GCF Hays

Life Group QuestionsMatthew 13:44 (HCSB)— The kingdom of heaven is like treasure, buried in a field, that a man found and reburied. Then in his joy he goes and sells everything he has and buys that field.1.    In this parable, some say the treasure metaphorically represents Jesus while the Man represents us. Is there a problem with this interpretation? If so, what is the problem?2.    Metaphorically, what is the treasure? And who is the man?3.    What is the field, and who is the landowner?4.    To obtain the hidden treasure, the man had to make a costly purchase of the entire field. He sold everything to make this purchase, but he did it “in his joy.” What actions of Jesus is this parable referencing? Explain what was so costly about the purchase by Jesus and why Jesus did it “in his joy.”5.    From this parable, what have you learned about the Kingdom of God?

Life Group Questions 1.  Pastor Ryan explained that the mustard seed and leaven parables are the same but slightly different. How are they the same and how do they differ? 2.  Who does the woman in this parable represent and why do some people have a problem with this? 3.  What does the leaven represent? What does the flour represent? 4.  Pastor Ryan explained that in the first century, people knew that “three measures” equaled “1 ephah”. What was the significance of Jesus saying “three measures” of flour rather than “1 ephah”? 5.  Read Psalm 110:3 & Psalm 51:12. Can you honestly say that you offer yourself freely to the Lord with a willing spirit? What needs to change?

1.  What started small for you and has blossomed into something significant? 2.  Where in your life could you use a mustard seed of Faith? 3.  What can you scale back to allow room for God to grow this Faith inside of you?  4.  What are you holding on to or attempting to control that you need to surrender? 5.  What can you do to be in more constant conversation and relationship with God on a daily basis?

Life Group Questions 1.  In Matthew 13, Jesus mentions seeds in both of the first two parables. What did the seed represent in parable #1 and what did it represent in parable #2? What is the significance of this for us? 2.  What is a tare? How can a Christian resemble a tare if they are not careful? 3.  Many people assume that the harvest time in this parable is at the end of the world. Why does this not make sense biblically? Bonus question: When is the harvest time? 4.  Read Matthew 21:43. Who is speaking? To whom are they speaking? What does this mean? 5.  What does the barn represent in this parable? The wheat is gathered and put in the barn. What does this mean?

Life Group Questions 1.  Pastor Ryan described the doctrine of defeat (dispensationalism) which didn't exist prior to the 1850's. Because of the Scofield Reference Bible and other influences, the American church adopted a defeatist mentality. What do you believe about the future? 2.  What is the difference between a sub-culture and a counter-culture? What is the church called to be? 3.  The Jews in biblical times thought in two time periods. The age of the law and the prophets and the age of the messianic kingdom. Both ages existed simultaneously between 30-70AD. Why did this happen and what does it mean? 4.  When we read “last days” in the bible, what is it referring to? 5.  The kingdom of God is referenced over 160 times in the New Testament. What is your understanding of God's kingdom and the role you are to play in building it?

Life Group Questions 1. Who brought you to church? Share your testimony. 2. Our “Find, Tell, Bring” series has inspired us to invite people to church for Easter and beyond. Have you thought about who you would like to invite yet? If so, have you already extended the invitation? If so, how did it go? If not, what's holding you back? 3. Pastor Rob said to “keep it simple” when inviting others; to share simple truths from scriptures and how they changed your life. What simple truth can you share from scripture that will inspire others to come and join the party? 4. Building relationships is crucial. Pastor Rob shared a life-changing story from a church member about how an invitation to a Cody Johnson concert transformed his life. If it wasn't for his Christian friends who invited him out, he would still be an atheist. This story highlights the significance of inviting people into our community and making them feel loved and accepted. What could you invite someone to outside of church to further your relationship with them?

Life Group Questions1.       According to 1 Corinthians 1:29-30, saving people is not your job. Instead, it's God job. Does this truth relieve some pressure? Why?2.       If you haven't already done so, make a list of unchurched people that you know. Tell us about the main person on that list that the Holy Spirit is highlighting for you to focus on.3.       Kasey suggested that we should create curiosity in how we live our life and to love people until they ask you why. What do you think of this approach? How do you accomplish it?4.       Please share a 3-min version of your story (…how Jesus made a difference in your life)? It doesn't need to be polished or ready to go. Whoever is most scared, should go first.5.       What is one of your favorite Jesus stories? Please share it and tell us why it is your favorite. For example, I love the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32) parable.

Life Group Questions 1.  Let's talk about a time when a friend showed up for you in a time of need. How did it make you feel? Did it make the situation better or worse? 2.  Job's friends began as well-intentioned comforters but turned into miserable ones. Have you ever been a miserable comforter? Share from your experience and what you learned. 3.  Pastor Rob shared a powerful story about a difficult conversation with his brother while his mother was hospitalized with Covid. He ended up calling his brother back to apologize and restore their relationship. Months later, his brother gave his life to Christ! Do you have anyone in your life that you need to make amends with? If so, share who it is, pray for them, and make a plan to “show up” for them. 4.  Pastor Rob mentioned 5 ways to have someone's six. -      Prayer-      Show up-      Listen to understand, not respond-      Don't assume-      Encourage them Which of these ways resonated with you the most and why?

Life Group Questions 1.  Read Genesis 26:2-5. Why did God carry forward the blessing of Abraham to his son, Isaac? 2.  God chose to make a covenant with Abraham because He knew He could trust him. God has kingdom-building plans for your life. Can He trust you? 3.  Read Matthew 6:33. This is a conditional promise from God. What is the promise? What is the condition? Do you want this promise for your life? If so, what do you need to change moving forward? 4.  Pastor Ryan shared three components to Abraham's obedience. a.  Without seeing the blueprintsb.  Without limitsc.  Sacrificial When considering your life, which one of these stuck out to you the most and why? 5.  Read John 14:23-24. Do you obey Jesus' teachings? There is another conditional promise here. What is the condition and what is the promise? How will this change your outlook on life?

Life Group Questions:1. What did you learn from this teaching, and how will it impact you moving forward?2. Do you feel hopeless in any areas of your life, such as your marriage, finances, children, career, or health? If yes, please share. If not, share some victories.3. During the teaching, Pastor Rob shared three wrong sources of trust: ourselves, other people, and money. Which one resonated with you the most as an area for improvement, and why?4. Jesus offers hope to those who feel hopeless by providing them with a new perspective (vision), a new source of power (JOY), and a new purpose (glorifying Him). What is your new vision and purpose? Additionally, please share an example of your superpower (JOY) in action.

Life Group Questions 1.    What was your main takeaway from this week's teaching?  2.    Pastor Ryan described three components of the year of jubilee.a.    Rest from Labor (Soul Rest): Taking a sabbath & reflecting on what matters most. b.    Restoration from what was lost (All debit forgiven & original inheritance restored) c.    Release from slavery (Born-again believers are set free from slavery to sin) Which of these spoke to you the most, and how will this change how you live your life?  3.     Is there an area where you have accepted defeat in your life? If so, how will you take a stand to claim the blessing of Abraham in every area of your life? 4.     One of the biggest things that holds Christians back is not believing that the word of God is true for them. What is holding you back from believing that God's word is true for you?

Life Group Questions 1.  What has God called you to do? 2.  Read Isaiah 61:1. Jesus came to proclaim freedom for the captives. The Greek word translated to “freedom” or “liberty” means “free run.” Is that how you would describe your life? “Free run,” with no limitations and nothing holding you back from your God-given destiny?  3.  Do you currently feel like you are held captive to something or someone? Remember that this can be mental, emotional, physical, and/or spiritual captivity. 4.  Pastor Ryan said that one of the devil's primary tactics is to whisper toxic thoughts into your spirit. These are lies, deceptions, and errors. Share about a time in your life when you experienced this and won victory over it. 5.  Pastor Ryan listed four types of lies that the devil tries to get us to believe: -      Lies about God-      Lies about ourselves-      Lies about sin-      Lies about others Which of these lies are you currently struggling with and how can the group pray for you?

Life Group Questions 1.  What was your main takeaway from this week's teaching on brokenness? 2.  Pastor Rob talked about some causes of a broken heart:·     Abuse (Verbal / Physical / Sexual)·     Loss·     Neglected / Rejected·     Failure·     Betrayal Which of these have you experienced victory over and how can you use that testimony to bring someone else closer to Jesus? 3.  One of the most common coping mechanisms is denial. You see this with people who might “put on a happy face” or say, “I'm good” instead of being honest with themselves and others.  Read: Matthew 11:28-29 Jesus clearly and lovingly invites us to release every wearisome burden, and if we allow Him to guide & direct our lives, He guarantees rest for our souls. Are there areas in your life that you need replaced with the rest Jesus offers? Share them with the group. 4.  Pastor Rob shared this quote from Bill Hybels: “What if you knew that by simply crossing the room and saying hello to someone, you could change that person forever? Just a few steps to make an eternal difference. It has nothing to do with methods and everything to do with taking a genuine interest in another human being.” Jesus took the ultimate walk across the room for you. Share how this challenges you to be willing to walk across the room for others.

Life Group Questions 1.  What is “The year of the Lord's favor?” 2.  Pastor Ryan said, “So many Christians only experience half of their life in God.” They focus only on receiving from God and miss opportunities every day to minister to others. Described the last time you ministered to someone. 3.  Read Col. 1:27. People all around us have been devastated by circumstances in life. Their only hope is the local church (Christ in you, the hope of glory). How has your perspective changed since hearing this truth from scripture? 4.  Pastor Ryan encouraged all of us to “see people differently.” What did he mean by this? How does this apply to you? 5.  All people are born separated from God and have a God-shaped hole in their life because they are spiritually empty until they invite Jesus to be their Lord and Savior. Do you know that Jesus is your Savior? If not, is there anything holding you back from surrendering all to Him so that you can be healed and set free? If you are a born-again believer, who has God put on your heart to reach out to this week?

Life Group Questions1. What was the main thing you pulled from this relationship principle?2. Share a time when you did not believe the best about someone and how it affected your relationship with that person. 3. Pastor Rob talked about relationships being our church's thing. Do you remember when you first walked in grace? Share how you felt and how you are mirroring that for others in our church. 4. Out of the five relationship principles, Faithfulness Principle, Four-day Principle, Friendship Principle, First-word Principle, and Final-word Principle, which one is the most challenging for you at this moment and why? 

Life Group Questions 1.  In your own words, what is the First-Word Principle? How does it help maintain and grow relationships? 2.  Read Matthew 18:15. This verse provides five key points about resolving personal conflicts. What are they? Please discuss.3.  Do you recall a situation in your life where you were seemingly the last person to know about someone having a problem with you? If you can, please talk about that. How did it affect those relationships? 4.  In Matthew 18:7, the English word “offense” is translated from the Greek word “skandalon,” which means the trigger of a trap on which bait is placed. Discuss how this biblical fact colors your understanding of what an offense is. 5.  What is a secondary offense? What is gossip? How are they damaging to relationships…the church? Have you experienced gossip, as the subject of the gossip or a participant? If so, please share what happened.

Life Group Questions1.   What are some of your biggest personal takeaways from the relationship principles series so far? 2.  Why is it important for our church to remain in unity? Bonus question: What are the key bible verses for this series? 3.  In week one, Pastor Ryan taught the faithfulness principle. What is the faithfulness principle and how does will this challenge you moving forward? 4.  In week two, Kasey taught the four-day principle. What is the four-day principle and will you commit to following this in your relationships in the church? 5.  Last Sunday, Pastor Ryan taught the friendship principle. What is the friendship principle? Do you find yourself to be someone who makes every effort to keep the unity in your relationships or do you avoid confrontation and hold grudges?

1. What spoke to you the most in this message?2. Being planted in church, going to church, reading your bible, praying, and worshiping are things Pastor Rob mentioned to help secure your mask and allow you to breathe in God's spiritual air. Which one of these do you need to work on? Explain. 3. Being an example for others to follow doesn't have to be a scary thing. We are not perfect and that's okay. Which method of setting the example needs the most work, and how can we, as a church family, help you? Method: 1. We need to practice what we preach.2. We need to find joy in every Situation.3. We need to model Christlikeness.4. We need to invest in relationships.4. Are you ready to put on that mask, secure it, breathe in, be the example, and go and make disciples? Why or why not? 

Life Group Questions 1.  If I want to increase my ability to hear God's voice, I must learn to cherish the word of God. What does cherish mean to you in this context? Do you cherish God's word? Why or why not? 2.  Three ways that the word of God supercharges our ability to hear God's voice are:·     It tunes your spirit·     It establishes you in foundational truths·     It defeats the devil Which of these impacted you the most and why? 3.  Tell a story about the last time you operated in the gifts of the Holy Spirit. 4.  The second supercharger for increasing our ability to hear God's voice is praying in the Spirit (praying in tongues). Are you baptized in the Holy Spirit? If so, do you pray in tongues daily? Why is this a good idea for any born-again believer?

Life Group Questions 1.  Pastor Ryan compared hearing God's voice to fine-tuning a transistor radio. What was your biggest takeaway from this illustration? 2.  Hebrews 10:19-20 says, “…we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, through His flesh…” What does this mean and why is this REALLY good news for all born-again believers?3.  When we come to God in doubt, we receive nothing. How does this challenge you as you seek to hear God's voice? 4.  It is impossible to approach God confidently with unconfessed sin in your heart and 1 John 1:9 tells us, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful & just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Are you living with unconfessed sin in your heart? Since God makes a wonderful promise to those who confess, what's holding you back from confessing? 5.  When God speaks to us, we must let those words cleanse us by applying & walking out what he says to us. What changes do you need to make in light of this directive? 6.  Romans 12:9 says, “Your love must be sincere.” What does this mean to you and how does this challenge you to relate to God and others differently moving forward?

Life Group Questions: 1. Share an example from your life of when you tested what you heard from God. 2. The first test Kasey shared was to filter out the impurities. Through sorrow, loss, sickness, pain, offenses, doubt, discouragement, temptation, & personal desire we filter God's voice through our tainted human perspective. Does this ring true for you? Have you experienced this before? Explain. 3. The Bible test:a. What conclusions can be drawn when you know that the Bible contradicts what you heard from God?b. What is absolutely essential to accomplish this test? 4. The source test: Kasey listed distinctive characteristics of messages from each source (World, Holy Spirit, You). For each source, which of the listed characteristics seemed most notable to you? 5. The humility test: We should seek counsel to help us determine if the message is from God. Do you do this? If not, why not? If so, how does it work for you?

Life Group Questions1.   Do you Journal? If so, why? If not, what's holding you back? 2.   Pastor Rob mentioned 4 benefits of journaling:·      It separates the hearing & the testing·      It occupies your mind·      It serves as a reminder·      It keeps the message pure Which one(s) do you relate to the most and why?3.   God's words are always perfect. Our interpretations of what He says are imperfect. What methods can we utilize to make sure we are hearing God accurately?4.   Is there something God has spoken over your life that hasn't been realized yet? Did you write it down so you don't forget the details? Are you praying for it? Are you waiting on the Lord in faith or in doubt?

Life Group Questions1.     Has God ever spoken to you through a dream or a vision? Tell the story. How did you know it was Him? 2.     Pastor Ryan said, “We need to hunger for & earnestly desire to hear God's voice.” On a scale from 1-10, how hungry are you to hear God's voice? 3.     In Acts 16:9-10, God calls an audible in the middle of Paul & Luke's missionary journey through a vision given to Paul during the night. This led to them changing their plans and heading to Macedonia. Are you ready & open to God calling an audible in your life? Share a time in your life (past or current) when you recognized God calling an audible. How did you respond? 4.     When Jesus needed personal ministry, He secluded himself for quiet time with the Lord. When he was around people, he ministered to them by doing what he saw and heard God do. This is the example for us to follow. When we need personal ministry, we need to have quiet time with the Lord. When we are around others, we should seek to see what God is doing and hear what God is saying to minister to them. Has God ever spoken to you or given you a vision during worship or at life group for someone else? Did you act upon it or dismiss it? Explain.

Life Group Questions1. We know that God is always with us and wants to help us in our time of need, but many Christians live life like functional atheists; running around as if God doesn't exist. Why do you think that is?2. Read Psalm 46:10. Is this easy or difficult for you and why?3. Omarr shared three steps for getting still:- Remove all outer distractions- Deal with your physical body- Quiet your inner selfWhich one do you need to work on the most and why?4. You make time for what is important to you. What do you spend the most time on? Do your priorities need to change?5. God didn't make you and save you to abandon you. What does this mean to you personally?

Life Group Questions1.    On a scale of 0 to 10 (lowest to highest), how would you rate your ability to recognize the voice of God before this teaching? (0 means that you never recognize His voice; 10 means that you almost always are certain about recognizing His voice.)2.    The big idea of this teaching is that God's voice sounds like a spontaneous, intersecting thought. a.    Discuss what this means to you. b.    How does this contrast with your thoughts? c.    In your experience, is this what God's voice sounds like?3.    According to Ezek. 14:4, the Lord will speak to us in accordance with the multitude of idols in our hearts. a.    What does this mean to you? b.    What should we do about this?4.    Which of the five qualities of God's voice, listed below, matches your experience the most? a.    God's voice will often be in the first person b.    God's voice will often be light and gentle c.    God's voice has better content than mine d.    God's voice lands right e.    God's voice causes a wonderful reaction5.    Which of the four safeguards, listed below, do you need to remember to implement the most to make sure that you are hearing God's voice correctly? a.    Scripture b.    Humble & teachable heart c.    Staying in your lane d.    Your church family

Life Group Questions: 1.  From Genesis to Revelation, we read numerous accounts of God speaking to people. Why do you think Christians today don't experience back and forth conversations with God? 2.  Have you heard God's voice before? If so, tell the story and explain how you knew it was Him. 3.  Jesus says that His disciples should know, hear, and obey His voice. How does this challenge you in your relationship w/ Jesus? 4.  What (if anything) is holding you back from believing that hearing God should be a normal part of Christianity?

Life Group Questions1.  "It's a get to not a got to." What does that phrase mean to you? 2.  Every person is presented with numerous opportunities daily to choose how they will respond. Do you generally respond with a “get to” attitude or “got to” attitude? 3.  Pastor Ryan shared the four reasons why life turns into a “got to.”      -      Doing the right things for the wrong reasons-      Being a do it all (saying yes to everything or doing everything yourself)-      Not taking breaks-      Not spending time w/ the Lord Which of these are you best at and which one do you need to improve on? Explain. 4.  What is your take away from this message, how will you apply it, and how can we hold you accountable?