Discussion Questions

The teacher highlighted Chrysostom’s amazement that “our flesh should sit on high and be adored by the angels”; how does that image reshape your view of what God thinks of human nature, and what specific ways does it challenge a low view of the body or of ordinary human life? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Chrysostom was amazed that human flesh is honored in heaven and even angels worship. How does that change how you think God values the human body and everyday human life?

In the recap from Hebrews 2:5–9 and Psalm 8, the teacher argued that God’s “plan A” was dominion for mankind (not angels), and Jesus restores it “as a man”; how should that affect the way Christians think about authority, stewardship, and the purpose of salvation beyond “going to heaven”? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If God’s first plan was for humans (not angels) to rule the world, and Jesus restores that as a man, how should Christians view authority and responsibility now? How does this expand salvation beyond just “going to heaven”?

The lesson insisted that God has “no plan B,” even though “all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God”; what does it reveal about God’s intention and persistence that He continues His plan by “bringing many sons to glory,” and where do you see modern Christianity subtly teaching a “plan B” mindset? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If God has “no plan B” even after human sin, what does that show about how determined God is to finish His plan? Where do you see Christians today acting like God switched to a backup plan?

Hebrews 2:10 says it was “fitting” to make the “captain” (pioneer/author/prince) of salvation “perfect through suffering”; what part of you resists the idea that suffering could be “right or proper” in God’s design, and what does that resistance say about your assumptions regarding God’s goodness? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Hebrews says it was “fitting” for Jesus to be made perfect through suffering. What part of you pushes back against the idea that suffering could be part of God’s good plan, and what does that reveal about how you judge God’s goodness?

The teacher quoted Chrysostom: “Both he is a son, and we are sons… But he saves, and we are saved”; how does that “great space between them” confront modern habits of speaking about Jesus as merely a moral example or as “basically like us”? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Chrysostom says Jesus is a Son and we are sons, but “He saves, and we are saved.” How does that gap correct the way people talk about Jesus as mainly a good example or as basically just like us?

The central argument connected sanctification to glory: sanctification = purification from sin = ceasing from sin = suffering in the flesh; when you examine your own experience of resisting temptation (“brain freeze,” “ripped apart,” “brutal”), what does it expose about how deeply you expect Christianity to feel comfortable? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If fighting sin can feel painful and intense, what does that show about how much you expect the Christian life to feel easy or comfortable? What does your reaction to temptation reveal about your expectations?

The teacher reworded 1 Peter 4:1 as “he who has ceased from sin has suffered in the flesh,” and claimed this suffering is mainly the pain of denying ungodly desires (“internal persecution” in Clement’s words); what “internal persecution” do you most try to avoid, and what strategies do you use (consciously or not) to escape it? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If “internal persecution” means the pain of saying no to sinful desires, what kind of inner struggle do you most try to avoid? What do you do to distract yourself or escape that struggle?

“God is the one who is doing the sanctification, but never at the expense of your free will”; how does that claim challenge common evangelical ways of talking about grace, human effort, and assurance, and what would genuine cooperation with sanctifying grace look like in one concrete area of sin? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If God sanctifies us but does not force our will, how does that challenge common talk about grace, effort, and assurance? In one specific sin area, what would real cooperation with God look like this week?

The teacher argued (via C.S. Lewis) that God “cannot give us what he does not have,” meaning surrender/suffering/submission/death required the Incarnation; how would early Christians—who expected persecution and self-denial as normal—likely hear this argument differently than modern Christians shaped by comfort and choice? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If Jesus had to become human to truly give us surrender and obedience, how might early Christians (who expected persecution) hear that differently than Christians today who expect comfort? What difference would their mindset make?

Near the end, a participant contrasted “modern gospel” (avoid suffering) with “true gospel” (glory through suffering), and said many “get halfway through and they give up”; where do you see that pattern in your own life or church culture, and what would “one victory through suffering” practically require this week (specific choice, specific temptation, specific cost)? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Where do you see people quit when following Jesus starts to cost them, in your life or church? What is one specific “win through suffering” you could choose this week, and what would it cost you?