BIBLE DISCUSSION NOTES
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ALIVE: romans 5-8
When Paul brought the gospel to Thessalonica he made a lot of enemies.
His opponents said to the town council, ‘These men who have turned the
world upside down have come here also’ (Acts 17:6 ESV).
There’s actually a lot of truth in that accusation. Paul’s message, the gospel
of God, does turn the world upside down. In the gospel people who
deserve death are declared right before God by faith in Jesus Christ and
are transformed to worship him with all their lives. That news changes
individuals, families, communities; it changed you.
Romans explains that gospel. No other NT letter contains such a thorough
explanation of the gospel and its implications. We’re looking at Romans
over 5 years at Salt. Here’s what we’ve seen so far:

Romans 1-4: although we all (Jew and Gentile) deserve death for our
unrighteousness, God freely justifies us by grace through faith.
Ungodly people are declared right before God on the basis of Christ’s
sacrifice. By God’s incredible grace, in Christ we are justified.

Romans 5-8: everyone who’s justified by grace through faith is united
with Christ Jesus. By being united with Christ we receive all His
blessings: we’re reconciled to God, freed from the punishment of
death for sin and given eternal life, freed from the power of sin to live
for God in holiness, dead to the law, controlled by the Spirit not our
sinful nature, adopted as God’s children, co-heirs with Christ, sufferers
with Christ, destined for glory, being transformed, loved by God.
All this blessing comes because of who Christ Jesus is and what he has
done. By God’s incredible grace, in Christ we are made alive!
For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again;
death no longer has mastery over him. The death he died, he died to sin once
for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.
In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.
(Romans 6:9-11)
3
SERIES GOALS
As a result of this series I’m praying we will – as individuals and as a church:
1.
Make being ‘alive in Christ’ the centre of our identity
2.
Celebrate being free from sin’s power and being controlled by the
Spirit, by making deliberate choices to stop sinning and to be holy
3.
Celebrate the certainty of God’s love for us by resting in it
4.
Wonder at the depths of the cross and resurrection
Series BREAKUP
DATE
PASSAGE
DATE
PASSAGE
25-27 Apr
Rom 5:1-11
30 May - 1 Jun
Rom 7:1-12
2-4 May
Rom 5:12-21
6-8 June
Rom 7:13-8:4
9-11 May
Rom 6:1-14
13-15 June
Rom 8:5-16
16-18 May
Rom 6:11-23
20-22 June
Rom 8:17-30
23-25 May
The Church
27-29 June
Rom 8:31-39
26-28 May
Salt Away
4-6, 11-14 July
Have a break
Bible Discussion Notes are provided for each week of the series. But plan
to do a social-fun thing sometime in the series too, instead of a bible
discussion. These help your group celebrate that we’re God’s gathered
people, they build trust, and they give you a chance to ‘speed up time’.
(See Getting Started as a Small Group Leader for tips on how to make the most of these,
especially chap 5 ‘what’s good community’ & chap 6 ‘why you get nowhere without trust’)
4
The ‘coma’ method
We’re trying a few different approaches to reading and discussing the bible
in groups this year (e.g. application discussions after sermons for the God’s
Plan for Everything series and the ‘Swedish Method’ in the Mark 9-16 series).
We’re using different bible reading methods this year to expose ourselves
to good ways to read the bible. We never want to be a church that’s overly
dependent on others to teach us; or a church that’s ‘tossed back and forth
by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching’ (Eph
4:14), simply because we don’t know how to understand the truth God
reveals. Instead we want to grow our ability to make sense of God’s word
for ourselves so we can ‘speak the truth in love’ (Eph 4:15). Modelling how
to read the bible in small groups is one way to help us learn to do that.
For the Romans 5-8 series we’re using a bible reading method called
‘COMA’, which stands for Context, Observation, Meaning and Application.
In the Bible Discussion Notes below there’s an explanation of each step in
the process, and then specific questions for each bit of Romans 5-8.
There’s also some interactive ways to do the observation questions. They’ll
feel different to the normal thing we do of just asking questions. They’re
designed to be more interactive which helps visual and kinaesthetic
learners in your group engage better, and helps all of us do the thing we
most want to do: read scripture carefully and wrestle with what it means.
The Bible Discussion Printouts pdf works in tandem with these Bible
Discussion Notes. It has copies of bible passages and tables for you to
print each week for your group. You can find it (and other resources) at
www.saltchurch.info/resources/small-group-leaders.
And Don’t forget
‘…since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through
our Lord Jesus Christ’ (Rom 5:1). Help your group know that peace with God
and live in its safety. Together let’s grow to know our God better and to
love each other with the love he’s showered on us. And keep praying.
Geoff
5
25-27 Apr
Rom 5:1-11
DIRECTION: In Romans 1-4 we saw the incredible truth that we have been
justified by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. But, as if being justified
wasn’t enough, all this blessing flows from it. In this passage Paul talks
about the blessings and hope we have and how that changes us.
PRAY to start: Ask God to open our eyes to see more clearly all we get
to hope in and rejoice over, from being justified through Jesus.
LAUNCH: What are some of the hard things about being a Christian?
Read Romans 5:1-11
The context question helps you think about how this passage fits
into the chapter or even better the whole book. Think through what’s already
happened that give us a better idea of what this passage is saying.
Contex t:

Hot Tip of the week: When we see the word ‘therefore’ we must ask
what it is there for ;-) In light of that, what is the ‘therefore’ linking us to?
This is about reading the words, sentences and paragraphs to
notice the main events and people, and to get an overview of the content.
OBSERVATION:

On your verse printout on your own, circle or underline the repeated
words or phrases.
(There’s a passage to print in the Bible Discussion Printouts pdf)
For leaders: the whole paragraph sits on the opening phrase, “Therefore,
since we have been justified by faith…” From there Paul gives 6 blessings
that apply to everyone God’s justified:
V1 ...we have peace with God
V2a ...we have gained access into grace
V2b ...we boast in the hope of the glory of God
V3 ...we rejoice in our sufferings
V9 ...we’ve been justified through Jesus and will be saved through Jesus
V11...we rejoice in God
6
MEANING: Now that we’ve observed what the text says and keeping in mind the
context, meaning is about coming to a conclusion on what the author is saying.

Since we’ve been justified by faith, what do we now have?

What does it mean to boast in the hope of the glory of God?

What do you think of when you hear the word ‘suffering’? What do you
think it means to rejoice/boast in our sufferings (v3-5)?
APPLY: To apply we explore how what the author says impacts our lives.

As if being justified through Christ wasn’t enough we have all these
flow-on blessings! Are there things you feel you’re missing out on as a
Christian? What makes you forget what God’s actually given you?

During suffering do you find it hard to persevere? Why, why not?

How can we help each other persevere and rejoice/glory in suffering?
PRAY TO END:
1. Praise God that through Jesus Christ we’ve been reconciled to Him!
2.
Ask God that as we face sufferings we’d remember to persevere,
building Christ-like character and an unwavering hope in Him.
7
2-4 MAY
Rom 5:12-21
Last week we saw the great flow-on blessings that come from
being justified by faith through Jesus Christ and connected to him. But
we’re also connected to someone else, Adam. Adam’s disobedience led to
death for everyone. But Jesus’ perfect righteousness leads to justification
for all who believe in him.
DIRECTION:
This week’s also a good one to check in on your Small Group Expectations
that you came up with a few months back. You would’ve talked about how
your group exists to help each other know God better and to love each
other with the love God’s shown us. Spend 15 mins before you get into
Romans checking in on those expectations. Ask the group how we think
we’re going at doing those 2 things. (Check out chap 2 of Getting Started as
a Small Group Leader for more ideas.)
PRAY to start: Praise God for Jesus, that through his obedience we can
be made right before God
LAUNCH: Have you ever been told you look like someone else? Who?
Read Romans 5:12-21
The context question helps you think about how this passage fits
into the chapter or even better the whole book. Think through what’s already
happened that give us a better idea of what this passage is saying.
Contex t:

What big truths did we learn last week from Romans 5:1-11 that we
should keep in mind to help us understand this next bit of Romans?
This is about reading the words, sentences and paragraphs to
notice the main events and people, and to get an overview of the content.
OBSERVATION:

In the table printout in pairs, or on butcher’s paper as a group, what
are the similarities and the differences between Adam and Jesus?
(There’s a printable table for this in the Bible Discussion Printouts pdf)
8
MEANING: Now that we’ve observed what the text says and keeping in mind the
context, meaning is about coming to a conclusion on what the author is saying.

Try to sum up what we’ve seen: through Adam we got what, and
through Jesus we got what?

What big things do we learn about sin here?
APPLY: To apply we explore how what the author says impacts our lives.

How does it make you feel that God judges us for Adam’s sin? If it
seems unfair, why is that?

How does it make you feel that God made us righteous through Jesus?

What does all this tell us about sin? About God?
PRAY TO END:
1. Praise God that Jesus didn’t disobey like Adam did, but lived a perfect
life of perfect obedience, even till death on the cross.
2.
Ask God to help us better see the seriousness of our own sin and the
greatness of His love and forgiveness and grace through Jesus.
9
9-11 MAY
Rom 6:1-14
DIRECTION: Over the last few weeks we’ve seen this picture of what it looks
like to be God’s people. We’ve been justified by faith, we’re standing in
grace and rejoicing in glory. Having previously belonged to Adam, the man
of disobedience and sin and death, we now belong to Jesus Christ, the man
of obedience who brings righteousness and life. This week we’ll look at
how being united to Christ affects sin in our life – it reigns over us no more.
Thank God that through Jesus sin no longer reigns and
we can have life in Him.
PRAY to start:
LAUNCH: Who are you united to and what unites you?
Read Romans 6:1-14
The context question helps you think about how this passage fits
into the chapter or even better the whole book. Think through what’s already
happened that give us a better idea of what this passage is saying.
Contex t:

What big truths did we learn last week from Romans 5:12-21 that we
should keep in mind to help us understand this next bit of Romans?
This is about reading the words, sentences and paragraphs to
notice the main events and people, and to get an overview of the content.
OBSERVATION:

On your verse printout on your own, underline or circle any ‘union’ or
‘united’ language, e.g. we died with Christ.

Then in the table printout in pairs, or on butcher’s paper as a group,
jot down answers to these 2 questions:
List the things that happen to us in Christ’s death AND the things that
happen to us in Christ rising from death
(There’s a printable passage & table in the Printouts pdf)
10
MEANING: Now that we’ve observed what the text says and keeping in mind the
context, meaning is about coming to a conclusion on what the author is saying.

How does being united to Christ in his death and resurrection change
the way we think about sin?

Paul says in 5:20 ‘where sin increased grace increased all the more’,
which basically means: the more sin God forgives the more gracious
he’s shown to be. Does that mean we can keep sinning as Christians so
God’s grace increases? From what we’ve observed, why not?
APPLY: To apply we explore how what the author says impacts our lives.

There’s a really clear application in v13. What are a couple of ways we
can offer ourselves to God as instruments of righteousness?

Do you feel like you’re trapped by your own sin? How has dying and
rising with Christ freed you? How can you live out that freedom?

How can we help each other live as people who are dead to sin and
alive in Christ?
PRAY TO END:
1. Praise God that we were united with Christ in His death and
resurrection, and are alive in him.
2.
Pray for each other as we offer ourselves to God as people who’ve
been brought from death to life.
11
16-18 MAY
Rom 6:11-23
Because of the abundant grace God’s given us through Jesus
we’re no longer slaves to sin but are set free to obey God. We used to be
mastered by sin, obeying its desires, and trapped in death. But because
Jesus has set us free, now God is now our master who we obey, which
leads to life and righteousness.
DIRECTION:
PRAY to start: Pray that God would help us live life as slaves to Him.
LAUNCH: What’s your first thought when you hear the word ‘slave’?
Read Romans 6:11-23
The context question helps you think about how this passage fits
into the chapter or even better the whole book. Think through what’s already
happened that give us a better idea of what this passage is saying.
Contex t:

What big truths did we learn last week from Romans 6:1-14 that we
should keep in mind to help us understand this next bit of Romans?
This is about reading the words, sentences and paragraphs to
notice the main events and people, and to get an overview of the content.
OBSERVATION:

There’s two sets of words that come up heaps in this passage. On your
verse printout on your own, underline or circle the ‘slave/free’ type
words, and the ‘sin/righteousness’ type words.
(There’s a passage to print in the Bible Discussion Printouts pdf)
MEANING: Now that we’ve observed what the text says and keeping in mind the
context, meaning is about coming to a conclusion on what the author is saying.

12
Why is sin no longer our master?

What’s it mean to ‘offer ourselves as obedient slaves’, whether we do
that to sin or to God? What does that look like?

Think about this statement. ‘Slavery is freedom and freedom is slavery’.
What do you think that means?
For leaders: the comparison is that we were slaves to sin which = freedom
from righteousness. We’re now freed from sin which = slavery to God.
APPLY: To apply we explore how what the author says impacts our lives.

We’re not trapped by sin’s power anymore. But we often still feel like
we are. When do you feel like you’re still trapped by your own sin?

What holds you back from offering yourself entirely to obey God?

If you feel comfortable, share what sin are you fighting at the moment?
For leaders: you could get people to share their answers with the group, in
pairs, or split into guys and girls to talk about this last question.
PRAY TO END:
1.
Pray v17-18.
2.
Ask God to help us live lives that reflect He’s our Master now.
13
23-25 may
The church
DIRECTION: This year at Salt Away we’re thinking about ‘The Church’. What is
it? Why does it matter to God? How do we live as part of it? To get a little
taster we’re going to pause our Romans series and look at one great
passage about the church, before we look at many more on the weekend.
PRAY to start: Pray God would show us how incredible The Church is
LAUNCH: What was your first experience of Salt Church?
Read Hebrews 12:18-29
The context question helps you think about how this passage fits
into the chapter or even better the whole book. Think through what’s already
happened that give us a better idea of what this passage is saying.
Contex t:

Tell me everything you know about the book of Hebrews. Go!
This is about reading the words, sentences and paragraphs to
notice the main events and people, and to get an overview of the content.
OBSERVATION:

This passage compares the first earthly Church (when God gathered
his people together at Mount Sinai) and the Heavenly Church.
In pairs or as a group on butcher’s paper, what differences are there
between the two Church gatherings in this passage?
(There’s a printable table for this in the Bible Discussion Printout pdf)
MEANING: Now that we’ve observed what the text says and keeping in mind the
context, meaning is about coming to a conclusion on what the author is saying.

14
How is the heavenly Church (that we’re part of!) better than that first
Church/gathering of God’s people at Mount Sinai?

What do you reckon it means when it says ‘you have not come to’ and
‘you have come to’ – how do we ‘come to’ the heavenly Church?
For Leaders: When we gather as Salt Church we ‘come to’ the heavenly
Church in that our earthly Church gathering reflects and joins in the
heavenly reality. We’re members of that heavenly church through ‘Jesus, the
mediator of a new covenant’ (v24).
APPLY: To apply we explore how what the author says impacts our lives.

The Church seems like a huge thing here. Is that how you normally
think about Salt Church? Why, why not?

What response does this passage tell us to make to God? (See v25, 28)

What’s one question about the church you’d love to get answered at
Salt Away?
For Leaders: you could write these down on butcher’s paper and come back
to them next week to see if they got answered.
PRAY TO END:
1.
Praise God for the heavenly church we’ve come to share in, through
faith in Jesus.
2.
Ask God to help us listen to him, worship him, and see so more about
what The Church is at Salt Away this weekend.
15
30 may-1 jun
Rom 7:1-6
The last couple weeks we’ve seen how we’ve died to sin and
risen to live for God, and how that makes us no longer slaves to sin but
slaves to God. Paul continues and shows us how this changes the power at
work in us: we live lives free from the law and powered by the Holy Spirit.
DIRECTION:
PRAY to start: Thank God for Jesus! (We can never do that too much!)
LAUNCH: What do you think the world would be like if there were no laws?
Read Romans 7:1-6
The context question helps you think about how this passage fits
into the chapter or even better the whole book. Think through what’s already
happened that give us a better idea of what this passage is saying.
Contex t:

What big ideas can you remember from the book of Romans so far?
This is about reading the words, sentences and paragraphs to
notice the main events and people, and to get an overview of the content.
OBSERVATION:

There’s a bunch of parallels between 6:1-23 and 7:1-6. I’ll give you the
parallel verses. In pairs, look them up and jot down how the ideas in
the sets of verses are similar.
Verses:
6:2-3 & 7:4
6:20 & 7:5
6:4-5 & 7:4
6:7,18 & 7:6
6:22 & 7:4
(There’s a printable table for this in the Bible Discussion Printout pdf)
MEANING: Now that we’ve observed what the text says and keeping in mind the
context, meaning is about coming to a conclusion on what the author is saying.

What are the parallel or similar ideas?

What do you reckon Paul means by ‘the law’? What’s he referring to?
16

We’ve been released from the Law. How did that happen? What has
that led to?
APPLY: To apply we explore how what the author says impacts our lives.

As Christians, should we keep the OT Law? Why, why not? What does
Paul say here?

If not, where do we turn to now to find out how to obey God? (see v6)
For Leaders: the Spirit powers our obedience now. We’ll see what that
actually looks like in chapter 8.

Reflect on this statement as a group: ‘Obedience doesn’t lead to
salvation, but salvation leads to obedience.’
How do your reckon you’re going at being obedient-because-you’resaved? How can we help each other do that more in our Small Group?
PRAY TO END:
1.
Praise God that through Jesus all Christians are released from the Law
and can serve Him in a new way through the Spirit.
2.
Ask God to help us bear fruit for Him.
17
6-8 jun
Rom 7:7-8:4
This is a big section and it’s often misunderstood. There’s
probably been more books and articles written about these verses in
Romans than any others! The challenge is to carefully understand what
Paul’s saying, before we try to fit it with our experience.
DIRECTION:
It’s easy to read this section as if Paul’s talking about his current experience
of life as a Christian. (The current tense in 7:14-25 sounds like that, for
example.) That’s not what he’s talking about though. Paul knew the idea
that we’re trapped in sin because of the Law would be puzzling for Gentile
Christians and a hard truth for Jewish Christians to swallow. The Law is
given by God and because of that it’s so good! So how can God’s good law
lead to death and sin for people?
Paul explains: the Law leads to death not because it has a problem but
because we do: the law is spiritual and we are not. The key point Paul
makes in this section is this: God’s done what the Law could never do in
unspiritual people – he sent Jesus to fulfil it for us. Then he gave us His
Spirit so we can obey him in a way Jews under the Law never could. What’s
our response? There is now no condemnation! Thanks be to God!
PRAY to start: For God’s help to wrestle well with this passage
LAUNCH: What law in our society do you think is just ridiculous – why do we
even have it?!
Read Romans 7:7-8:4
The context question helps you think about how this passage fits
into the chapter or even better the whole book. Think through what’s already
happened that give us a better idea of what this passage is saying.
Contex t:

18
Remember 7:4-6 again. What big things have we learnt about the Law
so far? Paul goes on to tell us some more things about the Law now.
This is about reading the words, sentences and paragraphs to
notice the main events and people, and to get an overview of the content.
OBSERVATION:

On your own on the verse printout, underline or circle these words
that come up heaps: ‘sin’, ‘death’, ‘law’ and ‘spirit / spiritual / unspiritual’.
(There’s a passage to print in the Bible Discussion Printouts pdf)
MEANING: Now that we’ve observed what the text says and keeping in mind the
context, meaning is about coming to a conclusion on what the author is saying.

Paul says a lot of stuff about the Law. What does the Law show us
about what people are like? What does it show about how sin works?

Do you think in 7:14-25 Paul is speaking about his current experience
of life as a Christian, or the experience of life for a Jew under the law?
What evidence in the passage pushes you to one side or the other?
APPLY: To apply we explore how what the author says impacts our lives.

How does Paul respond to God about all these things? (See v25) How
can we make that more our response too?

Let’s reflect for a sec on 8:1-4. What does it say about who we are now
as Christians? How do you feel about those truths?

One reason this passage is tricky is that the picture Paul paints feels so
much like our experience of life as Christians! Moving away from this
particular passage for a sec let’s think about this: when the bible, and
our feelings/experiences clash, what should we do?
PRAY TO END:
1.
Pray 8:1-4 together.
2.
Ask God to help us bear fruit for Him – which we can now do by the
Spirit at work in us in a way Jews under the law couldn’t even dream of!
19
13-15 jun
Rom 8:5-16
DIRECTION: In chap 7 Paul focused on life under the Law in the flesh. But in
chap 8 he talks about life now powered by the Spirit. We used to be in the
realm of the flesh, controlled by sin and hostile to God. But no longer. The
Holy Spirit at work in us powers us to live holy lives as the children of God.
PRAY to start: Thank God that by the power of the Holy Spirit in Jesus,
he was raised from the dead, and that we too share in the same Spirit.
LAUNCH: What is the most spiritual thing you’ve ever seen?
Read Romans 8:5-16
The context question helps you think about how this passage fits
into the chapter or even better the whole book. Think through what’s already
happened that give us a better idea of what this passage is saying.
Contex t:

What did we learn last week from Romans 7:7-8:4 to keep in mind?
This is about reading the words, sentences and paragraphs to
notice the main events and people, and to get an overview of the content.
OBSERVATION:

Split into pairs or crank out some butchers paper again, and draw up
two columns, one titled ‘the flesh’ and the other ‘the Spirit’. Identify all
the things associated with each category.
(There’s a printable table for this in the Bible Discussion Printouts pdf)
MEANING: Now that we’ve observed what the text says and keeping in mind the
context, meaning is about coming to a conclusion on what the author is saying.

What does being in ‘the realm of the Spirit’ mean for our Christian
lives? What does it affect?

What’s it mean that we’re obligated, v12? Obligated to who to do what?
20
APPLY: To apply we explore how what the author says impacts our lives.

Remember from a couple weeks ago, in 7:6 Paul said we now serve in
the new way of the Spirit. From what we’ve seen here, what does that
‘way of the Spirit’ look like in practise?

Verse 11 is mind blowing: the same Spirit that raised Jesus from death
lives in us! That’s insane!!! Do you live in light of that reality? What
would you do different if you remembered that fact more often?

The Spirit testifies to us that we’re God’s children. Do you see yourself
as brothers and sisters with your Small Group, with other members of
Salt Church, with other Christians in Wollongong and across the world?
How could this change the way you talk about or act towards them?
PRAY TO END:
1.
Praise God for the power of the Holy Spirit that’s at work in us.
2.
Ask God to help us live in the way of the Spirit, putting to death the
misdeeds of the body, and encouraging one another as brothers and
sisters in Christ Jesus.
21
20-22 jun
Rom 8:17-30
DIRECTION: We live in a suffering world. Creation groans while it waits to be
freed and share in the glory of the new creation. We groan as we wait for
our bodies to be redeemed. The Spirit in us groans. But in the middle of
our groaning we have the hope of sharing in Jesus’ glory, because the Holy
Spirit has joined us to Jesus. We can live in hope even while we suffer.
PRAY to start: Ask God to help us live in hope while we wait
LAUNCH: What’s something you’re looking forward to this year?
Read Romans 8:17-30
The context question helps you think about how this passage fits
into the chapter or even better the whole book. Think through what’s already
happened that give us a better idea of what this passage is saying.
Contex t:

What did we learn last week from Romans 8:5-16 to keep in mind?
This is about reading the words, sentences and paragraphs to
notice the main events and people, and to get an overview of the content.
OBSERVATION:

On your own on the passage printout, underline or circle the
‘hope/glory’ language and the ‘groaning/suffering’ language.
(There’s a passage to print in the Bible Discussion Printouts pdf)
MEANING: Now that we’ve observed what the text says and keeping in mind the
context, meaning is about coming to a conclusion on what the author is saying.

Who is groaning, and what are they groaning about or longing for?

How does the Spirit help us while we groan in suffering?

What do you think ‘the good’ in v28 is? I.e. what sort of ‘good’ is God
giving us in all things, even suffering?
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APPLY: To apply we explore how what the author says impacts our lives.

After working through this passage, do you agree with Paul in v18?

How does all this encourage you to live in hope in the midst of
suffering? What could it look like for you to live in hope even more?

What do you think of this statement: ‘We plan for and pursue our
happiness, but God plans for and pursues our holiness’?
PRAY TO END:
1.
Praise God that we know we’ll share in Christ’s glory because we’re
currently sharing in his sufferings.
2.
Ask God to help us live in hope while we wait, and to help us see him
working for our good to make us more like Jesus.
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27-29 jun
Rom 8:31-39
While we wait and groan and suffer with Christ, there is
absolutely nothing that can separate us from the love of God. Rest in that!
DIRECTION:
PRAY to start: Thank God for his love for us, that Jesus redeems us.
LAUNCH: Have you ever super-glued something to yourself? What?
Read Romans 8:31-39
Contex t: What did we learn last week from Rom 8:17-30 to keep in mind?
On butcher’s paper as a group or in pairs in the table, list
the questions Paul asks in v31 to v35.
OBSERVATION:
(There’s a printable table for this in the Bible Discussion Printouts pdf)
For each question, try to answer it, keeping in mind all we’ve
seen in Romans 1-8 so far.
MEANING:
APPLY: What assurance we can have because of Jesus! Does this feel true
for you or are there times you’re not so sure? Why do you think that is?

What could it look like for you to rest in the fact nothing can separate
you from God’s love in Christ Jesus? Where’s that truth under attack at
the moment in your life?

What have you learnt and loved about Romans 5-8, to thank God for?
PRAY TO END:
1.
Praise God that we can rest in the certainty of his love for us.
2.
Ask God to help us live in light of this confidence and assurance of his
love for us, especially when our peace comes under attack.
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NOTES
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NOTES
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NOTES
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For more Small Group leader resources:
www.saltchurch.info/resources/small-group-leaders