphos.
There they met a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named Bar-Jesus, 7 who was an attendant of the proconsul, Sergius Paulus. The
proconsul, an intelligent man, sent for Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to
hear the word of God. 8 But Elymas the sorcerer (for that is what his name means)
opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul from the faith. 9 Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy
Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, 10 “You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that
is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop
perverting the right ways of the Lord? 11 Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be
blind for a time, not even able to see the light of the sun.”
Immediately mist and darkness
came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand. 12 When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed, for he
was amazed at the teaching about the Lord.
What did they do “when they arrived
in Salamis” (verse 5)?
Who did they meet in Paphos (verse 6)?
Why did
the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, send for Barnabas and Saul (verse 7)?
Who opposed Barnabas and Saul (verse 8)?
How was Saul filled (verse 9)?
Who did Saul say that Elymas was (verse 10)?
What was going to happen to Elymas “for a time”
(verse 11)?
How did the proconsul respond to this (verse 12)?
In your opinion, what is the basic message of this
passage?
In your opinion, what does this passage reveal about the
challenges those chosen by God may face in the world?
In your opinion, what is the difference between the
motivations of Daniel in Daniel 2:24-30 and Bar-Jesus (Elymas) in Acts 13:5-12?
In your
opinion, why would King Herod in Matthew 2:1-12 and Bar-Jesus (Elymas) in Acts
13:5-12 both reject people who worship God?
1 Corinthians
1:26-31 – New International Version (NIV)
26 Brothers and
sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were
wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble
birth. 27 But God chose the
foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things
of the world to shame the strong. 28 God chose the lowly things of this world and the
despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, 29 so that no one may boast before him. 30 It is because of him that you are in Christ
Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our
righteousness, holiness and redemption. 31 Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who
boasts boast in the Lord.”
Who does Paul want to “think of what you were when you were
called” (verse 26)?
How many were “wise by human standards” (verse 26)?
Why did God choose “the foolish things of the world”
(verse 27)?
Why did God choose “the lowly things of this world and
the despised things-and the things that are not” (verse 28)?
Who can boast before God (verse 29)?
What has Jesus “become for us” (verse 30)?
What is written (verse 31)?
In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?
In your opinion, what
does this passage reveal about the challenges those chosen by God may face in
the world?
In your opinion, how is Daniel in Daniel 2:24-30 an example of the foolish,
weak and lowly people that 1 Corinthians 1:26-31 says that God choose?
In
your opinion, how does the reaction of King Herod and “all Jerusalem with
him” as contrasted with the Magi in Matthew 2:1-12 help us understand the
difference between those who are viewed well by human standards and those who 1
Corinthians 1:26-31 indicates are chosen by God?
In your opinion, how
is Bar-Jesus (Elymas) in Acts 13:5-12 an example of those not chosen by God as
described in 1 Corinthians 1:26-31?
In your opinion, what do these passages from Daniel, Matthew,
Acts and 1 Corinthians teach us about being chosen by God?
In your
opinion, how can we who are chosen boast about God today?
(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)
