Study Questions for Groups
1. How have you seen someone close to you being drawn back into a relationship with God and/or with you? (How can we continue to pray?)
2. With whom over the past week did you share God’s desire for a renewed relationship?
Ask two people to read aloud Luke 18:1-14 one after the other, preferably from different Bible versions. Then ask a third person to spend a total of about one minute summarizing these parables.
3. What general principles about prayer do you learn from these two parables?
4. Let’s dig deeper:
• Why did Jesus tell each of these two parables? Who was his intended audience for each?
• What do you learn from this passage about praying for justice?
• What example can you give for how you recently prayed persistently for justice?
• How would you answer the question at the conclusion of the first parable, “When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” Why or why not?
• What differences do you see between the tax collector’s prayer and the Pharisee’s prayer?
• Most of us would say we identify with the tax collector rather than the Pharisee in the second parable. But perhaps if we would humble ourselves and honestly assess our attitudes, we may identify some commonalities with the Pharisee. If so, what attitudes do you see in yourself?
5. What do you learn about God from this passage?
6. What do you learn about people, especially in how we approach God in prayer?
7. In what ways is humble-hearted and persistent prayer a vital part of living in obedience to God as we follow him?
8. What part does humble-hearted and persistent prayer play in sharing your faith?
• Who will you be praying for this week, that God may draw them to himself?
9. Based on our study and discussion, complete this sentence: “This week, I will . . .”
10. The apostle Paul wrote, “Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should” (Ephesians 6:19-20). How can we pray for you as you declare the gospel this week?
For Next Week: Read and reflect on Jonah 1:1-17 as we begin a monthlong study of the Early Minor Prophets (Obadiah, Joel, Jonah). You can also read next week’s supplemental texts as well as the Study and Application sections as part of your personal study.
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