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    The Grace of Les Miserables Leader Guide
    The Grace of Les Miserables Leader Guide
    The Grace of Les Miserables Leader Guide
    Ebook75 pages1 hour

    The Grace of Les Miserables Leader Guide

    By Matt Rawle

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    About this ebook

    Victor Hugo’s Les Misérables is a truly epic story. Whether you’ve tackled the 1,400-page 19thcentury novel, witnessed the Broadway musical (and memorized its soundtrack), or seen the several screen adaptations of it, you already know the power of its story.


    In the six-week Lenten study The Grace of Les Misérables, author and pastor Matt Rawle dives into six ideals found in the story—grace, justice, poverty, revolution, love, and hope—each represented by a character in Hugo’s story. As these imperfect and relatable characters interact, we can see how these ideals work together (perhaps even in spite of each other) out in the world.


    In keeping with his previous works, Matt Rawle brings us to the intersection of Church and Pop Culture by drawing parallels between the iconic story and musical and our Christian calling, inspiring us to both understand our faith and live it out in the world.


    The Leader Guide contains everything needed to guide a group through the six-week study including session plans, activities, and discussion questions, as well as multiple format options.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherAbingdon Press
    Release dateDec 17, 2019
    ISBN9781501887130
    The Grace of Les Miserables Leader Guide
    Author

    Matt Rawle

    Matt Rawle is Lead Pastor at Asbury United Methodist Church in Bossier City, Louisiana. Matt is an international speaker who loves to tell an old story in a new way, especially at the intersection of pop culture and the church. He is the author of Jesus Revealed: The I Am Statements in the Gospel of John as well as The Pop in Culture Series, which includes The Heart that Grew Three Sizes, The Faith of a Mockingbird, Hollywood Jesus, The Salvation of Doctor Who, The Redemption of Scrooge, What Makes a Hero?, and The Gift of the Nutcracker.

    Read more from Matt Rawle

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      Book preview

      The Grace of Les Miserables Leader Guide - Matt Rawle

      Session 1

      GRACE WELL RECEIVED: THE STORY OF JEAN VALJEAN

      SESSION OVERVIEW

      Introduction

      The story of Jean Valjean is powerful because it demonstrates how grace can be well received. Valjean was a hardened criminal. But an act of grace changed him, which began a journey of transformation throughout the rest of his life.

      Like Jean Valjean, we are recipients of grace. Jesus has graciously loved us, graciously redeemed us, and graciously seeks to sanctify us. How do we respond? Do we receive God’s grace well?

      Lesson Aim

      To define grace as God’s free, loving action toward us,

      exhibited most fully in Jesus Christ,

      and to choose to live in response to God’s grace

      Session Themes

      •To examine Jean Valjean’s story and what it teaches us about grace;

      •To reflect on moments of grace in our own lives;

      •To accept God’s grace given to us in Jesus and to worship as a response to God’s love;

      •To commit to acts of grace, love, and kindness toward those around us: friends, family, coworkers, strangers, and enemies.

      Chapter Focus: Jean Valjean

      In each chapter, Matt Rawle explores characters, settings, and themes from Les Misérables to illustrate important biblical and theological truths. In this session, focus your group on the example of Jean Valjean, whose life was transformed by grace.

      Jean Valjean experiences transformation following an encounter with a priest named Bishop Myriel. Myriel welcomed Valjean, who had been released from jail, and offered him a place to rest. At night, while the household was sleeping, Valjean stole the bishop’s silverware and fled. He was caught. Rather than press charges, the bishop covered for him and offered him his silver candlesticks, telling the authorities he had offered them, along with the silverware, to Valjean in order to get him back on his feet. Valjean did not understand the bishop’s actions, but neither could he shake their consequences. Valjean had been given a gift. How would he respond?

      Key Scripture

      By grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God—not the result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life.

      (Ephesians 2:8-10)

      Theological Focus

      The popular musical based on Hugo’s story suggests that Valjean’s conversion from criminal to saint happens in the blink of an eye, and his commitment to following a holy path becomes an almost instinctual action. The original story, however, suggests that choosing the good is a daily and often difficult choice. Much like a recovering addict, Valjean struggles with dampening his personal demons for the sake of making holy choices. If we are honest, our story is similar. Always choosing the good would be easy if the good were obvious. Jean Valjean’s journey helps us recognize how difficult accepting grace can be, and how sharing grace can sometimes be even more difficult.

      (Rawle, p. 18)

      GATHER (10 MINUTES)

      Welcome the group to the study. Introduce yourself and learn the names of all group participants if you do not know everyone. Allow time for group members to become acquainted.

      Start by asking the group:

      •How familiar are you with Les Misérables?

      •If you are familiar with Les Misérables, when did you first encounter it?

      •Why, do you think, did Matt Rawle choose Les Misérables as the subject of a Bible study? What does this story have to teach Christians?

      In the first session, share the overview of the plot, characters, and timeline of Les Misérables. Share with the group that each session will include discussion, prayer, a video where you will hear from Matt Rawle, a close look at the book, and an examination of Scripture in light of the theme. Tell the group that together you will look for ways to apply what you have learned and challenge one another to live in light of the good news revealed in

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