Talk 1: The Waiting Room
Talk 2: The Gift of Lament
Talk 3: Reframing Your Life
Talk 4: The Third Way
Talk 5: The New Temple
Talk 6: Already-But Not Yet
How Did We Get Here?
Description
How Did We Get Here?
Making Sense of Life When Everything Falls Apart
Talk 1: The Waiting Room
WELCOME to our exciting new series, HOW DID WE GET HERE?
Making Sense of Life When Everything Falls Apart—A Bible Study on The Exile.
The Exile is about the Babylonian conquest of the Kingdom of Judah, led by King Nebuchadnezzar II. It occurred in major waves between 597 and 586 BCE.
It resulted in the destruction of Jerusalem, the razing of Solomon’s Temple, and the forced exile of the Jewish population to Babylon. This period, known as the Babylonian Captivity, lasted until the Persian conquest in 538 BCE.
The Jewish Exile lasted for 70 years.
Our Lord Jesus had the Cross as His Waiting Room.
The key message of Talk 1 is: God is in your Waiting Room.
Talk 2: The Gift of Lament
WELCOME to the second chapter of our series, HOW DID WE GET HERE? Making Sense of Life When Everything Falls Apart—A Bible Study on The Exile.
Before the Exile, everyone felt safe in Jerusalem. After all, they were the Chosen Ones. God promised Abraham the land where they were living.
But in 587 B.C., the superpower of the time, Babylon, invaded their city. And Jerusalem’s impregnable walls toppled. Most of all, their beloved Temple—God’s House—was ransacked, desecrated, and burned down. And the people were slaughtered on the streets or carried away to Babylon to become slaves.
Talk 1 is The Waiting Room.
Talk 2 is The Gift of Lament.
If the book of Psalms is 35% lament, and the book of Job is 85% lament, Lamentations is 100% lament.
But the Good News is God was with the Israelites in their long years of laments.
The key message of Talk 2 is: “I may be exiled, but I am not abandoned.”
Talk 3: Reframing Your Life
The Popular Promise: Jeremiah 29:11 is one of the most beloved verses in the Bible, but it was originally spoken to people who had lost absolutely everything—prisoners and deportees in Babylon.
The Meaning of Shalom: The “prosperity” God promises is Shalom, which refers to wholeness and right relationships with God, others, and self, rather than mere material wealth.
The Call to Engage: God didn’t tell the exiles to escape or wait for it to end; He told them to build, plant, and pray for the prosperity of their enemy city.
The Ultimate Reframe: The Exile wasn’t just a geographical displacement; it was a spiritual journey to bring God’s people back to their true home—God Himself.
The Key Message: God has plans for your shalom.
Talk 4: The Third Way
WELCOME to Talk 4 of our series, HOW DID WE GET HERE? Making Sense of Life When Everything Falls Apart—A Bible Study on The Exile.
Before the Exile, the Jews lived in Jerusalem, Israel, part of the Promised Land, the land God awarded to Abraham. But in 587 B.C., the superpower of the time, Babylon, invaded their city.
So far, we talked about…
Talk 1: The Waiting Room
Talk 2: The Gift of Lament
Talk 3: Reframing Your Life
The Israelites faced two ways to respond to the Babylonian conquest:
- Rebel
- Compromise
But in Talk 4, we talk about the The Third Way: Follow God yet bless their enemies. Because they did not obey the king, three of the leaders were thrown into a fire. But the King saw the three men unharmed, walking around the fire with a fourth man who “looks like a son of the gods.”
The key message? God is in the fire.
Talk 5: The New Temple
WELCOME to Talk 5 of our series, HOW DID WE GET HERE? Making Sense of Life When Everything Falls Apart—A Bible Study on The Exile.
The New Temple. A new world superpower, Persia, defeated Babylon. Persia did not set the Israelites free, but it allowed the Israelites to go back home to Jerusalem. They returned and rebuilt a new Temple. But it was not as grand as their former Temple. God did not intend for them to have just a building or a house. God gave them a Person as their New Temple–Jesus Christ. He would live in them, and they would be God’s House. That’s what you are now.
The key message of Talk 5 is: You Are God’s House.
Talk 6: Already– But Not Yet
Talk 6 is titled Already– But Not Yet because yes, God’s House– we– are already up. But we are not yet complete. We’re caught in this tension between already redeemed by Jesus, yet still waiting to be fully redeemed by Jesus.
The key message of Talk 6 is: God’s House is still under construction.
The key message: Don’t fight alone.
