Light on the Lessons s4

Light on the Lessons

Deuteronomy 30:15-20; 1 Corinthians 3:1-9; Matthew 5:21-37

Sixth Sunday after the Epiphany; Cycle A; February 12, 2017

Participant Guide

I Getting Started

1. Some people see life in black-and-white, good-and-evil terms. Other see life as more nuanced, more grey areas. What are the advantages and disadvantages of each view? Toward which view are you inclined?

2. An active member cried in frustration, “We’ve tried everything at Redeemer church, but we still aren’t growing.” How would you counsel this person?

3. “Some people hold themselves to excessively high moral standards. Even when they do the right thing, they worry and feel guilty because somehow it wasn’t right enough. I figure that if what I do is legal and doesn’t harm anyone, my conscience is clear.” What do you think?

II Check the Texts

1. Deuteronomy 30:15-20

Though cast in the form of Moses’ address to Israel as they are about to enter Canaan, the book likely comes from a later period. The legal codes at the core of Deuteronomy, chapters 12-26, are often identified with the book of the law discovered in Josiah’s time that unleashed a religious reformation (see 2 Kings 22-23). Chapters 29-30 form a separate literary unit.

A. Read Deuteronomy 29:1. Who is the speaker? Read Deuteronomy 5:2-3 and 29:14-15. How do these passages suggest that God’s covenant belongs to all generations? Read Joshua 24:1, 14-21. What resemblances do you find with this passage?

B. Study Deuteronomy 30:1-10, especially verses 4-5. What suggests that this chapter addresses Israel in exile? What are the promises made to the exiles when they return? On what will their prosperity depend? What verse suggests that the people need more than mere formal obedience to God?

C. How is “life” defined in verse 16? Matthew 6:25-33 also talks about “life.” What similarities and differences do you find with Deuteronomy? (Clue: Compare Matthew’s verse 33 with Deuteronomy 30:16.) How does John 1:4 define “life”?

D. Deuteronomy takes an optimistic view that faithfulness to the covenant insures prosperity and unfaithfulness insures adversity. To what degree do you agree?

E. Read Deuteronomy 30:11-14. What comfort do these verses intend to bring to the people? How does Jeremiah 31:31-34 relate to this passage? (Clue: Focus on verse 14)

2. 1 Corinthians 3:1-9

Paul apparently wrote the Corinthian letters in response to questions and criticisms he had received from that congregation.

A. In 2:6, Paul refers to “mature” believers. What is the equivalent term in 3:1?

B. What question or criticism from the Corinthians might have caused Paul to make the defense he does in 3:1-3a? On what basis does Paul declare them “people of the flesh”?

C. What do Paul and Apollos have in common, verse 5? How do the metaphors of “planting” and “watering” (verse 6) connect with “milk” and “solid food” (verse 2)?

D. In your own words, express the point that Paul makes in verse 7. How does verse 8 relate to verse 4?

E. In 9b, some translations (e.g., REB, TEV) make a break and connect “building” with verse 10. Why would they do that?

3. Matthew 5:21-37

This passage continues readings from the Sermon on the Mount.

A. How do verses 21-22a set the theme for whole passage? How does that theme relate to Matthew 5:20?

B. Connect these “it was saids” with verses 27, 31, and 33: Leviticus 19:12; Deuteronomy 5:18, 23:21, 24:1-4; and Exodus 20:14.

C. With what issue do verses 21-26 deal? What is the basic advice given for dealing with this issue in verses 23-25?

D. In verses 27-30, what parts are apparently not to be taken literally? What then is the point made by these verses?

E. How do verses 31-32 differ from Mark 10:2-12? What in the Mark passage suggests that divorce was a controversial subject in Jesus’ day? Also read Matthew 19:3-9. What seems to be the underlying affirmation of these passages about divorce?

F. If you took verses 33-37 literally and seriously, how would it change your speech? How might it affect your behavior in court?

III What Does It All Mean?

1. How have you experienced God’s activity in your life this week?

2. Some Christians understand the Sermon on the Mount as a literal blueprint for how to live. Others view its almost impossible ethic as what God demands of us that we are unable to fulfill due to our sinful nature. Thus, the Sermon is God’s law judging us and driving us to Christ’s redemption. Some take an in-between position. Where do you stand?

3. If infant=1 and mature=10, where would you place yourself on this scale of Christian growth?

4. In what ways do you “choose life” each day? Talk about a time when it was very important for you to “choose life.”

5. Would you describe your witness more as “planting” or more as “watering”?

IV Into the Week

1. You go home and someone asks, “What did you learn today?” What would you reply?

2. Flowers brighten our drab winter days. Pause to view a flower. Absorb its beauty. Reflect how this beauty and joy began with a tiny seed. God planted a seed in you, and the Spirit shall mature it so that you bring beauty and joy to others. End your meditation with a prayer of thanksgiving to God.