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Ripped off by relationships
sermon guide
This week’s message focuses on relationships and how they impact our identity. We desire love. As we try to fill our desire for unfailing love with people who are, of course, fallible, we set ourselves up for some inevitable disappointments and heartaches. Mike takes us through Psalms, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes, showing us throughout different cultures and contexts, the human desire for greater love.
Our names are the first thing we ever own, a key piece of our identity. Why is identity so important? Have you ever felt like Mike did on the first day of school?
Have someone read Psalms 36:7. The unfailing love spoken of here is found 40 times in scripture in connection to God, the only one that can truly give it. Why do you think we reach for identity in places other than God?
We all have a God-shaped hole in our hearts that cannot be filled with anything but Jesus. How have you tried to fill it with other things? What was the result?
Have someone read Psalm 68:5-6a. God sets the lonely in families, and being part of God’s family is a crucial piece of our identity. How does being in Christ, and Christ being in us, change who we are?
Have someone read Ephesians 3:16-19. What does it mean to grasp God’s love? The Greek word used here for “grasp” comes from the word for “rust” and literally means “to eat all the way through.” How does this change the way we view the verse? How does it impact how we apply it?
Mike shared that because of Christ, we are completely accepted, totally secure, and deeply significant. Which one of these is the hardest for you to grasp? Why?
Which “I am” verse resonates with you the most? How does that impact your everyday life?
Why?
Application
What is one thing you discussed today that you want to implement this week within your relationships?
Are you in any relationships that you’re allowing to steal your identity? If so, how has the expectations or attitude of others negatively affected your thoughts about yourself? How can you intentionally step into who God says you are?
warm up and prayer
Break into groups of 2-3 and pray that God would guide you to seek his unconditional love and to step into your true identity this week.