Text: John 3:22-30

Notes: emmauscf.org/sermons

1. Compare and contrast godly ambition with worldly ambition. What does each look like and how does one distinguish the difference between the two? Give examples.

2. Are you daily driven by a holy ambition being concerned about the wellbeing of others? Share.

3. Are you currently being entangled with worldly things or do you feel rather victorious in the power of Christ? Share. Support and encourage each other.

Family Application: What is your family doing to celebrate the advent season? Share with your group.

Evangelism Application: Who can you share the gospel with during this holiday season? Share and hold accountable.

Text: John 3:16-21

Notes: emmauscf.org/sermons

1. How has John 3:16 been misquoted or misinterpreted over the past century?

2. What did Christ come to accomplish?

3. How does one benefit from what Christ has accomplished?

Family Application: What effective tactics have you used in communicating the gospel to your children? Share.

Evangelism Application: How could you communicate to an individual that beloved that John 3:16-21 says that all will go to heaven in the end. Articulate your response to your group and support your response.

1) How does John 3:16-21 function in John’s gospel? What role does it play?

2) When reading John 3:16 what should the words “For God…” bring to mind?

3) What does the word “so” mean in this verse?

4) What is meant when John tells us that God “loved the world?”

5) Describe God’s love. What event in history best illustrates God’s love?

6) For what purpose was the Son of God sent into the world according to John 3:16?

7) John 3:16 mentions two possibilities for man in terms of eternal destiny. What are they? Discuss them.

8) What act (on mans part) determines whether one will experience destruction or eternal life? In other words, what was John urging the reader to do as he wrote 3:16-21, and the rest of the gospel for that matter (there is one word which appears four times in verses 16-18)

9) Do you love John 3:16 as much as I (Joe) do? Discuss.

Text: John 3:9-15

Notes: emmauscf.org/sermons

1. Which side of the pendulum to you most often find yourself: making God too small or making yourself too large. Explain. Share.

2. What is needed for someone to enter into the kingdom of God? List the points from the sermon and discuss.

3. In what ways can you relate with Nicodemus in John 3? Share and discuss.

Family Application: If God is the one who changes hearts and saves souls, then what role does the family play in a child coming to a saving knowledge of Christ? Explain and support with scripture.

Evangelism Application: Scripture clearly teaches that regeneration is needed in order to enter into the kingdom of God. Utilizing the scriptures listed in the sermon, how could you help a new believer understand and accept this Biblical concept? Discuss.

Text: John 2:23-3:8

Notes: emmauscf.org/sermons

1. According to this passage, “how” is one purified and cleansed from their sins? Support and give detail.

2. Discuss the “kingdom of God” as Jesus presents it. What is it and how does one enter it?

3. You were once dead, but God alone gave you life. Dwell on this and share your thoughts.

Family Application: encourage one another to be faithful in making time for family and personal devotions.

Evangelism Application: how was this sermon helpful in your evangelism efforts? Share and be specific.

Text: John 2:12-23

Notes: emmauscf.org/sermons

1. Why does John place the cleansing of the temple at the beginning of his Gospel, where Matthew, Mark, and Luke place this event at the end of their Gospels? Discuss and support.

2. Discuss the meaning, symbolism, and significance of Jesus’ statement: Destroy this temple and in 3 days I will rebuild it.

Family Application: how are you doing in your family devotions? What things have worked for you and your family? Share with your group.

Evangelism Application: today members from Emmaus will go into the local community to evangelize. How can you support Emmaus in our evangelism efforts? Share with your group.

Text: John 2:1-11

Notes: emmauscf.org/sermons

1) What was significant about Christ’s presence at the wedding in Cana of Galilee?

2) What is marriage according to the scriptures? Discuss the state of marriage in our culture. How is your marriage, if applicable? If single, what are your hopes concerning marriage in the future?

3) How do “signs” function in John’s gospel? In other words, what are they for?

4) What was the significance of Jesus turning water to wine in the way that he did? What message was he communicating?

5) Do you believe that purification from sin is needed? If so, in what or whom are you trusting? Are you able to articulate to others the need for purification and to point them to Jesus? Elaborate and explain.

Text: John 1:35-51

Notes: emmauscf.org/sermons

1.  in what ways does our culture misunderstand who and what Jesus is? Why do you think? Give examples. Share.

2. What is Johns main point in vs. 35-51? What does he want his readers to understand through this portion of scripture? Explain.

Family Application: As Jesus shows in this passage, names have meaning behind them. As a parent, the naming of a child is often significant. Share the name of your child(ren) and the significance. (It’s ok if you just liked a name with little meaning too!)

Evangelism Application: In John 1:35-51 four people become followers of Christ. What lessons about personal evangelism can we learn from these stories?