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The Eternal Church

Month 8| week 4: CONNECT

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WELCOME!

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Snake 2.0

Let’s Play!

Icebreaker Game: Snake 2.0

Materials Needed: One balloon per student

Game Preparation: Inflate balloons before the game begins.

Ask the two tallest students in your group to come to the front of the room. Hand each of the remaining students an inflated balloon and instruct them to spread out. Once the group is scattered and seated, explain how the two tallest students are now the heads of two snakes and that they will be competing to see who can create the longest tail. To add to their tails, the two “heads” will walk around and place a hand on a seated student’s balloon.

The seated student will then stand up, keeping one hand on their balloon and the other hand free to add another student to their tail. If a student drops their balloon, everyone behind them is now disconnected from the tail and free for the other team to steal. The game concludes when every student is a part of a tail.

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Digging deeper

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After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice:�

Revelation 7:9-12

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“Salvation belongs to our God,�who sits on the throne,�and to the Lamb.”��All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, �saying:�

Revelation 7:9-12

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“Amen!�Praise and glory�and wisdom and thanks and honor�and power and strength�be to our God for ever and ever.�Amen!”�

Revelation 7:9-12

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Describe the last time you were a part of a massive crowd that was united for a single purpose or cause.

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so what…

How does the reality of the global Church impact my life today?

Tool time

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What are some critiques you have heard about God’s Church?

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Key idea

The bible’s message: �we are seen and loved

The Bible’s message for us all is that we are seen and loved. So much of Jesus’ miracles and parables reminded his listeners that even if they were cast off by society, God saw every moment of their lives and showed gut-level compassion for them. God sees you, you are important, and you are known.

But there is also a corporate aspect of God’s promises. If you want to understand the full potential of being a member of God’s Body, you have to first get involved in it.

From your creation, you have been made by God with unique and wonderful abilities and experiences. Jesus’ invitation for you to follow him is very personal and intimate. But there is also a united and communal aspect of this relationship with God that reveals your ultimate purpose.

As God’s Body and Bride, we are always in the act of becoming, but there are still ways we reflect God’s eternal Church. Because we are followers of Jesus, people who do not know about God should be able to see Jesus in us as we gather together. In our fellowship, they should see joy, peace, mercy, forgiveness, hope, and belonging.

Just like a beautiful thread in a tapestry, your worth and value is only multiplied when you connect as part of God’s eternal Church.

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The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that �in everything he might have the supremacy.

Colossians 1:15-18

The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. (Colossians 1:15-18)

I hope that, in these words, your spirit got caught up in who Jesus is. This Jesus who has come to rescue and redeem us is the one through whom all things have been created and are held together. He is the one with whom we will spend eternity, not plucking harps on a cloud but reigning with him forever.

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What are some ways you can build up your church?

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Key point

The Church God is building and invites us all to be a part of has an eternal focus.

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Let’s pray

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Thanks

See you next time!