Divine Detours

Main Thought

God brought the people of Israel on a journey. He rescued them from slavery in Egypt, and wanted to bring them into His Promised Land. Yet many of the Israelites failed to enter the Promised Land. They died in the wilderness instead. Why? Their location might have changed, but they didn’t change.

If we want to inherit the good plans and purposes that God has for us, then we need to recognize our need for transformation. God often uses “divine detours” - unexpected changes or interruptions - to expose our flaws. This happens because God cares more about our development than our destination. We should therefore embrace the process of sanctification as God helps us grow to become more like Jesus. 

Main Passages

When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, “Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.” 2 Aaron answered them, “Take off the gold earrings that your wives, your sons and your daughters are wearing, and bring them to me.” 3 So all the people took off their earrings and brought them to Aaron. 4 He took what they handed him and made it into an idol cast in the shape of a calf, fashioning it with a tool. Then they said, “These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.”

- Exodus 32:1-4 NIV

7 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go down, because your people, whom you brought up out of Egypt, have become corrupt. 8 They have been quick to turn away from what I commanded them and have made themselves an idol cast in the shape of a calf. They have bowed down to it and sacrificed to it and have said, ‘These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.’ 9 “I have seen these people,” the Lord said to Moses, “and they are a stiff-necked people.

- Exodus 32:7-9 NIV

Discussion Questions

1. What stands out to you in the Main Thought or Main Passages above?

2. Why is it important for God change us, or sanctify us, before we move forward into His promises and plans?

3. How is God helping you become more like Jesus in this season of your life?

The Journey to Faith

Main Thought

Two of Jesus’ disciples went on a short, seven-mile journey from Jerusalem to Emmaus. Jesus appeared to them on this journey and kept them from recognizing Him. He then began to explain the gospel through the Old Testament. We learn an important truth in this moment: we can encounter Jesus throughout scripture. The Old Testament conceals truths about Christ that the New Testament eventually reveals. Here are a few examples of that. Jesus is the ultimate ark who saves humanity from God’s wrath, like Noah’s ark saved him from the flood. He is the perfect lamb who was qualified to pay the price for humanity’s sins. He is the greater David, who slayed the giants of Sin and Death.

Our faith in God grows when we encounter Jesus throughout scripture. These encounters fill us with hope, even when we walk through difficult parts of life’s journey. Then, our encounters with Jesus can become testimonies to others. Let’s pursue the person of Christ in scripture. If we do, then we will be filled with passion for Him.

Main Passages

"And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself."

- Luke 24:27

"They asked each other, 'Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?'"

- Luke 24:32

"Then the two told what had happened on the way, and how Jesus was recognized by them when he broke the bread."

- Luke 24:35

Discussion Questions

1. What stands out to you in the Main Thought and Passages above?

2. Think about your favorite Old Testament story or scripture. How might the people, places, or events in that story remind you of the gospel of Jesus Christ?

3. How has something you’ve learned about Jesus - His life, His character, His gospel, etc. - helped you through a difficult moment in life’s journey?

Wrestling with God

Main Thought

Jacob went on a journey from brokenness to betterment. His family of origin was marked by a mix of good things like seeking God, along with bad things like deception, manipulation, bitterness, conditional love, and more. Jacob’s actions heavily contributed to brokenness in his family. But God called Jacob to experience His goodness and blessing anyway. This was a demonstration of God’s grace, expressed in this moment as God’s undeserved favor toward us. Still, Jacob needed to grow before he could fully inherit God’s good promises. How did God help him grow? By wrestling with him. God appeared to Jacob in the midst of his struggle, and engaged him in a way that gave Jacob an opportunity to grow. God often does the same with us. He allows us to struggle, to wrestle, so that we can grow. If we’ll try our best (even in the worst circumstances), cry out to Him, and hold on, then we’ll become better versions of ourselves. We’ll develop a deeper trust in God and we’ll be prepared for destiny in Him.

Main Passages

“He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time…”

- ‭‭2 Timothy‬ ‭1:9

13 …“I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. 14 Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. 15 I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”

- Genesis 28:13-15

24 So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. 25 When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. 26 Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.” But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”

- Genesis 32:24-26

Discussion Questions

1. What stands out to you in the Main Thought or Main Passages above?

2. What’s one good habit or mindset you learned from your family? What’s one bad habit or mindset you learned from your family?

3. Is there a situation in your life right now in which God might be allowing you to “wrestle?” How might you be able to grow through that situation?

I'd Walk 1,000 Miles

Main Thought

Everyone knows that Christians are supposed to trust God. Trusting God means that we rely on Him and live with the assumption that God is good. Still, it can be hard to trust God. We can’t see Him. There will be moments in which we don’t personally perceive God’s presence or goodness. We might not understand what He’s doing, or why He’s allowing certain things. How are we supposed to trust God in spite of all of this? We can trust in a God that we can’t see because we’ve seen His goodness before! Many of us have had our prayers answered and our lives touched. All of us can look to the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ as the ultimate proof of God’s goodness. When we’re reminded of God’s goodness and inspired to trust Him, we can respond in faith by “saying yes to the next step.” We can take one practical step of faith and obedience at a time. If we’ll continue to walk with God, then we’ll eventually see more and more of God’s goodness along the way.

Main Passages

Abraham was now very old, and the Lord had blessed him in every way. 2 He said to the senior servant in his household, the one in charge of all that he had, “Put your hand under my thigh. 3 I want you to swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of earth, that you will not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I am living, 4 but will go to my country and my own relatives and get a wife for my son Isaac.” 5 The servant asked him, “What if the woman is unwilling to come back with me to this land? Shall I then take your son back to the country you came from?”

- Genesis 24:1-5

58 So they called Rebekah and asked her, “Will you go with this man?” “I will go,” she said.

- Genesis 24:58

5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.

- Proverbs 3:5-6

Discussion Questions

1. What stands out to you in the Main Thought and Passages above?

2. Why is the life, death, and resurrection (or the gospel/good news) of Jesus Christ the ultimate proof of God’s goodness?

3. What’s one practical step of trust and obedience you can take toward something God might be calling you to do? (It can be in your faith, your relationships, your career, your family, etc.)