DON'T MISS THIS. On August 29/30, we will highlight the value of joining a GROUP. If you utilize the Sermon Discussion Guide, you are likely already connected to a group. That is huge! However, is there someone in your life who could benefit from joining a group? At Ada Bible, we recognize that God created us for community—and our healthiest seasons are often the ones where we’re surround by people who truly know us. In groups, we see people belong and grow in faith together. Consider inviting someone to join a group, HERE.

GROUP VALUES. This week's sermon focuses on Paul's words to the Ephesian church. Paul shows how SERVING flows naturally out of salvation. He explains that we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works that he prepared in advance for us to do (Ephesians 2:10). Those good works are opportunities to serve—and God invites us to step into them. As a group, pause and reflect on your stories. Do they reveal any opportunities God might be calling you toward?

GROW AS A LEADER. This September we will be launching our fall sermon series, SPACES, where we’ll look at significant places in the Bible where God meets his people—roads, seas, wildernesses. We will see how God meets us in the places of our lives too. We're inviting every group—on-campus and community-based—into the Spaces curriculum written to go deeper into the sermon series. Every group will be studying the same material—men, women, couples, young adults, and high school. Because of this, we will be pausing the Sermon Discussion Guide for six weeks—starting Sept. 13 through Oct. 18. We are excited to see what God will do in this season! If you have questions, please reach out to your ministry director.

ICEBREAKER

Share a time when someone intervened or rescued you from an unwanted situation. (i.e. grade school detention, a family moment, etc.) 

THIS WEEK'S TEXT

Have someone read Ephesians 2:1–10 aloud.

What words or phrases stand out to you in this passage, and why?

What words does Paul use to describe our condition before Christ?

Why does Paul say God made us alive in Christ?

THIS WEEK'S SERMON

This week, Pastor Aaron Buer introduced our new sermon series, SAVED, by exploring what Jesus saved us from. As a group, recall some of the sermon’s big ideas and main points.

Our culture tends to describe our biggest problems as bad circumstances, bad luck, or bad choices we can fix ourselves. Why do you think it’s hard for people to accept that our deepest problem is actually sin?

We are dead in our sin, we are guilty, and we cannot fix it ourselves. Why is it important to understand that our sin leaves us in a dead, guilty state?

Have someone read Ephesians 2:4–5 aloud. Because God loves us, he gives us mercy instead of the punishment we deserve and grace that we could never earn. On a scale of 1–10, how easy is it for you to accept that this is true for you? (1=hard, 10=easy) Share why.

We are saved by grace through faith in Jesus alone, not by our actions. What are you tempted to trust in, other than Jesus, to feel right with God?

When we put our trust in Jesus, he saves us from the penalty of sin. As we follow him, he continues to help us overcome sin's power in our lives. Where do you see God helping you grow and overcome sin right now?

Paul tells us that we have been saved by God for a purpose. Part of that involves sharing your faith. If someone asked you this week what it means to be saved, how would you explain it in your own words?

WRAP UP

Before we can appreciate how good the good news is, we need to be honest about how bad the bad news is. Have you accepted this reality? If so, take a moment to share that story. If not, what obstacles stand in the way of you knowing Jesus?