Snow Day Sermon - Rest

This guide is a tool to help you facilitate discussion with your rGroup. Use it to lead your group in discovering, owning, and applying God’s Word. This is a flexible tool, not a rigid task list. Follow the Holy Spirit’s lead as you lead your group. You don’t need to ask every question. 

  Understanding God’s Word: Know and Understand the Truth

READ Mark 6:30-32

• What's the context of this passage? Where were the apostles returning from when they met up with Jesus? 
• Where else in Scripture do we find God inviting his people to rest? [Ex: Creation (7th day); 4th Commandment (Sabbath); Matthew 11:28-30 (Yolk of rest)]
• What does it mean Jesus suggests going to a desolate place? Why is this an important part of getting rest?

  Living and Applying God’s Word: Give a Vision of Life With God

• Why is rest important to God? Why would He constantly invite and remind His people to rest? (Ex: Step away from everything going on in life and just experience being in his presence (Exodus 33:14); Refocus our minds - turn away from everything we can get so wrapped up in and bring our focus back to Christ; Humility = Rest allows us to remember God’s strength and sovereignty, forces us to embrace and believe that we cannot accomplish everything on our own.)
• What does Sabbath look like in your life right now? (Do we even have one? Do you think yours matches the outline God gives us for rest in Scripture?) 
• How might your life look different if you were someone who faithfully rested? 
• What impact would it have on the world if the church was known as a people who rested well? 

 Assessing the Heart: Identify and Address Sin

• What gets in the way or what excuses do we make that keeps us from resting in this way? 
• One of the reasons that God calls us to rest is so that we can spend time with Him, and so that we can have a time of refocusing our hearts and minds back to Christ. But many of us don’t use our rest for that. What are some of the things that we give our hearts to instead of God in those times of rest? 
  • What does that communicate to God? (Ex: Those things that we give ourselves to are more important than Him. Our rest can often reveal our idolatry.)

      

 Turn to God: Confess and Renew Belief in God

READ Hebrews 4:9-10, Hebrews 10:12

• There is a deeper reason that so many of us are terrible at resting. So many of us struggle to rest because, functionally, we think that the more we work, the more we can win approval and acceptance from God and others. But that kind of thinking is suicidal. We simply can’t earn that through our work. This Scripture points us to the gospel, and the most important reason that we can rest.  Do you know what that is? (We are reminded that we can stop working to try to win God’s approval since Jesus has already perfectly bought that for us - Hebrews 10:12. Jesus did the work and sat down, so that we sit down and experience real rest because we are completely accepted and approved.)

Read Hebrews 4:11 

• When we believe this gospel truth about rest, we’re truly able to experience the kind of rest that God is talking about. But it’s something we have to strive for. What are practical ways you can strive to incorporate this kind of rest in your life this week?
• God’s community is a place where can live out this kind of rest together! What are some ways that we as a community can practice rest with one another? (Ex: Big meal, park, movies, picnics, etc. Note: This is why we work rhythms of rest into our rGroups, alongside our discussions, serving, and scheduled events.)

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Announcements

• rGroup Invite Night: Our rGroups will be hosting an Invite Night during the week of February 14-20! REVO will be having a Communion Service on the 14th, and we always like to follow that up with a gathering of food, fun, etc. This gives people who have no experience with rGroups an opportunity where they can easily check out your group and get a taste of our community in a laid-back atmosphere. Use your imagination and come up with something fun for you group to do! This is an excellent opportunity for you guys to practice this function of community: REST.