Sermon Discussion Guide 10-4-26

Sermon Discussion Guide
Romans | Romans 2:17-29 | Religion Can’t Save You

Gathering Question:
What is one way you’ve seen God at work in your life this week?

Gathering Prayer
Father, by Your Spirit, would you guide us into all truth. Help us to hear and be attentive to Your voice as we work through this study. In the name of Jesus, Your Son, we pray. Amen.

Opening Questions

• What stood out to you in the sermon? 
• What insights did you gain? 
• What questions did it raise?

Read Romans 2:17-29

Trust-Structures

• What are some ways our culture encourages us to look to ourselves for peace, joy, meaning, or security? Why is self-reliance so attractive to us?
• Think about your own life right now: where are you most tempted to say, consciously or unconsciously, “I can handle this myself”? What would it look like to trust God in that area instead?

The Law Exposes Our Hearts

• What are some ways we can obey God outwardly while still resisting what God wants to change in us inwardly?
• Why can religious obedience actually make it harder for us to recognize our need for God’s grace?
• What is one area where you tend to measure your faithfulness by what you do rather than by what God is doing in your heart?

Self-Righteous Religion

• Paul asks, “You, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself?” How can we know the Bible, teach the Bible, and even help others follow God while our own hearts are far from God?
• What are some outward religious activities that can be good things but can also become ways we measure our own righteousness?
• Have you ever caught yourself caring more about how other people perceive your faith than about what God actually sees in your heart? What does Romans 2:29—“Such a person’s praise is not from other people, but from God”—say to that temptation?

Who Then Can Be Saved?

• Who then can be saved? Why does that question naturally emerge when we take God's law seriously? What answers are we tempted to give?
• “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” What does this tell us about our ability to save ourselves? What does it tell us about God's work?
• What is the difference between trying to become a better person through self-discipline and allowing God to transform you from the inside out?

Closing Prayer