Lesson One: Discussion Guide for Group or Individual Use (click more)
Jesus My Immanuel
Opening Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank you for this time you have provided for us to come together to hear from you and have fellowship in your Word and to learn and apply your Word to our hearts. We need you, Lord. We need your grace all the time. We praise you for your goodness and your love and mercy. Please open our hearts to you and to one another and lead our discussion. Help us not to fear, but to put all of our hope in Christ. Help us to remember there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. May you be glorified in all our thoughts and words and deeds. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
I. LECTURE
Will someone share how the Lord used the lecture to speak to your heart? Did anyone have any questions or concerns about the lecture? If you ever have a question or something is unclear, please let us know. We want to serve you in any way we can!
II. PLEASE READ THE MAIN POINT FROM THIS WEEK’S HOMEWORK
Ours is a predominantly me centered world, which is what hinders a real, tangible, intimate relationship with our Immanuel. We are all so full of ourselves, but we need to be filled with Him. We are never going to deeply know Jesus and experience our oneness with Him until we begin to grasp how much our old ways of living are not His way. It is only when we comprehend our need to leave our ways behind and seek Him and His kingdom that we will be able to fully know Him as our Immanuel. Yet we continue to look like the world around us, the culture we live in. Many have an outward appearance of godliness, but are completely missing the love and holiness of Christ. Only He can move the mountains in our hearts and minds. At our salvation the Lord created a new heart in us, and now He is reviving His Spirit within us. We need Jesus! He alone is our great reward!
III. QUESTIONS FROM THE HOMEWORK
Go through the homework, occasionally calling on women. Read scriptures aloud. After asking a question, remember to allow a brief period of quiet “wait-time” to give women a chance to think before answering. After pausing, if no one shares, go ahead with your answer, rephrase question, and/or move on.
DAY ONE Devotion: Jesus, My Immanuel
1. Will someone please share what spoke to your heart from Day One?
DAY TWO
2. Quiet Moment - Read Isaiah 1:2-4. What things of the world do you long for? Where or when do you doubt God’s ways?
3. Going Deeper Question #1 - From reading Isaiah chapter 1 and 1 Corinthians 10, do you hear God’s heart for His people? How does He feel about their wanderings and idolatry? What does He deeply desire?
4. Question #3 - What areas of idolatry, indulgence, testing of the Lord, or grumbling did the Lord reveal to you? Please remember there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ!
DAY THREE
5. Quiet Moment – Will someone vulnerably read the heart cry you wrote to God after reading Psalm 42?
6. Going Deeper Question #1 - What does God do in response to Isaiah’s confession and repentance? What is Isaiah’s response? What is your response?
7. Question #2 – How do you describe your current heart attitude towards the Lord and His Word?
DAY FOUR
8. Quiet Moment - Read Isaiah 10:33-34. What do you need to do to spur on your growth? What do you fear when you think of the Lord pruning you?
9. Going Deeper Question #1 - What did you learn about the Lord’s lovingkindness expressed through His warnings in Isaiah 30 and 31?
10. Question #2 – Will someone vulnerably share the prayer you wrote?
DAY FIVE
11. Going Deeper Question #3 - What did you learn about Christ from the New Testament and Old Testament passages you read?
IV. PLEASE RECITE YOUR SCRIPTURE MEMORY VERSES TOGETHER
V. TAKING THE TRUTH TO HEART TIME
We will now focus on taking God’s truth to our hearts and bringing it to life. James 5:16a states; “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.” And 1 Peter 2:24 says, “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.”
Please turn to your Taking the Truth to Heart and Bringing It to Life page. We will each have 3 minutes so that every woman will have a chance to share. Please record one another’s confessions on the Taking the Truth to Heart Guide on the following page so you can pray for one another throughout the week. Leaders, please set the example by going first.
VI. PLEASE CLOSE IN PRAYER
