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Occupy 'Till I Come

Part 1 of the How To Live Series

Occupy 'Till I Come

1) Luke 13:12 - 13 KJV

12 He said therefore, A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return. 13 And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds ($256,000), and said unto them, Occupy (Do Business) till I come.

a. What were the 10 servants supposed to do with the 10 pounds of gold they were given?

b. Who does the nobleman most likely represent?

c. What are we supposed to learn from their being told to occupy (do business) until He returns?

2) Jeremiah 29:4 - 14 NKJV

4 Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all who were carried away captive, whom I have caused to be carried away from Jerusalem to Babylon: 5 Build houses and dwell in them; plant gardens and eat their fruit. 6 Take wives and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, so that they may bear sons and daughters-that you may be increased there, and not diminished.

7 And seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to the Lord for it; for in its peace you will have peace. 8 For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let your prophets and your diviners who are in your midst deceive you, nor listen to your dreams which you cause to be dreamed. 9 For they prophesy falsely to you in My name; I have not sent them, says the Lord.

10 For thus says the Lord: After seventy years are completed at Babylon, I will visit you and perform My good word toward you, and cause you to return to this place. 11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you, says the Lord, and I will bring you back from your captivity; I will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you, says the Lord, and I will bring you to the place from which I cause you to be carried away captive.

a. We are called to seek the Lord, but what else are we called to do?

b. Who does God tell us to pray for in Jeremiah 29: 7? What does that tell us?

c. Many in the ministry today tell us not to get involved in politics or other social issues but just focus on building God's kingdom. Who does this fit best in Jeremiah 29?

d. Does God have a plan for us to give us a hope and a future?

e. When we realize that God has a plan for us what should we do?

3) Psalm 107:1 - 6 NKJV 1 Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. 2 Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy, 3 And gathered out of the lands, From the east and from the west, From the north and from the south. 4 They wandered in the wilderness in a desolate way; They found no city to dwell in. 5 Hungry and thirsty, Their soul fainted in them. 6 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, And He delivered them out of their distresses.

a. Who is this psalm written to, and what happens when they cry to the Lord?

4) Psalm 107:7 - 9 7 And He led them forth by the right way, That they might go to a city for a dwelling place. 8 Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men! 9 For He satisfies the longing soul, And fills the hungry soul with goodness.

a. What should be our response as God leads us to a city as a dwelling place?

5) Psalm 107:10 - 20 10 Those who sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, Bound in affliction and irons- 11 Because they rebelled against the words of God, And despised the counsel of the Most High, 12 Therefore He brought down their heart with labor; They fell down, and there was none to help. 13 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, And He saved them out of their distresses.14 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, And broke their chains in pieces. 15 Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men! 16 For He has broken the gates of bronze, And cut the bars of iron in two. 17 Fools, because of their transgression, And because of their iniquities, were afflicted. 18 Their soul abhorred all manner of food, And they drew near to the gates of death. 19 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, And He saved them out of their distresses. 20 He sent His word and healed them, And delivered them from their destructions.

a. What happens when we rebel against God's Word and despise His counsel?

b. What happens to fools because of their iniquities?

c. What is the remedy, and how is it accessed?

6) Psalm 107:21 - 22, 26 - 28 21 Oh that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men! 22 Let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, And declare His works with rejoicing.

26 They mount up to the heavens, They go down again to the depths; Their soul melts because of trouble. 27 They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, And are at their wits' end. 28 Then they cry out to the Lord in their trouble, And He brings them out of their distresses.

a. What should we do even before we come to our wits' end?

7) Psalm 107:32 - 42 32 Let them exalt Him also in the assembly of the people, And praise Him in the company of the elders. 33 He turns rivers into a wilderness, And the watersprings into dry ground; 34 A fruitful land into barrenness, For the wickedness of those who dwell in it.

35 He turns a wilderness into pools of water, And dry land into watersprings. 36 There He makes the hungry dwell, That they may establish a city for a dwelling place, 37 And sow fields and plant vineyards, That they may yield a fruitful harvest. 38 He also blesses them, and they multiply greatly; And He does not let their cattle decrease.

39 When they are diminished and brought low Through oppression, affliction, and sorrow, 40 He pours contempt on princes, And causes them to wander in the wilderness where there is no way; 41 Yet He sets the poor on high, far from affliction, And makes their families like a flock. 42 The righteous see it and rejoice, And all iniquity stops its mouth.

a. What does it mean to exalt Him in the assembly of the people and the company of elders?

b. What happens to a land due to the wickedness of its people? Is this personal on God's part?

c. What makes Him turn the dry land into water springs?

d. What happens after He blesses the people? Why do blessed people become diminished?

e. What mindset keeps us from being brought low?