What Should We Do?[1]
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(Sermon
December 13, 2009)
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December 13, 2009 – Zephaniah 3.14-20 (1.1-3.20)
1.
In
what way do you tend to be a pessimist or an optimist?
2.
*What
future event are you either dreading or anticipating?
3.
What
in your life brings you the most joy?
4.
Who
was Zephaniah? (1:1)
5.
What
was prophesied concerning Judah and Jerusalem? (1:2-18)
6.
Who
were the objects of judgment? (1:4-13)
7.
What
was the description of judgment? (1:14-18)
8.
What
did the prophet summon the people to do? (2:1-3)
9.
What
were the judgments on neighboring nations? (2:4-15)
10.
*What
did Zephaniah say about Jerusalem’s doom? (3:1-7)
11.
What
universal judgment did the prophet foretell? (3:8)
12.
*How
would the nations be renewed? (3:9-10)
13.
What
future blessings for God’s people did Zephaniah describe? (3:11-20)
14.
*How
would God remove sorrow from His people? (3:18-20)
15.
How
does God bring judgment on rebellious nations today?
16.
What
sin patterns are prevalent among Christians in our culture?
17.
How
do we practice Israel’s crimes of idolatry, violence, and fraud today?
18.
What
significance does "the day of the Lord" have for us?
19.
*When
have you experienced restoration and rejoicing after a period of rebellion?
20.
When
has the Lord brought you out of sorrow and into joy?
21.
In
what way are you blessed right now?
22.
In
what way might you be a blessing to others?
23.
How
can looking forward to future blessings in Christ provide hope and enthusiasm
for our spiritual journey with Him?
24.
*In
your life as a Christian, what do you look forward to most?
25.
In
what areas of your life do you want to be more sensitive to God’s desires for
you and less resistant of what He wants?
26.
What
sad memories do you want to let go of in order to experience the joy of the
Lord?
27.
*How
can you remind yourself (or others) this week of the future hope that God has
planned for His people?
Notes
for 3:14-18 The Lord himself will remove his hand of
judgment, disperse Israel's enemies, and come to live among his people. He will
give them gladness. We sin when we pursue happiness by cutting ourselves off
from fellowship with God — the only person who can make us truly happy.
Zephaniah points out that gladness results when we allow God to be with us. We
do that by faithfully following him and obeying his commands. Then God rejoices
over us with singing. If you want to be happy, draw close to the source of
happiness by obeying God.
Notes
for 3:20: "Before your very eyes" does not
necessarily mean that this promise would be fulfilled during Zephaniah's
generation. Rather, it means that the restoration will be an obvious work of
the Lord.
3:20 The message of doom
in the beginning of the book becomes a message of hope by the end. There will
be a new day when God will bless his people. If the leaders in the church today
were to hear a message from a prophet of God, the message would probably
resemble the book of Zephaniah. Under Josiah's religious reforms, the people
did return to God outwardly, but their hearts were far from him.
Zephaniah encouraged the nation to gather together and pray for salvation. We
must also ask ourselves: Is our reform merely an outward show, or is it
changing our hearts and lives? We need to gather together and pray, to walk
humbly with God, to do what is right, and to hear the message of hope regarding
the new world to come.
[1] Life Application Study Bible,
(Wheaton, IL: Tyndale, 1988), WORDsearch CROSS e-book, Under:
"Chapter 3".
Adult Questions for LESSONMaker, (Austin, TX: Wordsearch, 1992), WORDsearch CROSS e-book, Under: "Zephaniah".
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(Sermon
December 13, 2009)
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