TOUCHING BASE, PART 246
03 Aug 14
PETER'S RESTORATION
This is a useful tool for small group discussion, personal reflection or in a one-on-one conversation. We believe that if the Sunday teaching is discussed outside the morning services, it will be an opportunity to go deeper and build community because God's Word needs to be discussed in community.
You may have heard many times that mistakes are the roadway to success and in some senses that is true! But, in the spiritual sense, mistakes can often be debilitating. They cause guilt and shame and, in addition, they can frustrate spiritual growth. But, it does not have to be that way!!! Today’s lesson is based on the life of the Apostle Peter, a clear example of a person who can rise from the ashes and be incredibly used by God.
TEXT: John 21:1-19
1. PETER’S MERCURIAL PAST
Peter’s life was mercurial - it was all over the map: he had incredible spiritual insight and he knew great spiritual truths. But, he also had glaring failures. Possibly your spiritual life is all over the map too.
A] What have been some of your spiritual highs?
B] What are some of the failures that are holding you back?
The great news is that Peter did not stay back. The Peter of the Book of Acts is different from the Peter of the Gospels.
2. PETER’S MODERATED FUTURE
Peter’s life goes through incredible changes - he learns how to be submissive; he is much more consistent; he understands that suffering is part of the path to spiritual victory; he is gentle. It is a radical change.
A] What things would need to change in your life to make you more consistent as a believer?
B] What would be signs that you are on the right path?
3. PETER’S MOMENT OF CHANGE
For Peter change comes in John 21. It is an incredible text - Jesus reminds Peter of his ‘call’. Jesus reaffirms his appreciation for Peter. Jesus helps Peter understand that he does in fact love Jesus. [“You know I love you!”] And then Jesus gets Peter back into the game. [“Feed My Sheep”!!!] Jesus restores and reconciles Peter.
A] How would John 21 play out in your life?
B] What would the conversation be like?
C] What would Jesus have to do to get you back into the game?
He did it for Peter - he can do it for you!
Lew Worrad
If interested in joining or starting a small group contact bethelcommunitygroups@gmail.com
Wednesday, July 30, 2014
Thursday, July 24, 2014
Touching Base - Part 245
TB 245
Intersection Pt. 2
Will Your Giant Define You or Malign You?
This is a useful tool for small group discussion, personal reflection or in a one-on-one conversation. We believe that if the Sunday teaching is discussed outside the morning services, it will be an opportunity to go deeper and build community because God's Word needs to be discussed in community.
Big Idea: When a Moment in Time Becomes a Moment Defined
Question: What can we learn from David as we face our own giants?
Text: 1 Samuel 17
Defining moments are those times in our lives when we come face to face with a truth and as a result, we see something for the first time, or see something in a new way. Defining moments challenge us to change or cause a transformation in our lives. Sometimes it can be a moment that defines an aspect of your life.
What has been a memorable “defining moment” in your life?
1. BEFORE THE MOMENT… KNOW YOU ARE ANOINTED (1 SAM 17:1-11)
We never know when we might in the ‘before’ phase of a divine moment, do we?
We always need to be ready….but what does ‘ready’ look like?
We can be sure that if we know the Lord Jesus and have invited him to be Lord of our lives … that God’s presence is with us.
Prayerfully ask yourself these questions:
• Are you ‘anointed’? Is the Holy Spirit in you?
• Do you believe that the Holy Spirit is in you?
• Do you feel like you are ready to step into a God-defining moment? Why/why not?
2. STEPPING INTO THE MOMENT….KNOW THE TRUTH (1 SAM 17:12-37)
As we step into a divine moment…we need to be sure that we have allowed God’s truth to replace the lies of the enemy.
Like David…we need to make sure that we are holding on to what we know is true.
The enemy is very mouthy…he has a lot to say and it’s all lies. We need to allow God’s truth to counter the lies of our giants.
Prayerfully ask yourself these questions:
• Is what you believe about yourself true when held up against God’s word?
• Is what you believe about God founded in scripture?
• Do you believe that everything God says about you in scripture is true?
• What are some of the lies that you might be believing that need to be addressed?
• How confident are you that God is who He said He is?
• As you think about stepping into a defining moment right now… describe how it is more likely to define you or… malign you?
• Think about the amount of lions and bears that you have fought in past experiences. Would you say that it is enough to give you victory from the giant that is facing you now?
It’s so important that we be in community, in the Word, prayerfully engaged, and aware of the Holy Spirit’s presence in our lives.
We need to be learning, and growing and healing from each experience in which we find ourselves, so that when the giants come we are full of truth and life, because you and I both know…every new challenge…every new giant… has a scare factor regardless of seasoned in the faith you are.
3. SEIZING THE MOMENT…KNOW YOU ARE EQUIPPED (1 SAM 17: 38-51)
Click on this link to watch David as he seizes his divine moment:
The Bible Series - Episode 4 - David and Goliath
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PlTpu5yHXz8
Divine moments are around us all the time….when we are well equipped we are willing to seize them.
If we are ill-equipped… we often run from them.
And when we don’t realize that we are equipped… we can miss them.
David was well trained….he was prepared because he was practiced…he wasn’t just a boy with a toy slingshot.
It doesn’t mean we don’t get blindsided…it doesn’t mean life doesn’t catch us off guard sometimes and we are suddenly faced with a giant that we didn’t see coming…but when that happens, we need to go back to what we know is true and ask God to help us remove any lies that we believe that might cripple us and prevent us from seizing a divine moment.
Prayerfully ask yourself these questions:
• In what ways do I feel ill-equipped to face my giant?
• How has God equipped me as I face this giant?
“I ask—ask the God of our Master, Jesus Christ, the God of glory—to make you intelligent and discerning in knowing him personally, your eyes focused and clear, so that you can see exactly what it is he is calling you to do, grasp the immensity of this glorious way of life he has for his followers, oh, the utter extravagance of his work in us who trust him—endless energy, boundless strength!” (Ephesians 1:18-19, The Message Bible)
Jamie Stinson
If interested in joining or starting a small group contact bethelcommunitygroups@gmail.com
Intersection Pt. 2
Will Your Giant Define You or Malign You?
This is a useful tool for small group discussion, personal reflection or in a one-on-one conversation. We believe that if the Sunday teaching is discussed outside the morning services, it will be an opportunity to go deeper and build community because God's Word needs to be discussed in community.
Big Idea: When a Moment in Time Becomes a Moment Defined
Question: What can we learn from David as we face our own giants?
Text: 1 Samuel 17
Defining moments are those times in our lives when we come face to face with a truth and as a result, we see something for the first time, or see something in a new way. Defining moments challenge us to change or cause a transformation in our lives. Sometimes it can be a moment that defines an aspect of your life.
What has been a memorable “defining moment” in your life?
1. BEFORE THE MOMENT… KNOW YOU ARE ANOINTED (1 SAM 17:1-11)
We never know when we might in the ‘before’ phase of a divine moment, do we?
We always need to be ready….but what does ‘ready’ look like?
We can be sure that if we know the Lord Jesus and have invited him to be Lord of our lives … that God’s presence is with us.
Prayerfully ask yourself these questions:
• Are you ‘anointed’? Is the Holy Spirit in you?
• Do you believe that the Holy Spirit is in you?
• Do you feel like you are ready to step into a God-defining moment? Why/why not?
2. STEPPING INTO THE MOMENT….KNOW THE TRUTH (1 SAM 17:12-37)
As we step into a divine moment…we need to be sure that we have allowed God’s truth to replace the lies of the enemy.
Like David…we need to make sure that we are holding on to what we know is true.
The enemy is very mouthy…he has a lot to say and it’s all lies. We need to allow God’s truth to counter the lies of our giants.
Prayerfully ask yourself these questions:
• Is what you believe about yourself true when held up against God’s word?
• Is what you believe about God founded in scripture?
• Do you believe that everything God says about you in scripture is true?
• What are some of the lies that you might be believing that need to be addressed?
• How confident are you that God is who He said He is?
• As you think about stepping into a defining moment right now… describe how it is more likely to define you or… malign you?
• Think about the amount of lions and bears that you have fought in past experiences. Would you say that it is enough to give you victory from the giant that is facing you now?
It’s so important that we be in community, in the Word, prayerfully engaged, and aware of the Holy Spirit’s presence in our lives.
We need to be learning, and growing and healing from each experience in which we find ourselves, so that when the giants come we are full of truth and life, because you and I both know…every new challenge…every new giant… has a scare factor regardless of seasoned in the faith you are.
3. SEIZING THE MOMENT…KNOW YOU ARE EQUIPPED (1 SAM 17: 38-51)
Click on this link to watch David as he seizes his divine moment:
The Bible Series - Episode 4 - David and Goliath
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PlTpu5yHXz8
Divine moments are around us all the time….when we are well equipped we are willing to seize them.
If we are ill-equipped… we often run from them.
And when we don’t realize that we are equipped… we can miss them.
David was well trained….he was prepared because he was practiced…he wasn’t just a boy with a toy slingshot.
It doesn’t mean we don’t get blindsided…it doesn’t mean life doesn’t catch us off guard sometimes and we are suddenly faced with a giant that we didn’t see coming…but when that happens, we need to go back to what we know is true and ask God to help us remove any lies that we believe that might cripple us and prevent us from seizing a divine moment.
Prayerfully ask yourself these questions:
• In what ways do I feel ill-equipped to face my giant?
• How has God equipped me as I face this giant?
“I ask—ask the God of our Master, Jesus Christ, the God of glory—to make you intelligent and discerning in knowing him personally, your eyes focused and clear, so that you can see exactly what it is he is calling you to do, grasp the immensity of this glorious way of life he has for his followers, oh, the utter extravagance of his work in us who trust him—endless energy, boundless strength!” (Ephesians 1:18-19, The Message Bible)
Jamie Stinson
If interested in joining or starting a small group contact bethelcommunitygroups@gmail.com
Tuesday, July 22, 2014
Touching Base - Part 244
TOUCHING BASE - PART 244
This is a useful tool for small group discussion, personal reflection or in a one-on-one conversation. We believe that if the Sunday teaching is discussed outside the morning services, it will be an opportunity to go deeper and build community because God's Word needs to be discussed in community.
This week we started our new series and talked about Jacob’s great awakening. This TB is a tool to encourage you to pray for Bethel, that just like Jacob, many others would find Bethel to be a place where they awaken and respond to the heart of God.
Big Idea: When A Moment In Time Becomes A Moment Defined!
Question: What did that big moment for Jacob look like?
Text: Genesis 28:10-22
1. He built an altar, a place he will never forget (v.18a)
By building an altar he was stating that he wanted to memorialize the event. Perhaps this had been a place he passed through a thousand times, but on this occasion it was different. He memorializes it because he encounters God.
Prayer Point:
Pray that God would use the ministries of Bethel to be experiences that would build great memories into people’s lives, memories of God doing a great work. Memories of an awakening!
2. He poured oil on the altar, the place he first worshipped (v.18b)
From the beginning God put into the awareness of His people that they were to offer to Him in worship something that was part of themselves, something that they had produced with their own labor or purchased with the money that they had earned by their labor. Whatever they offered to Him, it was never to be second best (Malachi 1:7–8), nor was it to be something without cost or concern—convenient and easy to give. The stone pillar didn’t cost him anything, the oil did.
This place that Jacob is in may have been used as early as the 4th millennium B.C. by Canaanites in the area. Archaeological excavations at Chalcolithic levels (i.e., between the Stone Age and the Bronze Age) indicate that pagan worship of the Canaanite deity El took place on top of the hill at that early period. As a proper noun, El refers to a god in the pantheons of the Canaanite world.
What is amazing about this picture of worship is that here is a thief (check out Jacob’s criminal record) worshiping the one true God in a place that has a history of pagan worship.
Realize that God can reach anyone whenever, however and WHEREVER!
Prayer Point:
Pray that Bethel Church would be a place of genuine worship. On any given Sunday or at any small group or place of ministry people come worshipping the various gods of culture. We want all our ministries to direct people to the one true God.
Hebrews 1:1-4
“In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs.”
3. He called the place Bethel, a place of great intimacy (v.19)
El refers to a god in the pantheons of the Canaanite world. El is the most common biblical word for God. The name Bethel, means “house of El (god),” BETH-EL. El is combined with other adjectives to describe the numerous attributes of God; for example, God Most High (Gn 14:18–24), the seeing God (Gn 16:13), the jealous God (Ex 20:5), the forgiving God (Neh 9:17), and the gracious God (Neh 9:31).
I love this point. Our own church name says it all. We want our ministries to be a place where believers experience deep intimacy with God.
Prayer Point:
Pray that Bethel Church would be a place God uses to draw people close to himself. This was the first time that Jacob experienced God beyond just being raised in a God fearing home. It was now his faith, his experience, his personal journey. God was real. God was “ in the house!”
4. He made a vow, a place of great commitment (v.20-22)
Note that vow making and tithing were two steps by Jacob that indicated his heart was surrendered. Was he “fixed”, had he arrived, was he now good to be a shining example of spiritual maturity? Definitely not, but his journey had begun and his faith roots were starting to grow deep into the soil of his heart. God had not thrown him into the “microwave” of instant spiritual growth, but into the “crock-pot” of growth step by step, little by little.
Prayer Point:
Pray that Bethel would be able to provide the correct resources to help people grow spiritually. No one experiences “microwave” spiritually. We are all in the “crock- pot” of spirituality and need to be intentional about our growth, taking hold of opportunities to grow. We also need a nurturing community that is filled with grace and truth to be the right kind of place for people to grow.
May God use Bethel and all the churches and various ministries in Kingston to be places and spaces where people experience a great awakening!
When A Moment In Time Becomes A Moment Defined!
Mark Kotchapaw
If interested in joining or starting a small group contact bethelcommunitygroups@gmail.com
This is a useful tool for small group discussion, personal reflection or in a one-on-one conversation. We believe that if the Sunday teaching is discussed outside the morning services, it will be an opportunity to go deeper and build community because God's Word needs to be discussed in community.
This week we started our new series and talked about Jacob’s great awakening. This TB is a tool to encourage you to pray for Bethel, that just like Jacob, many others would find Bethel to be a place where they awaken and respond to the heart of God.
Big Idea: When A Moment In Time Becomes A Moment Defined!
Question: What did that big moment for Jacob look like?
Text: Genesis 28:10-22
1. He built an altar, a place he will never forget (v.18a)
By building an altar he was stating that he wanted to memorialize the event. Perhaps this had been a place he passed through a thousand times, but on this occasion it was different. He memorializes it because he encounters God.
Prayer Point:
Pray that God would use the ministries of Bethel to be experiences that would build great memories into people’s lives, memories of God doing a great work. Memories of an awakening!
2. He poured oil on the altar, the place he first worshipped (v.18b)
From the beginning God put into the awareness of His people that they were to offer to Him in worship something that was part of themselves, something that they had produced with their own labor or purchased with the money that they had earned by their labor. Whatever they offered to Him, it was never to be second best (Malachi 1:7–8), nor was it to be something without cost or concern—convenient and easy to give. The stone pillar didn’t cost him anything, the oil did.
This place that Jacob is in may have been used as early as the 4th millennium B.C. by Canaanites in the area. Archaeological excavations at Chalcolithic levels (i.e., between the Stone Age and the Bronze Age) indicate that pagan worship of the Canaanite deity El took place on top of the hill at that early period. As a proper noun, El refers to a god in the pantheons of the Canaanite world.
What is amazing about this picture of worship is that here is a thief (check out Jacob’s criminal record) worshiping the one true God in a place that has a history of pagan worship.
Realize that God can reach anyone whenever, however and WHEREVER!
Prayer Point:
Pray that Bethel Church would be a place of genuine worship. On any given Sunday or at any small group or place of ministry people come worshipping the various gods of culture. We want all our ministries to direct people to the one true God.
Hebrews 1:1-4
“In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs.”
3. He called the place Bethel, a place of great intimacy (v.19)
El refers to a god in the pantheons of the Canaanite world. El is the most common biblical word for God. The name Bethel, means “house of El (god),” BETH-EL. El is combined with other adjectives to describe the numerous attributes of God; for example, God Most High (Gn 14:18–24), the seeing God (Gn 16:13), the jealous God (Ex 20:5), the forgiving God (Neh 9:17), and the gracious God (Neh 9:31).
I love this point. Our own church name says it all. We want our ministries to be a place where believers experience deep intimacy with God.
Prayer Point:
Pray that Bethel Church would be a place God uses to draw people close to himself. This was the first time that Jacob experienced God beyond just being raised in a God fearing home. It was now his faith, his experience, his personal journey. God was real. God was “ in the house!”
4. He made a vow, a place of great commitment (v.20-22)
Note that vow making and tithing were two steps by Jacob that indicated his heart was surrendered. Was he “fixed”, had he arrived, was he now good to be a shining example of spiritual maturity? Definitely not, but his journey had begun and his faith roots were starting to grow deep into the soil of his heart. God had not thrown him into the “microwave” of instant spiritual growth, but into the “crock-pot” of growth step by step, little by little.
Prayer Point:
Pray that Bethel would be able to provide the correct resources to help people grow spiritually. No one experiences “microwave” spiritually. We are all in the “crock- pot” of spirituality and need to be intentional about our growth, taking hold of opportunities to grow. We also need a nurturing community that is filled with grace and truth to be the right kind of place for people to grow.
May God use Bethel and all the churches and various ministries in Kingston to be places and spaces where people experience a great awakening!
When A Moment In Time Becomes A Moment Defined!
Mark Kotchapaw
If interested in joining or starting a small group contact bethelcommunitygroups@gmail.com
Wednesday, July 9, 2014
Touching Base - Part 243
TB 243
The Body – PART 17
All In!
13 July 14
(You can find a recording of this sermon here.)
This Touching Base is a useful tool for small group discussion, personal reflection or in a one-on-one conversation. We believe that if the Sunday teaching is discussed outside of the morning services, it will be an opportunity to go deeper and build healthy community because God's Word needs to be discussed in community.
Great teams are “All In”! I cannot imagine that anyone would disagree with this statement. We have all probably worked on teams where someone was not “All In”! As a result, the performance of that team is in jeopardy and the attitudes of the other team members are probably greatly challenged.
Today we conclude our study in the book of 1 Corinthians with the big idea, Great Teams Are All In!
Note several aspects of what being “All In” looks like as Paul concludes this REALLY long book.
1. Great teams are “All In” when it comes to their financial resources (v.1-4):
Read the first four verses and answer the following questions:
• What is the pattern for giving?
• What is the expectation of how much?
• Where do you see integrity in the process?
• Why Jerusalem?-Check out Romans 15:26
Notice that Paul is not talking about “tithing” here , but a special collection for the poor. (NOTE:Tithing as a legal requirement had passed away with the Old Covenant and been replaced by the greater challenge of “giving” in the New Testament)
• Why is our money the hardest thing to separate with?
• How do you know when you are being generous?
Note the context of this appeal of Paul. He has just talked about how all of us are poor in one way or another:
• Spiritual Poverty - 15:3-4- Our sinful state makes us spiritually poor before God, lacking the resources to make ourselves right with God. Check out 2 Cor. 8:9
• Physical Poverty - 15:42-44- What is it about our current physical state that demonstrates we are “poor”?
This is an important point for us who are not materially poor because when we reach out to those who are materially poor, there is no room for thinking that we are reaching down to them (or we have it all together) as we help them out. We all are poor in many ways and need help. We all have experienced poverty.
2. Great teams are “All In” when it comes to the resource called “time” (v.5-8):
Read these verses and note how Paul wants to spend time with these folks:
• What is the opposite of just a “passing visit”? – see v.7b
This is a pattern we often see in Paul. Note the following text:
“Even though we had some standing as Christ’s apostles, we never threw our weight around or tried to come across as important, with you or anyone else. We weren't aloof with you. We took you just as you were. We were never patronizing, never condescending, but we cared for you the way a mother cares for her children. We loved you dearly. Not content to just pass on the Message, we wanted to give you our hearts. And we did. 1 Thessalonians 2:6-8 (MSG)
• Talk about how time is a gift we can give.
• Who needs the gift of your time these days?
• Why is it hard to give?
People will more likely remember that you gave them some of your time, versus what you said to them. This gift of time is a huge blessing when it is given.
• What might giving people the gift of your time look like in your small group, on a Sunday am?
3. Great teams are “All In” when it comes to their courage (v.9-13):
Do you see the courage of Paul in v9?
Paul understood that there was a cost to being “all in” and all there. This is the “labour” part we talked about last week. It says something about Paul’s perception of his ministry, that the presence of opposition was a sign to him of the viability of his labour and reason for pressing on, not running away (cf. Acts 19:30–31).
Note the courage of Timothy (v.10-11).
What was the possible emotion that Timothy was experiencing when thinking about ministering to the Corinthians?
What is the emotion you experience in those difficult assignments? Anxiety, anger, frustration?
Apollos also knew of the challenge of Corinth.
V.12 - Perhaps Apollos did not want to add fuel to the fire of the Corinthian party spirit and to their playing of favorites. Remember 1 Cor. 1:12?
Then notice v.13 and how the corrective words of Paul to Corinth demonstrate this was not an easy place. In many ways the opposite was what described Corinth.
Some may have prayed, “Oh God send me anywhere - even Moose Jaw - but not Corinth!”
• What are the circumstances that can drain your courage?
• Are you a courageous team member?
Note Paul was a mentor to Timothy. I wonder if he sometimes had to say to Tim, “Don’t let your fear get the best of you.”
Note Paul with Apollos - I wonder if he had to encourage Apollos to press in.
I think we need people around us who can, essentially, say, “ Muster up the courage and take this next assignment, press in on this next part of the vision, hunker down and get at this next part of the project.” Without that “Paul”, we might not have the courage.
• Who is your Paul?
4. Great teams are All In when it comes to their attitude – humility (v.14-18):
Read through this and note how Stephanas and his household ministered to the saints. It is believed that because of the names of Fortunatus and Achaicus that they were probably household slaves.
What makes this really interesting is that the mention of Stephanas’ household suggests that he was a man of considerable means. The Good News that Paul preached was for all people, but it often required the greatest sacrifices of the socially better-off, since they had more to give and the most to lose in honour, power, and social position by converting to a new minority religion. While Paul drew on the benefits of the social structures of his day, he would not allow those structures to dictate the structure of relationships in the new “ekklēsia”.
I would like to meet Stephanas - as a new convert he was unadulterated by the arrogance of some in Corinth, not soiled yet by the establishment, just wearing his WWJD bracelet and doing it.
Final Greetings (v.19-24):
Note Paul’s love for this Church, which had done so much to hurt him:
- the passing on of greetings (v.19-21)
- the desire to protect the church. Note his desire to protect the body with the statement in v.22. This a passionate warning, probably aimed at false teachers who were not “all in”, whom he believed to be already present in the congregation (cf. 2 Cor. 11:3–4).
- the words of blessing (v.23, 24)
Paul loved the Body!
This week, why not pray into the four characteristics of teams that are “All In”! Bethel values and needs teams of people that are “All In”!
Mark Kotchapaw
If interested in joining or starting a small group contact bethelcommunitygroups@gmail.com
The Body – PART 17
All In!
13 July 14
(You can find a recording of this sermon here.)
This Touching Base is a useful tool for small group discussion, personal reflection or in a one-on-one conversation. We believe that if the Sunday teaching is discussed outside of the morning services, it will be an opportunity to go deeper and build healthy community because God's Word needs to be discussed in community.
Great teams are “All In”! I cannot imagine that anyone would disagree with this statement. We have all probably worked on teams where someone was not “All In”! As a result, the performance of that team is in jeopardy and the attitudes of the other team members are probably greatly challenged.
Today we conclude our study in the book of 1 Corinthians with the big idea, Great Teams Are All In!
Note several aspects of what being “All In” looks like as Paul concludes this REALLY long book.
1. Great teams are “All In” when it comes to their financial resources (v.1-4):
Read the first four verses and answer the following questions:
• What is the pattern for giving?
• What is the expectation of how much?
• Where do you see integrity in the process?
• Why Jerusalem?-Check out Romans 15:26
Notice that Paul is not talking about “tithing” here , but a special collection for the poor. (NOTE:Tithing as a legal requirement had passed away with the Old Covenant and been replaced by the greater challenge of “giving” in the New Testament)
• Why is our money the hardest thing to separate with?
• How do you know when you are being generous?
Note the context of this appeal of Paul. He has just talked about how all of us are poor in one way or another:
• Spiritual Poverty - 15:3-4- Our sinful state makes us spiritually poor before God, lacking the resources to make ourselves right with God. Check out 2 Cor. 8:9
• Physical Poverty - 15:42-44- What is it about our current physical state that demonstrates we are “poor”?
This is an important point for us who are not materially poor because when we reach out to those who are materially poor, there is no room for thinking that we are reaching down to them (or we have it all together) as we help them out. We all are poor in many ways and need help. We all have experienced poverty.
2. Great teams are “All In” when it comes to the resource called “time” (v.5-8):
Read these verses and note how Paul wants to spend time with these folks:
• What is the opposite of just a “passing visit”? – see v.7b
This is a pattern we often see in Paul. Note the following text:
“Even though we had some standing as Christ’s apostles, we never threw our weight around or tried to come across as important, with you or anyone else. We weren't aloof with you. We took you just as you were. We were never patronizing, never condescending, but we cared for you the way a mother cares for her children. We loved you dearly. Not content to just pass on the Message, we wanted to give you our hearts. And we did. 1 Thessalonians 2:6-8 (MSG)
• Talk about how time is a gift we can give.
• Who needs the gift of your time these days?
• Why is it hard to give?
People will more likely remember that you gave them some of your time, versus what you said to them. This gift of time is a huge blessing when it is given.
• What might giving people the gift of your time look like in your small group, on a Sunday am?
3. Great teams are “All In” when it comes to their courage (v.9-13):
Do you see the courage of Paul in v9?
Paul understood that there was a cost to being “all in” and all there. This is the “labour” part we talked about last week. It says something about Paul’s perception of his ministry, that the presence of opposition was a sign to him of the viability of his labour and reason for pressing on, not running away (cf. Acts 19:30–31).
Note the courage of Timothy (v.10-11).
What was the possible emotion that Timothy was experiencing when thinking about ministering to the Corinthians?
What is the emotion you experience in those difficult assignments? Anxiety, anger, frustration?
Apollos also knew of the challenge of Corinth.
V.12 - Perhaps Apollos did not want to add fuel to the fire of the Corinthian party spirit and to their playing of favorites. Remember 1 Cor. 1:12?
Then notice v.13 and how the corrective words of Paul to Corinth demonstrate this was not an easy place. In many ways the opposite was what described Corinth.
Some may have prayed, “Oh God send me anywhere - even Moose Jaw - but not Corinth!”
• What are the circumstances that can drain your courage?
• Are you a courageous team member?
Note Paul was a mentor to Timothy. I wonder if he sometimes had to say to Tim, “Don’t let your fear get the best of you.”
Note Paul with Apollos - I wonder if he had to encourage Apollos to press in.
I think we need people around us who can, essentially, say, “ Muster up the courage and take this next assignment, press in on this next part of the vision, hunker down and get at this next part of the project.” Without that “Paul”, we might not have the courage.
• Who is your Paul?
4. Great teams are All In when it comes to their attitude – humility (v.14-18):
Read through this and note how Stephanas and his household ministered to the saints. It is believed that because of the names of Fortunatus and Achaicus that they were probably household slaves.
What makes this really interesting is that the mention of Stephanas’ household suggests that he was a man of considerable means. The Good News that Paul preached was for all people, but it often required the greatest sacrifices of the socially better-off, since they had more to give and the most to lose in honour, power, and social position by converting to a new minority religion. While Paul drew on the benefits of the social structures of his day, he would not allow those structures to dictate the structure of relationships in the new “ekklēsia”.
I would like to meet Stephanas - as a new convert he was unadulterated by the arrogance of some in Corinth, not soiled yet by the establishment, just wearing his WWJD bracelet and doing it.
Final Greetings (v.19-24):
Note Paul’s love for this Church, which had done so much to hurt him:
- the passing on of greetings (v.19-21)
- the desire to protect the church. Note his desire to protect the body with the statement in v.22. This a passionate warning, probably aimed at false teachers who were not “all in”, whom he believed to be already present in the congregation (cf. 2 Cor. 11:3–4).
- the words of blessing (v.23, 24)
Paul loved the Body!
This week, why not pray into the four characteristics of teams that are “All In”! Bethel values and needs teams of people that are “All In”!
Mark Kotchapaw
If interested in joining or starting a small group contact bethelcommunitygroups@gmail.com
Friday, June 20, 2014
Touching Base - Part 242
TB 242
The Body – PART 14
No Resurrection, Then Insurrection!
22 June 14
(You can find a recording of this sermon here.)
This Touching Base is a useful tool for small group discussion, personal reflection or in a one-on-one conversation. We believe that if the Sunday teaching is discussed outside of the morning services, it will be an opportunity to go deeper and build healthy community because God's Word needs to be discussed in community.
How have you weathered the storming of the foundations of your faith?
How are you doing at processing all the questions and accusations that can make your faith seem unsteady, wavering, like a UFC fighter teetering….about to do a bloody face plant on the canvas?
How do you react when some people, like those below, say,
“Though the details differ across the world, no known culture lacks some version of the time-consuming, wealth-consuming, hostility-provoking rituals, the anti-factual, counter-productive fantasies of religion.”
― Richard Dawkins, The God Delusion
“I think religion is a neurological disorder.”
― Bill Maher
If you have kids, how do you think they are weathering the storm?
Do you know of any spiritual fatalities, people that just gave up faith because the barrage of questions splintered their faith?
This past Sunday we tackled one of those issues within the Christian faith that, if not true, collapses our faith like a house of cards - the resurrection.
Text: 1 Corinthians 15:12-34
Big Idea: No Resurrection, then total Insurrection
This is the sentiment of v.32b, which is what some of the Corinthians were doing.
How important is the resurrection? Scan through the text and list or highlight all the reasons why the resurrection is so important to the Christian faith.
What stands out?
Note v.29 - This was an influence of the surrounding paganism of the day. Paul is not endorsing it but is just using it as part of his argument, demonstrating how, if there is no resurrection, then why do you baptize for the dead?
V.20-28 is a theme we will pick up on next week when we look at v.35-57.
So after reading this, how important is the resurrection to your faith? What sense does it make to be a Christian if Jesus did not rise from the dead?
We would all agree on the importance of the resurrection, but there are some truths we need to consider as we think about the fact of resurrection. The following is just an appetizer. I am hoping that you will do your own digging and researching.
Is there enough evidence for a rational person to be justified in concluding that Jesus’ resurrection was a real event in history? Can we ascertain with a reasonable amount of certainty that the event occurred?
Firstly, let me introduce you to two lines of thinking…. then Carmen will add some further comments (a guest lecturer brought in from North of the 401! :-)
1. Historical Method
Historians carefully use criteria and techniques when investigating the past. Their systematic approach is called the “Historical Method”. For example, some of the basic criteria are
a. Multiple attestation (more than one witness)
b. Early testimony (the closer to the resurrection, the better)
In addition to the Historical Method let’s also consider…
2. Minimal Facts Approach
This approach considers only those data that are so strongly attested historically that they are accepted by nearly every scholar who studies the subject, even the rather skeptical ones.
One of the strengths of this approach is that it avoids debate over the inspiration of the Bible. Believers and skeptics alike accept the Minimal Facts approach.
The death of Christ
When it comes to the death of Christ do the Historical Method and Minimal Facts Approach support this event in history? Well, without a death, you don’t have a resurrection:
• “Virtually no scholar in the field denies Jesus’ death on the cross.” Gary Habermas
• “That Jesus was crucified and died through the process is granted by virtually 100 percent of scholars who study the subject.” Michael R. Licona
Listen to these non-believers in what they had to say about the death of Jesus:
• Josephus (born 37 AD, a Jewish historian) writes “ When Pilate, upon hearing him accused by men of the highest standing amongst us, had condemned him to be crucified….”
• Tacitus (born 56 AD – a Roman historian) - “Nero fastened the guilt (of the burning of Rome) and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace. Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilate.”
• Lucian of Samosata (born 120 AD, a Greek satirist), writes, “The Christians, you know, worship a man to this day - the distinguished personage who introduced their novel rites, and was crucified on that account.”
Note the basis of the death of Christ outside of the use of Scripture.
What about the resurrection?
• Highly critical NT scholar Rudolf Bultmann agreed that historical criticism can establish “the fact that the first disciples came to believe in the resurrection.”
• Atheistic scholar (NT) Gerd Ludemann concludes, “It may be taken as historically certain that Peter and the disciples had experiences after Jesus death in which Jesus appeared to them as the risen Christ.”
• Paula Fredriksen of Boston University comments, “ I know in their own terms what they saw was the raised Jesus. That’s what they say and then all the historic evidence we have afterwards attests to their conviction that that’s what they saw. I‘m not saying that they really did see the raised Jesus, I wasn't there. I don’t know what they saw. But I do know that as a historian that they must have seen something.” ( In an interview with Peter Jennings in The Search for Jesus, July 2000)
• Late NT critic at the University of Chicago, Norman Perrin, who rejected the resurrection wrote, “The more we study the tradition with regard to the appearances, the firmer the rock begins to appear upon which they are based.”
Now of course the mere fact that the disciples claimed that they saw the risen Jesus does not alone merit the conclusion that Jesus rose from the dead- since anyone can make a claim- but what is the best, most responsible explanation?
What about the empty tomb?
“An impressive 75 percent of scholars who study the subject acknowledge the empty tomb.” Michael R. Licona.
Now this doesn't mean that there was a resurrection, but it does challenge the reader to explain why there was an empty tomb. Over to Carmen…
And there WAS an empty tomb, a fact, oddly enough, that is strengthened by the very officials that put Jesus to death! Consider the following - the authorities were terrified that the disciples would try to steal Jesus’ body (Matt.22:62-66), so…
- They sealed it with a heavy stone (Matt. 22:59-60)
- Pilate authorized them to put guards in front of it. If those guards fell asleep, the penalty was DEATH. So no one was going to come in and remove a body without them seeing it.
- Some people have said “well, the women were upset… they went to the wrong tomb”. Okay, so all the authorities had to do was go to the RIGHT tomb (it was right there, near Golgotha) and produce the body. They didn’t.
- Matthew 28:11-15 tells us that the Jewish officials then bribed the guards to say the body was taken by the disciples – they’re admitting the body was gone, further strengthening the case.
Christ’s appearances:
Mark also mentioned the belief of the disciples that they had seen Jesus. Some people have suggested that perhaps what happened was a group hallucination. For the record, group hallucinations are actually not possible since they originate in a person’s own mind.
What we do see though, and you can read more in detail about this in our recommended resources below, is that over a 50-day period between his resurrection and ascension, Jesus appeared over and over again to hundreds of people, to men and women, in different times and places, alone and in groups. And he didn't just talk to them, he ate (to reassure them he was real) and walked with them as well.
The disciples were transformed:
BEFORE THE RESURRECTION
- Peter, Jesus’s closest friend, denies he even knows Him three times
- everyone scatters and go into hiding, which Jesus had predicted
AFTER THE RESURRECTION:
- the disciples, without exception, WILL NOT recant, and they WILL NOT be quiet about what they have seen and heard “with our own eyes”.
- with the exception of two of them who died of old age (and Judas, naturally), all of them were put to death for their beliefs in the early years following the resurrection
- what’s even more compelling is that these devout Jewish men turn away from thousands of years of Sabbath (Saturday) worship and begin worshiping on Sundays (which they call “The Lord’s Day”)
Can I add a comment here? Let’s be clear about this: people will die for a mistake, BUT THEY WILL NOT DIE FOR A LIE. Remember, they would not recant, and they would not be quiet.
What happened on that first Easter Sunday is so significant that we literally now calculate calendar timelines around Jesus’ birth (BC - Before Christ and AD - Anno Domini – “in the year of our Lord”)
SOMETHING HAPPENED, and it’s up to all of us to evaluate and decide just what it was.
So to sum up, the case for the resurrection of Christ is a historical case based on a solid foundation. The easiest way to remember the various pieces of evidence is to use the acrostic F.E.A.T (thanks to Hank Hanegraaff, The Bible Answer Man, for this!):
Fatal Torment – we know Jesus died
Empty Tomb – we know his body wasn't there
Appearances of Christ – we know he appeared to hundreds of people
Transformation of the Disciples – we know they paid a heavy price and turned the entire Roman Empire upside down
Only one conclusion is possible and reasonable in light of this evidence - the resurrection of Christ is simply one of the most-well-attested facts in history. And we praise God for what He has done!
Wrap
So What?
1. Do your homework - realize the weight of external evidence. You can purchase/visit some great resources to get started:
BOOKS:
The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus - Gary Habermas
Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus - Nabeel Qureshi
The Case for the Resurrection - Lee Strobel
The Case for Christ - Lee Strobel
WEBSITES:
Stand to Reason http://www.str.org (Greg Koukl: articles, radio show…)
Reasonable Faith http://www.reasonablefaith.org (William Lane Craig: articles, radio show…)
2. Don’t be afraid to speak up on the historical foundations of your faith.
Let’s love God with our hearts, soul and MIND!
Mark Kotchapaw / Carmen Gauvin-O’Donnell (Guest Lecturer! :-)
If interested in joining or starting a small group contact bethelcommunitygroups@gmail.com
The Body – PART 14
No Resurrection, Then Insurrection!
22 June 14
(You can find a recording of this sermon here.)
This Touching Base is a useful tool for small group discussion, personal reflection or in a one-on-one conversation. We believe that if the Sunday teaching is discussed outside of the morning services, it will be an opportunity to go deeper and build healthy community because God's Word needs to be discussed in community.
How have you weathered the storming of the foundations of your faith?
How are you doing at processing all the questions and accusations that can make your faith seem unsteady, wavering, like a UFC fighter teetering….about to do a bloody face plant on the canvas?
How do you react when some people, like those below, say,
“Though the details differ across the world, no known culture lacks some version of the time-consuming, wealth-consuming, hostility-provoking rituals, the anti-factual, counter-productive fantasies of religion.”
― Richard Dawkins, The God Delusion
“I think religion is a neurological disorder.”
― Bill Maher
If you have kids, how do you think they are weathering the storm?
Do you know of any spiritual fatalities, people that just gave up faith because the barrage of questions splintered their faith?
This past Sunday we tackled one of those issues within the Christian faith that, if not true, collapses our faith like a house of cards - the resurrection.
Text: 1 Corinthians 15:12-34
Big Idea: No Resurrection, then total Insurrection
This is the sentiment of v.32b, which is what some of the Corinthians were doing.
How important is the resurrection? Scan through the text and list or highlight all the reasons why the resurrection is so important to the Christian faith.
What stands out?
Note v.29 - This was an influence of the surrounding paganism of the day. Paul is not endorsing it but is just using it as part of his argument, demonstrating how, if there is no resurrection, then why do you baptize for the dead?
V.20-28 is a theme we will pick up on next week when we look at v.35-57.
So after reading this, how important is the resurrection to your faith? What sense does it make to be a Christian if Jesus did not rise from the dead?
We would all agree on the importance of the resurrection, but there are some truths we need to consider as we think about the fact of resurrection. The following is just an appetizer. I am hoping that you will do your own digging and researching.
Is there enough evidence for a rational person to be justified in concluding that Jesus’ resurrection was a real event in history? Can we ascertain with a reasonable amount of certainty that the event occurred?
Firstly, let me introduce you to two lines of thinking…. then Carmen will add some further comments (a guest lecturer brought in from North of the 401! :-)
1. Historical Method
Historians carefully use criteria and techniques when investigating the past. Their systematic approach is called the “Historical Method”. For example, some of the basic criteria are
a. Multiple attestation (more than one witness)
b. Early testimony (the closer to the resurrection, the better)
In addition to the Historical Method let’s also consider…
2. Minimal Facts Approach
This approach considers only those data that are so strongly attested historically that they are accepted by nearly every scholar who studies the subject, even the rather skeptical ones.
One of the strengths of this approach is that it avoids debate over the inspiration of the Bible. Believers and skeptics alike accept the Minimal Facts approach.
The death of Christ
When it comes to the death of Christ do the Historical Method and Minimal Facts Approach support this event in history? Well, without a death, you don’t have a resurrection:
• “Virtually no scholar in the field denies Jesus’ death on the cross.” Gary Habermas
• “That Jesus was crucified and died through the process is granted by virtually 100 percent of scholars who study the subject.” Michael R. Licona
Listen to these non-believers in what they had to say about the death of Jesus:
• Josephus (born 37 AD, a Jewish historian) writes “ When Pilate, upon hearing him accused by men of the highest standing amongst us, had condemned him to be crucified….”
• Tacitus (born 56 AD – a Roman historian) - “Nero fastened the guilt (of the burning of Rome) and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace. Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilate.”
• Lucian of Samosata (born 120 AD, a Greek satirist), writes, “The Christians, you know, worship a man to this day - the distinguished personage who introduced their novel rites, and was crucified on that account.”
Note the basis of the death of Christ outside of the use of Scripture.
What about the resurrection?
• Highly critical NT scholar Rudolf Bultmann agreed that historical criticism can establish “the fact that the first disciples came to believe in the resurrection.”
• Atheistic scholar (NT) Gerd Ludemann concludes, “It may be taken as historically certain that Peter and the disciples had experiences after Jesus death in which Jesus appeared to them as the risen Christ.”
• Paula Fredriksen of Boston University comments, “ I know in their own terms what they saw was the raised Jesus. That’s what they say and then all the historic evidence we have afterwards attests to their conviction that that’s what they saw. I‘m not saying that they really did see the raised Jesus, I wasn't there. I don’t know what they saw. But I do know that as a historian that they must have seen something.” ( In an interview with Peter Jennings in The Search for Jesus, July 2000)
• Late NT critic at the University of Chicago, Norman Perrin, who rejected the resurrection wrote, “The more we study the tradition with regard to the appearances, the firmer the rock begins to appear upon which they are based.”
Now of course the mere fact that the disciples claimed that they saw the risen Jesus does not alone merit the conclusion that Jesus rose from the dead- since anyone can make a claim- but what is the best, most responsible explanation?
What about the empty tomb?
“An impressive 75 percent of scholars who study the subject acknowledge the empty tomb.” Michael R. Licona.
Now this doesn't mean that there was a resurrection, but it does challenge the reader to explain why there was an empty tomb. Over to Carmen…
And there WAS an empty tomb, a fact, oddly enough, that is strengthened by the very officials that put Jesus to death! Consider the following - the authorities were terrified that the disciples would try to steal Jesus’ body (Matt.22:62-66), so…
- They sealed it with a heavy stone (Matt. 22:59-60)
- Pilate authorized them to put guards in front of it. If those guards fell asleep, the penalty was DEATH. So no one was going to come in and remove a body without them seeing it.
- Some people have said “well, the women were upset… they went to the wrong tomb”. Okay, so all the authorities had to do was go to the RIGHT tomb (it was right there, near Golgotha) and produce the body. They didn’t.
- Matthew 28:11-15 tells us that the Jewish officials then bribed the guards to say the body was taken by the disciples – they’re admitting the body was gone, further strengthening the case.
Christ’s appearances:
Mark also mentioned the belief of the disciples that they had seen Jesus. Some people have suggested that perhaps what happened was a group hallucination. For the record, group hallucinations are actually not possible since they originate in a person’s own mind.
What we do see though, and you can read more in detail about this in our recommended resources below, is that over a 50-day period between his resurrection and ascension, Jesus appeared over and over again to hundreds of people, to men and women, in different times and places, alone and in groups. And he didn't just talk to them, he ate (to reassure them he was real) and walked with them as well.
The disciples were transformed:
BEFORE THE RESURRECTION
- Peter, Jesus’s closest friend, denies he even knows Him three times
- everyone scatters and go into hiding, which Jesus had predicted
AFTER THE RESURRECTION:
- the disciples, without exception, WILL NOT recant, and they WILL NOT be quiet about what they have seen and heard “with our own eyes”.
- with the exception of two of them who died of old age (and Judas, naturally), all of them were put to death for their beliefs in the early years following the resurrection
- what’s even more compelling is that these devout Jewish men turn away from thousands of years of Sabbath (Saturday) worship and begin worshiping on Sundays (which they call “The Lord’s Day”)
Can I add a comment here? Let’s be clear about this: people will die for a mistake, BUT THEY WILL NOT DIE FOR A LIE. Remember, they would not recant, and they would not be quiet.
What happened on that first Easter Sunday is so significant that we literally now calculate calendar timelines around Jesus’ birth (BC - Before Christ and AD - Anno Domini – “in the year of our Lord”)
SOMETHING HAPPENED, and it’s up to all of us to evaluate and decide just what it was.
So to sum up, the case for the resurrection of Christ is a historical case based on a solid foundation. The easiest way to remember the various pieces of evidence is to use the acrostic F.E.A.T (thanks to Hank Hanegraaff, The Bible Answer Man, for this!):
Fatal Torment – we know Jesus died
Empty Tomb – we know his body wasn't there
Appearances of Christ – we know he appeared to hundreds of people
Transformation of the Disciples – we know they paid a heavy price and turned the entire Roman Empire upside down
Only one conclusion is possible and reasonable in light of this evidence - the resurrection of Christ is simply one of the most-well-attested facts in history. And we praise God for what He has done!
Wrap
So What?
1. Do your homework - realize the weight of external evidence. You can purchase/visit some great resources to get started:
BOOKS:
The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus - Gary Habermas
Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus - Nabeel Qureshi
The Case for the Resurrection - Lee Strobel
The Case for Christ - Lee Strobel
WEBSITES:
Stand to Reason http://www.str.org (Greg Koukl: articles, radio show…)
Reasonable Faith http://www.reasonablefaith.org (William Lane Craig: articles, radio show…)
2. Don’t be afraid to speak up on the historical foundations of your faith.
Let’s love God with our hearts, soul and MIND!
Mark Kotchapaw / Carmen Gauvin-O’Donnell (Guest Lecturer! :-)
If interested in joining or starting a small group contact bethelcommunitygroups@gmail.com
Tuesday, June 10, 2014
Touching Base - Part 241
TB 241
Proverbs 2 and the Good Life
8 June 14
((You can find a recording of this sermon here.)
This Touching Base is a useful tool for small group discussion, personal reflection or in a one-on-one conversation. We believe that if the Sunday teaching is discussed outside of the morning services, it will be an opportunity to go deeper and build healthy community because God's Word needs to be discussed in community.
Opening Ideas
Live the Good Life! Living the Good Life benefits not only us, but it also benefits everyone around us.
Questions:
What is the first thing you think of when you hear the phrase “The Good Life”?
How do you think the following people would answer that question:
• People you work/study with
• Your family
• Your closest friends
Context
Around 3000 years ago, Proverbs was written for the purpose of signing people up for the Good Life.
Most of Proverbs was written by a Hebrew king named Solomon, but there are other authors as well. Solomon spent a lot of time studying and learning and one of really important things that he discovered was that there are certain patterns to life. There are ways to live that have better results than others. Solomon called the good way to live – wisdom.
Questions:
What patterns have you noticed in your life, that have good results?
What patterns have you noticed that have negative results?
Read Proverbs 1:1-7 and 2:1-11.
Questions:
What are the main points of the passages?
How do these passages apply to your life?
Bridge
Solomon spent his life vigorously searching for knowledge and understanding. But because he lived in the Old Testament, Solomon could only go so far in his understanding of wisdom. But the New Testament revealed some amazing new things about wisdom and about where to find it. It says that if we want to know what wisdom really is and if we want to know where to find it, we have to look to Jesus.
The New Testament teaches that Jesus is both the source and the embodiment of wisdom. Jesus came so that we could have The Good Life - a healthy, and vibrant, and fulfilling life; a life that positively impacts the lives of the people around us.
The Good Life/Wisdom Formula
Wisdom = Knowing Jesus + Understanding Jesus + Living like Jesus
1. Knowing Jesus
In John 15 Jesus says that he is like a vine, and we are like branches. He talks about how important it is to be in a deep relationship with him.
Questions:
How well do you really know Jesus?
What are you filling your life with?
How deep is your relationship with Jesus?
Read John 15:1-8.
Questions:
What are the main points of the passage?
How does this passage apply to your life?
“Knowing and loving God is our greatest privilege, and being known and loved is God's greatest pleasure.” (Rick Warren, Purpose Driven Life)
2. Understanding Jesus
As we seek intimacy with Jesus, we will become more and more like him. We will develop the mind of Christ. But to develop the mind of Christ, we have to start listening to him. We have to turn our ear to him, as Proverbs 2:2 says.
Questions:
What is your prayer life like? Do you do all the talking?
How has God been speaking to you lately?
Have you been listening?
God would love to go deep with you.
3. Living Like Jesus
God is a God of mission, and God has sent us on a mission.
When Jesus left earth and returned to heaven he gave these instructions in Matthew 28:19 – “Go and make disciples”.
Question:
How are you responding to these instructions?
God calls us to live the good life so that others around us will be blessed and will want the good life too. That is what is meant by the term “missional living”. We are called to live out the Great Commission and to light up the world around us.
Conclusion
Jesus invites us to seek him and to find the Good Life.
Questions:
From all that we have discussed, what are some very specific things that God is challenging you to work on today?
What are you going to do about it? (Be very specific)
Who can you ask to keep you accountable in this?
For Further Reading: Hearing God (Dallas Willard)
Steve Kooy (Campus Pastor at Geneva House, on the campus of Queen’s University – kooys@queensu.ca)
If interested in joining or starting a small group contact bethelcommunitygroups@gmail.com
Proverbs 2 and the Good Life
8 June 14
((You can find a recording of this sermon here.)
This Touching Base is a useful tool for small group discussion, personal reflection or in a one-on-one conversation. We believe that if the Sunday teaching is discussed outside of the morning services, it will be an opportunity to go deeper and build healthy community because God's Word needs to be discussed in community.
Opening Ideas
Live the Good Life! Living the Good Life benefits not only us, but it also benefits everyone around us.
Questions:
What is the first thing you think of when you hear the phrase “The Good Life”?
How do you think the following people would answer that question:
• People you work/study with
• Your family
• Your closest friends
Context
Around 3000 years ago, Proverbs was written for the purpose of signing people up for the Good Life.
Most of Proverbs was written by a Hebrew king named Solomon, but there are other authors as well. Solomon spent a lot of time studying and learning and one of really important things that he discovered was that there are certain patterns to life. There are ways to live that have better results than others. Solomon called the good way to live – wisdom.
Questions:
What patterns have you noticed in your life, that have good results?
What patterns have you noticed that have negative results?
Read Proverbs 1:1-7 and 2:1-11.
Questions:
What are the main points of the passages?
How do these passages apply to your life?
Bridge
Solomon spent his life vigorously searching for knowledge and understanding. But because he lived in the Old Testament, Solomon could only go so far in his understanding of wisdom. But the New Testament revealed some amazing new things about wisdom and about where to find it. It says that if we want to know what wisdom really is and if we want to know where to find it, we have to look to Jesus.
The New Testament teaches that Jesus is both the source and the embodiment of wisdom. Jesus came so that we could have The Good Life - a healthy, and vibrant, and fulfilling life; a life that positively impacts the lives of the people around us.
The Good Life/Wisdom Formula
Wisdom = Knowing Jesus + Understanding Jesus + Living like Jesus
1. Knowing Jesus
In John 15 Jesus says that he is like a vine, and we are like branches. He talks about how important it is to be in a deep relationship with him.
Questions:
How well do you really know Jesus?
What are you filling your life with?
How deep is your relationship with Jesus?
Read John 15:1-8.
Questions:
What are the main points of the passage?
How does this passage apply to your life?
“Knowing and loving God is our greatest privilege, and being known and loved is God's greatest pleasure.” (Rick Warren, Purpose Driven Life)
2. Understanding Jesus
As we seek intimacy with Jesus, we will become more and more like him. We will develop the mind of Christ. But to develop the mind of Christ, we have to start listening to him. We have to turn our ear to him, as Proverbs 2:2 says.
Questions:
What is your prayer life like? Do you do all the talking?
How has God been speaking to you lately?
Have you been listening?
God would love to go deep with you.
3. Living Like Jesus
God is a God of mission, and God has sent us on a mission.
When Jesus left earth and returned to heaven he gave these instructions in Matthew 28:19 – “Go and make disciples”.
Question:
How are you responding to these instructions?
God calls us to live the good life so that others around us will be blessed and will want the good life too. That is what is meant by the term “missional living”. We are called to live out the Great Commission and to light up the world around us.
Conclusion
Jesus invites us to seek him and to find the Good Life.
Questions:
From all that we have discussed, what are some very specific things that God is challenging you to work on today?
What are you going to do about it? (Be very specific)
Who can you ask to keep you accountable in this?
For Further Reading: Hearing God (Dallas Willard)
Steve Kooy (Campus Pastor at Geneva House, on the campus of Queen’s University – kooys@queensu.ca)
If interested in joining or starting a small group contact bethelcommunitygroups@gmail.com
Thursday, May 22, 2014
Touching Base - Part 240
TB 240
The Body – PART 13
Oops! Sorry about the chaos!
25 May 14
((You can find a recording of this sermon here.)
This Touching Base is a useful tool for small group discussion, personal reflection or in a one-on-one conversation. We believe that if the Sunday teaching is discussed outside of the morning services, it will be an opportunity to go deeper and build healthy community because God's Word needs to be discussed in community.
When you think of your own faith walk, what are some of the most contentious issues that have divided the Church?
If you included “spiritual gifts” in your list then you are most certainly correct. Much abuse and pain has occurred in the Body because of a misunderstanding of the gifts, their use and implementation. Last week as well as this week we want to continue to talk about spiritual gifts and the theme of being a Body Builder.
Big Idea: Be a Body Builder.
Text: 1 Corinthians 14:26-40
Question: How can I be a Body builder? (read last week’s TB for the first two answers)
3. UNDERSTAND THE SYMBIOTIC RELATIONSHIP OF SPIRITUAL GIFTS.
“Symbiosis” - In biology this word refers to a close, prolonged association between two or more different organisms of different species that may, but does not necessarily, benefit each member. On Sunday I gave several examples of symbiotic relationships- i.e. the bee and the flower. What additional examples can you think of?
Read through v.26-33
Where do you see symbiosis in this text?
How do you see the gifts working together?
What might happen if there is not this relationship?
Note v.29 - judging or weighing the prophecies refers to sifting the wheat from the chaff. As Wayne Grudem has pointed out, Romans 12:6 suggests that one prophesies according to the measure of one’s faith. If enthusiasm exceeds inspiration then true prophecy may be mixed with the residue of an overheated imagination. Thus, it must be carefully weighed or sifted
How could the two gifts mentioned become weapons if they operated alone?
Note Romans 12:21-24 - another example of symbiosis.
How does this example of symbiosis apply to all the gifts? How important is it that no gift attempts to go it alone, to be a Lone Ranger in the Body of Christ?
Note more specifically the upside of the symbiotic relationship.
a. Effectiveness
Tongues and prophecy are far more effective when connected to other gifts in the body. Think of your gifts, what other gifts help your gift be more effective?
b. Evaluation and Development (v.29)
What do you think they were doing when they were weighing prophecy? (this means “to evaluate carefully”) I think this brings out a principle for all gifts – they all need to be evaluated and developed.
What does evaluation determine? I think the equation below identifies some of the issues that need to be evaluated when it comes to gifts. What happens when you remove one of the three variables from this equation? Talk about this as a team. Do you see the chaos that can result when the symbiosis principle is ignored?
Passion (the area I desire to do ministry) + Gifting+ Maturity = Ministry Area
Lots of people are willing to volunteer but some are very resistant to evaluation. Sometimes we need to sit people down and have hard conversations about how a gift is being used. Sometimes that evaluation is important because we get discouraged from using our gift. Ever put your gift on the shelf?
4. Be willing to filter in order to guard the gifts.
When it comes to the gifts being used in the church, all kinds of factors can creep in and wreak chaos in the church… thus the need to filter. This is exactly what Paul was doing. There were some very unhealthy things going on in culture and Paul had to help them filter, he had to help them see that what goes on outside the Church cannot go on inside the Church. If it does, the result will be chaos. So what does Paul do? He filters by giving them some very specific instructions for their very unique context.
Paul limited utterances (v.27) to “ one at a time”. He might have imposed fewer limits on a smaller group and more on larger ones. In other words this is a unique context. He is correcting them, doing some specific filtering.
Here is another example.
“’ Speakers could not plead ecstatic frenzy (as in the rites of Cybele or Dionysus) against following proper order- speaking in proper order was expected in formal gatherings.” Craig Keener
Note v.28, 30, 32- “You are in control,” he is saying.
Think of examples where you filter. For example, to be a Christ follower we are always filtering, always discerning between the good, the bad the ugly.
V.32 Note Paul is bringing them back to the nature of God. Why? Because the Church is God’s and it’s about His Glory, not ours. Without the filter, the gifts and the personalities with those gifts become the center.
He is correcting them, directing them.
Note that he is not trying to filter out the gifts but filter out various factors that are inhibiting the gifts and creating the chaos. We sometimes want to filter out the gifts, but this is not what Paul is doing.
What do you think the Church needs to filter today so that gifts can be used to build the Body? Where have you seen chaos and abuse because proper filtering was not done? Are you open to tongues and the prophetic in your small group? If so what does order look like?
On a final note we need to address v.33b-35. This text certainly reminds us that Paul’s context was unique. What he needed to filter was very different than what we need to filter today. Paul needed to do some filtering on a very specific issue as it relates to women in the Church. I encourage you to check out the doc at http://cbesydney.org.au/articles/interpretations-and-application-of-1-corinthians-1434-35/ I would encourage you not to gloss over this but to dig in and appreciate the unique context of Paul.
Let’s be a Body that Builds! Men and women working together so that the Body is built up and Christ is glorified.
Mark Kotchapaw
If interested in joining or starting a small group contact bethelcommunitygroups@gmail.com
The Body – PART 13
Oops! Sorry about the chaos!
25 May 14
((You can find a recording of this sermon here.)
This Touching Base is a useful tool for small group discussion, personal reflection or in a one-on-one conversation. We believe that if the Sunday teaching is discussed outside of the morning services, it will be an opportunity to go deeper and build healthy community because God's Word needs to be discussed in community.
When you think of your own faith walk, what are some of the most contentious issues that have divided the Church?
If you included “spiritual gifts” in your list then you are most certainly correct. Much abuse and pain has occurred in the Body because of a misunderstanding of the gifts, their use and implementation. Last week as well as this week we want to continue to talk about spiritual gifts and the theme of being a Body Builder.
Big Idea: Be a Body Builder.
Text: 1 Corinthians 14:26-40
Question: How can I be a Body builder? (read last week’s TB for the first two answers)
3. UNDERSTAND THE SYMBIOTIC RELATIONSHIP OF SPIRITUAL GIFTS.
“Symbiosis” - In biology this word refers to a close, prolonged association between two or more different organisms of different species that may, but does not necessarily, benefit each member. On Sunday I gave several examples of symbiotic relationships- i.e. the bee and the flower. What additional examples can you think of?
Read through v.26-33
Where do you see symbiosis in this text?
How do you see the gifts working together?
What might happen if there is not this relationship?
Note v.29 - judging or weighing the prophecies refers to sifting the wheat from the chaff. As Wayne Grudem has pointed out, Romans 12:6 suggests that one prophesies according to the measure of one’s faith. If enthusiasm exceeds inspiration then true prophecy may be mixed with the residue of an overheated imagination. Thus, it must be carefully weighed or sifted
How could the two gifts mentioned become weapons if they operated alone?
Note Romans 12:21-24 - another example of symbiosis.
How does this example of symbiosis apply to all the gifts? How important is it that no gift attempts to go it alone, to be a Lone Ranger in the Body of Christ?
Note more specifically the upside of the symbiotic relationship.
a. Effectiveness
Tongues and prophecy are far more effective when connected to other gifts in the body. Think of your gifts, what other gifts help your gift be more effective?
b. Evaluation and Development (v.29)
What do you think they were doing when they were weighing prophecy? (this means “to evaluate carefully”) I think this brings out a principle for all gifts – they all need to be evaluated and developed.
What does evaluation determine? I think the equation below identifies some of the issues that need to be evaluated when it comes to gifts. What happens when you remove one of the three variables from this equation? Talk about this as a team. Do you see the chaos that can result when the symbiosis principle is ignored?
Passion (the area I desire to do ministry) + Gifting+ Maturity = Ministry Area
Lots of people are willing to volunteer but some are very resistant to evaluation. Sometimes we need to sit people down and have hard conversations about how a gift is being used. Sometimes that evaluation is important because we get discouraged from using our gift. Ever put your gift on the shelf?
4. Be willing to filter in order to guard the gifts.
When it comes to the gifts being used in the church, all kinds of factors can creep in and wreak chaos in the church… thus the need to filter. This is exactly what Paul was doing. There were some very unhealthy things going on in culture and Paul had to help them filter, he had to help them see that what goes on outside the Church cannot go on inside the Church. If it does, the result will be chaos. So what does Paul do? He filters by giving them some very specific instructions for their very unique context.
Paul limited utterances (v.27) to “ one at a time”. He might have imposed fewer limits on a smaller group and more on larger ones. In other words this is a unique context. He is correcting them, doing some specific filtering.
Here is another example.
“’ Speakers could not plead ecstatic frenzy (as in the rites of Cybele or Dionysus) against following proper order- speaking in proper order was expected in formal gatherings.” Craig Keener
Note v.28, 30, 32- “You are in control,” he is saying.
Think of examples where you filter. For example, to be a Christ follower we are always filtering, always discerning between the good, the bad the ugly.
V.32 Note Paul is bringing them back to the nature of God. Why? Because the Church is God’s and it’s about His Glory, not ours. Without the filter, the gifts and the personalities with those gifts become the center.
He is correcting them, directing them.
Note that he is not trying to filter out the gifts but filter out various factors that are inhibiting the gifts and creating the chaos. We sometimes want to filter out the gifts, but this is not what Paul is doing.
What do you think the Church needs to filter today so that gifts can be used to build the Body? Where have you seen chaos and abuse because proper filtering was not done? Are you open to tongues and the prophetic in your small group? If so what does order look like?
On a final note we need to address v.33b-35. This text certainly reminds us that Paul’s context was unique. What he needed to filter was very different than what we need to filter today. Paul needed to do some filtering on a very specific issue as it relates to women in the Church. I encourage you to check out the doc at http://cbesydney.org.au/articles/interpretations-and-application-of-1-corinthians-1434-35/ I would encourage you not to gloss over this but to dig in and appreciate the unique context of Paul.
Let’s be a Body that Builds! Men and women working together so that the Body is built up and Christ is glorified.
Mark Kotchapaw
If interested in joining or starting a small group contact bethelcommunitygroups@gmail.com
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