The Kingdom Will Be the Lord's

In one paragraph

Pastor Carl walked through the book of Obadiah, the shortest book in the Old Testament, as part of the ongoing Minor Prophets series. The message traced God's word of judgment against the nation of Edom and pressed the congregation to examine where pride shows up in their own lives. The through-line of the whole sermon was a single, repeated conviction: God resists the proud and gives grace to the...

Read together

1. Obadiah 1 primary text of the sermon, read and expounded throughout
2. Romans 13:1-4 quoted to show God ordains authority and uses nations to bring judgment
3. 1 Peter 5:6-11 quoted as favorite New Testament paragraph on humbling yourself under God's hand and resisting the devil
4. Colossians 3:16-17 used as benediction, letting the word of Christ dwell richly and doing all in Jesus name

Talk about it

1. Pastor Carl described Edom as a nation that felt secure because of its geography, its wealth, and its military alliances. Where in your own life are you most tempted to trust in something other than God for your security?
2. The sermon pointed out that God resists the proud and gives grace to the humble, and that this pattern shows up all through the Old Testament and is echoed three times in the New Testament. What does genuine humility actually look like in day-to-day life, and how do you know when pride has crept back in?
3. Obadiah charges Edom with standing aloof while outsiders plundered Israel, and even joining in against their own kin. Can you think of a time, in your own family or community, when doing nothing was actually doing harm? What kept you from stepping in, or what moved you to step in?
4. Pastor Carl described the day of the Lord as coming not just on Edom but on all the nations, and said that the only way into the kingdom of God is through humility. How does that shape the way you think about current events, about the rise and fall of powerful nations or institutions today?
5. Pastor Carl closed with 1 Peter 5, including the line that your brothers and sisters around the world are going through the same suffering, so you are not alone. How does knowing that others share your struggles actually help in a hard moment, and how can this group live that out for one another?