IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER!!!
This week we are trying something a little different. We are using this discussion guide with NEXT Sunday's sermon (May 28) rather than the PREVIOUS Sunday as we normally have done.
Therefore, the purpose of this week's discussion guide is for life groups to process the sermon topic of Sabbath ahead of time as a group. We hope this will prepare your hearts and minds for the sermon next Sunday, and that God uses it to speak to you in new and fresh ways.
This is our final gathering of our 6-week life groups. We hope you've had a great time with your group and that you want to continue meeting together moving forward! We are not going to create life group discussion guides through the summer, but groups are still welcome to meet weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly to discuss Scripture and/or the sermon.
However, we do have a summer challenge for all life groups! Scroll past the discussion questions to check that out!
Discussion Questions
- Last week we talked about tithing. Did you practice giving in a new way this week by giving your time, talent, or treasures to God?
- Do you practice Sabbath? If so, what is your understanding of Sabbath? If not, why not?
- One of the ultimate goals of Sabbath is to create space for us to delight in the Lord. What are your 3 greatest delights in your life?
- How central is your relationship with God in your life? Do the practical rhythms and habits of your life reflect that?
READ MARK 2:23-28, THEN ANSWER THE QUESTIONS BELOW
- Jesus says "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath." What do you think this means?
- What does this passage tell me about God and about people?
- If I believe today's teaching and passages are true and from God, what changes would I have to make in my life?
- Who can I talk to more about this or share this with?
- Spend time sharing prayer requests as a group, and close your time in prayer together.
We want all life groups to stay connected during the summer! We challenge every group to get two events for your life group on the calendar sometime in June-August:
- Schedule a fun, community hang out time for your group! This could be a BBQ at someone's house, a bowling outing, or whatever you want! Find time to do something fun together so that you can continue to get to know one another
- Schedule a day of serving together as a group. We have many options for this. We need volunteers for lots of stuff around the church including: our June 3rd Church giveaway event, our July 15 hoedown event serving Young Life, and every Tuesday and Thursday for our Centerville Free Dining program. You could also do a service project in the community such as cleaning up trash at a local park.
We encourage you to find time to get together this summer and to enjoy community and serve the Lord together as part of the Centerville family! If you are interested in serving at one of these events, email Ryan at ryan@cpcfremont.org for more info.
Next Sunday, Pastor Sam will be teaching on the topic of Sabbath. Traditionally, the Sabbath is a 24-hour time period set aside weekly to stop, rest, delight, and worship God. It is the best day of the week, giving us the opportunity to find rest for our souls and to remember God is in control. The Sabbath is typically thought of as Sundays in modern American Christianity. In our era of chronic exhaustion, emotional unhealth, and spiritual stagnation, few things are more necessary than the recovery of this ancient practice.
The practice of Sabbath comes from the creation story in Genesis 2:3, where God rests on the 7th day of Creation. The Hebrew word here for rest is pronounced Sabat, which is where we get the word Sabbath. God gives us this model of Sabbath through the creation story, and it is important to note that the day of rest is the first thing to ever be described in the Bible as "holy." In the Ten Commandments Israel is told "to observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the Lord your God" (Exodus 20:8-10a).
God gave us this commandment because he knew that we as human beings cannot work all of the time without burning ourselves out. He commanded us to rest so that we may have a healthy balance in how we live our everyday lives, so we could worship Him better and spend time resting with those we love. So here's a question for you to reflect on as you prepare for the sermon on Sunday: How can I intentionally create the habit of Sabbath in my own life?
The practice of Sabbath comes from the creation story in Genesis 2:3, where God rests on the 7th day of Creation. The Hebrew word here for rest is pronounced Sabat, which is where we get the word Sabbath. God gives us this model of Sabbath through the creation story, and it is important to note that the day of rest is the first thing to ever be described in the Bible as "holy." In the Ten Commandments Israel is told "to observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the Lord your God" (Exodus 20:8-10a).
God gave us this commandment because he knew that we as human beings cannot work all of the time without burning ourselves out. He commanded us to rest so that we may have a healthy balance in how we live our everyday lives, so we could worship Him better and spend time resting with those we love. So here's a question for you to reflect on as you prepare for the sermon on Sunday: How can I intentionally create the habit of Sabbath in my own life?
Scripture
- Exodus 20:8-11 (NLT): “Remember to observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 You have six days each week for your ordinary work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the Lord your God. On that day no one in your household may do any work. This includes you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, your livestock, and any foreigners living among you. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and everything in them; but on the seventh day he rested. That is why the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart as holy."
- Deuteronomy 5:12-15 (NLT): “Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, as the Lord your God has commanded you. 13 You have six days each week for your ordinary work, 14 but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the Lord your God. On that day no one in your household may do any work. This includes you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, your oxen and donkeys and other livestock, and any foreigners living among you. All your male and female servants must rest as you do. 15 Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the Lord your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the Lord your God has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day."
- Psalm 37:4: "Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desires."
- Genesis 2:3 (NLT): "And God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, because it was the day when he rested from all his work of creation."
- Mark 2:23-28 (NLT): "One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain. 24 The Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?” 25 He answered, “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry and in need? 26 In the days of Abiathar the high priest, he entered the house of God and ate the consecrated bread, which is lawful only for priests to eat. And he also gave some to his companions.” 27 Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. 28 So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”
Big Ideas
- "That’s why Sabbath is an expression of faith. Faith that there is a Creator and he’s good. We are his creation. This is his world. We live under his roof, drink his water, eat his food, breathe his oxygen. So on the Sabbath, we don’t just take a day off from work; we take a day off from toil. We give him all our fear and anxiety and stress and worry. We let go. We stop ruling and subduing, and we just be. We “remember” our place in the universe. So that we never forget . . . There is a God, and I’m not him.” - John Mark Comer (Author of: The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry)
- “Here’s my point: the solution to an overbusy life is not more time. It’s to slow down and simplify our lives around what really matters.” - John Mark Comer (Author of: The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry)
- “Sometimes we feel that the busier we are, the more important we are--as though our busyness defines our worth...We can spend a lifetime whirling about at a feverish pace, checking off list after list of things that in the end really don't matter. That we do a lot may not be so important. That we focus the energy of our minds, our hearts, and our souls on those things of eternal significance--that is essential.” - Joseph B. Wirthlin
- "But the clock changed all that: it created artificial time—the slog of the nine-to-five all year long. We stopped listening to our bodies and started rising when our alarms droned their oppressive siren—not when our bodies were done resting. We became more efficient, yes, but also more machine, less human being." - John Mark Comer (Author of: The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry)
- "The Sabbath day is different from every other day, and to obliterate the distinction in thought or practice is to destroy what is the essence of the institution." - John Murray