week of 2/27

 Unit 6  Session 4

A HOLY PEOPLE

1 PETER 1

As God is pure in all His ways, He calls His people to live likewise

in response to all He has done for them in Christ.

Throughout the Israelites' time in the wilderness, both the year

of rescue and the remaining forty years of punishment, God's

people found occasion after occasion to rebel against their

sovereign Savior. Yet God remained holy in all His interactions

with His people because that is Who He is - God is holy. He 

displayed His holiness through His abundant patience, His

faithful provision, His swift discipline, and His good law. In

all of this time, God worked to make for Himself a holy people

because God's image-bearers should be holy as He is holy, a

principle picked up in the New Testament book of 1 Peter.

Points to consider:

✞   God's people are to be holy, having been

     called by a pure God.

     * Why should Jesus' second coming impact

        our lives today?

✞   God's people are to live reverently, having

     been redeemed by a pure sacrifice.

     * How should a pursuit of holiness honor

        God?

     * What has been your favorite foreshadowing

        of Christ in the exodus narratives? Why?

✞   God's people are to love sincerely, having

     been given a pure heart.

     * How should we, as people changed by the

        gospel, show love to others?

week of 2/20

 Unit 6  Session 3

AN UNGRATEFUL PEOPLE

NUMBERS 21

God is right to judge sin, yet He is gracious to provide a way of

salvation.

The Israelites had been confronted afresh with God's holiness

through His grace in providing them with water and His

punishment of their leaders. Aaron soon died in the wilderness

on Mount Hor as a result of their disobedience at the rock, but

not before the priesthood had passed on to his son, Eleazar,

so the people's relationship with the Lord might be preserved.

Aaron's death was yet another tangible testimony of God's

commitment to and expectation of holiness, and the people

mourned him there for thirty days. And then the Lord provided

them with their first victory over an enemy nation. Yet Israel

remained undeterred, and they would soon sin again.

Points to consider:

✞   The Lord's people sin, despite His gracious

     provision.

     * How does reflecting on God's gracious

        provision help us not to sin against Him

        and others?

✞   The Lord's people are disciplined, drawing

     then toward repentance.

     * How should this punishment of Israel 

        cause us to think about our own sins?

     * What should our repentance of sin

        entail?

✞   The Lord's prophet intercedes, prompting

     the means of healing.

     * Why might we doubt God's ability to 

        save us?

week of 2/13

 Unit 6  Session 2

A UNFAITHFUL PROPHET

NUMBERS 20

The unfaithfulness of people always comes at a great cost - the

judgment of a holy God.

Because Israel rebelled and refused to enter and conquer the

promised land as God had said, they were punished with forty

years of wandering in the wilderness, one year for every day

the spies were in the land. That generation was condemned to

die in the wilderness outside of the promised land, but the next

generation would claim the land by God's grace. Still, the people

continued to succumb to discontent and disobedience, a failing

that affected their leaders as well.

Points to consider:

✞   Unfaithfulness leads to a pattern of sin.

     * Why do you think we gravitate to the

        same types of sin over and over again?

     * What does dealing faithfully with sin

        look like?

✞   Unfaithfulness results from a failure to

      trust God.

     * What are some lessons we ought to 

        learn from Moses' and Aaron's 

        examples?

✞   Unfaithfulness brings the judgment of

     a holy God.

     * Why does God's severe discipline of 

        Moses and Aaron not sit well with

        many of us?

week of 2/6

Unit 6  Session 1

A REBELLIOUS PEOPLE

NUMBERS 13-14

Rebellion occurs when God's ways and authority are despised.

After the exodus, receiving the law at Mount Sinai, and con-

structing the tabernacle, the Book of Numbers moves the

narrative forward as the Israelites follow God's lead out

into the wilderness, headed to the promised land. The early

stages of this leg of their trip were again marked with strife,

however, as the people began to grumble and complain and

some of Moses' own family members began to question his

leadership. These events foreshadowed the trouble to come

in the wilderness of Paran.

Points to consider:

✞   Rebellion occurs when God's promises 

     are forsaken.

     * How have God's promises strengthened

        you to obey His commands?

✞   Rebellion occurs when God's plans

     are scorned.

     * What are some signs that we may be

      guilty of rejecting God's plan for our

        lives?

     * What role have godly leaders played

      in your life to help you obey the Lord

        and grow in your faith?

✞   Rebellion occurs when God's authority

     is rejected.

     * What are some ways we can encourage

      others to submit to God's authority?

week of 1/30

 Unit 5 Session 5

THE MEANS OF WORSHIP

LEVITICUS 1-7

The Old Testament sacrifices showed God, and others, His people's

commitment, gratitude, and confession of sin.

When the Israelites left Egypt, God spoke to Moses and gave him

instructions for His people. God set up the tabernacle so He could

dwell with His people as He reminded them of His holiness, for-

giveness, and presence. He also gave them specific instructions

for the sacrificial system with its various offerings so they

could worship Him, remaining close with Him in their covenantal

relationship. Through the sacrificial system laid out in the law,

God's people showed their commitment, gratitude, and confession

of sin through worship.

 

Points to consider:

✞   The sacrifices showed dedication to God.

     * Why would God require an unblemished

        animal to atone for sin?

✞   The sacrifices showed thankfulness to God.

     * What are some ways to remember God's

        provision in our lives so we can be

        thankful?

✞   The sacrifices showed confession to God.

     * Why should confession be a part of our

      worship to God?

week of 1/23

Unit 5 Session 4

A PLACE OF MEETING

EXODUS 25 - 31 ; 35-40

God desires to be with His people and declares to the wold that He has made a

way for sinners to be forgiven and made holy.

After pleading with God to have mercy upon the people of Israel for their

sin of idolatry, God promised to be with Moses and the Israelites. Yet

restoration of the covenant would involve obedience to God's commands.

While on the mountain, the Lord had given Moses detailed instructions on

the construction of the tabernacle, its furniture, and the garments for the

priests who would serve there. The tabernacle would be the portable tent

where God would dwell in the midst of His people. After spending over half

a year building God's dwelling place, the tabernacle was set up and 

consecrated for worship.

 

Points to consider:

✞   Worship of God centers on His holiness.

     * What are some ways we celebrate and 

        remember the Lord's salvation?

     * Since God is holy and pure, how should

        this affect our worship?

✞   Worship of God centers on His forgiveness.

     * How should the Lord's choice of Aaron as

        a priest encourage us?

✞   Worship of God centers on His presence.

     * What are some ways we are hindered

        from worshiping in the presence of God?

week of 1/16

Unit 5 Session 3

FAITHLESSNESS AT THE MOUNTAIN

EXODUS 32 - 34

God judges idol-worshipers for giving the worship due Him to something

or someone else, but He also offers grace.

After the Israelites arrived at Mount Sinai and had prepared themselves,

God spoke His Ten Commandments to them directly. This frightened the

people, and they requested that Moses speak to them for God. So Moses

climbed up Mount Sinai twice, entering the burning darkness of God's

glorious presence. His second ascent lasted forty days and nights as the

Lord gave him His law and the tablets containing the Ten Commandments

for the people of Israel. But in Moses' absence, the Israelites grew rest-

less and forgetful.

 

Points to consider:

✞   Idol-worshipers distort the worship of God.

     * Does the quickness of the people's rebellion

        against God surprise you? Why or why not?

     * How does the true worship of God protect us

        from distorted lives?

✞   Idol-worshipers deserve the judgment of God.

     * How have you seen prayers for God's glory 

        and the salvation of sinners be answered?

✞   Idol-worshipers depend on the grace of God.

     * How does God's self-revelation here compare 

        with the life and ministry of Jesus Christ?