December 7th

Introduction Question: Have you ever been really sick? How did you feel after you got better?
Read Luke 4:38-44 out loud as a group, and then silently.

38 Jesus left the synagogue and went to the home of Simon. At that time, Simon's mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever. So they asked Jesus to help her. 39 He bent over her and commanded the fever to leave, and it left her. She got up at once and began to serve them. 40 At sunset, people brought to Jesus all who were sick. He placed his hands on each one and healed them. 41 Also, demons came out of many people. The demons shouted, "You are the Son of God!" But he commanded them to be quiet. He would not allow them to speak, because they knew he was the Christ. 42 At dawn, Jesus went out to a place where he could be by himself. The people went to look for him. When they found him, they tried to keep him from leaving them. 43 But he said, "I must announce the good news of God's kingdom to the other towns also. That is why I was sent." 44 And he kept on preaching in the synagogues of Judea.

Word List:
synagogue – a place where the Jewish people would meet to worship God.
demons – evil spirits that always try to control and destroy people.
Son of God – one of the main titles of Jesus.
Christ – means “anointed one.” Anoint means to “put oil on.” In the Bible, oil represents God’s blessing and power, which he poured out fully on Jesus.
kingdom – a governmental system that is ruled by a king.
preaching – telling something that is supposed to be very important.
Judea – the central part of Israel, including its capital, Jerusalem.

Discussion Questions:
1. How did Jesus heal Simon’s mother-in-law, and how did she respond?
2. How did all the demons know who Jesus was, and why did he want them to be quiet?
3. Why did Jesus want to be by himself?
4. Why do you think the people wanted to be with Jesus, but he wanted to leave them?
5. Which examples of Jesus do you think Christians should follow today, and why?