Lesson 4 (Oct 15-21), God and Human

God in Nature

1. Is there order in nature? Who was correct Job's friends who state "you reap what you sow?" or Job who asserts that even beasts, birds, and fish can testify that life is not fair? 
2. Does nature reveal God correctly?
3. How much control does Satan have over nature?

Nothing Came From Itself

1. How dependent on pre-existing material was God during the creation week?
2. Can the big bang theory and the Biblical account be harmonised?

The Earliest of Books

1. Imagine God can finally inspire scripture because humans have finally developed an alphabet and there is a worthy person to inspire, what is the first things God would want to communicate to humans?
2. What do humans most blame God for and what would be his response?
3. Why would God convey a message through an experience rather than a sermon?

The Dilemma

1. Do humans have a right to complain to God?
2. Is God accountable to humans?
3. What rights do humans have? Where do they get them from?

Theodicy

1. Is God in control over the earth?
2. Is life fair?
3. How much can Satan interfere in my life?
4. Does God protect his followers more than atheists?

Lesson 3 (Oct 8-14), Does Job Fear God for Naught?

God's Servant Job

1. What draws humans to serve God?
2. What drives humans away from serving God?
3. Why is life not fair?

Skin for Skin

1. Did God have a right to claim victory after Job remained faithful despite losing all his wealth and children?
2. Was Satan justified in insinuating that God could not claim that Job's worship and loyalty was without motives as long as God did not give him (Satan) a totally free hand in testing him?
3. How much is a perfect body or good health worth? Is it true that a person will give up all wealth for health?

Blessed be the Name of the Lord

1. What is the difference in Job's two responses: (1) God has given, God has taken," and (2) Shall we accept good from God and not evil?"
2. What enabled Job to remain steadfast in his faith in God?
3. In claiming that Job would "curse" God to his face, why would Satan actually use the word "bless" to mean curse? Why would Job bless the "name" of the Lord?

Job's Wife

1. Why do you think Satan spared Job's wife and let her live?
2. Can we draw any conclusions from the fact that Job's wife did not succumb to the losses of wealth and children and only when her husband's body was afflicted so badly? 
3. Is there a difference in calling a person "fool," and "foolish?" Is there a difference in calling a person "foolish," and charging a person as "speaking as a fool?"

Obedience unto Death

1. When the Bible says that Job did not sin with his lips, are we to read beyond that--that his faith might have wavered in his heart?
2. Is it fatal to have some moments of doubt?
3. Why didn't God use a person like Job in the Garden of Eden  instead of Adam?
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Lesson 2 (October 1-7), The Great Controversy

Have Adventists overused the term Great Controversy to the point that we don't think of what it really involves? Is there another term (besides "cosmic conflict") which can capture the full meaning?

A Little Heaven on Earth

1. Do you think Satan had tried to catch Job during his good days? What are some of the things that lead a prosperous person away from God? Why do we associate a saint with austerity? 
2. By using the adjectives "blameless" and "upright" for Job does the author intend for us to believe that Job had never sinned? 
3. When does "temptation" become "sin in the heart" which Job was worried about and of which he sacrificed for his children.
4. What made Job think that his sacrifices for his children would atone for their sin?  How effective are prayers of parents and pastors on behalf of others?
5. How should I respond when young people text me and say, "pastor pray for me?"  How effective will my prayers be?

Cosmic Conflict

1. Does Satan still have access to heaven?
2. Why did God choose to reveal to the readers the debate in heaven between him and Satan?
3. Why was the debate in heaven hidden from Job? Would it have been wrong for him to know who was responsible for his misfortunes?
4. Why did God entertain the challenge of one of his creatures? Couldn't he have just dismissed him saying, "I know everything?"

The Conflict on Earth

1. Why is Satan so intent on fighting with humans? What does he have against us?
2. Is Satan responsible for all destructive storms, earthquakes?
3. Is Satan responsible for all wars? Does he get anything out of two non-Christian groups fighting each other?
4. Does God allow Satan's angels to roam the earth creating mischief as they like?

Job as a Microcosm

1. How true is the statement: "To explain the origin of sin would be to excuse it"?
2.  Why would a number of angels have joined Lucifer?
3. How will life in the new earth be without a Satan? Is sin possible without a tempter?

Answers at the Cross

1. How does a person who does not know about Jesus find solutions to the problem of the suffering of the righteous? Did Job know about the plan of salvation?
2. Why does Satan disappear from the book after troubling Job?
3. How has the cross changed things for Satan? How does he attack humans today?

Lesson 1 (Sept 24-30), The End

Is the story of Job meant to be taken completely literally, or could some parts be exaggerated for the sake of the story, wealth in cattle in exactly whole numbers, number of children in perfect proportions, characters of Job and his wife stretched to opposite extremes, etc?

Happily Ever After

1. Why does the record not tell of the healing that must have come to Job?
2. How would you rank the following in terms of importance: (1) public vindication of your innocence, (2) having a happy family again, (3) complete recovery from painful illness, (4) wealth, (5) knowing that you are at peace with God, (6) long life?
3. Why did God bless Job with double wealth after his trial?
4. Why were his children not double of those who died?
5. How long was Job's ordeal?
6. If Job knew the ending, would the ordeal be worth it?

Unhappy Endings

1. Why does God permit bad things to good people?
2. Could Abel have done things any differently to avoid being killed by Cain?
3. If Uriah had known the end from the beginning  would he have gone home to his wife and covered up David's deed?
4. Did Eli deserve his end?
5. Would it have been better for John the Baptist to not condemn a person who was not going to reform?
6. Should Stephen have kept quiet to avoid getting stoned?

The Partial Restoration

1. Why did God allow Job's children to be killed and can a new set of children replace the lost set?
2. Was Satan prevented from taking the life of Job's wife, or did he keep her to use her?
3. For fairness sake was it necessary for Job to find out the true cause of his misfortunes?

The Final Kingdom

1. Does Satan still have access to heavenly councils?
2. Can justice in the final judgement compensate for injustice in this world?
3. Did people of the New Testament understand more about God's kingdom that those in the Old Testament?

The Resurrection and the Life

1. Did the people of the New Testament understand the concept of resurrection better than those in the Old Testament? Is progressive revelation unfair to those to whom less was revealed? Are those who know more, more accountable?
2. Does anything in nature suggest resurrection is possible?
3. Does anything in nature suggest that resurrection is not possible?

Lesson 13 (Sept 17-23), How Shall We Wait?

While We Wait For Jesus

1. What is the connection between the destruction of the temple and the second coming of Jesus? Why did Jesus connect the two when the disciples asked about the end of time?
2. Of what use is it when signs in the heavens (stars falling, sun and moon becoming dark) are given to  one generation and Jesus' return is several generations later?
3. Have people of each generation imagined theirs to be the last?
4. What did Jesus mean by the phrase "Occupy till I come," in the parable of the talents, doing our own business, or doing His business? What are those talents that he has asked us to multiply?  How can we balance living a successful life, and doing His work?

Revival and Reformation While We Wait

1. Did the five wise virgins fail in any way because they went to sleep while waiting for the bridegroom? Should they have helped keep the others ready? How much are we responsible for helping others get ready for Jesus' return?
2. What is the lesson from the foolish virgins? What in our lives distinguishes us as wise or foolish?
3. Does the bridegroom intentionally delay his coming to help separate the wise from the foolish? How can we keep from getting complacent?

The Mission of the Church While We Wait

1. How many members are aware of the mission statement of the Adventist church? Is the statement for the administrators, church employees, or for all members?
2. If we had to make a mission statement for the Adventist church based on the reality of what we are actually doing, what would the statement look like?
3. Does our local church have a mission statement? How successful have we been in keeping it uppermost in our minds? How effectively have we lived it?

Preparing For the Final Harvest

1. Is sowing seeds of the gospel enough are are we expected to bring in a plentiful harvest? Is the Adventist emphasis on numbers justified?
2. What about the talk about the number of stars in a person's crown, how much credit should a person get for the salvation of another person?
3. In our zeal for the church do we drive some members away? Can we be held accountable for the departure of some members or is that their own responsibility?
4. Why does God involve humans in the gospel commission when angels could have done it?

The Wait is Over

1. How correct is this statement: "If you accept Jesus as the bridegroom, you have to accept the church as his bride? Can you reject the church and still have Jesus?
2. Why are tears wiped away only in the new earth and not in heaven?

Lesson 12 (September 10-16) Urban Ministry in the End

The Nature of Cities

1. What makes a place a city?
2. Why did Paul begin work in the cities with Jews when it got him into trouble every time?
3. Are we really reaching the cities when our work in them results in regional language churches that may not be the language of the state the city is in?
4. What makes city people harder to reach with the gospel?

A Hurting Place

1. Is it true that there is more suffering in the city? If so why do people keep moving there?
2. Is the criticism against Mother Theresa justified that her motive was conversion?
3. Should Adventists keep their churches open to the public everyday? What will it accomplish?

Sowing and Reaping in Cities

1. Does the parable of the sower instruct us to not waste seeds on ground where the yield is less? 
2. Since our resources (human and financial) are limited, isn't it prudent to use them where results are highest? Aren't Adventists justified in avoiding evangelising cities where results are less in number than in the rural areas?
3. How can bad soil be worked so that it will yield better?
4. Is witnessing enough or do we need to press people for a positive decision for Christ?

Make it Personal

1. Why are people in cities more impersonal than in villages or small towns? Why are people in the US less friendly with neighbours than in India?
2. Do divorcees have the same claim to our attention and care as widows? What does the silence of the Bible on this say to us?
3. If Bible authors were writing today would they include children from broken homes as deserving of equal attention as orphans? What other categories of people might they include as needing our personal care?

Reaching Out to the Cities

1. Should Adventists live in the cities also or witness from outside?
2. Can't we witness to people who live in cities more easily through TV and the internet? Do we have to contact each one personally?
3. Are some excused from witnessing personally? Is praying for the cities and supporting the outreach through our offerings enough?

Lesson 11 (Sept 3-9), Jesus Bade Them, "Follow Me"

They Know His Voice

1. Was it reasonable for people like Mahatma Gandhi to reject Christianity because of the lives of Christians?
2. Isn't it unwise for anyone to start attending a church just because the members were helpful in time of need? Is there anything more to that?
3. How can we distinguish the voice of Satan from the voice of Jesus knowing that Satan will do his best to imitate Jesus?
4. Did the multitudes follow Jesus for the wrong reasons?

We Are to Seek

1. Is it reasonable to pray that God would send honest seekers either to our church or to us as individuals? Or are we expected to go out and hunt for them? Where should we look?
2. How can we identify a lost sheep? Since we do not know th heart, how can we tell if it is really lost?
3. Why does God distinctly send some people to the Adventist church through dreams or visions, and others have to be sought out?

The Bridge

1. How should a visitor to church be welcomed without being over welcomed?
2. How can we discern the motives of a person like Zachaeus who might be just inquisitive?
3. What makes some people hunt out a new church to attend?

The Bidding

1. Did Jesus ever heal people just for the sake of healing, or was spiritual healing always the objective?
2. Is it infringement on other people's religious liberty to evangelise?
3. Why was what God did to Jonah or Paul on the road to Damascus not an infringement of their liberty?

Seek And You Shall Find

1. Are the thousands who die every day without a knowledge of Jesus, guilty of not seeking Jesus adequately?
2. How does Jesus knock at our door?
3. Is it acceptable to use emotions such as a song or impassioned appeal in evangelism?