Sermon Application at Barabbas Road Church in San Diego
In the book of James, one of the themes of the book is an exhortation for Christians to be doers of the word and not only hearers. Someone who is only a hearer of the word is a person who just goes to church each Sunday and never changes. This person hears the word of God each week but never applies it to their life. At Barabbas Road Church in San Diego, one of the focuses in 2:42 groups is application. Every Sunday the church receives a load of information from the sermon; therefore, when it is time for 2:42 groups during the week it would be counterproductive to unload more information upon the group. The 2:42 group is designed to take the information from Sunday’s sermon and help the members of the group chew and digest the information. By doing this, the hope is that each small group member will be able to leave the group equipped to apply Sunday’s sermon into their lives.
If the focus is application, what is the best way for an individual at Barabbas Road Church to apply Sunday’s sermon into their lives? One of the best resources that Barabbas offers is the sermon notes that are put together after the service. The sermon notes are usually put together by whoever preached the sermon on the given Sunday. These notes are references and articles that were used by the speaker to prepare the sermon. Often times it is difficult to include all of the researched information into a sermon. This is why sermon notes are so resourceful, because the notes help the listener of the sermon dig deeper into what was taught. Therefore, sermon notes are a great tool that 2:42 group leaders and members can use to help prepare for their small group.
The goal for a 2:42 group leader is to not reteach the sermon from Sunday, but to help their group apply the sermon. By studying and praying through the sermon notes and the small group curriculum, leaders can come prepared for small group ready to ask questions that will target hearts. A 2:42 group leader does not have to know all of the answers; however, it is beneficial for the leaders to be prepared to show the group why the topic being discussed is important. Leaders should encourage their members to always be asking, “So what?” This helps to create healthy and challenging conversations that will lead to practical application.
If the members of a 2:42 group are going to be doers of the word then the group must be able to encourage each other to study and apply the truths of scripture into their lives. It’s important for leaders to be aware that one can’t lead a person to a place where they have not gone their selves. Therefore, it is important for leaders to apply the sermon into their lives and give examples of how others can apply it also.
Imagine if every individual at Barabbas Road Church in San Diego not only heard the sermon on Sundays, but intentionally applied it to their lives every single day. Application is so important. Application cannot be done on your own so prayer is equally important. Therefore, continue to pray as you study through the sermon notes and ask God to help you see the life of the sermon into your own life.
