The Real Jesus: The Beattitudes - Week 5

Week of March 16th
Matthew 5:7

This year in House Church we will be reading and discussing the Gospel of Matthew to better understand who Jesus is and what he has done.

Matthew was one of Jesus’ 12 disciples and he left his profession as a tax collector to follow Him. The purpose of his gospel was to give evidence to his Jewish brothers that Jesus was the one they had been looking for. He wanted them (and us) to see that Jesus was the long awaited messiah and King.  He would be the one to make all things right, and restore the broken relationship between God and man. Matthew’s life was radically transformed by an encounter with Jesus, and our prayer is that through this study you will encounter The Real  Jesus through His word, and be transformed just like Matthew.

These questions are written to be used during our house church meetings. If you find yourself unable or attend a gathering this week we encourage you to use these questions at home to sink more deeply into this series.

Opening Question(s):

1. Have you seen an example of someone showing mercy recently? What happened?
2. How would you define mercy?  

Read and Reflect: Read Matthew 5:7

1. How do we show mercy to others?
2. Do you think showing mercy means to disregard the law, or to not care about consequences?  
3. How has God shown mercy to us? Was the law disregarded?
4. What is the difference between grace and mercy?
5. Do you think this verse really means that we are forgiven only as we forgive? 
6. What else could this statement mean? 
7. Martin Lloyd Jones reminds us that the grace of God, when it enters our hearts, makes us merciful. As Christians we will be merciful because our hearts have been changed, but our salvation is not dependent on our action of forgiving others. Take a moment to pray and thank God that he has shown us mercy, and given us new hearts to show mercy to others. 

Prayer:
Pray for the families in your house church and the people on your top 5 cards.