Discussion Questions

The chapter claims that before Constantine “living the kingdom life was the norm,” and that after 4th-century compromises it meant going against “both the world and the church”; what specific compromises do you think Bercot has in mind, and what would it look like today for the church itself to become “the flow” a disciple has to resist? JumpstartAnother way to ask: What church “compromises” do you think Bercot means after Constantine, and what would it look like today if the church itself became the main pressure a disciple has to resist?

Francis of Assisi warns that other Christians will predict “the ruin of your material prosperity” and say “you can be saved without all this fuss”; where have you heard modern versions of those lines inside the church, and what does that reveal about what we assume God is mainly trying to do for us? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Where do you hear Christians today saying, “You’ll lose comfort or money if you take this too seriously,” or “You can be saved without all this”? What does that say about what we think God mainly wants for us?

When Bercot says believers will label kingdom living “legalistic or fanatical” and even accuse you of “works righteousness,” how does the chapter distinguish “keeping his commandments” from trying to earn salvation, and what parts of that distinction make you uneasy? JumpstartAnother way to ask: How does the chapter say obeying Jesus’ commands is different from trying to earn salvation? Which part of that difference makes you feel uncomfortable or unsure?

John Wesley is quoted redefining “gospel liberty” as freedom “from the law of sin,” not freedom “from the law of God”; how would early Christians (pre-Constantine) have heard that claim, and what popular evangelical definitions of “freedom” does it directly confront? JumpstartAnother way to ask: How would early Christians have understood Wesley’s idea that “freedom” means freedom from sin, not freedom from God’s law? What common church ideas about “freedom” does that challenge?

Wesley’s warning—“Do not say, ‘I can do nothing’… if you have faith… you can love him and keep his commandments”—pushes hard against spiritual passivity; in what ways have you been taught (or have you taught yourself) to treat inability as humility, and what would repentance look like if this quote is true? JumpstartAnother way to ask: How have you learned to call “I can’t obey” a kind of humility? If Wesley is right, what would you need to repent of or change?

The “half-and-half Christian” is described as obeying some commands while ignoring others, rejecting “half of what the world offers” while “imbibing the rest”; what are common “halves” in contemporary Christian life (money, entertainment, career, sexuality, retaliation, truthfulness, etc.), and how do we justify the halves we keep? JumpstartAnother way to ask: What are the usual areas where Christians obey God halfway (like money, entertainment, sex, revenge, honesty)? How do we explain to ourselves why our “half” is okay?

The Kneeling Christian is quoted: “God cannot use him, and man has no use for him, but considers him a hypocrite”; what do you think “useful to God” means in the chapter’s logic, and how does fear of being seen as hypocritical (by the world or by serious Christians) shape your actual obedience? JumpstartAnother way to ask: In this chapter, what does it mean to be “useful to God”? How does fear of looking like a hypocrite affect what you actually obey?

Bercot argues that “mere judicial salvation is unworthy of our God,” because Christ came not to “save us in our sins” but “from our sins,” making us “partakers of his nature” now; what does this reveal about God’s purpose in salvation, and how does it challenge a gospel that centers mainly on heaven admission and punishment avoidance? JumpstartAnother way to ask: What does this chapter say God is trying to do in salvation—just forgive us, or also change us from sin right now? How does that challenge a gospel focused mostly on getting into heaven and avoiding punishment?

The chapter says, “If we find Christ’s commandments burdensome now, we’re going to find them burdensome in heaven… Now is when we must surrender”; what does that imply about assurance, ongoing rebellion, and the common idea that obedience is optional “discipleship” rather than part of salvation itself? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If Jesus’ commands feel too hard now, what does the chapter say that means for our confidence of being saved and for ongoing rebellion? How does it challenge the idea that obedience is optional for “serious” Christians only?

Using Andrew Murray’s claim that strain comes from not yielding, plus the BMW “Gelassenheit” illustration and Jesus’s “easy yoke,” what concrete practices of surrender (not vague intentions) could a group actually test for the next month, and what would count as evidence that Christ’s joy is increasing even if tribulations increase too? JumpstartAnother way to ask: What specific surrender habits could your group actually practice for one month (not just good intentions)? What would be real signs that Jesus’ joy is growing in you even if life gets harder?