UnChristian: Too Sheltered
Colossians 4:5,6 and Selected Scriptures
Connect:
Share how you have seen God in the Highs and Lows of your week.
Discuss how resolutions made last week in “growing more like Jesus” worked themselves out – what God did in and through you (Phil. 2:13) Celebrate and thank God for those together and pray with those who experienced some “Lows” this week, for God’s encouragement for them.
Prayer:
Pray that God would lead your discussion time and bring fresh insight, conviction, and hope through your time together.
Review:
We are launching into a new series looking at ways that Christian engagement in politics is perceived by those who do not believe in Jesus Christ. Each week we are taking a key aspect of reputation, grounded on research of the Barna group, and looking at this while avoiding defensiveness, seeking to understand, and engaging authentically in the conversation.
In the last couple of weeks we looked at hypocrisy, political engagement, the manner of our witness, our posture on moral issues like homosexuality… and this week on staying “sheltered” (uninformed, disinterested, unengaged).
The Grand Tour of the message: Thinking back on what you heard this Sunday…
o What did you learn about God?
o What did you learn about people?
o What did you learn about yourself?
o What do you want to commit to putting into practice?
Reflect:
For most of us, there is a gap between seeing a need and meeting a need. Talk through some examples of that. When and why do we stay disengaged?
Discuss the following Scriptures and read the verses in context:
Read these Scriptures and discuss how they help us build an understanding of our identity as beleivers “in the world but not of the world” ( Matthew 5:13-16, John 17: 14-18, Romans 10:14,)
Use these Scriptures to build up a character sketch of an effective witness. ( 1 Corinthians 9:19-23, Acts 17: 11-12 and 22-29, 2 Timothy 2:24-26,)
Most of us like the idea of serving others and want to make a difference… but that takes time, costs money and gets us involved in the messiness of other people’s issues… so many of us never get around to it. Discuss how these Scriptures call us out of the “I’d really like to, but…” space. ( James 1:27, Matthew 25:34-36, 1 John 3:17-18,)
We’re all busy, we all have our own problems… so, what if we just all stay in our own bubbles, wishing well to the world? ( Philippians 2:3-8, Romans 12:15-16, Proverbs 12:18 and 18:21,)
Discuss how these Scriptures help us understand the manner in which we are to engage the world around us in a way that honors, God and other people around us. ( Proverbs 18:13, James 3:2, Romans 7:15--19 and 24-25, 1 Peter 3:15-16,)
Respond:
Scott ended the message this week with a call to engage those you can engage, to “do something now”. Spend some time praying that the Lord will open our eyes to see opportunities to “be generous with the Kingdom of God” this week!
____________________________________
Get more resources to go deeper through Commentaries and Bible Study helps HERE