Faith and Works
Mountain Movers – Part 1
March 26-27, 2022
“And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.” Hebrews 11:6 (p.926)
“Just as the body is dead without breath, so also faith is dead without good works.” James 2:26 (p.931)
Memory Verse: “I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible.” Matthew 17:20b (p.748)
“God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.” Ephesians 2:8–9 (p.896)
- Faith Is Trusting God Enough To Do What He Says. He Says Serve.
“You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’ And, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.” Luke 10:27 (p.792)
Luke 10:30-37
- Take time to listen
“By chance a priest came along. But when he saw the man lying there, he crossed to the other side of the road and passed him by. A Temple assistant walked over and looked at him lying there, but he also passed by on the other side.” Luke 10:31-32 (p.792)
“Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say, ‘Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well’—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do? So, you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.” James 2:15-17 (p.931)
- Respond with compassion
“Then a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw the man, he felt compassion for him. Going over to him, the Samaritan soothed his wounds with olive oil and wine and bandaged them. Then he put the man on his own donkey and took him to an inn, where he took care of him.” Luke 10:33-34 (p.792)
“Now someone may argue, ‘Some people have faith; others have good deeds.’ But I say, ‘How can you show me your faith if you don’t have good deeds? I will show you my faith by my good deeds.’ You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror. How foolish! Can’t you see that faith without good deeds is useless?” James 2:18-20 (p.931)
- Put faith into action
“‘The next day he handed the innkeeper two silver coins, telling him, “Take care of this man. If his bill runs higher than this, I’ll pay you the next time I’m here.” ‘Now which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by bandits’ Jesus asked. The man replied, ‘The one who showed him mercy.’ Then Jesus said, ‘Yes, now go and do the same.’” Luke 10:35-37 (p.792)
“Don’t you remember that our ancestor Abraham was shown to be right with God by his actions when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see, his faith and his actions worked together. His actions made his faith complete.” James 2:21-22 (p.931)
“For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love.” Galatians 5:13 (p.893)
My Next Step This Week: _____I will put my faith into action this week by living out application # ________.
Discussion/Groups Guide
Mountain Movers – Part 1 “Faith and Works”
Life Groups use this guide in their discussion from the Weekend Talk. This is also a discussion guide you can use with your family and friends.
Conversation Starters
- Do you happen to have “I climbed a mountain” on your personal resume? Would you like for it to be?
- If you have climbed a mountain (or rock-climbed or done some other dangerous Xtreme activity) how did you feel before and after the climb?
- What is the scariest thing you have ever chosen to do? Skydive? Drag race? Surf? Bull ride? Something else? Did someone talk you into doing it or was it something you just had a mind to do? Talk about the experience.
- If you have repeated the activity that was so scary, does it still scare you? Why do we typically—not always—experience less fear the more often we do something?
Quick Review
Looking back at your Weekend Talk Notes, was there anything you heard in the service that stood out to you, challenged you, or maybe even confused you?
Discussion Starters from the Weekend Talk
Refer to the Talk Notes and Bible verses from the Talk Notes.
One Thing: Faith Is Trusting God Enough To Do What He Says. He Says Serve.
Series Memory Verse: Matthew 17:20b (p.748).
See also: Hebrews 11:6 (p.926)
Background: Luke 10:30-37 (p.792) the Good Samaritan; James 2:26 (p.931)
- How do these passages connect?
- Have you ever seen or been part of a real-life Good Samaritan story? Talk about it.
- Why is “Good Samaritan” a recognized term even in the culture at-large?
- Why is Hebrews 11:6 so important to our discussion this week?
- Is faith really dead without good works? Why are they so tightly linked? How have you experienced this? Who prompts and empowers us to serve in the first place?
- What is—or has been—your mountain?
It’s important to remember that what we’re talking about is faith that leads to works. Saving faith, what Paul talked about in Ephesians 2:8-9 (p.896), is entirely a gift from God that we cannot earn.
This week our discussion focuses on the following points of teaching and application:
- Take time to listen. Luke 10:31-32 (p.792); James 2:15-17 (p.931)
- What stands out in this part of the Good Samaritan narrative?
- Why did those guys pass the hurt man by? Do you think those guys had knowledge of scripture?
- Respond with compassion. Luke 10:33-34 (p.792); James 2:18-20 (p.931)
- Why is it important to point out that the Samaritan was “despised?”
- What kind of faith does James describe in 2:19?
- How has compassion been demonstrated to you? How have you demonstrated it to another?
- Respond to this quote: “I behave as I behave because I believe as I believe.”
- Can you think of any examples where this is proved true?
- Put faith into action. Luke 10:35-37 (p.792); James 2:21-22 (p.931); Galatians 5:13 (p.893)
- Who is your neighbor?
- What can you do to serve them in Jesus’ name?
- For what reason are we given freedom?
Digging Deeper
We know how we should respond to this message, but what is stopping us?
- Write down the barriers/obstacles/fears which prevent us from being mountain movers. Then commit to praying—and praying for each other—over these issues.
In Life Group we can bring things to the table without fear of judgment. It is important to remember we have all been given different gifts by the Holy Spirit and the gifts are for building up the church: Romans 12:6-8 (p.866) and 1 Corinthians 12:8-10 (p.877).
We also have different experiences of what God has done through us in our walk with Him. We are all different but we are on God’s Team. God will only call you to something He knows you can do or be trained to do.
Satan does not want us to be mountain movers. He wants us to be mountain watchers. By identifying our fears/concerns and collectively praying for each other we can live in the victory we have over Satan through the power of Christ (Romans 8:37 p.863).
My Next Step This Week: _____I will put my faith into by living out application # ________.