Discussion Questions

The speaker says, “God is waiting for us to do this… ‘now I have to give you this because I promised you this gift’… his grace is something that we do earn, we do qualify ourselves for.” What exactly does he mean by “qualify,” and where do you think the line is between qualifying for grace and turning grace into wages that God owes? JumpstartAnother way to ask: What does he mean by “qualify” for grace? How can we tell the difference between responding to grace and acting like God “owes” us something?

He argues that Ephesians is meant to produce an “apocalypse… an unveiling” of God’s secret purpose, and that the church exists to “display to everybody and everything out there how good God’s wisdom is.” If God’s goal is cosmic display through a surrendered people, what does that reveal about what God values most—individual comfort/security, or public obedience that proves his wisdom? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If God wants the church to show the whole world how wise he is, what does that say God cares about most? Does he care more about our comfort and safety, or about our public obedience?

The speaker claims Ephesians “directly attacks or diminishes” the surrounding culture’s offered “power… life and glory,” raising up God’s way through Jesus instead. Based on what you heard, what are the modern cultural “power/life/glory” stories that the message of “in Christ” most directly undermines—and how might the church have subtly baptized them? JumpstartAnother way to ask: What “power, life, and glory” stories does our culture sell today that “in Christ” challenges the most? In what ways has the church quietly accepted or renamed those stories as Christian?

He repeatedly stresses the phrase “in him… in him… in him,” rejecting an “abstract insurance plan” view of salvation and tying “in Christ” to actually living Jesus’ way rather than “living in Adam.” What habits, loyalties, or decision-patterns would make it obvious that someone is still “in Adam” even if they claim they are “in Christ”? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If being “in Christ” means living Jesus’ way, what choices or habits would show someone is still living “in Adam”? What would that look like even if they say they are a Christian?

The speaker challenges Augustinian/Calvinist predestination as “arbitrary” and says Scripture “presumes freedom to choose,” arguing God’s foreknowledge is “based on God’s knowledge of the choices we will make,” and God then “interacts with us according to our choices.” How does that reframe the way you read biblical warnings, commands, and promises—especially passages that appear to describe God hardening (Pharaoh) or restraining/withdrawing help? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If God knows the future because he knows the choices we will make, how does that change how you read the Bible’s warnings, commands, and promises? How would you read stories where God hardens someone like Pharaoh, or seems to pull back help?

Using the “free cruise packet” and the course syllabus, he portrays predestination as a prepared destiny that still requires cooperation, directions, and boundaries (“you can’t start a campfire in your room”). If that model is right, what would “not cooperating with the predestined plan” look like in real Christian life—subtly, not just in obvious scandal? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If God has a “prepared plan” but we still have to cooperate, what are subtle ways Christians don’t cooperate? What does that look like in everyday life, not just big public sins?

He distinguishes mercy (“withholding a negative consequence”) from grace (“favor… a gift of help, privilege, relationship”) and then insists grace “is not something… just free and we don’t do anything about it,” citing Titus 2:11–14 as grace training us to deny lusts and live soberly. Where does modern evangelical talk about grace tend to flatten this distinction, and what kind of preaching/discipleship would have to change if grace is also training power? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Where do Christians today talk about grace as if it only means “free forgiveness” and not “help that trains us”? If grace also trains us to live differently, what would need to change in preaching or discipleship?

He quotes Clement of Alexandria: “God conspires with willing souls… if they abandon their eagerness, the spirit… is restrained,” and even says God “delights in being vanquished” when we “force God” by persevering desire. How would early Christians, shaped by this mindset, approach prayer, fasting, resisting sin, and assurance differently than Christians who assume God will act regardless of their earnestness? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If God works more with people who are truly willing and persistent, how would that change prayer, fasting, and fighting sin? How would it change what people think about assurance compared to those who think God will act no matter what?

The speaker calls the Holy Spirit a “down payment” like a deposit that shows seriousness, making salvation a “partnership,” and says we know we have the Spirit by being “driven” by him and bearing his fruit—warning about grieving/neglecting the Spirit “lest he would leave us.” What practices in your life (or church culture) functionally train people to ignore the Spirit’s governance while still claiming assurance? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If the Holy Spirit is like a deposit and we can ignore or grieve him, what habits in your life or church train people to tune him out? How do people still claim assurance while not letting the Spirit lead them?

Near the end, he highlights Paul’s prayer that believers would grasp “the hope of his calling,” “the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,” and resurrection power—and he begins to stress that God’s inheritance is not merely “in heaven… streets of gold,” but “in the saints… you and me.” If God’s gift to you is the people of God themselves, what would have to change about how you treat the church (commitment, forgiveness, reconciliation, accountability, local body life) for that to become real rather than sentimental? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If God’s “inheritance” is his people (the church), not just heaven rewards, how should that change how you treat your church? What would need to change in commitment, forgiveness, reconciliation, accountability, and local church life?