The Promise. (week one)

The first week of the "The Promise" is an overview of the Old Testament. The following questions will help your group to talk about the big picture of the OT, and focus on the need for Jesus to intervene.

What is the best movie you have ever seen? What makes it so good?
If you were going to describe the perfect story, what are the key elements you would use?
How would you explain the “big story” of the Bible to someone? What are the key elements?
When you think about the Old Testament, what are the main stories that come to mind?
What are your favorite parts of the Old Testament? What are your least favorite parts? Why?
Read Genesis 1:26-31; Genesis 12:1-3; Exodus 6:6-8. How would you describe the relationship God desires to have with men?
Read Jeremiah 7:21-29. Why did the nation of Israel fail to maintain their relationship with God? How do you sometimes act the same way?
Read Matthew 1:23. How did God “fix” the mess humanity made during the Old Testament?
Jesus was the answer to the Old Testament’s problems. How is Jesus the answer in your life?

Comments

Discussion Questions for Easter

Have several people ask the question, “What’s the most important thing you’ve ever done?” Ask other people, “What do you hope to accomplish in the next several years of your life?” Tell your class that today you’ll be talking about “life mission” or the one most important thing you do that drives everything else. Tell them that Jesus’ resurrection from the dead is the defining moment in history, so it should be the defining moment in our lives. Read 1 Corinthians 15:12-19. How does the resurrection impact some of the crucial beliefs of Christianity? How would Christianity be different if there was no resurrection? How would you be different without the resurrection? Read 1 Corinthians 15:50-58. What are some specific ways that the resurrection gives us hope? If you had been a friend of Jesus when he was on earth, how would the resurrection have impacted your life? How do you think his followers then were effected by the resurrection? Read 1 Corinthian...

FIGHT CLUB! (iron sharpening iron)

Our youth pastor, Keith Sandison, has implemented "Fight Clubs" with the young men of our church. While these teenagers and young adults aren't actually pummeling each other physically, they are using the opportunity to aggressively challenge one another to be more attentive to their spiritual formation. Right now my son is participating in a fight club focusing on Proverbs. I love it. Keith has created a handout he uses for the fight clubs which lists seven different methods of "generic Bible study". I think the idea started with this post a few years ago, but as he often does; Keith took my thoughts and made them immensely more substantive and beneficial. Check out his system below:

Community Killers Part Four: Complaining

Nothing can tear a group apart faster or more effectively than a spirit of complaining. For some reason, complaints seem to breed faster than rabbits. Once one person’s complaining goes unchecked, it won’t be long until others have joined in and eventually the entire group is sucked into a hopeless vortex of swirling complaints. Often these complaints have little to do with the group, but they have the potential to sideswipe and destroy a group meeting, or if left unchecked, an entire group. Complaints may cover a variety of subjects. Group members might complain about their job, their day, their neighbor, their spouse, or even the church. The role of the leader is to deal with these complaints in a way which is formative for the person, instructive for the group, and glorifying to God. Because a LIFEgroup should be a place where people share their struggles and receive support and prayer, it can sometimes be difficult to know when someone is sharing a difficulty or...

Creative Community

Search This Blog