1) Listen to Podcast here
2)GG Questions 02/04/2018
Seeking First: There and back again Matthew 2:13-23
1. God’s Hand: The devil would loved to have snuffed out the Son of God (2:16) before he accomplished His great work, but God wouldn’t let him. Count the number of times God directs the course of events through angels in Matthew 1-2. Can you think of a time God directed your life or protected you in a crisis? Has the power of that testimony strengthened your faith or others’?
2. Instantaneous: Pastor Jonathan has powerfully reminded us that delayed obedience is disobedience. How was Joseph’s obedience in these passages (Matt. 2:14, 21)? Did he waver in the face of immense difficulties and very real fear (v. 22)? Can you think of a time you obeyed what you believed to be God’s calling immediately? What was the result? Or, perhaps, is there something God has been trying to get you to do for a while, but you haven’t been listening?
3. This Fulfilled What Was Spoken…: Matthew 2:13-23 is arranged into three mini-stories, each concluding with a ‘fulfillment’ statement – find them. Twelve such statements are scattered throughout Matthew. Why does Matthew think this is so important (Luke 24:27; John 5:46)? Why do ancient prophetic statements about Jesus matter to us?
4. Like Moses: Matthew deliberately arranged his material to highlight parallels between Jesus’ story and Moses’ story – a menacing execution order (Matt. 2:16; Exod. 1:22), daring flight (Matt. 2:13-14; Exod. 2:15), safe return (Matt. 2:20-21; Exod. 4:19-20), and many more still to come. Moses delivered Israel from slavery in Egypt – from what slavery did Jesus free us (Matt. 1:21; John 8:34)? What slaveries or addictions bind you now or bound you in the past? What hope does Jesus offer for deliverance (Rom. 6:6-7)?
