Ice Breaker Option: If you could only eat one food for the rest of your life, and it couldn't be pizza, what would it be and why?
HOPE: How is your image of Jesus being formed or changed as you read the words spoken in the book of John?
SERMON SUMMARY:
Pastor Mike Schnepp delved into Jesus' miraculous healing of a man disabled for 38 years in John 5. Through the the commands Jesus spoke to the man, he explored both God’s limitless power and the responses required of the man being healed. Jesus not only restores the man physically but also addresses his spiritual healing, requiring him to step out in faith. Pastor Mike encouraged listeners to respond to God and be willing to do the necessary work, knowing that with God's guidance and strength, all things are possible.
HEART:
• Can you think of a time when you God showed you that you needed something other or more than what you were praying for? What deeper healing did Jesus offer you in that situation?
• Have you experienced a time where you felt low on hope in God? How did He strengthen your trust in Him?
HEAD: Read John 5:1-18
• What was the circumstance of the man at the pool? What needs did he have?
• What did Jesus speak to the man? What in the text helps us understand how the man received and responded to Jesus?
• Contrast the man’s response with the response of the Jews the man encountered. What did their response reveal about their relationship with God?
• What does this passage reveal about God?
HANDS:
• Jesus asked the man, “do you want to be healed?”
Is there a current situation in your life where you're struggling to trust God? How can you lean on His power and presence in this situation?
• Jesus told the man to "take up his mat".
Is there something that you are holding on to that needs to be left behind? How can you rely on God’s strength and grace in this?
• Jesus told the man to "walk".
Is there an area that you know change is required in response to God’s invitation? What one step will you take with Him in faith this week?
HOPE: PRAYER
• Pray for the strength to let go of past hurts and embrace healing.
• Seek God's help to rise and take steps towards a renewed life this week.
• Ask for courage to walk out the changes God wants for us despite challenges.
GOING DEEPER:
Questions to reflect upon and encourage the conversation to go deeper.
The hostility against Jesus deepens because of this miracle and Jesus’ words in response to the opposition. Read verses 18-30.
• The Jews were not contending the fact that God is a Father to His people (see 8:41), so what was it about Jesus’ claim of God as His Father that provoked their reaction? (see also 2:16)
• What do these verses reveal about the relationship between the Father and the Son?
• How does this form or change your image of Jesus and how will this impact your everyday life?