Large Group #7 - Supporting each other

This week we will be talking about encouragement and have a quick recap about what we learned from studying Micah on Saturday.  I have been greatly encouraged over the past few weeks as I have gotten to know many new faces and seen strong commitment to Christ and to each other at Turtle Prayer, this weekend’s Dig-In, at church, and around campus.  I pray that we will continue to love and serve each other wholeheartedly. I exhort those of us who have found a firm community here at Caltech to reach out to those who have not yet found Christian community.  Consider the wonderful blessing it is to be with fellow believers and how encouraging it is to spend time with each other; share that gift and blessing with your friends because you care about them and love them.

Encouragement and hope come ultimately from God, through His Spirit (consider Ephesians 5:15-21 and Hebrews 13:9) and in the work Jesus accomplished on the cross. Hence we can encourage each other simply by living out scripture in our lives (1 Thessalonians 3:6-10). Encouragement is not a passive process, nor is it simply our words: we encourage through our actions (1 John 3:18) and our involvement in each other’s lives.

We will consider how we can encourage each other by reading Job 2:11-13, Romans 12:15, and Psalm 88.  We encourage by understanding each other well enough that we can encourage according to our brother’s a sister’s needs (Ephesians 4:29).  Therefore we will discuss how we encourage with the freedom that Christ gave us and not in compulsion (Galatians 5:1, Romans 14:13-23, Philemon 14) and see how rebuke relates to encouragement (Galatians 6:1, 1 Timothy 5:1-2, Proverbs 27:5).  We will also identify some pitfalls to avoid as we encourage each other by examining Proverbs 27:14 and Job 42:7-9. Finally, we will also look at some of the specific ways to encourage our leaders and teachers in Galatians 6:6 and Hebrews 13:17.

This week we will also begin to tie together all the topics we have been talking about this term—living life as a Body (1 Corinthians 12), building honesty and openness (James 5:13-16), dealing with conflict (Matthew 5:21-26,Matthew 18:15-20, Ephesians 4:25-28)—and relating these topics to how we encourage each other.

I exhort you all to put into practice what we have been covering in Large Group (so that we may love through actions and not simply through words), to spend time with each other so that we may encourage each other and grow in love together, to check up on your friends to support them (especially in the wake of midterms!), and to invite friends to have community with other believers.

1. 1 John 3:18. What actions can we take to love our brothers and sisters? What are ways we can encourage each other to action instead of to just talk? Have you loved with actions lately (you don’t have to answer this out loud, but do think on it)?
2. Galatians 5:1, Romans 14:13-23, Philemon 14. How can we encourage and support while giving freedom, not compulsion and burdens? How do we use that freedom while still loving each other? What are some specific examples you can think of?
3. Proverbs 27:14. How might this apply when you are trying to support a friend? (Think about timing or methods. Perhaps keep in mind Ephesians 4:29.) Read Psalm 88; this is a comforting psalm to me when things are going badly and has been helpful for my friends when they face depression; it is often a psalm I pray through for others when they have shared with me about their hard times.  Considering the content of this bullet point, why might it be comforting, even though (or because!) it is a sad psalm?
4. What are some ways you have supported a friend or family member? Have there been times when a well-meaning friend tried to support you (or vice versa) and it backfired? What can we learn from this?
5. Related to point 4, the book of Job has many lessons for us, one of which is how we can support each other in times of great trial. Read Job 2:11-13. How do Job’s friends support Job? Job 3 begins a dialogue between Job and his friends that lasts until Job 38. In this dialogue his friends suggest that Job must be suffering for something he has done (but read Job 42:7-9!).  You will notice that none of the things Job’s friends say cheer Job up. What does Job’s story suggest about the merits of simply being with our friends when they are under trial (see also Romans 12:15)?  Where do Job’s friends err?
6. Galatians 6:1, 1 Timothy 5:1-2, Proverbs 27:5. How do rebuke and encouragement relate?
7. Galatians 6:6. What is one way we are called to encourage our teachers? See also Hebrews 13:17 (and consider Hebrews 13:7-8).
8. Hebrews 13:9, Ephesians 5:15-21. Where does our strength come from? How does this relate to encouraging one another?
9. 1 Thessalonians 3:6-10 shows us that simply living according to scripture is an encouragement to other believers. Discuss.

Tying it together:

Week 2 (Being the Body of Christ): How can we encourage someone who is different than us (recall Ephesians4:29)? Does this require knowing well the person we aspire to encourage? Does spending time together allow us to encourage each other better? How/why?

Week 3 (Honesty and Openness): How does a community of honesty and openness help us to encourage each other? How do we build up a lifestyle where we have honesty and openness with each other? Recall James 5:13-16. How can confessing our sins to each other build us up and strengthen us as a body?

Week 4 (Dealing with Conflict): Why must we deal with conflict in order to encourage each other? How do we deal with conflict as the Body of Christ (Matthew 5:21-26, Matthew 18:15-20, Ephesians 4:25-28)?

Recall the homework we have every week: to put into practice what we have learned, to meet and spend time together, and to invite friends to Large Group.  How do these efforts relate to living as a body, building honesty and openness, dealing with conflict, and supporting each other? How can we do this better as a family of believers?