Introduction

One of the ways you know you're growing in maturity as a follower of Jesus is when you can hold competing values in tension. Jesus did this perfectly, and when you learn from his example, you can figure out how to navigate nuance like him. In week one, Pastor Jesse taught about the difference between essential and non-essential beliefs and how we should live them out.

Discussion

1. We live in a world that feeds us a polarized or “either/or” approach to just about everything. But our real world is nuanced, messy, and diverse. What’s a topic in your life where you wish there were more “both/and” conversations rather than “either/or” arguments? What do you feel gets lost when an “either/or” approach wins out?

Conformity: Essentials of the faith in which we all must be unified.

2. Revisit and read Matthew 22:34-40. This is the Great Commandment – to love God and neighbor. Love in action, no matter who needs it. When was the last time you engaged with someone who wasn’t like you? When was the last time you loved someone with your actions who needed it? Share that story and its impact with your group.

3. Revisit and read the Matthew 28:18-20. This is the Great Commission – go make disciples. Not just growing people up in the faith, but stepping across the Faith Line. Have you ever talked to someone about crossing the Faith Line? Can you imagine having that conversation with someone? Why or why not? If you have, share your most recent story and what that experience was like.

4. Revisit and read and John 13:34, 15:12, & 15:17. This is about living in Great Community – so that the watching world might see how God so loves them. Think of someone in your life who doesn’t believe in God. Does the Christian community you’re a part of now provide a picture of God’s great love for them? Is it lived out in a way that they could actually see it? Share why or why not with your group.

Conscience: Non-essentials of the faith in which I might have personal convictions.

5. Revisit and read Romans 1:1-22. Don’t let your convictions about non-essentials confuse the watching world about what’s most important. Where are you most likely to get caught up in something outside “The Big Three” essentials above? What tension does this create in you knowing it’s not as important as these other commands? Talk about this with your group, then spend some time in the application points below.

Application

These are all about navigating the non-essentials (because that’s where most of the drama usually lands) with a few principles from Romans 14:

• Accept one another’s differences instead of dividing over them (Romans 14:1).
• Don’t judge someone over their convictions; let God do that (Romans 14:3; 11-13).
• Don’t let the more cautious or more permissive set the standard. Let “being considerate with one another” be your standard (Romans 14:15-21).
• Don’t make your convictions your platform (Romans 14:22-23).