Bible ReadingExodus 4:1-5 Then Moses answered, “But behold, they will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, ‘The LORD did not appear to you.’” The LORD said to him, “What is that in your hand?” He said, “A staff.” And he said, “Throw it on the ground.” So he threw it on the ground, and it became a serpent, and Moses ran from it. But the LORD said to Moses, “Put out your hand and catch it by the tail”—so he put out his hand and caught it, and it became a staff in his hand— “that they may believe that the LORD, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.”
[03:50]Luke 10:25-37 And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” And he said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.” But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.”
[32:57]Isaiah 55:11 so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.
[43:39]1 Kings 17:8-16 Then the word of the LORD came to him, “Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to feed you.” So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, a widow was there gathering sticks. And he called to her and said, “Bring me a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.” And as she was going to bring it, he called to her and said, “Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.” And she said, “As the LORD your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. And now I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it and die.” And Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go and do as you have said. But first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterward make something for yourself and your son. For thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘The jar of flour shall not be spent, and the jug of oil shall not be empty, until the day that the LORD sends rain upon the earth.’” And she went and did as Elijah said. And she and he and her household ate for many days. The jar of flour was not spent, neither did the jug of oil become empty, according to the word of the LORD that he spoke by Elijah.
[05:37]John 6:5-13 Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?” He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do. Philip answered him, “Two hundred denarii would not buy enough bread for each of them to get a little.” One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to him, “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they for so many?” Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, about five thousand in number. Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated. So also the fish, as much as they wanted. And when they had eaten their fill, he told his disciples, “Gather up the leftover fragments, that nothing may be lost.” So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves left by those who had eaten.
[06:09]Observation questions- In Exodus 4, what did Moses say he had in his hand, and what did God do with it? [04:45]
- In the stories of the widow in 1 Kings 17 and the boy in John 6, what small things were placed into God’s hands, and what happened after that?
- In Luke 10, what specific things did the Samaritan use to care for the wounded man, and what did he promise the innkeeper? [39:00]
- According to Isaiah 55:11, what does God say his word will always do once it goes out from his mouth? [45:15]
Interpretation questions- When God asked Moses, “What is that in your hand?”, what does that reveal about how God works through ordinary people and ordinary things? [04:56]
- If nothing multiplies until it is released, what might that mean for the widow’s flour and oil, the boy’s lunch, and the way believers handle what they already have? [10:30]
- In the Good Samaritan story, compassion was not only a feeling but a prepared response. What does that suggest about the connection between mercy and practical provision? [36:28]
- If God’s word does not return empty, how should that shape the way believers think about everyday speech, especially words about lack, fear, health, and finances? [46:24]
Application questions- What is in hand right now that may be easy to dismiss as too small—time, money, skill, opportunity, encouragement, hospitality? What might it look like to release that to God instead of waiting for something bigger? [09:24]
- Where has a puny view of God quietly settled in—work, bills, debt, family pressure, health, or the future? What would faith sound like in that exact area if God is truly source, supply, and surplus? [23:29]
- Mercy is easier to admire than to prepare for. If a real need showed up this week, in what ways would it be possible to help practically, and in what ways would better preparation be needed? [39:00]
- What kinds of words have been filling the home lately—peace, faith, and abundance, or frustration, fear, and lack? What repeated phrases may need to be uprooted and replaced with truth? [49:49]
- Debt can keep people from being ready to bless others. What is one honest step that would move toward greater financial freedom and greater readiness to help when God opens a door? [40:07]
- God’s word is meant to plant heaven, not chaos. What is one area of life that needs new words spoken over it every day this week—finances, marriage, children, health, work, or peace of mind? [01:04:30]
- Trials can become a place where faith is tested and God shows himself strong. What present pressure needs to be faced differently, not with panic, but with patient confidence that God is at work? [01:19:22]
