Discussion Guide: Run The Right Way

PRAYER

Our main goal in this time together is to build relationships and learn to walk alongside one another in all that God has called us to be and do. Let’s start by praying for each other.

Does anyone have prayer requests or personal stories of how God has been moving in your life that we can celebrate together?

ARISE TOPICS

Sin’s Pain :: Known Union :: Living Free :: Dead AND Alive :: Understanding Grace

THIS WEEK

We’re in a new series called ARISE—a study of Romans 6 and what it means to walk in the new life Jesus offers.

Over the next few weeks, we’ll take this journey together, celebrating the one life that changed everything—Jesus. Because of Him, anyone can experience a fresh start. No matter your past or what you’re walking through right now, we’ll discover how Jesus meets us right where we are and leads us into a future that’s brand new.

This past Sunday, Pastor Alvin walked us through Romans 6:15–19 and reminded us how easy it is to drift, especially when we don’t fully understand what God’s calling us to. Just like Paul did with the early church, he encouraged us to pause, take inventory, and make a turn in the right direction. He also pointed out three key truths that help us step into the new life Jesus offers—fully and freely.

To start our time together, let’s begin with the following questions:

If you could hit the “redo” button on one thing from this past week (big or small), what would it be and why?

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

SCRIPTURE

Have someone read Romans 6:15-19 aloud. As you listen, notice any words or phrases that stand out, and ask the Holy Spirit to highlight something for you.

Romans 6:15-19

15 What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! 

16 Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? 

17 But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, 

18 and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness. 

19 I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.

What—or, most importantly, who—are you running toward?

The Misunderstanding of Something

Romans 6:15 highlights how easy it is to misunderstand grace. 

Paul isn’t just asking a hypothetical “what ifs.” No, he’s confronting a real temptation for all believers and followers of Jesus: treating grace like a license to keep sinning. 

But Paul stresses that grace isn’t permission to stay in the old life.  It’s actually the opposite. it’s the power to live a new one. 

When we don’t truly grasp grace, we can run the wrong way spiritually, even with good intentions.

How would you explain grace to someone who’s never heard of it before?

Has your view of grace changed over time? If so, how?

Why do you think it’s easy to treat grace like a free pass instead of a call to live differently?

Are there areas in your life where grace has felt more like a cover than a challenge to grow? What helps you turn back in the right direction?

What does it look like to walk in the power of grace instead of drifting back to old patterns?

The Mastery of Something

In Romans 6:16–18, Paul reminds us that, whether we are running the right or wrong way in how we live, we’re all mastered by something—either sin or righteousness. There’s no neutral ground.

Misunderstanding grace can leave us stuck in old patterns, still living as if sin has control. But when we truly understand and embrace God’s gift of salvific grace, we see it’s not just about being forgiven—it’s about being set free to live a new kind of life.

Through Jesus, we’re not just called to do right things, but to become the kind of people who desire what’s right. Grace leads us to run the right way in living in obedience from the heart, growing into the likeness of Christ.

Paul says we’re either mastered by sin or by obedience to God. Why do you think it’s so tempting to believe there’s a “middle ground”?

What does it look like to live free from sin but still walk in circles like you’re still tied down? Have you ever felt that tension?

How has your understanding of grace shaped the way you respond to sin or temptation?

In your own words, what does it mean to be a “slave to righteousness”? How is that different from just following rules?

What’s one area where you want to grow in desiring what’s right, not just doing it out of duty, but from the heart?

The Movement Toward Something

Romans 6:19 shows us that righteousness isn’t the end, unlike sin, which leads to death. No, Paul says righteousness is the way forward to running the right way.

When we misunderstand grace, we risk staying stuck in sin’s grip, moving further from God. But when we truly live in grace, it moves us toward holiness. Not to achieve perfection, but to present ourselves daily to God, growing to look more like Jesus’s perfecting grace.

When grace has its way with our hearts, grace doesn’t excuse sin, but it empowers real change. The question isn’t whether you’ve stumbled, but whether you’re still running toward Him or running the wrong way to sin away from Him.

Paul says we should now present ourselves to God in the same way we once gave ourselves to sin. What do you think that kind of intentional surrender looks like in everyday life?

How have you understood the word “sanctification”? Has it felt like a one-time moment or a lifelong process for you?

Where in your life do you see movement toward holiness, or where do you feel stuck or circling back to old habits?

What helps you stay focused on running the right way, especially when it’s easier to drift or give in to today’s culture of “permissive grace”?

How might surrender—not striving—be the key to experiencing more of Jesus’ transforming grace?

CLOSING THOUGHT

Romans 6:15–19 presents the real tension we must wrestle with daily: grace is free but not cheap. It saves us and changes us. It’s not permission to keep sinning, but the power to live free.

Paul’s words are clear: We’re all mastered by something. The question is, are we mastered by sin, or are we presenting ourselves daily to God and learning how to walk in obedience, righteousness, and holiness?

The good news is, even if you’ve been running in the wrong direction, you can stop, turn around, and start running the right way today. And what makes this possible? The good news of Jesus!

Jesus’ grace doesn’t erase the need for change—it makes real change possible. So don’t settle for being stuck between sin and death when an abundant life awaits you.

Walk the tension. Live the truth. And keep running toward Jesus. He’s already made a way for us to do so.

Let’s close in prayer: God, thank you for your amazing grace that’s free and full of power. Sometimes we misunderstand it and drift back into old ways of sin and death. Help us to see that grace isn’t a license to sin, but the strength to live differently—to run the right way. Teach us to present ourselves to you each day, to choose obedience, and to grow more like Jesus. When we stumble, remind us you’re there to catch us, not condemn us. Keep our hearts focused on you, moving forward in holiness and freedom, and inviting others to do the same where we live, work, and play. In Jesus’ name, Amen.