Discipleship Action 3

Part 1:

One way of thinking about the Christian small group is to see it as a church within a church. It is a church because its members are the Body of Christ. Part of the process of discipleship then is to understand how we function as the body of Christ (which parts of the body we as individuals are). Prior to this study then, it is useful to reflect on how you as a group (the body of Christ) are functioning. Here are some questions you might like to consider:

• As a body, are you aware of all of the parts and what they do? (are members identified, recognised?)
• Is there a way that all parts of the body are exercised? (is there an opportunity for members to make a contribution in a variety of ways?
• Are the parts of the body working together in unity? St Paul writes in Romans 12 about how foolish it would be to imagine that one part of the body would reject another part yet in our human lives hat is largely how we behave.
• If you are used to be a ‘head’ (for example, a leader of a group) how do you function when you are not leading? Do you feel relieved, unburdened? Perhaps frustrated and/or disengaged? The writer/psychologist M Scott Peck once wrote that leaders in groups looking for community building should ‘think as leaders even when not leading.’ What might that mean?
• As members of the body of Christ, what part of your body do you use the most often? What did you do with your body since last week? (i.e. what were your highs and lows, how were you of service? )

Part 2: Reading Matthew 5: 17-48

The first reading is the gospel reading for Sunday February 13. In his message, Pastor Robin went through each section and connected them to the process of building genuine relationships with people. It is interesting to note that the section is really Jesus’ exploring the full ramifications of ‘the law’. Hence the passage begins with Jesus saying “do not think I have to come to abolish the law; rather I have come to fulfil them.’ A key question, then, for us as disciples is to ask and understand how Jesus ‘fulfils’ these laws that are explored in the reading. These are the laws that Jesus addresses:

1.       Do not commit murder

2.       Do not commit adultery

3.       Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce

4.       Do not break your oath

5.       An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth

6.       Love your neighbour and hate your enemy

How does Jesus fulfil these laws? This concept is very important and at the heart of discipleship. What is the theme of Jesus’ teaching about these laws that runs through them?

 

Some application questions (you could take a few moments to do these in pairs or triplets)

• How well do handle anger? Do you have a vision of how you might handle it better? How might you bring your vision into reality?
• What impulses, feelings or emotions do feel you control quite well? How did you learn to control them?
• What might you do to control your negative emotions better or is the question irrelevant to a disciple?

Part 3: Romans 12: 1-21

Part 1 of this study is connected to the reading from Romans 12 but you might find it useful to extend your reflections through the following questions:

• What does it mean to you to offer your body as a sacrifice? What is the role of your body in worship and discipleship? (We don’t think about this issue nearly enough – its implications are huge).
• Paul tells us to ‘be transformed by the renewing of our minds’ How might we actually do that?
• In verses 9-21, which of the commands are most useful/interesting/difficult right now?

Think about during the week…

Dallas Willard suggests that grace is where God acts in our lives where and when we cannot act…. What does this mean, exactly? How is grace so crucial to the Matthew reading about the fulfilment of the law and  Paul’s teaching on sacrifice and love in Romans 12?

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