Formed By God - Sermon Discussion Guide - The Heart
The Heart
We are creatures of worship and desire. We cannot not love. “Love,” Jamie Smith writes “is like autopilot, orienting us without our thinking about it.” And what we love will be what we worship and what we worship—that is what we direct our lives toward—is what we will become.
This is why being formed by God begins at the level of the heart—our affections and desires. We need new and reformed hearts and loves to walk with God in the way of true life. This is exactly what God gifts us. The good news of Jesus is not just a change in status, but a change in our nature, a change in our love—a new compass, a new creation.Discussion Questions
What has been your experience of spiritual disciplines? Has it been life-giving or burdensome?
Read Proverbs 4:23 and Luke 6:45. How have you thought about the Bible’s idea of the heart?
What “disordered loves” do you find yourself battling against most?
What would it look like for you to orient your heart toward God and his kingdom this week?
What gospel truths or Scriptural promises do we need to live from as we seek to follow the gracious wisdom of Proverbs 4:23?
Formational Practice: Identity prayer. For the next week, start each day with one of the following prayers in addition to your usual morning practices. Use this a way to ground your heart in Jesus.The Gospel Prayer (by JD Greear)
In Christ, there is nothing I can do that would make You love me more, and nothing I have done that makes You love me less.
Your presence and approval are all I need for everlasting joy.
As You have been to me, so I will be to others.
As I pray, I'll measure Your compassion by the cross and Your power by the resurrection.
