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Jumpstarter 7 of 10

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Intimacy with God  /  Chapter 15: Medicine for the Soul  /  Discussion Questions
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Question 7
The text assigns marks to each group—sensuousness (Gentiles), quarreling (heretical sects), joy (church), and ecstasy (intimacy with God); what do these categories reveal about God’s intention for the church’s emotional/spiritual life, and which mark most describes your Christian environment—and why?
Another way to ask: What do these “marks” (sensuousness, quarreling, joy, ecstasy with God) say about what God wants the church to be like on the inside? Which mark best describes your Christian setting, and why?

Direct Answer The categories suggest that the church’s normal spiritual atmosphere should be joy, and that deeper intimacy with God leads beyond mere debate into a kind of ecstasy. By contrast, life driven by ignorance trends toward sensuousness, and life driven by opinion trends toward quarreling.

Support from Transcript:

  • “Sensuousness is characteristic of the Gentiles. Quarreling is characteristic of the heretical sects.”
  • “Joy is characteristic of the church.”
  • “Ecstasy is characteristic of the one who enjoys intimacy with God.”
  • The heretical state is “opinion,” where they “despise and laugh at each other,” matching quarreling.
  • The intimate-with-God person “truly lives in agreement with the gospel,” suggesting a settled, worshipful life rather than constant conflict.
Discussion Follow-ups Is your environment more marked by quarreling over opinions or by joy rooted in knowledge of God? What practices would move a group from arguments to Scripture-formed joy?

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