As we are seeking faith, new to faith, growing in faith, there are words that just seem foreign to us. There are some “big Ideas” and keywords in scripture that, in the original Greek language, hold deep insights into God and His heart. Discover how understanding the biblical ideas of “selflessness,” “justice,” and “change” can affect us deeply today.
Work through the following questions and scriptures on your own, and get together with your running partner, life group, or friends and family to talk through what you are learning.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
- What thoughts/ memories come up when you hear the word Repent?
2. What stood out/intrigued you from the messages?
3. Read 2 Corinthians 5:17-21.
a.) Make some observations about this passage (What does the text say):
• Who is talking? What is the circumstance?
- Any repeated phrases?
- What surprised you?
- What stood out to you?
b.) Make some interpretations (What does the passage mean)
- What questions do you have?
- Summarize the passage in 1-3 sentences – what are the main points?
- What do you learn about the nature and character of God as you read this?
- What do you learn about yourself or the world around you?
c.) Now make some applications (what’s my response)
- How do you respond to what you are reading?
- How could this apply to your life today?
- What is the central truth that you could put into practice from this?
- Who could you share this with for the sake of encouragement?
4. Read Romans 3:22-24 & Psalm 139:23-24. Do you have a habit of going to God in repentance over areas of your life where you have sinned or have patterns of sin? Why do you think that is?
5. We repent because sin keeps us separate from God (we are choosing our own will and ways and pushing Him to the side) & repentance makes a way for our hearts and minds to be reconnected to God and therefore open to new things God wants to do in and through us (2 Cor. 5:17). This New Creation way of living takes us from a constant state of shame and confession, to a place of repentance and anticipation. One brings condemnation and the other breathes life and a hope for a future. How could this view of repentance help you in your relationship with God and others?
6. Read 1 John 1:8-9. How do we repent? Four Rs of repentance: Responsibility, Regret, Resolve, Repair (Repair is God’s to do and he has already made a way to repair our brokenness through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus) show us the way forward. Once we are willing to take responsibility for our sin, regret what we have done or how we have lived, and we resolve to live anew in God, we simply now Confess.
a.) Spend a few minutes right now in silence talking with God about your life. Ask if there are any places you need to practice the 4 R’s.
b.) Then, confess what comes to mind and ask God to help you turn from it (repent).
c.) Let God’s Restoration (that comes through Jesus’ sacrifice which made a way back to God for us) wash over you. Thank Him for his forgiveness and repair.
d.) Ask Him to show you what He might do if you truly walk out turning away from that thing (habit, practice, etc).
e.) If you are in a group working through this feel free to share anything you discover with your group.
KEY SCRIPTURE
2 Corinthians 5:17-21 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin[b] for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Romans 3:22-24 This righteousness is given through faith in[a] Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.
Psalm 139:23-24 Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
1 John 1:8-9 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
DIGGING DEEPER
1. We have written an Outcome, that is used in Life Groups, that helps you learn more about confession repentance and apply it to your life. If this message has hit home with you, take some time this week to listen to this podcast by Andy Stanley and work through the Listen and Apply section of this Outcomes.
-Life Apps Confession by Andy Stanley https://www.gatewaychurch.com/resources/life-apps-the-confession-app/
-Confession and Repentance Outcome- Work through the whole thing or start on page 6 (the listening guide for the podcast above).
http://www.gatewaychurch.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Confession-Outcome-final.pdf