Going Deeper

Taking what we talk about on Sunday mornings and "Going Deeper" into our understanding and life application, as we learn to THINK, LOVE, and LIVE like Jesus.

FOUNDATIONS OF FAITH: PEACE WITH GOD

ROMANS 5:1-11  :: CHRIS MEADE :: JUNE 14


Romans 5:1-11 reminds us that because we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God, access to His grace, and hope for the future. Even our trials are not wasted, because God uses them to shape us into the image of Christ. The same God who loved us when we were His enemies continues to hold us, strengthen us, and help us persevere until the day we see Him face to face.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. Where did the Holy Spirit speak or challenge you through God’s Word? Were there any “ah-ah” moments?

2. Read Romans 5:1-2  Paul talked about having peace with God. But that doesn’t mean that we have peace in life.  

  • What does it mean for you to have PEACE with God?  How does that give greater perspective when your peace with God actually creates warring and battles with or spiritual enemies, culture, and possibly our community (the people around us)? 

3.  Read Romans 5:3-5 and James 1:2-4.  Paul shares how God redeems the beatles and suffering we face in our life–and that we can actually “glory in our sufferings” because God is at work in and through them. 


      • When life becomes difficult, do you typically respond in the flesh or in the Spirit?  How do you know the difference? What specific patterns of fear, anger, pride, anxiety, or avoidance reveal areas where I need to learn to think, love, and live more like Jesus?
      • What are the conflicts, hardships, or struggles are you facing, and how might God be using it to develop perseverance, character, and hope in you?  Instead of asking, "How do I escape this?" what would it look like to ask, "God, what do you want to produce in me through this?"
      • Is there a relationship, situation, ministry, church, or challenge where God may be calling you to persevere rather than quit?  What would faithful endurance look like in that situation, and what steps of obedience can you take this week to respond/react in the Spirit to your situation?

4. Read Romans 5:6-11. Paul shares with us the depth of God’s love.  

      • How does remembering that Christ died for you while you were powerless, ungodly, a sinner, and God's enemy affect the way you view yourself and the depth of God’s love for you?
      • Where have you seen evidence of God's transforming work in your life over the past year? Do you find yourself celebrating the spiritual growth God is producing in your life, or focusing only on past failures instead of recognizing the steps of faith He is helping me take? Why?
      • Is there a person that you find most difficult to love, forgive, or understand right now? How would your attitude and actions change toward them if you intentionally remembered that Jesus loves that person with the same sacrificial love He showed you?

5. What has God taught you this week that you can share with someone?  


FOUNDATIONS OF FAITH: RIGHT FAITH 

ROMANS 4:13-25 :: CHRIS MEADE :: JUNE 7

The Christian life is not built on religious performance, cultural expectations, or personal effort. Like Abraham, we are called to place our faith in the God who keeps His promises, trusting that our righteousness comes through grace alone, by faith alone, in Christ alone—even when circumstances seem impossible. We don’t try to get God to do things by our faith. We place our faith in the God who will do what He promises. 

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. Where did the Holy Spirit speak or challenge you through God’s Word? Were there any
“ah-ah” moments?

2. Heart Check: Read Romans 4:13-15 Paul challenged the Jewish believers to move beyond finding their identity in the Law. 
        • What cultural or religious traditions have you accepted as essential to your faith that may actually be keeping you from fully embracing God's grace? Are there traditions, expectations, or "Christian rules" that you rely on? 
        • How has the gospel shaped your identity rather than your background, culture, achievements, wounds, or failures?
        • Chris talked about being “Married to the MISSION…and not the methods.” The mission is what Jesus has called you to (be disciples who make disciples), while methods (how that is done) change so that we can be effective disciple-makers. Do you recognize times when you were more married to methods than to the mission? How would you personally combat that to be open and ready for preferences to change? 
3. Read Romans 4:16-21. Abraham believed "against all hope." Abraham's faith was not that he could make something happen; his faith was in the God who had promised.
        • How would you explain the difference between 1) placing faith in God Himself and 2) placing faith in a specific outcome you want God to produce? How do you distinguish between trusting God's promises and trying to make God fulfill your personal expectations?
        • What situation in your life requires faith in God's character and promises rather than confidence in what you can currently see? 
        • Consider the promises mentioned in the sermon: forgiveness of sins, God's presence, His provision, His love, His purpose for your life, your ability to approach Him boldly, and obedience is ALWAYS better. Which promise speaks most directly to your current season? Which promises of God do you need to intentionally remind yourself of this week? 
4. Read Romans 4:22-25. Abraham's story was given not only for him but for us.
        • How might God use your faith journey this week to encourage someone else to trust Him?
        • What has God taught you this week that you can share with someone else?  

FOUNDATIONS OF FAITH: BLESSINGS OF FAITH 

 ROMANS 4:1-12   Zach Games ● May 31, 2026

In Romans 4:1-12, Paul points to Abraham as the ultimate example of how God justifies people—not through religious performance or good works, but through faith. Abraham had nothing to boast about before God because righteousness was credited to him when he believed, not because he earned it. Paul reminds us that justification is God's gracious declaration that sinners are righteous through faith in Him, resulting in the forgiveness of sins and a restored relationship with God. Abraham's faith came before circumcision, proving that God's salvation has never been based on religious rituals, ethnic background, or personal achievement. The good news of the gospel is that anyone—Jew or Gentile, religious or irreligious—can be declared righteous before God by placing their trust completely in Jesus Christ. Faith is not about performing for God; it is about trusting in what God has already done for us through Christ.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. Where did the Holy Spirit speak or challenge you through God’s Word? Were there any “ah-ah” moments?

2. Heart Check:  Read Romans 4:1-3

          • When you think about your relationship with God, do you tend to feel accepted because of what Jesus has done for you, or because of how well you have performed recently?
          • What does that reveal about where you are placing your confidence?
          • In what ways do people today still try to “earn” God’s approval?

3. Purpose Defined: Read Romans 4:4-8  

          • Romans 4:5 says God justifies the ungodly. Why is it difficult for many Christians to believe that God extends grace to people who don't deserve it—including themselves?

          • Is there a part of your story where you still struggle to accept God's forgiveness? Read verses 7-8 out loud.  What does the truth of–your sin is completely forgiven and that God will NEVER count your sin against you–mean to you? If God has forgiven you and doesn’t hold ANY of your sin against you, do you still hide from God? Do you still feel guilty?  Do you feel like you need to punish yourself? Do you feel you need to confess your sin to be forgiven? 

4.  Faith over Religion: Read Romans 4:9-12; Hebrews 11:6

          • What religious habits, traditions, or spiritual disciplines have you been tempted to treat as the basis of God's acceptance rather than a response to His grace?

          • How can you enjoy those practices without turning them into a way of earning favor with God?

          • Abraham believed before he was circumcised, showing that faith comes before religious activity. How does this challenge the way we sometimes view church attendance, baptism, communion, service, or other acts of obedience?

Foundations of Faith: ONLY JESUS

 ROMANS 3:19-31   Chris Meade ● May 24th, 2026

In Romans 3:19–31, Paul makes clear that no one can achieve God’s perfect standard through good works or obedience to the Law. The Law was never meant to save us, but to reveal our sin and our desperate need for grace. Yet in the middle of mankind’s guilt and failure comes the hope of the Gospel: through faith in Jesus Christ, God freely gives His righteousness to all who believe. Through Jesus’ death and resurrection, we are justified—declared righteous before God—not because of what we have done, but because of what Christ has done for us. Jesus became the atoning sacrifice for sin, redeeming us from guilt and restoring us into relationship with God. Salvation is not earned by works, religion, or moral performance, but received by grace through faith in Jesus alone.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. Where did the Holy Spirit speak or challenge you through God’s Word? Were there any “ah-ah” moments?

2. Heart Check: Read Romans 3:19-24 

          • Romans 3 teaches that no one can achieve God’s perfect standard on their own. Why is it so difficult for people to admit their need for grace, and what keeps you from fully surrendering your failures to Jesus?
          • Paul says that “through the law we become conscious of our sin.” In what ways have you tried to “earn” God’s approval through your behavior, performance, or religious activity instead of resting in His grace?
          • Paul writes that the righteousness of God or “God’s perfection” is given to us through faith in Jesus.” How does understanding that your standing before God is based on Jesus’ perfection—not your own—change the way you view yourself and your relationship with God? 

3. Purpose Defined: Read Romans 3:25-31

        • The message emphasized that we are “justified freely by His grace.” What is the difference between being “declared righteous” by God and trying to “make yourself righteous”? Why does that distinction matter in everyday life?
        • Jesus paid the penalty for sin through His redemption and atonement. Is there any guilt, shame, or past failure that you still struggle to believe Jesus has fully paid for? What would it look like to truly trust Him with it?
        • Paul says boasting is excluded because salvation comes through faith, not works. How can pride, comparison, or self-righteousness subtly creep into our faith, and how does the gospel humble us while also giving us confidence?

4. Who in your sphere of influence needs to hear something that you learned through this study?

        • Romans 10 declares that salvation is available to “all who believe.” Who in your life needs to hear the message of grace, and what is one practical way you can share the hope of Jesus with them this week? 

5. KEY DEFINITIONS:

        •  RIGHTEOUSNESS = God’s perfection
        • JUSTIFIED = (legal term) the instantaneous and irreversible divine declaration of the unrighteous as positionally righteous. (TGC) (The imperfect–are declared perfect) 
        • REDEMPTION = Freed…released…through the payment of a ransom.
        • ATONEMENT = Reconciliation–the complete restoration of relationship or “At-One-Ment”
        • GRACE = “Unmerited Favor” or Receiving what we don’t deserve. 
        • MERCY = Not receiving what we do deserve.