10.4.20 HUDDLE

Zach Below   -   October 4, 2020

10.4 Huddle

 

INTRO QUESTION

  1. If tomorrow morning you could wake up and magically become immediate best friends with anyone on the planet, who would it be? Why?

 

 

 

WATCH “THEY MUST HAVE SEEN SOMETHING VIDEO”

 

  1. What stands out to you from the video?
  2. What questions/Issues does it raise for you?

 

 

 

LESSON INTRODUCTION

Over the past several weeks we have been looking at one of the most controversial statements Jesus made about his identity. In John 14:6, he declared, “I am the way the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except through me.” A few weeks ago, we discussed what it means for Jesus to be the way. Last week, we looked at Jesus’s declaration of being “the truth.” This week, we are going to focus on what it means for Jesus to say He is “the life.”

 

Throughout the gospels, Jesus associated himself with “the life,” 36 times. Depending on the size of your group, either break into smaller groups (each taking 2 scriptures), or, go through each one together. By this time, we already know John 14:6 where Jesus claims, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Here are a few more.

 

 

John 5:24

“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.”

 

 

John 10:25-26

“Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?”

 

 

John 10:27-28

“My sheep hear my voice, I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand.”

 

 

John 3:16

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”

 

 

John 3:35-36

“The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hands. The one who believes in the Son has eternal life, but the one who rejects the Son will not see life; instead, the wrath of God remains on him.”

 

 

 

SCRIPTURE ENGAGMENET QUESTIONS

  1. Putting all these verses together, what is Jesus claiming when he calls himself “the life?” (There are many possible answers to this. Not looking for one specific thing.)

 

  1. When you think of “eternal life,” what comes to mind?

 

 

JESUS DEFINES ETERNAL LIFE

In John 17, Jesus actually answers the question, what is eternal life? His definition of eternal life may surprise you, as it is not typically the way we are taught to think of “eternal life/heaven.”

 

John 17:3

“This is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and the one you have sent–Jesus Christ.”

 

  1. What is Jesus associating eternal life with here? How is that different than how we usually picture eternal life (Leader Note: We usually go to the place first…what heaven will be like. Jesus goes to the relationship first)

 

  1. Jesus defined eternal life as “knowing God.” If you wanted to get to know someone new, what would be necessary for that to happen? (Leader Note: The points on Sunday were . . . You have to have ACCESS to them. . . . You need to know FACTS about them. . . . You need INTERACTION).

 

 

KNOWING SOMEONE TAKES ACCESS

  1. Respond to the following quote by theologian Tim Keller. “The only person who dares wake up a king at 3:00 AM for a glass of water is a child. We have that kind of access.”

 

  1. How did Jesus forever answer the question, “How do I have access to God?”

 

 

KNOWING SOMEONE MEANS KNOWING FACTS ABOUT THEM

  1. In John 14, Phillip, one of Jesus’s disciples, asks Jesus to “show us the Father.” Jesus responds, saying, “I have lived with you all this time, and you still don’t know who I am? If you have seen Me, you have seen the Father. How can you keep asking to see the Father?”

 

Many people get hung up on the idea that there is no way to really know who God is. How does Jesus’s response to Phillip answer the question, How can I learn more about who God is?

 

 

KNOWING SOMEONE TAKES INTERACTION

  1. How would you coach a person that wants to follow Jesus and know God more to pursue “interaction” with God? What are some practical tips/ways you could give them?

 

  1. We are all wired a bit differently from one another. Over the years, what have you found that draws you closest to God? (i.e. nature, bible study, prayer, practicing gratitude, silence, etc)

 

 

CLOSING THOUGHTS

Researcher Brene Brown claims,

 

“A deep sense of love and belonging is an irreducible need of all people.  We are biologically, cognitively, physically and spiritually wired to love, be loved and belong. When those needs are not met we don’t function as we were meant to. We break.  We fall apart.  We numb.  We ache.  We hurt others. We get sick.”

 

  1. Do you agree with her? How does Jesus’s definition of eternal life speak to this need?

 

 

CLOSE IN PRAYER