Beneath The Surface Week 2- Discover
Beneath The Surface • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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· 2 viewsGod’s Word helps us discover who we are.
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WHAT? What are we talking about today?
WHAT? What are we talking about today?
ACTIVITY | Shark-ades
Welcome back to our series, Beneath the Surface — where we are discovering all that God has created us to be. As humans, we are pretty complex and have incredible depths. We can rely on the Holy Spirit to guide us as we uncover all God made us to be.
INSTRUCTIONS: For this activity, you'll need rolls of painter's tape, scrap paper, and a bowl. Before your program, come up with some undersea words or phrases, write them on paper, and put them into a bowl. To play, split the group into two teams. One at a time, teams will send a "shark" up to the front of the room to act out what is on the card. However, to better represent sharks, players will be wrapped in tape around their elbows, so their arms become flippers and at their ankles together to create tails. Students will have 60 seconds to attempt to get their team to guess as many words or phrases as possible.
Here are some ideas to get you started: Finding Nemo, shark bait, Jaws, starfish, seaweed, jellyfish, Orca Whale, turtle, flipper, Captain Hook, SpongeBob, Aquaman, ocean straws, whirlpool, clam, hang ten, scuba diving, snorkeling
It can be frustrating trying to get people to see who you are — even in a silly game like this. When people guess the wrong thing, it's disappointing because you want them to know the truth. Sometimes, it's hard to express what we feel deep inside. Sometimes it can feel like it's easier to give up and give in to what other people say about us because you wonder if it is worth all the work.
ACTIVITY | Shark Tank
Sometimes, when I am feeling all over the place, I wish I had someone that could help guide me with what I am feeling. I almost wish I was a contestant on Shark Tank — about to pitch this amazing idea to the Sharks who would see deep inside who I am and affirm my next steps.
INSTRUCTIONS: Select a few students with a moderate idea of what they want to do as adults. These students will deliver a 90-second pitch to a group of pre-selected leaders: the Sharks (Dressing them up as actual sharks is encouraged). The goal of the pitch is to convince the Sharks that their post-education venture is worth a hefty investment. Choose some questions ahead of time for the sharks to ask. When the sharks start to make rulings, have them be indecisive about students' futures. They should be unhelpful. Here are a few questions for you sharks to ask (or write your own):
What do you want to do and why? How much support financially, emotionally, and socially will you need? How will your future benefit these sharks? How much control are you willing to give up?
It's normal to look to other people to help us figure out who we are and tell us that what we are doing is the right way, but other people's definitions of us aren't always helpful or accurate. We are more than just what we do — we need a reliable source to help us discover who we are.
SO WHAT? Why does it matter to God and us?
VIDEO | A Clip from Luca
The movie Luca is a story of a teenage sea creature who has spent his entire life underwater. One day, Luca discovers that something different happens when he's on land.
INSTRUCTIONS: As a teaching tool, play a short clip (3:37–4:20) from Luca where Luca sees he can be on land for the first time.
When Luca is first brought out of the water, he realizes that he can become something else — well, not that he can become something else, but who he is gets revealed. He began to realize a deeper part of himself that was hiding beneath the surface. He gets to experience the fullness of who he is and what he can be. Sometimes, it takes intense moments like these to see who we truly are. In these pivotal moments, we get to see what's happening beneath the surface and see who we are created to be. So much of who we are, what we hope for, and what motivates us, begins to make sense.
SCRIPTURE | Mark 1:4–11
Like Luca, Jesus didn't learn something new about himself — but did have something Jesus knew was true that was affirmed at a pivotal moment in his life. It happened when Jesus was about to start his ministry as he went to see his cousin John the Baptist.
John was promising that God was sending the Messiah. The one who would liberate God's people from physical and spiritual oppression. To prepare to participate in this liberating act of God, John asked people to get ready by submerging or baptizing them in the river. He was doing this not only to help people to get personally ready for the Messiah but also to remind them that God had delivered the people of Israel from their captivity in Egypt and that what the Messiah was about to do was as monumental as that. This moment was when God's rescue plan would be put into action in the life of Jesus. This time, God wasn't only going to rescue just the people of Israel — but the whole world. This rescue plan depended on Jesus — he needed to know who he was and what God had called him to do. So it makes sense that at the start of the whole mission, just before we begin to see Jesus perform so many miracles, something truly remarkable happened.
INSTRUCTIONS: Read Mark 1:4–11
And so John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. John wore clothing made of camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. And this was his message: “After me comes the one more powerful than I, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”
Get this! God tells Jesus, "You are my Son." God could have picked any title: King, Savior, Messiah . . . but God chose to call Jesus his "Son." This tells us something incredible about God. Scripture shows us that it is God who reveals who we are. In a word, God claims Jesus as his own, making it clear who Jesus is and has always been — God's beloved son. It is easy for me to say, "Well, of course, God loves Jesus. Jesus is Jesus. God in human form." But don't miss this! Jesus is the representative of all humans. When God calls Jesus his son with who is well pleased — God is saying that to us too.
God's voice pushes past the places where we feel awkward or insecure into the depths of who we are and says, "You are my child. I love you and am pleased with you right now." There are no conditions. It's not if we're "good" or "bad," then that equals God loves us. God loves us just as we are. Understanding the love of God changes how we see ourselves. God loves Jesus unconditionally for being his Son, and He loves you and me the same way. We are God's beloved, not because of what we do or have done, but simply because we are God's sons and daughters. As we discover who we are, it is important to see that before Jesus started his public ministry, he was affirmed by God. Meaning you and I live from affirmation, not for affirmation. We live from the love of God, not for the love of God. Who we are is more important than what we do. God loves Jesus because Jesus is God's son. We are loved because we are God's sons and daughters.
SCRIPTURE | Psalm 139:13–18
Psalms is the largest book of the Bible and is full of hymns, laments, and prayers. Psalm 139 is a beautiful song of creation, reminding us who God has created us to be. What stands out in the passage as you look to God's words to discover who we are?
INSTRUCTIONS: Read Psalm 139:13–18
For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place,
when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed body;
all the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
How precious to me are your thoughts, God!
How vast is the sum of them!
Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand—
when I awake, I am still with you.
Well before his baptism, Jesus had learned to hear God's voice through the Scriptures like this one and in prayer. Jesus allowed God's words to tell him that he was loved. While we may look to others to help us understand who we are beneath the surface, we don't need to go to anyone other than the One who made us wonderfully and purposefully. The Scriptures tell us that we belong to God, and God is pleased with us! Jesus is the best guide for helping us see that what God says about us matters the most. Before we do or accomplish anything, God loves and is pleased with us. We are valued in the depths of who we are. We know this because
God's words help us discover who we are.
God's words help us discover who we are.
NOW WHAT? What does God want us to do about it?
STORY | When God's Words Helped You Discover Who You Are
INSTRUCTIONS: Have a student or volunteer share a story about when they experienced God's love for them. Think through a moment in your life where the love of God was revealed to you, perhaps through someone's words, an action of a friend, or something as simple as a well-timed, encouraging text.
Many may not have heard God's audible voice like Jesus did at his baptism or find it easy to believe God made you wonderfully. Learning the depths of God's love for us is a journey that will take a lifetime. Here are two questions to ask God when you wonder who you are.
GOD, WHAT DO YOU SAY ABOUT ME?
As we saw in the life of Jesus, God loves and is pleased with you. There is nothing you can do or undo to change how God feels about you. You are fully and completely loved. Spend some time this week reading and thinking about Psalm 139 and talking to God about what it says.
GOD, WHAT DO YOU WANT TO SHOW ME ABOUT MYSELF?
This question requires a bit of courage. There may be things that are hard and scary to see. We must remember that nothing changes how God sees us. We are loved. Nothing God shows you about who you are will change how much God loves and is pleased with you. Read Scripture while you pray and allow both to inform who you are discovering that you are.
MUSIC | "I Am Loved" (Maverick City Music feat. Naomi Raine)
RESPONSE | Discovering What Is Beneath The Surface
We are loved, made by God, and carefully designed. As we listen to this song, let's talk to God about who we are. We are discovering who we are and who we're becoming, and God's words tell us what's always been true.
INSTRUCTIONS: For this reflection, you'll need enough handouts included with week two of this week's materials and pens for your group.
INSTRUCTIONS: Play the song "I Am Loved" (Maverick City Music feat. Naomi Raine)
REFLECTION | Lectio Divina (Psalm 139:13–16)
Let's continue to talk to God about these questions and allow his words to help us discover who we are. To do this, we are going to spend some time reading and listening to God's words in Scripture through a prayer practice called Lectio Divina.
INSTRUCTIONS: This activity is designed to help students hear God's voice. Read this passage over your group four times. Each time, provide a few moments to process between each reading. Each time the passage is read, have students observe it, asking God to unveil the truth God is speaking to them. In Lectio Divinia, there are four stages to guide students through.
Stage 1: Read Psalm 139:13–16 aloud, slowly and thoughtfully. Ask them to remember it. Encourage them to listen and pay attention to a word or phrase that sticks out to them.
Stage 2: Read Psalm 139:13–16 a second time, and ask them to pay attention to how they feel when the words or phrase is read. Encourage students to ask God why God might be highlighting these phrases.
Stage 3: Read Psalm 139:13–16 a third time. Ask students to listen and reflect on these words and how they might be applied to their lives.
Stage 4: Read Psalm 139:13–16 a final time and then give ample space for listeners to talk to God about everything God is saying to them. Seeing who we are may sometimes feel like a deep-sea expedition, but remember that
God's words help us discover who we are.
God's words help us discover who we are.
*Prayer*