1st Corinthians

1 Corinthians 13 - Love is Forever, So Get Good at It - July 8, 2018

Do you only think of love as being romantic?  What or who else do you love besides a mate?

How do you express love in other than romantic ways?

Would you rather marry a person who is very talented and charming, but whose love you doubted or a person who may be very simple yet you know he or she loves you?

What spiritual gift or talent do you have that can be used to strengthen the church? Can you imagine using that gift in a way that actually hurts the church?  How could that happen?

What aspect of heaven do you look forward to the most?  how do you expect to be different there and then than you are here and now?

1 Corinthians 12:12 - I'm Happy to be Stuck with You - July 1, 2018

Have you ever felt like you didn’t belong in church?   Why did you feel that way?

Have you ever felt inferior to other people in church?  What did they have that you feel like you lacked?

What do you think are the talents that it takes to start a church and keep it running?  Do you have any gifting to contribute to that?

Have you ever looked around at church and wished somebody wasn’t there?  Why did you feel that way? Do you think you were justified in feeling that way?

What’s more important than talent in a church?  What was the great commandment that Jesus gave? What kind of gifting did he want us to seek?

1 Corinthians 12:1-11 - Meant to Edify - June 24, 2018

Do you feel like your faith is a very mystical thing or a very practical thing?  Do the more ‘mystical’ aspects of Christianity make you uncomfortable?

The Holy Spirit is in the heart of every believer.  Do you perceive the Holy Spirit of God is in your heart?  What evidence for his presence have you ever detected?

Do you think you have a spiritual gift?  Is there something that you can do that not all can do in the church?  Do you seek chances to use that gift?

What are some ways, regardless of whatever spiritual gift you feel like you may or may not have, that you can bless the people of this church?

1 Corinthians 11:17-34 - The Issue that Caused The Issue - May 27, 2018

Which term have you used for this sacrament or ritual in your church heritage?  The Lord’s Supper? Mass?  Communion?  The Eucharist? 

 

We eat the Lord’s Supper once a month at this church.  In your heritage, how often did you take it?  How special is it to you?

 

What goes through your mind while preparing to eat the Lord’s Supper?

 

Does eating the Lord’s Supper make you feel more united with your church family?

 

Is there a group of people in our church that you are suspicious of?  Why are you suspicious of them?

 

Is there a group that you’d rather not be there?  Why?

 

What can you do to get close to them?

1 Corinthians 11:1-16 - Unique, but Equal and Priceless - May 20, 2018

In what ways do you think society pits people against the opposite sex? 

Do you feel like you’ve been treated badly by the opposite sex?  In what ways?  Do you think you’ve ever treated the opposite sex badly yourself?  Have you confessed that to the Lord?

Do you think this battle of the sexes exists in churches?  In what ways?

Have you ever thought too much of yourself?

For women:  What feminine qualities do you often feel you lack? Are those qualities which the world pressures you to have or are they truly biblical qualities?  Have you prayed about these?

For men:  What masculine qualities do you often feel you lack?  Are those qualities which the world pressures you to have or are they truly biblical qualities?  Have you prayed about these?

In what way can you help the opposite sex flourish in our church?

1 Corinthians 8 - Mutual Edification over Personal Ethics - April 8, 2018

What moral grey areas do you think exist in the Christian life?

 

What moral issues in society do you wish the Bible gave a more clear command about?

 

Have you ever had a dispute with another Christian over some more issue?  Whether or not __________ is a sin?

 

What are some things you do that you know other Christians do not do because they think it’s wrong?

 

What are some things that other Christians do that you do not do because you think it’s wrong?

 

Have you ever just kept your mouth shut because you knew that if you expressed your opinion it would cause a fight?  Have you ever wished you’d kept your mouth shut because when you expressed your opinion you lost a relationship with someone you cared about?

 

What’s more important in the church, being unified about things we agree upon or defining precisely which position we take on every moral issue?

1 Cor 7 - Two Noble Lives, One Eternal Destiny - March 18, 2018

What kind of life did you dream of as a teenager?  If you’re a teenager, what kind of life do you dream about now?

 

Did life turn out like you’d hoped?  What if life doesn’t turn out like you’re hoping?

 

How much time do you spend wishing life were different?  Has it made life different?

 

When life imposes circumstances you can’t control, what do you think is the godly response?

 

What’s the best way to live for God in your real life right now?

 

What attitude changes would you have to make for that to be possible?

1 Cor 7:17-24 - Not My Final State - Feb 25, 2018

Do you often fear that you’ll never be able to rise above your circumstances?

What circumstance are you in right now that you think makes others look down on you?  Is there one?

How important has marital status been for you in life? 

Do you ever think there are normal Christians and then there are SUPER Christians?  What makes a super-Christian super?

Is there anything you’ve been striving to receive that you think will make your life complete?  In light of eternity, will it really do that?

What does it mean to remain in your calling?

1 Cor 6:12-20 - Who's Calling the Shots? - Feb 18, 2018

What personal mantras do you have?  What rules do you live by?  What’s your personal philosophy of life and justice?

Have you ever come across any passages of scripture that contradicted your personal philosophies?  How did you react?

Do you feel free in Christ or do you feel regulated?  Does the Christian life limit the activities you’d like to do?  Which ones?  Do you easily submit or easily rebel?

How do you feel about your health and lifestyle?  Do you feel like your body is a vehicle or a prison to you?

Is there any part of your lifestyle that doesn’t honor God?  Which part needs some reshaping so that it might honor God more?

How do you see God most of the time: Father?  Friend?  Lord? Teacher?  How does that affect your obedience to him?