QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION AND PERSONAL DEVOTION
“The tabernacle was built with threads, The temple was built with stones, The Church is being built with living stones of human souls.”
Review the Sermon:
Exodus 40:33-38 & 1 Peter 2:4-5
- What is the difference between the tabernacle, the temple, and a synagogue?
- Read Revelation 21:3. How does the church reflect the tabernacle of God with men in this passage?
- How does the church become a construction site for eternity?
Dig into Scripture:
This week we will be stepping away from Exodus in order to study the 1 Peter passage, which talks about our identity as living stones in God’s Holy Temple.
- What does it mean that we are like “living stones [who are] being built into a spiritual house…” (vs. 5)?
- What are some examples of “spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ” (vs. 5)? (Option—check out Romans 12:1-2 for more on “sacrifice.”)
- Take a moment to break down how believers are described in verse 9. What does it mean to be a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession? What implications does this have on our daily life and our relationships with other Christians?
Live it Out:
- How is God shaping, chiseling, hammering, and molding you as one of his “living stones”?
- In Ephesians 2:19-22, Paul uses the same metaphor that Peter used for the church, saying that we are being built together to become a holy temple in the Lord. Then in Ephesians 4:1-6, Paul gives the implications of what that means. Take a moment to read Eph 4:1-6 and talk about how we can live it out this week.
Mathew P. John