God is ... Gracious

Matthew 26:31-75 & John 21:1-19

Failure has a way of convincing us that God is done with us, but grace tells a different story. In this message, we’ll explore how God meets us right in the middle of our mistakes—not to condemn us, but to restore us. His grace doesn’t erase the past; it redeems it. Because with our gracious God, failure is never the end of the story.

1. Read Matthew 26:31-35 — Jesus quotes a passage from more than 400 years earlier. Peter’s hubris to negate the words of Jesus, the words of Jehovah, seems beyond comprehension. However, can you share a time when you said, “That’ll never be me,” but it was?

2. Pastor Luke said that “Distance is dangerous.” When have you seen that come true in your Christian walk?

3. Read Luke 22:60-62 — The story of Peter’s denial is recorded in all four gospels, but this is the only version of the story that includes Jesus looking right at Peter. What do you think was going through Jesus’ mind?

4. Have you ever felt disqualified from being God’s child or serving him?

       a. Where do those feelings come from?

       b. What restored your relationship?

5. Read Luke 5:1-11 & John 21:2-11 — Compare the stories.

       a. How are they different?

       b. How are they similar?

       c. What do you think of Peter’s reactions in each story?

6. Read John 20:19-23; John 20:26-29; John 21:12-14 — What do you observe in these three encounters?

7. Read Proverbs 24:16; Luke 17:3-4; Hebrews 12:1-3; 1 John 1:9 — What do you think God is trying to teach us in these verses?

8. Read 1 Timothy 1:9-10 — Pastor Luke said that “With Jesus, failure is never final.” Think about the seven churches in Revelation 2-3 that Pastor Ryan preached on. Some of their sins were heinous, yet, Jesus was giving them second chances. Is any sin too heinous for God to forgive?

9. Can you share a time when you experienced the grace of God after a period of failure?