Sermon Discussion Guide - Not in Church (Aug 2, 2026)

Recap

This week we kicked off a brand-new series, The Empty Chair, with the story of Zacchaeus in Luke 19:1-10. Before we talk about what to do with the people around us, Jesus shows us how He sees them: He notices the man everyone else had written off, calls him by name, and invites Himself in before Zacchaeus changes a single thing. The "chief tax collector" — the last guy anyone expected to want God — turns out to be seeking, and one encounter with grace changes his whole life. The people in our lives who are not in church usually aren't a lost cause; they're often quietly seeking, just waiting for someone to notice and invite them.

Connect

• Who is someone — a teacher, coach, neighbor, or friend — who noticed you at a time you felt invisible? What did they do?
• Have you ever walked into a room where you felt like the outsider? What made you feel welcome, or what made it worse?

Check-In

• Last week in Finishing Well we were challenged to "invest in what lasts" and get off the bleachers — out of the 80% who watch and into the 20% who build. Where did you take one step off the sidelines this week?
• Did you sense God inviting you to surrender a plan or dream to Him? How did that go?

Contemplate

• Read Luke 19:1-10 (CSB) together.
• What do we learn about Zacchaeus in verses 1-2? Why would his job as chief tax collector make him so hated and cut off from the religious community?
• In verses 3-4, what does Zacchaeus actually do to see Jesus? What might a grown, wealthy man running and climbing a tree tell us about what was going on in his heart?
• In verse 5, what stands out about how Jesus approaches him? What does it mean that Jesus calls him by name and invites Himself over before anything about Zacchaeus's life changes?
• Why do the people grumble in verse 7? Who is most bothered that Jesus went to a "sinner's" house — and why might that be convicting for those of us who are already "in"?
• Look at verses 8-10. What changes in Zacchaeus, and what does verse 10 tell us about why Jesus came? (Note: the word for "seek" in v.10 is the same idea as Zacchaeus "trying to see" Jesus back in v.3 — who was really seeking whom?)

Consider

• Who is the "empty chair" in your life — one person who is not in church that came to mind during the message? (Make a list of names for the group to pray over together)
• We often want people to clean up and change before we let them get close. Where do you tend to put "repentance first, relationship second" — and what would "relationship first" actually look like?
• What's one honest fear or excuse that keeps you from inviting someone — too busy, scared, don't feel equipped, etc? Name it.
• This week, what's one no-agenda way you could move toward that person you wrote on your card — a text, a shared meal, or a simple "come and see" invitation?

Cover

Pray for:

• Confession — the ways we've quietly written people off or stayed comfortable with our "row already full."
• Dependence on the Spirit — that God would open our eyes to the people seeking around us and give us courage to notice and invite.
• Intercession — by name, for the person on each group member's card, that God is already seeking them and would use us to help them see it.

Practices

Choose 1-3 for this week:

• Fill in the blank: Write one name on your prayer card — the "not in church" person in your life — and put it somewhere you'll see it every day.
• Pray daily: Every time you see the card, pray that God is seeking them and that He'd use you to help them come and see.
• Make one move: Take one no-agenda step toward that person this week — send the text, share the meal, or extend the invitation.