When we declare that “to live is Christ,” we ponder the downward incarnation and upward exaltation of Jesus, and we work out our salvation with fear and trembling while doing all things without grumbling or disputing.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR SHEPHERD GROUPS

Icebreaker: When a fresh batch of brownies comes out of the oven, do you prefer a corner, edge, or middle piece?

Think of the most humble person that you have ever met and describe them. What character qualities and actions accompany their humility?

If you were talking with a Jehovah’s Witness or Latter-day Saint who referenced Philippians 2:6-7a as proof that Jesus was not fully God, what would you say in response? “Though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself…”

How can RBC be a church that “works out our salvation with fear and trembling” (Philippians 2:13)?

Philippians 2:14 reads, “Do all things without complaining or disputing.” What areas of life are you most tempted to complain about? How does complaining negatively impact the church’s witness (Philippians 2:15-16)?

What can you practically do to help replace your complaints with praises?