It has been said that the book of Deuteronomy is the heart of the Old Testament.
It has been said that the Ten Commandments are the heart of the book of Deuteronomy.
And it has been said that the great Shema–
Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.
–is the heart of all the commandments.
In fact, that last one was said by Jesus himself (Matthew 22:40), which means it’s pretty enormously important.
We will wrestle with the text that has done more to shape the people of God through history than any other in the entire Old Testament.
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(Weekly Community Group Discussion Guide)
Date: April 17, 2016 // Title: Promised Land Living: Shema
Scripture: Deuteronomy 5-6
SERMON REVIEW 5-10 minutes
ARRIVAL / SOCIAL TIME 15-20 minutes
Spend the first 15 minutes or so of your time together catching up and socializing with one another. Also find time to catch up together on how the assignments from last week turned out.
SERMON REVIEW 5-10 minutes
This week we continued our series of Promised Land Living through the book of Deuteronomy. Jon helped us see and understand the heart of God behind the commandments. Though there are 613 commands throughout the first five books of the Bible, the Ten Commandments that God gave His people set a standard of life and freedom very different than the life the children of God had experienced in Egypt. But even beyond these Ten Commandments, God desires for the commandments, to help set hearts free. To help us, there is one commandment that if followed will settle all the other commands in our heart—“Hear O Israel: The Lord our God is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” (Deuteronomy 6:4-5)
THE MAIN THOUGHT Keep this in mind as you facilitate discussion.
The Ten Commandments are given not by a slave driving God who wants to enslave us but by a life delivering God who wants to see us live free.
SEE IT Questions :: 10-15 minutes
Picture: Have you ever read a part of the Bible that didn’t make sense to you? Which part? Have you ever struggled to make sense of some of the commands in Scripture? Which ones? How did Jon’s sermon this week help you make sense of some of those commands?
Mirror: Jon said the Ten Commandments help us answer two questions: 1. What does God want for me? 2. What does God want from me? Which of these two questions is most difficult for you to answer? How do the Ten Commandments address these two questions? How does God’s heart for freedom (that stands behind these commands) affect these questions? How does thinking about the commandments as opportunities for freedom (Promised Land) instead of slavery (Egypt) change the way you think about the Ten Commandments? Which part of the freedom of the Ten Commandments are you having trouble living into most?
Window: The Shema (Deuteronomy 6:4-5) helps us hear the heart of all Ten Commandments by learning to love God with all our heart, soul and strength—so what does loving God look like to you? How do the Ten Commandments help you flesh out what love for God looks like? How do you love God with you heart? How do you love God with your soul? How do you love God with your strength?
BE IT – Practice
Change UP // The 10 Graces 10 minutes
Take a moment to think through the Ten Commandments as a group by identifying together the grace and freedom that stands behind each one of them. Do this by completing the following statement for each commandment:
Because you are (insert grace or freedom of God)…I will (insert command).
Below are a couple examples to get you started:
Because you are totally unique…I will (have no other Gods before you).
Because you value me for more than what I can produce…I will observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.
Change IN // Prayer Team 5 minutes
The first four commandments speak to how we relate to God. The last six commandments speak to the way we relate to each other. Take two minutes to read through the last six commandments. Think through together how you have seen relationships ruined by not keeping these commandments. After you have done that, spend five minutes praying together as a group that God would help you love each other well.
Change OUT // God of the Workplace 5 minutes
Take a moment to think about your work place or your community. Think about the gods and the commandments that are affecting that place. Name the gods and the commandments that are trying to enslave you together as a group. Then speak out together what it might look like to live free in your workplace or community- in light of living underneath the commands of God instead of the commands and demands of other gods. Think through how this freedom might be good news to others around you that you could share with them. Write your observations down on a large piece of poster board together.
CLOSING PRAYER 5 minutes
Take a few minutes to gather any prayer requests and pray for each other to SEE IT and BE IT this week.