SERMON SUMMARY

How do you interpret your own life? Usually, it’s based on what you’ve done or what people have done to you. Sadly, this often leads to endless and cancerous comparison. But what if the gospel has a different interpretation of my life than I do? In Galatians 1, Paul’s brief autobiography helps us understand how the gospel of grace can change our perspective.

How does the gospel of grace reinterpret our stories? It teaches us that what we do and what’s been done to us aren’t the things that ultimately define us. Rather, what Jesus has done for us is the thing that is most true about us.

If we are believing and trusting Jesus for this grace, that means we want to live by his interpretation of our stories and not our own. And now, what is most true about you is that you are loved. You are accepted. You are his son or daughter. He set you apart before you were born. He called you by his grace. He is pleased to welcome you into his family. Your sin doesn’t exclude you. Your shame doesn’t discount you. It is not by men, nor through man, but by the grace of Jesus that we belong. And here, there is freedom.

*We are a church located in Greenville, South Carolina. Our vision is to see God transform us into a community of grace passionately pursuing life and mission with Jesus.

SUGGESTIONS FOR COMMUNITY GROUP QUESTIONS   

Remember, these are “suggested” questions. You do not have to go through every single one of them. In fact, some of these questions may prompt other questions that may be important to group members. So, feel the freedom to explore other questions as long as they don’t become “rabbit trails.”

1. What stood out to you the most about this passage/message?

2. How do you most naturally interpret your own story?

3. How are you tempted to compare yourself to others?

4. Who is someone you know who, because of Jesus’ grace, doesn’t live constantly comparing themselves?

5. Given that Paul’s previous life was as a terrorist, what does this say about the power of grace?

6. How does the gospel of grace reinterpret our own stories?

7. How should grace change the way you see other people?