Read Mark 2:1-12

What motivated Jesus to respond to the paralytic’s plight was his friend’s faith (2:5). Why do you suppose their faith made such a difference?

In order to get a sense for what it means to put your faith or trust in somebody share a time when someone has put their faith in you. What was it like? How did it make you feel? How about a time when you have put your faith in someone else? Describe what that was like. What adjectives come to mind (ex. exhilarating, scary, etc.)?

Read James 2:14-26

How do the paralytic and his friends display the kind of faith that James is speaking about here?

“Saving faith,” writes Douglas Moo, “reveals itself in works.” That is, if we truly trust Jesus for the forgiveness of all our sins (past, present and future) on the basis of his death then our lives will reveal that faith by how we live.

How do we see this in our relationships with other people or things? When we trust them how does that naturally impact how we live? Give an example.

Read Mark 2:13-17

What about Jesus from these two stories intrigues you about him? Is there anything in these two stories that leads you to look up to him?

Why might Mark choose to tell us this story about Jesus right after the story of the healing of the paralytic? Do you see a connection between these two stories? What is the flow or thought or the connection?

What are your present habits of prayer?

Read 1 Corinthians 12:12-31.

John Donne an English poet from the same period as Shakespeare wrote,
“No man is an island, entire of itself;
Every man is a piece of a continent, a part of the main.”

How does this reflect the Bible’s teaching about the Church being the Body of Christ?

How does this influence your perspective on praying alone? Praying with others? Praying with not-yet-Christians made in the image of God?

Tim mentioned several forms of prayer: the daily office, prayer-walking, and intercessory. Have you ever practiced other forms? What were they? Did you find them helpful? Would you commend them to others? Would you be willing to help another to learn how to pray in that way?

Crossroads always includes prayers for other nations in the bulletin. Why do you think this is an important topic for the church to be praying about?

Darius, King of Persia at the time of Haggai’s ministry

What stood out to you from Sundays sermon on Haggai?
Have any of you ever had good or bad experiences with a Home Owners Association (HOA)?
On Wikipedia it is noted that, “In the United States, a homeowner association (or homeowners association) (HOA) is a corporation formed by a real estate developer for the purpose of marketing, managing, and selling of homes and lots in a residential subdivision.” So, an HOA is about real estate development.
The LORD’s HOA dictates that he will always have a home within his real estate and among the other home owners. Positively he will enjoy being with his neighbors and bring blessing to the entirety of the real estate through them. Negatively, he will not be kicked out of his own neighborhood.

Israel Under Saul, David and Solomon

How does the LORD’s possession of a house among humanity influence the development of his real estate (creation) in the Garden of Eden? What about among Israel during the reigns of Saul, David and Solomon?
What was the building of the temple communicating in the days of the post-exilic prophet Haggai (520 BC)?

Read Ephesians 2:11-22
In 2:20 it says that Christ is the cornerstone of the temple being built by God today. John Stott writes that, “the cornerstone is of crucial importance to a building. It is itself part of and essential to the foundation; it helps to hold the building steady, and it also sets it and keeps it in line…As a building depends for both its cohesion and its development on being tied securely to its cornerstone, so Christ the cornerstone is indispensable to the church’s unity and growth. Unless it is constantly and securely related to Christ, the church’s unity will disintegrate and its growth either stop or run wild.”

The world we live in has several conflicting HOA’s with God’s HOA. Tim mentioned several ways our local HOA is in conflict with God’s HOA:
– We may have houses for gods but they must remain general so therefore the cornerstone must be something other than Jesus Christ OR we need to have several cornerstones that include all gurus, religious leaders, etc.
– The houses of gods will not be at the center of the neighborhood because they will not serve as the main resource for real estate development.
– Greater attention will be given to the construction of commercial buildings that to religious buildings because they bring in more money which is ultimately the source for greater real estate development.
– The houses for gods will not have any say regarding the development of the government, education, economic endeavors or any other aspect in the neighborhood.
– Attendance at the house of gods is completely voluntary and non-attendance will not warrant fines from the HOA (in contrast to non-attendance to school).

Can you think of other differences between the world’s HOA and God’s HOA regarding the building, location and importance of God’s international temple in Christ?
What most bothers you about the world’s HOA?

How are you, in Christ and by the Spirit, disregarding the world’s HOA?

What would happen if you used the Word of God as a resource for planning, executing or evaluating at work? Would you receive “a fine” from the HOA? How could your flouting the HOA at work actually help to develop God’s real estate despite the fine you receive?