Sermon Based Group Homework
For the message on October 13 , 2019
Passage: Matthew 5:13-16
QUICK REVIEW
This Sunday, Mike continued our series on identity by showing us that identity is not just about who we are, but why we’re here on Earth.
GETTING TO KNOW YOU
Why do you think God placed you on earth? Has your idea and sense of purpose changed through the years since you were a kid?
LET’S GO DEEPER
1. Opportunities to serve and be a light to others in small but significant ways occur randomly around all of us every day. It’s been said that our impact on others is usually not one single act, but many acts of service piled together. As you read the story in Luke 10:30-36 of the Good Samaritan and his random opportunity to serve, make a list of all the ways he served the man who was robbed.
Luke 10:30-36 (ESV)
30 Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. 31 Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. 32 So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. 34 He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ 36 Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?”
- Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?
- In the list you wrote above, which one comes easiest to you? Which one is the most challenging?
2. After a message like we heard this weekend, most of us are charged up and ready to serve, living out our calling and purpose to put others first. Yet, it’s also frustrating when we suddenly find the passion and action of serving fading away. How does Deuteronomy 8:10-18 help keep us “others-focused”?
Deuteronomy 8:10-18 (ESV)
10 And you shall eat and be full, and you shall bless the LORD your God for the good land he has given you. 11 “Take care lest you forget the LORD your God by not keeping his commandments and his rules and his statutes, which I command you today, 12 lest, when you have eaten and are full and have built good houses and live in them, 13 and when your herds and flocks multiply and your silver and gold is multiplied and all that you have is multiplied, 14 then your heart be lifted up, and you forget the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, 15 who led you through the great and terrifying wilderness, with its fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty ground where there was no water, who brought you water out of the flinty rock, 16 who fed you in the wilderness with manna that your fathers did not know, that he might humble you and test you, to do you good in the end. 17 Beware lest you say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.’ 18 You shall remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth, that he may confirm his covenant that he swore to your fathers, as it is this day.
- An attitude of gratitude and thankfulness is directly related to our ability to serve others. Agree/Disagree?
3. Fortunately, the same Spirit that God gave the disciples is also available to all of us who are genuine followers of Jesus. That means we have a supernatural resource to help us serve and make changes that we never thought possible. Read the following passages and identify the Spirit’s role in empowering us for ministry.
Acts 1:8 (ESV)
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
John 14:26 (ESV)
26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.
John 15:4-5 (ESV)
4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.
- Can you think of any reasons why God is so concerned about people relying on his power for service and ministry and not just their own power?
- Can you think of any examples in your own life that have been helpful in reminding you of your need to rely on God’s power?
TAKE IT HOME
1. What is your biggest takeaway from this sermon and study?
2. Do you have any prayer requests for your group?
Prayer Requests:
