Community Group Questions - February 26, 2023

February 26th, 2023
by Jay Beerly

Revelation 11:1-14

The Two Witnesses
1 Then I was given a measuring rod like a staff, and I was told, “Rise and measure the temple of God and the altar and those who worship there, 2 but do not measure the court outside the temple; leave that out, for it is given over to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for forty-two months. 3 And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth.”
4 These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. 5 And if anyone would harm them, fire pours from their mouth and consumes their foes. If anyone would harm them, this is how he is doomed to be killed. 6 They have the power to shut the sky, that no rain may fall during the days of their prophesying, and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague, as often as they desire. 7 And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that rises from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them, 8 and their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city that symbolically is called Sodom and Egypt, where their Lord was crucified. 9 For three and a half days some from the peoples and tribes and languages and nations will gaze at their dead bodies and refuse to let them be placed in a tomb, 10 and those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and make merry and exchange presents, because these two prophets had been a torment to those who dwell on the earth. 11 But after the three and a half days a breath of life from God entered them, and they stood up on their feet, and great fear fell on those who saw them. 12 Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here!” And they went up to heaven in a cloud, and their enemies watched them. 13 And at that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.
14 The second woe has passed; behold, the third woe is soon to come.

Questions

Doctrine - What We Believe

Who is giving this testimony? (easy question for the week!)
Do you think it makes more sense to read this passage literally or symbolically? Give reasons.
Describe God's spiritual protection for his people.

Worship - How We Feel

Do you find yourself mourning over the sin of the world or does it make you more angry?
Do you find it harder to worship God when it seems that the church is losing popularity or influence?
In what ways is the Holy Spirit making an impact in churches today?

Application - What We Do

Are there ways this passage brings you to repentance?
Do you find it easy or difficult to speak God's Word to other people? Do you find it a joy to be able to do that?
How does the symbol of the church as lampstands paint a picture for what the church is supposed to be doing until Christ returns?