Discussion Questions

Paul says, “it is now high time to wake from sleep,” and Origen calls this “the sleep of the soul” when we become lethargic about “the things of God at the proper time”; what concrete forms of spiritual lethargy did the lesson imply (not just “feeling tired”), and what would “waking up” look like in a normal week? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Besides just feeling tired, what kinds of “spiritual sleep” did the lesson point out—times we get lazy about God? What would “waking up” look like in your normal week?

Chrysostom’s quote makes “the day of your earthly death” either “salvation to you” or “not…so” depending on whether you have “done everything He has commanded”; how does that way of speaking about death expose what the lesson assumes about assurance, perseverance, and the seriousness of obedience after conversion? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Chrysostom says the day you die will be salvation or not, based on whether you obeyed what God commanded. What does that show about what the lesson believes about assurance, continuing in faith, and how serious obedience is after conversion?

The lesson uses Chrysostom’s runner illustration—seeing the finish line produces an extra burst of energy even when tired; what specific “finish line” realities (death, resurrection, judgment, entering the next world) are meant to motivate Christians, and what practices today tend to dull that urgency? JumpstartAnother way to ask: In the runner example, what “finish line” truths are meant to push Christians forward (death, resurrection, judgment, the next world)? What things today make those truths feel less urgent?

Origen and “the auditor” connect “night” to ignorance and “the Son of righteousness” to divine knowledge lighting the whole world; how did the lesson portray God’s intention in bringing light—exposure, healing, judgment, instruction—and what parts of our lives do we most resist having “exposed”? JumpstartAnother way to ask: The lesson links “night” with ignorance and God’s light with real knowledge. What did the lesson say God’s light is meant to do (expose, heal, judge, teach), and what parts of your life do you most avoid having brought into the light?

The lesson links “armor of light” to 1 Thessalonians: “breastplate of faith and love” and “helmet…hope of salvation”; how would early Christians have understood this armor as something you actively “put on,” and what would it change about how you resist temptation compared with a purely internal, private view of spirituality? JumpstartAnother way to ask: The lesson connects the “armor of light” with faith, love, and hope. How would early Christians have seen this as something you actively “put on,” and how would that change the way you fight temptation compared with a private, inside-only kind of spirituality?

The teacher says early Christians recognized Romans 13’s list (rioting, drunkenness, immorality, wantonness, strife, envying) as describing “the wanton banquets of the pagans”; what does that identification reveal about early Christian boundaries with surrounding culture, and where do modern Christians tend to blur those boundaries while still “put[ting] on the appearance of disciplined conduct”? JumpstartAnother way to ask: The teacher says Romans 13 describes pagan party life in that culture. What does that show about how early Christians drew lines with the surrounding culture, and where do Christians today blur those lines while still looking “disciplined” on the outside?

Clement contrasts pagan holiday partying (“senseless nightlong parties,” drunkenness, promiscuity, entertainments becoming indecent) with Christian love feasts; what would it require for a church today to offer a genuinely alternative kind of communal celebration that doesn’t merely “Christianize” the world’s party culture? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Clement compares pagan holiday partying with Christian love feasts. What would a church today need to do to create a truly different kind of celebration instead of just copying the world’s party style with Christian labels?

Chrysostom insists “put on the Lord Jesus Christ” means being “encircled by Him on every side,” with Christ dwelling in us so we become His dwelling place; what would it mean, in daily choices and inner life, for Christ to “totally envelop” a person rather than being an “add-on” to an otherwise self-directed life? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Chrysostom says “put on the Lord Jesus Christ” means Christ surrounds you and lives in you, not just added on. What would it look like in daily choices and thoughts for Christ to shape everything instead of you running your life and adding Jesus on the side?

The lesson says we “initially put on Christ” at conversion and baptism, yet we can “soil the garment,” and Ambrosiaster warns of being found without the wedding garment and “cast out into the darkness in disgrace”; how does this baptism/garment imagery challenge modern ideas that baptism or a past decision guarantees final acceptance regardless of how one lives afterward? JumpstartAnother way to ask: The lesson says you “put on Christ” at conversion and baptism, but you can still “dirty the garment,” and some warn about being cast out without the wedding garment. How does this picture challenge the idea that baptism or a past decision guarantees final acceptance no matter how you live afterward?

“Make no provision for the flesh to fulfill its desires” is clarified as not forbidding provision for needs but forbidding going beyond necessity—illustrated by drunkenness, gluttony, pride in dress, softness, luxury, even “effeminacy,” and Clement’s counsel for plain, clean, non-luxurious clothing; what specific “provisions” in your lifestyle (food, alcohol, entertainment, spending, comfort, appearance) are most likely to be rationalized as “needs,” and what would repentance look like without sliding into mere rule-keeping? JumpstartAnother way to ask: “Make no provision for the flesh” means not going beyond real needs, like with food, alcohol, entertainment, spending, comfort, or appearance. Which of these do you most excuse as a “need,” and what would real repentance look like without turning it into simple rule-keeping?