Prepare your heart for the Sermon by looking through these suggestions that will assist you in making the most of our time together hearing God's Word.

You will find suggestions for thinking more critically through the passage, meditating more intently on the text, and prayerfully seeking wisdom to deepen your understanding of the passage to be preached this Sunday.

Carefully Think

• Read 1 Corinthians 12:1-13. What transition does Paul make in v. 12? What does Paul not mention in these 2 verses, that he mentioned regularly in the previous 11? What does this tell you about the point Paul is making?
• What is repeated in this passage that helps you understand what Paul’s main idea is? What is the metaphor Paul employs in this passage? What does he intend to communicate with this metaphor? What is he emphasizing with this metaphor? What does the metaphor point to?
• What does baptism have to do with being a member of the body? What is Paul emphasizing by describing the Spirit as “one”? What do you know about the Corinthians from our study that would help you understand why Paul is addressing what he’s addressing here?
• The Sermon Study equipping class notes are available online for anyone wanting to dig deeper. Please review this week's notes to help study this passage. Click here for the notes.

Prayerfully Meditate

• What is the connection between church membership and this passage? Is church membership something the church has stolen from the gym, or is the idea of individuals being considered members of the body derived from this passage? What does this passage say about membership in the local body?
• How should individual members think about themselves in light of this passage? Should they think of themselves individually or as part of a larger whole? What does the membership of Summit Woods say about Christ?
• According to this passage, how does baptism correspond to membership? What is the relationship? What does baptism portray according to this passage? Does this change the way you think about baptism? What does the Holy Spirit have to do with membership and baptism? Why is this important based off what the Corinthians were wrongly emphasizing about the work of the Spirit?