The discipleship process starts with people far from God, not just with people inside the church.
Key Points:
- Jesus often hung out with backsliders and unchurched people. Luke 15:1-2
- The Pharisees took exception to the types of people Jesus hung out with, so he told three parables. Luke 15:3-32
- Religious people get upset when we open up the church to outsiders and misfits, but Jesus loves it.
Bible Text:
Luke 15:1-2 Tax collectors and other notorious sinners often came to listen to Jesus teach. This made the Pharisees and teachers of religious law complain that he was associating with such sinful people—even eating with them!
Talk About It
- What is your initial reaction to this topic? What jumped out at you?
- Read Luke 15:4. Are people at your church more interested in the 99 who are safely in the church or the one who is lost outside? Explain.
- Read Luke 15:6. How would your church react if more outsiders started coming in?
- Are the sermons at your church geared more toward outsiders or insiders? How can you tell?
- Who in your life is a prodigal son? Which topics would engage that person?
- Write a personal action step based on this conversation.
This topic is in the Wikichurch series.
