Discussion | Following Jesus is Hard
Welcome back to the discussion episode for the story; Following Jesus is hard!
Paul and Barnabas share the message about Jesus in Lystra. Paul, through the power of the Holy Spirit, heals a disabled man. Then everyone is talking as if the two men are Greek gods. They even try and worship them by sacrificing a bull.
Then some Jews from Iconium stir up that same crowd, and they stone Paul, throwing rocks at him until he was dead; fortunately, he survives. After sharing the same message in Derbe, Paul and his companions travel back through all the places they met, encouraging the believers and appointing leaders or elders in each church.
Lesson
Following Jesus is Hard
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Questions
- Most listeners do not need to risk their lives to share the message about Jesus. But let’s pretend that risk is real. Would the possibility of death from sharing the message about Jesus change how you view the importance of that message? Why or why not?
- This is a two-part question. When Paul and Barnabas showed up at a synagogue, the people there would invite them to speak. They would then share the message about Jesus. Name a place or person that may ask you to share your thoughts or story? What is it that you would share?
- Jesus is a controversial figure. Whenever people understand the message about Jesus, they either choose to believe or not to believe in him. List 5 to 10 things people need to know about Jesus before deciding to believe that is who claimed to be.
Growth Tip
Here is the growth tip for this week. Take the list you made of 10 ways to promote the message about Jesus. If you still need to make that list, then do so. Then pick the hardest one and journal or talk about why it is hard and how it could positively impact your relationship with God!
In other words, how could something hard cause you to grow in a relationship with Jesus?
This is going to be challenging. I think this growth tip is going to cause many to have knots in their stomach. It’s kind of like stepping off the 5-meter or 10-meter diving platform and being challenged to jump. It will be interesting to see what we do with this growth tip, and the item on our list is hard! So next week, let’s both report back and see what we have learned from it!
Prayer Requests
At the end of your discussion, go around the group and ask for prayer requests.
