A rainy bus stop, an approaching bus, and a young man squinting because he cannot read the number, relief comes only with his first pair of glasses. That image opens a reflection on the two commands that hold the whole Christian life together: the commandment of love (Luke 10) and the great commission (Matthew 28). The sermon shows why choosing one at the expense of the other works like glasses with a single lens of the wrong strength, we look, yet we do not see clearly. Listen and consider which lens needs adjusting in the way you see the year ahead.
Discussion questions
For your small group or for personal reflection after the sermon.
- In Luke 10:25-28 the expert in the law joins the Shema from Deuteronomy with the command to love your neighbor from Leviticus. What does it mean to love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, and why does Jesus answer: do this and you will live?
- In Matthew 28:16-20 Jesus sends out his disciples, even though some doubt, giving them only his authority and the promise of his presence. What does this tell you about who can take part in the mission of making disciples?
- The speaker describes Christian life as spiritual glasses with two lenses: formation in us and mission through us. Which command do you naturally lean toward, and how does your personality shape that preference?
- The sermon says a transformed person is a missional person, and sharing the good news also changes us. What experience from your own life shows that these two commands are bound together?
- According to the speaker, mission without closeness to Jesus turns into activism, and formation without it easily becomes legalism. What signs in your life show which way you tend to tilt?
- Be with Jesus, become like Jesus, do what Jesus did: what is the next right thing you want to take up this week, such as five minutes of daily silence or praying for a specific person?
