Aliens: Week 2

Pastor Dave Pretlove

1. We live by a ________ ________

2. We have been ____ _________ and are ________ _________

3. Our quest for ________ is _________ by...

a. an _______ ___________

b. Our ________ into God's ______

c. Our ___ of God

d. ____ ____ in the ______ leading us to ____

e. Our love for ____ _____

Book: Accidental Pharisees by Larry Osborne

1. The title of Pastor Dave’s message this week is, “Dare to be Different.” How are you different in your new life compared to your former life?

2. What does Holiness mean to you?

3. Do you think Holiness is something you can achieve if you try hard enough to always “do the right thing?”

4. In the resource above, Joe Carter writes this quote, “Obedience is a pathway to holiness.” What do you think this means?

5. If obedience leads to holiness, and Jesus tells us the two greatest commandments in Mark 12:30-31 how important is loving God and loving your neighbor in terms of Holiness?

6. Read 'Something to Think About' and discuss.

When I was studying 1 Peter 13-22 this week, I reached out to my friend, Jim Scott, to help me unpack these verses. One of the first things we looked at were the people that Peter was addressing. What they had been through, why they were exiles, what their former life was like. We all have a “former.” We have a life before we came to the knowledge of the Gospel and surrendered our life to Jesus, and we have our life after we have surrendered our life to Jesus. The people Peter is addressing have surrendered their lives to Jesus and are learning what it means to live

with this new Hope. This new Grace. This new inheritance, that are found in Jesus. And Peter tells them not to go back to their former ways of living, they are to be different now. For some of us our life of new life in Christ might look very different to those who know us. A person might have drug addictions and explosive anger and when they give their lives to Christ and they start to walk in His Grace and these things leave them, people notice this right away. For others, their former life, might have been one of strong legalism and an idol of self-righteousness. When this person comes to Jesus is asking them not to go back to their former life, just has much as he is asking the person with severe anger not to go back theirs. My point is, holiness is not something like can be summarized in a 5 step process. It comes from asking Jesus to come in and reveal to us how we can walk in obedience. Everyone will have a different journey and I think that is so beautiful, because God has created us all so uniquely. Praying for you all as you meditate on 1 Peter this week, and ask the Lord to continue to lead you in His Grace and His obedience. -Christie Braun