2. The Story
Life is wrapped up in stories.
Whether we like to read or not, we are all storytellers, and we all connect through story. From the story of books and movies to our day or our lives, we are moved by the events that shape us.
The story that shapes us is what we call “identity” — who we believe ourselves to be is shaped by the dominant story in our life.
The Story that shapes us is God’s story — who God is, what He has done, and who that makes us to be.
The Gospel Story changes everything in our stories — it’s more than a history lesson or religious narrative; it’s an ongoing experience that defines the ways we walk, talk, and live together
The story of God
The story of God can be summarized in four major movements:
Creation | God is the Creator of everything and has a good plan for everything. As the source of life itself, God is the one who defines what is good, right, and perfect (what the Bible calls “holy”). Created in God’s image, human beings have a chance to live God’s way and experience all the good He intends. In fact, He places the first humans in a beautiful garden, trusts them to care for it, and tells them, “Be fruitful and multiply.” All these things are in harmony and peace — what the Bible calls “shalom” and God calls “very good!”
Fall | The first humans choose to rebel against God and His authority, choosing to live their own ways instead of His. Separated from God, they are separated from the source of life Himself and subject to sickness, pain, struggle, and death. Life is marked by difficulty, relationships by dysfunction, and sin defines our reality. That’s why this is called “fall” — it’s a fall from such great heights!
Redemption | Though humankind is separated from God and subject to sin, God pursues a solution. He establishes a special relationship with a family long ago (Abraham in Genesis) and sticks with that family through their ups and downs (Israel throughout Scripture). The goal is to show a new group of people how to live in God’s ways that they might show the world how to live in God’s ways. God ultimately becomes one of those people through Jesus, who is fully God, fully human. Jesus lives the life we should have lived, yet dies the death we should die. Though He dies painfully on a cross, taking the punishment we all deserve, He also raises from the dead — an astounding fact verified by at least 500 eye witnesses — and guarantees that we can live a new life through Him.
Restoration | Ultimately, God restores us to the source of life — thanks to Jesus, and through His Spirit living within us. God gives us the power to walk in the ways of God like Jesus did, and He sends us to show the world how they might do the same. This restoration story started in Jesus, continues through us, and will one day be completed by God when He fully restores the earth to Himself!
Questions to discuss
Grab a blank sheet of paper and write a few thoughts in response to these questions. When you gather as a GC, you can draw on these responses in your discussion.
If this story does not center on us but on God, how do/should we find our purpose in this?
In the story, God told the first humans to “be fruitful and multiply.” Do you feel fruitful? If not, what stands in the way? (Think about how you invest time, talents, money, career, etc.)
What sticks out to you after reading the short description of the story of God? What do you find yourself wondering about?
What would change if more and more people had opportunity to engage with God’s story in meaningful ways and in a safe environment?
Thoughts to engage
Grab a blank sheet of paper and write a few thoughts in response to these questions. These get more into your experience of the Gospel and may be something you can discuss with others in your GC.
Re-read Genesis 1:26-31: what is our “job description” as humans?
To be “made in the image of God” roots our identity in who He is and what He’s like. How have you viewed Him in the past? How has that shaped how you view yourself?
At the core of God’s Story is how He pursues us despite our sins. He pursues Adam & Eve in the Garden right after they sin; He pursues a family and people despite their flaws and rebellions; He lives as one of us, experiences the worst of us, and still loves us; He pursues you and I to the point of dying undeservedly on a cross in our place. How does this change how you view Him now?
What would change in your life if your true identity was not based on what you did — a role you play — but is instead based solely on being created in the image of God?