SERIES INTRODUCTION to Crazy stupid love
Our lives are full of relationships — best friends, spouses, exes, neighbors, co-workers — and those relationships can be complicated. Relationships are messy and love can be hard. So how do we have good ones? And get over bad ones? During this series, we’ll give you the secret to strong and thriving relationships in every area of your life.
When in your life have you felt your relationship with God be the strongest?
MESSAGE TITLE
Your relationship with God.
SERMON GUIDE
Gene explained that there are many different catalysts that can lead to an interest in getting to know God, but most often it’s PAIN, it’s brokenness, it’s hurt. And as we grow in our relationship with Him, it’s mostly during our struggles and seasons of pain in life that we draw closer to Him, for He is our greatest source of comfort. There are many ways that God will move to teach you things and to get you to move closer to Him. Whenever you are going through a hard or painful experience, look around for what there is to learn from it, and ask God to bring you guidance, strength, help, comfort and peace.
Over the past five weeks, we have been learning about building relationships. This week to wrap it all up, we focus on our relationship with God, taking a look at how God’s design for the best relationships with each other is modeled after how He desires to relate to us.
Going through the R.A.M., Gene shows us that we will feel something in us that will spur is into wanting to get to KNOW God. Can you describe such an experience in your own life?
In John 14:5-6, Jesus explained that He is “The Way” to God; to know God and get close to Him is through Jesus. Have you ever felt like Thomas, doubting or wondering if you know the way?
Later on, Thomas stated that he wouldn’t believe or TRUST that Jesus was back until he saw and felt it for himself. And Jesus delivered on that, meeting Thomas where he was at to get him to trust Jesus at His word. Have you ever needed, like Thomas did, just a little bit more proof from Jesus to trust in Him?
There is a difference between trusting and relying on God. Relying on God is a deeper level of the relationship. When Jesus returned to the disciples after rising again, He met with them and showed them, allowing Thomas to touch His hands. Jesus was demonstrating to Thomas, you cannot only trust me, but you can also RELY on me that what I say will come to pass. You can put your faith in me. Have you had experiences where you felt God was making Himself known to you, giving you that proof you can rely on Him?
Once Jesus met Thomas where he was at and went the extra mile to show Thomas that Jesus is who He claimed to be the whole time, Thomas COMMITED himself to Jesus. It was undeniable who Jesus truly is. Have someone read Romans 10:9. Have you ever taken the next step to commit yourself to Jesus?
When we have put our faith in the cross and the work Jesus completed, we physically (TOUCH) express our faith through baptism. The physical act says, “I have committed my life to following Jesus.”
APPLICATION
Have you seen yourself engage in each area of the R.A.M. with God? Spend a few minutes thinking through each STEP, assessing where you are in relation to God.
Do you KNOW God?
Do you TRUST God?
Do you RELY on God?
Have you COMMITTED to God?
Have you engaged in the TOUCH of baptism?
prayer
Break into groups of 2-3 and pray that God would reveal which of the steps you need to strengthen to be able to progress to the next step. If you have a step that God is calling you to engage more in, pray about that and ask Him to meet you where you are at. Maybe talk to someone in your group about ideas on how to grow in those areas.