luke 9-19 study book part 3 - lakeshore community...

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BOOK 3 Part 3 – Luke 17:20-‐19:27

Growth Group Study Booklet

Living for Jesus By making, maturing and mobilising disciples

For His Glory

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Part 3 – Luke 17:20-‐19:27

Introduction to Luke -‐ Page 3 Space for Notes -‐ Page 4

Study 18 – Luke 17:20-‐37 -‐ Page 6 Study 19 – Luke 18:1-‐14 -‐ Page 8 Study 20 – Luke 18:15-‐34 -‐ Page 10 Study 21 – Luke 18:35-‐19:10 -‐ Page 12 Study 22 – Luke 19:11-‐27 -‐ Page 14 Space for Notes -‐ Page 16 Luke Overview + Map -‐ Page 19

Diary Dates

Sunday October 5 Annual General Meeting Sunday December 10 Lakeshore Christmas Carols Sunday December 24 9am & 5:30pm: Christmas Eve Service Monday December 25 9am: Christmas Day Service Sunday January 28 2018 Launch Sunday

Studies in this study booklet prepared by: -‐ Leo Woodward, Joel Allen & Bill Forgeard

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Introduction to Luke Luke was a physician and a travel companion of the apostle Paul (Col. 4:14). He wrote this Gospel and its sequel, the book of Acts. The earliest possible date of Luke–Acts is immediately after the events that Luke recorded in Acts 28, which would have been c. a.d. 62. Both Luke and Acts are addressed to “Theophilus” (Luke 1:3; Acts 1:1), about whom nothing more is known. Luke’s broader audience consisted primarily of Gentile Christians like Theophilus. Luke informs us from the beginning (1:1–4) that his is not the only Gospel to have been written nor the only Gospel account that could be written (cf. John 21:25). Nevertheless, the church has always recognized the great gift that the third Gospel is to us. There are many beautiful and essential teachings of Jesus and pictures of the gospel that come to us from Luke alone. While the historical and theological witness of all four Gospels contains many consistent themes, Luke describes for us the gospel and its application in several specific and important ways. At the broadest level we learn from this Gospel account that the gospel is multi-‐faceted and full-‐orbed. That is, the gospel is explained and applied as being about our whole lives, physically and spiritually, externally and internally, for now and for the future, in our relationship with God and with others. The gospel is not simply a message about religion and the “religious” portion of our lives. Rather, Luke’s presentation helps us see clearly that the gospel of Jesus is about the comprehensive blessedness of God available to us through Jesus Christ. At a more specific level Luke retells the stories and teachings of Jesus in a way that consistently emphasizes that the gospel is a matter of the heart, the inner person, not mere external religion. Jesus constantly reveals the heart motivations behind our actions and pushes us toward opening our hearts in humility toward God. As a result, the gospel in Luke is often presented as a call to reevaluate everything in the world according to God’s perspective, not ours. This means valuing humility over prestige, mercy over justice, favor with God over favor with people, and—especially challenging to us—valuing a rich relationship with God over the power of money. To emphasize this comprehensive understanding of the gospel, Luke uses a variety of complementary images to describe it. The gospel includes the message of peace, the offer of forgiveness of sins through repentance, the promise of inheriting eternal life, the invitation to enter the kingdom of God, and the joy of being with Jesus as a disciple. In all of this, the gospel is good news because it announces the grace and peace that have now come to sinners in Jesus Christ.

From the Gospel Transformation Bible (Study Notes for Luke by Jonathan Pennington).

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Notes

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Notes

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STUDY 18

Luke 17:20-‐37 Kick Off: Have you ever been on a trip, or had an important engagement, only to leave your packing or preparation so late that you ended up in a muddle?

Key Verse: Luke 17:33 Big Idea: We must be absolutely certain that we are rightly prepared for Jesus’ second coming.

Investigate & Apply: 1. Read Luke 17:20-‐21. What is the “kingdom of God”? (See also Mark 1:15, Romans

14:17)

2. Read Luke 17:22-‐25. Verses 23-‐24 refer to Jesus’ second coming. What implications

does the nature of His coming have for believers? What implications are there for unbelievers?

3. Read Luke 17:26-‐30. Compare the people in the days of Noah (26-‐27), Lot (28-‐29) and

when Jesus returns (30), to the people on the Sunshine Coast in 2017.

Read Luke 17:31-‐33.

4. What is the point that Jesus is making in verses 31 and 32?

5. In verse 33, what does both “keep their life” and “loses their life” mean?

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Read Luke 17:34-‐37 (Most translations exclude verse 36)

6. In verses 34-‐36, what does it mean to be “taken”? What happens to the one left?

7. The interpretation of verse 37 is disputed. What do you think it means?

8. The Bible teaches (see Romans 2:6-‐8, Matthew 25:46, John 3:16) that there are two

eternal destinies, heaven and hell. How is this reality impacting on your life now?

9. Jesus will return. What is the specific reason why you are personally ready for that day?

Prayer: In your group prayer time: 1. Share prayer requests and pray for one another in your group. 2. Use a copy of the Lakeshore Church prayer points (either from Sunday’s bulletin or from the weekly email) to pray for people and events across the church.

Read Ahead: For next week’s sermon and growth group, read Luke 18:1-‐14.

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STUDY 19

Luke 18:1-‐14 Kick Off: Have you ever had a customer service (or similar) situation where you had to persevere in getting a complaint dealt with, but it finally paid off?

Key Verse: Luke 18:14 Big Idea: We should always pray and not give up, because God answers prayers based on His mercy, not our own righteousness.

Investigate & Apply: Read Luke 18:1-‐8 1. How persistent are you in your prayers? Do you have issues or people that you have been bringing to God in prayer for a long time? Do you sometimes despair that God will ever answer? 2. Verse 1 reveals the point of the parable very clearly. How does the story then help us understand the point with more force than if Jesus simply stated this main point? 3. Based both on the widow’s behaviour, and on Jesus’ comments, what should characterize our prayers? Read each verse carefully to discover all you can about how we should pray. 4. Verse 8b reminds us of 17:20-‐37, and the need to persevere while we long for Jesus’ return, not setting our desires to the things of this world. How do the distractions and desires of this world undermine your prayer habits? Read Luke 18:9-‐14

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5. a) Why does the Pharisee believe or hope that God will answer his prayer? b) Why does the tax collector believe or hope that God will answer his prayer? 6. a) Self-‐righteousness and pride are very often invisible to those caught in them. Examining your own heart and life, can you see any evidence in your prayers, words or actions of self-‐righteousness and pride? b) How might your prayers, words and actions be different if you had the attitude of the tax collector more consistently? 7. a) What does this parable teach about what it means to be a Christian? b) What does this parable teach about how we should pray? 8. What is one concrete thing you want to apply or remember from these two parables for your own prayers?



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STUDY 20

Luke 18:15-‐34 Kick Off: What is one thing you miss most about childhood?

Key Verse: Luke 18:17 Big Idea: Entering the Kingdom of God requires humble trust in Jesus and a willingness to lose everything and rely only on him – like a little child.

Investigate & Apply: 1. Read Luke 18:15-‐17. What point is Jesus making in these verses by saying we must be like a little child in order to enter the Kingdom of God? Read Luke 18:18-‐30 2. a) Is this wealthy ruler similar or different to the Pharisee in Luke 18:9-‐14? Is he similar or different to Lot’s wife in Luke 17:32? b) What few things (from these verses) does Jesus want this wealthy ruler to understand?

c) What might change if this wealthy ruler was seeking eternal life “like a little child”? 3. a) Why is it so hard for the rich to enter the Kingdom of God?

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b) Since we in Australia are very rich, what makes you confident that you have entered the kingdom of God?

Read Luke 18:31-‐34 4. In what ways is Jesus’ own attitude here like that of a little child? 5. What role do the disciples play in all these events (v15, 28-‐30, 34)? How does this encourage you? 6. Based on these passages, how can you be more like a little child in your attitudes and actions this week, and from now on?


Read Ahead: For next week’s sermon and growth group, read Luke 18:35-‐19:10.

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STUDY 21

Luke 18:35-‐19:10 Kick Off: How do you go at connecting with and showing love to those who are outcasts in our society? What are some of the challenges involved with trying to do this?

Key Verse: Luke 19:10 Big Idea: Jesus came to seek and save the lost, even those that most people will think of as “outcasts” or “no-‐hopers”.

Investigate & Apply: Read Luke 18:35-‐43 1. Why does the blind man refer to Jesus as “Son of David” (v. 38)? 2. Why were the crowd trying to silence the blind man? What might the blind man’s

persistence reveal about his heart? (v.39) 3. Why might Jesus have asked the blind man what he wanted Jesus to do for him?

Wouldn’t this have been obvious? (v. 40-‐41)

Read Luke 19:1-‐9 4. Why does Luke mention that Zacchaeus was a chief tax collector and that he was

wealthy? (v. 2) 5. Why is it significant that Zacchaeus climbed up a tall tree just so he could see Jesus?

(v. 4)

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6. Both the blind man and Zacchaeus were persistent in seeking after Jesus even though there were obstacles in their way. Are you the same? What are some of the obstacles to seeking and following Jesus in your life?

7. Are you ever tempted to respond like the crowd when an outcast of our society shows

interest in Jesus? (v.7) 8. What do Zacchaeus’ actions in verse 8 tell us about him? Do you think these actions

occurred because of his encounter with Jesus? 9. Think back to your answers to the kick off questions at the beginning of this study.

Are there changes that need to happen in your heart and your actions in light of what we’ve read from God’s Word?



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STUDY 22

Luke 19:11-‐27 Kick Off: In your opinion, what makes a good boss?

Key Verse: Luke 19:17 Big Idea: Jesus calls us to faithfully serve him with the life and resources that he graciously gives to us.

Investigate and Apply: Read Luke 19:11-‐27 1. What might the people have been expecting “the kingdom of God appearing at once” to look like?

2. What similarities are there between Jesus and the nobleman in the parable? (v.12-‐15) 3. The master gives each servant a mina (about three months wages) and instructs them to “put it to work”. If you were given the job of putting $20,000 to work, what are some things that might do with the money? 4. What applications does the principle given in verse 17 have for life today? 5. How have the third servant’s actions demonstrated that he has been unfaithful? (v. 20-‐23)

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6. Do you think that the master’s reward of the good servants, and punishment of the bad servant, is fair? Why or why not? 7. Who are the enemies of the nobleman that are mentioned in verses 14 and 27? 8. What is the big idea of this story and how can it be applied for those of us who follow Jesus today? (v. 26)


Read Ahead: For next week’s sermon, read Matthew 1:18-‐25.

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Notes

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Notes

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Notes

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Diary Dates

Sunday October 5 Annual General Meeting Sunday December 10 4:30pm: Lakeshore Christmas Carols Sunday December 24 9am & 5:30pm: Christmas Eve Service Monday December 25 9am: Christmas Day Service Sunday January 28 2018 Launch Sunday

luke 9-19 study book part 3 - lakeshore community...

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