Jesus shows us purpose

WHAT? What are we talking about today?

ACTIVITY | Buried Treasure

Welcome back to the final week of Beneath the Surface. This month , we have been exploring what happens when we go deep below the surface of who we are and see who God has created us to be. Let's see how comfortable you all have gotten with this idea.

INSTRUCTIONS: For this activity, you'll need two dish tubs, two Blindfolds, and enough sand to bury a bunch of objects (Note: If you want to level this up, you could use a kiddie pool). For each bin, you will need plastic gold coins, plastic gems, paper with a black dot folded in half and taped closed, writing with a gold star folded in half and taped closed, and one gift card. To play, ask eight students to volunteer and split them into two groups of four. Blindfold the first student on each team. When the game leader says go, students will have twenty seconds to sift through the sand one at a time while blindfolded. Their goal is to find items that are buried under the sand. Each item that is recovered is worth points. Coins are worth five points, and gems are worth ten points. The black spot is a loss of ten points. The gold star is worth twenty points. The gift card isn't worth any points, but tell them congratulations. Students can only retrieve one item from the sand. Once they get something, they need to switch out with the next person on their team. They need to switch if they haven't found something after twenty seconds. Play for 90 seconds. The team with the most points wins.

For some of us, life might feel like we're sifting through sand and looking for treasure while blindfolded. It seems like the place we are digging is empty. There's so much ground to cover, and we can't even be sure what we're holding onto. That can become frustrating over long periods, especially if what we start to grab onto loses its value.

POLL | What Do You Want To Be When You Grow Up?

INSTRUCTIONS: Poll your students' responses to the following statements by asking them to raise their hands. The last statement is the most important. We want to highlight that finding purpose in their actions is the wrong place to start.

Raise your hand if:

You know what to do for a job when you get older.

You have an idea of what you want to do.

You are still trying to figure it out.

You have no idea what you want to do when you get older

You can't stand when people ask you this question.

Whether you know what you want to do, we can all agree that we are more than just what we accomplish. When we get asked this question, it drives us nuts.

QUESTION | "Why is What do you want to do when you get older? a bad question?"

INSTRUCTIONS: Ask the following questions. Allow a few students to respond. Highlight answers that emphasize that looking for our purpose in what we do for a living seems to be missing the point.

Why is "What do you want to do when you get older?" a bad question?

What would be a better question to ask? "

Who do you want to be when you get older?" is different from the question, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" It's easy to mix up our jobs or how we earn a living with who we are, but they are not the same. Our purpose is much greater than what we do for work and how we prepare to get there. If a better question is, "Who do you want to be?" then it still leaves some big questions. Clarifying these questions helps me see that trying to find purpose in a job, grades, or anything I do will leave me feeling pretty empty, like I am digging in the wrong place. But that doesn't change our drive to discover our purpose. What do we do if we keep looking at our grades, accomplishments, relationships, or the things we love to do to find our purpose and keep finding it coming up. . . empty? It might feel like we are going beneath the surface of who we are, but we look in the wrong place. Our purpose may seem elusive, but luckily, a few stories in the Scriptures help us see that it doesn't need to be this way.

SO WHAT? Why does it matter to God and us?

SCRIPTURE | Matthew 28:16–20

In his final conversation with his close friends, Jesus wanted them to understand their purpose before he left. Jesus wanted them to know who they were and how they could live that out. Jesus didn't want his followers to be people tossed to and fro by the wind and seas. Jesus wanted them to remain anchored in their identity and purpose before leaving. Jesus told them directly what they were to spend their lives doing.

INSTRUCTIONS: Read Matthew 28:16–20

Matthew 28:16–20 NIV

Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Jesus wanted his closest friends to understand who they were, so he helped them uncover it in two ways.

They were people who spent time with Jesus.

The Scripture said that Jesus would always be with them. Their purpose was to be people who continually recognized and relied on his presence. This wasn't something they could do. It was a relationship they were invited to acknowledge. As they acknowledged him as the leader in their life, Jesus' presence was a gift that would empower and transform them. In addition, they were to worship Jesus. Jesus was their God, and they were to find who they were in their proximity to Jesus' presence. Even though Jesus is spelling out who they are supposed to be pretty clear, the Bible also shows us that some of them doubted. I love that we are not only people who worship Jesus, but it's also okay if we must wrestle with some ideas as we grow in our faith.

They were to be part of what Jesus started.

Jesus invited them to partner with him as God renewed the world. The world didn't have to stay the way it was forever. Jesus' life showed a different way of interacting with others, as God always intended. Jesus' death and resurrection make it possible for us to walk in step with the Holy Spirit. Jesus tells his friends to continue to be his disciples or followers of his teaching. They were to live as he lived, think as he thought, and care about the things he cared about. This means they were to be people who prayed, reflected, and meditated deeply on the Scriptures and allowed the Holy Spirit to lead them. They were to be people who carried out the good news to everyone they encountered. The simple way to say this is they were to continue being disciples of Jesus — but it wasn't supposed to stop there. They were to invite others to enter the same life of being people following Jesus. Their purpose was to be followers of Jesus who invited others to follow Jesus. They were to be disciples who made disciples. Jesus wanted his followers to understand it wasn't about fulfilling religious laws but about a relationship with him that truly mattered.

STORY | Finding Your Purpose

INSTRUCTIONS: Tell a story about a time when you were looking for purpose. It could be for your career, your responsibilities in a group activity, or something else. Highlight the paths you took and any feelings of frustration or disappointment that may have started to develop. But be sure that it lands in a place that helps emphasize that Jesus is the one who helps us discover our purpose.

After High School, I started making bank.

My bro got me a job at the Nissan factory in Middle TN, I lived at home and didn’t have to pay for food or the house I lived in.

I grew up kinda broke, so it felt good to secure the bag.

But after a while of working in this factory and making all this money, I got really sick of it all.

I did the same thing every day, week after week, year after year.

No purpose, no plan, acting like a machine all night every night

…I was miserable.

Then I gave my life to Christ.

And started working with these crazy bunch of teenagers at my little Nazarene church.

I had a blast hanging with these kids.

And then I got to share the Word with them a few times.

Really scary at first, but God showed me quickly that my purpose was to preach His Word to students and guide them to live for Him practically each and every day.

That was how I was going to honor and point to Jesus with my life…

Searching for my purpose led me to a bunch of different places. Some of them were good, but others . . . not so much. I was looking to things in this world to tell me who I was. The answer all along was found in Jesus. I needed to listen to who God says I am: a follower of Jesus who invites others to follow Jesus.

SCRIPTURE | Mark 1:14–15

Jesus had a distinct purpose for what he was doing, and now we are invited into what he started all those years ago. INSTRUCTIONS: Read Mark 1:14–15

Mark 1:14–15 NIV

After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. “The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!”

Jesus says that his presence brings God's kingdom closer. What is God's kingdom, and what does that mean for it to be close? When Jesus talks about the kingdom of God, he is saying that the way God always desired the world to be before evil, death, and brokenness entered the scene is coming true again. In Jesus, everything God wanted us to be — how to live and treat one another has been made clear. Jesus is now inviting us to turn from our old way of life and follow him instead. The term in Scripture for this turning from the old ways which hurt us and others is called repentance.

Jesus reminds us that turning from our old ways is good news because they leave us empty. We don't need to live this way anymore. We can live in tune with the Holy Spirit, making it possible to live a life full of adventure, friendship, purpose, and identity. We repent because the kingdom is near in Jesus— a new way of living has come, which means it's not defined by the world or accomplishments or purpose defined by others. It's in a purpose defined by Jesus. Jesus is inviting all of us to live and love in the same ways he did. We can experience closeness with God like Jesus did, which changes everything for us. It shows us who we are and how we are supposed to live. The way we were always supposed to be is possible because

Jesus helps us discover purpose.

NOW WHAT? What does God want us to do about it?

VIDEO | A Clip of Marine Biologist, Sylvia Earle

What happens when we see that Jesus helps us discover our purpose? At first, it may be intimidating, but if you stay open to what God is doing, it can transform the entire trajectory of your life.

INSTRUCTIONS: As a teaching tool, play a short clip from a video like this (0:28–2:09) of a brief biographical snapshot of marine biologist, Sylvia Earle.

An ocean wave sideswiped Sylvia, and instead of being scared of the power and mystery of it, she remained interested. She had a collision with her purpose. The ocean's depths, power, and mystery could have overwhelmed and scared her, but instead, she found her purpose there and has been running back ever since. In many ways, our life with Jesus is similar to this story. Jesus can feel like an ocean that sweeps us off our feet and shakes us up. As we remain curious and courageous, we soon discover he always invites us in. We discover a purpose that is much more than a job or what we do. It's a different way to be human — to be followers of Jesus who gather around him and say that God's kingdom is close. We all can be a part of it and partner with Jesus to change the world.

Acts 17:28 NIV

‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’

It isn't always an easy journey, so here are a few ways to rely on Jesus as we discover our purpose.

BE WITH JESUS:

Jesus asks us to come, worship him, and ask questions. Allowing Jesus to help us discover our purpose is an invitation to spend time with him this week and talk to him about it. Spend some time doing that this week.

LET GO OF THE OLD:

We also need to let go of the old ways of life that harm us and damage others. We can replace our former ways of living with the habits and patterns we see in Jesus' life.

TALK ABOUT GOD'S CLOSENESS:

Our purpose is not intended to be kept just for ourselves. As we become more like Jesus, we experience things like — joy, goodness, meaning, and purpose. This is good news worth sharing and inviting others to the same. This week try to invite the people in your life to experience what God is doing in the world through Jesus by sharing what he is doing in your life.

REFLECTION | The Depths Of Our Purpose

INSTRUCTIONS: For this reflection, you'll need enough handouts included with Week 4 of this week's materials and pens for your group. Use the questions on the handout to help students contemplate tangible next steps that allow Jesus to help them discover their purpose.

God has invited each of us to partake in this new life. All our conversations and interactions get filtered through our closeness to Jesus and willingness to become like him. Here are some questions to reflect on how we can do that this week.

RESPONSE | The Depths Of Our Purpose

We find our purpose in the depths of God's love. Let's be reminded of that this week.

INSTRUCTIONS: For the following response, you will need a few deep buckets, small vials, and pebbles that can fit in them. Create a few stations with a bucket filled with water and bowls of pebbles. Invite students to do two things. First, to help them visualize who they are best found in the depths of God's love for them, have them drop one pebble in the bucket of water. Second, to remind them of this idea throughout the week, have them put one pebble in the vial, dip it in the water, and put the stopper in. Tell them to put it somewhere to remind them that their purpose is found in the depths of God's love for them.

Let's continue to run to Jesus, over and over again, to understand our identity because Jesus helps us discover purpose.