The Kingdom of God - August 29th

Read Mark 1. Each person can read 5 verses each.

1. What stood out to you as you read Mark 1?

Were there any points of confusion, curiosity, clarity and conflict?

2. In verses 14 and 15, Mark gives us a glimpse of what Christ’s ministry is going to look like.

What do you notice about where verse 14 and 15 are located in the text?

Is there a significance?

Does it help you to understand the keys to Christ’s message and ministry?

3. Mark says that Jesus began His ministry “proclaiming the good news of God” (v. 14).

How would you describe the good news of God?

4. If you notice, the “good news” is connected to “the kingdom of God”.

What is your understanding of the Kingdom of God?

5. What does Jesus mean when He says that the “Kingdom of God has come near?

6. Jesus says, “Repent and believe the good news!” In fact, repentance was not just stressed by Christ, but also John (in the gospel of John).

What is repentance so important to embracing the good news of the kingdom of God?

7. “A foreign visitor once made this comment about U.S. churches: ‘You Americans are so concerned about being happy, as if our kingdoms were the focal point of God’s designs rather than God’s kingdom the focal point of ours.” – Evelyn Bence, Christianity Today.
What do you think about her statement? Do you agree or Disagree? And why?

8. The vision of the kingdom of God is much bigger than the church. Sometimes we get stuck with what happens within the church building. We read that “the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.” (Luke 19:10) and also in John 10:10, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full” and we see that God is concerned with redeeming what has gone broke in this world.

Martin Luther King Jr said “I have the audacity to believe that people everywhere can have three meals a day for their bodies, education and culture for their minds, and dignity, equality, and freedom for their spirits. I believe that what self-centered men have torn down, other-centered men can build up.” Discuss this paragraph within your group.

9. Pray for one another.