COMPANION RESOURCES
Lesson for Nov. 29, 2020: Seek Reconciliation (Philemon 8-21)
“I Missed You” by David Faust (Lesson Application)
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Study Questions for Groups
By Michael C. Mack
1. What challenges did you face last week at work, with family, or in other circumstances?
2. What good did you do this past week, especially to show someone else that God is good?
Ask three people—two readers and one reteller—to help. Ask the readers to read Philemon 8-21 one after the other, preferably from different Bible versions.
Ask the third person to take about one minute to summarize the passage.
3. What else jumped out at you from this section of Paul’s letter to Philemon?
4. Let’s dig more deeply into this passage.
• How would you characterize the tone or mood of Paul’s appeal to Philemon?
• Basically, what is Paul asking Philemon to do?
• How does Paul describe himself to his friend?
• How does Paul describe his relationship with Onesimus?
• How does he describe Onesimus’s relationship—and potentially renewed relationship—with Philemon?
· What social or other barriers was Paul asking his friend Philemon to tear down?
5. What do you learn about God from this passage?
6. What do you learn about people?
7. Is there anyone with whom you need to seek reconciliation and welcome back into your life? If so, what is a first step you can take?
8. The greatest reconciliation, of course, is between God and people who have moved away from him. “And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation . . . as though God were making his appeal through us” (2 Corinthians 5:19-20). Whom will you implore on Christ’s behalf to “be reconciled to God”?
9. Based on our study and discussion, complete this sentence: “This week, I will . . .”
10. As you seek reconciliation and/or implore others to be reconciled with God this week, what challenges might you face?
For Next Week: Over the next week, read and reflect on Matthew 1:1-17 as we begin a new unit based in Matthew with the theme, “Fulfilled.” You can also read next week’s supplemental texts as well as the Study and Application sections as part of your personal study.
Author: Michael C. Mack
Michael C. Mack is editor of Christian Standard. He has served in churches in Ohio, Indiana, Idaho, and Kentucky. He has written more than 25 books and discussion guides as well as hundreds of magazine, newspaper, and web-based articles.
