What Do You Believe?
2 Timothy 3:10-4:5
Are you sure of what you believe about God and His Word? How do your actions reflect your beliefs? Where do you struggle with your beliefs about God and His Word? What do you do with your questions/concerns about your beliefs?
How have your experiences shaped your beliefs? How have your beliefs shaped your experiences?
Currently in Canada, there is a dramatic decline in biblical knowledge among Christians because of the lack of personal Bible reading and study. How is this impacting the mission of the church? What are you doing to personally grow in biblical knowledge so your beliefs don’t decay?
In Greek, the words ‘breath’ and ‘spirit’ are the same word pneuma. What does this tell you about all Scripture being ‘God-breathed’ (2 Timothy 3:16, John 16:13)? What are the dangers of only believing certain parts of Scripture and not other parts that are hard to understand or that are deemed as ‘problem passages’? How would you help a person who believes that the Bible is a highly biased history book?
2 Timothy 3:17 lists four practical benefits of Scripture for our lives:
- Teaching – showing us the way to go
- Rebuking – warning us when we’re getting off track
- Correcting – helping us get back on track
- Training – helping us stay on track
Can you think of an example of how a passage of Scripture has benefitted you in one of these ways?
What current cultural beliefs are influencing you or causing you to doubt God’s Word? What does it look like practically to ‘keep you head’ when faced with cultural beliefs that are in conflict to the authority of God’s Word?
If an evangelist is someone who invites others in, how can you use your beliefs in God to connect this week with someone who is searching for truth?
Read Psalm 1:1-3. Pray to have a passion that remains true to the Word of God by reading it, pondering on it, and applying it to your life so your beliefs are strengthened.
