1. What impressions, applications, or questions do you have from this sermon or passage?
2. In this time of transition for Grace Baptist Church, what concerns or burdens are you bearing, for yourself or for the church?
3. Why are the exhortations to pay careful attention (20:28) and to be alert (20:31) so important right now? What do these look like practically?
4. Paul addresses the elders (20:17). Why are these words necessary for all of us, and how do they serve as both a warning and an encouragement?  What will the days ahead be like without a pastor?
5. What does God want from you personally as He has put you at Grace Baptist Church both to grow and to serve? Are you living a faithful testimony and ministry (20:18-19)?
6. There may be uncertainty (20:22) and personal suffering (20:23) ahead for you. Do you value your comfort or your ministry more (20:24)?  How can you grow in sacrifice and impact?

Listen to the sermon here.

1. What impressions, applications, or questions do you have from this sermon or passage?
2. Do you struggle with assuming that some people will never believe the gospel? Are some backgrounds harder than others?  How can you overcome?
3. What are some of the joys of multicultural worship and fellowship? What does this teach us about God?
4. In what ways might we struggle with a narrow, limited view that sees Christianity in light of our country and our ethnic point of view? How can we see beyond ourselves?
5. How can you come alongside others in their pain to point to the Comforter and demonstrate the hope He alone gives?
6. Does the salvation of others move you to worship? Describe the awe and excitement of God’s gospel work.

1. What impressions, applications, or questions do you have from this sermon or passage?
2. When have you been disgusted by the self-righteousness of others? Are you guilty of your own self-righteousness in any way (4-6)?
3. What is the difference between living out Christ’s righteousness and having self-righteousness (9)? How can you discern which you are doing?
4. How can we experientially learn Christ’s resurrection power (10-11)?
5. What is the difference between head knowledge of Jesus and relational knowledge of Jesus (8)? In what ways might we have one without the other?
6. Share a time when God has moved you from trusting in your own achievements to trusting in Jesus (7).

Listen to the sermon here.

1. What impressions, applications, or questions do you have from this sermon or passage?
2. In what ways do you see Christianity more defined by comfort than sacrifice in our society?
3. What commitments are core to following Jesus? How might we be holding back from these commitments, and how can we grow in these?
4. What is the difference between free gift of salvation and the costly call to follow Jesus? How do they go together?
5. When you share the gospel, do you ever describe the cost of following Jesus? How can we portray this better in our evangelism?
6. In what ways we do seek to make our lives matter, that can find the greater meaning in sacrificing all for Jesus?

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1. What impressions, applications, or questions do you have from this sermon or passage?
2. Do you struggle with the familiarity of the death and resurrection of Jesus?  What helps you to freshly consider and appreciate these foundational truths of your faith?
3. How does this passage portray Jesus’ worthiness and our unworthiness?  How does this motivate and shape your worship?
4. Jesus prevails as the majestic King and the just Judge.  How does this both comfort and convict you?
5. How did Jesus’ earthly life contrast with the pronunciation in Revelation 5:12?  Do you identify with Jesus’ earthly life?  How does this encourage you to follow in His footsteps (1 Peter 2:21)?
6. What are you most looking forward to about entering into the eternal presence of Jesus?

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• What does it mean to be a disciple?  (Use Scripture!)  Can we be disciples without making disciples (Matthew 4:19, 28:19)?
• How can personal and corporate worship empower us in our disciplemaking mission (Matthew 28:17)?
• How is following Jesus less about a bunch of constraining rules, and more about satisfying, joyful obedience (Matthew 28:20)?
• Why might we think of disciplemaking as a Sunday task, rather than part of our identity in life, wherever we go (Matthew 28:19)?  How can we do better?
• What do you hold more dearly than our Savior’s commission to make disciples?  What does that tell you about yourself?

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• What make relationships the hardest?  How can we learn to grow together through conflict rather than apart?
• We learn in 1 Corinthians 13:1-8 what relationships should look like:  sacrificial love!  But failure is inevitable.  What then?
• What is your first reaction when you’re brought face-to-face with your sin – either by Spirit conviction or someone’s confrontation?
• What temptation do you have to defend yourself?  How is that “saying” you have “no sin” (1 John 1:8, 10)?  How can you guard against this temptation?
• Why is it painful to admit and confess sin?  Consider a difficult situation you have had with someone else.  Why is it worth it to confess sin?

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• How would you describe God’s holiness?  What biblical scenes best communicate His holiness to you?
• Jesus instructs us to pray, asking God to help us honor His name as holy (Matthew 6:9).  Why is this important?
• What are some ways in which we can practically honor God as holy in our hearts and lives?
• What are some ways in which we tend to treat God as common, and therefore profane His name (Ezekiel 36:20-23)?
• How can you live consciously in remembrance of God’s holiness and with brokenness over sin?  How can you keep fresh awe of an amazing, holy God?

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• In what ways is obedience to God an expression of praise and worship?
• Like Paul, we ought to recognize that we are the worst of sinners, and examples of God’s patience (1 Timothy 1:15-16).  How can we develop this mindset?
• We must first apply Scripture to ourselves and grow in our obedience to the Lord.  But should we wait to tell others the good news until we’ve mastered obedience?
• In what ways do you struggle with being an active witness who proclaims Jesus?  How can you grow in being “unashamed” (Romans 1:16)?
• The Bible encourages a “sightless faith” (2 Corinthians 5:7, Hebrews 11:1).  How do we orient ourselves to move with confidence in God’s character and work?

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• In what ways have we lost the central emphasis of Good Friday and Easter?
• In what ways do we tend to wait until Good Friday and Easter to think about important truths?
• Are there some aspects of the crucifixion and resurrection that you struggle to understand or believe?
• Does it seem counterintuitive to celebrate and proclaim Jesus’ death?  What makes this possible?
• In what ways do you get comfortable with religious traditions and practices, without truly building your foundation on Jesus crucified and resurrected?
• We identify with Jesus in His death in victory (Romans 6:3-5, Philippians 3:10).  How does this impact and change our daily lives?
• How can you hunger more for God’s Word, not letting it grow stagnant but powerful in your life?

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• Why is prayer such a struggle for believers?
• Does prayer “work”?
• What approaches have helped you to establish a regular prayer time?
• How is prayerlessness primarily a heart problem?
• Why must faith in action be about prayer before it is about works?
• God is pleased when we come to Him in faith.  How can we cultivate a deeper trust in God through prayer?
• How do we pray when we don’t know what to say?

Listen to the sermon here.

*giving is used to refer to money, time, energy, abilities, and devotion*

• When do you feel most motivated and excited to give?
• How does Jesus’ giving impact your hesitations to give?
• If you had triple the money, time, and energy than you have now, what would you love to invest more in?
• How is our giving an act of God’s grace toward us?
• How can we move from protection of “our” resources to actively training our minds and desires in giving them?
• Giving our money risks our poverty.  Giving our time risks our plans.  Giving our energy risks our burnout.  All giving risks our comfort.  How can we approach our giving when faced with these risks?
• How does sacrificial giving take planning?

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• How have you grown in your knowledge of Jesus as you serve in His mission?
• What discouragements do you face in our church’s pursuit of Jesus’ mission?  How can we find confidence in Jesus’ promises?
• What does it look like to be committed to the church?  What are some practical ways we can “take ownership”?
• What distractions are prevalent in our ministry?  What would help us to focus our efforts?
• In what ways can we work at looking and moving forward in our ministry?

Listen to the sermon here.