November 2 2024
A video introduction using illustrations, personal stories, metaphors, or active learning examples to begin the discussion.
After the video, prompts are supplied for thinking and sharing with others personal perception and experience. This opening activity prompts participants to think about and relate to the topic, and to share with others.
According to The Pew Study, "Religion Among the Millennials," what percentage of young adults today do you think say they believe in miracles, like the ones in the Bible?
The answer is (d) 80%
Does this surprise you? When you look at the religious lives of those around you (young people or older people) do you feel that people’s faith, and Christian life in general, goes along with what they say they believe about miracles?
Read and explore the words of Jesus about those who experience the miraculous.
The Bible discussion begins with a careful reading of the whole passage, either from your own Bibles, or from the provided images below.
Then participants are to ask:
Woe on Unrepentant Towns
20 Then Jesus began to denounce the towns in which most of his miracles had been performed, because they did not repent. 21 “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. 22 But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you. 23 And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted to the heavens? No, you will go down to Hades. For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. 24 But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you.”
Would a miracle make you a believer in Christ? What is the relationship between miracles and real change in our lives? In verse 20, the Bible records that "most" of the miracles happened in those cities. Still, Jesus expected more of those who had been "blessed" with gifts of mercy.
Miracles can be powerful signs of God's presence but don't always lead to lasting belief or change. True faith needs a personal response and commitment, not just the experience of extraordinary events. James 2:14-29 highlights that knowing about faith isn't enough; transformation happens when individuals accept and believe in Jesus, as shown in John 1:9-12. Knowing Jesus and living a walking, talking, breathing, and life-changing lifestyle does not require a miracle.
There is a similar expectation in Jesus' world and our world today: For those who expect God to miraculously change our situation (relieve our suffering, mend things that are broken, and bless us with generosity when we are in need). Did Jesus come to this earth to change our situation or solve the problem of sin? However, Jesus heals and helps feed and restore people along the way, not a magic trick or to seize us with wonder, but to display His heart of grace to people.
A parting video clip with a personal invitation to apply the message to “knowing Christ” and “living in Christ” in the coming week.