Q14 | What are the sacraments? - Fleming Island UMC

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Q14 | What are the sacraments?

U6 Church

April 17, 2024 • Matthew 28:19–20

Q. What are the sacraments?

A. Baptism is the holy covenant by which we join the church, and Holy Communion is the church's ongoing act of thanksgiving. Both are means of participating in Jesus' death and resurrection. (Matthew 28:19-20)

● Discussion Question: Dallas Willard said (roughly), discipleship is becoming who Jesus would be if He were you. How is your imitation of Jesus different than other people you know? How is it the same?

● Discussion Question: Read Matthew 28:19–20 together. What does Jesus tell us about what it means to be a disciple here?

● Discussion Question: The lesson pointed out two sacraments, or sacred actions, of the church: baptism and communion. Are there other ways God offers us grace besides these? How are they similar to baptism and communion? How are they different?

● Discussion Question: The two sacraments come at the beginning and end of Jesus’s ministry. Is this significant?

● Discussion Question: Baptism and communion have a unique place in Christian history. They have been the subject of much debate, but all orthodox Christian communities recognize their importance. What effect do they have on the life of an individual Christian believer?

● Discussion Question: Have you been baptized? If so, talk about when it was. Were you a baby? If you haven’t been baptized, talk about that. Do you have plans to be baptized?

● Discussion Question: Theologian Peter Kreeft said of communion: “Christ did not say ‘take and understand’ he said ‘take and eat.’” How much ought we to understand about the spiritual effect of the sacraments and how important is our understanding?

● Discussion Question: What was the most important idea you learned from this lesson? Is there anything you still don’t understand?

Application Question: Discipleship isn’t just a me-and-Jesus thing. It involves other, more mature people teaching and guiding us. How are you being discipled right now?

More from Absolute Basics of the Christian Faith

Q1 | Who is God?

March 27, 2024 • 2 Corinthians 13:14

Q1. Who is God? A. God is the Holy Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Three persons in one God. (2 Corinthians 13:14) ● Discussion Question: Understanding God as 3-in-1 can be hard. Which way of thinking about God being 3-in-1 made the most sense to you? ● Discussion Question: We heard the analogy of playing 3 notes on a piano that form a chord to help us think about the Trinity. This is a helpful analogy. Can you think of any analogies for the Trinity that you’ve heard that are unhelpful? How are these bad analogies? ● Discussion Question: Look up and read together: 2 Corinthians 13:14 and Titus 3:4–7. How does God work together in our salvation? What does Paul say God, Jesus, and the Spirit are doing? If we pray to the Father in the name of the Son, what is the Holy Spirit up to when we pray? ● Discussion Question: What was the most important idea you learned from this lesson? Is there anything you still don’t understand? ● Application Question: How does a discussion about the Trinity actually impact our lives? How does the fact that God is a Trinity change how we do relationships?

Q2 | What is God Like?

March 27, 2024 • Psalm 147:5

Q2. What is God like? A. God is perfect in power, knowledge, and in His holy love. (Psalm 147:5) ● Discussion Question: You are putting together a team of superheroes. Which of these do you choose: Power Person, Genius Guy, or Moral Man? ● Discussion Question: Look up and read together: Psalm 147:5 and 1 John 4:7–16. Since God is love, what is expected of us? ● Discussion Question: Because God is all-loving, God is merciful. Mercy is when someone does not get what they deserve. How can God execute justice and still be loving and merciful to us? ● Discussion Question: Anselm, in pointing out that God was perfect, went so far as to say that any perfect being (God) must exist, for it is more perfect to exist than not exist. Some have really taken this and run with it and called it the “ontological argument for the existence of God.” Do you think this is a good argument for God? Discussion Question: If God knows everything, does He know the future? Are we free if He does?

Q3 | What did God Make?

March 27, 2024 • Hebrews 11:3

Q3. What did God make? A. God spoke everything into being, by His own free choice, and it was very good. (Hebrews 11:3) ● Discussion Question: Have different people each look up and read Genesis 1:1–5 and John 1:1–5 The Old Testament was written in Hebrew, which has a word, “ruach,” that means spirit, wind, and/or breath. That is the word in Genesis 1 that we read in verse 2. In John, the Greek word for Spirit is “pneuma,” which means spirit, wind, and breath as well. What do these two passages tell us about what the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are doing in the work of creation? ● Discussion Question: God decide to create out of His own free will. That includes time and space. Why do you think God decided to create the universe? ● Discussion Question: When Christians claim that God created everything, atheists are fond of responding with the question of “who created God?” How do we respond to the question of who created God? Did He create Himself? Or did God just always exist? If something has to always exist, which is more likely to be always existent, God or the universe? ● Discussion Question: God has given us a very good gift by giving us creation, and our natural response is gratitude. What are the ways you normally show gratitude to someone who gives you a good gift? Is it just a feeling in our hearts? How do we show that to God? What is the wrong way to show gratitude? Is there a way that we can be well-meaning and desire to show gratitude but do it in the wrong way? ● Discussion Question: If God is best, then does He always necessarily do what’s best? Does this mean God’s decision to create—and all other decisions—aren’t free? ● Discussion Question: What was the most important idea you learned from this lesson? Is there anything you still don’t understand? ● Application Question: You heard about God bringing life simply through speaking. Do we have the ability to bring life, or take life, through our words? How?