A Beautiful Thing
A woman stood in the midst of some plotting Pharisees to present a beautiful, valuable, and timely offering to Jesus. Although she faced harsh criticism from those around her, she was given high regard by the Savior. This Sunday, Reverend Jared Co reminds us that worship, when done with complete adoration and surrender, is beautiful in God’s eyes.
Read Today’s Scripture Passage
Mark 14:1-11
Life Group Discussion Guide
1. Start with a prayer
2. Engage one another (15-30 mins)
- Share about a time you gave something valuable (time, money, effort, opportunity) to someone because they were important to you. What made you willing to give it?
3. Engage the mind (15-20 mins)
- Read the passage. How does it contrast the woman’s devotion with the attitudes of the religious leaders and Judas?
- According to Jesus, why was the woman’s act considered a beautiful thing? What deeper meaning did it point to?
4. Engage the heart (15-20 mins)
- Reflect on your relationship with Jesus. Do you tend to approach Him more for His beauty (who He is) or for His usefulness (what He can give you)? Where do you think this is rooted?
- Do you ever find yourself calculating the cost of following Jesus instead of responding with wholehearted devotion? What fears or concerns hold you back?
5. Engage the hands (15-20 mins)
- Is there something in your life that might be competing with Jesus for your wholehearted devotion or affection? Or, is there something valuable that God may be asking you to offer to Him? Identify what this may be and how you can begin to surrender it, starting this week.
- How can your community/Life Group encourage one another to live lives that are centered on loving Jesus rather than simply using Him for what He provides?
6. Engage with God in prayer (20-30 mins)
- Praise the Heavenly Father for revealing the incomparable beauty of Christ Jesus. Thank Him for the intensely personal love shown through Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, where He gave Himself fully for our sins. Rejoice that Jesus broke His “whole flask” for us, offering His life so that we may be forgiven and restored. Thank Him that His love awakens our hearts to adore Him and to offer our lives as a beautiful response of devotion.
- Repent for the times you have approached Jesus more for His usefulness than for His beauty. Ask for forgiveness for holding back your devotion, calculating the cost, or allowing other things to compete with Him in your heart. Pray that God would change your heart so that you may see the beauty of Christ more clearly and respond with wholehearted, joyful, and unreserved devotion to Him.
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