BIble Study Questions and Thoughts--Session 2 Week of September 6-12

OLD LIFE, NEW LIFE
Passages--Ephesians 2:1-22; 4:17-24


This week we take a second, deeper look at Ephesians 2 and then a look at the corresponding passages in Ephesians 4.


Dead or Alive
Read Ephesians 2:1-10
1. Is existence without Christ as bad as Paul portrays it in 2:1-3?  What evidence do you see for or against this view?
2.  Can a person agree with Paul about this world and still enjoy nature, the arts, and people--even unbelievers?  Can such a person be involved in politics and society?  Why or why not?
3.  Paul thinks we should be extraordinarily grateful to be freed from living death.  He thinks we should be even more grateful as we contimplate what we have in Christ.  What significant features of life in Christ doe he hightlight in 2:4-10?
4.  What could hinder a Christian from overflowing with gratitude and joy over this change of curcumstances?


At War or At Peace
Read Ephesians 2:11-22
5.  If Christ had never come to earth, non-Jesw would be "separate...excluded...foreigners...without hope...without God..." (2:12).  How easy or difficult is it for you to imagine this being the story of your life?  Why is that?
6.  Picture in your mind a wall with you on one side, and God and other people on the other side.  As Christ dies, the wall crumbles.  How easy is it for you to see yourself as a person without walls between you and God?  Why is that?  How easy is it for you to see yourself as a person without walls between you and other Christians?  Why is that?
7.  The only command in all of Ephesians chapters 1-3 is "remember" (2:11).  Why do you suppose Paul thinks it's so important for us to remember who we used to be and who we are now?  Why is it so easy for us to forget who we are in Christ?


Off with the Old, On with the New
Read Ephesians 4:17-24
8.  Where do you see meaninglessness, lack of light and guidance, denial (refusal to know what's true), or insensitivity played out in our culture?
9.  Paul says sensuality--preoccupation with sex, food, entertainment, and other material pleasures--takes over when an insenitive (numb) person gets desperate to feel something (4:19).  How is that explanation different from the way people often justify sensual indulgence?
10.  In contrast, we need to be made new in the attitude of our minds (4:23-24).  How is Christ-centered thinking the opposite of what we've just described?
11.  How does a Christ-centered person relate to physical pleasures (food, sex, entertainment, possessions)?
12.  How do you respond to the idea that conversion involves the Holy Spirit restructuring your thinking about everything, not just your beliefs about Jesus?  What are the implications for your life?
13.  Any other question you would like to discuss with the group...

Bible Study Questions and Thoughts--Session 1--Week of August 23-30

Passages--Ephesians 1:1-14; 2:1-22

Questions for Study--

Paul wants us to think about not only where we live physically, but also where we live spirituality...

Blessings in Christ--Read Ephesians 1:1-14.

1. Make a list of everything Paul says here this is true of us because we are "in Christ")or "in him," etc).
2. How does a person come to be "in Christ" (1:13)?
3. How is your physical identity influenced by the physical place where you live, or where you come from?
4. What difference does it make to your life that you live in two locales: a physical place and in Christ?
5. What does it mean "to be holy and blameless in his sight" (1:4)?

In Sin or In Christ--Read Ephesians 2:1-10

6. Before we lived in Christ, we lived somewhere very different. What key elements of that environment influenced our identity then (2:1-3)?

7. When we changed realms from being "in sin" to "in Christ," we were included in some important things that had happened to Christ: his resurrection from the dead and his ascension into the heavenly realms (2:4-6). What do you think it means to say that "in Christ" we are seated right now with him in the heavenly realms?

Invited with God's People in Christ--Read Ephesians 2:11-22

8. How easy is it for you to think of yourself as part of Christ, intimately connected to him and to others who are in him (2:19-22)? What helps or hinders you from thinking of yourself that way?

9. How should being in Christ affect the way we relate to believers from different ethnic groups, social classes, educational levels, etc?

10. If Paul is right, why do churches seem to have so much trouble with segregation along ethnic and social lines?

11. What makes you feel that you belong, or don't belong in the church or community of believers?

12. What aspect of being "in Christ" is most significant for the way you see yourself currently?

13. Any other question that you would like to discuss with the group...

Join us for a study of Ephesians and learn about community-building!

The Book of Ephesians has been chosen for the first Bible Study because of it's emphasis on building community or "the body of Christ". These early followers of Jesus have much to teach us. Questions for the first study will be posted by Sunday.

Getting Started!

The Women's Ministry and Christian Education and Formation Ministry of Joy MCC are happy to announce the start of a new Bible Study and Prayer Group meeting in the home of Rev. Carol and Terri. This Bibile Study is open to all women of Joy or women interested in becoming more involved in the Women's Ministry of Joy. It is our prayer that this group, called "Eve", will be the first of many such home groups to begin here at Joy. Our focus will be on Bible Study and prayer and we are already praying that God will bless us as we grow in Christian discipleship and community. We will meet on the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays from 7:00 - 8:30 p.m. Please email Rev. Carol at revcarol@joymcc.com or call 407-704-2394 for directions and more information. We look forward to what God wants to do in our midst