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Havruta #1

Havruta Worksheet I

Matthew 17-20 (October 5, 2021)

Havruta should be done with a partner, but then each partner must individually upload their responses to Learning Suite. For questions 1-8 you can copy and share the same answers if you wish. Questions 9-12, however, require individual responses. Remember when reading Havruta style that you read a verse, stop and discuss, then rotate reading another verse, stop and discuss, etc. until you’re finished with selected passage. Note: you should read Matthew chapters 17-20, but not all of it will be done Havruta style, only selected passages noted below.

Partern Questions

  1. (Read Matthew 17:1-8 with your partner and discuss) Whenever God introduces Christ he always says, “This is my beloved Son, hear him.” Why is this important?

    Heavenly Father’s declaration gives credibility to Christ being the Son of God, proof that they are separate beings, faith building experiences for Jesus Christ, shows that Heavenly Father speaks through Jesus Christ, and that it's only through Jesus Christ that we can be saved.

  2. (Read Matthew 17:14-21 with your partner & discuss) Why does Christ choose the imagery of a grain of mustard seed & moving a mountain? What do you know about these two objects?

    A mustard seed is very small, while a mountain is really big. Thus, he shows that even the smallest amount of faith can do amazing things.

  3. (Read Matthew 18:1-6, & 10 with your partner & discuss) What does it mean to humble oneself as a little child? Why are those who do this the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? What are other characteristics associated with children that Christ might also want us to develop?

    Children trust that parents know best, so they are willing to trust them when the parents give them advice. They are teachable and don’t pretend like they know everything. They also don’t put themselves above their friends and they’re very inclusive. Those that become as little children will also attain their purity. That purity is what is important in the kingdom of heaven, and it’s what will make someone “the greatest”. Some other child-like characteristics are love and selflessness, their desire to share. They also are very simple. Their communication is very simple and kind.

  4. (Read Matthew 18:21-35 with your partner & discuss) What is the symbolism of Christ commanding us to forgive seventy times seven the brother who sins against us? How is forgiveness connected to the parable of the debtor?

    The answer to the first question is that we need to forgive all those who wrong us, even if the offense is repeated by the offender. God forgives us when we come to him and truly repent. He always forgives us when we practice repentance. Therefore we need to show the same mercy by forgiving those who have wronged us.

  5. What would you say are some of the main general themes in the whole of chapter 18?

    Some of the themes are loving your neighbor, humility, and purity.

  6. (Read Matthew 19:16-29 with your partner & discuss) When the rich young man asks Jesus, “What lack I yet?” instead of telling him to go and obtain more, he tells him to sacrifice all that he has. Why does he do this? Any application to us today?

    When the young man asks “What lack I yet?” Jesus tells him what he lacks, but what he lacks comes at a price. What he lacks is treasures in heaven, and the price of that is all his worldly wealth. Thus, Jesus is explaining that the young man has to sacrifice his love of the world in order to show his desire to truly attain the kingdom of heaven. The same goes for us. If we want to attain eternal life, we can’t be attached to the things of the world. It’s not bad to have material goods, but if we love that more than God, we can’t attain the kingdom of heaven.

  7. (Read Matthew 19:30-20:16 with your partner & discuss) What does it mean, “many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first”? How does the parable of the laborers in the vineyard illustrate this and how does this apply to us today? How does this parable fit with the notion of God’s fairness?

    That God is fair with all those who decide to come to him, Those that chose to follow Jesus Christ in the beginning will receive the same reward as those who choose to follow him towards the end. This principle is illustrated by laborers that ask the master for work at different points in the day, but at the end of the day they all receive the same amount of money. This applies to us today in the fact that there are many members of the church who have been members there whole lives and many who join the Church late in their lives, but all of us are promised eternal life if we labor all the day long. It fits in the sense that God is perfectly fair and that he desires that all return to His presence one day.

  8. Write a suggestion for another pericope that could become a part of this assignment in the future from this reading and offer possible questions to help inspire discussion about them.

    Maybe another suggestion could be Matthew 18:6-14, which Christ uses to explain offending others and the need not to cause offense. It may also be referring to sin, but I believe that both could be explained using this story. As well these verses talk about the lost sheep.

    Questions: Why does the Lord compare the act of removing body parts to removing sin or offensiveness? How can the story of removing body parts that cause offense, relate to the lost sheep and how “the Son of man is come to save that which was lost”?

Individual Responses

  1. Share 2 verses from today’s reading that stood out to you and explain why.

    I really liked the verses about the young rich man (Matthew 19:20-21). As we discussed the question “what lack I yet?” and Jesus’ response, I began to realize that in everything Jesus asks us to do, he isn’t just asking us to give up everything with nothing in return. He’s giving us the price tag for the “treasures in heaven”, the greatest of which is eternal life.

    Other verses that touched me were Matthew 18:23-35. Reading it today, it struck me the pettiness of some of the “debts” for which we “require payment”. Christ suffered so much because of me and the sins that I commit against others, but he freely forgave me. Yet, I feel I am justified in being angry with and holding a grudge against someone who made a simple thoughtless comment. That has no logic to it whatsoever. That’s pride and selfishness.

  2. Who is your study partner and what was something your partner shared that you found insightful or hadn’t considered before?

    My study partner was Jakob Carver. One thing that he shared that I thought was insightful was when we were discussing becoming like little children. He mentioned that children that die before the age of 8 are going to go directly to the celestial kingdom, and mentioned that the reason they’d inherit it is because of their purity. That lead into a brief discussion of how the greatest in the kingdom of God are those that are the purest. That was something that I hadn’t thought about before in that sense.

  3. What worked well or didn’t work well in your Havruta session?

    I felt like we were a little pressed for time. We didn’t have time to discuss many of the verses in depth, especially as we neared the end. However, I still appreciated the new perspective that I received from the activity.

  4. Do you feel like your Havruta session was given equal effort by both partners?

    Yes