Questions

What’s a question?

Jesus Asked Questions…307 of them

When worrying

Matthew 6:25–30 ESV

25 “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? 28 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

When judging one another

Matthew 6:3–4 ESV

3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

When people were trying to trick Him

Matthew 22:17–22 ESV

17 Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?” 18 But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, “Why put me to the test, you hypocrites? 19 Show me the coin for the tax.” And they brought him a denarius. 20 And Jesus said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” 21 They said, “Caesar’s.” Then he said to them, “Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” 22 When they heard it, they marveled. And they left him and went away.

Why did He ask questions?

Engagement

Questions built relationships

Forced those he was interacting with to have to think

Created conversations

His listeners were more likely to own their own conclusions

He sometimes answered questions with questions of his own

He sometimes asked warm up questions to get the conversation started

Why are questions so Powerful?

Asking questions buys you time on what to say

Asking questions builds trust and deepens relationships

This can happen in many ways, but asking appropriate and meaningful questions—at the right time for the right reason to the right people—is one of the best. When we ask questions of others and truly want to engage with them, we communicate that they matter. It develops intimacy. It helps people to lean in. When leaders create safe places for others and invite their involvement, people feel comfortable to open up.

Asking questions embodies humility

The humblest leaders I know are the ones who ask questions frequently—and then have the discipline to stop talking and listen intently to the opinion of others. The encounter between Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well was life-altering for her, but the interaction was initiated when Jesus asked a question, “Will you give me a drink?” Many at the time would consider this conversation off limits. In fact, the woman expressed surprise that he designed to talk with her. Yet, with this question, Jesus humbly led with his own need.

Asking questions creates surprise … and discomfort

Socrates believed questions were like gadflies, which were known for biting horses and causing irritation. The discomfort would make the horse react. That old philosopher was happy to have the same effect on complacent Athenians.

Jesus was not one to shy away from challenge—and questions were frequently the vehicle for challenging his listeners.

Asking questions encourages curiosity and stokes imagination

Questions can be billows blowing oxygen on a fading fire. They cultivate new ways of thinking, awakening latent desires and stoking people’s imagination. Jesus often asks questions that help people explore the rule and the reign of his Father: the kingdom of God. In the parables of the mustard seed and the yeast Jesus asks,

Luke 13:18–20 ESV

18 He said therefore, “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it? 19 It is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his garden, and it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.” 20 And again he said, “To what shall I compare the kingdom of God?

Jesus may be asking himself those questions, but he invites his hearers into the process, and he launches a journey of imagination with the stories and word-pictures that follow.

Asking questions invites us to voice our desires

Questions can invite and even challenge us to voice what we desire. Even when the leader may know the answer, it’s important for people to verbalize what they long for.

Asking questions invites our participation

When we merely receive information, we’re generally in a passive posture. But when we’re asked questions, our brains are much more engaged. We are invited to participate.

What Kinds of Questions do you ask?

Closed questions

Open questions

Funnel questions, building questions off each other

Leading questions

Recall and process questions

Rhetorical questions

Use questions to glorify God and start conversations about Him

Questions need to be used with Grace and Love

1 Peter 3:15 ESV

15 but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,

Practice Round:

Hererra, how was your week?

What did you do?

Hey you mind if i ask you a crazy question?

Where do you think you get your morals of knowing right and wrong?

How did you come to that conclusion?

Discussion Questions:

Why did Jesus ask questions? What made them work so well?

Have you ever had a time where someone asked you a question that you couldn’t think about?