Glencairn MB Church

Going Deeper is designed for use with your small group, a friend or on you own. Its aim is to create time for you to spend with God and his word. Do as much or as little as you like. If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to contact one of our pastoral staff.

1. Pray for the needs of your Life Group, for our church and our leaders, for personal and corporate renewal, and to allow God’s word to transform us.
Share a recent entry from your Life Journal with the group.

2. The text for this Sunday was Phil 3:12-21; the focus of the message this Sunday was the need for intentional direction in our life in and for Jesus. What thoughts or questions did the message raise for you?

3. Read Phil 3:8-21 out loud, focusing on the encouragement to press on.What stands out to you as you read this text? What challenges you? What parts are hard to understand?

4. Focus on Phil 3:12. Discuss the “laying hold of” – who got hold of whom first? How do you experience the reality of the fact that God did get a hold of you? How have you/do you grab hold-of back? If you had to explain to a child the reason God has hold of your life, what would you say?

5. Notice the forward direction in vss. 12, 13m 14. Compare the words used in your various translations. Share some ways in which Christ-followers can press-on. Share how you might have changed the way you “press-on” over your Christian life. Share one way to “press-on” in which you’d like to grow.

6. The sermon mentioned 3 ways in which Christ helps us to press on: examples (:17), true home (:20), Christ’s power (:21). Discuss which of these 3 you tend to lean on the most/least. How do you reconcile the exhortations to press on (our effort) with the reality that only God’s Spirit can transform us (Phil 2:12-13)?

7. Take a moment of silence to consider how God is speaking to you through these verses. Is He asking you to make changes or to do something new? What concrete steps of response do you want to take? How can your group support you in these steps?