Shhhh! Smell Something?

In one paragraph

Brian walked back through Matthew 12:1-14 and pushed the congregation to see that the disciples and the Pharisees had nearly everything in common, and yet landed in completely different places. The difference, he argued, comes down to whether Jesus smells like life or death to you, and he pressed hard on the idea that there is no neutral ground in between. Last week's conversation established that...

Read together

1. Luke 3:21-22 Read over Ian during a moment of personal prayer and blessing
2. Matthew 12:1-14 Central text for the sermon, read aloud by congregation members
3. 2 Corinthians 2:14-16 Used to explain why the disciples and Pharisees reacted differently to Jesus, the fragrance of life versus death
4. Matthew 21:44 Jesus speaks of himself as a stone that breaks those who stumble on it and crushes those it falls on, used to argue there is no neutral response to Jesus
5. Ephesians 6:12 Referenced by a congregation member to reframe the Pharisees as caught in spiritual warfare rather than simply evil
6. Hosea 6:6 Cited by a congregation member connecting Jesus saying he desires mercy not sacrifice to an Old Testament parallel
7. Luke 21:1-4 Read during offering to connect head knowledge versus heart knowledge to giving everything rather than just a portion
8. John 1:1 Quoted briefly to emphasize the weight of every word Jesus spoke

Talk about it

1. Brian pointed out five things the disciples and the Pharisees had in common that morning, and yet they walked away with completely opposite reactions. What do you think was the real difference between the two groups, and where do you see that same divide today?
2. One person in the room said they feel compassion for the Pharisees because they only knew what they knew, and that it reminds them of people in their own lives who seem to understand Jesus in their head but not in their heart. Have you experienced that 18-inch drop yourself, or watched someone else go through it? What did it look like?
3. Brian used the passage in 2 Corinthians about fragrance, and the illustration of Greeley, Colorado, to make the point that the same message of Jesus smells like life to some and like death to others. When have you noticed that in a real conversation with someone, and how did you handle it?
4. Brian said that a neutral or indifferent reaction to Jesus is not really a third option, and that dismissing or discounting him puts a person on the same track as the Pharisees who plotted to kill him. That is a hard claim. How do you wrestle with it, and how would you talk about it with someone who considers themselves neutral toward Jesus?
5. Matthew 21:44 describes two ways of encountering Jesus, falling on the rock and being broken, or having it fall on you. Brian said his own prayer was one of thanking Jesus for smashing his life to pieces. What has it actually cost you to fall on that rock, and what has come out of it?