Rooting Path · New Testament Survey · Lesson 3: He Is Risen
This lesson in one sentence: The tomb is empty; the risen Lord comes looking for people who are afraid, disappointed, doubting or fallen, and sends them out.
Timing (about 60 minutes)
- Opening5 min
- Read Together10 min
- Practice Together15 min
- Discussion20 min
- This Week5 min
- Pray for One Another5 min
Opening
Have you ever had news so good that you didn’t dare believe it?
Read Together
5Becoming terrified, they bowed their faces down to the earth. The men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? 6He isn’t here, but is risen. Remember what he told you when he was still in Galilee,
Luke 24:5–6 · WEB
27Then he said to Thomas, “Reach here your finger, and see my hands. Reach here your hand, and put it into my side. Don’t be unbelieving, but believing.” 28Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” 29Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.”
John 20:27–29 · WEB
Because you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.
John 20:29 · WEB
Practice Together
Ask four members each to read one passage: Matthew 28:1–10, Mark 16:1–8, Luke 24:13–35, John 20:11–18. After each reading, the group says two things: whom did the risen Jesus (or those at the tomb) speak to? What did he say? Finally, each person says: which encounter is most like where you are now?
Discussion
- When the women went back with the news, “These words seemed to them to be nonsense, and they didn’t believe them” (Luke 24:11). What do you think makes it hard to believe that Jesus rose from the dead?
- “Because you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.” (John 20:29)—are you like Thomas? Can you bring your questions to the group?
- Jesus asked Peter, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me?” (John 21:16) If he asked you that today, how would you answer?
This Week
This week, read Luke 24 in one sitting. Afterward write one sentence: in this chapter, who moved from unbelief to faith? How did that change happen?
Each person says when they read Luke 24 this week.
Closing
Read 1 Cor 15:3–4 together; the leader prays.
Tips for the leader
- If someone in the group has doubts, don’t rush to press them down. Jesus took Thomas’s doubt seriously; doubts can be spoken aloud and brought together before the Scriptures.
- The four Gospels differ in the details of the resurrection; as the lesson puts it, four witnesses tell of the same event from different angles. Don’t compare them point by point in the group.
- When the ascension comes up and the words “will come back in the same way” (Acts 1:11), don’t go into the time or manner of his return; the seventh meeting also speaks only of hope.
General principles for leaders
- The leader is not a teacher but someone who walks alongside everyone.
- Give everyone a chance to speak; with someone who talks a lot, you can gently say, ‘Let’s also hear from friends who haven’t spoken yet.’
- Don’t rush to give answers. If someone is silent, wait a few more seconds.
- For a question you can’t answer, you can say, ‘I don’t know either; let’s look it up together,’ and note it down for next time.
- What is said in the group stays in the group.
- At the opening, the leader can give their own answer first, showing that it can be simple and honest.