welcome
What is your worst haircut story?!
worship
What has happened this term that we can be thankful for? Spend time thanking God and praising Him for all the things He has done.
word
groupwork
This material is following on from last week where we looked at four aspects of God’s character. In a similar manner to before, divide the group and look at these different attributes:
5. Mercy.
God is merciful. In other words, God is a forgiving God. Micah 7:18-19. Once again, the whole Bible is full of the truth that God is a God who is quick to forgive, that He doesn’t hold our wrongdoings against us, but that He chooses to forgive us. The parable of the prodigal son is a wonderful example of what God is really like. He is like a Father, longing for the return of a lost child, and fully forgiving that child, and not holding anything against Him. What an amazing God. Through the death of Jesus on the cross, Jesus has made it possible for us to come back into a relationship with the Father – a relationship that we broke by going our own ways of selfishness. The cross is the place where justice and mercy meet.
6. Truth.
God is truth. John 14:6. Jesus said “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” Modern philosophers say that truth is not knowable, therefore there can be no absolutes, but God says that you “will know the truth and the truth will set you free”. We can know God, and we can know what truth is, by revelation of the Holy Spirit.
The Oxford Dictionary says that truth is what is in accordance with reality. God says that He is truth, therefore He is ultimate reality - nothing is more real than God! He is totally pure, and the bible says that God is light, in Him is no darkness at all. The bible, the inspired word of God, is also truth.
7. Patience.
God is patient. 2 Peter 3:9 talks about God’s patience. God is patient with all of us, like an earthly father with a small child. Time after time in our lives God is patient with our imperfections, and patiently reminds us of His ways. In many places in the bible it says that God is slow to anger, again speaking of His patience.
So often we have a wrong picture of God, thinking that He is just waiting with a big stick to hit us if we do something wrong - but the bible tells us that is not how God is. He is incredibly patient with us.
8. Wisdom.
God is wise. Romans 11:33. A definition of wisdom is “the loving use of knowledge”. Many people in the world today have amazing knowledge, but they do not use that knowledge lovingly, or for the good of society, therefore they are not wise. God’s wisdom is without measure. He tells us that if we lack wisdom then we can ask Him to give it to us, and He does.
9. Holy.
God is holy. Holiness is conforming your actions to what you know is right. God is holy because He knows everything, and always conforms His actions to what He knows is right. The sum total of God’s character is the picture of a Holy God. A God who at all times chooses to be totally loving, faithful, righteous, just, merciful, truthful and wise and who never changes in who He is.
We have said previously that we are not like God in His nature, but Romans 8:29 tells us that God’s plan for us is that we become conformed to the image of His Son. That means that God is at work in us to make us like Him - conformed to His character. God also says that we are to be holy as He is holy. 2 Corinthians 3:18 is the key to this. That verse tells us that if we look at God, as in a mirror, then as we look at Him, He will change us to be like Him, by the working of the Holy Spirit. This is the key to our holiness - getting to know Him more. As we know what He is like, by revelation of the Holy Spirit, that same Holy Spirit changes us to be like Him - conformed to His likeness. Then the world can see what God is like – reflected in His children on earth.
response
Ask one person in the group to summarise the past four sessions.
Discuss how your thinking about who God is has developed through them.
pray that a fresh revelation of God’s love will revolutionise our lives. Pray for one another that we may understand more and receive a great outpouring of God’s love.
witness
One thing we want to do in our small groups is remember that our witness and our work extends to the work place. Choose somebody who knows what their future job may be and who has some idea of their career. Then ask that person what some of the ethical, moral issues are that they might face in that career. Spend five minutes together discussing some of the difficult scenarios that this person might be presented with. Then it would be good to pray for everyone in the group as they go on into the workplace in the years ahead; that they would see it as a place of salt and light mission where they are working for the fulfilment of the purposes of God
