Sacred Space: A Resource for Small-group Ministry Year B Focus: Ordinary Time Scripture: John 6:35, 41 51 NRSV Gathering Welcome Prayer for Peace Ring a bell or chime three times slowly. Light the peace candle. God of grace and peace, Bless us with courage to speak peace in the midst of anger and spitefulness. Bless us with wisdom to seek ways of peace in a complicated world. Bless us with compassion for those who do not experience peace in their daily lives. Bless us with forgiveness for those who are peace-breakers. Bless us with willingness to examine our own lives and confess our own inability to live peace. Bless us with your Spirit that even in our human frailty and folly we may continue to seek peace for all of your creation. Amen. Spiritual Practice Prayer of Repetition and Reduction Invite the group members to take a relaxed posture that will allow them to focus on the words that will be spoken. As you read each phrase, pause and allow the group to rest in the words for two to three breaths before reading the next phrase.
Psalm 130:5 NRSV I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope. I wait for the Lord, my soul waits. I wait for the Lord. I wait. I wait for the Lord. I wait for the Lord, my soul waits. I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope. Amen. Give the group an opportunity to share about this experience of prayer. Sharing Around the Table John 6:35, 41 51 NRSV Jesus said to them, I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. Then the Jews began to complain about him because he said, I am the bread that came down from heaven. They were saying, Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, I have come down from heaven? Jesus answered them, Do not complain among yourselves. No one can come to me unless drawn by the Father who sent me; and I will raise that person up on the last day. It is written in the prophets, And they shall all be taught by God. Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father. Very truly, I tell you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh. The Gospel of John was written close to 100 years after Jesus life and ministry. By this time, followers of Jesus had developed a religious identity separate from their Jewish roots, but they still had an understanding of Jewish scripture and cultural identity. John uses references from Jewish scripture and culture to demonstrate the divine nature of Jesus. In today s scripture we find Jesus explaining his own identity with I am sayings. Using the phrase I am is how God self-identified in the Hebrew Scriptures. Believers with a Jewish background would hear I am and immediately understand that Jesus is identifying himself as
part of God. In this passage, Jesus says I am the bread of life. Unlike the bread (manna) God sent to the people wandering in the wilderness, Jesus provides eternal blessing. This passage closes with a brief reflection on the sacrificial nature of this gift. In the temple bread was given as a sacrificial offering. The sacrifice of the bread of life is Jesus, given not as payment for the debt of sin, but as a gift for the world to know eternal life. To understand Jesus as the bread of life is more than believing Jesus divine origins. It is to live in ways that bring God s divine presence into everyday actions. Questions 1. Some people fussed and complained because they didn t understand what Jesus meant by saying he was the bread from heaven. Have you ever fussed or complained because you didn t understand what God was revealing to you? 2. The scripture implies that believing is to hear and to learn. How does this guide your understanding of what it means to believe in Jesus Christ? 3. In this passage, we find the gift of life through Jesus Christ is for everyone. How might God work through other faiths to bring blessing to the world? Sending Generosity Statement Sharing for the common good is the spirit of Zion (Doctrine and Covenants 165:2f). We receive God s grace and generosity. The offering basket is available if you would like to support ongoing small-group ministries as part of your generous response. This offering prayer is adapted from A Disciple s Generous Response: Generous God, Be with each of us as we manage our time, treasure, talent, and witness. May we use all our resources to express our desire to bring blessings of healing and peace into the world. May we focus our giving on your purposes, and may our hearts be aligned with your heart. Amen. Invitation to Next Meeting Closing Hymn CCS 26, Look at This Man, Born of God Closing Prayer Optional Additions Depending on Group Sacrament of the Lord s Supper Thoughts for Children
Prayer for Peace Ring a bell or chime three times slowly. Light the peace candle. God of grace and peace, Bless us with courage to speak peace in the midst of anger and spitefulness. Bless us with wisdom to seek ways of peace in a complicated world. Bless us with compassion for those who do not experience peace in their daily lives. Bless us with forgiveness for those who are peace-breakers. Bless us with willingness to examine our own lives and confess our own inability to live peace. Bless us with your Spirit that even in our human frailty and folly we may continue to seek peace for all of your creation. Amen.
Spiritual Practice Prayer of Repetition and Reduction Invite the group members to take a relaxed posture that will allow them to focus on the words that will be spoken. As you read each phrase, pause and allow the group to rest in the words for two to three breaths before reading the next phrase. Psalm 130:5 NRSV I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope. I wait for the Lord, my soul waits. I wait for the Lord. I wait. I wait for the Lord. I wait for the Lord, my soul waits. I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope. Amen. Give the group an opportunity to share about this experience of prayer.
Sharing Around the Table John 6:35, 41 51 NRSV Jesus said to them, I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. Then the Jews began to complain about him because he said, I am the bread that came down from heaven. They were saying, Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, I have come down from heaven? Jesus answered them, Do not complain among yourselves. No one can come to me unless drawn by the Father who sent me; and I will raise that person up on the last day. It is written in the prophets, And they shall all be taught by God. Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father. Very truly, I tell you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh. The Gospel of John was written close to 100 years after Jesus life and ministry. By this time, followers of Jesus had developed a religious identity separate from their Jewish roots, but they still had an understanding of Jewish scripture and cultural identity. John uses references from Jewish scripture and culture to demonstrate the divine nature of Jesus. In today s scripture we find Jesus explaining his own identity with I am sayings. Using the phrase I am is how God self-identified in the Hebrew Scriptures. Believers with a Jewish background would hear I am and immediately understand that Jesus is identifying himself as part of God. In this passage, Jesus says I am the bread of life. Unlike the bread (manna) God sent to the people wandering in the wilderness, Jesus provides eternal blessing. This passage closes with a brief reflection on the sacrificial nature of this gift. In the temple bread was given as a sacrificial offering. The sacrifice of the bread of life is Jesus, given not as payment for the debt of sin, but as a gift for the world to know eternal life. To understand Jesus as the bread of life is more than believing Jesus divine origins. It is to live in ways that bring God s divine presence into everyday actions. Questions 1. Some people fussed and complained because they didn t understand what Jesus meant by saying he was the bread from heaven. Have you ever fussed or complained because you didn t understand what God was revealing to you? 2. The scripture implies that believing is to hear and to learn. How does this guide your understanding of what it means to believe in Jesus Christ? 3. In this passage, we find the gift of life through Jesus Christ is for everyone. How might God work through other faiths to bring blessing to the world?
Generosity Statement Sharing for the common good is the spirit of Zion (Doctrine and Covenants 165:2f). We receive God s grace and generosity. The offering basket is available if you would like to support ongoing small-group ministries as part of your generous response. This offering prayer is adapted from A Disciple s Generous Response: Generous God, Be with each of us as we manage our time, treasure, talent, and witness. May we use all our resources to express our desire to bring blessings of healing and peace into the world. May we focus our giving on your purposes, and may our hearts be aligned with your heart. Amen.
Communion Statement We come together to share in the Lord s Supper as a visible witness of loving Christian fellowship and shared remembrance of Jesus Christ s death and resurrection (Doctrine and Covenants 164:4a). All committed followers of Christ are invited to partake, but no one should feel pressured to receive the emblems. We share in Communion as an expression of blessing, healing, peace, and community. In preparation let s sing from Community of Christ Sings (select one): 515, In These Moments We Remember 516, Coming Together for Wine and for Bread 521, Let Us Break Bread Together 525, Small Is the Table 528, Eat This Bread
Thoughts for Children Materials: basket or plate with several kinds of bread cut in easy-to-eat slices or pieces Say: In the Bible, when the people of God were in the wilderness with nothing to eat, God sent bread (manna) from heaven to feed them. Jesus wanted people to understand that he, too, was sent from God, so he told them he was the bread of life that came down from heaven. What Jesus was saying was that he was a gift from God to the people, so they could live full lives with God forever. When we eat bread we can remember that Jesus is the bread of life, he is a gift to us from God. Do: Share the basket of bread with the children, encourage them to try a new type of bread and to think of Jesus as they eat it. Thank the children for participating.