Our Rescuing Shepherd - Covenant Church

What default picture of God from culture have you had to wrestle with the most? (Caring grandparent, IRS agent, disappointed parent, watchful principle waiting to discipline, etc.) What has practically helped you push against these caricatures of God and believe God is who he says he is in the Bible?

Read Psalm 100. What challenges, encourages, or sparks questions for you in this psalm? What phrases stand out to you that help shape your understanding of God’s true character?

Pastor Tim Keller wrote, “The central basis of Christian assurance is not how much our hearts are set on God, but how unshakably his heart is set on us.” God’s love for you is so long old age cannot wear it out, our cultural differences can’t stop it, our sin cannot drain it dry, and like an ocean with no shores, it knows no bounds. Share how you have been able to grasp God’s love for you and what helps you remember this truth?

The search for identity is the American theme. We see it in our entertainment, our conversations with others and in ourselves. We live in the Age of the Selfie. Authenticity is highly valued and we are all perceived to be on a quest for self-understanding. The first question asked in the Bible in Genesis 3 is from God to Adam and Eve, “Where are you?” When we see ourselves as lost, we see God clearly as our rescuer. How have you wrestled with your need to be rescued?

When we recognize our lostness and receive God as our rescuer, we also belong to God’s family. “We are his people, the sheep of his pasture” (100:3). What instructions does Psalm 100 give us in what we should do as God’s people? How do we worship as this psalm describes throughout our daily lives and even when we are in a dark place? What reminds you that God is good even when life is not?

How have you experienced God’s goodness and love pursuing you this week?