Is there oil in your lamp?

 

(96) When does Study give way to Action?

Jesus preached to Jews and Greeks during that last crowded week before Passover. So now we’ll turn to some of his teaching to the Jews. Read Matthew 25:1-13

1.       What is the purpose of a lamp? Would a lamp be any use without oil?

2.       What is the use of the Bible? Is the Bible any use if we don’t read it?

3.       Did the foolish virgins’ lamps run out of oil, or did they never have any oil in the first place?

4.       When does it become easy to see if someone’s lamp has no oil in it?

5.       What gift do dark times give us? Is God giving us gifts in this present time?

6.       What is the point of this story: “Don’t share,” “Don’t carry a Bible without reading it”…?

7.       Were the disciples ready? Are we?

Read Matthew 25:31-40

1.       Sheep and goats grazed together on the hills and were separated when brought down to the pens. Read Matthew 13:24-30 for a similar story. The wheat and tares are separated at harvest.

a.       Is it our job, now, to separate faithful and unfaithful, believers and unbelievers, good guys and bad?

b.       Why or why not?

c.       Did you notice the parable of the wheat and the tares comes just after Jesus talking about the Isaiah passage of hardened hearts that we read last week? What is a hardened heart?

d.       What connects hardened hearts with God separating his chosen at the end of time?

2.       Read verse 33. Is there anything wrong with being left-handed, or walking “sinister” around a house, or… etc?

a.       Where do wrong rules come from?

b.       How easily do wrong rules get created and promulgated?

3.       Read verse 34. Do you believe God has prepared a place for you from before the foundation of the world? What does knowing that mean to you?

4.       Read verse 35-36. What if you haven’t done all these things? What if you’ve “just” given money? What if you’re too shy to invite strangers into your house, too fragile to visit the sick, too easily scared to visit jails…?

5.       Many Christians through history have felt called to do these things, have written great hymns, and have led great revivals… Where do we fit in? How do we know if we are or aren’t called to fulfil verses 35-36 in detail?

6.       Read verse 37-40. The “sheep” don’t even seem to know they’ve done as God requested. What did they know and do? Do the details matter, or the attitude of heart?

7.       Read verse 41-46. Again, the “goats” didn’t know they’d disobeyed. We know what they didn’t do, but what did they do? What was wrong with their attitude?

8.       What about our attitudes – is it just about visiting prisons and the sick, or, in today’s society, are there other people the world ignores or despises who we should be helping?

9.       Are there people we despise, ignore, won’t meet their eyes on the street, try not to get into conversations with, keep away from, don’t listen to, consider they deserve all they get…?

10.   Are we ready?