Week 2: Neighboring Road Blocks

September 25 & 28

  • 1 Peter 3:8

  • Our time can be a roadblock to being a good neighbor.

  • 1 Peter 3:9

  • Anger can be a roadblock to being a good neighbor.

  • Luke 6:27-28

  • Neighboring doesn’t stop when agreement stops…biblical neighboring actually starts when agreement stops.

  • 1 Peter 3:10-12

  • Our speech can be one of the biggest roadblocks to biblical neighboring.

  • “I forgive him, because it was what Christ did and is what Charlie would do. The answer to hate is not hate. The answer we know from the Gospel is love.” - Erika Kirk

  • 1 Peter 3:12

  • You cannot ask God to heal our nation with the same mouth you use to dehumanize our neighbor:

  1. The Tongue Test - “Is it true? Is it necessary? Is it loving?” If the answer to any one of those three questions is “no,” don’t say it.

  2. The Turn Test - What evil am I turning from and what good am I turning to?

  3. The Peace Pursuit - Who will I work hard to pursue peace with this week?

  • 1 Peter 3:13-14

  • Fear also keeps us from being good neighbors.

  • 1 Peter 3:15

  • Be ready to share your hope.

  • 1 Peter 3:16

  • The church should be known not by our outrage, but by our outrageous grace.

  • Homework:

  1. Name your neighbor.

  2. Slow down for interruptions.

  3. Cross the street.

  4. Tell your story.

[d]Group questions

  1. Read 1 Peter 3:8-16 with your group.

  2. What are some of the biggest roadblocks that keep you from being the type of “good neighbor” Peter describes. (time, anger, speech, fear, etc.)

  3. Peter writes in 1 Peter 3:9, “Don’t repay evil for evil…Instead, pay them back with a blessing.” In today’s climate of outrage and retaliation, what might it practically look like for you to “pay back with a blessing”?

  4. Think about your words (online and in person). How can you run them through “The Tongue Test”…Is it true? Is it necessary? Is it loving?…before you speak?

  5. Who in your life might God be asking you to pursue peace with this week, even if it feels uncomfortable or costly?

Prayer Prompt

  • Pray for a tender heart: Ask God to slow you down, open your eyes to the people around you, and soften any anger or self-centeredness that blocks you from being a good neighbor.

  • Pray for courage and compassion: Lift up those you disagree with by name. Pray for strength to bless instead of retaliate, and for boldness to share your hope in Christ with gentleness and respect.