Small Group Questions for Summer Retreat
General Sessions with Pastor James Owolabi
Reconciliation
(6 Sessions)
Main verse is 2 Corinthians 5:11-21 NIV
Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade others. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience. 12 We are not trying to commend ourselves to you again, but are giving you an opportunity to take pride in us, so that you can answer those who take pride in what is seen rather than in what is in the heart. 13 If we are “out of our mind,” as some say, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. 14 For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15 And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. 16 So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ,the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! 18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20 We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. 21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Our goals are to:
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compel our students to be reconciled to God through a clear understanding of the love of God
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challenge our students to be open to their heavenly Father’s will for their life as a reconciled child of God
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encourage our students to surrender their mistakes to the Lord so that he can use them in spite of their weaknesses
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challenge them to redefine their perspective of success as a child who has been reconciled with God
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develop a lifestyle that is committed to helping people become reconciled to God
SESSION 1 - Learning how to compel our students to be reconciled to God through a clear understanding of the love of God
Guiding Scriptures- 2 Corinthians 5:18-19 and Luke 15:11-32
Overview- Teaching on God’s uncommon love for people as a Heavenly Father. Through the example of the prodigal son, the concept that God’s love for sinners who are not reconciled to Him yet will be emphasized. God’s uncommon love is compassionate, courageous, and convincing. Jesus modeled this love by reaching out to sinners which made people uncomfortable.
Looking at the prodigal father from Luke 15 we will see the fact that Jesus was committed to reaching the lost and he did not categorize people by human criteria, but by divine criteria. Jesus came to reconcile good to humanity and saw himself as a change agent. He spent time with tax collectors and sinners even though it caused uproar among critics and questions from followers.
Session Review Questions:
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What did you learn from Pastor James sermon today about the love of God?
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Why is it hard for you to see God as a father?
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What makes it easy for you to see God as a father?
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What will it take for your friends who are not Christian to understand God as a father who loves them?
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What are 5 ways you can show the love of Jesus to your leaders and friends during this retreat?
SESSION 2 - Challenge our students to be open up to their heavenly Father’s will for their life as a reconciled child of God
Guiding Scriptures- 2 Corinthians 5:20 and Luke 15:11-32
Overview- God's love is unconditional and unstoppable! We will continue to explore how the father in the parable reconciles with his son after his son repents. We will discuss the power of repentance and define what repentance means.
Session Review Questions:
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What did you learn from Pastor James’ sermon today?
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What did you learn from his definition of repentance?
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What did you learn from his definition of guilt and shame?
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What is the distinction that was made between being guilty before God and being guilty as a child of God?
SESSION 3- How to encourage our students to surrender their mistakes to the Lord, so that he can use them in spite of their weaknesses
Guiding Scriptures- 2 Corinthians 5:13 and Matthew 15:21-28
Overview- The story of the woman who begged Jesus to heal her demon possessed daughter will allow us to observe her vulnerability towards Jesus, the view of lordship towards Christ and the victory she received from Jesus.
Session Review Questions:
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What did you learn from Pastor James’ sermon today?
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What are 3 words you would use to describe the gentile woman who came to Jesus?
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What did you learn about her spirit and her willingness to be honest?
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What were some lessons you learned from the persistence of this woman?
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What are 3 actions you can take into your prayer life based on what you have learned from this woman's story?
SESSION 4- How to challenge them to redefine their perspective of success as a child who has been reconciled with God
Guiding Scriptures- 2 Corinthians 5:16-17 and Philippians 2
Overview- My friend Toby will be coming to help me teach on how being safe in God challenged him to walk away from a career at Goldman Sach after finishing college from one of the most respected black institutions in the nation.
After Tobi story we will delve into what true success looks like in the life of a person who follows Christ. In Philippians chapter 2 we will see what it looks like to have humility and honor God like Jesus did. Seeing that example will help us look at success from a faith- based perspective.
Session Review Questions:
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What did you learn from Tobi’s testimony?
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What are the qualities of a humble heart before God?
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What does being humble mean?
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Why is it hard for you to practice humility in your relationship with your parents?
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How can you honor God with your activities online?
SESSION 5 - How to develop a lifestyle that is committed to helping people become reconciled to God
Guiding Scriptures- 2 Corinthians 5:14-15 and Philemon 1
We will be looking at the letter Paul wrote to Philemon asking him to forgive. By analyzing this text we will see that Paul is sacrificial in his plea to Philmon; he models a servant heart towards Onesimus who hurt Philmon; and lastly he is selfless in his action towards Onesimus.
Session Review Questions:
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What did you learn from this session?
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What did you learn about Paul's relationship with God from this lesson?
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How did Paul's understanding of being reconciled to God affect his actions towards Onesimus and his appeal towards Philemon?
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How should your understanding of God's reconciliation towards you affect the way that you relate to people who are far away from God?
SESSION 6- Review
Guiding Scriptures- 2 Corinthians 5:11-21
This last session will serve as a review where I connect the previous 5 sessions together. During my summary I will emphasize all the lessons that we have learned.
As each session is reviewed the important principles and main points will be highlighted again.
Following the conclusion of the 5 part breakdown on reconciliation will be a personal reflection exercise. Each retreat attendee will receive a piece of paper and a stamp. On the paper they will write what they have learned. Their progression of thought will be geared towards the fact that, if we are truly reconciled to God it will change what we see, what we say and how we respond.
After the students finish writing about how God changed their lives during the retreat they will write their address on an envelope, enclose their letter, stamp it, and turn it into the retreat facilitators. In 30 days the church will mail out these reflections to remind the students what God has done in their life.
