Here are some simple, family-friendly table discussion starters based on the message. You can pick a few each mealtime rather than trying to do them all at once.
1. The Big Claim of the Resurrection
- The preacher said the resurrection is “either the greatest hoax or the most important fact of life.”
• What do you think he meant by that?
• Do you think it’s possible to be “in the middle” about Jesus, or not really? - If someone told you their friend died three days ago and is now eating breakfast in the next room, how would you react?
2. Different Reactions to the Empty Tomb
People in the Bible responded in different ways: fear, amazement, wondering, doubt, and faith.
- Which of these reactions do you relate to most right now, and why:
• amazed, • wondering, • fearful, • doubting, • believing? - The women were afraid and amazed; Thomas doubted; Peter wondered and then believed.
• Does it encourage you that Jesus welcomed people with all those different reactions?
• Why or why not? - Is it okay to have doubts about God? What do you think God wants us to do with those doubts?
3. A Hoax or the Truth?
- The sermon mentioned ideas people have had to explain the empty tomb (robbers, disciples stealing the body).
• Which explanation sounds most believable to you, and why?
• What do you think is the strongest reason to believe Jesus really rose from the dead? - If the resurrection really happened, how should that change the way someone lives?
• Can you name one specific way it might change your week?
4. God’s Love, Sin, and Shame
- The preacher said the resurrection shows that the cross wasn’t a tragedy but a triumph of love.
• What’s the difference between a tragedy and a triumph?
• How does the resurrection change the way we view Jesus’ death? - He also talked about sin and shame.
• What’s the difference between feeling guilty for doing wrong and feeling ashamed as a person?
• How does it make you feel to hear that Jesus “scorned the shame” of the cross so we don’t have to carry shame? - Imagine standing in a courtroom versus being invited into a banquet hall.
• How do those two places feel different?
• Which picture do you usually have of God—judge in a courtroom or host at a banquet—and why?
5. New Life and New Identity
- The Bible says, “If anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come.”
• What do you think a “new creation” looks like in everyday life?
• Can you think of a change you’ve seen in someone after they started following Jesus? - The sermon said the resurrection means we don’t have to fear death in the same way.
• Does that idea comfort you, confuse you, or maybe both?
• How might believing in eternal life affect how we face hard things now?
6. Opening the Door to Jesus
The preacher quoted Jesus: “I stand at the door and knock.”
- If your life was a house, what room would you most like Jesus to come into (for example: your worries, your friendships, your school/work, your free time)? Why?
- What do you think it means, practically, to “open the door” to Jesus?
• What might someone start doing—or stop doing—if they opened the door to him? - Is there any area of your life where you feel like the door is still closed to God?
• What makes it hard to open that door?
7. Personal Response
- The preacher said disinterest is not a good response to the resurrection.
• Do you agree? Why or why not? - If you had to sum up your current response to Jesus in one sentence, what would you say?
- Is there one small step of response you feel you could take this week?
• e.g., ask a question, pray honestly, read a gospel story, talk to someone about faith, think carefully about baptism, etc.
8. Baptism and the Journey of Faith
- The sermon connected resurrection with baptism as a picture of dying and rising with Jesus.
• How does baptism show that picture?
• What do you think baptism means for someone personally? - The preacher said baptism is “the beginning of a journey, not the end.”
• What do you think that journey looks like day to day?
You can adapt the wording depending on the age of your kids—simplify for younger ones
ADULT QUESTIONS!
How does the extreme nature of the resurrection claim—that it must be either the greatest hoax or the most important fact—challenge our tendency to remain neutral or polite about Jesus?
The sermon describes various responses to the resurrection including wonder, fear, doubt, and faith. Which response most closely mirrors your own journey, and how has it evolved over time?
C.S. Lewis argued that Jesus must be either Lord, liar, or lunatic with no middle ground. How does this framework affect the way we engage with skeptics or seekers who want to admire Jesus as merely a good teacher?
In what ways does the resurrection demonstrate God’s love differently than the crucifixion alone, and why is the empty tomb essential to understanding that love?
The sermon states that the resurrection addresses sin and shame by inviting us from a courtroom into a banquet hall. How does this shift from judgment to celebration change our relationship with God?
Paul expressed his desire to know Christ and the power of His resurrection. What might it practically look like to experience resurrection power in our daily lives today?
The evidence for the resurrection includes the empty tomb, the folded grave clothes, the transformed disciples, and hundreds of eyewitnesses. Which piece of evidence do you find most compelling, and why?
How should the reality that death has been defeated and swallowed up in victory change the way we face our own mortality or grieve the loss of loved ones?
The sermon emphasizes that we can come to God with amazement, wonder, fear, or doubt—we do not need to have everything figured out. How does this invitation challenge perfectionism or intellectual barriers in our spiritual lives?
Revelation 3:20 describes Jesus standing at the door and knocking, waiting for us to open. What might be keeping the door closed in your life, and what would it mean to truly open it today?
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