We find ourselves in the middle of a very festive season. Celebrations abound. But as your group assembles, be mindful of those in the group who may be struggling during this Christmas season. Grief and loss can evoke painful, bittersweet memories. Look for ways to provide compassion and comfort even as we celebrate the birth of our Lord. As you check in with one another, be sensitive to those who are struggling. When you open up in prayer, acknowledge that God recognizes this. He sees us and He cares. And we can tenderly hold space for both of these emotions.
"The worship of God is the heartbeat of the cosmos."
Dennis Johnson
Connect
When have you experienced a true surprise?
If it was a great surprise, how did you respond?
What if the surprise was disappointing? How do you respond to disappointment?
Discuss
1. Jesus was born into a time of great Messianic expectations. Read aloud John 1:29-34.
[side note: the writer of John is not the same John as John the Baptist.] What kind of expectations do you think John the Baptist and the people of his time had of the coming of the Messiah?
2. Read John 11:2-3. What do you think happened between John 1 and John 11 that caused the change and doubts to creep into John the Baptist's thinking? Has that ever happened to any of us? Unmet expectations? What kind of expectations do you have about God, about Jesus? How are you handling them?
(Remember, doubts and questions are part of the process of faith and following Jesus.)
3. The writer of the gospel of John also wrote The Revelation of Jesus Christ. The last book in the Bible. Here God paints a picture of the Second Advent of Jesus.
Read Revelation 4 and 5. [Note: this is highly poetic language.] Discuss the picture John paints here. How do you contrast the Lion of Judah and the Lamb of God? How are they one and the same? What is your response to Him?
Action Steps
Worship is what happens around the presence of God. And Rev 4:8 reminds us of that. But worship of God is expressed in many ways.
In these next few days leading up to Christmas-how will you express your worship? Share ideas in your group.
Some examples include planning a way of giving to others, whether our Living Water Christmas offering or some other charitable organization. Plan which service you will attend together with family and/or friends. Decide on something you and your group might do together. Or, this might be the time to take that step of surrender to Jesus. The greatest gift you can give Him is your life.
"And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." Col. 3:17
Pray
If you have not yet taken prayer requests, do so now. Close in prayer. Feel free to pray as the Spirit leads or close with this prayer.
Heavenly Father, let everything You are be celebrated as Holy. May Your reign be established here among men as there among the angels. As we enter this season of Hope and celebrate Your miraculous first coming, may we be aware that You are Immanuel, God with us every moment of every day, and not just the one day a year we celebrate Your birth. May we ponder Your humility, be in awe of Your love, and worship You fully this Christmas season and throughout the rest of this year. Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty. Who was and is and is to come.
Jesus we pray this in the power of Your holy name,
Amen