What has been the most memorable promise someone has ever made to you? How did it change your behaviour or the course of your life?

Do you agree that God’s most basic response to human rebellion is one of grace and promise? How might the Christian Churches bring this to better reflection in their mission and ministry?

God’s promise of restoration is directed to 1) the human heart, as he promises to deal with human sin and rebellion 2) human relationships, as he promises to reconcile people to one another, and 3) all created reality, as he promises the new heavens and the new earth.

* Which of these areas has tended to receive the most focus in Christian teaching? Does this perceived emphasis reflect the fullness of the Bible’s teaching?

* How could Christians and the Christian Church conduct themselves differently so as to address this perceived imbalance?

God’s plan of salvation is as concerned with physical realities as it is with spiritual realities.

* How does this truth challenge or comfort you?

* What challenges does this present to you church, or to how you live as a follower of Jesus?

Who, in your experience, has been the greatest example of how the message of Jesus brings holistic transformation to all of life?