Group Guide

April 28th, 2024

This Week's City 7:

2. Are there sources outside the Bible that confirm the Biblical account of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead? Many Roman and Jewish historians have confirmed that the apostles died as martyrs for preaching that they saw Jesus risen from the grave. No one dies for something they know to be a lie.
(Luke 1:1-4; Acts 26:26; 1 John 1:1-4, Josephus, Clement, Hegesippus, Tertullian, Origen, Polycarp)

Ice-Breaker:

Are you handy around the house? What's one hidden, handyman talent that you have that would surprise people?

Discussion Questions:

Have someone read Acts 6:1-7 aloud.

In Acts 6, the church has an issue arise between two different groups of believers. While unintentional, some of the widows were being neglected when it came to distributing food and financial aid. This causes some of the people to be upset and start to murmur. This is the work of Satan. We talked a couple of weeks ago about God man, how he has added to their number daily (Acts 2), how he's multiplied the believers (Acts 4) and how he subtracted Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5). One thing God NEVER does is divide... that is Satan's work, and he's trying it here. Have you ever experienced attacks from Satan that tried to divide people, be it at church, work or family?
The first takeaway from Sunday was that organization is GOOD. Some people are against organized religion, which must mean they are a fan of UNorganized religion. The problem with that is, to be against organized religion is to be against God's heart and design. We see it throughout Acts and other New Testament writings... organization is needed to bring stability, clear direction and vision to a move of God. It also brings much needed oversight and accountability. This isn't to say that every church is perfect or that churches and church people don't end up hurting people. No church is perfect because they are filled with imperfect people, which is a beautiful thing. Have you ever been anti-organized religion? What are the dangers of going it alone in your Christian walk?
Organization is not just good, but it's GODLY. It's who God is. It's his nature. 1 Corinthians 14:33 says that God is not a God of disorder, but of peace. If you need proof that God is about organization and order, just look at everything he created. Look at the earth and the universe. Look at the extremely complex yet perfectly balanced systems of the body. Look at the sophistication of the human eye and how it takes light coming into it and somehow converts that into a signal that your brain interprets as an image. What else can you think of that makes you in awe of God's incredible attention to detail and order?
The challenge on Sunday was to PURSUE your PURPOSE. For the human body to be healthy, every part has to be doing it's job... the one it was designed to do. The body of Christ is no different. There is order and purpose. There is a place and a function for every single one of us, all moving and working in harmony according to the gifts God has given all believers. The result is a healthy church body. Do you know what your spiritual gifts are? If not, take a couple of minutes and go on the app under the prayer tab and take a free spiritual gifts test. Then take some time to discuss the results with each other. It is helpful for people that know us to either confirm or question results to self-assessments such as these. How might each of us be able to serve our City Group with these gifts?
Brandon spoke openly about some of the issues facing The City Church. The rapid growth has caused not only space issues, but the need for more people to get in the game. That could look like becoming a member, starting to give, volunteering, leading a group or serving in any number of ways. How is God speaking to you? How is he leading you to respond?

Prayer Topics:

That we would always be aware of Satan's plan to divide.
That we would buy in to God's design for the church.
That we would pursue our purpose as it relates to serving one another.

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