04 Feb Discussion Guide: The Generous Gospel Week 1
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
Today’s Topic
Descent
Discussion Questions
What’s the most generous thing you’ve done recently?
Acts 2: 37-47
Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”And Peter said to them, “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. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.” And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.
And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.
Christianity was Different
Kenneth Scott Latourette, A History of the Expansion of Christianity
More than any of its competitors, Christianity attracted all races and classes. Judaism never quite escaped from its racial bonds; Christianity, however, gloried in its appeal to Jew and Gentile, Greek and barbarian. The Greek and Roman philosophies never really won the allegiance of the masses, they appealed primarily to the educated, the morally and socially cultured. Christianity drew the lowly and unlettered, yet also developed a philosophy of its own which commanded the respect of many of the educated. Christianity, too, was for both sexes, whereas two of its main rivals were primarily for men…and the church welcomed both rich and poor. No other religion took in so many groups and strata of society. The question must be raised, why did this unprecedented, comprehensiveness come to appear first in the world in Christianity?
Luc Ferry, A Brief History of Thought
…the idea that the moral worth of a person does not lie in his gifts or natural talents…is a notion which Christianity gave to the world, and which many modern ethical systems would adopt for their purposes. It would be [ridiculous] to try and pass from the Greek experience to modern philosophy without any mention of Christian thought.”
How do the values of Christianity differ from the values of our western culture?
How has your faith made you different than who you were before you became a Christian?
What is one Christian principle or teaching that has made a difference in our city or in your life personally?
Christianity & Devotion
Richard B. Hays, The Moral Vision of the New Testament
…possessions in Luke-Acts function as symbols of response to God. Zaccheus’ uncoerced generosity is a sign of repentance and faith, whereas the hesitant stinginess of the rich young ruler—or worse, the dishonesty of Ananias and Sapphira—betrays an unrepentant heart toward the grace of God.
CS Lewis, Mere Christianity
The principle runs through all life from top to bottom. Give up yourself, and you will find your real self. Lose your life and you will save it. Submit to death, death of your ambitions and favourite wishes every day and the death of your whole body in the end: submit with every fibre of your being, and you will find eternal life. Keep back nothing. Nothing that you have not given away will be really yours. Nothing in you that has not died will ever be raised from the dead. Look for yourself, and you will find in the long run only hatred, loneliness, despair, rage, ruin and decay. But look for Christ and you will find Him, and with Him everything else thrown in.
What connection do you see in your life between devotion and generosity?
Have you ever given away something very precious or valuable? What was that like?
How has God’s generosity toward you shaped your life?
Christianity & Descent
Acts 2:37-38
Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” And Peter said to them, “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.
Andrew Murray, Humility: The Journey Toward Holiness
Here is the path to the higher life: down, lower down! Just as water always seeks and fills the lowest place, so the moment God finds men abased and empty, His glory and power flow in to exalt and to bless.
Anne Lamott, Grace (Eventually): Thoughts on Faith
It really is easier to experience spiritual connection when your life is in the process of coming apart. When things break up and fences fall over, desperation and powerlessness slink in, which turns out to be good: humility and sweetness often arrive in your garden not long after.
How would you define repentance?
In what way do practices like repentance of sins, prayer, generosity, and fasting help us to take a lower place, spiritually speaking?
Is there any part of you that is falling apart a little in this current season? What practices or perspectives are helping you endure?
Closing Thought
Proverbs 11:25, NIV
A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.
Take some time to pray as a group, asking God to open doors for you to practice generosity in new ways this month.