Before you start · for whoever is leading
The room asks this at session 1 and it is the whole study’s objection: if the Kingdom is already here, why does the world still look like this?
Start with the verse in front of them, because Jesus says the Kingdom has come near, not that it has finished arriving, which is also why He taught us to pray your Kingdom come.
Both halves are in this study and the group will read them: Colossians 1:13 says we have already been brought into it, and Romans 8:22 says creation is still groaning, and living between those two verses is what the last session is about.
“The glory of God is a human being fully alive and the life of man consists in beholding God.”
John has just been arrested, and that is the moment Jesus picks to start.
Read the first thing He says out loud in this Gospel.
Then notice which word tells you how close it is.
Mark 1:14-15 · NIV
Tap a tool, then tap words. Highlight what gets your attention · underline what God is doing or saying · circle a repeated or unfamiliar word.
Read it aloud, then give everyone two minutes to mark it in silence.
14
15
NIV The Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. www.biblica.com
What stood out?
Go around the room. Each person reads one thing they marked. If you know why it stood out, say so. If you don’t, “it just stood out” is a complete answer. Nobody explains, nobody corrects.
Your markings are saved on this device and will be here when you come back.
The Kingdom is Here and Now
Jesus announces the Good News that “the Kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” Many Jewish hopes in Jesus’ day were oriented toward a decisive future act of God. Jesus fulfilled those hopes in ways that also disrupted expectations. Just as our childhood beliefs changed as we grew, Jesus’ announcement of the Kingdom challenges us to shift our perspective: the Kingdom has already broken into the present through Jesus, but it has not yet come in its fullness.
- Jesus’ message was that the Kingdom is not just a distant future hope but is already breaking into the present.
- The call to “repent and believe” is an invitation to reorient our lives around this Kingdom reality.
- Saying “yes” to the Kingdom means living in ways that reflect Jesus daily.
Read this one out loud.
Discussion questions
- What’s one way you’ve seen God at work in your everyday life recently?
- In what areas of your life do you struggle to see God’s reign at work?
- How does the invitation to “repent and believe” challenge your current perspective or daily habits?
Write it out.
Write freely. Your words are saved in this browser only, on this device, as you type. Nothing you write is sent to us.
Email opens your mail app. We do not store your notes.
Let’s pray together
- What’s an area of your life where you’d like to experience more of God’s presence?
Leave space for silence, listening, and Spirit-led prayer. If someone senses a word, a Scripture, or a picture for another, offer it gently and pray into it.
Let’s pray
Breakthrough is when God's Kingdom breaks into your reality: His healing where there is pain, His freedom where there is bondage, His presence where there is loneliness. Jesus is King; His freedom, peace and purpose are available now. Pray from that Kingdom, not toward it.
Be still for a moment. Open your hands and simply pray: “Come, Holy Spirit.”
Ask: “What do You want me to know right now? What were You highlighting when I marked the passage?” Stay open to a word, a Scripture, a picture, or a prompting.
Pray boldly into what He shows you. Ask for His Kingdom in the specific places this session touched:
- Write down the area of your life where you’d like to experience more of God’s presence. Then ask Him for it, in those words.
You can pray more than once. Stay present, and trust that God is at work. Take your time; there is no hurry.
Choose one. Say it out loud so someone else hears it.
Next time you gather, share what you practiced and how God used it, not for pressure but for encouragement.
The reminder downloads as a calendar event. Open it and it lands on your calendar for tomorrow morning.
Done.
The good news is that God’s Kingdom has already broken into the present through Jesus, inviting us to live transformed lives as part of God’s renewing work in the world.