What difference does faith make when we’re suffering? Job lost everything but was able to hold onto his faith in God. His confident assertion that his life would continue beyond his death creates an important marker in the Old Testament Scriptures about belief in resurrection. We are able to look back on Jesus’ resurrection as strong confirmation of our own future life after death. Let’s consider how faith and hope in the future change life and suffering in our present. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: 1. Read Job 19:21-27 (and the whole chapter if you can), paying special attention to Job’s statement of faith in verses 25-27. How would you describe Job’s relationship with God and his faith at this moment? Job was “overwhelmed” at the thought of seeing God. Create some quiet time and space to consider the possibility and implications of actually seeing God. 2. Read 1 Corinthians 15:35-58. What connections do you find between the hope of our life after death and Jesus’ resurrection? a. What observations can you make about our existence, life, and body after resurrection? b. What significance can you find in Jesus’ resurrected body being the model for the “spiritual bodies” Paul describes? (you could quickly record observations about Jesus’ resurrection body from Luke 24:13-49) c. What questions do you still have about the next life and our bodies? 3. What did you hear this weekend that inspired you, challenged you, or sparked disagreement or further consideration? 4. If you were suffering like Job, why would holding strong in a belief in the resurrection be important for you? How has holding onto faith during times of suffering proven valuable to you and also been difficult? 5. How does our confidence in eternal life and resurrection from the dead change the ways that we live right now as we consider: a. Our values and morality: b. Our investments and generosity: c. Our suffering and difficulties: 6. How does the truth of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead give you hope for your future resurrection? What do you anticipate with the greatest joy and expectation about life after death?