Discussion Questions

The speaker contrasts “honor, courage, and commitment” as military virtues with “upside-down ways” in Jesus’ kingdom (“not power over, but serving up”); what does that contrast reveal about what God values and how He intends His people to display His rule in a world shaped by power, fear, and patriotism? JumpstartAnother way to ask: The speaker compares military values like honor and courage with Jesus’ “upside-down” way of serving. What does this show about what God values, and how should Christians show God’s rule in a world shaped by power, fear, and patriotism?

At the homeschool keynote, the speaker notices the irony of quoting Ephesians spiritual warfare and then prescribing voting as the main response; how does Ephesians 3:10 (“manifold wisdom of God… made known by the church to the principalities and powers”) reframe what “combat” looks like, and what kinds of warfare does the church actually wage? JumpstartAnother way to ask: The speaker says it’s ironic to quote Ephesians about spiritual war but then focus on voting. How does Ephesians 3:10 change what “combat” means, and what kind of war is the church really fighting?

The speaker says, “The church is God’s plan A. There is no plan B,” and quotes John D. Martin about the church showing “what the whole world would look like if everyone obeyed the King”; where do you feel resistance to that claim, and what would need to change in your view of God’s purposes if the church really is His central strategy for the world? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If “the church is God’s plan A” and God has no plan B, where do you feel pushback inside yourself? If it’s true, what would you need to change in how you see God’s plan for the world?

The speaker describes the church as a “holy nation” that proclaims God’s excellencies (1 Peter 2:9) and says, “No geopolitical boundaries in our nation”; how would early Christians—surrounded by Roman patriotism and local loyalties—have heard that, and what loyalties in your life compete most with the “holy nation” identity? JumpstartAnother way to ask: The speaker calls the church a “holy nation” with no political borders. How do you think early Christians under Roman patriotism would hear that, and what loyalties in your life compete most with that identity?

The speaker argues that to be a “creative minority,” churches “need to eat together,” connecting it to Acts’ “all things in common” and early Christian hospitality in a xenophobic world; what concrete practices of shared meals and shared resources would feel costly or inconvenient in your church, and what do those costs expose about what you currently protect? JumpstartAnother way to ask: The speaker says churches need to eat together and share like in Acts. What shared meals or sharing of money/time/resources would feel costly or inconvenient in your church, and what does that show about what you most try to protect?

The speaker claims, “A table is a place where Christ can be embodied… through blessing, breaking, giving, and nourishment,” and that families who dine together “stay together”; what would it look like to treat your table (or lack of one) as a spiritual discipline, and how might that confront the modern tendency toward isolated, efficiency-driven Christian living? JumpstartAnother way to ask: What would it look like to treat eating at your table (or finding a way to share meals) as a regular spiritual habit? How might that challenge the way modern life pushes Christians to live alone and always be “efficient”?

The speaker says early Christians “ordered themselves around the resurrection,” and even mentions the practice of standing (not kneeling) on Sundays as a sign of celebration; how does a resurrection-centered weekly gathering challenge the way many evangelicals treat Sunday services as optional, consumer-oriented, or primarily educational? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Early Christians shaped their week around the resurrection and Sunday celebration. How does that challenge the idea that Sunday church is optional, mainly for learning, or just a product to consume?

Using 1 Corinthians 14:26, the speaker critiques worship as spectatorship and envisions participatory gatherings where “each of you” brings something; what fears, control-issues, or habits keep a church from that kind of shared responsibility, and how might those obstacles reveal a low view of the Spirit’s work in the body? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Based on 1 Corinthians 14:26, the speaker says worship should be something everyone brings a part to, not just watching. What fears or control habits keep a church from doing that, and how might that show a weak trust in the Holy Spirit working through the whole church?

The speaker defines “wrestle together often” through corporate spiritual warfare (nightly 8 p.m. prayer meetings with confession, psalms, singing) and through embracing conflict as trust-building (“polite churches are the scariest kind”); what would have to be true about God’s character and the gospel for a church to become a “safe place” for confession and hard conversations without collapsing into shame, accusation, or avoidance? JumpstartAnother way to ask: The speaker links “wrestling together” to group prayer, confession, and honest conflict instead of polite pretending. What must you believe about God and the gospel for confession and hard talks to feel safe without turning into shame, blame, or avoidance?

The speaker ends with “celebrate together often,” connecting Eucharist as thanksgiving and warning against utopian community dreams (“The man who loves walking will walk farther…”); where do you personally “love the destination” more than the people you’re walking with, and what specific changes in expectations, humor, patience, or commitment would help you enjoy the journey without lowering biblical standards? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Where do you care more about the “ideal community” than the real people you’re with right now? What changes in your expectations, humor, patience, or commitment would help you enjoy the journey while still taking the Bible seriously?