A WEEKLY BIBLE STUDY FOR INDIVIDUALS AND SMALL GROUPS
WEEK 9: DECEMBER 19, 2010
Daniel 3:8-18
Whom Will We Worship?
Tim Shaw
WELCOME!
AN INVITATION
Give the Word of Jesus the
smallest opening, even in the
hardest heart, and God’s lifegiving Word will take root and
begin to grow. The Word of God
is powerful and the God who
sows that Word is extravagant,
scattering the good Word of
Christ everywhere, including our
lives!
GO DEEPER
This study is designed to take you
deeper into the text of
Scripture, the issues addressed,
the questions raised and the
assertions made during the
message presented by one of the
First Pres pastors during our
sermon series on Jesus and the
Unknown God.
PERSONAL OR GROUP
STUDY
You can use this Bible study on
your own. We do believe the
study of the Scriptures has the
greatest impact in our lives when
it is explored in the context of a
small group. If you would like to
join one please contact us. Check
our website for more info!
FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH OF BERKELEY
Luke 15:25-32
The God Who Celebrates
Tim Shaw
The 2010 film entitled “The
King’s Speech” is the story of King
George the 6th of Britain. In 1936,
after the abdication of the throne by
his brother, King Edward the 8th,
who fell in love with an American
named Wallis Simpson, King
George was suddenly and
unexpectedly thrust onto the world’s
stage. One of the great challenges he
faced was the fact that he’d suffered,
most of his life, from a debilitating
stammer. There is an excruciating
scene early in the film of a speech he
gave before becoming king. It was
scheduled to be a 3-minute address
in front of thousands of people.
The speech took much longer to
deliver.
After that terribly embarrassing
experience he starts working with an
unorthodox Australian speech
therapist who knows that there is
much more to his difficulties than
the mechanics of speech. The
therapist begins to explore the
painful experiences of the king’s
childhood that have consumed his
life with anxiety and fear.
King George the 6th was thrust
onto the world’s stage at a
precarious moment in human
history. It was a moment that called
for leadership. Adolph Hitler, the
mesmerizing German orator and
fanatical leader, was on the rise and
was consuming Europe. Britain was
on the brink of war and in desperate
need of a leader. Will King George
be able to overcome what has
crushed so much of his life and
deliver the speech he must make to
unite his people?
The Australian therapist
courageously speaks to the core of
the man. It was not just about the
mechanics of speech. It was about
the crippling beliefs at the core of
his life. That was the main source of
his difficulties. Jesus Christ knows
the same thing kind of about you
and me. The source of so much of
our pain, the headwaters of many of
our difficulties and challenges in life
flow out of who we understand
ourselves to be. Jesus Christ came
and he comes to us now to address
the brokenness, the doubts, and the
fears that live at the core of who we
are. That is what stands at the heart
of this text and at the heart of
Christmas.
www.fpcberkeley.org
A WEEKLY BIBLE STUDY FOR INDIVIDUALS AND SMALL GROUPS
WEEK 9: DECEMBER 19, 2010
Q&A
Luke 15:25-32
Once again, place this story in its larger context. Do
In what ways, if any, do you empathize with the older
your best to reconstruct the scene as we have it in
Luke 15:1-2. To whom is Jesus speaking and in
brother?
response to what?
Why were the Scribes and Pharisees so infuriated
with Jesus for receiving tax collectors and sinners?
The elder brother in the story represents the Scribes
and the Pharisees. What is Jesus saying to them in
these verses?
Review the first two parables Jesus tells in Luke 15
and the first half of the third (15:3-24). What are
the main themes of these stories?
The father, quite obviously, represents Jesus Christ,
God in human flesh. What do you discover about the
Read the second half of the third parable (15:25-32).
heart and character of God in verses 25-32 in
particular and in Luke 15 as a whole?
What questions do you immediately have as the
curtain comes down on this story in verse 32?
How is God speaking to the core of who you are
through this chapter?
Bring what you’ve learned, your requests and your
questions to God in prayer. If you’ve completed this
study on your own, find time to talk with someone
close to you about what you’re learning.
FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH OF BERKELEY
www.fpcberkeley.org