Wide Open, Week 14: From Grace to Mission
Matthew 28:16-20 (NIV)
Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Discussion Questions
The sermon described the disciples' road trip back to Galilee as a journey full of long conversations trying to make sense of everything that had just happened. What season of your own life has felt most like that — full of questions, with no clear idea of what came next?
Prevenient grace is the idea that God's love was surrounding you and drawing you toward faith long before you were aware of it. Looking back at your own story, where do you see that grace at work — people, moments, circumstances — that you didn't recognize as God at the time?
Baptism answers the question "To whom do I belong?" How settled is your answer to that question right now — and is there any area of your life where you're living as if you belong to something or someone other than God?
Matthew tells us some worshipped and some doubted — in the same group, at the same moment. The sermon suggested this is what churches have always looked like. How does it change the way you think about Sunday morning to know that doubt has been present in worship since the very beginning?
The message made a distinction between doubt as unbelief and doubt as trying to make sense of unbelievable circumstances. Which kind of doubt do you find yourself carrying most often — and how do you bring it to worship rather than letting it keep you away?
Have you ever come to church not feeling particularly spiritual, but showed up anyway hoping to find Jesus there? What happened — and did he show up?
Worship answers the question "Where do I belong?" Is there a specific moment in corporate worship — a song, a prayer, a familiar rhythm — where that sense of belonging feels most real to you personally?
Jesus commissioned the whole group — worshippers and doubters alike — without waiting for anyone to resolve their uncertainty first. What does that tell you about how God views your readiness for mission right now, wherever you are in your faith journey?
Mission answers the question "What am I here for?" Where is your mission field this week — not globally, but specifically, in the ordinary spaces of your everyday life?
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