November 1 - Middle School
What we’re learning this week:
Jacob is one of the most important figures of the Old Testament; in fact, God Himself is often described as the “God of Jacob”. When we explore Jacob’s story and discover that this influential figure had his fair share of mistakes, we will be reminded that God can use anyone.
As we continue the story of Jacob, we witness one of the most bizarre scenes in his whole story: When he wrestled with God. When we walk through the story, we will see what happens when this man encounters God: He is given a new identity and is changed forever; why? Because God chose weakness to allow Jacob to be victorious. In the same way, God became weak by dying on the cross to redefine us and change us forever.
Bottom Line: One encounter with God changes your life forever.
Scripture: Genesis 32:22-32; Philippians 2:6-8
Small Group Discussion
Series Key Verse: "I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you." Genesis 28:15
Go over key verse for the series
Choose 2-3 questions below to discuss
Share prayer requests
Close the time in prayer
Recap the story in your own words: what do you think that would have been like to physically wrestle with the one you discovered was God in human form?
This encounter with God happened when Jacob got alone – how often would you say you get alone with the purpose of meeting with God?
Have you ever had a life-changing encounter with God? Explain!
God chose weakness to give Jacob victory. In your own words, describe how that is similar to the story of the cross.
Optional: Leader share your story of giving your life to Jesus and how he redefined you!
Extra Info
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Don’t forget about the Lifeline Leader Toolkit. To learn more about this, check out this information page.
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If you’d ever like to reference the Lifeline handbook, we have a digital version of that available here on our website.
