Daily Reading Week 18

Sunday

Matthew 11 

  • What verse did you connect with today? 

  • Why can we be great? 

  • Who is our power source for greatness?

  • Why do you believe Jesus says we can do even greater things than him? 

Respond:

  • What’s something great you have done for the kingdom? What’s something you would like to do?

monday

Psalm 107 

  • What verse did you connect with today? 

  • Verse 1 says give thanks to the Lord because his love endures forever. What can you thank God for today?

  • How have you seen God work in your life when you needed him? 

  • Which group of people do you feel the most similar to?

Respond:

  • Matthew Henry’s commentary says this on Psalm 107: “In these verses there is reference to the deliverance from Egypt, and perhaps that from Babylon: but the circumstances of travellers in those countries are also noted. It is scarcely possible to conceive the horrors suffered by the hapless traveller, when crossing the trackless sands, exposed to the burning rays of the sum. The words describe their case whom the Lord has redeemed from the bondage of Satan; who pass through the world as a dangerous and dreary wilderness, often ready to faint through troubles, fears, and temptations. Those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, after God, and communion with him, shall be filled with the goodness of his house, both in grace and glory.”

tuesday

 Acts 1

  • What verse did you connect with today? 

  • How long was Jesus on Earth after rising from the dead? V.2

  • The disciples had a misunderstanding of what Jesus power would look like. What’s a misconception that you had about who God is and what he was going to do? Why was his way better? 

  • When will we receive power? V.8

  • How did the disciples choose to replace judas? V. 24-26

Respond:

  • I always loved how verse 8 breaks down where exactly the disciples were going to go. By saying, “—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Jesus was sayin that they were going to go local, a little farther out, and then before they know it to the end of their known world. What an amazing challenge that is! But that same challenge is extended to all of us. We have our immediate circle of influence, our general area, then our ends of thee earth. How can we take advantage of each of those spots to help people find what matters? 

  • Draw up what each of these places look like in your life, then pray over them. 

WEDNESDAY

John 14

  • What verse did you connect with today? 

  • Who is the way the truth and the life? V.6 What does that mean? 

  • How can we do greater works than Jesus? 

  • Who is our advocate? V.17

  • Jesus gives us the gift of peace. How have you seen that in your life? 

Respond:

Thursday

John 15

  • What verse did you connect with today? 

  • Why does a “connect” time matter?

  • V.7 says that if we ask it will be granted if we are connected to him. Now this does not mean material, but we know that God shows up in our lives. When is a time that you have seen him show up and experienced greatness? 

  • V.11 says our joy will overflow. How have you experienced joy when doing the work of the gospel? 

  • When we go through hardships who should we go to? V. 26

Respond:

  • MacLaren’s expositions says this, “Union with Christ is the condition of all fruitfulness. There may be plenty of activity and yet barrenness. Works are not fruit. We can bring forth a great deal ‘of ourselves,’ and because it is of ourselves it is nought. Fruit is possible only on condition of union with Him. He is the productive source of it all.”

  • Do you find yourself being connected to Christ the way that you need to? If not, how can you improve that?

Friday

John 16 

  • What verse did you connect with today? 

  • What is the work of the Holy Spirit? 

  • Why can we experience righteousness? V.10

  • What joy do you hope to experience when Jesus returns?

  • Why is it so important for us to share the gospel with others while Jesus is gone? 

Respond:

  • Saint Augustine once said this, “O Holy Spirit, descend plentifully into my heart. Enlighten the dark corners of this neglected dwelling and scatter there Thy cheerful beams.” That’s the beauty of the Holy Spirit. Yes, through conviction, He may shine light on the things that we are trying to hide, but the end result of that conviction and judgment is joy because we are becoming more like Christ. The more we become like Christ by relying on the power of the Holy Spirit the more it pulls us out of darkness and the more that we get to experience greatness. 

  • Pray for the Holy Spirit to be active in your life today.

Saturday

John 17

  • What verse did you connect with today? 

  • What stuck out to you about the prayer of Jesus? How can you emulate that prayer? 

  • Who was Jesus praying for? Who have you been praying for?

  • Verse 21 says this, “I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one—as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me.”

  • Pray that same prayer right now. 

Respond:

  • The Pulpit commentary says this, “We are brought by it to the mercy-seat, into the heaven of heavens, to the very heart of God; and we find there a presentation of the most mysterious and incomprehensible love to the human race, embodied in the Person, enshrined in the words, of the only begotten Son. It need not perplex those who believe that we have the words of Jesus, that this prayer of sublime victory and glorious promise should be followed by the agony and the bloody sweat of Gethsemane, where the glorification of the Son of man passed into the advanced stage of his willing and perfect surrender to the Supreme Will. “

  • Thank God today for bringing you into this journey!