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All Nations Church

Life Group Study

Little Things with Great Love

Week of March 13^th,  2022

Study by Wayne Arcand

 

Many of us tend to be creatures of habit. We develop a routine we are comfortable with and that becomes the pattern for our life. Perhaps we ‘go with the flow’ rather than taking a more disciplined approach to life. Lent is the time for us to shake things up a bit, to examine our life-style, commitments and our relationship to the Lord. The title of this week’s message reminded me that our lives are built on a lot of little things that influence the big things we do in life. We will examine some scripture from the point of view of how a little thing can influence our spiritual growth.

 

• Proverbs 18:21(NIV) The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.
  1. What does ‘the power of life and death’ mean to you?
  2. What is the fruit of each?

 

• Compare Proverbs 18:21 to Proverbs 12:18. ¹⁸ The words of the reckless pierce like swords,
  but the tongue of the wise brings healing.
  1. How is the message from these two verses similar?

 

• Words carelessly spoken can permanently harm relationships, reputations, and cause great division. Once spoken, they can not be retracted or removed from the memory of the hearer. Consider James 3: ⁵ Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. ⁶ The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.
  1. What is the analogy in these verses?
  2. How do you think words not spoken in love “corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire”?

 

• James gives us direction when faced with a situation where we feel it necessary to make a response. James 1:¹⁹ My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry,²⁰ because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.
  1. In the simplest terms, what is this verse telling us to do?
  2. What gets in the way of us following James direction to the believers?
  3. What can we do to help us not ‘react’ to a situation?

 

• In Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, in chapter 4 he wrote: ²⁹ Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.³⁰ And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. ³¹ Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. ³² Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
  1. How is verse 32 the natural outcome of following the directions given in verse 29?
• Does what I say and how I say it really matter? What does my speech reflect about me? As we look at Matthew 12, we will find the answers to these questions. Matthew 12:³³ “Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit. ³⁴ You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. ³⁵ A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. ³⁶ But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. ³⁷ For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”
  1. Consider verse 34b, “For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.” What insight might this give us into the condition of our heart if we find ourselves speaking words that are:
     1. Loving?
     2. Encouraging?

• Critical?

1. Condemning?

1. Look at the above verses and circle all of the positive statements. What is the positive message in these statements?
2. In the same passage, underline all of the negative statements.
3. What is the promise and the warning in verses 36 and 37?

 

• Most if not all change takes place in our life by starting out with the little things that build on one another to make us a different person than who we once were. Consider Romans 12 ¹Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.² Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
  1. Where do these verses tell us change starts?
  2. Why is it necessary to experience the transformation of verse 2 before we can live according to verse 1?
  3. Have a discussion on the things we can do to bring about this change?

 

• As we wrap this study up, I would like us to once again reflect on the verse, “the mouth speaks what the heart is full of”. Considering all we have discussed in this study, discuss how a change of heart, a transformed heart, will impact our relationship to the Lord, our speech, our attitudes, our actions. Is this transformation an ongoing process? Explain.

 

For Reflection:

We may do many good deeds and feel good about ourselves, but are our deeds an indication of the condition of our heart? Matthew 12:34 would suggest they are not, that indeed what we say is a true reflection of what is in our heart. Let us take time this week to reflect on what we say and how we say it. Does my speech reflect the Spirit of God dwelling in me? I would encourage us to pray the prayer of Psalm 139: 23 Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. 24 See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

We have the promise of Proverbs 8:17 I love those who love me, and those who seek me find me.

Let us seek the Lord and he will reveal himself to us.