Life Groups // Fall 2020 // Week 3
Posted September 26, 2020 — Lincoln Berean
A Little While // John 16:16-33
Introduction
Welcome to week three of the Fall Session!
This week Jesus discusses his coming departure with his disciples. They are confused and struggle to understand and believe what He is saying. In some ways this can be how we experience following Jesus in our own lives. We pray that as you process through these questions this week that the Holy Spirit will speak into your life and grow your faith.
We don’t provide a lot of space for your answers to these questions, so we suggest having a journal handy to write down your thoughts. You’re not expected to have time for all these questions during your online meeting, but we encourage you to reflect on them and jot down thoughts on your own.
Getting to Know Each Other (Suggested time: 30 min)
Begin your group time by learning more about each other. Open up and have some fun! Here are some suggestions to get your conversation started:
- What’s the best or funniest commercial you’ve ever seen?
- What are 3 things you wish you knew when you were younger?
Getting Started
Begin to transition into group discussion.
1) Hosts can pray to open the group or ask someone else to lead out. Here are a few potential prayer items:
- For the Spirit of God to lead you in truth
- For openness to what you’re learning together
- For friendships to deepen and grow
2) Invite someone (or a couple of people) to read John 16:16-33 to the group.
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Study Questions (Suggested time: 40 min)
Please complete these questions prior to your group’s meeting time.
1) How did the Holy Spirit speak to you during Bryan’s message this past week?
2) In the first few verses of this section of scripture (John 16:16-19), we see the disciples very confused about what Jesus is telling them.
- Have there been times in your life when you were confused about what Jesus seemed to be telling you?
- Would you be willing to share about one of those times?
3) In verses 20-22, Jesus tells the disciples that in His absence they will face grief, but their sorrow will turn to joy, much like a woman giving birth experiences pain during the birth process but that pain turns to joy once the child is born.
- Have there been times in your life when it seemed like Jesus was absent, times that were painful, but after you pushed through those times, you can see Jesus was birthing something new in your life?
4) In verses 23-27, Jesus begins to speak to the disciples about their relationship to the Father. The Father is pictured as a loving Father (vs. 27) who is available to each of them (vs. 26) to answer their prayers and provide for them (vv. 23-24).
- How does Jesus’ view of the Father compare to your view of the Father?
- If there are things you need to change about your view of God the Father, how can you go about changing them?
5) In verses 27-33, we see several statements about the disciple’s belief. In verse 27, Jesus says they have believed that He came from the Father. In verse 30, the disciples make the same claim. Yet in verse 31, Jesus questions that claim and predicts their desertion of Him. Compare these verses to Mark 1:14-29.
- What is happening in your life right now, where you need Jesus to help your unbelief?
PRO TIP: If you would like to learn more about opportunities to witness or participate in God’s kingdom in Lincoln and around the world, contact outreach@lincolnberean.org or checkout this Facebook Group: www.facebook.com/groups/lincolnbereanlocal
Group Prayer (Suggested time: 10 min)
Take a few moments to prepare a prayer request.
A significant part of relying on the Spirit is following His leading even when it is scary or uncomfortable. Praying with a group of people may be a new experience for you, or it may be familiar. Try trusting the Spirit if He is leading you to share. Either way, whether you feel led to verbalize your prayer or not, you can pray for both yourself and your group throughout the week.