MAY 5
THE ONE WITH THE VOWS
Marriage is not a contract; it is a covenant with God and our spouse to grow in love, trust, and intimacy.
Work through the following questions and scriptures on your own, and get together with your running partner, life group, or friends and family to talk through what you are learning.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
- What was your perspective on marriage as a child or young adult? Was it positive, negative, or neutral and what led you to that perspective?
- Watch the Bible Project video on covenants: https://bibleproject.com/explore/video/covenants/.
- What did you learn about covenants that you didn’t know before?
- What did you learn about God and humanity that is new?
- What stands out to you as significant?
- Read Genesis 2:15-25.
Make some observations about this passage (What does the text say?):
- What do you notice and what are you curious about?
Make some interpretations (What does the passage mean?)
- What do you learn about humanity?
- What do you learn about God?
Now make some applications (what’s my response?)
- How are you encouraged, challenged, or convicted by this passage?
- What should be our response to this passage?
- Where have we missed living in what God designed for us?
4. Read Exodus 34:5-6. The phrase in verse 6 is the most repeated phrase in the Bible to describe what God is like. The word translated as LOVE is the Hebrew word Khesed. This word is hard to translate into English because it encompasses 3 things; love, generosity, and mercy. We are made to image God in the world (be His representatives demonstrating His reality to others). How are you doing in loving your neighbor, spouse, or enemy with the Khesed love of God?
5. Read 2 Corinthians 11:2-3. If you believe in Jesus as the one who saved you and made you right with God, then scripture calls you the bride of Christ. In what ways are you being led astray from being devoted to Jesus like a husband and wife are to devote themselves to one another?
6. Read Matthew 19:4-8. Jesus says in the verses you just read that in marriage you are no longer two but one and that connection is something that isn’t meant to be broken. If married, how is your heart toward your spouse? Are you pursuing a connection with your spouse that is fueled by devotion to God? If yes, how? If no, what step could you take to change that?
KEY SCRIPTURE
Genesis 2:15-25
The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.” The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals. But for Adam no suitable helper was found. So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and then closed up the place with flesh. Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. The man said, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,’ for she was taken out of man.” That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh. Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.
Exodus 34:5-6
Then the Lord came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the Lord. And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness…
2 Corinthians 11:2-3
I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to him. But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ.
Matthew 19:4-8
“Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? So, they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.” “Why then,” they asked, “did Moses command that a man give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?”Jesus replied, “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning.
PRAYER
Read through Psalm 139, in its entirety, as a prayer. If praying with others, read together aloud. Then, re-read verses 23-24. Take some time in silence to see if there is anything that God brings to mind (sins, instances when you didn’t represent God well or hurt another person, maybe something you’ve believed about yourself that God would say is a lie, etc). If something comes to mind ask for God’s forgiveness, help, direction (silently or out loud – James 5:16 says, “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man has great power to prevail.”)
PRACTICE
- If married, commit to taking a step to investing in your marriage! Sign up for the Marriage Night this coming Friday May 10th 6:30pm: Gatewaychurch.com/events
- Watch the Bible project video on Khesed Love.
A. How have you experienced God’s Khesed love toward you?
- Make a list and spend time thanking God
- If you haven’t ever experienced God’s love, ask Him to show you this week. B. How are you demonstrating God’s Khesed love toward others?
- Make a list of those around you and consider how you engage with them.
- What is one step you can take to loving more like God loves?
FOR THE PARENTS
Hey, families! Here’s a look at what we’re covering with your kids so you can help them continue to grow at home during the week.
THIS WEEK
This week we learned how a group of friends stopped at nothing to get their lame friend to Jesus to be healed!
THE BIBLE: “All the people were amazed. They praised God and said, “We have never seen anything like this!” Mark 2:12
THE MESSAGE:
When you feel like giving up, remember the four friends of the paralytic man. If they quit that day, all their efforts to bring their friend to where Jesus was would have made no difference. Don’t give up if you face problems at home, school, or anywhere! Bring the issue to Jesus, keep praying and trusting God. Because God is still working miracles today!
THE BIG IDEA: God still works miracles today!
ASK THIS
Because sometimes you and your kid need a conversation-starter that isn’t,
“So . . . how was church?”
- Why were the Pharisees upset when he told the man “your sins are forgiven?”
- How can you trust and believe that God still works miracles today?
REMEMBER THIS
God can heal our bodies and God can heal our hearts from sin. Of course, God is more powerful than any sickness, and to show how powerful He was, Jesus healed the paralyzed man’s body, too. God wants you to know that He not only sees our physical pain, but the pain that we sometimes feel in our hearts. Any even though it may be difficult to believe sometimes, God is still working miracles today. YOU are a miracle! And He wants nothing more than to have a relationship with you so He can show you every day just how much He loves you!
NEXT WEEK
Next week we learn about another miracle – Jesus feeding 5,000 people with only 5 loaves of bread and two fish!