Discussion Questions

Glenn contrasted “It’s Not an Easy Road” with “His Yoke is Easy,” then argued both can miss the point; what parts of your own Christian “soundtrack” have trained you to expect either drudgery now or ease now, and how has that shaped your obedience? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Do you tend to expect the Christian life to feel mostly hard work or mostly easy comfort? How has that expectation affected the way you obey God?

In David Brousseau’s three “levels of obedience” (fear, dutiful, love), where do you see yourself most clearly—and what specific commands tend to expose loophole-hunting (fear), resentment (duty), or genuine delight (love)? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Which kind of obedience fits you best right now: fear, duty, or love? What commands most often show you looking for loopholes, feeling resentful, or obeying with real joy?

Glenn said Satan’s first lie is that God is depriving us (“Has God said…?”); what are the most believable “God is keeping you from something” narratives in your life right now, and how do they reveal what you think God is like? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Where are you most tempted to believe, “God is holding out on me”? What does that say about what you think God is like?

The teaching asked, “How do you perceive God—taskmaster or good Father, stingy or generous, killjoy or pleasurable?” Which of those pairings feels most personally confronting, and what evidence (real or assumed) has trained you to answer it the way you do? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Do you picture God more like a harsh boss or a good Father, more stingy or generous, more a killjoy or a giver of joy? Which pair hits closest to home, and why do you answer that way?

Glenn claimed “freedom is the ability to function how God intended,” using the kite needing both wind and restraint; what restraints in Scripture feel like “the string” you’re tempted to cut, and what crashes have you seen (or feared) when restraint is rejected? JumpstartAnother way to ask: What Bible limits feel like a “string” you want to cut to feel free? What harm have you seen (or feared) when people ignore those limits?

Randy Alcorn’s quote attacked the question, “Should I choose what God commands or what’s best for me?” Where do modern evangelical instincts (about “freedom,” “rights,” or “self-care”) subtly make that question feel reasonable—even in people who say they trust God? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Where do ideas like “my freedom,” “my rights,” or “self-care” make it seem normal to ask, “Should I do what God says or what’s best for me”? How does that show up even among Christians who say they trust God?

Glenn argued God’s commands are not arbitrary (car battery poster analogy): how does this challenge the way you talk about obedience—do you frame commands mainly as “tests of sincerity,” or as “wisdom for human flourishing,” and what changes if you shift your framing? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Do you talk about God’s commands more like “tests to prove we mean it” or like “wise guidance for a good life”? What would change if you started talking about them more as wisdom?

Jesus’ “my yoke is easy” was defined as suitable/well-fitted, not effortless; what spiritual “chafing” have you experienced that might actually come from wearing an ill-fitting yoke (trying to serve Christ while clinging to sin, status, comfort, or autonomy)? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Where does following Jesus feel like it’s rubbing or hurting instead of fitting well? Could it be because you’re trying to serve Jesus while still holding onto sin, status, comfort, or control?

The Hutterite Chronicle excerpts contrasted persecutors plagued by fear/remorse with persecuted believers singing to execution “as if going to meet the bridegroom”; what do those stories suggest early Christians assumed about joy, suffering, and assurance that many modern Christians would struggle to accept? JumpstartAnother way to ask: What do the stories of joyful persecuted believers and fearful persecutors teach about joy, suffering, and being sure of God? Why might many Christians today struggle to believe that?

Glenn used Psalm 73 (envy of the prosperous lawless until “I came into God’s holy place and understood their end”); what situations currently tempt you to envy sinners’ “peace,” and what practices help you regain the long view so that “it is good to cling to God” becomes more than a slogan? JumpstartAnother way to ask: When are you tempted to envy people who ignore God but seem to have an easy, peaceful life? What helps you remember the long view so that clinging to God feels real, not just a saying?