Truth First, Lies Second
A six-week small group series, working section by section through the Expanded teaching above.
This six-week study walks your group through the Expanded teaching above, section by section, so that by the end of the series you have effectively worked through the whole teaching together — meditated on, discussed, and learned, not just read. Each week stands alone and holds enough material for a full hour of group study. Print each week separately; each one begins on its own fresh page.
Week 1: God Never Changes
Old Testament Passage
New Testament Passage
Walking Through It
The whole teaching stands on this first truth: God does not change. What He called good three thousand years ago, He calls good today. His character is not up for a cultural vote.
The counterfeit is subtle because it feels reasonable — a god reshaped generation after generation to stay comfortable. But a god who bends to fit the moment was never the God of Scripture. He becomes a product of the culture instead of the standard the culture is measured against.
Ask your group to sit with this honestly: has their own picture of God shifted over the years because Scripture taught them something new, or because it became more comfortable to believe something different?
Hebrews 13:8 applies the same unchanging character directly to Jesus: the same yesterday, today, and forever. Whatever Jesus asked of His disciples two thousand years ago, He is still asking of His people today — nothing has been quietly retired to keep up with the times.
Discussion Questions
- Where have you seen someone reshape their idea of God to avoid something uncomfortable He actually says?
- What is the difference between growing in your understanding of God and quietly editing who He is?
- Numbers 23:19 says God is not like a human who changes his mind. Why does that matter for trusting His promises?
- What is one truth about God you find hardest to hold onto because it costs you something?
- How does knowing God never changes give you confidence for something you're facing this week?
Week 2: Jesus Is the Way
Old Testament Passage
New Testament Passage
Walking Through It
Jesus did not offer Himself as one legitimate path among several. He said He was the way — singular, exclusive, non-negotiable.
The counterfeit sounds humble: all paths lead up the same mountain. But Proverbs already warned that a path can feel right and sincere and still end in death.
This is not arrogance on Jesus's part. A person drowning does not need a dozen ropes thrown in different directions — they need the one that actually reaches them.
Notice that Jesus made this claim not to strangers but to His own closest friends, in the middle of an intimate conversation about where He was going and how they could follow. Exclusivity here is not a wall keeping people out; it is a doorway being pointed to plainly so no one misses it.
Discussion Questions
- Why might the "all paths lead to God" idea sound appealing even to sincere believers?
- How is Proverbs 14:12 a warning against trusting a path just because it feels right?
- Acts 4:12 says salvation is found in no one else. How does that shape the way you talk with someone of a different faith?
- What does it look like to hold this truth firmly without being unkind to people who disagree?
- Where in your own life have you settled for a path that felt right instead of the one that was right?
- Spend a few minutes praying for someone in your life who does not yet know Jesus is the way.
Week 3: Sound Teaching and Perfect Love
Old Testament Passage
New Testament Passage
Walking Through It
God warned His people from the very beginning not to add to or subtract from His word to make it more comfortable. Paul later described exactly this happening: people gathering teachers who tell them what their itching ears want to hear.
Alongside that warning sits a promise: perfect love drives out fear. God's truth was never meant to be delivered through manipulation or threat. Where it is real, it produces confidence, not dread.
These two truths belong together this week because both describe what happens when truth is either edited for comfort or twisted into control — and what it looks like when it isn't.
Discussion Questions
- What does it look like practically to "add to" or "subtract from" God's word to make it easier to hear?
- Have you ever chosen a teacher or a voice because they told you what you wanted to hear rather than what was true?
- 1 John 4:18 says perfect love drives out fear. Where have you experienced fear used as a tool of control instead of love?
- How can a church or a family hold firmly to truth without using fear to enforce it?
- What is one place you need to let go of a comfortable compromise this week?
Week 4: Every Clever Idea Traces to God
Old Testament Passage
New Testament Passage
Walking Through It
When God needed a craftsman to build the tabernacle, He described Bezalel's skill as a filling of the Spirit, not a purely human talent.
The counterfeit is the self-made-genius myth — the idea that intelligence and creativity belong entirely to the person holding them, owed to no one.
This matters more, not less, in an age of artificial intelligence. If the ability to invent traces back to God even in a human mind, the tools built by that mind carry the same responsibility to be used in a way that honors the Giver.
Discussion Questions
- What is a skill or talent you have that you rarely think to thank God for?
- How does Exodus 31 change the way you think about "secular" skill like craftsmanship or engineering?
- Why is the self-made-genius myth so appealing, even though it cuts a person off from gratitude?
- How should this truth shape how Christians think about and use new technology like AI?
- Take a moment to name one gift or ability in your life and thank God for it out loud.
- Who in your life could use encouragement that their gift comes from God and matters to Him?
Week 5: One Nation Under God, and Light Over Silence
Old Testament Passage
New Testament Passage
Walking Through It
A nation is blessed when it acknowledges an authority above its own. Acts 5:29 shows Peter and John pushing back on governing authority precisely when it conflicted with obeying God.
Light was never given to be hidden. It was given to be set on a stand, in volume, and greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4) is a commissioning verse, not just a comfort verse.
The counterfeits pair naturally: a nation that promotes itself to the highest throne, and a believer who stays silent out of fear instead of shining light — both are a kind of darkness that spreads.
Discussion Questions
- What does it look like for a nation to acknowledge God without becoming a theocracy?
- Where have you seen governing authority conflict with obeying God, and how should a believer respond?
- Why does silence feel safer than speaking truth, even though it never actually protects anyone?
- What is one place in your life where you have been "hiding your light under a basket"?
- How does 1 John 4:4 give you courage to speak up this week?
Week 6: A Work in Progress
Old Testament Passage
New Testament Passage
Walking Through It
Nobody arrives finished. God does not discard the marred clay — He reshapes it, patiently, as seemed best to Him.
Paul told people he loved that the good work in them was still being carried on, actively, by God Himself, and would not be finished until the day of Christ Jesus.
The counterfeit — that a person must have it all together before they are allowed to be loved, useful, or called a Christian — keeps people silent and exhausted. God did not wait for Bezalel or Peter to be finished before using them, and He is not waiting for you either.
Discussion Questions
- Where do you feel pressure to appear "finished" before you feel qualified to serve, teach, or share your faith?
- How does Jeremiah 18 change the way you see your own mistakes and setbacks?
- Philippians 1:6 says God will carry the work to completion. What does that promise mean for something you're struggling with right now?
- How can your group support each other as works in progress rather than expecting perfection from one another?
- Looking back over all six weeks, which of the eight truths in this teaching do you most need to hold onto right now?
- Close this series in prayer, thanking God for pouring out truth in volume and asking Him to help you do the same.
Want to read these passages in their full setting? Browse every book of the Bible on BibleRef (opens in a new tab), a free site with plain-language commentary.