On this episode of Group Answers, Chris and Brian welcome Jen Wilkin. She is an author and Bible teacher. Jen and her family are members of the Village Church in Flower Mound, Texas, where she serves on staff. She is author of Women of the Word: How to Study the Bible with Both Our Hearts and Our Minds and most recently In His Image: 10 Ways God Calls Us to Reflect His Character.

Questions:

* You’re a Bible teacher at heart. What have you learned over the course of your time as a teacher that you think would be most helpful for group leaders.

* In terms of sanctification, how does clinging to the gospel produce growth in individuals? What do we mean by “clinging to the gospel”?

* In what ways does solid biblical teaching and group life help us form a more gospel-centered, or maybe better put, godly understanding of our identities in Christ? As a teacher how do you take measures to be intentional about helping disciples root their identities in Christ?

* Why do Christians need the gospel just as much as those who haven’t yet believed?

* How does the Village Church help groups progress in the Christian life?

Quotes:

Home groups can be difficult places for teaching environments.

Groups are really good at building community, and having peer-to-peer application driven discussions around the text.

When Matt Chandler is the pastor, the assumption can be that everyone in the church knows the Bible. That’s not true.

When many people hear the term, “the gospel,” they default to thinking strictly in terms of justification.

Sanctification is a grace driven effort.

Start by asking what the text is telling us is true about God, so that we can then see ourselves in relation to that and have true self knowledge.

The gospel to the believer is that you can change. You can grow in holiness.

Resources Mentioned:

www.jenwilkin.net

https://www.instagram.com/jenwilkin

Knowing Faith Podcast

The Group Answers Podcast is a weekly show designed to resource, train, and encourage small group leaders. Each episode considers current trends and resources as well as timeless truths and methods of discipleship. It is hosted by Brian Daniel, a Bible study and discipleship expert in Lifeway’s Groups Ministry, and Chris Surratt, the small group and discipleship specialist at Lifeway and author of Small Groups for the Rest of Us.