Kingdom Community Primer

Set the Table

(before the gathering)

Communion: Have elements ready (bread and juice).

Atmosphere: Consider worship music to encourage quiet reflection.

Prayer: Take a moment to stop, pray, and prepare your heart before the Lord.

Bible: Have your Bible present and ready.

KINGDOM COMMUNITY

Conversation and Connection that Honors the Lord

(45 minutes)

Shared Meal: Facilitate the shared meal if the group is participating (consider sharing the act of cooking by inviting everyone to contribute each week).

Conversation: This is the time when people can get to know each other and learn about the daily events in each other's lives.

PURSUING THE PRESENCE

Partake in Communion

(15 minutes)

If you don’t already have a Communion liturgy, have someone read through Matthew 5:3–12 as written below, then take a brief moment to pray aloud and thank Jesus for the promise of his kingdom.

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

Encourage quiet reflection.

Explain: “We take communion to remember Jesus’ sacrifice and proclaim His death until He returns. 1 Cor. 11:26

Take the Bread & Cup:

Bread: “And He [Jesus] took bread, and when He had given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.’” - Luke 22:19 (Eat together)

Cup: “And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, ‘This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.” - Luke 22:20 (Drink together)

Close in Prayer: “Jesus, thank You for Your sacrifice. Help us walk in Your grace and love. Amen.”

TRANSFORMATIONAL DISCIPLESHIP

Read and Discuss

(45 minutes)

Read: Exodus 16:1–18 (ESV):

They set out from Elim, and all the congregation of the people of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had departed from the land of Egypt. And the whole congregation of the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness, and the people of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I am about to rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather a day's portion every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in my law or not. On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather daily.” So Moses and Aaron said to all the people of Israel, “At evening you shall know that it was the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt, and in the morning you shall see the glory of the Lord, because he has heard your grumbling against the Lord. For what are we, that you grumble against us?”

And Moses said, “When the Lord gives you in the evening meat to eat and in the morning bread to the full, because the Lord has heard your grumbling that you grumble against him—what are we? Your grumbling is not against us but against the Lord.”

Then Moses said to Aaron, “Say to the whole congregation of the people of Israel, ‘Come near before the Lord, for he has heard your grumbling.’” And as soon as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the people of Israel, they looked toward the wilderness, and behold, the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud. And the Lord said to Moses, “I have heard the grumbling of the people of Israel. Say to them, ‘At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread. Then you shall know that I am the Lord your God.’”

In the evening quail came up and covered the camp, and in the morning dew lay around the camp. And when the dew had gone up, there was on the face of the wilderness a fine, flake-like thing, fine as frost on the ground. When the people of Israel saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, “It is the bread that the Lord has given you to eat. This is what the Lord has commanded: ‘Gather of it, each one of you, as much as he can eat. You shall each take an omer, according to the number of the persons that each of you has in his tent.’”

And the people of Israel did so. They gathered, some more, some less. But when they measured it with an omer, whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack. Each of them gathered as much as he could eat.

Discuss: The following questions—help by leading the conversation and creating space for more than one person to speak. Every person does not need to answer every question.

Leader Note: Questions such as “what do you not like?” are designed to encourage conversation about difficult parts of scripture or to better identify what is misunderstood about scripture. Sometimes simply recognizing discomfort may lead to a greater understanding. Do not feel responsible for removing discomfort or explaining. To avoid "fixing" behaviors, set the tone for the group by saying, "It's okay to feel this way; we don't need to fix it. We are here to be honest and open, not to fill the role of the Holy Spirit.”

What did you like from the scripture?

What did you not like from the scripture?

What did you learn about God?

What did you learn about yourself?

What decisions are you being challenged to make?

SACRIFICIAL MISSION

Serve Together

(10 minutes)

Leader Note: This is an opportunity to teach the group about the many things that encompass “Sacrificial Mission,” such as how our church serves the nations through mission trips and the all people project, how we serve the community through Serve Saturday, Neighborhood Network, refugee ministry, and Go Week, the difference between tithes and offerings, and how Sacrificial Mission is more than money. This is not a space to create shame or pride - it is designed to create dialog among brothers and sisters who love one another and may have questions. As we grow in spiritual maturity together, part of development requires teaching and sometimes accountability. We can have honest and vulnerable conversations with the help of the Holy Spirit.

Did you know New Song Church is able to reach so many because of generosity?

All People Project (Gateway to Unknown Nations Training Center): Unknown Nations, an organization we’re in relationship with that is on mission to take the Gospel into the uttermost places (the end of the earth), is building a training center in a gateway country where Christians from across the Middle East will be able to be trained and sent back into limited or closed access countries. New Song supports this initiative so that people from every nation and every language might come to know His name. This is a key work of the Kingdom, in which messengers are sent forth with the Good News. We know many of these countries will never be open to us, but they are accessible to their own people, set on fire for the work of the Gospel through the anointing of the Holy Spirit. We are taking on a portion of the $750,000 needed to build out this training center in this strategic position to see the Middle East come to know King Jesus.

Generosity: What does generosity look like in your life?

Optional Prayer (Giving Liturgy): Heavenly Father, everything I have is from you. You are the owner of all things. My money and possessions are rentals to be stewarded in love for the sake of others. Jesus generously gave himself on my behalf, and as His apprentice, I am learning to live my life in the key of extravagant generosity. I am committed to following the pattern of Christ in all areas of my life. To take what you have given me and use it only for myself is the way of the world. You have called me to swim against selfishness and to live sacrificially, making your Kingdom my priority. I desire to be a person of increasing, mindful, and joyful generosity until no one is in need among us. I yield to the transformative power of Christ in me. Amen.

PRAYER

Bring it Home

(5 minutes)

Pray: Close in prayer

Prayer Requests: You can collect prayer requests, have members put them in GroupMe, or pray over the known and unknown needs of the group.

Release: Group is over—consider discussing the practice of group members assisting in clean-up before leaving. This is a way of serving and honoring the hosting family/person.