Discussion Questions

The speaker says the Old Testament is “about God working with these people, having great patience with them,” even when stories sound like God’s wrath “just flared up”; what picture of God’s character does that claim require, and what Old Testament passages make that reading hardest for you to accept? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If the Old Testament is mostly about God being patient with people, what does that say God is like? Which Old Testament stories make that hardest for you to believe?

“It’s about relationship. It’s not about follow this law,” while also saying “relationships require boundaries and restrictions”; how does this reshape the way you think about God’s laws—are they primarily tests, protections, or pathways into friendship with God? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If God wants relationship, not just rule-following, but relationships still need boundaries, how should we see God’s laws? Are they mainly tests, protections, or ways to grow closer to God?

The speaker notes that “often the Gentiles are better at their relationships than Abraham or Isaac or Jacob,” and uses Abraham giving Sarah away twice, with the pagan kings acting more righteously; what might God be revealing about His purposes by choosing and sticking with such morally compromised patriarchs? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If non-Jews sometimes act more right than Abraham, why would God choose and keep working with flawed leaders like him? What might God be showing through that choice?

Stephen’s sermon in Acts 7 is used to argue Abraham did not initially obey fully (leaving Ur, not leaving family, stopping in Haran, taking Lot); how does that storyline challenge modern assumptions that God only guides or calls people after they “get it right”? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If Abraham didn’t fully obey at first, what does that say about the idea that God only calls or guides people once they “get it right”?

The speaker highlights a turning point where Abraham begins to “talk back” to God (“This doesn’t make sense…”), and then “the relationship really grows”; what does that suggest about honest questioning versus “silent compliance” in a real relationship with God? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If Abraham’s relationship with God grew when he started asking honest questions, what does that say about questioning God versus just staying silent and obeying?

Abraham is described as becoming God’s “friend” through these interactions; what would early Christians have assumed “friendship with God” looked like in practice, and how does that compare to how modern Christians talk about “a personal relationship with Jesus”? JumpstartAnother way to ask: What do you think “friendship with God” looked like to early Christians in everyday life? How is that similar to or different from what people today mean by “a personal relationship with Jesus”?

The contrast between Abraham’s delayed/partial obedience early and his immediate obedience in Genesis 22 (“gets up the next morning right away”) is central; what kinds of repeated encounters, corrections, and time do you think God uses to form that kind of obedience in a person? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Abraham moved from slow, partial obedience to quick obedience in Genesis 22—how do you think God helps a person grow like that over time? What kinds of lessons or changes might God use?

The speaker frames Genesis 22 as Abraham being willing to lose what seems to guarantee the promise (“if I kill my son, I won’t get the promise”); where do Christians today implicitly refuse obedience because we believe it will sabotage God’s promises for our life (security, family, ministry success, reputation)? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Where do Christians today avoid obeying because we think it will ruin the good future God promised (like security, family, ministry success, or reputation)? What’s one example you can think of?

Hebrews is brought in to say Abraham believed God could raise Isaac (even though Genesis doesn’t state it); how does this interpretive move affect how you read Scripture—what does it imply about early Christian confidence that God’s faithfulness can only be understood fully in light of later revelation? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Hebrews says Abraham believed God could raise Isaac, even though Genesis doesn’t say that—how does that change how you read the Bible? What does it suggest about understanding earlier stories using later teaching?

“That’s really the journey all of us are on” (learning real relationship with God and others); if God is patient enough to keep working with partial obedience but also aims to grow us into immediate, costly obedience, what specific patterns in your life show “Haran stops” (delays, compromises, bringing along what God said to leave), and what would repentance look like concretely this week? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Where do you see “Haran stops” in your life—times you delay, compromise, or bring along what God told you to leave? What would real repentance look like for you in one specific action this week?