Mosaic Church

10 Mar Discussion Guide: Family Matters Week 2

Posted at 03:00h in Community Group Resources by Carrie Stephens

Before We Get Started

For our discussion today, we will be using the sermon series discussion guides. If you would like to follow along you can access this discussion guide on the website at mosaicchurchaustin.com and then select “community group resources” in the menu options.

Prayer

Because the primary goal of our time together is to establish relationships and learn how to walk with one another in all that God has called us to be and do, we’d like to begin by praying for one another. So, does anyone have anything you’d like us to pray for or anything to share regarding how you’ve seen God moving in your life that we can celebrate together?

This Week’s Topic

Family Practice

Family isn’t just important; family is essential. After all, Christians call God our “Father.” He calls us his “children.” And those who follow Jesus have always called each other “sister” and “brother.” Since family language is an inescapable part of our relational reality, both naturally and “spiritually,” what do we do with this? For starters, what if we practiced it? What if we did our best to get better at belonging, at home and at church? That might make a big difference in the world. Join us at Mosaic Church for a three-week look at how we practice family.

Today’s Topic

Practicing Marriage

Discussion Questions

What’s the most meaningful part of a wedding ceremony for you?

Practicing Marriage Faithfully

Genesis 2:23-24

The man said, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh she shall be called ‘woman,’ for she was taken out of man.” That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.

Hosea 11:8

How can I give you up, O Ephraim?
    How can I hand you over, O Israel?
How can I make you like Admah?
    How can I treat you like Zeboiim?
My heart recoils within me;
    my compassion grows warm and tender.

What are the characteristics of a faithful person?

How does our faithfulness to one another affect the greater world and society?

What does faithfulness displayed in a marriage reveal about God’s faithfulness?

Practicing Marriage Freely

Zephaniah 3:17

The Lord your God is in your midst,
a mighty one who will save;
he will rejoice over you with gladness;
he will quiet you by his love;
he will exult over you with loud singing.

Luke 15:20

But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.

How have you personally experienced God freely giving himself to you?

How can we practice freely giving ourselves to our spouses or friends?

How is sacrificial generosity counter-cultural in our society?

Practicing Marriage for a Lifetime

John 17:20-21

I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.

Eph 5:31-32

“Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.

What are some of the best parts of finding someone who will love you for your whole life?

If you’re married, what characteristics prompted you to choose your spouse?

If you’re single, what characteristics do you most desire to find in a potential spouse?

How can practicing repentance and forgiveness help us cultivate a lifetime commitment to faithfulness and give ourselves freely?

Closing Thought

Timothy Keller, The Meaning of Marriage

Marriage has the power to set the course of your life as a whole. If your marriage is strong, even if all the circumstances in your life around you are filled with trouble and weakness, it won’t matter. You will be able to move out into the world in strength.

Take some time to pray for the marriages in your group, at Mosaic, and in the city. Strong marriages strengthen us all as a whole. Pray for God’s love to light marriages and fill them with his goodness and grace.