Offerings Week 5- Less Have To, More Want To

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Scriptures From Sunday: Acts 4:34-37, 5:1-6; 2 Corinthians 8:1-7, 9:6-8; Luke 21:1-4

REFLECT/DISCUSS:

What motivates you? (Ex. Success? Fear of failure? Praise? Criticism? Etc.)

Which do you think is more important & why- having good circumstances or a good attitude?

How would you describe your attitude about offering your time, talents and resources to God? How about your motivations to give?

What have you been taught about giving in church settings- both directly and indirectly?

Do you think believers have to give? Need to give? Should want to give? Some/all of the above? Which motivates you the most?

What is your reaction to the story of Ananias & Sapphira? What do you think the differences were between their and Barnabas’ offerings?

What kind of pressures might Ananias & Sapphira felt that prompted them to give an offering their hearts weren’t behind?

Read 2 Cor. 8:1-5. What strikes you most about the way these believers gave? What, if anything, would you hope to emulate in your own life & giving?

Have you ever been guilted into giving? What happened? Do you think God was honored by that?

What strikes you most about the story of the widow who gave all she had in Luke 21:1-4? What do you think Jesus would call us to emulate about her offering?

When is the last time you gave an offering that required faith on your part? What happened?

Which would most represent a next step of growth for you- giving joyfully, generously or from faith? Which motivation do you long to leave behind the most- giving from pressure, obligation or guilt?

Offerings Week 4- We're Going To Need A Bigger Bucket

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Scriptures From Sunday: Romans 12:1-2, 6:1-13; 1 Peter 2:4-5; Matthew 11:28-30, 10:37-39

REFLECT/DISCUSS:

Talk about some times when you found yourself in situations that were bigger/more involved than you expected. Give both a positive and a negative example if you can.

Have you ever had moments like this with God? When have you realized that your pictures and perceptions of Him & what He wants for you have been way too small?

When was the last time you needed some guidance on what was “appropriate”? What was the setting/occasion?

If you were mentoring a newer follower of Jesus, how would you describe an “appropriate offering” to them?

Spend time in the Romans 12 & 6 passages above. Based on what you read there, how would you describe the offerings and response God is looking for from us? How does this mesh with your ideas about giving?

Do you consistently see/think of yourself as a temple where God lives and a priest who offers him/herself as a living sacrifice (1 Peter 2:4-5)? How can we maintain this kind of focus? What impact might this perspective have on the way we go throughout our day?

Have you ever offered someone something you thought was significant (a gift, your love or friendship, etc.) and gotten a disproportionate response back? How did that feel?

Do you think we can fully receive the life Jesus offers us without offering all of ourselves to Him? Does this shed any light for you on some of Jesus’ difficult and extreme statements? (See Mt. 10:37-39)

When you read things in the Bible like, “offer yourselves as living sacrifices” do you long for more “how-to” specifics? Does what Jesus says in Matthew 11:28—30 give you any insight into where/how we are to learn more about the parts of our faith that aren’t clearly spelled out?

When was the last time you “offered” God some part of your day or life that wasn’t overtly religious (ex. church, Bible reading) or where you didn’t feel a great need for His help? Do you believe that God can take pleasure in all the parts of your life? Are there any parts of yourself that you have been withholding from Him or offering in the other direction?

Offerings Week 3- God Passes The Plate For Us

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Scriptures From Sunday: James 1:16-17; John 3:16-17; 1 Timothy 2:5-6; Colossians 1:19-20; Romans 5:6-9; Hebrews 9:9-15, 10:1-4; Matthew 11:28-30

REFLECT/DISCUSS:

Would you describe yourself as an initiator? Why/Not? What are some situations where you’d volunteer to go first? Others where you’d prefer that someone else take the first turn?

Agree/Disagree & Explain: When we give, we’re simply responding to God’s initiative to give first.

Spend some time with John 3:16-17. What do these verses tell you about God’s willingness to make the first move? About his intentions and motivations toward us?

We’re told in Hebrews 9 & 10 that he Old Covenant sacrifices of animals and produce didn’t really take away sin. So, why did God instruct His people to offer them in the first place? What kinds of things have you “offered” to try and make yourself right with God that didn’t really work either?

Is there any resistance in you to the idea of Jesus sacrificing Himself for your mistakes? If so, can you name what is behind it?

List as many appropriate answers as you can to the question: What did Jesus come to offer us? When you are done, take a shot at summarizing everything you’ve got in a sentence or less.

After all the answers you’ve come up with to the last question, why do you think some people focus solely on Jesus offerings us forgiveness and heaven? While those are certainly crucial, do they fully capture what Jesus Himself and the rest of the scriptures say Jesus offers us?

What does God’s willingness to go first when it comes to giving and sacrifice Jesus for us so that He can offer life to us mean to you emotionally? Does it affect your feelings about giving to God?

Offerings Week 2- (More Than) A Little Structure

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Scriptures From Sunday: Deuteronomy 12:6, 14:22-29, 8:7-18; Leviticus 5:5-7, 11a; Exodus 22:29-30, 23:19a; James 2:14-26

REFLECT/DISCUSS:

• How do you feel about structure and complexity? Do you need them? Crave them? Avoid them? Do they give you life- or sap it from you?

• Have you ever felt/thought that God’s commands are burdensome or heavy handed? Like Daniel in The Karate Kid wrestling with Mr. Miayagi’s training methods, have you ever wondered if God is using you or trying to take things FROM you?

• What could/has a shift toward seeing God’s instructions and commands as an expression of what He wants FOR you mean for your relationship with your Maker?

• Why do you think God gave the nation of Israel such a complex and detailed system of offerings as they began their relationship with Him?

• What are your experiences with and perceptions of tithing? Have you ever thought of percentage based giving as a way for God to level the playing field and allow everyone to participate?

• God commands Israel to give him the first and best of their produce, the firstborn of their livestock, their best wine, etc. Do you think God wants this idea of priority giving to translate to us today? If so, how can we give God our first and best if we don’t bring offerings of food and drink?

• Think/Talk about a time in your life when a hands-on experience really helped you grab hold of an idea you already “believed in”. Do you think more words on the topic would have had the same impact?

• Read Deuteronomy 8:7-18. Do you think we face the same temptation God warns the Israelites about in this passage? If so, how can giving help mitigate it?

• Take a look at James 2:14-26. How do you feel about/respond to the ideas in this passage? Does what you are offering God today (think $ and beyond) require any faith on your part? If so, what would?

• The Sunday teaching focused on a few key emphases that seem to run throughout the complexities of the OT sacrificial system: PARTICIPATION, PRIORITY, and PRACTICE. Which of these would God have you to focus on most now as you learn to offer yourself more wholly to Him?

Offerings Week 1- The 4th Big Story

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Scriptures From Sunday: Genesis 4:1-8, Matthew 6:19-24

REFLECT/DISCUSS:

What do you go all out for? Who gets your best in life?

What are your feelings about churches talking about offerings and giving? What kinds of experiences have you had with this?

Why do you think most faiths include some element of giving to God? Why did Cain and Abel bring offerings to God?

Cain and Abel saw the world a bit differently than we do. What were some things they “knew” that might have prompted them to give offerings?

Can we ever give God something that doesn’t already belong to him? If not- what’s the point of giving Him anything?

Cain and Abel brought offerings from what they had. Do you think God expects us to give Him things we don’t have/can’t afford?

God was pleased with one offering and not with the other. What do you think made the difference?

Abel brought the best and first part of what He had to God. Cain didn’t. What do you think Cain did with his best and first instead? Does that give you any insight into who or what Cain valued the most highly?

What would this story say to the idea that God just wants us to give SOMETHING- and that the specifics of the gift don’t matter?

In light of what Jesus says in Matthew 6:19-24, do you think God can fully have our hearts if we hold back our money and things from Him? Is it possible to separate the two?

Cain’s offering prompted God to warn him about the direction his heart was heading. What would God say to you about the direction you are heading lately?

God wanted Cain to “do well and be accepted”. Do you believe He wants the same for you? Why/Not?

Do your offerings to God match the place and priority you say you want Him to have in your life? If not, what can you do to bring them more in alignment?