Weekly Devotion, 8/8/2022

Passage for this week: 1 Corinthians 3:12-17
Resource: Pray The Word Podcast by David Platt

How to use this resource: The questions below should be read after you and your family have spent time listening to the resource, and after you have had time to read through the passage carefully and slowly. Following your family time discussion (using the questions below, or your own questions regarding this text), close in prayer and ask your kids how you can be praying for them and let them know how they can be praying for you as parents.

Family Devotional Question For This Week: 

1.    What stands out to you the most from reading this passage? What did you learn that is new to you from this passage? What did you learn that caused you to remember something you’ve known, or what has been reinforced from reading this passage?

2.How is this passage continuing to reinforce the idea of community and unity within the Church? What does God’s Word say here that binds us together? 
(Potential answers: Elsewhere in Ephesians 2:10 we understand that we are God’s workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works. We can list a number of good works that we can engage in, but what we are to focus on and remember in doing those acts is the fact that we are able to serve in these ways and for the purpose of showing Gods glory because of His grace shown to us through Christ Jesus that binds us together! Something else we are to understand is that the Church is not a building but a people! this people have been called to be Holy and set apart from the surrounding people – as God has always called His people to be Holy and set apart. 

3. How does David explain the reason for our gathering together as a people on Sunday mornings? What is the goal of our gathering and why is this important to God? 
(Potential answers: God cares about His people and how we gather. when we do this, we are to be attributing honor and glory back to Him, not as a means of entertaining ourselves or for any other purposes as David explained in this week’s resource. Because God has given us His Holy Spirit that dwells within each of us, and because the Holy Spirit is what binds us together as a Church rather than any other human means or reasons, we are called to be a Church that represents a Holy God that sacrificially loves and wants them to come to know Him through His Son Jesus Christ!

Prayer Prompts For This Week: 

 – Pray that our Church would be a display of God’s character, holiness, love, justice, righteousness, compassion, and His glory – reflecting those things to our neighbors, friends and family members that don’t know Him.
 – Pray that we would understand the importance of our gathering – that as we gather, we represent the Church and ARE the Church – rather than thinking that the Church is a place we go to. Pray that God would show us how we can grow in unity and love not only for the Church, but for those we would seek to be saved.
 – Continue to pray for one another and write down or remember the requests of each person. Either have one person pray over each request, or delegate those prayer requests so that each person prays for something or someone specific.