Questions for Community Groups
1. Do you have any broken relationships because of a lack of forgiveness?
2. Looking back at a time when you failed to forgive, do you see how it hurt you?
3. Have you ever been in a situation in which forgiveness given or taken made the relationship better?
4. Have you had a situation in which you did not want to forgive someone because of what other people would think?
5. Is there anyone in your life that you need to forgive? Why don’t you forgive them?
6. What is the reason that the Bible gives us to forgive others?
Chapter 1 shows Jesus meeting needs and we see a rising popularity and in Chapters 2 & 3 we see a rising opposition against His mission and teaching (Nelson Study notes)
One of the main points of His mission was that “He came to forgive”
People generally do not like forgiveness unless it is coming their way. People generally want to make others pay.
Joke: Like the husband that asked his wife how she keeps calm during their fights. Her reply was “I just work it off by cleaning the toilet.” The husband asked “how does that help?” her reply was “I use your toothbrush”.
There is actually a new TV series out now that is called “Revenge” and the premise of the show is a women returning to hometown and getting revenge on the people that wronged her family 20 plus years earlier. Obviously this makes for a better tv drama then a women coming back to her hometown to forgive all the people that wronged her, but what is Biblical?
In Mark 2:1-17 we see two snapshots that illustrate how Jesus forgives or is willing to. John Mark is very aware of the power of forgiveness because he left Paul as kind of as a failure so forgiveness would be something that he valued. Acts 15:38 & 13:13 & 2 Tim 4:11)
Forgiveness heals: Verses 1-12 The men that lowered the paralytic man down believed that his physical need is great but Jesus’ response is that this man had a deeper spiritual need of forgiveness. Then in order to prove to the doubting Scribes He then meets the physical need.
These men cared enough about their friend to help him get to Jesus. We realize the Lord offers forgiveness so shouldn’t we care enough about the people around us to lead them to Him and His forgiveness.
If forgiveness brings spiritual healing we then have to ask ourselves…are there people in my life that I need to forgive in order to bring healing to our relationship?
Maybe you have someone that hurt you and you are holding onto that, maybe they are sorry and you are still holding this against them, maybe they are not sorry but you are broken everyday because you will not let go of what was done to you.
To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you. ~Lewis B. Smedes
Forgiveness breaks down barriers: Verses 13-17 Levi was a tax collector (also called Matthew Mt 9:9 &10:3) Tax collectors were people that no one liked because the sinned against everyone.
Jesus is criticized by the Pharisees because He is eating with sinners and Jesus communicates His mission is to call sinners v17.
Interestingly enough the Scribes and Pharisees were concerned about their reputations “what would people say if they saw us with these people?” Jesus was not concerned with His reputation.
How often do we find ourselves not willing to forgive because we are afraid what people may think of us. “I can’t believe he or she allowed that to happen with no consequence”…”what a doormat” “what a fool”
Like Levi who realized Jesus was someone special and I should listen to Him. We should realize what Jesus has done for us (forgave our sin) and because of that we should listen to and follow Him.
In order to forgive we need to realize…
-we need to be humble. Vrs 17 Not that there are people who are righteous, Jesus is basically saying that He is not here for people who will not humble themselves and realize that they are sinners in need of forgiveness. He came for those who are willing to admit that they are sinners. GOSPEL
-sin is a sickness that everyone has. Forgiveness becomes difficult because people are sick and messed up so our natural response to that is making them pay, take revenge or hold it against them. The Scribes and Pharisees saw how messed up the tax collectors were and they had no interest in even being around them.
Doesn’t that happen with us, someone wrongs us or does wrong things and we are disgusted with them and don’t want to be around them.
But as a believer we need to realize that sin is a sickness and they need prayer and they need forgiveness modeled to them.
-no one is worthy, that is why it is called grace. Another reason why forgiveness can be difficult is because we think people are not worthy of it.
The Scribes and Pharisees whose hearts are hard and they feel that the people Jesus is with are not worthy enough to be with.
The cost of forgiveness can be heart wrenching, look at what Jesus went through to forgive us John 1 “He came to that which was His own”
Forgiveness is the final form of love. --Reinhold Niebuhr
There are benefits…Mayo Clinic Article: Forgiving can lead to…
• Healthier relationships
• Spiritual and psychological well being
• Less stress and hostility
• Lower blood pressure
• Fewer symptoms of depression, anxiety and chronic pain
• Lower risk of alcohol and substance abuse
We really have no other option other then to forgive…
Robert Frost Said… If one by one we counted people out for the least sin, it wouldn't take us long to get to a place that we had no one left to live with. For to be social is to be forgiving.
If we do not learn how to practice forgiveness we will live a lonely existence and we would fail to understand the fact that Jesus came to forgive.
Monday, September 26, 2011
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Snapshots Series: "Meeting Needs"
Questions for Community Groups
1. Has anyone ever met a need that you had? Was it physical, emotional or spiritual?
2. What are some ways you can meet the physical needs of the people around you?
3. What are some ways you can meet the emotional needs of the people around you?
4. What are some ways you can meet the spiritual needs of the people around you?
5. What is the greatest need you have in life right now?
6. Have you ever had a time in your life when you feel that God just led you to meet a specific need of another person?
7. Have you ever had a time in which you met a need of another person and Jesus got all the glory
Snapshot2 Mark 1:21-45 “Meeting Needs”
Tonight we see Snapshots of Jesus meeting needs…
The first question which the priest and the Levite asked was: "If I stop to help this man, what will happen to me?" But... the good Samaritan reversed the question: "If I do not stop to help this man, what will happen to him?" ~Martin Luther King, Jr.
When we look around we see people with many different needs. The concept that the Good Samaritan that MLKing pointed out was a concept that originated with Jesus. When on the earth Jesus thought not of Himself but thought about the needs of the people.
In tonight’s passage we see Jesus meet 3 types of needs that all humans have…Physical, emotional and spiritual.
-Physical needs V29-34 & v40-45 In these two passages we see Jesus heal the sick.
V 41-42 Jesus touched the untouchable and cured the incurable. Only in two instances in the OT do we see a leper healed by God.
(this is something to think about when it comes to helping people…because many times the people who need help are not the people we want to be around)
Jesus performed these miracles to authenticate His message. It awakened people to the fact that something special was happening.
But Jesus also realizes that the majority of people only really care about their physical needs.
This is a problem with us and our society… Our lives are sometime dictated by the physical needs. We become consumed with how we feel, how hungry we are, how comfortable we are.
Because of this Jesus told the man not to tell other people v45 illustrates why, because Jesus would not be able to enter into towns.
What the Lord does for us today can be threefold. 1. The Lord meets our daily physical needs. 2. The Lord also heals the sick. 3. We take this one for granted…Jesus keeps everything together.
-Emotional needs V21-22 Sound authoritative teaching meets the emotional needs. Our emotions need to be touched in order for us to accept teaching.
When are you most willing to learn? (normally when you are emotionally connected) “I am broken so I need teaching”
When are you least willing to learn? (normally when you are emotionally connected) “I am upset so I am not willing to accept teaching”
They were “astonished” When teaching is going on it usually touches your emotion. That is why Biblical teaching is so important, no gimmicks or bells and whistles but the preached Word will touch the emotions.
Concepts that originate or point to Biblical truth also touch the emotions.
A group of motion-picture engineers classified the following as the ten most dramatic sounds in the movies: The sound that causes the most emotional response and upheaval than any other, has the power to bring forth almost every human emotion: sadness, envy, regret, sorrow, tears, as well as supreme joy. It is the wedding march. Why? Because it is a picture of Christ and us.
It is like when we see stories of a person laying down their life for their friends always touch the heart GOSPEL
-Spiritual needs v23-27 & v38-39 Jesus casts out demons and preached the life giving message.
V23-24 This exorcism set the pattern for the sustained conflict that Jesus had with demons.
We see here that Jesus has the power of Satan and demons and we also see that His message is spiritual life giving.
Billy Graham said “People have to great spiritual needs, one is for forgiveness and the other is for goodness” The Gospel forgives and the gospel makes us righteous
CS Lewis in Mere Christianity
"The terrible thing, the almost impossible thing, is to hand over your whole self—all your wishes and precautions—to Christ."
"[The natural life] knows that if the spiritual life gets hold of it, all its self-centredness and self-will are going to be killed and it is ready to fight tooth and nail to avoid that."
Our physical needs war against our spiritual needs but our spiritual needs are the primary needs we have.
Our call is to meets these three needs…
We can meet needs when we…
-Prayer v35
If you truly want to meet the needs of the people around you, we have to follow the example of the Lord Jesus and pray.
Where does the power to meet these needs come from? The Lord
Prayer not only gives us the power to meet the needs it also gives us the direction to figure out what needs to be met.
-are concerned about the fame of Jesus.
v28 fame, because of what Jesus did His fame spread. When you meet needs of others you will be noticed (your fame will spread). The challenge is to make Jesus’ name famous, not take the glory, not take the credit, not get filled with pride or self importance.
The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under whose shade you do not expect to sit. ~Nelson Henderson
We don’t meet needs for personal benefit.
Jesus was here meeting needs for the benefit of others and the kingdom, we should focus on meeting the needs of others for the benefit of Jesus & His kingdom.
1. Has anyone ever met a need that you had? Was it physical, emotional or spiritual?
2. What are some ways you can meet the physical needs of the people around you?
3. What are some ways you can meet the emotional needs of the people around you?
4. What are some ways you can meet the spiritual needs of the people around you?
5. What is the greatest need you have in life right now?
6. Have you ever had a time in your life when you feel that God just led you to meet a specific need of another person?
7. Have you ever had a time in which you met a need of another person and Jesus got all the glory
Snapshot2 Mark 1:21-45 “Meeting Needs”
Tonight we see Snapshots of Jesus meeting needs…
The first question which the priest and the Levite asked was: "If I stop to help this man, what will happen to me?" But... the good Samaritan reversed the question: "If I do not stop to help this man, what will happen to him?" ~Martin Luther King, Jr.
When we look around we see people with many different needs. The concept that the Good Samaritan that MLKing pointed out was a concept that originated with Jesus. When on the earth Jesus thought not of Himself but thought about the needs of the people.
In tonight’s passage we see Jesus meet 3 types of needs that all humans have…Physical, emotional and spiritual.
-Physical needs V29-34 & v40-45 In these two passages we see Jesus heal the sick.
V 41-42 Jesus touched the untouchable and cured the incurable. Only in two instances in the OT do we see a leper healed by God.
(this is something to think about when it comes to helping people…because many times the people who need help are not the people we want to be around)
Jesus performed these miracles to authenticate His message. It awakened people to the fact that something special was happening.
But Jesus also realizes that the majority of people only really care about their physical needs.
This is a problem with us and our society… Our lives are sometime dictated by the physical needs. We become consumed with how we feel, how hungry we are, how comfortable we are.
Because of this Jesus told the man not to tell other people v45 illustrates why, because Jesus would not be able to enter into towns.
What the Lord does for us today can be threefold. 1. The Lord meets our daily physical needs. 2. The Lord also heals the sick. 3. We take this one for granted…Jesus keeps everything together.
-Emotional needs V21-22 Sound authoritative teaching meets the emotional needs. Our emotions need to be touched in order for us to accept teaching.
When are you most willing to learn? (normally when you are emotionally connected) “I am broken so I need teaching”
When are you least willing to learn? (normally when you are emotionally connected) “I am upset so I am not willing to accept teaching”
They were “astonished” When teaching is going on it usually touches your emotion. That is why Biblical teaching is so important, no gimmicks or bells and whistles but the preached Word will touch the emotions.
Concepts that originate or point to Biblical truth also touch the emotions.
A group of motion-picture engineers classified the following as the ten most dramatic sounds in the movies: The sound that causes the most emotional response and upheaval than any other, has the power to bring forth almost every human emotion: sadness, envy, regret, sorrow, tears, as well as supreme joy. It is the wedding march. Why? Because it is a picture of Christ and us.
It is like when we see stories of a person laying down their life for their friends always touch the heart GOSPEL
-Spiritual needs v23-27 & v38-39 Jesus casts out demons and preached the life giving message.
V23-24 This exorcism set the pattern for the sustained conflict that Jesus had with demons.
We see here that Jesus has the power of Satan and demons and we also see that His message is spiritual life giving.
Billy Graham said “People have to great spiritual needs, one is for forgiveness and the other is for goodness” The Gospel forgives and the gospel makes us righteous
CS Lewis in Mere Christianity
"The terrible thing, the almost impossible thing, is to hand over your whole self—all your wishes and precautions—to Christ."
"[The natural life] knows that if the spiritual life gets hold of it, all its self-centredness and self-will are going to be killed and it is ready to fight tooth and nail to avoid that."
Our physical needs war against our spiritual needs but our spiritual needs are the primary needs we have.
Our call is to meets these three needs…
We can meet needs when we…
-Prayer v35
If you truly want to meet the needs of the people around you, we have to follow the example of the Lord Jesus and pray.
Where does the power to meet these needs come from? The Lord
Prayer not only gives us the power to meet the needs it also gives us the direction to figure out what needs to be met.
-are concerned about the fame of Jesus.
v28 fame, because of what Jesus did His fame spread. When you meet needs of others you will be noticed (your fame will spread). The challenge is to make Jesus’ name famous, not take the glory, not take the credit, not get filled with pride or self importance.
The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under whose shade you do not expect to sit. ~Nelson Henderson
We don’t meet needs for personal benefit.
Jesus was here meeting needs for the benefit of others and the kingdom, we should focus on meeting the needs of others for the benefit of Jesus & His kingdom.
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Snapshots Series: "Supernatural Order"
Questions for Community Groups:
1. Share with your group about when you first trusted in Christ.
2. What area of obedience have you consistently struggled with?
3. Talk about a time of temptation in your life that you passed the test and did not give in.
4. How are you working for the Kingdom of God?
5. Who are some people that you are trying to impact with the Gospel?
Tonight we are going to start a study of the Gospel of Mark as tradition holds this Gospel was written by John Mark between 60-70AD. Mark was in Rome with Peter under the persecution of Nero. As we study together I will give you more background information.
I have entitled the Series “Snapshots” because in this Gospel we see quick pictures of Jesus and the disciples. The difference between a snapshot and a portrait is that a snapshot captures real life a portrait is often staged. The Gospel of Mark captures real life, especially with the disciples because at times we see the worst in them.
Ernest Hemmingway said “Every mans life ends in death, it is only the details of how he lived and how he died that distinguish one man from another”
In this Gospel we see Jesus the God-man standing out among the rest.
Snapshot1 Mark 1:1-20 “The Supernatural Order” These snapshots of John the Baptist, Jesus and the first disciples give us insight on what the “Supernatural Order” is.
Believe v1-8 V 1 Gospel = good news
Vrs 2-3 When we look at the issue of faith it is something that begins with trusting in the Lord and His promises.
Augustine said "Understanding is the reward of faith. Therefore, seek not to understand that thou may believe, but believe that thou may understand."
The people were looking for the Messiah and his forerunner. This also signifies and open heart to have faith. They already believed the Lord would deliver.
In Isaiah 40:3 the messenger announces the second exodus through the wilderness to the final deliverance prepared for God’s people. This also illustrates to us that salvation is a work of the Lord and not that of personal works.
We see an urgency in the message of John because this is ushering in the final plans of the Lord because technically we have been living in the end times since Jesus came.
Repent = change your mind about your sin.
Vrs 5 is a key passage to believing in the Lord Jesus “confessing sins” a person cannot trust in Christ unless they admit their sin. GOSPEL
Being baptized by John marked a turn to God, it was identifying oneself with the people who were preparing themselves with the coming Messiah. A willingness to be baptized was a public admission that we are disobedient and we want to be obedient.
Vrs 8 John administered the outward sign but Jesus would administer the inward sign, with the Holy Spirit. Put it this way anyone can be baptized with water and not be sincere but only the sincere are baptized with the Holy Spirit.
This belief in Jesus should change your life…
CS Lewis said
You never know how much you really believe anything until its truth or falsehood becomes a matter of life and death. It is easy to say you believe a rope to be strong as long as you are merely using it to cord a box. But suppose you had to hang by that rope over a precipice. Wouldn't you then first discover how much you really trusted it?
If this faith in Christ saves our lives shouldn’t it radically affect our lives?
Obedience v9-11 It is an act of obedience to the Lord to get baptized. But then why did Jesus get baptized by John? John Grassmick in the BKC serves us with three possible answers.
–Showed that Jesus was in full agreement with the will of the Father.
–It was an act of identification with the sinful predicament Israel was in.
–It was an act of self dedication.
Vrs 11 “well pleased” Jesus is the servant in which the Father is pleased with… in contrast to Israel the servant who the Lord is not pleased with. (Isa 42:1-9)
We should aspire to be a servant that the Lord is well pleased with, being obedient is the way that is accomplished.
Many of us are not obedient in areas of our lives because we feel that it is difficult.
Think of obedience another way…
As Dr. B.J. Miller once said, "It is a great deal easier to do that which God gives us to do, no matter how hard it is, than to face the responsibilities of not doing it."
Resolve not to sin v12-13 Tempted or trail…put to the test. Jesus withstood that temptation and He proved He could pass the test. As a Christian many times our faith is put to the test anytime by being tempted to sin. Anytime we sin we are choosing something over our relationship with the Lord. Often times great temptation comes after a spiritual high point. So obviously one of those times would be right after salvation, another time would be after times of obedience.
“wild animals” in the OT the “wilderness” was a place of great danger and a curse. Here we see the presence of wild animals is an illustration of the harsh environment that Jesus was in.
At times we feel that way in our Christian life. We find ourselves in harsh Godless environments that test our faith and temp us to do wrong thing. Maybe it is dishonesty at work because your boss is rough, cheating in school because your workload is difficult, lying to your spouse because the truth will cause problems.
John Piper says that sin "gets its power by persuading me to believe that I will be more happy if I follow it. The power of all temptation is the prospect that it will make me happier."
In contrast “angels ministering” they supplied Jesus with assurance of the Father’s presence. In our lives we have the Holy Spirit but the Lord also gives us other believers to minister to us in times of difficult temptation.
We need to surround ourselves with people that remind us that we are the happiest when we are following the Lord.
Working for the kingdom vrs 14-20 The initial phase of Jesus’ ministry This section actually extends to chapter 3:6 but tonight we will only look at v14-20 If we look back to John we see that the culmination of his life was to point to Jesus. Vrs 15 the work of the Father is to believe and then spread that message.
When Jesus goes to the fishermen it is interesting to note that normally a student would seek out the Rabbi (teacher) but Jesus goes and seeks these men out.
This also helps us to realize that we don’t find God, He finds us. When He calls us… we should respond in…
Belief, obedience, resolve not to sin and ready to work for the kingdom.
1. Share with your group about when you first trusted in Christ.
2. What area of obedience have you consistently struggled with?
3. Talk about a time of temptation in your life that you passed the test and did not give in.
4. How are you working for the Kingdom of God?
5. Who are some people that you are trying to impact with the Gospel?
Tonight we are going to start a study of the Gospel of Mark as tradition holds this Gospel was written by John Mark between 60-70AD. Mark was in Rome with Peter under the persecution of Nero. As we study together I will give you more background information.
I have entitled the Series “Snapshots” because in this Gospel we see quick pictures of Jesus and the disciples. The difference between a snapshot and a portrait is that a snapshot captures real life a portrait is often staged. The Gospel of Mark captures real life, especially with the disciples because at times we see the worst in them.
Ernest Hemmingway said “Every mans life ends in death, it is only the details of how he lived and how he died that distinguish one man from another”
In this Gospel we see Jesus the God-man standing out among the rest.
Snapshot1 Mark 1:1-20 “The Supernatural Order” These snapshots of John the Baptist, Jesus and the first disciples give us insight on what the “Supernatural Order” is.
Believe v1-8 V 1 Gospel = good news
Vrs 2-3 When we look at the issue of faith it is something that begins with trusting in the Lord and His promises.
Augustine said "Understanding is the reward of faith. Therefore, seek not to understand that thou may believe, but believe that thou may understand."
The people were looking for the Messiah and his forerunner. This also signifies and open heart to have faith. They already believed the Lord would deliver.
In Isaiah 40:3 the messenger announces the second exodus through the wilderness to the final deliverance prepared for God’s people. This also illustrates to us that salvation is a work of the Lord and not that of personal works.
We see an urgency in the message of John because this is ushering in the final plans of the Lord because technically we have been living in the end times since Jesus came.
Repent = change your mind about your sin.
Vrs 5 is a key passage to believing in the Lord Jesus “confessing sins” a person cannot trust in Christ unless they admit their sin. GOSPEL
Being baptized by John marked a turn to God, it was identifying oneself with the people who were preparing themselves with the coming Messiah. A willingness to be baptized was a public admission that we are disobedient and we want to be obedient.
Vrs 8 John administered the outward sign but Jesus would administer the inward sign, with the Holy Spirit. Put it this way anyone can be baptized with water and not be sincere but only the sincere are baptized with the Holy Spirit.
This belief in Jesus should change your life…
CS Lewis said
You never know how much you really believe anything until its truth or falsehood becomes a matter of life and death. It is easy to say you believe a rope to be strong as long as you are merely using it to cord a box. But suppose you had to hang by that rope over a precipice. Wouldn't you then first discover how much you really trusted it?
If this faith in Christ saves our lives shouldn’t it radically affect our lives?
Obedience v9-11 It is an act of obedience to the Lord to get baptized. But then why did Jesus get baptized by John? John Grassmick in the BKC serves us with three possible answers.
–Showed that Jesus was in full agreement with the will of the Father.
–It was an act of identification with the sinful predicament Israel was in.
–It was an act of self dedication.
Vrs 11 “well pleased” Jesus is the servant in which the Father is pleased with… in contrast to Israel the servant who the Lord is not pleased with. (Isa 42:1-9)
We should aspire to be a servant that the Lord is well pleased with, being obedient is the way that is accomplished.
Many of us are not obedient in areas of our lives because we feel that it is difficult.
Think of obedience another way…
As Dr. B.J. Miller once said, "It is a great deal easier to do that which God gives us to do, no matter how hard it is, than to face the responsibilities of not doing it."
Resolve not to sin v12-13 Tempted or trail…put to the test. Jesus withstood that temptation and He proved He could pass the test. As a Christian many times our faith is put to the test anytime by being tempted to sin. Anytime we sin we are choosing something over our relationship with the Lord. Often times great temptation comes after a spiritual high point. So obviously one of those times would be right after salvation, another time would be after times of obedience.
“wild animals” in the OT the “wilderness” was a place of great danger and a curse. Here we see the presence of wild animals is an illustration of the harsh environment that Jesus was in.
At times we feel that way in our Christian life. We find ourselves in harsh Godless environments that test our faith and temp us to do wrong thing. Maybe it is dishonesty at work because your boss is rough, cheating in school because your workload is difficult, lying to your spouse because the truth will cause problems.
John Piper says that sin "gets its power by persuading me to believe that I will be more happy if I follow it. The power of all temptation is the prospect that it will make me happier."
In contrast “angels ministering” they supplied Jesus with assurance of the Father’s presence. In our lives we have the Holy Spirit but the Lord also gives us other believers to minister to us in times of difficult temptation.
We need to surround ourselves with people that remind us that we are the happiest when we are following the Lord.
Working for the kingdom vrs 14-20 The initial phase of Jesus’ ministry This section actually extends to chapter 3:6 but tonight we will only look at v14-20 If we look back to John we see that the culmination of his life was to point to Jesus. Vrs 15 the work of the Father is to believe and then spread that message.
When Jesus goes to the fishermen it is interesting to note that normally a student would seek out the Rabbi (teacher) but Jesus goes and seeks these men out.
This also helps us to realize that we don’t find God, He finds us. When He calls us… we should respond in…
Belief, obedience, resolve not to sin and ready to work for the kingdom.
Spiritual Disciplines Series: "Community"
COMMUNITY: We have been looking at the Spiritual disciplines for the last 5 weeks. This specific discipline of being in community is not necessarily going to church but it is actually taking the next step to get to know people and spend time with people that you meet in church. The springboard passage I have been referring to is Mark 12 about loving the Lord and loving your neighbor. So tonight we are going to look at the Spiritual Discipline of being in community together with other believers.
In order to study this we are going to look at the first church in Acts 2:42-47. I believe this tells us at least 4 things about “how to successfully live in community with other believers”
To successfully live in community we need…
-A redeemed soul: (saved) GOSPEL You cannot live in community with other believers and get the fullness of that community unless you are saved. Only the regenerated souls can really connect with one another. At the end of the day we are not totally going to connect with a person who does not love the Lord. 2 Cor. 6:14 “what fellowship does light have with darkness?”
Ask yourself this question…Are the closest relationships you have with other Christians?
-Willing mind: To learn the “Apostles teaching” which is Scripture. When we are in community with other believers there is always an opportunity to learn from one another. One of the great things that the reformation brought to the church was the understanding that every person has the ability to understand Scriptures, that means when we are in community with others there is always an opportunity to learn. Community Groups are a great place for this to happen, because the concept is that when we come together in community groups we are sharing life and how we have personally applied Scriptures to our lives. How did you deal with that? How did you get through that? What was helpful to you? What would you avoid?
Someone once said “One can acquire everything in solitude except character.”
Ask yourself this question…Who have you learned a great deal from by just spending time with them?
Here is a little pastoral advice for you…go thank them.
-Generous heart: When we love the Lord with all our heart it becomes generous. The example that was set by those early followers of Jesus was marked with generosity. With their belongings and their willingness to open up their homes and use their resources. A generous heart deepens the bond of unity because others display their love for God and others by their willingness to share. We are supposed to be generous Galatians 6:10 tells us to do good “especially to the household of faith”
Ask yourself this question…When was the last time you gave something to help another in your spiritual community?
-Renewed strength: In order to live in close community with other people you will need strength. The closer we get to other people the more problems will occur and you will need the strength of the Lord to work you through it. Many times people want to call it quits, they get sick of problems and issues. They respond in cutting off relationships, many families do this, they have people in the family they don’t talk to.
So what do you do when your community forsakes you?
1. bring it to them.
2. don't hold it against them. forgive
3. don't take revenge (wish ill on them)
4. don't forsake them
5. realize the Lord is with you (that is why He should be first)
Vrs 47 The result of believers living in community with one another are others being “saved”. Some of the best witnessing we can do is rightly relate to one another in community.
In order to study this we are going to look at the first church in Acts 2:42-47. I believe this tells us at least 4 things about “how to successfully live in community with other believers”
To successfully live in community we need…
-A redeemed soul: (saved) GOSPEL You cannot live in community with other believers and get the fullness of that community unless you are saved. Only the regenerated souls can really connect with one another. At the end of the day we are not totally going to connect with a person who does not love the Lord. 2 Cor. 6:14 “what fellowship does light have with darkness?”
Ask yourself this question…Are the closest relationships you have with other Christians?
-Willing mind: To learn the “Apostles teaching” which is Scripture. When we are in community with other believers there is always an opportunity to learn from one another. One of the great things that the reformation brought to the church was the understanding that every person has the ability to understand Scriptures, that means when we are in community with others there is always an opportunity to learn. Community Groups are a great place for this to happen, because the concept is that when we come together in community groups we are sharing life and how we have personally applied Scriptures to our lives. How did you deal with that? How did you get through that? What was helpful to you? What would you avoid?
Someone once said “One can acquire everything in solitude except character.”
Ask yourself this question…Who have you learned a great deal from by just spending time with them?
Here is a little pastoral advice for you…go thank them.
-Generous heart: When we love the Lord with all our heart it becomes generous. The example that was set by those early followers of Jesus was marked with generosity. With their belongings and their willingness to open up their homes and use their resources. A generous heart deepens the bond of unity because others display their love for God and others by their willingness to share. We are supposed to be generous Galatians 6:10 tells us to do good “especially to the household of faith”
Ask yourself this question…When was the last time you gave something to help another in your spiritual community?
-Renewed strength: In order to live in close community with other people you will need strength. The closer we get to other people the more problems will occur and you will need the strength of the Lord to work you through it. Many times people want to call it quits, they get sick of problems and issues. They respond in cutting off relationships, many families do this, they have people in the family they don’t talk to.
So what do you do when your community forsakes you?
1. bring it to them.
2. don't hold it against them. forgive
3. don't take revenge (wish ill on them)
4. don't forsake them
5. realize the Lord is with you (that is why He should be first)
Vrs 47 The result of believers living in community with one another are others being “saved”. Some of the best witnessing we can do is rightly relate to one another in community.
Spiritual Disciplines Series: "Resources"
Spiritual Disciplines week 5 "Resources" Mark 12 Jesus said Love the Lord your God.
Tonight we are talking about the spiritual discipline of using your resources in service of the Lord. Normally in the Christian community we have three categories for the resources we have…we call them the resource of treasure.. which consists of the what we have as far as money and possessions. Time as resource, we have work time, family time friend time, leisure time and so on. And finally our talents this is the resource of skills and abilities God has given us.
What you have been given is not necessarily ours but was given to us to be a good steward of. So that means that there are three things that we need to focus in on.
Our resources should be used to...
-bring glory to God
-to help others.
-for our enjoyment.
How do we do this?
Mark 12 Jesus said Love the Lord your God.
-Letting go of what God has blessed you with demonstrates and attitude of heart praise. Psalm 86:12 I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart,and I will glorify your name forever.
-Change your mind. Col 3:2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. "my stuff" is not mine.
-Tap into the strength of the Lord. 1 Peter 4:11 whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ.
-Ask Jesus to guide your soul as you use what He has given you. Psalm 143:8 Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love,for in you I trust. Make me know the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.
Now lets look at the three areas. I am inviting Steve Dorrick up to share a personal testimony on how the Lord laid on His and his wives hearts that they needed to let go of the "treasures" the Lord blessed them with.
The next two areas I will briefly touch on
-Using the talents God has blessed you with. These are the skills and abilities you have and the Bible is clear about where they came from. All of us have things that we are good at and in many cases these are things that we enjoy doing. God has called us to be disciplined in using those things for service to Him.
As Christians many times we either get caught up in using our abilities to bring glory to ourselves or we go to the opposite extreme of thinking our abilities are not good enough and we feel inadequate.
SD Gorden said We have nothing to do with how much ability we've got, or how little, but with what we do with what we have. The man with great talent is apt to be puffed up, and the man with little (talent) to belittle the little. Poor fools! God gives it, much or little. Our part is to be faithful, doing the best with every bit and scrap.
-Giving of your time Psalm 39:5 says "You have made my days"
The interesting thing about the resource of time is that we all have the same amount. The true challenge is how we use that time. Many of us are weighed down by responsibilities, many of us waste time, many of us sleep too much. As a Christian the challenge is to be disciplined enough to be using your time in service of Jesus.
Henry David Therou said "As if you could kill time without injuring eternity."
Jesus had an amazing resource and it was the ability to be able to lay down His life for our sins GOSPEL. We are thankful that He did not hold back but used that resource to serve us. Will you use the ones He blessed you with to serve Him?
Tonight we are talking about the spiritual discipline of using your resources in service of the Lord. Normally in the Christian community we have three categories for the resources we have…we call them the resource of treasure.. which consists of the what we have as far as money and possessions. Time as resource, we have work time, family time friend time, leisure time and so on. And finally our talents this is the resource of skills and abilities God has given us.
What you have been given is not necessarily ours but was given to us to be a good steward of. So that means that there are three things that we need to focus in on.
Our resources should be used to...
-bring glory to God
-to help others.
-for our enjoyment.
How do we do this?
Mark 12 Jesus said Love the Lord your God.
-Letting go of what God has blessed you with demonstrates and attitude of heart praise. Psalm 86:12 I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart,and I will glorify your name forever.
-Change your mind. Col 3:2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. "my stuff" is not mine.
-Tap into the strength of the Lord. 1 Peter 4:11 whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ.
-Ask Jesus to guide your soul as you use what He has given you. Psalm 143:8 Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love,for in you I trust. Make me know the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.
Now lets look at the three areas. I am inviting Steve Dorrick up to share a personal testimony on how the Lord laid on His and his wives hearts that they needed to let go of the "treasures" the Lord blessed them with.
The next two areas I will briefly touch on
-Using the talents God has blessed you with. These are the skills and abilities you have and the Bible is clear about where they came from. All of us have things that we are good at and in many cases these are things that we enjoy doing. God has called us to be disciplined in using those things for service to Him.
As Christians many times we either get caught up in using our abilities to bring glory to ourselves or we go to the opposite extreme of thinking our abilities are not good enough and we feel inadequate.
SD Gorden said We have nothing to do with how much ability we've got, or how little, but with what we do with what we have. The man with great talent is apt to be puffed up, and the man with little (talent) to belittle the little. Poor fools! God gives it, much or little. Our part is to be faithful, doing the best with every bit and scrap.
-Giving of your time Psalm 39:5 says "You have made my days"
The interesting thing about the resource of time is that we all have the same amount. The true challenge is how we use that time. Many of us are weighed down by responsibilities, many of us waste time, many of us sleep too much. As a Christian the challenge is to be disciplined enough to be using your time in service of Jesus.
Henry David Therou said "As if you could kill time without injuring eternity."
Jesus had an amazing resource and it was the ability to be able to lay down His life for our sins GOSPEL. We are thankful that He did not hold back but used that resource to serve us. Will you use the ones He blessed you with to serve Him?
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