Week of June 11, 2023
Outward Show or Overflow?
Most people want to leave a good impression on others. We want to be accepted and appreciated. But there is an obvious spiritual problem when there is a major disconnect between character and image. For while other people may never discover what’s really on (or in) our minds and hearts, we ourselves know and most importantly, God knows. His desire is that we genuinely love him and love others. Then we will live not just for show, but from the overflow of a spirit of love and devotion.
June 12 Luke 11:33-36
Author Lois Tverberg notes that the use of “eye” in Jesus’ teaching is a Hebrew idiom: “Having a “good eye” (ayin tovah) is to look out for the needs of others and be generous in giving to the poor. But to have a “bad eye” (ayin ra’ah) is to be greedy and self-centered, blind to the needs of those around you.” What can self-centered Americans be blind to? (think spiritually, socially, and/or globally) Why might Jesus tie having a “good eye” with being filled with light? How does receiving the generosity of Jesus help you to have a “good eye”?
June 13 Luke 11:37-44
After being criticized by his host for not doing the ritual washing of hands before eating, Jesus launches into his own critique of the Pharisees’ focus on outward actions but neglect of matters of character and love. What motivates us to be more concerned with our image (what Pastor Mark calls the “outward show”) rather than the health of our character? Of what does Jesus accuse the Pharisees? (see especially verses 39, 42-43) In what areas might Jesus critique you when it comes to your spiritual and moral inner life?
June 14 Luke 11:45-54
Next, Jesus turns to the teachers of the law, the experts in how to live out the commands of Scripture in everyday life. Of what does Jesus accuse these teachers? (see especially vs. 46, 48, 52) How can we in trying to help people follow Jesus well end up laying heavy burdens on them? What do you think Jesus meant by the “key to knowledge” in v. 52? What do you think are the keys to truly knowing God?
June 15 Matthew 6:19-24
What does Jesus mean by storing up “treasures in heaven”? Give an example of your own life where your heart (in the Bible the center of being including thinking, will, and emotions) followed something you treasured. How do you seek to resist not being devoted to mammon (money and material possessions) when most of the surrounding culture is?
June 16 1 Timothy 6:6-10
What makes gaining and maintaining a spirit of contentment so difficult in contemporary America? How can you practice contentment? What aspects of your life spiritually and financially help you resist the “love of money?” What will be the overflow of a spirit of contentment?
