Genesis 28 Discussion Guide
Sermon Date: July 2, 2023
ANNOUNCEMENTS
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WHY CITY GROUPS?
The point of a City Group is to help us apply God’s Word to our everyday lives through the power of the Holy Spirit, and to multiply faithful disciples of Jesus who make more disciples of Jesus. So we gather regularly to give ourselves to three basic Christian practices: sharing stories, reading the Bible, and praying.
PRAY
Ask if anyone would like to open up in prayer and ask God to bless your time together
STORY
Break the ice with a testimony..
Who has prepared their 5-7 minute story?
Who can give testimony of God’s goodness right now? (i.e. answered prayer, provision, transformation, etc.)
VISION FOR THIS DISCUSSION
Jacob and Esau have split. Esau has gotten married to a Canaanite woman outside of God’s people, and Jacob is setting off to find a wife from God’s chosen people. But in the middle of his journey, God gives Jacob a dream that will press in on Jacob’s current relationship with God. Jacob will have to decide which he will prioritize first—his conditions or God’s promises.
QUESTIONS ABOUT THE PASSAGE
Read Genesis 28:10-22 aloud as a group. What are some initial observations that caught your attention?
Look at verses 14-15. What would you say is the greatest blessing Jacob is receiving in these verses? Why?
Look at verses 17-22. What can we say about Jacob’s relationship with God up to this point?
APPLICATION
Read John 1:51. Based off of this verse, what, or who is the true ladder that fulfills Jacob’s dream? How is Jesus the ladder?
Notice in v. 21 that the Lord is not yet Jacob’s God. In verse 13, God even refers to Himself as “the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac.”
Many times within the church, a people can call themselves Christians simply because they were raised up in a Christian house and church, but may not have a faith in Jesus of their own.
What does it mean to have a personal faith in Jesus? When does God become “our” God?
In vs. 20, we see Jacob make a vow that sets conditions for God. He says that the Lord will become his God if and when the Lord fulfills his personal conditions.
Many of us can be tempted to make conditions with God too, such as “I will believe in God if (wish/desire/event) happens.” And on the flip side, people will walk away from Jesus if that wish/desire/event doesn’t happen or continue to happen.
Are there any conditions we are tempted to make with God? Why do you think we are tempted to do this?
Jacob made these conditions even after hearing God personally promise him everything in vs. 14-15.
Why do you think Jacob still made these conditions even after God promised?
What promises do we struggle to believe in even when God has made it clear?
What promises do our hearts need to believe right now?
How can we learn to trust God’s promises over our conditions?
PRAYER
Feel free to ask the group for any pressing prayer requests that would be good to pray over together.
Use the TACOS acronym to let the text you studied pray for you:
Thanksgiving - “Father, thank you…”
Adoration - “Father, You are…”
Confession - “Father, I confess…”
Others - “Father, I pray for…”
Self - “Father, please help me…”
*If size or group dynamics seem to hinder prayer, consider dividing into groups of men/women or groups of 3-4 to reduce barriers to praying out loud.