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SESSION ONE
WELCOMED: THE JOY OF COMMUNITY
MEMORY VERSE “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” [ JOHN 13:34, 35 ] P | 3
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THE LIFE OF CHRISTIAN FAITH IS A SHARED JOURNEY. You can read and study and explore on your own, you can learn about Jesus and his teachings. You can get the facts about faith. But it’s when you join others on the journey that the fun begins.
In other words, you don’t have to go on this journey alone.
And in fact, by just showing up, you’ve taken an important step. You’re sitting right now with a group of other people who want to join you on this journey—and who need you to come along with them as well. You are welcomed into community.
What if, when we embark on the adventure of faith with like-minded travelers, God smiles and says, “yes—that’s how I’d hoped they would do it”? What if seeing our isolation eased by community makes him glad?
THAT’S WHAT WE’RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT IN THIS SESSION.
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SHARE YOUR STORY
Each of us has a story.
The events of our life—good, bad, challenging or wonderful—have shaped who we are. God knows your story, and he intends to redeem it—to use every struggle and every joy to ultimately bring you to himself. When we tell our stories, sharing them with others, we give others the opportunity to see God at work.
When we share our stories, we realize we are not alonethat we have common experiences and thoughts, and that others can understand what we are going through. Your story can encourage someone else, and telling it can be a path to freedom for you, and for those you share it with.
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BEGIN YOUR TIME TOGETHER. As you begin at this first meeting, take time to pass around a copy of the Small Group Roster on page ???, a sheet of paper, or one of you pass your Study Guide, opened to the Small Group Roster. Have everyone write down their contact information. Ask someone to make copies or type up a list with everyone’s information and email it to the group this week. Then, begin your time together by using the following questions and activities to get people talking. 1. Describe one incident or event from your childhood that shaped your understanding of the word “faith.”
2. Now look at this continuum, and circle the number of the statement that resonate most with your current situation. 1) Not sure I believe in God, 2) I believe in God but am not sure about Jesus, 3) I am early in my relationship with Jesus, 4) I feel very close to Jesus and depend on him daily for guidance, or 5) My relationship with Christ is the most important relationship in my life.
3. What are you hoping to get out of this group?
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REFLECT & REVIEW TOGETHER
Whether your group is new or
We recommend that you
ongoing, it’s always important
rotate host homes on a
to reflect on and review your
regular basis and let the hosts
values together. On pages
lead the meeting. We’ve
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come to realize that healthy
Agreement with the values
groups rotate leadership.
we’ve found most useful in
This helps to develop every
sustaining healthy, balanced
member’s ability to shepherd
groups. We recommend
a few people in a safe
that you choose one or two
environment. Even Jesus
values—ones you haven’t
gave others the opportunity
previously focused on or
to serve alongside him (Mark
have room to grow in—to
6:30–44). Look at the FAQs
emphasize during this study.
in the Appendix additional
Choose ones that will take
information about hosting or
your group to the next stage
leading the group.
of intimacy and spiritual health.
The Small Group Calendar on
If your group is new, welcome
who will host and lead each
newcomers. Introduce
meeting. Take a few minutes
everyone—you may even
to plan hosts and leaders for
want to have name tags for
your remaining meetings.
your first meeting.
Don’t pass this up! It will
page ??? is a tool for planning
revolutionize your group.
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WATCH THE DVD FOR THIS SESSION NOW.
HEAR
GOD’S STORY God uses stories to guide us. When we read the true stories of Scripture, we learn what God is like. We see His plan unfolding. And we learn principles for our own lives. How can we become a part of God’s story? By aligning our stories with His. By not just understanding what it means to follow Him, but actually doing it—changing our attitudes and actions to live as he would live. Use the following questions to guide your discussion of the Bible passage below—which records the words of Jesus in a conversation with his disciples. (You may want to look up the full conversation in your Bible). The study notes on page ?? can help you understand more of the background of this passage.
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READ JOHN 15:9-17
USE THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS TO GUIDE YOUR DISCUSSION OF THE TEACHING AND STORIES YOU JUST
4. How does being loved (even humanly speaking) affect our ability to love others?
EXPERIENCED, AND THE BIBLE PASSAGE BELOW.
“As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. 12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. 17 This is my command: Love each other. 9
5. If you read verse 13, what conclusions would you draw about the Christian faith and its values when it comes to community?
6. According to verse 16, who initiated your relationship with Jesus— even if you are just beginning to explore faith?
1. What do you think Jesus meant when he said “remain in my love”? Can you think of a human relationship in which you’ve “remained” in someone’s love? What’s involved or required to maintain that?
2. What will remaining in Jesus’ love enable us to do?
3. What do you think of when you hear the phrase “the Father’s commands”?
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SHARE A STORY of a time you were “chosen” for a team or group. How did that feel? P | 14
STUDY NOTES
Explore the Bible passages related to this session’s theme as a group (if there is time) or on your own between sessions.
CREATE A NEW STORY
Lay down one’s life…Jesus has this conversation with his disciples right before he is arrested and killed by the religious and government authorities. He was not speaking figuratively, he literally lay his life down and died for his friends, and for all of humanity (See also 1 John 3:16). While we may never be called to martyrdom, it can be difficult to “lay down” lesser things than our physical life. For example, laying down our rights, or laying down our need to have things go our way, can be challenging. The life of faith calls
God knows your story, and he is inviting you to weave your story into His. That might mean considering a new direction. This is a process, and won’t happen overnight—but it should happen steadily. By small, simple choices, we begin to change. We let go of guilt, and move toward freedom. We move toward love, toward joy, and realize that these steps are moving us forward on our journey of faith. The Holy Spirit helps us along the
us to be unselfish. Ultimately, that unselfishness is rewarding—but
way: giving us gifts to serve the body, offering us insights into Scripture,
challenging. The good news is, others around us in our community
challenging us to love not only those around us but those far from God.
help us by their example and encouragement. We can lay down our
One of the clear catalysts that our research shows causes movement is to
lives when we truly know that God will provide all we need. It’s all
be a part of a community. We grow in faith when we’re loved by others, and
about trust. We tend to protect our own lives because we believe
have an opportunity to love them as well.
that if we don’t take care of ourselves, no one else will. But Jesus asks us to trust him.
Love…In our culture, the word love is overused and misunderstood. We use the same word to describe our enthusiasm for a hobby (“I just love reading mystery novels”) as we do to describe our love for our spouse, family or even God. Ancient Greek, the original language of the New Testament, had at least three words that meant love. Agape is used to describe selfless, active love. It differs from phileo (warm friendship or brotherly love) and eros (romantic or sexual love). In this passage, we see the verb agapomen, a verb form of agape that implies a strong command—do this! God’s love for us is anything but casual. It is deep, unconditional, and willing to sacrifice. It takes the initiative, but puts the other first. (See 1 Corinthians 13). Because God first loved us in this way, we’re able to love others with similar intensity and selflessness. In fact, we can’t love others without God first loving us. God loves us, so then we can love others.. P | 15
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In this section, talk about how you will apply what you’ve learned so far. Then think about practical steps you can take in the coming week to live out what you’ve learned.
1. Who is your closest friend? What would you say caused you to become good friends? What connects you?
2. What barriers have you encountered in your journey of faith? What is one thing you can do to dismantle just one of those barriers?
3. Jesus told us to love one another. What is one thing that would change in your life if you were to love people—not just with your friends and family but all people?
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4. The Bible passage says that Jesus appointed us to bear fruit. What do you think that means? Who is someone you know that seems to be “bearing fruit” in their spiritual life?
5. What spiritual fruit are you longing to see in your own life? Do you wish you were more loving or patient or kind, for example? Or something else?
6. The journey toward faith will help you get closer to God. This week, how will you nurture that connection? Can you commit to spending time in daily prayer or study of God’s word (use the Daily Devotions section to guide you)? Tell the group how you plan to follow Jesus this week, and then, at your next meeting, talk about your progress and challenges.
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TO CLOSE
To close your time together, spend some time worshiping God together—praying, singing, reading Scripture.
Have someone use their musical gifts to lead the group in a worship song. Try singing á capela, using a worship CD, or have some one accompany your singing with a musical instrument.
Read a passage of Scripture together, making it a time of praise and worship as the words remind you of all God has done for you. Choose a psalm or other favorite verse.
Ask everyone to share: “How can we pray for you this week?” Be sure to write prayer requests on your Prayer and Praise Report on page ???.
Close your meeting with prayer.
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FOR ADDITIONAL STUDY
Read Ephesians 4:29-32 Don’t use bad language. Say only what is good and helpful to those you are talking to, and what will give them a blessing. 29
SCAN NOW GET EXTRA CONTENT FOR YOUR STUDY.
If you feel God nudging you to go deeper, take some time between now and our next meeting to dig into His word. Explore the Bible passages related to this session’s theme on your own, jotting your reflections in a journal or in this study guide. A great way to gain insight on a passage is to read it in several different translations. You may want to use a Bible app or website to compare translations.
Don’t cause the Holy Spirit sorrow by the way you live. Remember, he is the one who marks you to be present on that day when salvation from sin will be complete. 30
Stop being mean, bad-tempered, and angry. Quarreling, harsh words, and dislike of others should have no place in your lives. 32 Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God has forgiven you because you belong to Christ. 31
4. What specific words would you say to give them a blessing? (In some translations, verse 29 says we should say “only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs.” What words would build others up?
5. What specific sort of things would you say are “harsh words”? Do you ever find yourself saying those type of words?
6. Verse 32 says one distinctive of Christian community is forgiveness. Most of us want to be in a community that forgives us when we mess up. However, being someone who forgives others is not as easy. In other words, it’s wonderful to be forgiven—but what benefits are there to being someone who forgives others?
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DAILY
DEVOTIONALS During the week between meetings, keep walking on your journey of faith by reading and reflecting on God’s word. Each day, read the verse given. Take your time. Imagine that Jesus is sitting with you. Then, imagine him saying the words in the “reflect” section to you—reassuring you with his presence and loving you with his words of comfort and strength. After reflecting on Jesus’ words to you, take some time to journal your response back to him. You can write whatever’s on your heart. Answer the “respond” question only if it’s helpful. You may want to go another direction and that is exactly what you’re free to do. On the first day, you may want to read over all the verses for the week to get the “big picture” of the passage. But then walk slowly verse by verse, listening to Jesus and responding to him as you meditate on the truths of Scripture and experience his presence.
DAY 1:
READ: ROMANS 12:10-11
Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. REFLECT When you seek to promote yourself, you actually isolate yourself. The path to life-giving community begins, my child, with thinking first of others. This isn’t easy to do, because it goes against your human nature. But if you seek to serve me and know me, I’ll help you to honor others. When you devote yourself to others, it comes back to you—so don’t be afraid to honor others. RESPOND How does loving others impact your spiritual “zeal”?
DAY 2:
READ ROMANS 12:12
Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. REFLECT I know all about the things that afflict you, that test your patience, my child. I know how weary you get. But don’t give up. Be patient, be faithful. You’re not alone. I’m there for you, helping you along. When you put your faith in me, you’re going to grow in joy, you’ll be more patient, you’ll be strengthened to pray. I’ll change you from the inside out. Trust me. RESPOND What afflictions are you dealing with right now? What do you need from Jesus?
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DAY 3:
READ ROMANS 12:13
Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality. REFLECT The faith I’m inviting you into is not just about you. It’s about being a part of a community—and that extends beyond your normal circles. It includes those who are in need. When you love others by welcoming them into your circle or around your table, when you provide for those who are hurting—you’re forging a stronger relationship with me. You’re discovering what it means to live in faith. RESPOND What would it look like to practice hospitality, even in the context of this group?
DAY 4:
DAY 5:
READ ROMANS 12:16
Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited. REFLECT My followers live in harmony—not in a push conflict under the rug sort of way. Rather, they work out conflicts with love and patience. They chose not to hold grudges, to forgive and to love. The community of my followers is not interested in social climbing, or in grabbing the admiration of others. Rather, they just love—without regard to social status or position. RESPOND Who is someone of higher position than you, who was willing to associate with you? How did that make you feel?
READ ROMANS 12:14-15
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. REFLECT An essential component of Christian faith, and Christian community, is empathy. I don’t just want you to hang out with one another, engaging in superficial chitchat. I’m inviting you to something deeper—a community where you are kind even to those who don’t return the favor. Where you build connections by coming alongside one another in good times and bad. RESPOND What does it look like to “mourn with those who mourn”? Who needs you to mourn with them right now?
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SUMMARY
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