Table Talk: The Common Good-Week 2
The Common Good
Here’s a short description of our current sermon series.
Our life for the Common Good grows out of the Common Life we share in Christ, where we gather and are shaped together. Like grapes in a cluster, we are joined to one another, so that what God forms among us is carried into every place he sends us. In our everyday work, we have opportunities to love our neighbors and participate with God in the renewal of all things. Working from the grace we have already received, our ordinary efforts can become glimpses of the world God is making new, for the good of his world and the renown of Jesus’ name.
SPIRITUAL PRACTICE - Vocation
We believe that Jesus’ teaching is more than just knowledge for our minds (though it certainly includes that). It transforms us from within and flows outward into our actions. By practicing the ways of Jesus, we are being shaped into a people who look more and more like Him.
We commonly think of work as a job or career, but our work is everything we put our hands to. Throughout this series, we’ll discover that work was God’s idea! When He created the very first humans, he invited them to partner with him in the good stewardship and management of His world. Part of growing in spiritual maturity is learning to view our vocation from this perspective. In the next few weeks, take some time to consider how your daily work–whether at home, in the marketplace, in the church, at school/university, or somewhere else–contributes to the Common Good. Here are some questions to prayerfully consider:
Where does my work (everything I put my hands to each day) bring order, clarity, or beauty to something that is disordered, confusing, or neglected? How does my work make something better, healthier, safer, more useful, or more beautiful?
Who benefits from the work I do, and in what ways does it contribute to their well-being? How does my work contribute to a healthy community, organization, family, or neighborhood?
What problems does my work help solve? What burdens does it help carry? Where does my work protect, preserve, restore, or repair something valuable?
What resources—time, money, knowledge, materials, land, technology, or people—am I responsible for stewarding well?
Where does my work reflect God’s character (His creativity, generosity, order, justice, wisdom, beauty, or care)?
ENGAGING WITH THE TEXT
Read the listed passage individually or as a group. Use the questions below to explore the passage together. The conversation starters are typically applicational questions that can be used to further your discussion during mealtimes or other connection points throughout the week.
What stands out to you in this passage? (a word, phrase, image, or idea that caught your attention)
What does this passage reveal about God? (His character, heart, actions, or promises)
What questions does this passage raise for you? (anything confusing, challenging, or unresolved)
What response does this passage invite from us? (a way of seeing, trusting, living, or hoping differently)
PRAYER
Creator God,
You made us to partner with You, to rest in You, and to delight in You. As we consider our own work–everything we put our hands to–help us to see it through your eyes. Holy Spirit, give us a sense of sacred purpose and satisfaction in the role you have given us in this season. Equip us to bring order, clarity, and beauty to spaces and places that are disordered, confusing, or neglected. Show us how our work can contribute to a healthy community, organization, family, or neighborhood. Protect us from frustration, exhaustion, and disappointment. Please draw us to Yourself; help us to work faithfully as we look to the day when Your resurrection and renewal will come in full.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen.
October 11th: "When Work Becomes Toil" (Genesis 3:1-19)
SERMON SUMMARY: Sin distorts both our work and its purpose. In Genesis 3, work becomes marked by frustration, exhaustion, and disappointment. Genesis 11 reveals another distortion, in which work becomes a way of constructing our identity and making a name for ourselves. Work that was intended to contribute to the flourishing of God’s good world turns inward and becomes about our own survival and success. Jesus frees us from the need for work to satisfy us or establish our worth. In his renewed world, we are secure and free to work faithfully for the good of others in the way he intended all along.
NOTE: Remember that in our context, “work” is everything we put our hands to each day. This could be at home, in a job, at school, etc.
CONVERSATION STARTERS:
Kids
What's a job or chore that feels like it takes forever? What’s a job or chore that you don’t enjoy? Why don’t you like that job?
Can something be good and still be frustrating? What are some examples?
Students
What is something you've worked hard at that turned out to be more difficult than you expected?
What is the difference between recognizing that your work is meaningful and using your work or achievements to create an identity? What are some signs that a person might be getting their sense of worth from their work?
What are some of the reasons our work might feel “toilsome”? What can students your age do to recapture a sense of meaning and purpose in their day-to-day responsibilities or tasks?
Adults
What did you learn about work from the adults who raised you?
Why is it important that neither humanity nor work itself are “cursed” in Genesis 3? What, instead, becomes distorted? How do frustration, futility, exhaustion, and disappointment reveal the effects of the Fall on our work?
What kinds of disappointments in your work are hardest for you to absorb? What might those disappointments reveal about what you expect your work to give you?
What is the difference between recognizing that your work is meaningful and using your work or achievements to create an identity? What are some signs that a person might be getting their sense of worth from their work?
