Deeper by Dane Ortlund
Week 3: Chapter 2 — Despair
Read Chapter 2 of Deeper by Dane Ortlund. Key passages: Romans 7:14–25; 2 Corinthians 12:9–10.
Previewing Week 3 of Deeper
Read 3 of 8 discussion questions below. Unlock the complete 11-week guide when you’re ready.
In a surprising move, Ortlund argues that despair — the felt sense of our own hopelessness — is not an obstacle to growth but one of its most important catalysts. Sit with that idea before you answer these questions.
Discussion Questions
8 questions1.Ortlund's claim that despair is a *friend* of sanctification, not an enemy, is counterintuitive. What is your gut reaction to that idea? Does it feel like a dangerous invitation to passivity, or does it resonate with your experience?
2.Ortlund distinguishes between worldly despair (which leads to death) and a gospel-shaped despair (which empties us of self-reliance and throws us onto Christ). What marks the difference between the two? How would you recognize which kind you're experiencing?
3.Paul's anguished cry in Romans 7 — "Who will deliver me from this body of death?" — is treated by Ortlund as a statement of spiritual health, not spiritual failure. Does that reframe how you have read Romans 7? What does it mean that Paul asks *who* will deliver him rather than *what*?