Day After Tomorrow, The

Movie clip: The Day After Tomorrow, PG-13, 2004, Twentieth Century Fox

Main Point: We must not be ashamed of telling people the truth.

Attention Grabber: Movie – The Day After Tomorrow

This movie is basically about global shift in the earth’s climate as a result of global warming, which results in catastrophic weather all over the world. People must flee toward the equator, in order to avoid freezing to death in the northern parts. This is a great movie and is very clean, as long as you can handle death on a global scale.

Clip: We must not go out into the storm
If you’re using a DVD player the clip can begin at the beginning of chapter 19, or if you’re using a VCR with a counter, the time (if you begin the counter at the Twentieth Century Fox logo) to start is about 1:08:05 or so. It ends almost three minutes later at 1:10:57. The clip features Sam, whose father is a climatologist (Dennis Quaid), who has told Sam that the storm will soon be strong enough to freeze everyone to death. They must stay indoors. In the scene, Sam musters up the courage to try stopping the people who are stuck inside from venturing out into the storm. Most do not believe what he says so they leave anyway. The scene ends with people walking past Sam and out into the storm.

Scene Introduction:
Have you ever been in a situation when you wanted to tell someone the truth about themselves, but you were afraid that they wouldn't believe you or that they would laugh at you? It gets really frustrating when you are the only one who knows the truth. But sometimes, it may actually be our responsibility to share the truth. Let's watch a scene from a movie called “The Day After Tomorrow” about a young man who is the only one who knows that truth. In the scene, there is a horrible storm outside, and some people are stuck in a library. They want to venture outside, but Sam knows that the storm is only going to get worse. Let's see what happens.

Scene Script:

BEGIN CLIP AT 1 hour and 8 minutes and 42 seconds (in Chapter 19)

HOMELESS MAN: Hey man, there’s people out there. I was walking my dog. There’s hundreds of them. They’re walking on the snow!

MAN 1: Where are they all going?

MAN 2: Getting out of the city before it’s too late.

SECURITY GUARD: Alright everybody, quiet down. When was the last time anybody got a signal on a cell phone?

WOMAN 1: I got through to my cousin in Memphis an hour ago. They’re being evacuated to the south.

SECURITY GUARD: We should get moving too. The water’s frozen over enough to walk on. We should get going before the snow gets too deep. Everyone, grab yourselves up as fast as you can.

SAM: We shouldn’t go.

JD: Why not Sam? Everyone is leaving.

SAM: When I talked to my dad, he told me we should stay inside. The storm will kill anybody caught in it.

MARA: Then you have to say something.

SAM: I know. (walks over to SECURITY GUARD) Excuse me, sir, you’re making a big mistake.

SECURITY GUARD: Hey listen, son, we’re all scared here, but we got no choice.

SAM: But that’s not it.

SECURITY GUARD: Get ready to go.

SAM: If these people go outside, they will freeze to death!

SECURITY GUARD: Okay, what is this nonsense?

SAM: It’s not nonsense, alright? Look, this storm is going to get worse. And the people who are caught outside, they will freeze to death.

MAN 3: Where are you getting this information?

SAM: My father’s a climatologist. He works for the government.

MAN 3: So what are you suggesting we do?

SAM: We stay inside, we keep warm, and we wait it out.

SECURITY GUARD: The snow’s getting deeper by the minute. We’ll be trapped here without food, supplies…

SAM: It’s a risk, yeah.

SECURITY GUARD: An unnecessary risk.

SAM: No, no, no. It’s not!

SECURITY GUARD: We’ve wasted enough time talking about this. C’mon, people, let’s go.

SAM: Look, look, look. Just look for a second.

SECURITY GUARD: Come on, everybody.

SAM: Just one second. (everyone is leaving, SAM is desperately pleading with them) The storm is going to get bad. It’s going to get really, really bad. You’re not going to be able to survive it. Sir, please just stay. Just stay. No, just, don’t… (some stay, but most people exit)

END CLIP AT 1 hour and 11 minutes and 20 seconds.

Transitional Statement:
For Sam, telling the truth was a matter of life and death. It may sometimes be more important than we think to tell people the truth. For those of us who know who Christ is and what He did for us, we are the ones who know what the truth is. Let's talk about this truth and what it means to have this truth.

Divide into Small Groups:
Let’s go ahead and split up into our discussion groups, and then afterward we’ll come back together for a final word.

CLICK HERE for a quick training article on how to maximize your small groups using our small group format—a great resource to equip your small group leaders.

Small Group Questions:

1. AROUND THE CIRCLE: What is something that you believed when you were a child that was totally off?
2. ASK A FEW: Name a time when you felt like you were the only one who knew the truth, and no one would believe you? How did that make you feel?

3. ASK A FEW: Talk about a time when you wanted to tell someone that what they were doing was hurting them, but they didn’t want to listen?
4. ASK A FEW: What is the difference between belief and truth?
5. ASK SOMEONE: Can beliefs change? Does truth ever change?
John 14:6
Jesus answered, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
6. ASK A COUPLE: What does Jesus claim about Himself in this passage?
7. ASK A FEW: So if Jesus is the truth, and if people don't actually believe in Him, what does that mean? Does it change anything about Him? (It just means that they're incorrect.)

8. ASK A FEW: Why would it be important to know that Jesus is the truth?
2 Timothy 1:7-9a
For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love, and of self-discipline. So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord, or ashamed of me his prisoner. But join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God, who has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace.
9. ASK SOMEONE: Why does Paul say to not be ashamed to testify about the Lord? (Hint: look at 1:7).
10. ASK A FEW: What are some of the things that keep us from telling people the truth about Christ?
11. ASK A FEW: Does the fact that it is a matter of life and death change the way you look at it at all?
12. ASK A FEW: What it comes down to is this: Which is more important to you, being accepted and liked, or people’s lives being saved?
13. ASK A FEW: How can we tell the truth without cramming it down people's throats?
14. AROUND THE CIRCLE: What is one thing you can do to open the door to tell the truth in the next month?

Wrap-Up:
You know, it’s not an easy thing to tell people the truth about Christ, especially when we feel like some of them won’t believe us. It can be embarrassing being the only one who knows the truth. But the whole point is this: We cannot be ashamed of telling people the truth. Just like in the video clip, people’s beliefs do not change what the truth is. Someone could make fun of me for believing in gravity, but I’m still going to wear my belt. We must understand that telling people the truth is not about a popularity contest; it is about life and death. If we allow people to walk out into a life without Christ without telling them the truth, we are allowing them to walk out into certain death. We must not be ashamed of telling people the truth.

Written by Matt Furby

NOTE: Be careful NOT to interpret this discussion as “WE NEED TO SHOVE THE BIBLE DOWN THEIR THROATS!” There is a balance between confrontational evangelism and lifestyle evangelism that is often hard to attain. Jonathan gives great insight about this balance in his book DO THEY RUN WHEN THEY SEE YOU COMING? (CLICK HERE for more about that book)