Sermon Discussion Guide

Just Walk Across The Room

Bill Hybels October 22-23, 2011
Pray that God will make a way for us to spread his message and explain the mystery about Christ. When you are with unbelievers, always make good use of the time. Colossians 4:3,5 (CEV) Sharing our faith with a non-believer doesnt have to be a daunting task that inevitably results in the other person coming to Christ immediately. Many of us mistakenly believe that we must obtain a profession of faith from someone before our evangelism efforts are successful. In fact, experience has shown that most people accept Christ only after hearing seven or eight presentations of the Christian message. Consequently, we need to redefine our understanding of evangelistic success so we recognize that our role consists of taking only the steps that the Holy Spirit prompts us to take in each case. Our job begins with learning to look at people outside Gods family with a broken heart, like the way God looks at them. Then we must be attentive every day to the Holy Spirit guiding us toward people who need to know about Gods love, and we must actively look for these kinds of people in every social situation. In this discussion, well consider five simple steps for acting on these principles and pointing people to faith in Christ.
OPEN YOUR GROUP WITH A PRAYER. THIS IS ONLY A GUIDE SELECT THE POINTS YOU WANT TO DISCUSS.

SIMPLE STEPS TO SHARE YOUR FAITH IN A RELATIONAL WAY WITH THOSE AROUND YOU
1. SEE PEOPLE WHO ARE FAR FROM GOD THE WAY GOD SEES THEM. What advice does Colossians 4:5 give us about non-believers? God feels that every human being who is not part of his family is missing, and his heart goes out to all those people. To help us understand Gods feeling, describe in detail how we might feel and act in situations involving our children or close friends who are missing. Why is it that we dont always feel strong concerns about people who are outside of Gods family? Discipleship Discipleship means learning to have the same character as Christ. In this case, that means aligning our hearts with his so that we feel the same kind of distress that Jesus felt whenever he encountered a person who needed to know about Gods love. Describe what you could change in your life this week so that you could feel that way about someone. 2. COMMIT TO BEING OPEN TO THE PROMPTING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT EACH DAY. According to Colossians 4:4, how should you explain Gods message? What actions can we take to ensure that we are open to and aware of the Holy Spirits prompts? How might being unclear affect the person hearing our message? 3. IN ANY SOCIAL SITUATION, CHECK TO SEE IF ANYONE IS IN NEED OF GODS CHEER

AND LOVE.
Whose interests are we instructed to look out for, according to Philippians 2:3-8? Jesus left the comfort of heaven and came to earth to relate to us. What groups of people who dont know Christ may make us feel uncomfortable when we try to relate to them? What risks do people need to take in stepping out to be friendly and loving towards someone? Name common places where we can be aware of anyone in need of cheerful company or Gods love? What are ways that Christians become so busy that they are unavailable to share Gods love?

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4. PLAY ONLY THE ROLE THE HOLY SPIRIT WANTS YOU TO PLAY, KNOWING THAT

OTHER PEOPLE WILL ALSO PLAY ROLES.

Read Colossians 4:6. What should our conversations contain in order to produce the right answers for those people with questions? What result could occur if we play a lesser or greater role than intended by the Holy Spirit? What might multiple people have roles in bringing someone to salvation? 5. GIVE THE GREATEST GIFT YOU CAN TO ANYONE: AN INTRODUCTION TO THE GOD

WHO LOVES THEM.

According to Colossians 4:3, what should we ask God to do? Why is God the greatest gift in anyones life? Why might someone need an introduction to God? What are examples of situations that can be used to introduce God to non-believers? Mission Introducing God to non-believers is our mission. There are multiple ways to introduce God, and many situations in our daily lives can be turned into such opportunities. Pray for the Holy Spirits wisdom to recognize the opportunities in our lives and guidance to open the doors leading to God for non-believers, and commit to telling your group next week how the Holy Spirit guided you and how you responded. Take a moment to review any assignments/challenges made during the personal application and commitment section of your previous meeting. Seeing God at work in the lives of those who commit to Him is essential for growth. PERSONAL APPLICATION AND COMMITMENT: In this study guide, we seek to align ourselves with Gods heart towards people who are far from the family of Christ. We want to make ourselves available to share our faith in simple relational ways in whatever situations we find ourselves. Which of the following steps you can practice this week? 1) See people who are far from God the way God sees them, putting our judgments aside. 2) Commit to being open to the prompting of the Holy Spirit each day and not letting our feelings override his leading. 3) Have our radar on in any social situation to see if anyone is in need of Gods cheer and love, even when we feel uncomfortable. 4) Play only the role the Holy Spirit wants you to play, accepting that role and doing neither more nor less. 5) Give the greatest gift you can to anyone by sharing an introduction to the God who loves them.

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Do something good for the church and for yourself at the same time Saddleback members just like you create these discussion guides, each working once a month in a small team after a Saturday 4:30 service. We need your help! No special skill or experience is required just an interest in the Bible and in helping small group members benefit from the weekend sermons. Well train you, but the work is relatively simple. Just send a note to pegr@saddleback.net.

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Sermon Discussion Guide Leader Notes

Goals for this Weeks Study
Name common places we spend time daily where people might need help or kindness. Help group members understand the simple steps in the discussion guide for sharing faith in a relational way with those around them. Encourage group members to commit to applying these steps in a practical way in their lives every day. Pray: Father, open our spiritual eyes and align our hearts with the things for which your heart breaks, for those people far from you. Help us to be aware of your promptings. Grant us the courage to be obedient to share and reflect your love whenever you call us. Make clear to us the role you want us to play in every situation and bless us with opportunities to give the gift of sharing your great love and Good News with others.

Preparing to Lead Your Group

PRAY for insight as you begin to prepare for leading your group. Ask for Gods wisdom, that the Holy Spirit will be the teacher and
that you will be Gods instrument to lead the group to greater understanding and a willingness to commit to becoming more like God. Prayer should be your primary source of personal preparation for leading your group.

PLAN where you want to take your group in the next 60-90 days. Is your group strong in some areas and weak in others? How can you
challenge the members to live more balanced Christian lives? Consider Gods five purposes for the church: Fellowship, Discipleship, Ministry, Mission and Worship, and make a plan to encourage your group members to growth and commitment in their weak areas.

PONDER YOUR PROGRESS after each session and at the end of a series. Reflect on what went well and what didnt. Re-evaluation is key
to your growth as a leader. Consider whether your plan is being effective in moving the group to greater understanding and commitment. How are you doing with leading the discussion: is it stimulating, challenging, and meaningful? Are you able to keep the group on track? Do you need to make some changes?

Using This Sermon Discussion Guide

This Sermon Discussion Guide is only a tool to aid you in meeting the needs of your group. For most groups there are too many questions to answer in one session together. After considering the needs of your group you may choose one of the following options: One section of questions; One or two questions from each section Feel free to adapt the format to meet the needs of your group. If your group is mature and wants to dig deeper, add Scripture and ask suitable questions. Remember that this is only a guide. The questions relating to the five purposes are helpful to develop balance and spiritual maturity in our lives. You can bring your group to an awareness of their needs in these areas by using these questions as a regular part of each discussion. Personal application is key to everyones growth and should be included in every discussion. When asked how he or she intends to apply a certain principle a group member may say, I need to spend more time in the Bible and in prayer. It is important for you to help group members make applications that are more specific and commit to a specific plan of action by asking, for example, How are you going to begin? An example is to get up 30 minutes earlier each morning, spending 15 minutes reading the Bible and 10 minutes in prayer. Encourage each group member to be accountable to the group for personal progress at the next meeting.

As the leader your goal is to help bring the group into a stimulating discussion that helps the members recognize their need for
personal life change. Ultimately you want them to be willing to commit to change with accountability to the group. Accountability helps us to persevere in our commitments and achieve the blessings of success.

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Do something good for the church and for yourself at the same time Saddleback members just like you create these discussion guides, each working once a month in a small team after a Saturday 4:30 service. We need your help! No special skill or experience is required just an interest in the Bible and in helping small group members benefit from the weekend sermons. Well train you, but the work is relatively simple. Just send a note to pegr@saddleback.net.