Meeting 4 | Discipleship Pathway

MODULE 4

Discipleship : Meeting 4

DISCUSS the disciple’s experience with Lectio Divina. Then spend time together working through the discussion questions for Redemption below:

THE POINT OF THE VIDEO: The gospel is the good news of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection — which means that God sets us free, renews all things, and adopts us as children.

Discussion

Questions

1. Share about a time when you received some life-changing news.

2. Why is it important to remember that the gospel is good news, and not just good advice?

3. If we tried to define the gospel in one sentence, we might say: The gospel is the good news of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection—which means that: God sets us free, renews all things, and adopts us as children.

4. However, the gospel is too big to fit into just a few words! Read the following scriptures and share what you might add: Romans 8:1, Ephesians 2:4–5, 2 Corinthians 5:15, Philippians 2:5–11, 1 Thessalonians 5:23.

5. 1 Thessalonians 5:23 suggests that God doesn’t just forgive us but makes us holy as well. What does it mean for the gospel to be “more than forgiveness?”

6. How is the good news meant to change us?

7. Philippians 2:5–11 teaches that Jesus was God, but he made himself nothing and died on a cross. What does it mean for us to live with this same mindset?

8. We’ve said that because of the gospel, God sets us free, renews all things, and adopts us as children. Which of those three grabs you the most right now? Why?

9. We learned in a previous meeting that sin makes us slaves, spreads chaos, and causes us to be alone. But the gospel solves these problems:

• Instead of slaves, we are set free (John 8:36)

• Instead of chaos, all things are made new (Revelation 21:5

• Instead of being alone, we are adopted as children (Galatians 4:5)

10. Which of those areas is most difficult for you to live out right now?

11. We learned in week 1 that we are actors in God’s great drama, and the Bible is our script. Today, we are living out this story by the power of the Holy Spirit. What are some opportunities you have in your life to bring this good news to those who need it?

ASSIGNMENT: Watch the video, Completion, to wrap up Module 4. Then, in preparation for Module 5, have the Discipler complete the Creating Your Timeline and Life Theme exercises below. The Discipler will walk through these exercises at your next meeting before the Disciple completes them for him or herself.

Completion video: written by Phil Wiseman. Videography by Jay Wilde

Creating Your Timeline

By Megan Koch, Inspired by Don Miller's Book Storyline: Finding Your Subplot in God's Story

One important aspect of following Jesus is understanding how God has used your life experiences to form you into who you are today. We often think our lives are chains of random, meaningless events. However, when we encounter Jesus, we realize that we have a God who is present in all of it—even the difficult times. We are often so overwhelmed with simply living our lives that we rarely have an opportunity to step back and ask, “What does it all mean?” This exercise will do just that.

You will identify 8-10 of the most pivotal events of your life story and plot them on a timeline, just like a screenwriter would do. (Some people may identify more than 10 events, some less.) Once you’ve identified these events, you’ll begin to build a redemptive perspective and recognize how God has used these seasons to shape you into who you are today. Once you see that, you’ll begin to understand your purpose and calling in new ways.

You’ll need to set aside about 2 hours to complete this timeline, so plan accordingly. Don’t rush. If you need to leave this project and come back to it again to complete it, please do so.