famine

by

2 Kings: Lesson 8 — Good News and Bad

The following are discussion questions from a weekly study I am leading through the book of 2 Kings.  We meet each Wednesday evening at the Deer Run Church of Christ.

The Unraveling of a Nation

A Study of the Book of 2 Kings

Lesson 8 (Good News and Bad)
 2 Kings 8
February 19, 2014

The Text:

  1. What did Elisha say to the woman whose son he had restored to life?  Why?  What did she do?  What did she do at the end of 7 years?  What did Elisha’s servant and the king happen to be talking about when the woman went to see the king?  What was her request?  What did the king do?
    –
  2. Where did Elisha travel to?  What did the king of Aram tell Hazael to do?  What did Hazael take to Elisha?  How did Elisha respond to Hazael’s question?
    –
  3. After giving the message, what did Elisha do?  What was Hazael’s response?  How did Elisha explain what he had done?  What did Hazael think of the explanation?  What happened when Hazael returned back to the king?
    –
  4. While Joram was king of Israel, who succeeded Jehoshaphat as king of Judah?  How did he live?  What was one of the influences in that?  How did God feel about it?  What did God do about it?  Why?
    –
  5. Who succeeded Jehoram as king of Judah?  How did he live?  Who were some of the people who influenced his way of life?  What happened to him?

  The Application:

  1. Have you ever been warned of impending disaster?  What did you do?  How do you decide how seriously you take such warnings?  What is the value of retelling personal stories of how you have seen God work?  How do those stories help spread justice?
    –
  2. Is there anywhere that you could go that God would not have work for you to do?  When faced with trouble, how intent are you in seeking God?  What would you give to be able to hear from God?
    –
  3. How do you think God responds when he knows that we are going to do wrong/evil?  Why do you think people rarely seem to heed warnings about the wrong direction the path they are on will take them?
    –
  4. Who are people who you would consider to be the examples that you follow?  Are they all examples that you ought to follow?  How much value do you place on God’s faithfulness?
    –
  5. Who has the greatest influence in your life?  How does that impact your decisions and actions?

 

Next Week:  Unfinished Business
2 Kings 9

 

by

2 Kings: Lesson 7 — The Cost of Doubt

The following are discussion questions from a weekly study I am leading through the book of 2 Kings.  We meet each Wednesday evening at the Deer Run Church of Christ.

The Unraveling of a Nation

A Study of the Book of 2 Kings

Lesson 7 (The Cost of Doubt)
 2 Kings 7
         February 12, 2014

The Text:

  1. What was taking place in Samaria?  Who was the king blaming for this?  What message did Elisha share from God?  How did the king’s officer respond to the message?  What did Elisha say would happen to the officer?  
    –
  2. What dilemma did a group of men at the city gate of Samaria find themselves in?  What did they propose to do in an attempt to solve it?  What was their reasoning?  What did they find when they went to the camp of the Arameans?
    –
  3. What had the Lord caused the Arameans to hear?  What did they conclude?  What did they do?  What did they leave behind?  What did the group of men from Samaria initially do when they discovered the Arameans were gone?   
    –
  4. What did the men with leprosy finally conclude?  What did they report back to the gatekeepers in Samaria?  How did the king respond to the news?  What did one of his officers suggest they do?  What did he anticipate the outcome would be?
    –
  5. What did the scouting party discover when they went to the Aramean camp?  What did the people of Samaria do when they heard the news?  What responsibility did the king give to the officer who was with him earlier?  What happened to him?  Why?

  The Application:

  1. Are there things that you don’t have enough of?  Who do you blame?  How would you respond if God said he would meet that need with an abundance that seems impossible? 
    –
  2. Are there times in your life when it seems hopeless to stay where you are and hopeless to go where you think you should?  Does desperation motivate you to take risks?
    –
  3. What would cause you to abandon the things that you value?  Have you ever found something of great value that seems to be free for the taking?  How likely are you to take it?         
    –
  4. How likely are you to share good fortune that comes your way?  What does it take for you to think of the needs of others?  Are you skeptical when it comes to hearing things that sound too good to be true?           
    –
  5. What have you discovered about the availability of God’s free gift to meet any “famine” in your life?  Who have you told?  How eager were you to obtain it?  What is the cost of doubt?

 

Next Week:  Good News and Bad
2 Kings 8

 

by

2 Kings: Lesson 6 — How Times Change!

The following are discussion questions from a weekly study I am leading through the book of 2 Kings.  We meet each Wednesday evening at the Deer Run Church of Christ.

The Unraveling of a Nation

A Study of the Book of 2 Kings

Lesson 6 (How Times Change!)
 2 Kings 6
       February 5, 2014

The Text:

  1. What problem did the company of prophets have?  What did they propose to do about it?  What happened as they were cutting down trees?  What did Elisha do?
    –
  2. What did the king of Aram decide to do?  What message did Elisha send to the king of Israel?  How often did this happen?  What did the king of Aram think was happening?  What did one of his officers tell him?  What order did the king give?
    –
  3. What did the king of Aram do when he found out where Elisha was?  How did Elisha’s servant react when he saw what the king of Aram had done?  What was Elisha’s response?  How did God respond?
    –
  4. What did Elisha pray as the enemy approached?  What did God do?  Where did Elisha take the Arameans?  What did the king of Israel want to do?  How did Elisha respond?  What was done?
    –
  5. What did the king of Aram do “some time later”?  What did this cause in Samaria?  How did the king of Israel respond to a woman asking for help?  What was her story?  Who did the king blame?  What did he set out to do?

  The Application:

  1. Have you ever had to “up-size” out of necessity?  How important is it to you that God would be in the midst of your work?  Have you experience God’s provision in unusual ways?
    –
  2. Are there areas in which you make plans thinking that God doesn’t care or won’t notice?  Does it surprise you when God points out things that you thought nobody knew?  What should this do to our level of transparency before God?
    –
  3. Have you ever been, or at least felt, surrounded by enemies?  How does that thought make you feel?  In what ways does God reveal that the One with you is greater than those against you?
    –
  4. How would you want to respond if your enemies were at your mercy?  How would God want you to respond?
    –
  5. Do you ever feel like the enemy has cut you off from all spiritual nourishment?  Who would you go to for help?  Who often gets blamed for our seasons of spiritual famine?  What should we do instead?

Next Week:  The Cost of Doubt
2 Kings 7