The Stream at Riverside

Sermon by Josh Parks.

Sermon Discussion Questions

Sermon Discussion Questions 

1) Growing up, how did you experience being mocked? When was “ribbing” in good fun, and felt safe to you? When did it cross the line and felt shaming? Was there any one mock that was particularly hurtful? 

2) Among your circle of friends or within your family, who - within or outside that circle - do you mock on occasion? When does it cross the line into derision? 

3) Jesus experienced ridicule, jeering, humiliation, and shame in his crucifixion in order to remove our shame before God and one another. How do you see the mockings you’ve both received and given cast onto Jesus on Calvary - absorbed and carried away?

Sermon Discussion Questions

1) Dan Allendar says scapegoating is "so much more than blame-shifting. We’re talking about the reality that we not only want to blame, we not only project, we not only identify somebody else as the fault, but we want them to suffer.” What scapegoats do conservatives often identify and lambast? What scapegoats do progressives typically target and defame? What scapegoats are you tempted to fear and loath? How does Jesus expose our hearts in this?

Sermon Discussion Questions 

1. In Mark 14:26-28 we see the disciples go to Mount Olive with Jesus to sing praises after communion and right after they finish singing of the Glory of God Jesus informs them, they will fall away. Showing that the same ones whose lips sung of His Glory would also, due to fear abandon Him with their lips. How have you who also sing of his glory turned and abandon him with your lips? What made you so quick to abandon Him? 

2. On the night Jesus was betrayed, we see in Matthew 26:50 Jesus still considers Judas a friend. He never denied His relationship with him even after being abandon and betrayed by Him. When we fail, we often believe Jesus turns His back on us, but seeing this interaction should make us think otherwise. Why do you believe when we fail, we fall so quickly into despair and not repent? 

3. Unlike the disciples who all scattered because of fear, when Jesus was taken captive, we see a calm and collected Savior. He was completely in control and knew the power that He possessed promising one day all would see Him on His throne seated in Power. Knowing that Jesus who has overcome the world (John 16:32-33) and won the victory over death (1 Corinth 15:55-57) how does that encourage us run back to Jesus when we fail Him? How can we as a group help each other continuously repent and turn back to Jesus?

A special collaboration between The Stream at Riverside and Riverside members Wayne and Felicia Penn from the podcast Marriage at Golgotha (https://marriageatgolgotha.com) and special guest Dr. Gabe Fluher from First Presbyterian Church.  A discussion on the church's response to racial injustice in the wake of the killing of George Floyd and widespread protests.  Josh Parks, James Walden, and JayWill Wilson return. Recorded on June 5, 2020.

Sermon Discussion Questions 

1) "The Son of man came eating and drinking.” Explain this phrase from Jesus in the context of his ministry and teachings. What might Jesus’ radical "table fellowship" look like today? How does yours compare? What next step can you take in becoming more hospitable? 

2) Jesus doesn’t only offer us a seat at his table - as incredible as that is. He offers us His whole self at the table. What does the Lord’s Supper mean to you? How do you understand the words of the Heidelberg Catechism, when it says that, at the table, Jesus “himself nourishes and refreshes my soul to everlasting life with his crucified body and shed blood”? 

3) Jesus left us a feast - a dinner party - as one of the enduring sacraments of the church. How amazing is that? How might we wisely celebrate this meal together as a small group in the coming weeks?

Sermon Discussion Questions

1) Throughout the surprising events “on the night that he was betrayed,” Jesus remains “in the know” and in control. From the detailed preparations for the Passover, to his arrest and abandonment by the Twelve, Jesus has total command of the situation ... as unknown, unsettling and upsetting as it was to others. If Jesus is just as sovereign in your life now as He was among His disciples then, how does this change your outlook on your present challenges?

2) Judas "scapegoated" Jesus, and sold him out for a relatively small amount of money.  What is “scapegoating”?   Who have you scapegoated in the past, or who do you tend to scapegoat now, and why?

3) In the present debate on race in America, there is a cacophony of voices crying out.  We all need to listen (James 1:19-20).  Some of us need to share. We all need to listen to Jesus’ voice first and foremost in Scripture (James 1:21).  Who else might you need to hear out?  Have some of us stopped listening? Why? Have some who need to talk stopped talking? Why?

Sermon Discussion Questions:

1) We have all, to some extent, wasted portions of our life against Christ. How or in what ways are you willing to share with the group? How has or how might God redeem these wasted aspects?

In this sermon, we step aside from our sermon series in Mark's Gospel to consider our hearts and attitudes about regathering as a church family.

Sermon Discussion Questions:

1) Read 1 Timothy 1:5. This is the goal of all of our instruction: love from a pure heart, a clear conscience and a sincere faith. In what areas do you think you tend to have a weakened faith or particularly delicate conscience? Or where might your conscience be calloused? How might we together help you fortify your faith or recalibrate your conscience? 

2) What are your biggest concerns about regathering? What are your concerns about not regathering? How can we as a group begin regathering now? What steps can we start taking now? 

3) Bearing with one another is easier said than done. What are some "pet peeves,” personal biases, or preferences that we need to name and/or confess in order to be in deeper harmony as a small group?