Women's Bible Study - September 28th, 2022

In one paragraph

Deborah taught from John 14:27 on the peace Jesus promises even as the world grows more chaotic, and she connected that peace to a clear-eyed understanding of God's design for human society. She walked through four institutions God established in scripture, showing how each one is being redefined in the current cultural moment. The lesson was a call to know the truth well enough to live it without...

Read together

1. John 14:27 key verse on peace that Jesus gives, which the world cannot give
2. Matthew 19 Jesus quoting Genesis, defining marriage as between male and female
3. Genesis 2 quoted by Jesus in Matthew 19 about male and female and becoming one flesh
4. 1 Corinthians 7 Paul addressing sexual immorality by calling each man to have his own wife and each woman her own husband
5. Ephesians 5 a man leaving father and mother and joining his wife, used as illustration of Christ and the church
6. Genesis 1:28 God creating male and female and telling them to prosper, reproduce, and fill the earth
7. Psalm 127:3 children are a gift from God
8. Ephesians 6:4 children obeying parents and parents not provoking their children but bringing them up in the instruction of the Lord
9. Genesis 9 human government founded after the flood
10. Genesis 10 descendants of Noah scattering into geographical boundaries by clan, family, and language
11. Genesis 11 origin of languages at the Tower of Babel and the rejection of one world government
12. Isaiah 59 truth stumbles in the streets and honesty has been outlawed
13. Mark 15 Pilate realizing the priests arrested Jesus out of envy and then handing him over to please the crowd
14. Hebrews 4:12 the word of God is alive, powerful, sharper than any sword, judging thoughts and attitudes
15. 2 Timothy 2:15 working hard to correctly divide the word of truth and not be ashamed before God
16. Hebrews 11:3 God spoke the world into being by the power of his word
17. John 1:1 in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God
18. Proverbs 12:6 words can destroy or build up
19. Proverbs 18:21 the tongue has the power of life and death
20. 2 Timothy 3:16 all scripture is inspired by God and useful to teach what is true and the right way to live
21. 2 Peter 3:17-18 be on guard against deception and grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ

Talk about it

1. Elizabeth Elliot said that at the end of the day, you either believe God knows what He is doing or you believe He doesn't. Has there been a moment in your own life when trusting God's order was genuinely hard? What did that look like?
2. Deborah walked through four divine institutions God established: free will, marriage, family, and nationalism. Which of these do you see under the most pressure in your own community right now, and why?
3. Deborah contrasted 'live your truth' with 'live the truth,' and pointed to the survey showing 70% of self-identified Christians no longer believe Jesus is the only way to God. How do you think that drift happens, and what does it look like in conversations you actually have?
4. Pilate knew Jesus was innocent but handed Him over wishing to please the crowd. Where in your own life do you feel the pull to stay quiet or go along rather than say something true but uncomfortable?
5. The neuroscientist Lisa Feldman's research on how words literally shape our brain biology was paired with scriptures like Proverbs 18:21 about the tongue holding the power of life and death. Thinking about the people in your regular life, what kinds of deposits and withdrawals are you making with your words?