Group Guide
This Week's City 7:
6. Is the Bible God’s Word? Jesus proved He is God by rising from the dead and said the Old Testament was God’s Word and gave authority to the Apostles to write the words of the New Testament, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, so that all the words of the Bible are God’s Word.
(Matthew 5:18; Luke 24:27, 44; John 14:25-26, 15:27, 16:12-13, 17:20; Acts 2:42; Ephesians 3:5; 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:16-21)
(Matthew 5:18; Luke 24:27, 44; John 14:25-26, 15:27, 16:12-13, 17:20; Acts 2:42; Ephesians 3:5; 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:16-21)
Ice-Breaker:
- What are the teams you root for, if any?
Scripture
1 Peter 5
And now, a word to you who are elders in the churches. I, too, am an elder and a witness to the sufferings of Christ. And I, too, will share in his glory when he is revealed to the whole world. As a fellow elder, I appeal to you: 2 Care for the flock that God has entrusted to you. Watch over it willingly, not grudgingly—not for what you will get out of it, but because you are eager to serve God. 3 Don’t lord it over the people assigned to your care, but lead them by your own good example. 4 And when the Great Shepherd appears, you will receive a crown of never-ending glory and honor.
5 In the same way, you who are younger must accept the authority of the elders. And all of you, dress yourselves in humility as you relate to one another, for
“God opposes the proud
but gives grace to the humble.”
And now, a word to you who are elders in the churches. I, too, am an elder and a witness to the sufferings of Christ. And I, too, will share in his glory when he is revealed to the whole world. As a fellow elder, I appeal to you: 2 Care for the flock that God has entrusted to you. Watch over it willingly, not grudgingly—not for what you will get out of it, but because you are eager to serve God. 3 Don’t lord it over the people assigned to your care, but lead them by your own good example. 4 And when the Great Shepherd appears, you will receive a crown of never-ending glory and honor.
5 In the same way, you who are younger must accept the authority of the elders. And all of you, dress yourselves in humility as you relate to one another, for
“God opposes the proud
but gives grace to the humble.”
Discussion Questions:
- Peter addresses the elders of the church in Rome, letting them know what it looks like to lead the church the way God intended. He tells them they are shepherds that are to care for the flock God entrusted to them. A shepherd is one who feeds, leads, loves and protects. In the first four verses, he exhorts them to shepherd FAITHFULLY, serve WILLINGLY, and lead HUMBLY. How important do you think it is to attend a church that has a plurality of biblically qualified elders that you trust leading the people? What are the dangers of just having one person in control of everything?
- These verses presuppose that the people are rooted in the church and committed to it. We spent some time on Sunday talking about the importance of commitment from the flock. The way to commit at the City Church is to become a member. One of the dangers of not committing to a local church is that you can become about CONSUMPTION without COMMITMENT. If you don't commit, you’ll always, maybe even unknowingly, be looking for the next best thing to come along. It's kind of like a marriage; if you always refused to commit and put a ring on it, what are you communicating? That you don't really want to get tied down... you want to leave your options open. Have you ever been more of a consumer when it comes to your church involvement? What would a deeper commitment to the City Church look like for you and your family?
- The next danger is that, without a commitment to a local church and its elders, you are PREY without PROTECTION. Sheep need a shepherd to watch over and protect them. Jesus warned of false prophets and teachers who are wolves in sheep's clothing. We need to be protected from false teachings, from certain churches' influence, from certain authors, and certain "translations" of the Bible. We need to be faithfully taught how to exegete scripture (interpret Biblical text in context) so you we protected from all the junk out there... and there is lots of it! How careful are you about what books you read, whose sermons you listen to? Do you think you have enough knowledge of scripture and discernment at this point to be able to spot the fake?
- Finally, without committing to a local church you are a FOREIGNER without FAMILY. You stay isolated from people. No one knows you, and you don't know anyone. And not a Sunday morning lobby kind of known, but fully known and fully loved. There are no lone rangers in the body of Christ. You were made for human connection and intimate relationships. Would you say you are fully known at church? Have you truly invested in relationships with people or have you held back and kept people at a distance?
- The big idea from Sunday was, "Don't be a BOOTY without a BODY!" Scripture compares the church to a physical body, where each person is a member of that body, each with it's own special purpose and function. Each member of that body is critical and needed by all the others! We need you, and you need us! What has God been speaking to you through this study? How can you go further, plug in more, and increase your commitment to the body? What is your next step?
Prayer Topics:
- That God would lead our elders as they lead us.
- That we would further root ourselves into the body.
- That we would long for intimacy and community with others.
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