GROUP GUIDE
Leading a group through these questions? Here’s a simple guide for 1.5-2 hour GROUP meeting.
Welcome and Opening Prayer. (5 minutes)
Read the passage aloud. (5 minutes)
Guide the group through the questions. (30-60 minutes)
Take time to share prayer requests and pray for each other. (15-30 minutes)
TEACHING RECAP
Summary: Around tables, Jesus welcomed tax collectors, sinners, and the left out. He turned ordinary meals into moments of grace and belonging. His way teaches us that love always has room for one more.
Main Points:
God has been inviting us into fellowship with Him since the beginning.
Jesus uses the intimacy of the table to bring healing, hope, and reconciliation.
Hospitality opens the door for us to share the Good News.
The invitation to the table, that Jesus extends, shows us the heart of the Father.
On-Ramps:
Receive the invitation that Jesus extends to you. Repent and believe the Good News of Jesus.
Open your life to Jesus growing you in hospitality. Open your table to those who need to meet Him.
Read the parables of Jesus and ask Him, what do you want to show me about your heart for me and those around me?
Discussion
What stands out to you from this passage? How does this passage most challenge or encourage you?
In the story of Levi’s banquet (Luke 5), what does Jesus’ willingness to sit at the table with tax collectors and sinners reveal about the heart of God?
The sermon traces sacred space from Eden to Jesus to the church. How does understanding yourself as sacred space through the Holy Spirit change the way you think about everyday life?
Jesus used meals—ordinary, simple moments—to do deep relational and spiritual work. How might our culture’s fast pace, individualism, or discomfort with vulnerability make this kind of table-hospitality challenging today?
Who are the people in your relational world who might feel like “outsiders,” and what would it look like to intentionally welcome them into your life or your home in a way that reflects Jesus’ heart?
How do you want to respond to this passage in your daily life?
PRAYER
How can we pray for you as a group?
Next week: John 15:12–13
