11-24-19 Huddle

Zach Below   -   November 22, 2019

WEEK 6 INTRO

We are in week 6 of our Centered Series, which means that we only have 2 weeks left! Last week we discussed the question, “What is the Problem?” In last week’s film, G.K. Chesterton summed up the Christ-Centered Worldview’s answer well, simply saying, “I am.” This week we will ask the question, “what is the cure?”

 

 

INTRO QUESTION

  1. It seems like everyone has a crazy aunt or a backwoods grandma that has some bizarre cure for every ailment. Is that true of your family? Did your family pass on some secret remedy like putting tobacco on bee stings or sleeping in wet socks to cure a fever? Is so, time to share the crazy.

 

  

WATCH THE SHORT FILM

 

 

FILM RESPONSE QUESTIONS

  1. What stood out to you from the film? Did you find any piece particularly compelling or moving? Did it raise any questions in your mind?

 

 

CLAIMS

We are going to use a scenario to help us think through the claims different worldviews make when answering the question, “what is the cure?”  

Here is the scenario…you have been invited to a very fancy art show at the local art museum. I’m talking so fancy that you have to rent a tux (maybe even a top hat) or an evening gown. You put on said formal attire and you head to the art gallery. As you are making the rounds, taking in the beautiful works of art, you drop your program…no big deal, you just bend over and pick it up…BUT…as you bend over you accidentally bump a column holding a $400,000 ceramic bowl. In that moment, everything starts to move in super-slow motion. You jerk back up, hoping to catch the bowl before it falls…only to feel it slide through the tips of your fingers as you reach for it. The bowl falls, shattering into a thousand pieces. The whole crowd is staring at you. You wish you could turn invisible or run but you know that the room is filled with security cameras that taped the whole thing. What do you do?????

 

  1. What are some possible ways, if any, you could fix the problem?

 

If we take this same scenario and imagine it as an illustrations for the brokenness of humanity, we can gain insight into how a number of different worldviews answer the question, “what’s the cure.”

  1. Thinking back to the film…how would most eastern worldviews address the problem of the bowl? As the breaker of the bowl, what would your fate be? Or how would you fix it?

 

Leader Note: If your group needs a hint, tell them to think about the concept of “karma.” The answer may be something to the effect of…that’s going to cost you, better luck in your next life.

 

  1. What about Islam? The video told us that in Islam, Allah is the ultimate judge, but how does he judge? You broke the ceramic bowl…what do you do to make up for it, and how do you know if Allah forgives you?

 

Leader Note: One possible answer is…if we are answering this problem from the Islamic Worldview, we could try and glue the bowl back together again (which we could never do), we could try to pay the artist back (which most of us could never do), or we could do a whole bunch of good deed for the artist…BUT…we will go to our death never knowing if we are forgiven or not…crossing our fingers that we did enough.

 

  1. What about naturalism? The worldview that says that the world is only atoms and molecules, nothing supernatural or “other” in the world. How would you address the problem as a naturalist?

 

Leader Note: The problem seems pretty easy for the naturalist (even though it doesn’t match reality). There is no artist and there is no real objective right or wrong. You broke something…say whoops and walk away.

 

  1. What about the Christ-Centered Worldview? If we think of Jesus as the artist…how do we fix the problem of the broken ceramic bowl?

 

Leader Note: From the perspective of the Christ-Centered Worldview, no matter how hard we work to glue all the pieces back, or how long we save to try and pay the artist back…WE CAN NEVER FIX IT OURSELVES. Thankfully, we know the artist and if we fall on the mercy of the artist, the artist forgives us and fixes the bowl himself…naturally, we become the artists biggest fans.

 

 

THE CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEW—REASONS AND IMPLICATIONS

The Christ-Centered worldview believes that the answer to the question, “what is the cure” is Jesus’s death on the cross as an act of grace. Historically, theologians have explained this using a number of different analogies that are housed in strange theological language…concepts like recapitulation, sacrifice, expiation, moral communication, satisfaction, ransom etc. Each of these words (that aren’t necessary to know) are summary descriptions of what has been found in scripture and can all be helpful in gaining a fuller understanding of Christ’s work on the cross.

Theologian Dr. Steven Cone says, 

“There is a depth of riches in Christ. Because Christ’s saving work is the work of a divine person in history, because it deals with the absurdity of sin, and because its purpose is to bring us into a life whose fullness we cannot yet imagine, no human conception can completely sum up the way that Christ saves us. There are multiple analogies, each reflecting different insights, and responding to different questions…none of which serve as the master narrative that the others must fit into.  Through all of them we seek to understand our reconciliation to God.”

 

GROUP ACTIVITY

Break down into smaller groups. Each group will examine a number of different scriptures, looking for what language it uses to describe Christ’s work on the cross…and/or…the implications of his work (what it means for us). Each group will record their findings and share when finished.

 

Other helpful questions to approach these verse might be asking…

  • What does it tell us about Christ and what does it say about us?
  • How and in what ways does Christ save?
  • How do we move on from the stain of sin (guilt, shame, etc)?

 

GROUP 1

  • Colossians 1:19-22
  • 2 Corinthians 5:17-18
  • Matthew 20:26-28
  • 1 John 2:1-2
  • Galatians 1:3-5

 

GROUP 2

  • John 3:14-17 à Read along with Numbers 21:4-8 (what is the connection between the two passages)
  • Romans 5:1-5 (Peace with God)
  • 1 Timothy 2:5-6 (Ransom)
  • 1 John 4:9-10 (Atoning Sacrifice)
  • Ephesians 5:1-2

 

 

IMPLICATIONS

  1. What are some of the implications of Christ’s saving work that were found in the verses we just examined?

 

  1. Can you think of anymore implications? IF this is true, THEN…

 

 

ACTIONS

If the Christ-Centered worldview is correct, and incarnation and death on the cross are the cure for the brokenness of humanity…

 

  1. What actions should it inspire? How should this reality change the way we think and act in the world?

 

  1. Why do you think that often does it doesn’t inspire action for believers?

 

 

PRACTICE

This week, spend some time prayerfully reading through John’s accounts of Jesus’s death on the cross (John chapters 18 and 19). Put yourself in the room, the crowd, place yourself at the scene of the cross as you read.

  • Prayerful reading means directing you’re the words you are reading and your inner monologue as you read, back towards God. This may include doubts, joy, sadness, etc…bring it all before God.