DISCOVERY QUESTIONS

Series: Unshakeable Hope
Sermon: Joy is Coming Soon
Passage: John 11

Main Idea: As Christians, we “grieve, but not as those who have no hope.”

Leader GuidePDF Version (Particpant)PDF Version (Leader)

OPENING PRAYER & WORSHIP

Open in prayer, asking God to fill your time together.

Play the song King of Kings.

GROUP DISCUSSION

Lean In

Purpose: Introduce topic and get the group talking.

1. Anger, joy, sadness, peace, fatigue, or hopeful. Of these six, which has been your dominant emotion this past week?


Look Down

Purpose: Observe the passage and interact with the text

2. Read John 11:17-44. What do we learn about Jesus from this passage?

3. How did we see Martha respond in her grief, and what did that reveal about her belief? How did Jesus challenge that belief?


Look Out

Purpose: Connect observations in God’s Word with observations in our world today.

4. Compare this story with our world’s current pandemic. Where do you see similarities? Where do you see differences?

5. How has our world’s experience of death, mourning, and grief shifted during this current season?


Look In

Purpose: Internalize God’s Word and apply the truth to your personal life.

6. Where have you felt anger, grief or sadness due to loss in the midst of this crisis? What emotions have been hard to express because they’re uncomfortable or seem unspiritual?

7. Have you given yourself permission to feel those feelings? Why or why not? What would it look like to do that in a healthy way?


Live It Out

Purpose: Spend time listening for God’s for direction and guidance as you seek to live out the truths of this passage in your everyday life.

8. Spend time listening to this song: Do It Again.

While listening, ask God to reveal any areas of your life that are dead and in need of resurrection. Allow God time to speak life into those areas.

9. Share about your experience listening to the song and praying. Pray over each other as you are led.

LEADER GUIDE

OPENING PRAYER & WORSHIP

Before you officially begin, allow time for people to catch up and get comfortable with being online.

Open in prayer, asking God to fill your time together.

Play the song King of Kings.

The idea here is simply to give space to open our hearts to God. It doesn’t matter if people sing or not. Please ask group members to mute their audio. We suggest you invite them to close their eyes as well to help focus. Encourage them to simply reflect on the words and on who God is.

To learn how to share your screen with the audio, click HERE.

Lean In

Purpose: Introduce topic and get the group talking.

1. Anger, joy, sadness, peace, fatigue, or hopeful. Of these six, which has been your dominant emotion this past week?

To help your group answer this question honestly, feel free to share your emotion first.


Look Down

Purpose: Observe the passage and interact with the text

Summary of John 11:1-16. Lazarus was sick and died. His sisters sent word to Jesus, and when Jesus found out he decided to stay where he was a bit longer before returning to Lazarus.

2. Read John 11:17-44. What do we learn about Jesus from this passage?

What most scholars believe is that Jesus’ reaction here comes out of his anger and sadness, and how far off the world is from God’s original plan for it. Death, sickness, disease, sadness–that wasn’t God’s will for this world.
Jesus experienced grief and hope at the same time.
– v. 32 where it says Jesus was “deeply moved” – actually, literally “angry.”
– v. 35 where it tells us that Jesus wept.
– v. 38 where Jesus was “deeply moved” / “angry” again.
Jesus defeated sin and death (symbolism in Lazarus coming out) – not for the future only, but also for today. We too can have life.

3. How did we see Martha respond in her grief, and what did that reveal about her belief? How did Jesus challenge that belief?

In verse 24 we see that Martha had a future hope in Jesus, but Jesus (in verses 25-26) challenges that by offering that hope for her in the present.
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As Christians, we “grieve, but not as those who have no hope.” Jesus’ presence can change us. But not just us, Jesus can also change the circumstances!


Look Out

Purpose: Connect observations in God’s Word with observations in our world today.

4. Compare this story with our world’s current pandemic. Where do you see similarities? Where do you see differences?

God cares and is not indifferent toward the crisis we face.
Death grieves God’s heart and was not part of his original plan.
– (Revelation 21:4) By wiping away every tear and eliminating death, mourning, and pain.
– (Isaiah 25:8; 65:19-20) God will reverse the curse that entered the world through human sin.
Jesus had emotion in grief. We too can grieve but not as those who have no hope (vv 25-26)!

5. How has our world’s experience of death, mourning, and grief shifted during this current season?


Look In

Purpose: Internalize God’s Word and apply the truth to your personal life.

6. Where have you felt anger, grief or sadness due to loss in the midst of this crisis? What emotions have been hard to express because they’re uncomfortable or seem unspiritual?

Grief is an experience of loss – of any sort. While some of us have lost people in our lives, many have encountered different types of loss: loss of job, loss of rhythm, loss of relationship, etc. In this season a lot of us will be going through the various stages of grief. Utilize the stages of grief as a way of giving a framework for your group.

1. Denial & Isolation, 2. Anger, 3. Bargaining, 4. Depression, 5. Acceptance

7. Have you given yourself permission to feel those feelings? Why or why not? What would it look like to do that in a healthy way?


Live It Out

Purpose: Spend time listening for God’s direction and guidance as you seek to live out the truths of this passage in your everyday life.

8. Spend time listening to this song: Do It Again.

While listening, ask God to reveal any areas of your life that are dead and in need of resurrection. Allow God time to speak life into those areas.

One suggestion in this time is to allow your group to turn off their videos and to just sit with God as the two songs play. Encourage them to journal. After the songs are done allow your group time to process the questions.

9. Share about your experience listening to the songs and praying. Pray over each other as you are led.