Discussion Questions

Finny described prevenient grace as “going before” and “enabling grace,” then listed facets like God sending Jesus, sending evangelists, the Word’s power, the Lord opening hearts, and the Spirit convicting “the world” (John 16); which of those facets most confronts your default assumptions about why you believed, and how does it reshape what you think God is like toward non-Christians right now? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Finny listed ways God “goes before” people (sending Jesus, the Word, opening hearts, convicting by the Spirit). Which one most challenges your usual idea of why you believed, and how does it change how you think God feels toward non-Christians right now?

In the story about Finny’s atheist father hearing a lecture that opened Psalm 22 and led to conversion, he emphasized how unknown people and long chains of faithfulness affected “me being here”; what does that kind of behind-the-scenes providence suggest about God’s patience and planning—and how should it change the way the group views “ordinary” evangelistic moments? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Finny said many unknown people and long “chains” of faithfulness helped lead to his dad’s conversion. What does that say about God’s patience and planning, and how should it change how we see “ordinary” chances to share our faith?

Finny warned that reacting against Calvinism can make people hesitant to use the word “grace,” even though he argues grace should become “even bigger”; where do you see that reaction in yourself or your church culture, and what would it look like to rebuild a gratitude-saturated view of grace without adopting Calvinist definitions? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Finny said some people react against Calvinism by avoiding the word “grace,” even though grace should feel even bigger. Where do you see that reaction in yourself or your church, and what would it look like to grow a grateful view of grace without using Calvinist meanings?

When interpreting Ephesians 1, Finny kept repeating that “us” refers to “the faithful in Christ Jesus,” not individualized “me,” and he said ancient readers heard a more corporate meaning; how would reading Ephesians 1 as the “destination of the faithful” (adoption/inheritance) challenge how you’ve used the passage for personal assurance, identity, or spiritual status? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Finny said “us” in Ephesians 1 means “the faithful in Christ,” not just “me.” How would that change the way you use Ephesians 1 for personal assurance, identity, or feeling spiritually secure?

Finny used the airplane analogy: predestination is the planned destination of the plane, while “who gets tickets” is a separate question; where do you think modern evangelical preaching collapses those two questions, and what theological or pastoral problems does that create? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Finny said predestination is like a plane’s planned destination, not the question of who gets a ticket. Where do you think preaching mixes those up, and what problems does that cause for theology or for caring for people?

In Ephesians 1:13–14, Finny highlighted the sequence “heard…believed…sealed” as the mechanism for getting “onto the plane”; how does that sequence pressure-test your understanding of faith, obedience, and the Spirit’s sealing—especially if you’re used to thinking of salvation as primarily a hidden decree rather than a responded-to gospel? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Finny pointed out the order in Ephesians 1:13–14: “heard, believed, sealed.” How does that order challenge what you think about faith, obedience, and the Spirit sealing someone—especially if you’re used to thinking salvation is mainly a hidden decision God made?

Finny claimed early Christians read Ephesians 1 “very simple, very straightforward…no strange philosophical ideas,” and that unconditional, arbitrary election is “nowhere near this passage”; what parts of your training (sermons, study Bibles, favorite teachers) make that claim hard to accept, and what would you need to re-learn to read like the early church? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Finny said early Christians read Ephesians 1 in a simple way and didn’t see “unconditional election” there. What teachings you’ve heard make that hard to accept, and what would you need to unlearn to read the passage more like the early church?

In John 6:44, Finny said “No one can come…unless the Father draws” is a “pretty amazing” description of prevenient grace, then raised John 12’s claim that Jesus will “draw all people”; how do you reconcile God’s universal drawing with the reality that not all are “raised up,” and what does that tension imply about human resistance and God’s intentions? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Finny said the Father “draws” people (John 6) and Jesus will “draw all people” (John 12), but not everyone is saved. How do you explain that, and what does it suggest about human resistance and what God wants?

Finny’s central interpretive move in John 6–10 was that the conflict is Jew–Jesus, and that in Jesus’ time people “came to the Son through the Father” (Old Testament covenant knowledge), so the Father “gives” to the Son those who truly want to do God’s will (John 7) and “practice the truth” (John 3); what does this imply about God’s criteria for recognizing Jesus, and how does it confront the idea that faith is unrelated to a person’s response to truth and righteousness? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Finny said in John 6–10, God “gives” to Jesus the people who truly want to do God’s will and live by the truth. What does that suggest about how God expects people to recognize Jesus, and how does it challenge the idea that faith has nothing to do with a person’s response to truth and doing right?

In John 10:28–29, Finny argued “no one will snatch them” addresses external threats, not a person’s own decision to leave, and he linked it to Romans 8’s “no external power can separate us”; how does that reading challenge common “eternal security” conversations in your circles, and what kind of assurance—and what kind of warning—do you think Jesus intended to produce in real disciples? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Finny said “no one will snatch them” (John 10) is about outside threats, not about someone choosing to walk away. How would that change the way your group talks about eternal security, and what kind of comfort—and what kind of warning—do you think Jesus meant disciples to feel?