THREE THINGS TO KNOW
DON’T MISS THIS. Let’s help students in our community start the school year ready to learn! GIVING TABLES are active until July 27th. This month, we are focusing on gathering school supplies for local schools we partner with through Kids Hope. These donations meet practical needs and demonstrate care for students, teachers and mentors. For more information on how you can be involved, click HERE.
GROUP VALUES. This month, we focus on the value of RELATIONAL INVESTMENTS. As followers of Jesus, we understand that God does a lot of work through healthy, consistent relationships with other believers. This is one reason, among many, why small groups are so valuable. Now is the perfect time to check in as a group and ask the question, “Who has what we need?” This could be the season to go deeper in your faith together with additional people.
GROW AS A LEADER. This week, guest pastor Ryan Kwon explores the topic of dead religion. He highlights how easy it is for believers to mistake religious activity for spiritual transformation. As leaders, we recognize that the key to spiritual transformation lies in an authentic relationship with Jesus. Yet, we also run the risk of letting our activity get in the way of our relationship with God. Take five minutes this week for a spiritual check-in. How are you currently connecting with God? What might you need to adjust to prioritize your time with him?
DISCUSSION GUIDE
Welcome to the third week of our series, TAKING JESUS SERIOUSLY. This week, guest pastor Ryan Kwon explores how Jesus brings new life over dead religion.
ICEBREAKER
What’s something you own that makes you look like you’re passionate about something you’re not actually that interested in? (i.e., yoga mat, Tiger’s ball cap, etc.)
THIS WEEK’S TEXT
Have someone read Mark 3:1-6 aloud.
What phrases or words stand out to you from the passage?
What do you notice about the attitudes of the religious leaders toward both Jesus and the man with the withered hand?
What does this passage reveal about Jesus’s heart toward both broken and religious people?
THIS WEEK’S SERMON
Guest pastor Ryan Kwon continued the TAKING JESUS SERIOUSLY series by discussing the dangers of dead religion and how Jesus offers something different. As a group, recall some of the sermon’s big ideas and main points.
In our culture, it is easy to mistake religious activity for spiritual transformation. How does our society confuse looking religious with authentic faith?
One risk of mistaking religious activities for an authentic relationship with Jesus is missing Jesus’s presence in our lives. What are examples of how we lose our awareness of God in our lives?
Like the Pharisees who turned the gift of the Sabbath into a burdensome tradition, we run the risk of turning God’s gifts into something they’re not. What practices that are meant to bless can easily become sources of stress or guilt?
It is possible to believe everything correct about God and still have a heart that is far from him. What are some early warning signs that your heart is starting to drift from Jesus?
Jesus called himself the bridegroom (Mark 2:19-20) who brings joy as opposed to guilt. How does understanding your relationship with Jesus as a celebration rather than a performance change your daily walk with him?
Jesus doesn’t come to patch up your old life. He comes to give you new life. What are some areas of your life that you need to let God transform?
God does not call us to double down our efforts, but rather to surrender to his grace. What would it look like for you to trust God deeper this week as opposed to trying harder?
WRAP UP
Pastor Ryan reminded us that Jesus is the one who brings us true joy, new life, Sabbath rest and redemption. How does this understanding of Jesus give you confidence to pursue an authentic relationship with him rather than an exhausting attempt at religious performance?