How a Single Event Launched a Movement

Big Church Life Group Leader Guide How a Single Event Launched a Movement Whether you ve been attending for decades or just a couple weeks it is obvious that the church today is different than what the first century envisioned. Filled with policies and traditions, too many churches today are known for their buildings and clique-ish culture. Yet it wasn t supposed to be like that As a companion to our sermon series, The Unstoppable Church, we are going to begin the new year by participating in a churchwide Life Group study called Big Church. This series will feature weekly small group edition video teaching segments by Andy Stanley from North Point Community Church in Atlanta. Together we will look at selected Scripture passages describing the formation of the church and remind ourselves what this movement was supposed to be about. The lessons in this six-part series will help us learn the purpose of the church in our world: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Day One (16 min) Big Prayers (19 min) Big & Bold (22 min) Big Audience (22 min) Big Drift (21 min) Big Answers (22 min) In this packet, you will find sample discussion questions that have been created to accompany the small group edition video teaching segments along with several helpful tools and handouts for you to use in leading your group meetings. Watch for our regular leadership emails along with other helpful resources as you lead your group. Also, feel free to contact your group coach or our team with any questions or concerns that come up during this series. 1

Discussion Questions At each group meeting you will have the opportunity to discuss a series topic from the Big Church Life Group study. Our sessions will complement the Unstoppable Church sermon series beginning in January 2017 and will give your group a chance to dig a little deeper into the start and purpose of the church. A handout for each session is included in this packet and features four sections: 1. Introduction: Each session handout opens with short introduction to the lesson that will be taught in the small group edition video teaching segment. This might be a helpful section to share with your group prior to viewing Andy Stanley s corresponding lesson. 2. Discussion Questions: Questions designed to draw you into the text from the small group edition video teaching segment Feel free to add additional questions as needed and be especially sensitive to creating helpful conversation starters that will make sure everyone in the group feel included in the conversation. 3. Moving Forward: This is a summary statement on the small group edition video teaching segment. Use this statement as a closing thought at the end of your group meeting or as a reflection point to keep the discussion focused on the week s central theme. 4. Changing Your Mind: Each session includes a Scripture verse to consider/meditate on as a group. 2

BIG CHURCH #1 :: Day One {Andy Stanley} INTRODUCTION When we think of church, why is a building the first thing that comes to mind? Is church a place full of robes and pews? Bands and banners? Or is church meant to refer to something different? DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1. What is the first thing that comes to mind when you think of church? 2. What were your first/early experiences of attending church? Were those positive or negative experiences in your faith journey? 3. Read Matthew 16:17-18. In your words, how do you define church? What is the mission of the church? 4. After reading the first two chapters in Acts, what is the thing that sticks out to you the most about church that first day? 5. If the church began as a movement, how do you see the church moving today? 6. If the church began as a movement, what can you do to be a part of that movement? MOVING FORWARD Church is much more than a building or a place. Church is more than pews or hymnals, lights and music. In fact, on opening day, the church had no buildings or rituals, no bands or robed choirs. What it did have was a gathering of people who were intent on one thing: to create followers of Jesus Christ. In that sense, the church was a movement that continues today, a multiplying, multi-cultural gathering of people who believe that Jesus is the Savior and whose lives reflect his teaching. CHANGING YOUR MIND Peter replied, Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off for all whom the Lord our God will call. Acts 2:38-39

BIG CHURCH #2 :: Big Prayers {Andy Stanley} INTRODUCTION Chances are, if God answered all the prayers you have prayed this past year, the only difference it would have made is in your life and your family. And while that may be great for you and your family, could your prayers be bigger? Bolder? DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1. Do churches tend to focus on the reached or the unreached? 2. Do most people who leave church and never return do so because of the way they were treated rather or because of theological differences? 3. How can you ensure that you don t become too insider-focused at the expense of becoming insensitive to outsiders? 4. What is the boldest prayer you ve ever prayed? What happened as a result of that prayer? 5. Read Acts 4. What would your prayers have sounded like in response to threats from local authorities? 6. Given the church s response in verses 32-35, is there a connection between boldness and generosity? MOVING FORWARD God invites us to pray for many things. God invites us to pray for the daily aspects of our lives. But if the early church provides us a model for prayer, then God also invites us to pray with boldness... to pray big, bold, God-honoring prayers. In fact, let s pray this together: Enable me to speak your word with great boldness. Stretch out your hand to heal and perform signs and wonders through the name of Jesus. CHANGING YOUR MIND Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. Stretch out your hand to heal and perform signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus. Acts 4:29-30

BIG CHURCH #3 :: Big & Bold {Andy Stanley} INTRODUCTION Are we practicing safe Christianity or bold Christianity? What s the difference? DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1. Who is the boldest Christian that you know? 2. Why is it easier to practice safe Christianity? How do you know when being bold becomes over-the-top? 3. Read Acts 5:27-41. How might Gamaliel s words in verses 38-39 encourage you to be bolder in your faith? 4. In what situations could you be bolder in saying something when it would be easier to say nothing at all? 5. In what situations could you be bolder in taking advantages of existing opportunities? 6. In what situations could you be bolder in creating new opportunities? MOVING FORWARD The early church was marked with boldness, not secrecy. Rather than being a group of safe believers, the early Christians looked for opportunities to be bold. That s what made the church a movement rather than an institution. That s where God showed up. So, be bold. Speak up. Take advantage of opportunities God gives you. Create opportunities to be bold. And be a part of the difference Christ can make in people s lives. CHANGING YOUR MIND The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name. Acts 5:41

BIG CHURCH #4 :: Big Audience {Andy Stanley} INTRODUCTION The message of Christianity comes in all shapes and sizes. Some people emphasize our brokenness. Others emphasize God s goodness... the need for repentance or forgiveness... having faith... walking in obedience. While all of these aspects are part of the Christian gospel, what was the essential message that ignited a movement that continues today? DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1. With which character from the Bible do you most identify yourself? 2. If you had fifteen seconds to explain the Christian message, what would you say? One minute? Five minutes? 3. Read Acts 91-19. Saul (Paul) experiences a dramatic conversion. Did your relationship with God spark in one climactic moment or was it a more gradual process? 4. Much of the Book of Acts chronicles Paul s missionary travels in an attempt to spread the message of Jesus Christ to unreached regions. Have you ever tried to share your faith with someone who had never heard the message of Christianity before? Describe that experience. 5. Read 1 Corinthians 15:1-10. Paul clarifies the gospel message very succinctly. Why do Christians often add additional requirements to that gospel message? MOVING FORWARD The gospel of Jesus Christ is clear: Christ died for our sins; he was buried; he was raised; he appeared. This is the foundational message behind the movement that continues today. CHANGING YOUR MIND For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. 1 Corinthians 15:3-5

BIG CHURCH #5 :: Big Drift {Andy Stanley} INTRODUCTION Controversies arise in churches for many reasons. Some important. Some seemingly trivial. One tension that arose in the early days of the Church and that continues to surface over and over is the issue of grace and truth. Namely, how good does a person have to be in order to be part of the church? DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1. From your perspective, who is the church for? 2. Have you had any bad experiences with a church that made you want to say, I don t want anything to do with them anymore? 3. In your opinion, is it too easy or too hard to become a Christian? 4. Read Acts 15. The controversy for the Church at that time was over circumcision and dietary laws. What are contemporary sources of controversy for entry in the Church? 5. How can you guard against the propensity to drift toward law and away from grace? MOVING FORWARD We have to work hard not to be a church where grace and truth conflict but coexist. Jesus was full of both grace and truth. So, in response, let s make three commitments: Let s be more concerned with who we are reaching rather than who we are keeping. Let s always err on the side of grace. Let s remain open-handed in attempts to advance the message of Jesus Christ. CHANGING YOUR MIND It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. Acts 15:19

BIG CHURCH #6 :: Big Answers {Andy Stanley} INTRODUCTION Does the Church matter? Has the Church s message made a difference in history? Is the Church s message for eternal life also a message for a better life? DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1. What are distinct ways that the church has Christianized our culture? 2. What would our culture look like if the church did not exist? 3. Are there any differences in the way that the church has shaped eastern and western cultures? 4. Read Galatians 5. What examples can you give to support the argument that we are naturally bent toward sin? 5. How can you be a steward of not only the message of eternal life but also a steward of the message of a better life? MOVING FORWARD The gospel of Jesus Christ is not only a message that saves people for eternal life, but a message that restores a broken world. It s a message that has shaped cultural values and national identities. With that in mind, it s time for the church to re-engage at every level because our message is a message of life. CHANGING YOUR MIND But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23

Group Agreement Our Group s Purpose: To transform our spiritual lives by cultivating our spiritual health in a healthy small group community. We do this through: Group Attendance To give priority to the group meeting. We will call or email if we will be late or absent. (Completing the Group Calendar will minimize this issue.) Safe Environment To help create a safe place where people can be heard and feel loved. (Please, no quick answers, snap judgments or simple fixes.) Respect Differences To be gentle and gracious to people with different spiritual maturity, personal opinions, temperaments or imperfections. We are all works in progress. Confidentiality To keep anything that is shared strictly confidential and within the group, and to avoid sharing improper information about those outside the group. Encouragement for Growth To be not just takers but givers of life. We want to spiritually multiply our lives by serving others with our God-given gifts. Welcoming Newcomers To keep an open chair and share Jesus' dream of finding a shepherd for every sheep. Shared Ownership To remember that every member is a minister and to ensure that each attender will share a small team role or responsibility over time. Rotating Hosts/Leaders and Homes To encourage different people to host the group in their homes and to rotate the responsibility of facilitating each meeting. (See the Group Calendar.) Refreshments/meal times Child care When we will meet (day of week) Where we will meet (place) We will begin at (time) and end at We will do our best to have some or all of us attend a worship service together. Our primary worship service time will be Date of this agreement 9

Group Calendar Planning and calendaring can help ensure the greatest participation at every meeting. At the end of each meeting, review this calendar. Be sure to include a regular rotation of host homes and leaders, and don't forget birthdays, socials, church events, holidays, and mission/ministry projects. 10

Group Roster Use this chart to record contact information for the members of your group. 11

CIRCLES OF LIFE DISCOVER WHO YOU CAN CONNECT IN COMMUNITY Follow this simple four-step process: 1. Prayerfully list 1-2 people in each circle. 2. Prepare the group for them. Share a few names with your group and update your progress. 3. Place a call to them. 4. Pick them up and bring them to your next meeting. Follow me and I will make you fishers of men. Matthew 4:19 12

Leading for the First Time Sweaty palms are a healthy sign. The Bible says God is gracious to the humble. Remember who is in control; the time to worry is when you re not worried. Those who are soft in heart (and sweaty palmed) are those whom God is sure to speak through. Seek support. Ask your leader, coleader, or close friend to pray for you and prepare with you before the session. Walking through the study will help you anticipate potentially difficult questions and discussion topics. Bring your uniqueness to the study. Lean into who you are and how God wants you to uniquely lead the study. Prepare. Prepare. Prepare. Go through the session several times before your group meets. Set aside time to discuss the material with your coach and bring up any questions or ideas that you are unclear about. Consider writing in a journal or fasting for a day to prepare yourself for what God wants to do. Don t wait until the last minute to prepare. Ask for feedback so you can grow. Perhaps in an email or on cards handed out at the study, have everyone write down three things you did well and one thing you could improve on. Don t get defensive, but show an openness to learn and grow. Prayerfully consider launching a new group. This doesn t need to happen overnight, but God s heart is for this to happen over time. Not all Christians are called to be leaders or teachers, but we are all called to be shepherds of a few someday. Share with your group what God is doing in your heart. God is searching for those whose hearts are fully His. Share your trials and victories. We promise that people will relate. Prayerfully consider whom you would like to pass the baton to next week. It s only fair. God is ready for the next member of your group to go on the faith journey you just traveled. Make it fun, and expect God to do the rest. 13

Leadership Training Congratulations! You ve responded to the call to lead a group. There are few other tasks in the family of God that surpass the contribution you will be making. As you prepare to lead, whether it is one session or the entire series, here are a few thoughts to keep in mind. We encourage you to read these and review them with each new discussion leader before he or she leads. 1. Remember that you are not alone. God knows everything about you, and He knew that you would be asked to lead your group. Remember that it is common for all good leaders to feel that they are not ready to lead. Moses, Solomon, Jeremiah and Timothy they all were reluctant to lead. God promises, Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you (Hebrews 13:5). Whether you are leading for one evening, for several weeks, or for a lifetime, you will be blessed as you serve. 2. Don t try to do it alone. Pray right now for God to help you build a healthy leadership team. If you can enlist a co-leader to help you lead the group, you will find your experience to be much richer. This is your chance to involve as many people as you can in building a healthy group. All you have to do is call and ask people to help, you ll be surprised at the response. 3. Just be yourself. If you won t be you, who will? God wants you to use your unique gifts and temperament. Don t try to do things exactly like another leader; do them in a way that fits you! Just admit it when you don t have an answer, and apologize when you make a mistake. Your group will love you for it, and you ll sleep better at night! 4. Prepare for your meeting ahead of time. Review the session and the leader s notes, and write down your responses to each question. Pay special attention to questions that ask group members to do something other than engage in discussion. These exercises will help your group live what the Bible teaches, not just talk about it. Be sure you understand how a question is designed, and bring any necessary supplies (such as paper and pens) to your meeting. If the exercise employs one of the items in the appendix, be sure to look over that item so you ll know how it works. 5. Pray for your group members by name. Before you begin your session, go around the room in your mind and pray for each member by name. You may want to review the prayer list at least once a week. Ask God to use your time together to touch the heart of every person uniquely. Expect God to lead you to whomever he wants you to encourage or challenge in a special way. If you listen, God will surely lead! 6. When you ask a question, be patient. Someone will eventually respond. Sometimes people need a moment or two of silence to think about the question, and if silence doesn t bother you, it won t bother anyone else. After someone responds, affirm the response with a simple thanks or good job. Then ask, How about somebody else? or Would someone who hasn t shared like to add anything? Be sensitive to new people or reluctant members who 14

aren t ready to say, pray or do anything. If you give them a safe setting, they will blossom over time. 7. Provide transitions between questions. When guiding the discussion, always read aloud the transitional paragraphs and the questions. Ask the group if anyone would like to read the paragraph or Bible passage. Don t call on anyone, but ask for a volunteer, and then be patient until someone begins. Be sure to thank the person who reads aloud. 8. Break up into smaller groups each week. If your group has more than ten people, we strongly encourage you to have the group gather in discussion circles of three or four people. With a greater opportunity to talk in a small circle, people will connect more with the study, apply more quickly what they re learning and ultimately get more out of it. A small circle also encourages a quiet person to participate and tends to minimize the effects of a more vocal or dominant member. It can also help people feel more loved in your group. When you gather again at the end of the section, you can have one person summarize the highlights from each circle. Small circles are also helpful during prayer time. People who are unaccustomed to praying aloud will feel more comfortable trying it with just two or three others. Also, prayer requests won t take as much time, so circles will have more time to actually pray. When you gather back with the whole group, you can have one person from each circle briefly update everyone on the prayer requests. People are more willing to pray in small circles if they know that the whole group will hear all the prayer requests. 9. Rotate facilitators weekly. At the end of each meeting, ask the group who should lead the following week. Let the group help select your weekly facilitator. You may be perfectly capable of leading each time, but you will help others grow in their faith and gifts if you give them opportunities to lead. You can use the Small Group Calendar to fill in the names of all meeting leaders at once if you prefer. 10. One final challenge (for new or first time leaders): Before your first opportunity to lead, look up each of the five passages listed below. Read each one as a devotional exercise to help equip yourself with a shepherd s heart. Trust us on this one. If you do this, you will be more than ready for your first meeting. Matthew 9:36 1 Peter 5:2-4 Psalm 23 Ezekiel 34:11-16 1 Thessalonians 2:7-8, 11-12 15

How to lead in Prayer One of the most powerful aspects of small groups is the opportunity to offer prayer requests, to pray together, and then to see how God follows through on those prayers. It s amazing to see how God works over three months or six months or a year. Prayers gets answered, situations change, hearts change your group sees God work in mighty ways. Just as powerful as the group dynamic of prayer is the impact that a praying leader can have on his or her group. A praying leader ministers to the group not only by showing how much he or she cares about their needs but also by modeling a life of prayer. As with most things, becoming a small group centered on prayer doesn t just happen. Here are seven tips on how you can minister to your small group through prayer: Dedicate the last half hour of each bible study to personal prayer needs time. Write each member s prayer requests down on 3 5 cards or the prayer sheets provided. Bring the cards/sheets to every study so you can check back on their requests. After the requests are given, pray immediately with your group. Set up a prayer-partner system where each member has another member praying for him or her, and vice versa. As a leader, continue to pray for each specific prayer request of each of your members (use your cards as reminders) daily. Call mid-week (or mid-session) to see how things are going. Call or email whenever the Holy Spirit prompts you. God may use you to help answer a member s prayer. If you feel the Holy Spirit giving you wisdom that could help a member in a quandary, let that person know. 16

Prayer and Praise Reports Prayer is essential to group life, use this chart as a place to record prayer requests that are shared in your group each week. 17