The Way Home

_Warm-up_

• Have you ever had to said “good-bye” to a place that felt like home? If so, what was it like?

_Word_

//BIG IDEA

• Experiencing God as our Father is key to our spiritual maturity. When we don’t have God as Father, we experience a kind of wandering homelessness.

• The mission of Jesus is to provide a path to the Father for anyone who desires, and in doing so, bring us to our true home.

//READ

John 14:1-11, 18-20

“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. And you know the way to where I am going.” Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”

Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves…

“…I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you.

//WATCH / LISTEN

//DISCUSS

_Old Self_

• For the disciples, being with Jesus was the most “home-like” experience they ever had. But now Jesus was telling them he would soon have to leave them. Have you ever experienced the pain of feeling abandoned, perhaps even by God? If so, please share your story.

• Have you ever felt disconnected from God the Father? How do you think that disconnection impacted your life?

_New Self_

• Because of Jesus’ death and resurrection, he can uniquely provide a path to the Fatherhood of God. How do you think experiencing God as Father could positively impact your life?

• Like kids with a little backpack, we face life’s challenges with limited resources. Indeed, it doesn’t take long to understand that we don’t have all the resources we need. When we are connected to Jesus, we are connected to his “Father’s House”—which will be enjoyed in full in the future)—but we are also NOT left as orphans in the present. In what ways does being connected to Jesus today give us access to the resources we need to handle life?

_World_

• This week, meditate on the fact we can call God our Father. Talk with your FG, friends, or family about the implications of the fatherhood of God.