SERIES TITLE
He Gets Us!
SERIES OVERVIEW
Love and forgiveness is something we all need. We all have pain. We all have sorrow. We all have doubts. Jesus understands all of this…and the story of Jesus is for EVERYONE. Join us as we examine the life of Jesus through the eyes of those that knew him personally. Together, we will find hope and purpose because HE GETS US.
SERMON TITLE
He Gets My Doubts
WEEKEND IN REVIEW
This weekend, we wrapped up a 5-week series called, “He Gets Us.” The theme of the series is that we follow a Savior who knows what it’s like to be us. He gets our desperation, restlessness, hopelessness, and confusion. He truly understands. Throughout Jesus’ life, he met all kinds of different people in all kinds of different circumstances. Jesus met people where they were. He met them right in their messy season of life. In this final installment of our series, Jesus meets one of his 12 disciples in the middle of his trauma, disillusionment, and struggles to keep believing.
WARM UP
Begin with some conversation, checking in on how people are doing. You can talk about whatever you’d like, but here are a few potential questions to get the conversation going.
- Did you have a nickname growing up or were you called by a nickname as an adult? What was the name and why were you called by that name, or did you ever give someone a nickname?
- For the last 2,000 years, the Apostle Thomas has been nicknamed Doubting Thomas. However, he was never called by that name in Scripture. Jake suggested that we should look at his name from a different perspective. What was your response to Jake’s suggestions that he could have been called Heartbroken Thomas, Traumatized Thomas, Grieving Thomas, or Disillusioned Thomas? Given all that Thomas had just experienced seeing Messiah Jesus arrested, tried, beaten, and crucified, do any of these other names resonate with you, or are you firm in referring to Thomas as the Doubter?
DISCUSSion
- After the women reported the tomb where Jesus was buried was empty Peter and John had to see for themselves and ran to the garden tomb to investigate. What evidence did they encounter, that Thomas didn’t have, that helped them believe in Jesus’ resurrection? See John 20:3-10.
- In John 20:8-9 the text says, “for until then they still hadn’t understood the Scriptures that said Jesus must rise from the dead.” What is the word “then” referring to?
- This evidence was so convincing it compelled them to believe. Up until then, they did not believe in the Messiah’s resurrection despite hearing Jesus’ predictions and despite the Old Testament prophecies. So, wouldn’t it have been fair to refer to them as Doubting Peter and Doubting John up to that point?
- On the evening following Resurrection Sunday morning, the Apostles met in the upper room, without Thomas, and without Judas. Why were the doors locked? See John 20:19. What does that tell you about the rest of the Apostles’ expectations regarding the Messiah’s resurrection?
- What supernatural ability did Jesus’ resurrected body have? See John 20:19. What identifying marks remained on Jesus’ resurrected body? See John 20:20.
- How long did Thomas have to wait without the evidence that he said he required before he could believe again? See John 20:26-27. Once Thomas was face to face with his resurrected Master and Messiah, how did Jesus respond to him?
- What commands did Jesus give to Thomas?
- What was Thomas’ response to the evidence Jesus so willingly provided? John 20:28.
Application
- What do you learn from this story about how we should respond to our own times of doubt? What do you learn from Peter and John’s example?
- What do you learn from Jesus’ response to Thomas?
- Jesus’ resurrected body could have been completely healed of all wounds and scars. Why do you think they remained? How does the presence of the nail and spear scars on Jesus’ body benefit us?
- As followers of Jesus, where can we be found in John’s eyewitness account of Jesus’ resurrection? See John 20:29.
wrap up | prayer
Share prayer requests and spend time praying for each other.
Please continue to pray for our Pastor Gene and his wife Barbara, their daughter Alayna, and her husband Sam. Alayna’s and Sam’s baby girl Maezie passed away a day after her birth. Many of you have asked how you can support the family in this time of loss and heartache. They have provided this link for donations to the organization Owl Love You Forever. You can also support the family through Meal Train .