March 24: Called to Repent (Luke 19:1-10)

To begin the session:

After all class members have arrived, discuss the following questions. How far are you willing to go to find something you’ve lost? If you answer, “It depends,” explain the factors that determine how far you’re willing to go and what price you’re willing to pay to bring it back to you.

What’s something you’ve looked for that other people disapproved of you wanting? For example, what if you didn’t know you were in a vegan restaurant and you asked the server if they had good hamburgers? How did it feel to go against what others wanted you to do?

What’s something you’ve wanted despite the fact that wanting it gave people the wrong idea? For instance, people working to rescue girls out of sex trafficking in other countries often enter the brothels posing as customers (so they can identify the girls to be rescued by law enforcement). What if someone who didn’t know that you were working with a rescue agency saw you go inside the brothel and assumed you were paying for a prostitute? Could that possibility make someone have second thoughts about helping? Why or why not?

Would you ever pursue something even though people might get the wrong idea about what you are doing and even if they assumed something other than what you have in your heart?

Lead into Bible study by saying, “What Jesus did in our Bible passage today made people assume He was condoning the sin that a man was committing.”

To encourage personal application:

Download the “How Far Would You Go?” activity here. Make copies for every class member. Give them these instructions: “The more we love someone, the higher the price and risk we’re willing to pay to bring them back if they get lost or put in danger. On the left side of the chart, write the names or categories of people you would go to these different lengths to save.”

What cost was Jesus willing to pay to seek and save Zacchaeus when he was lost? What is a situation in your life where you have (or have not) been willing to pay the price to reach out to someone even though (or because) people thought you were endorsing sin? Who is someone in your life now who is searching for meaning in their life, and in what way could you go one step further to seek and to save him or her?