Acts of Leadership Discussion Questions
Week 1: Am I A Leader?
Pastor Rick Henderson September 27-28, 2025
The study guide is designed for your individual use throughout the week to get you thinking about the Bible passage and offers ideas for spiritual practices you might consider trying. These discussion questions are designed to help you further process aspects of the passage, as presented in the sermon, with your group.
Discussion Questions for Week 1
- Think of the best leader you’ve personally known. What made them stand out as a leader?
- Clarification: someone under whose leadership they’ve sat.
- Was it something they did or said or how they made you feel?
- You could tie it to the sermon by asking if there was an aspect of them helping you see a better future than you could on your own.
- The thesis for this series is “leadership is a DESTINATION of discipleship.” If the central act of discipleship is following Jesus, then how does who you follow impact how you lead?
- From the sermon: “following Jesus always leads to leadership because he’s leading us to do as he did.”
- We learn how to shepherd others from the way we’ve been shepherded by the one who identified himself as the good shepherd.
- Rick offered three questions that would illustrate how leadership is a relevant topic for everyone. How would you answer each of these three questions:
Who do I look to for leadership?
- Who has formal positions of leadership in my life (boss, pastor, small group leader)?
- Who influences me in more subtle way? (Podcast host, coworkers around the watercooler, spouse, parents; my sources of information and advice)
How am I leading myself?
- My life choices (what I eat, when I sleep, how I use my free time)
- What am I exposing myself to?
Who looks to you for leadership?
- The person who asks you to pray for them, give them advice, show them how…
- From the sermon: “If you have influence, if you have resources, if you have responsibility—you are a leader.”
- Read Acts 1:3-9. Despite all the time they’d spent with Jesus hearing about the kingdom of God, the disciples were still focused on what? … But Jesus was calling them to a different mission, which was…?
- Part 1: building a new Jewish nation or kicking out the Romans … a literal kingdom with a new Jewish king.
- Part 2: to go be shepherds – empowered by the Spirit – to invite all people everywhere into relationship with Jesus.
- From the sermon: “No one goes everywhere, but everyone goes somewhere.” Therefore, the next question is…
- Where is your “somewhere” and what could you start doing there?
- What are the spheres of influence in your life? Your neighborhood, your workplace, your group of friends, your family…
- Love the people in your proximity. Pray for them. Help at Ridgefest. Share the Gospel with someone worth talking to (see quote at the bottom).
- Is there anything else from the passage that you found impactful, confusing or challenging that you want to discuss?
Quote to remember: “If you know Jesus it’s because someone thought you were worth talking to, and he was worth talking about.”