On Sunday we started a new series “Team – Why you need other imperfect people in the game of life and faith.” So this Wednesday, May 3rd at 7pm at The Vine we’ll get into Part 1 which was called “Imperfect People are Perfect Opportunities.”

This post lets you link to the podcast (in case you missed it), and lets you know the discussion questions ahead of time.

Podcast: “Imperfect People are Perfect Opportunities”
If you missed the message or want to review it, you can listen in here.

Bible Passage
The Bible passage was a part of the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 7:1-5. You can read it here.

Questions
Here are this week’s questions so you can start to ponder Wednesday’s discussions:

1. We live in a highly individualistic society. More and more people are searching for meaning in their lives without reference to God or a wider tradition; more people are living their lives without a significant connection to other people; and with iPads, drive thru windows, and personalized almost-anythings, we seem to love minimizing inconvenience. Bill Willits says, “In the midst of our crowded existence, many of us are living lonely lives.” Why is it getting harder to foster real community and connection with other people, even though there are more people in the world, and even though we’re more connected online?

2. If we’re not careful we can bring an individualistic mentality to the church. We can “consume” church, worship services, and programs that we like, and we can downplay the role of other people in our faith. In what ways is this consumer mentality unavoidable, and what ways is it avoidable?

3. Jesus warns against being judgmental toward other believers: He says, “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?” In light of this, Matthew called the church a “training ground,” meaning that it’s a place for us to work on our personal integrity, and then treat others properly; therefore, the church is a training ground because it helps prepare us for how to live in the wider world. How might the idea of the church being a “training ground” change how you interact with other believers?

4. Matthew said that imperfect people are perfect opportunities for you to grow in godliness. What did he mean?

5. If you could imagine Jesus standing beside you in difficult situations and conversations, how would that impact what you would say and do?