Pause Groups for the week of March 10, 2013 Chapter 9 Read Luke Chapter 9 before small group time. Small Group Time Take time to greet each other. Share highs and lows as you group feels comfortable. Share a prayer as a group to center the group and lift up to God the joys and needs in your group. You will not have time for all questions listed so please choose which questions, and sections your group wishes to focus on. Some questions are designed to open a conversation on the text, others are designed to explore the text and still others will help your apply the text to your life. Background information for Chapter 9 The 12 disciples have been listening to Jesus and observing him for some time. Now they are prepared to be Apostles. Apostle means one who is sent out. They are given authority and power. Their assignment is threefold: they are to exorcise demons, heal and preach the reign of God. They will witness and demonstrate the coming of God s kingdom. They are dependent on hospitality from others. They are dependent on God. Hospitality in New Testament times meant love of the stranger as distinguished from love of brothers and sisters. It was expected that the offered hospitality would be accepted. Verse 4 in so many words says; do not insult your host by shopping around for the best available accommodations. The disciples were commissioned to go without the trappings of security. Their witness was based on faith in God and trust in the hospitality of others. Verses 7-50 enter a new segment in Luke s Gospel. This section begins by raising the question Who is Jesus to the disciples. The answers are provided by the subsequent sections of this chapter. In verses 51-62 we hear Jesus as he prophesies his suffering and death. He calls his disciples to a life of daily cross bearing. In verse 51 his face was set towards Jerusalem. echoes the words of Isaiah 50:7 in the song of the suffering servant. It leads us to anticipate that Jesus will face strong opposition. You may recall that Jesus baptism was followed by rejection in his hometown of Nazareth. Now his transfiguration, an event that Craddock says parallels Jesus baptism, is followed by rejection in Samaria. Their lack of hospitality means they are unwilling to follow Jesus on his way to suffering and death. Jesus share three stories about discipleship. Jesus words are radical. Craddock notes, Jesus never said to choose him over the devil but to choose him over the family. And the remarkable thing is that those who have done so have
been freed from possession and worship of family and have found the distance necessary to love them. Craddock, Fred. Interpretation A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching; John Knox Press, 1990. Luke 9: 1-9 The Mission of the Twelve In this text Jesus sends out the 12 disciples. Later in chapter 10 we hear of Jesus sending out the 70. Both are sent to help bring the reign of God s kingdom. Both sending s are preliminary to the mission sent to all people in chapter 24: 46-49. How willing are most people to pull up stakes and move to unfamiliar surroundings? What happened after Jesus had called the twelve disciples together? How did Jesus instruct the Twelve to proceed? What was the disciple s response to Jesus instruction? Luke 9: 10 17 Feeding the Five Thousand The Feeding of the five thousand is found in all four gospels. The story echoes the feeding of the Israelites in the wilderness in Moses day and is enriched by that memory. Notice Jesus compassion and concern for the poor and hungry. How do people react when given an overwhelming responsibility? What did the apostles want to do with the crowd? What were the choices for feeding the crowds? What can we assume about the apostles attitudes at the end of the story? Luke 9:18-27 Peter s Confession of Christ and the First Prediction of the Passion When have you made a sacrifice for the sake of someone else? What are the conditions for discipleship with Jesus? What kind of commitment does discipleship require? With what prediction did Jesus conclude His admonition to the disciples?
How would you answer Jesus today if He asked, Who do crowds say I am? In what situations would you be uncomfortable stating plainly that Jesus is the Christ of God? In what ways can you lose your life for Jesus? What might it feel like to have the Son of Man ashamed of us? Luke 9:28-36 The Transfiguration The Transfiguration story is also found in the Gospel of Mark. Luke gospel suggests that that Transfiguration occurred at night, he points out that the disciples were heavy with sleep. The night setting would have accented the radiance of the event. The disciples were afraid with the coming of the cloud and fear they would lose Jesus and their ability to listen to him. This story gives us a taste of post-resurrection faith. When you are deeply involved in something, what does it take to get you to listen to something else? What happened to Jesus while He was praying? How did the disciples handle the experience? In describing Peter s suggestion about the shelters, why did Luke say, He did not know what he was saying? What would have happened if it were possible to stay on the mountain with Moses and Elijah? What does the timing of the voice from the cloud say to you? Why do you think the disciples told no one what they had seen that day? With what person or people could you share what you have learned about this passage? Luke 9: 37-50 Jesus Heals a Boy with a Demon These verses are considered as one unit. What unites them is that all power comes from God through Jesus. The weaknesses of the disciples are continually being exposed. They are not ready to take over full responsibility for Jesus mission. Jesus as he heads toward Jerusalem has a lot of work to do with these Twelve. What are typical first reactions to things we don t understand? What had the father tried to no avail?
To what did Jesus attribute the disciples failure to heal the boy? What is the connection in this story between belief and healing? What could have kept understanding hidden from the disciples? (concerning verses 46-50) What does greatness mean to you? What did Jesus use to reply to the disciples ambition? What reason did Jesus give for connecting children with God? What different ambitions and motivations can we see in churches and other religious organizations today? What is one step you can take to subject your ambitions to the ambitions of Jesus? (concerning verses 51-56) When something or someone for whom you ve worked very hard is rejected, how do you typically react? Why didn t the Samaritans welcome Jesus? What did James and John want to bring down on the Samaritans? Why? What did Jesus think of His disciples suggestion? How do you handle it when someone rejects you because of prejudice or for petty reasons? What do you want to remember the next time you feel a desire to retaliate or get even? Luke 9: 57-62 The Difficult Demands of Discipleship Here we have three stories about would be disciples and the requirements for following Jesus. What did the second man want to do before following Jesus? What did the third person want to do before following Jesus? Who is not fit for the kingdom of God? What loyalties conflict with our allegiance to God? From the account, how would you summarize the costs of following Jesus?
What would help you this week to remember your loyalty to Christ? Closing Prayer A Celtic prayer called Forgive Us Lord by David Adam Between me and each evil deed Between me and each sinful act Between me and each wicked thought Between me and each wrong desire The Cross between me and all ill The Cross to foil the devil s skill The Cross between me and all harm The Cross to foil all evil s charm Jesus Savior of us all Give us forgiveness as we call Help us forget the evil past Give us a hope that will last From wicked ways may we abstain Avoid the deeds that give Thee pain. Christ in forgiveness to me be near Christ in forgiveness come appear Christ in forgiveness drive off the foe Christ in forgiveness help me below Christ in forgiveness give me release Christ in forgiveness I need thy peace
. h T Luke (are parallels to this passage fulfilled Jesus' command. Thus the emphasis falls on the second sending, to which the sending of the twelve is preliminary. Both of these are preliminary to the worldwide mission that Jesus will announce in 24:46-49.