You're Not Being Very Inclusive, Jesus

In one paragraph

Brian opened by asking the congregation why Jesus would be canceled today for saying "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the father except through me." People in the park offered answers, naming things like the "all roads lead to God" idea, the belief that being a good person is enough, and the argument that there is no God at all. Brian let those answers set up the central...

Read together

1. John 14:6 central text for the sermon, Jesus as the only way to the Father
2. Ephesians 2:4-10 used to show God's inclusive grace saving us not by works but through faith
3. Romans 10:9-13 used to show that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved
4. James 4:6 God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble, illustrating exclusivity and inclusivity

What was said

• Download the Church Center app and set up electronic giving to Tribe this week.
• Think about how you came to Jesus and be ready to share that story with someone in the Tribe fam.
• If you have been holding onto pride about something you did wrong, bring it to God in humility and ask for his grace.
• Call on the name of Jesus for whatever you are carrying right now, trusting that everyone who calls on him will be saved.

Talk about it

1. Brian asked the congregation why Jesus would get canceled today for saying 'I am the way, the truth, and the life, no one comes to the father except through me.' What do you think is the hardest part of that claim for people around you to accept?
2. Brian described every other religion as people trying to climb their way up to God, while in Christianity God came down to us. How does that difference change the way you think about faith and effort in your own life?
3. Walking through Ephesians 2 and Romans 10, Brian kept asking the group whether certain phrases were inclusive or exclusive. Did any of those phrases land differently for you when you heard them side by side like that?
4. Brian said there are a million ways to Jesus but only one way to God. He mentioned people coming to faith through a Catholic church or a Mormon church. What was the path that brought you to Jesus, and how does that shape how you talk about faith with others?
5. Brian closed with James 4:6, saying humility is the key that unlocks the doors of God's grace, and that on the inside of those doors it says all are welcome. Where in your life right now is pride making it harder to walk through that door?