Knowing God Study - Lesson 26 Ý
Copyright 2004-5 by William Meisheid

Chapter 21: These Inward Trials

Today’s theme: How easy we go off the narrow path and misapply the truth we have learned.

Scriptural background: “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.”  Matthew 7:13-14

“For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, you are God's building. According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I have laid the foundation, and another builds on it. But let each one take heed how he builds on it. For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one's work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one's work, of what sort it is.” 1 Corinthians 3:9-13

Quotes for the week
"Partisanship is our great curse. We too readily assume that everything has two sides and that it is our duty to be on one or the other."  James Harvey Robinson.

"I believe there are more instances of the abridgement of the freedom of the people by gradual and silent encroachments of those in power than by violent and sudden usurpations."  James Madison

"You sell a company twice. First of all, you sell them the product, then you sell them the service."  Richard Brock, founder, chairman and CEO of Brock Control Systems

Concern: That we would want to stay a child in the faith, protected and pampered.

“For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food.” Hebrews 5:12

1   Why is it so hard to grow up?

2   What is the best antidote against becoming Peter Pan (unable to leave childhood)?

Interacting with the text

Goal: To become mature in the faith, leaving behind childish things and embracing the responsibility of Christian adulthood. “When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things.” 1 Corinthians 13:11

1   What overall problem does this chapter deal with? Have you experienced this problem yourself? If so give an example.

2   Packer says, “false hopes are a greater evil than false fears.” Do you believe this is true? Why or why not?

3   Have you ever thought, “It isn’t working any more!” and went looking for someone to help you make it “work” again? Explain. How is this problem related to church hopping?

4   Packer says, “Backsliding Christians are always miserable.” How is backsliding different from the problem this chapter is attempting to address.

5   What does God, our heavenly Father, want from us according to Packer?

6   Why is a adequate understanding of grace so important to our living the Christian life, especially with the issues raised in this chapter?

7   How is learning to lean on God dependent on grace?

8   What can we learn from God’s chosen, people like Abraham and David? Why is it important that the Bible did not gloss over their failures?

9   What can we learn from John Newton’s Hymn I asked the Lord? (Remember, it was written in  late 1700’s)

What To Do Next

Read Chapter Twenty-two: The Adequacy Of God, which centers on Paul’s letter to the Romans. The book Why Bad Things Happen To Good People basically postulated a limited God who could not intervene in or control everything that happened to his children. Packer will have none of that and neither should you.

Goal: To put away childish things and become men before the Lord.

It is one thing to say we will move from milk to meat, to progress from childhood to adulthood in our Christian faith, but it altogether another thing to actually accomplish the fact. To me the chief deterrent is the need for accountability. Not a moment of accountability or a single decision, such as in salvation, but a daily, hourly, even moment by moment accountability in which all decisions, even every idle word is brought into account. That takes a real man with a real spine who understands to his very core that all gain comes with real pain. So, share around the Advil and let’s have at it.