Session 1: Leader's Guide
Session 1: Introduction
Key point: A good spiritual leader must be a good follower of Jesus.
- sub-point 1: a follower of Jesus has relational experiences with Jesus
- sub-point 2: a good spiritual leader grows in their intimacy with Jesus
Leader notes:
- Divide the class into groups of 3-4.
- Distribute journals
- Spend time allowing the clan groups to introduce themselves to each other(Name, why in the course, what they hope to get at the end)
Introduction
Welcome to Journey in the Wilderness. This course geared towards helping people become effective and faithful followers of Jesus Christ. The call to follow Jesus carries several stipulations that are important for any disciple of Christ to know because these stipulations affect the way we live. The decision to follow Jesus isn’t something to be considered lightly. Jesus tells us that those that follow Him should expect to receive the same treatment He did while on this earth. Jesus was scorned and rejected by the leaders of his day. He was abandoned by his close friends and family. He was imprisoned, tortured and eventually killed. Jesus lived a life of suffering, and he promises the same life to his followers. Before we choose to make Jesus the boss of our lives and follow Him we need to count the cost. In fact, Jesus himself tells us to carefully consider the decision to follow Him before committing to making Him the boss of our lives.
Read Luke 14:25-33
What is he saying?
What does it mean?
How does this apply to me?
Leader feedback(Use this material to follow up the scripture reading)
Whenever we look at a scripture we need to keep in mind that the Bible is written communication. It’s a message from God to us. Just like a conversation you might have with a person there are some questions and processes you need to consider in order to have an interactive and engaging conversation. In our interpersonal communication we need to receive and interpret the message before we can respond. In our relationship with God we do this by asking some questions about the message we receive from God through the bible. Once we have received the message and interpret the message we gain an understanding of what was said so that we can make an informed decision to respond.
*Leader Note: Reference the verses that correspond to the questions.
Summary of main points(Lk. 14:25-33)
-the use of hate is a comparative to the love that we should have for Jesus
|
Reflective questions
1. Does this passage mean I need to hate my family to follow Jesus?
2. What does it mean to carry my cross? What is my cross?
3. Does Jesus mean that if I can’t finish something that I shouldn’t bother starting? Does this mean I shouldn’t bother trying to follow Jesus if I know I’m eventually going to fail?(28-30)
4. What point is Jesus making about salt losing its saltiness?(v34-35)
|
Responding to the call of discipleship
All the stuff we just read in the passage above(Luke 14:25-33) about following Jesus seems daunting and most people that might read or hear what Jesus says about following Him may give up before ever starting, but that’s because we’ve only covered part of the story. It is true that making Jesus the boss of your life isn’t going to be a cakewalk and it will be hard at times. However, the decision to follow Jesus also brings innumerable blessings. The only way to experience a fulfilling and loving relationship with God is by making the decision to follow Jesus wherever He leads, no matter the cost. The only way to experience the true grace, forgiveness, and divine healing that comes only from God is through a relationship with Jesus. True life can only be experienced through a commitment to follow Jesus Christ.
Leader notes:
Give the clan groups time to read and discuss the passages and the questions below. It may be helpful to divide the passages among the groups so that each group only has to read and discuss one passage.
Read John 14:1-7, 27
Read Colossians 1:13-23
Read John 10:10
John 17
What are the main points of the passage?
What is the message communicated in the passage?
What do I think about what God says through the passage?
What is my response to what God is saying?
Living Life to the Fullest
Something you might have discovered in reading these passages is that God wants us to know Him. The only way we can know Him is through His Son Jesus Christ. We know God and experience Him by trusting in His Word(Jn 14:1-7). Trust is the foundation of every relationship we have. The only way we achieve greater intimacy in our relationships is by putting ourselves in vulnerable positions of trust. We observe this principle at work in our human relationships. We trust that when we confide personal information our confidant will not expose our deepest secrets to the world. When we set an appointment or date with someone, we trust that the person will show up. When friends tell us they will do something for us we trust they will keep their word and do it.
In our relationship with Jesus we must take steps of faith and trust in what He has revealed about Himself and what He intends for us. Jesus tells us that He desires us to have peace and abundant life but we only receive those things when we spend time with Jesus (Jn 14:27, 10:10). Relational experiences and intimacy require time. We can be open to growing in our relationship with Jesus, but until we truly choose to spend time with Him and make Him the priority in our lives we will never grow in our relationship with Jesus. We will never grow in our relationship with Jesus if we never put ourselves in a position to trust Him. It’s a little hard to have experiences with someone we don’t spend any time with.
John 14:21 Discussion(Memory verse)
“Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, I too will love him and show myself to him.” (NIV84)
SERVE Profile
During this journey we’ll be exploring the unique attributes, characteristics, and experiences God has given you to form you into a specialized instrument. God tells us that we are fearfully and wonderfully made(Ps 139:14). We each have a role to play in God’s Master plan. God gave each of us gifts and tools so that we could participate in God’s plan to build the Church and advance the gospel. The SERVE Profile will help us discover our unique characteristics and figure out how to use them where God has placed us.
This week work on completing the Spiritual Growth Assessment packet and come up with 3 experiences God has used to mold and shape you into the person you are today.
Spiritual Markers
Spiritual markers are experiences we’ve had with God that we can look back on and say, “ God did this in my life and because of what God did this happened to me Spiritual markers are reminders of what God has done in our lives. They bring attention to God’s work and give us confidence to continue to trust and obey Him. Some examples of Spiritual Markers found in scripture are when the Israelites cross the Jordan River or the Sea of Reeds. These are experiences the people of Israel had where they had the opportunity to witness something God did and how it affected them. The Israelites erected stone monuments to commemorate what God did so that they could remind themselves and their children how God intervened and changed their lives. Another example of a spiritual marker is when Jacob wrestles with God and Jacob’s name gets changed to Israel. Our experiences with God change us and we need to remember how God has worked in our lives so that we can have confidence to trust and obey Him in our current circumstances.
Leader notes
- Be prepared to share a spiritual marker as an example for your students
- Give the class time to write the memory verse on the flash card.
- Give the class time to share prayer requests for the next week.
- Close group time with prayer
- Give the class the opportunity to ask questions about what needs to be prepared before the next session
- Tell the clan groups that their accountability partners for the Spiritual growth assessments are the people in their clan group
Before the next Session
Check when completed
|
Activity
|
Read Matthew 7:13-27
| |
Ask and Answer (What does it say, What does it mean, How does this apply to me)
| |
Summarize/Bulletize the passage
| |
Review the Supplemental reading
| |
Work on memorizing John 14:21
| |
Begin assembling SERVE Profile(Spiritual Growth Assessment, Spiritual Markers 3 experiences)
| |
Pray for Clan Group
|
Write out John 14:21
Write down the names of the people in your clan group
What are the three questions we ask ourselves when God communicates to us? Why do we ask these questions?
Comments
Post a Comment