HOW TO USE THIS DISCUSSION GUIDEAs you lead the discussion, we follow a discipleship framework that helps move us from learning to transformation: Head → Heart → Hands → Share → Check-In
Leader Reminder: There are multiple questions in each section. Leaders should prepare ahead of time and use discernment to choose the questions that best serve their group. The goal of this discussion is not just conversation but transformation. Encourage participation, honesty, and practical obedience.
ICE BREAKER
- What is one piece of outdated technology you remember using that someone younger than you might not understand?
- Have you ever spent way too long trying to fix something only to discover it wasn't plugged in, turned on, or connected?
- What's one ordinary place you spend a lot of time each week—work, school, the gym, a coffee shop, the sidelines, your neighborhood?
SERMON RECAP
In Matthew 28:18–20, Jesus speaks His final words to His disciples, sending them out with the good news. This follows a pattern we see throughout Scripture: God sends Abraham, Israel, His Son, His Spirit, and now His church. But before Jesus ever tells us to go, He comes looking for us. We have been sought, saved, and filled with His Spirit, and now He sends us to participate in His searching love. Mission isn't simply something certain Christians do; it is part of who we are as followers of Jesus.
Jesus calls us to see the people around us through a new lens. In our workplaces, neighborhoods, schools, and communities are people who need the hope of the gospel. As we make disciples, we are gathered into a family that grows together and becomes a sending church, bringing the gospel closer to people who don't know Jesus yet. We aren't responsible for how people respond; we are called to be faithful with the grace we have received. And we don't go alone. The One who sought us, saved us, and sends us promises, “I am with you always.”
SCRIPTURE
Read: Matthew 28:18–20
HEAD
What does the Scripture show?
- What stands out to you in Jesus' final words to His disciples? What surprises you or raises questions?
- What do Jesus' words and promises reveal about who He is and the authority He carries?
- What do we learn from this passage about the identity and purpose of Jesus’ followers?
HEART
What do we believe?
- How does remembering that Jesus first came looking for you shape the way you think about being sent to others?
- Where are you most tempted to see mission as something for “other Christians” rather than part of your own identity as a follower of Jesus? What makes that difficult for you?
- How does seeing mission as personal - one person helping another person discover and follow Jesus- change the way you view the people God has placed around you?
HANDS
Practice Together in Community
- What is one thing God is inviting you to believe, do, or change because of this passage?
- Who is one person God has placed in your life that you can help take a step toward Jesus? What is one faithful step you can take toward that person this week?
- What fear or hesitation do you need to entrust to God as you take that step? How can this group pray for you and help hold you accountable?
SHARE: MISSION
Living Out the Message This Week
Who will you share this takeaway with this week?
Who will you intentionally pray for this week?
NEXT WEEK CHECK-IN
- Encourage the group to return next week ready to share how they practiced the HANDS step and how they lived out the SHARE: MISSION step.
PRAYER
- Thank Jesus that He sought us and saved us.
- Ask God to give us fresh eyes to see the people and places around us as opportunities to carry His grace.
- Pray by name for the people God has placed in our lives who don't yet know Jesus. Ask for courage, love, and opportunities to take a faithful step toward them this week.
- Pray for Vox as a sending church—making disciples, building communities of faith, and carrying the gospel throughout New England and beyond.
OTHER SCRIPTURE
Genesis 12:1–3, Exodus 19:5–6, Luke 19:10, 1 Peter 2:9, Acts 2, Acts 8, Acts 10