Working Through Doubt When Obedience Brings Pain
January 16, 2022 / Richard Smith
Working Through Doubt When Obedience Brings Pain
Exodus 5:1-6:12
Take-Home Truth: God’s deliverance is coming, but it normally takes longer to arrive than we think.
Christ-Connection: When our obedience results in trial and loss, we must never forget that Christ will never forget us. For every injustice we have suffered and sacrifice we have made, Christ will reward us with infinite joy and privilege. This is always worth waiting for.
Hook: (Ice-breaker question. Get the group talking!)
- Tell us about a time that you had to wait and it really tested your patience.
Engage: (Observe the passage and engage with the text)
- As a group, read Exodus 5:1-6:12. Make observations. Discuss and unpack these verses together.
- What does this story reveal about God’s character?
Reflect and Respond: (Reflect upon the key take-aways from the sermon and apply the truths of God’s Word to your heart, affections, and actions.)
- When God asks us to adjust our life to His agenda, we are tempted to say, “Why do I have to do this?” What does this reveal about where our focus is?
Hint: Pharaoh responded to Moses’ command to let Israel go by saying, “Who is the Lord that I should obey Him?” (Exodus 5:2)
- Obedience to God brought increasing hardship to Israel, resulting in frustration and despair – a despair they voiced to Pharaoh by asking for relief. (ASK Questions a & b)
(a) Do you think we tend to equate obedience with increased blessing or with increasing trial?
(b) When you are overwhelmed by a trial, is your tendency to talk to others or talk to God?
*If you need to adjust your life because of your answer to (b) in what specific way would you aim for change?
- God takes us through many trials instead of around them. Are you facing a trial now that you wish God would remove, yet it appears His will is to go through it? Please share this so that others may pray for you.
- Israel could not know God fully until they experienced His deliverance. What are some moments in your life when your relationship with God became more meaningful because you experienced His power?