Big Idea: Trees thrive together… and so do you.

1 Corinthians 16:15-24

I. Submit for harmony.

1 Corinthians 16:15-18

Brothers and sisters, you know the household of Stephanas: They are the firstfruits of Achaia and have devoted themselves to serving the saints. I urge you also to submit to such people, and to everyone who works and labors with them. I am delighted to have Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus present, because these men have made up for your absence. For they have refreshed my spirit and yours. Therefore recognize such people.

II. Serve from the heart.

1 Corinthians 16:19-21

The churches of Asia send you greetings. Aquila and Priscilla send you greetings warmly in the Lord, along with the church that meets in their home. All the brothers and sisters send you greetings. Greet one another with a holy kiss.

III. Stand with hope.

1 Corinthians 16:22-24

This greeting is in my own hand—Paul. If anyone does not love the Lord, a curse be on him. Our Lord, come! The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you. My love be with all of you in Christ Jesus.

Next Steps: 

• Believe: Today, I surrender to Jesus.
• Become: I will strengthen someone who is struggling this week. 
• Be Sent: I will show Jesus’s love this week.

Discussion Questions: 

1. Has this book grown your faith?  If so, how?
2. In what ways can you actively demonstrate love and support to someone far from Jesus this week?
3. Who can you encourage to grow stronger in the Lord this week?
4. How does Stephanas inspire you to serve our church and community?
5. What practical steps can you take to ensure that our church community embodies unity and love?
6. How can you prepare your heart and mind to live out the urgency of Christ's return tomorrow?
7. Pray for the opportunity to serve someone in need this week. 

Big Idea: In a fight, keep your guard tight.

1 Corinthians 16:13-14

Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love.

I. Be alert

II. Be steadfast

III. Be strong

IV. Be loving.

Next Steps: 

• Believe: Today, I surrender my soul to King Jesus.
• Become: I surrender my battles to King Jesus this week. 
• Be Sent: I will send someone a Survival Guide this week.

Discussion Questions: 

1. How would you describe spiritual warfare to someone who has never read the bible?
2. What is the toughest spiritual battle you’ve ever been in?
3. How did you stand firm in the faith the last time you were under spiritual attack?
4. What are the main spiritual tools the enemy uses to attack you?
5. What area of your life can we pray for spiritual strength this week?
6. How does your personal holiness help or hurt during a spiritual battle?
7. Pray for the Holy Spirit to show you someone who is fighting for survival this week. 

Big Idea: Your generosity opens doors and hearts.

1 Corinthians 16:1-12

I. Be generous with your money

1 Corinthians 16:1-4

Now about the collection for the saints: Do the same as I instructed the Galatian churches. On the first day of the week, each of you is to set something aside and save in keeping with how he is prospering, so that no collections will need to be made when I come. When I arrive, I will send with letters those you recommend to carry your gift to Jerusalem. If it is suitable for me to go as well, they will travel with me.

II. Be generous with your time.

1 Corinthians 16:5-7

I will come to you after I pass through Macedonia—for I will be traveling through Macedonia—and perhaps I will remain with you or even spend the winter, so that you may send me on my way wherever I go. I don’t want to see you now just in passing, since I hope to spend some time with you, if the Lord allows.

III. Be generous with your attention.

1 Corinthians 16:8-9

But I will stay in Ephesus until Pentecost, because a wide door for effective ministry has opened for me—yet many oppose me.

IV. Be generous with your relationships.

1 Corinthians 16:10-11

If Timothy comes, see that he has nothing to fear while with you, because he is doing the Lord’s work, just as I am. So let no one look down on him. Send him on his way in peace so that he can come to me, because I am expecting him with the brothers.

V. Be generous with your leadership.

1 Corinthians 16:12

Now about our brother Apollos: I strongly urged him to come to you with the brothers, but he was not at all willing to come now. However, he will come when he has an opportunity.

Next Steps: 

• Believe: I need Jesus to create a new heart in me today.
• Become: I will be generous with God’s gifts this week. 
• Be Sent: I will pray for an opportunity to push back darkness this week.

Discussion Questions: 

1. In which area of your life do you find it most difficult to be generous? 
2. What practical steps can you take to cultivate a spirit of generosity in that part of your life? 
3. Were you greedy with your time last week? 
4. What area of your community is God opening a door for the gospel right now? 
5. How can you encourage respect and support for your church leaders?
6. What is one relationship you would like to be more generous with this week?  
7. Pray for the opportunity to show generosity to someone far from Jesus this week. 

Big Idea: Living a transformed life at work this week.

1 Corinthians 15:50-58

I. Long for the trumpet 

1 Corinthians 15:50-52

What I am saying, brothers and sisters, is this: Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor can corruption inherit incorruption. Listen, I am telling you a mystery: We will not all fall asleep, but we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we will be changed.

II. Live triumphantly

1 Corinthians 15:53-54

For this corruptible body must be clothed with incorruptibility, and this mortal body must be clothed with immortality. When this corruptible body is clothed with incorruptibility, and this mortal body is clothed with immortality, then the saying that is written will take place: Death has been swallowed up in victory.

III. Let nothing terrorize you

1 Corinthians 15:55-57

Where, death, is your victory? Where, death, is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!

IV. Love tenaciously

1 Corinthians 15:58

Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, be steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the Lord’s work, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

Next Steps: 

• Believe: I need Jesus to transform my life today.
• Become: I will live with hope despite my struggles this week. 
• Be Sent: I will put my transformed life on display this week.

Discussion Questions: 

1. Describe the signs of a triumphant life.
2. Did belief in the resurrection influence your decisions last week?
3. In what areas have you experienced fear giving way to victory through your faith?
4. What obstacles most frequently prevent you from living a victorious life?
5. How steadfast were you in the face of temptation last week?
6. Who is someone that needs to hear about the victory Jesus has won for them?
7. Pray for them to see the hope of your faith this week. 

Big Idea: The God of Restoration. 

II SAMUEL 12: 1-13

So the Lord sent Nathan to David. When he arrived, he said to him: There were two men in a certain city, one rich and the other poor. The rich man had very large flocks and herds, but the poor man had nothing except one small ewe lamb that he had bought. He raised her, and she grew up with him and with his children. From his meager food she would eat, from his cup she would drink, and in his arms she would sleep. She was like a daughter to him. Now a traveler came to the rich man, but the rich man could not bring himself to take one of his own sheep or cattle to prepare for the traveler who had come to him. Instead, he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for his guest. David was infuriated with the man and said to Nathan: “As the Lord lives, the man who did this deserves to die! Because he has done this thing and shown no pity, he must pay four lambs for that lamb.” Nathan replied to David, “You are the man! This is what the LORD God of Israel says: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I rescued you from Saul. I gave your master’s house to you and your master’s wives into your arms, and I gave you the house of Israel and Judah, and if that was not enough, I would have given you even more. Why then have you despised the LORD’s command by doing what I consider evil? You struck down Uriah the Hethite with the sword and took his wife as your own wife-you murdered him with the Ammonite’s sword. Now therefore, the sword will never leave your house because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hethite to be your own wife. “This is what the LORD says, ‘I am going to bring disaster on you from your own family: I will take your wives and give them to another before your very eyes, and he will sleep with them in broad daylight. You acted in secret, but I will do this before all Israel and in broad daylight.’” David responded to Nathan, “I have sinned against the LORD.” Then Nathan replied to David, “And the LORD has taken away your sin; you will not die.

1. God is watching.

2. You can’t cover up what God sees.

3. When you ask for forgiveness, He will forgive you.       

Next Steps

• Believe: I need Jesus to restore me this week.
• Become: I will seek counsel when I fall short. 
• Be Sent: I will set a good example this week.

Discussion Questions:

1. Why do you think some people feel they can get away with the bad things they do or did?
2. What can we learn from David’s mixed legacy about the long-term impact of our actions on our families, communities, and relationship with God?
3. Do you think integrity, faithfulness, and trust are important as a believer? If so, why?
4. Could you confront a leader in the church? Why or why not.
5. Have you ever been confronted by someone in the church in a Godly way by someone? If so, were you humbled by the experience or offended?
6. What role does accountability play in your personal spiritual growth, and how can you cultivate it in your community?
7. Pray to be obedient to the Holy Spirit this week.

Big Idea: Just like Jesus… 

1 Corinthians 15:35-49

I. was transformed through death…

1 Corinthians 15:35-38

But someone will ask, “How are the dead raised? What kind of body will they have when they come?” You fool! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies. And as for what you sow—you are not sowing the body that will be, but only a seed, perhaps of wheat or another grain. But God gives it a body as he wants, and to each of the seeds its own body.

II. was uniquely a child of God…

1 Corinthians 15:39-41

Not all flesh is the same flesh; there is one flesh for humans, another for animals, another for birds, and another for fish. There are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the splendor of the heavenly bodies is different from that of the earthly ones. There is a splendor of the sun, another of the moon, and another of the stars; in fact, one star differs from another star in splendor.

III. was raised with power… 

1 Corinthians 15:42-44

So it is with the resurrection of the dead: Sown in corruption, raised in incorruption; sown in dishonor, raised in glory; sown in weakness, raised in power; sown a natural body, raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.

IV. was eternal…   

1 Corinthians 15:45-49

So it is written, The first man Adam became a living being; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, then the spiritual. The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. Like the man of dust, so are those who are of the dust; like the man of heaven, so are those who are of heaven. And just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we will also bear the image of the man of heaven.

Next Steps: 

• Believe: I need Jesus to transform my heart today.
• Become: I will let hope give me power this week. 
• Be Sent: I will work to grow his kingdom this week.

Discussion Questions: 

1. How did you demonstrate trust in God this week?
2. In what ways can you show humility in your relationships this week?
3. Describe what you think our resurrected bodies will look like.
4. What is one thing that you most want changed about yourself in heaven?
5. How does following Jesus’ example shape your goals for this week?
6. How can you show someone what your heavenly father is like tomorrow?
7. Pray for the opportunity to push back darkness this week. 

Big Idea: Live today like you’ll stand before Jesus tonight.

1 Corinthians 15:29-34

I. Live a faith that is stronger than death.

1 Corinthians 15:29

Otherwise what will they do who are being baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, then why are people baptized for them?

II. Live by Jesus’s power, not your own.

1 Corinthians 15:30-32

Why are we in danger every hour? I face death every day, as surely as I may boast about you, brothers and sisters, in Christ Jesus our Lord. If I fought wild beasts in Ephesus as a mere man, what good did that do me? If the dead are not raised, Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.

III. Live with people who share your faith… often.

1 Corinthians 15:33-34

Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good morals.” Come to your senses and stop sinning; for some people are ignorant about God. I say this to your shame.

Next Steps: 

• Believe: I need Jesus to give me eternal life.
• Become: I will trust Jesus’s strength this week. 
• Be Sent: I will share my faith this week.

Discussion Questions: 

1. How did the certainty of the resurrection change the way you lived yesterday?
2. In what ways can a focus on eternity help you find hope in difficult circumstances?
3. Is there a habit or attitude that would change if you lived with a clearer awareness of Christ’s victory over death?
4. How would a relationship change if you consistently kept eternity in mind while loving, serving, and forgiving?
5. What is one practical step you will take this week to live more intentionally in light of the reality of eternal life with Christ?
6. What is your biggest challenge right now?  How big would the problem be if you knew tonight was your last night?
7. Pray for the opportunity to share your faith this week. 

Big Idea: Jesus is Lord Over All, or not Lord at all! 

1 Corinthians 15:12-28

I. Jesus is the Lord with all power. 

1 Corinthians 15:12-19

Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say, “There is no resurrection of the dead”? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation is in vain, and so is your faith. Moreover, we are found to be false witnesses about God, because we have testified wrongly about God that he raised up Christ—whom he did not raise up, if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. Those, then, who have fallen asleep in Christ have also perished. If we have put our hope in Christ for this life only, we should be pitied more than anyone.

II. Jesus is the Lord who goes before you.

1 Corinthians 15:20-23

But as it is, Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead also comes through a man. For just as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ, the firstfruits; afterward, at his coming, those who belong to Christ.

III. Jesus is Lord over all your enemies.

1 Corinthians 15:24-28

Then comes the end, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father, when he abolishes all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign until he puts all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be abolished is death. For God has put everything under his feet. Now when it says “everything” is put under him, it is obvious that he who puts everything under him is the exception. When everything is subject to Christ, then the Son himself will also be subject to the one who subjected everything to him, so that God may be all in all.

Next Steps: 

• Believe: I need Jesus to change my dead heart today.
• Become: I will trust Jesus to fight my battles this week. 
• Be Sent: I will explain the resurrection to someone this week.

Discussion Questions: 

1. Did the resurrection give you hope in the midst of a challenge last week?  If so, explain.
2. Who do you long to spend time with in eternity? 
3. If you could ask them today, what would you want to know about eternity? 
4. Describe how your closest relationship would change if you both lived forever.
5. How is it possible that someone with power over death and the grave could die?  
6. Who do you know facing a spiritual battle this week? 
7. Pray for the opportunity to push back darkness in their lives this week. 

Big Idea: The resurrection causes radical life change.

1 Corinthians 15:1-11

I. Hope in Jesus’s resurrection power. 

1 Corinthians 15:1-4

Now I want to make clear for you, brothers and sisters, the gospel I preached to you, which you received, on which you have taken your stand and by which you are being saved, if you hold to the message I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I passed on to you as most important what I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,…

II. Hold on to Jesus’s resurrection promise.

1 Corinthians 15:5-8

…and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the Twelve. Then he appeared to over five hundred brothers and sisters at one time; most of them are still alive, but some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one born at the wrong time, he also appeared to me.

III. Help others see how Jesus’s resurrection has changed you.   

1 Corinthians 15:9-11

For I am the least of the apostles, not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. Whether, then, it is I or they, so we proclaim and so you have believed.

Next Steps: 

• Believe: I need Jesus to resurrect my dead heart today.
• Become: I will let hope give me strength this week. 
• Be Sent: I will let someone Jesus at work in me this week.

Discussion Questions: 

1. What is the biggest change that the gospel has produced in you?
2. When did your faith last help you to stand firm in the face of difficulties? 
3. Did the resurrection impact your life goals?
4. How do a person’s beliefs about eternal life influence their everyday actions?
5. Why does Paul “work hard” for a promise that has already been given to him through Christ’s resurrection?
6. What is one thing you will work on this week to align your life with the promise of the resurrection? 
7. Pray for the opportunity to show someone the hope of your faith this week. 

Big Idea: Love is the root system that allows you to reach toward Heaven.

1 Corinthians 13:1-13

I. Love is greatest

1 Corinthians 13:1-3

If I speak human or angelic tongues but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith so that I can move mountains but do not have love, I am nothing. And if I give away all my possessions, and if I give over my body in order to boast but do not have love, I gain nothing.

 II. Love has grit

1 Corinthians 13:4-7

Love is patient, love is kind. Love does not envy, is not boastful, is not arrogant, is not rude, is not self-seeking, is not irritable, and does not keep a record of wrongs. Love finds no joy in unrighteousness but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

III. Love lasts 

1 Corinthians 13:8-13

Love never ends. But as for prophecies, they will come to an end; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will come to an end. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial will come to an end. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put aside childish things. For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I will know fully, as I am fully known. Now these three remain: faith, hope, and love—but the greatest of these is love.

Next Steps: 

• Believe: I accept the love of Jesus for the first time today.
• Become: I will ask God to help me love like him this week. 
• Be Sent: I will show God’s love to someone in need this week.

Discussion Questions: 

1. Besides the cross, what is the greatest act of love you’ve ever witnessed? 
2. How does biblical love differ from other forms of love, such as romantic or friendship love?
3. Does love separate people from the animals?  Explain your answer.
4. What would you say to someone who says they are “falling out of love”?
5. What aspect of love in 1 Corinthians 13 do you need to work on this week?
6. How will you let love guide the way you use your spiritual gifts this week?
7. Pray for the Holy Spirit to help you accept and show God’s love this week.