Here is a Day by Day guide to learning and applying:
Read: the daily Scriptures and Answer the Question from the sermon.
Create: Create your own questions/comments from the scriptures
Discuss: Talk about your questions and reactions to the scriptures.
4/28/24
TEXT: ROMANS 12:3-8
Memory Verse: Romans 12:4-5
A Disciple...Loves All People, Discovers Identity in Jesus, Deepens Relationship with Jesus.
BIG IDEA:
ALTHOUGH WE ARE NOT SAVED BY THE CHURCH, WE ARE SAVED INTO THE CHURCH FAMILY.
THE BODY NEEDS YOU AND YOU NEED THE BODY.
Challenge:
1. Change your mindset by focusing on Who God is and what He’s done more than on yourself.
2. Please don’t isolate yourself from The Body of Christ.
3. Be a LIVING SACRIFICE for the sake of THE GOSPEL by Committing, Connecting and Serving each other.
What have I done this week to feed my soul, feed others, and feed my flesh?
What stood out to you in the sermon this week?
What did God reveal to you in the Scriptures this week, maybe for the first time?
Scripture Study Tip
What does it say, What does it mean, and How do I apply it to my daily life.
RECAP:
In week 27 of Romans, we looked at Romans 12:3-8. In this passage, Paul fleshes out what it means to be one unified Church body. He explains that while we are not saved by the church, we are most certainly saved into the church family. As part of the church family, we should be utilizing the gifts that God has given us to function properly! While there are many “members”, we are one Church and we need each other.
READ: Romans 12:3
In this verse, Paul warns us to live in humility... Pride is a sin in us by nature, so as followers of Jesus, we should be extra guarded against it. If we see the truth about who we really are, which is black-hearted wretched sinners, then it is impossible to be given over to pride. Because we are saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone, we have no room to be prideful. Everything we have is a gift from God – and we should live in light of that truth.
- Because right thinking about God produces a right response to God, it’s important that we consider what this verse says about who God is before we can see what that means for us. Based on this verse, what can we know about God?
2. Read Proverbs 16:18. How have you seen pride cause destruction in your own life?
3. How can we follow in Jesus’s footsteps and live in humility daily?
READ: Romans 12:4-5
While we are not saved by the church, we are certainly saved into the church family. Just like your body has several different parts that work together to keep you alive and functioning properly, we – as a church – are called to work together in order to function as God intended. Paul even explains that though there are many “members”, we are one body in Christ. This calls for unity among the Church and for “members” of the church to use the gifts that God has given us for His glory.
4. In verse 4, Paul explains that though there are many “members”, we do not all have the same function. How can we practically use the gifts that God has given us individually to work as one body?
5. Pay close attention to the phrase “in Christ”. We hear it all the time, but what does this phrase actually mean?
6. Why is the Church so important?
READ: Romans 12:6-8
In this passage of scripture, Paul lays out the reason we should use the gifts that God has given us. If the foot tried to do what the heart was made to do, it would most certainly fail. In the same way, we should be operating within the church by using the gifts that God has specifically given to us. Paul’s focus in these few verses is to stress that each of our individualities is greatly valued to the church as a whole!
7. Do you have gifts that you aren’t currently using to serve the church? If so, what is it that is holding you back from using those gifts?
4/21/24
TEXT: ROMANS 12:1-2
Memory Verse: Romans 12:1
A Disciple...Loves All People, Discovers Identity in Jesus, Deepens Relationship with Jesus.
BIG IDEA:
To be loved by God is to be given the reward that is obedience to God. We don’t obey to get a reward—though there will be plenty—obedience is the reward.
Challenge:
1. Take a step of obedience in God’s direction.
2. Load your mind with right thoughts about God.
3. Enjoy God by obeying Him.
What have I done this week to feed my soul, feed others, and feed my flesh?
What stood out to you in the sermon this week?
What did God reveal to you in the Scriptures this week, maybe for the first time?
Scripture Study Tip
What does it say, What does it mean, and How do I apply it to my daily life.
RECAP:
During week 26 of our study in Romans, we see Paul urge us to give our all to God. In light of the mercy God has shown us, we should respond in worship and obedience! Just as our bodies are gifts from God, obedience is a gift from God. It’s not a “have to”, but rather, it’s a “get to”. To love God is to obey God and in doing so, this cultivates joy in our hearts and lives!
READ: Romans 12:1 and James 1:16-17
Paul’s language to the Church is strong. He is not making a light suggestion. He isn’t offering some moral therapy or path to better you, but rather, he is appealing to his brothers on behalf of their souls... He is urging us to change how we view and treat our bodies and, in turn, offer our bodies to God. In light of the mercy God has lavished upon us, we respond in obedience and worship... We do this by willingly offering our lives to God for His Kingdom and His glory. Since I am no longer living for myself, I should honor God in all that I do and with all parts of who I am. It sounds simple and easy in theory, but the truth is that our sinfulness and pride often whisper lies in the back of our minds, “This is my life, I’ll do what I want.” The reality, though, is that your body and your life is a gift from God. Likewise, obedience to God is a gift, and both should be used to honor Him.
- What do these verses reveal about who God is?
2. In what ways have you abused or mistreated the gift God has given you of your body?
3. What part of your body, mentally or physically, do you struggle with sacrificing?
READ: Romans 12:2 and Ephesians 6:10-12
As followers of Christ, we are on a battlefield. Paul tells us not to conform to the world that we are in. The Enemy is seeking to kill, steal, and destroy, and we are his primary target to take out. Paul’s directive to the Church isn’t to just “not conform”, but He tells us that our minds must be transformed as well. This is not something we can do on our own – but we have help, which is the Holy Spirit. “Identity precedes activity.” This means that our identity in Christ comes before changed actions. As His continuous work in my life renews my mind and the way I view the gift He has given me, how I treat my body and my life will follow. I will begin to view myself – physically, mentally, and spiritually – as a living sacrifice and a vessel by which to give God praise. A “living sacrifice” implies that it is ongoing; transformation is also ongoing. Both are progressive and are only able to be completed in Christ.
4. Why is it important for us to know that identity comes before activity?
5. How can we be participants in the “renovation process” as God renews our minds and hearts?
READ: Mark 8:22-26
In this passage of Scripture, we can clearly see the sovereignty of God in action. This man was blind – he didn’t choose that. He was living in Bethsaida – he didn’t choose that because you lived where your parents lived. He had to have heard of a healer named Jesus – he couldn’t have told himself. This blind man had to have people help him get there. Just like with this blind man, God uses others to help us because we can’t fight this fight alone.
6. In this passage of Scripture, Jesus gently took the blind man away from everything that he knew... In the same way, Jesus will take us away from comfort and control to give us joy.
How have you seen this happen in your own life?
7. How have you seen God transform your life over the last 26 weeks as we’ve studied Romans?
What is something that God is currently calling you to do, but you have yet to take the step of obedience to see that call come to fruition?
This delay could be because of fear, worry, or pride... We’d encourage you to set aside time this week to pray intentionally about what God is calling you to. What is your next step? Is He calling you to lead a LifeGroup? Go on a Mission Trip? Start serving on a team here at LifeSpring?
Whatever God is calling you to do next, we want to encourage you to pray about it and then act on it with willful obedience!
