SERMON BASED RESOURCES
Dig into the sermon each week with your life group, spiritual growth partner, or even by yourself! We’ll provide ideas to jump start your group time (Opener Questions: for building community), discussion questions to go deep (Discussion Questions: for fostering Christ Centered community), and ways to apply what you learned throughout the week (Practical Applications: for faithfully following Jesus through your week).
Opener Questions
- If you ever wrote a book, what would it be about?
- Do you have any hopes for the upcoming holiday season? Any habits or rhythms you’re hoping to continue, stop, or change?
Discussion Questions:
1. What passages of Scripture are you interacting with lately? How is it forming your view of God? Of yourself? Of how you live in light of who God is?
2. The Story so far… read Acts 14:21-28. Find some similarities to the passage we are studying today.
3. Get a feel for this narrative by reading through it (Acts 15:1-35). What’s the central tension in this text? What solution does the Jerusalem council arrive at?
4. Consider the manner in which this conflict is solved. What practices do you see in this text that help the early church to work toward a unanimous decision? How might we use this model as we encounter conflict in the church? How can we use the resources Jesus provides to help us achieve the peace that Jesus envisioned?
5. To what extent are your lifestyle and religious customs required for all Christians, and to what extent are they just cultural and personal preferences? Think of some specific examples. How should this distinction affect the way you view the practices of other Christians? How can we work towards having the same discerning, gracious attitude toward others that is displayed in Acts 15?
6. Meditate this week on the liberating truth decided at Jerusalem. Why is it important for you? How does it affect your actions? How is this central truth strengthening and encouraging you as you continue in the faith?
7. Read 1 Corinthians 15 + 16, 2 Corinthians 1-3 for next week. The sermon passage will be Acts 15:36-41.
Practical Applications
Dinnertime Discussions: Take some time to consider the diversity of the body of Christ. Have you experienced another expression of the body of Christ outside of Woodlands? → Now think of the diversity of churches, at this moment in time, that are worshipping God through grace found in Jesus Christ across the globe. → And then go a step further, think of those different expressions across time. → Spend some time in worship and praise for the simplicity of the gospel and the unity it brings amongst the diverse body of Christ across time and space. Amazing grace, indeed!
Gospel in Everyday Life: Be intentional to spend time with someone who does not yet know Jesus. Listen closely for any additions or subtractions to the gospel that are influencing them. How might you help them to see the simplicity of the gospel?
Developing Disciplines: Read and reflect on Matt 11:28-30. Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal any burdensome yokes that have been added to your pursuit of Jesus. Turn these burdens over to the Lord and speak the simple truth of Jesus having carried everything to the cross on your behalf. Rest in this reality.
Practicing Prayer: In Acts 15, the leaders come together honestly, intentionally, and prayerfully. Pray for our church leaders, that they would be fully led by the Spirit and be in one accord as they lead Woodlands Church.
Journal Prompt: Is there anyone you feel like you are disputing with currently? What can you do to “come to one accord?” Whether they are believers or not, how does this dispute tarnish the gospel?
Verse Memory: “We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that we are saved” Acts 15:11