October 23 - Middle School
What we’re learning this week:
Did you know that Jesus himself specifically addressed issues of love and relationships? During this teaching, we will visit Jesus in three specific scenes from the book of Matthew where he speaks to the topic of love, sexuality, and relationships. Each scene shows us something unique and important about these topics: That the sin we battle is a big deal and it’s wise to make a plan about it, that Jesus affirms God’s design for sex and marriage, and that Jesus moved toward all people offering them love and forgiveness no matter their past.
Bottom Line: Jesus people live differently.
Scripture: Matthew 5:29-30, 9:9-13, 19:4-6
Small Group Time:
Week 2! Tonight’s discussion covers three very different topics, so feel free to ride the journey that question number 1 takes you on! Don’t forget that it is okay to delay answering tricky questions; saying, “Good question.. Let me get back to you on that!” is appropriate!
Which of the three teachings of Jesus was most intriguing to you and why?
About taking sin seriously: Is there anybody in your life that you feel like you can speak to honestly about your sin?
About Jesus affirming God’s design for sex and marriage: Did you know that marriage was God’s idea? Why do you think God made marriage?
About Jesus’ grace: Are there people in your life that you have “counted out” because of bad things they have done?
2. How do you think Matthew felt being called by Jesus despite betraying so many people?
3. Jesus took sin seriously: How would you describe the attitude towards sin from the people in your life?
4. Today’s big idea was that Jesus people live differently: would you say your perspective and lifestyle related to sexuality, sin, and grace are different from others? Why or why not?
Next week preview:
As followers of Jesus, we are called to look out for and humbly serve those in our midst; while this may apply to future dating relationships and marriage relationships, students can begin putting this into practice today with how they treat their friends, family, and others.
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.
