Don Denyes // Rockford Campus // June 8, 2025

SMALL GROUP
DISCUSSION GUIDE

THIS WEEK’S KEY PASSAGE: Luke 18:35-43

REMINDERS

Summer is Here!

Summer events are here! Stay in the know by keeping an eye on our events page.

Life Together – HS Juniors and Seniors (June 9-13)

Students going into high school junior and senior years are invited to be part of a life-changing trip focused on serving, community, worldview, and what it means to glorify God in the whole of life. They will be blessed by a week of fellowship, learning, encouragement, and building relationships as they do life together. Magnify Rockford Campus will be their basecamp as they serve during the week. Then they will head out to a fun location for the end of the week. See the website for more information.

 

 

TOGETHER IN LIFE

To begin his sermon, Don talked about how God makes the impossible, possible. In what ways have you seen or heard of something “impossible” happening in your life?

TOGETHER IN THE WORD

THIS WEEK’S KEY PASSAGE: Luke 19:1-10

Note: If you are meeting as a group, we encourage you to read the text together out loud.

KEY QUESTION:

• In what ways does the story of Zacchaeus summarize salvation in Jesus Christ and how can you share this with others?

GOING DEEPER:

Zacchaeus on a Mission

What we learned in the sermon of the Parable of the tax collector and Pharisee from Luke 18:9-14, we know that these tax collectors were not well liked nor respected. He became a “chief tax collector” – a key player in the Roman empire where he oversaw an entire region of tax collection. He stole – legally (extortion) – and must’ve been very good at it to have earned the rank, Chief. The name “Zacchaeus” means “Pure One” – the irony is thick.

QUESTIONS

• Remember back when you were in your younger years –  post-high school, living on your own, perhaps early married days. What was the state of your finances then? What do you remember of those days of earning and spending? Has your condition changed? If so, how? 
• If you’ve earned more since then, how would you say your stress-level has been effected? Has there been any difference between earning a little or a lot of money and how stressful life has felt?
• Why is it that so many times we believe that earning more money will resolve our stressors in life?

 

QUESTIONS

• In three or four words how would you describe your attitude in your relationship with God right now?  Would curiosity and simplicity be included? Why or why not?
• How does curiosity and simplicity help us pursue relationship with God?
• What attitudes hurt your faith or the faith of those you know?
• What might this tell us about our approach to reading Scripture or

Jesus on a Mission

God sees all that we do and watches over us everywhere we go. This can be so comforting to those who trust God as Savior, but terrifying to those who are enemies of Him. Zacchaeus climbed the tree with the hopes of finding Jesus, but never had a concept that Jesus might be looking for him. 

Jesus is looking for us, too. The same God looking for Zacchaeus up in the tree – a despised, thieving, and broken chief tax collector – is the same Father who desires for us to “come home” to Him.

QUESTIONS

• What aspects of Zacchaues’ story stand out to you?
• In what ways does this speak to Jesus’ mission of rescue for the rescue of humanity?
• What was the response of the people about Jesus’ pursuit of Zacchaeus?
• Which people or group are difficult for you to believe that Jesus would be looking for them to rescue? Why do you think this is?
• How does this story parallel the story of salvation for all believers in Jesus?
• Can you relate to Zacchaeus’ story in some way? How?

 

Saved by faith alone; but saving faith is not alone.

“It is therefore faith alone which justifies, and yet the faith which justifies is not alone” – John Calvin

The grace of God flows into our hearts when we receive it by faith. Faith is the vehicle, grace is the fuel. One of the key parts of receiving the grace of God by faith is that it can never be contained and kept for oneself – it must flow outward. Meaning: whenever we experience new life in Jesus because of His loving sacrifice for us, we cannot help but pass that loving grace on to others.

For Zacchaeus, that means to repay those he stole from and making it right. This is a crucial evidence of the Spirit’s work: to believe and repent. When confronted with the weight of his sin, Zacchaeus turned to Jesus’ and away from his sinful past. But not only did he turn, he also went back to those whom he had wronged and worked to mend what he had damaged. This is – in part – what it means to live by faith and do the “good works” God has for us to do.

QUESTIONS

• READ James 2:14-26 – what connections do you see specifically in this story? 
• Ask others who love you and you trust to speak honestly: “Are there signs of grace in my life? Is there evidence of God’s forgiveness?”
• What areas of your life do you feel most challenged in this?
• How can the people in your life – your Life Group, your family, your friends – help you grow in this?

 

TOGETHER IN ACTION

• Talk about what ways grace is evidenced in the lives of those around you. Tell them how you see the Spirit working in their life, when you see it happen. Celebrate the Lord’s grace spilling out of those in your group, family, and friends.
• Find 1 area you want to grow in living out “faith in action”.

TOGETHER IN PRAYER

“For the Son of Man has come to seek and save the lost” – Luke 19:10

Pray that the Lord would spark a desire in your heart to help those who don’t know him. 

Pray specifically for 3 people who don’t realize Jesus is on the search for them and pray that God would use you to know Him and find Him.