I Want More Love

Main Thought

We’re already loved by God. Jesus said that He loves us to the same degree as the Father loves Him. If God loves us in such an incredible way, why don’t we always experience His love? Internal factors (like sin) and external factors (like Satan and his demons) pull us away from God like a powerful current. We try to find love in sources that might be very good, but that were never meant to fully sustain us. This eventually creates tension, disappointment, and a frantic search for more. 

That’s why Jesus calls us to abide in Him. When we keep His commandments, we put ourselves in position to better perceive and participate in God’s love. In turn, we become more like Christ and help others draw closer to Him. That’s what it means to have a fruitful life according to God’s Word. That’s what it really means to thrive - and when we abide, we thrive.

Main Passages

“Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”

- John 15:4-5 ESV

“By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love.”

- John 15:8-10 ESV

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”

- Galatians 5:22-23 ESV

“Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months, then comes the harvest’? Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see that the fields are white for harvest. Already the one who reaps is receiving wages and gathering fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together.”

- John 4:35-36 ESV

Discussion Questions 

1. God’s love is extended to us unconditionally - but our experience of God’s love is contingent upon whether or not we abide in Him. Would you say you’re in a good position to perceive and participate in God’s love? Why or why not?

2. Commenting on humanity’s ultimate need for God’s love, Augustine of Hippo said, "Our heart is restless until it rests in you.” What are your thoughts on this statement?

3. Biblical fruitfulness can refer to both the formation of Christlike character and helping others become closer to God (see Galatians 5 and John 4 above). Would you like to see more of this “fruit” in your life? What is one practical way you can partner with God to make that happen?

I Want More Joy

Main Thought

We often live in the pursuit of happiness - but happiness is based on what happens. When life is going well, happiness comes easily. But when something bad happens, or when a difficult season comes, happiness can disappear just as quickly. Hardship is unavoidable, so happiness alone is not enough. We need something deeper: something that can sustain us even when life is hard. We need joy.

Jesus offers us this kind of joy. Through His death and resurrection, our hope is secured and our future is anchored in something unchanging. We can look back at the finished work of Christ and forward to the day we will see Him face-to-face. This eternal perspective reshapes how we live in the present. Our problems don’t disappear - but they begin to shrink. We gain the ability to respond with grace, wisdom, and joy. The joy that God gives is not fragile or temporary. It takes root deep within us, radiates outward, and cannot be taken away.

Main Passages

20 Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy. 21 When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. 22 So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice…

- John 16:18-22a, ESV

33 I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.

- John 16:33, ESV

6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory…”

- 1 Peter 1:6-8, ESV

Discussion Questions

1. Jesus said, “In this world you will have tribulation.” How does acknowledging this reality actually help us rather than discourage us?

2. Looking back at the resurrection and forward to seeing Jesus can give us an eternal perspective. Why is it so important to have the proper perspective in the face of life’s problems? How can perspective help sustain our joy?

3. What are some practical ways you can “feed the fire” of joy in your daily life?

I Want More Peace

Main Thought

We all want more peace. We feel peace when life is working - when bills are paid, relationships are healthy, and things feel stable. This is the kind of peace the world offers. It’s real, but it’s conditional. It only lasts as long as our circumstances cooperate. When things fall apart, that peace often disappears. 

There’s a better peace available in God. It’s constant and reliable because it’s rooted in God. It is not built on circumstances, but rooted in His unchanging character and finished work. Peace from God is constant and reliable - but we can only access it if we have peace with God. By default, humanity is separated from God. We get distracted; we drift; we sin. Yet Jesus made peace possible through His death and resurrection. When we turn to Him in faith, we receive peace with God - which enables us to then find peace in God. If we’ll focus on Him - with concentrated focus and constant awareness - then we will find peace that cannot be shaken.

Main Passages

23 Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.

- John 14:23

26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. 

- John 14:26-27

3 You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. 

- Isaiah 26:3

Discussion Questions

1. What stands out to you in the Main Thought or Main Passages above?

2. Jesus connects His peace with the presence of the Holy Spirit. How have you experienced peace through God’s presence, even in the face of difficult circumstances?

3. What is one intentional step you can take this week (like prayer, Scripture, worship, awareness of God’s presence) to grow in experiencing God’s peace?