Read: Matthew 7:1-23
Throughout the Sermon on the Mount Jesus has been describing how His followers should be different from the world around them and what life in the Kingdom of God should look like. At first glance it seems like this final section is just a series of unconnected statements about what we are supposed to be doing as followers of Jesus. If we look a little closer however, we begin to see two main themes that link these sections together.
The first of these themes is that of Humility. Firstly, God's people are to be humble by examining and working on their own lives before trying to examine and work on the lives of others. They are to take the plank out of their own eye before trying to remove the speck from their brothers. Secondly God's people are to be humble by asking God for His provision in their lives. Because of God's promise to answer our prayers we can ask with confidence that if we God to Him for something we need, He is faithful to answer our prayer. God's people are to be humble with each other and humble before God in prayer.
The second of these major themes is that of wisdom. Firstly God's people are to exercise wisdom in the way that they live. They are to choose the narrow road rather than the wide one. In one sense we have already made that choice when we chose to follow Christ. In another sense we must choose every day to strive for holiness and choose the narrow road in all we do. Secondly God's people are to be wise about true and false teaching and, rather than be sucked in by false teaching and eaten by wolves, judge teachers by the fruit we see in their lives. God's people are to be discerning in the way that they approach teaching.
God's people are to be different from the world by their humility and their wisdom. Are you different from the world in this way? Are you proud or humble? Do you choose to put others first or yourself? Do you humbly examine yourself before judging others? Do you humbly ask God for His provision? Do you live wisely by choosing the narrow way rather than the wide way? Are you discerning with regards to teaching you consume from others? Do you measure what they teach against the truth of God's word? Spend some time today praying that God would grow you in humility and wisdom so that you might be salt and light to those around you.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray for Shiloh Ministries in India. Praise God for the Free Eye Medical Camp which they were able to run in April. Pray that those who received tracts and heard about the gospel would be deeply touched and would come to faith in Christ. Pray that God would continue to work powerfully through this ministry and that the gospel would be shared with power and authority.
¥ Pray for Rev David Burke and Rev David Jones as they present and training workshop in East Timor. Pray that they would be able to communicate clearly and that those who hear the training would be encouraged in their preaching and sharing of the gospel. Pray that God would grow and strengthen His church in East Timor.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Humility is an important aspect of living as a follower of Jesus. What can you do to grow in humility in your life?
2. How can you help each other to grow in humility this week?
Friday 31 May 2013
Thursday 30 May 2013
Thursday 30 May 2013
Read: Matthew 6
People live to please those who are most important to them. Think about it. If my family is my highest priority I will seek to provide for them, spend time with them and make their lives happy and enjoyable. If my boss is my highest priority I will work long hours and work hard to please him. If I am my own highest priority I will do whatever gives me greatest pleasure and satisfaction at any cost to others. These three examples are common ones amongst all people in our society but Jesus has other plans for His followers.
Notice the underlying theme throughout Matthew 6? Followers of Jesus are to be living to please God. Followers of Jesus are to give to others in order to bring God pleasure rather than for their own reputation or glory. Followers of Jesus are to pray and fast focused on God rather than on the opinion of men around them. Followers of Jesus are to use their treasure for the Kingdom of God rather than for themselves. Those who follow Jesus are to have their focus and attention on God rather than on themselves.
Look at verse 33 and 34. God's people are not to worry about themselves and their lives, they are to be focused on God's Kingdom first, to live for God's glory first and to seek His righteousness first. The focus of God's people is not firstly on family or on work or on self, it is on God. Everything that God's people do is for the Kingdom of God and is focused on our great King. God's people use their time, their talents and their treasures for His sake rather than their own. God's people are 100% sold out for Him.
How does this look in your life? Is your greatest pleasure and focus God? Do you live for His glory or for your own? Do you give for your reputation or for God's reputation? Do you pray to make yourself look good or to make others look good? Do you live for God's Kingdom and seek after His righteousness first? Pray today about how you can live for God's glory and kingdom today.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray that God would grow in your heart and in the hearts of all in your church a deep passion and love for Him. Pray that you would be living for His glory alone and that you would be focused on Him alone in all things.
Pray for the men of the church as they gather together tonight to encourage one another and challenge each other in their faith. Pray that God would strengthen the men of the congregation in their love for Him and help them to lead their families well.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. What would it look like in 21st Century Australia to be a person with your mind on the kingdom of heaven?
2. How can you counter worry and anxiety in your life with the biblical truth from this chapter? What are some practical ways you can remember the teaching of Jesus?
3. How can you use your finances for the Kingdom of God?
People live to please those who are most important to them. Think about it. If my family is my highest priority I will seek to provide for them, spend time with them and make their lives happy and enjoyable. If my boss is my highest priority I will work long hours and work hard to please him. If I am my own highest priority I will do whatever gives me greatest pleasure and satisfaction at any cost to others. These three examples are common ones amongst all people in our society but Jesus has other plans for His followers.
Notice the underlying theme throughout Matthew 6? Followers of Jesus are to be living to please God. Followers of Jesus are to give to others in order to bring God pleasure rather than for their own reputation or glory. Followers of Jesus are to pray and fast focused on God rather than on the opinion of men around them. Followers of Jesus are to use their treasure for the Kingdom of God rather than for themselves. Those who follow Jesus are to have their focus and attention on God rather than on themselves.
Look at verse 33 and 34. God's people are not to worry about themselves and their lives, they are to be focused on God's Kingdom first, to live for God's glory first and to seek His righteousness first. The focus of God's people is not firstly on family or on work or on self, it is on God. Everything that God's people do is for the Kingdom of God and is focused on our great King. God's people use their time, their talents and their treasures for His sake rather than their own. God's people are 100% sold out for Him.
How does this look in your life? Is your greatest pleasure and focus God? Do you live for His glory or for your own? Do you give for your reputation or for God's reputation? Do you pray to make yourself look good or to make others look good? Do you live for God's Kingdom and seek after His righteousness first? Pray today about how you can live for God's glory and kingdom today.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray that God would grow in your heart and in the hearts of all in your church a deep passion and love for Him. Pray that you would be living for His glory alone and that you would be focused on Him alone in all things.
Pray for the men of the church as they gather together tonight to encourage one another and challenge each other in their faith. Pray that God would strengthen the men of the congregation in their love for Him and help them to lead their families well.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. What would it look like in 21st Century Australia to be a person with your mind on the kingdom of heaven?
2. How can you counter worry and anxiety in your life with the biblical truth from this chapter? What are some practical ways you can remember the teaching of Jesus?
3. How can you use your finances for the Kingdom of God?
Wednesday 29 May 2013
Wednesday 29 May 2013
Jesus Challenge:
If we are truly living as Jesus teaches in the Sermon on the Mount we will be a powerful witness into our community. Think about how you can be a witness at work, in your family, at a sporting event etc. How can you help one another to be a witness to the non-Christians in these various aspects of your life? Make a list of things that you could do to help one another and seek to put them into action this week.
Read: Matthew 5:17-48
So many Christians today place a very low value on God's law. At best those who think little of God's law might ignore it in the hope that it will just go away. At worst they actively teach that Christians should totally disregard it. Jesus doesn't leave room for either of these positions about the law. In fact, Jesus has a very high view of the law. Verse 17 says "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them." Jesus goes on in this section to describe a way of life for His followers which does not lessen the requirements of the law, but increase them.
Followers of Jesus are to live totally differently from the world around them, in a way which is far more radical than the law was for the Jews. Rather than just not murder, followers of Jesus are not to be angry with one another. Rather than just not commit adultery, Jesus' followers are not even to lust after another man's wife. The list goes on: followers of Jesus are to treat marriage with the utmost respect, followers of Jesus are to keep their word, to respond to attack with generosity and to not only love one another, but love each other.
Notice something about all of these commands Jesus gives. Jesus is moving from external action to real heart change. Of course Jesus doesn't want His people to murder, but He really wants real heart change which will result in them not even being angry at each other. Rather than take revenge Jesus wants His followers to respond with kindness and grace from the heart. Those who follow Jesus are to be different from the world even in their hearts.
Take a moment to read over Jesus commands and to think about your own heart. Do you get angry with other believers? Do you lust after women or men who aren't your spouse? Do you value marriage? Do you keep your word? Do you respond with generosity and grace in the face of attack? Do you even love your enemies? Pray that God would reveal to you where you fall short of His standard. Confess those things to Him and pray that He would continue to change your heart to be more like Him.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray for the believers in Nigeria who face terrible and harsh persecution by the government. Praise God for the bore hole which was able to be built for a Christian community there. Pray that God would give them courage and boldness to preach the word of God and that they would be encouraged and strengthened in their faith.
¥ Pray for the youth at your church. Pray that God would grow them in their passion and their love for Him and that they would seek to live their lives for Him. Pray that God would increase the youth in your church and that the congregation would be able to reach many young people with the love of Christ.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Look again at how Jesus' followers are to live in Matthew 5:21-48. Which of these commands do you find the most challenging to keep?
2. How can you encourage and help one another to live according to Christ's teaching in these areas?
If we are truly living as Jesus teaches in the Sermon on the Mount we will be a powerful witness into our community. Think about how you can be a witness at work, in your family, at a sporting event etc. How can you help one another to be a witness to the non-Christians in these various aspects of your life? Make a list of things that you could do to help one another and seek to put them into action this week.
Read: Matthew 5:17-48
So many Christians today place a very low value on God's law. At best those who think little of God's law might ignore it in the hope that it will just go away. At worst they actively teach that Christians should totally disregard it. Jesus doesn't leave room for either of these positions about the law. In fact, Jesus has a very high view of the law. Verse 17 says "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them." Jesus goes on in this section to describe a way of life for His followers which does not lessen the requirements of the law, but increase them.
Followers of Jesus are to live totally differently from the world around them, in a way which is far more radical than the law was for the Jews. Rather than just not murder, followers of Jesus are not to be angry with one another. Rather than just not commit adultery, Jesus' followers are not even to lust after another man's wife. The list goes on: followers of Jesus are to treat marriage with the utmost respect, followers of Jesus are to keep their word, to respond to attack with generosity and to not only love one another, but love each other.
Notice something about all of these commands Jesus gives. Jesus is moving from external action to real heart change. Of course Jesus doesn't want His people to murder, but He really wants real heart change which will result in them not even being angry at each other. Rather than take revenge Jesus wants His followers to respond with kindness and grace from the heart. Those who follow Jesus are to be different from the world even in their hearts.
Take a moment to read over Jesus commands and to think about your own heart. Do you get angry with other believers? Do you lust after women or men who aren't your spouse? Do you value marriage? Do you keep your word? Do you respond with generosity and grace in the face of attack? Do you even love your enemies? Pray that God would reveal to you where you fall short of His standard. Confess those things to Him and pray that He would continue to change your heart to be more like Him.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray for the believers in Nigeria who face terrible and harsh persecution by the government. Praise God for the bore hole which was able to be built for a Christian community there. Pray that God would give them courage and boldness to preach the word of God and that they would be encouraged and strengthened in their faith.
¥ Pray for the youth at your church. Pray that God would grow them in their passion and their love for Him and that they would seek to live their lives for Him. Pray that God would increase the youth in your church and that the congregation would be able to reach many young people with the love of Christ.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Look again at how Jesus' followers are to live in Matthew 5:21-48. Which of these commands do you find the most challenging to keep?
2. How can you encourage and help one another to live according to Christ's teaching in these areas?
Tuesday 28 May 2013
Tuesday 28 May 2013
Read: Matthew 5:1-16
Just like every speech should have a gripping and memorable conclusion the introduction should also grab and maintain people's attention. The people who study these things say that a speaker has less than a minute to capture the attention of the audience if they wish them to listen. As a master of speech and teaching Jesus understood this and begins his sermon with a very curious introduction.
Jesus begins by listing the characteristics that should describe His followers. Things like: poor in spirit, those who mourn, meek, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, merciful, pure in heart, those who are persecuted. Based on this passage it is easy to understand why the world is amazed at true followers of Jesus. These aren't things that one would expect to hear at a non-Christian rally or pep-talk. That is the point of Jesus teaching however. Followers of Jesus should be living totally differently to the world. Our standards are totally different. Our behaviour is totally different. We are totally different because we are transformed and changed by Christ and His work within us. It is when we live according to these principals of the kingdom that we will be the salt of the earth and the light of the world. When we live by Jesus' teachings those in the world will see something different and be drawn to Christ.
How often do Christians, rather than live the kingdom life, simply live according to the ways of the world instead? How often do we just do our best to blend in, to live like everyone else. We sit in the corner and try not to make any commotion that would get us noticed by the world. Rather than follow the teachings of Jesus we follow the teachings of TV, movies, music, books or popular opinion. Rather than live radical lives to follow Jesus we live lives of quiet submission to the world.
How do you live? Do you follow the teachings of Jesus no matter the cost? Do you live in a way which is totally different from the world? Do you stand out as a follower of Jesus or do you blend into the background, afraid to be seen? How can you live radically for Jesus today? How can you be the salt of the earth and the light of the world by how you live today?
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray for the congregation of your church. Pray that God would raise up in the hearts of each member a passion to live radical lives for His kingdom. Pray that God would build amongst the church a passion for Him and a fervent desire to see the gospel preached and God's kingdom grown.
¥ Pray for Jim and Faye Lyons and their involvement with Straight Talk Australia. Praise God for the encouraging times they have had recently sharing their message. Pray that God would strengthen them and give them opportunities to speak in schools and youth groups. Pray that the young people who hear the message would be receptive and choose to live by God's standard for sexuality.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. What are some ways that Christians try to blend in with the world and accept its standards?
2. How would it look different to live as a follower of Jesus?
Just like every speech should have a gripping and memorable conclusion the introduction should also grab and maintain people's attention. The people who study these things say that a speaker has less than a minute to capture the attention of the audience if they wish them to listen. As a master of speech and teaching Jesus understood this and begins his sermon with a very curious introduction.
Jesus begins by listing the characteristics that should describe His followers. Things like: poor in spirit, those who mourn, meek, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, merciful, pure in heart, those who are persecuted. Based on this passage it is easy to understand why the world is amazed at true followers of Jesus. These aren't things that one would expect to hear at a non-Christian rally or pep-talk. That is the point of Jesus teaching however. Followers of Jesus should be living totally differently to the world. Our standards are totally different. Our behaviour is totally different. We are totally different because we are transformed and changed by Christ and His work within us. It is when we live according to these principals of the kingdom that we will be the salt of the earth and the light of the world. When we live by Jesus' teachings those in the world will see something different and be drawn to Christ.
How often do Christians, rather than live the kingdom life, simply live according to the ways of the world instead? How often do we just do our best to blend in, to live like everyone else. We sit in the corner and try not to make any commotion that would get us noticed by the world. Rather than follow the teachings of Jesus we follow the teachings of TV, movies, music, books or popular opinion. Rather than live radical lives to follow Jesus we live lives of quiet submission to the world.
How do you live? Do you follow the teachings of Jesus no matter the cost? Do you live in a way which is totally different from the world? Do you stand out as a follower of Jesus or do you blend into the background, afraid to be seen? How can you live radically for Jesus today? How can you be the salt of the earth and the light of the world by how you live today?
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray for the congregation of your church. Pray that God would raise up in the hearts of each member a passion to live radical lives for His kingdom. Pray that God would build amongst the church a passion for Him and a fervent desire to see the gospel preached and God's kingdom grown.
¥ Pray for Jim and Faye Lyons and their involvement with Straight Talk Australia. Praise God for the encouraging times they have had recently sharing their message. Pray that God would strengthen them and give them opportunities to speak in schools and youth groups. Pray that the young people who hear the message would be receptive and choose to live by God's standard for sexuality.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. What are some ways that Christians try to blend in with the world and accept its standards?
2. How would it look different to live as a follower of Jesus?
Monday 27 May 2013
Weekly Challenge
Try to read the whole Sermon on the Mount in one sitting today. Make notes about what Jesus is teaching His followers to do then write down one small thing that you can change or do today to begin to put some of these teachings into practice.
Read:
Matthew 7:24-29,
James 1:19-27
Everyone who is consistently involved in public speaking knows that the conclusion is one of the most (if not the most) important parts of any speech. The conclusion is the part of the speech which is most likely to stay in the mind of the audience, the most likely to be remembered and the most likely to be acted upon. In this, the last section of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus proves just how masterful He is as a speaker and teacher by concluding with a gripping and chilling parable.
The point of Jesus' conclusion is exceedingly clear: those who build their lives on Him and live by His teaching are like those who build their houses on the rock, they will be able to withstand much. On the other hand, those who do not live by Jesus teaching are like those who build their lives on the sand. Because their foundation is weak and untrustworthy they cannot stand when tough and difficult times come their way.
This applies directly to our lives as followers of Jesus. If we truly follow Jesus then we must obey His teaching and live as He commanded us. We cannot merely listen to what Jesus says and claim that that is enough. We cannot say that we believe unless we can prove it by the way that we live. James echoes this same thought in James 1:22 "Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what is says."
This should not undermine the wonder of what Christ has done on our behalf. We do not earn our salvation or make ourselves right with God by what we do. This should cause us to pause and reflect on what Jesus has taught in the whole of the Sermon on the Mount. If Jesus chooses to finish with this powerful parable we must seriously consider everything He has taught and seek to put it into practice. Which words is Jesus referring to in verse 24? How should we live to base our lives on the rock? This week as we take a broad look again at the whole of the Sermon on the Mount, consider how you might be able to put these words of Jesus into practice. Are you living on the rock now? Does your life reflect your faith in Jesus?
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Supplication:
¥ Pray for the Presbyterian church at Warwick. Pray that God would raise a spirit of unity amongst the congregation and the leadership. Pray that God would raise up preachers and worship leaders from the congregation and that the church would grow as the gospel is preached and many come to faith in Christ.
¥ Pray for the ministry of Student Life on university campuses around Australia. Pray that God would use the students and leaders to preach the gospel faithfully and boldly so that many might believe. Pray that God would give wisdom to the leadership team that they might be able to make good decisions for the sake of His kingdom.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Read the whole of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) together as a group. Take turns reading if you need to.
2. What do you think is the main point Jesus is making in the sermon on the mount?
3. What would you say if you had to summarise the message of the Sermon on the Mount for a non-Christian?
Try to read the whole Sermon on the Mount in one sitting today. Make notes about what Jesus is teaching His followers to do then write down one small thing that you can change or do today to begin to put some of these teachings into practice.
Read:
Matthew 7:24-29,
James 1:19-27
Everyone who is consistently involved in public speaking knows that the conclusion is one of the most (if not the most) important parts of any speech. The conclusion is the part of the speech which is most likely to stay in the mind of the audience, the most likely to be remembered and the most likely to be acted upon. In this, the last section of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus proves just how masterful He is as a speaker and teacher by concluding with a gripping and chilling parable.
The point of Jesus' conclusion is exceedingly clear: those who build their lives on Him and live by His teaching are like those who build their houses on the rock, they will be able to withstand much. On the other hand, those who do not live by Jesus teaching are like those who build their lives on the sand. Because their foundation is weak and untrustworthy they cannot stand when tough and difficult times come their way.
This applies directly to our lives as followers of Jesus. If we truly follow Jesus then we must obey His teaching and live as He commanded us. We cannot merely listen to what Jesus says and claim that that is enough. We cannot say that we believe unless we can prove it by the way that we live. James echoes this same thought in James 1:22 "Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what is says."
This should not undermine the wonder of what Christ has done on our behalf. We do not earn our salvation or make ourselves right with God by what we do. This should cause us to pause and reflect on what Jesus has taught in the whole of the Sermon on the Mount. If Jesus chooses to finish with this powerful parable we must seriously consider everything He has taught and seek to put it into practice. Which words is Jesus referring to in verse 24? How should we live to base our lives on the rock? This week as we take a broad look again at the whole of the Sermon on the Mount, consider how you might be able to put these words of Jesus into practice. Are you living on the rock now? Does your life reflect your faith in Jesus?
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Supplication:
¥ Pray for the Presbyterian church at Warwick. Pray that God would raise a spirit of unity amongst the congregation and the leadership. Pray that God would raise up preachers and worship leaders from the congregation and that the church would grow as the gospel is preached and many come to faith in Christ.
¥ Pray for the ministry of Student Life on university campuses around Australia. Pray that God would use the students and leaders to preach the gospel faithfully and boldly so that many might believe. Pray that God would give wisdom to the leadership team that they might be able to make good decisions for the sake of His kingdom.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Read the whole of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) together as a group. Take turns reading if you need to.
2. What do you think is the main point Jesus is making in the sermon on the mount?
3. What would you say if you had to summarise the message of the Sermon on the Mount for a non-Christian?
Sunday 26 May 2013
Saturday 25 May 2013
Read: 1 Peter 2:9-12, Matthew 5:13-16
How do you think unbelievers would view the different characters we met at the beginning of the week? Firstly we met 'everyone's-a-heretic' Harold who judges everyone's salvation and state before God on the basis of his own beliefs and standards. In his eyes if you don't adhere to Harold's beliefs you might as well be an unbeliever. Imagine that Harold also has a number of sins in his life which he is unwilling to admit to or work to deal with. In the eyes of the world this would seem to be the typical fundamentalist Christian: a person who is unwilling to budge on any issues with no grace for anyone else. How effective do you think that Harold's witness is going to be to the non-Christians around him?
Secondly we met 'nobody's-wrong' Nelly who will willingly accept any kind of teaching or beliefs without question or argument. 'Nobody's-wrong' Nelly won't stand for anything, let alone argue about true and false teachings. Imagine how the non-Christians in Nelly's life will view her and her beliefs. She probably won't bother or trouble them but, without standing for the gospel how can she possibly accomplish the mission of sharing her faith? When she refuses to stand up for Christianity around others what does that communicate about the gospel?
What about our friend 'discerning' Damian? Damian is willing to stand up and fight for his beliefs but approaches them in a way which is gracious and humble. Damian is more than willing to have a spiritual conversation with someone who doesn't know Jesus, in fact he often initiates those conversations. Imagine too that Damian is always striving to be more like Jesus in the way that he lives his life and is actively striving for holiness. Damian is going to be much more effective in sharing the gospel with others than either Nelly or Harold because of the way that he lives and the way that he approaches sharing his faith.
Jesus command to judge true and false teachers by their fruits cuts both ways. If we are going to effectively teach the world about their sinfulness and brokenness before God and preach to them the wonder of salvation through Christ the fruit of our lives must match the message we preach. Those around you who don't know Christ will be constantly assessing you by your fruit and judging your message by it. Peter commands us to live such holy lives before those who don't know Christ that they cannot help but turn and give the glory to God for what He has done. It is only by standing for the truth and backing up our message by our fruit that we can truly be the salt and light in our fallen world.
What about you? Does your life properly reflect the wonder of what Christ has done for you? Does the message of your life confirm the message of Christ? Are you preaching the gospel by how you live and by the things that you stand for?
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray for the gathering of God's people at your church tomorrow. Pray that God would be glorified in every aspect of the service. Pray that the preaching of God's word would be faithful to His word and bold in its delivery. Pray that many around the world would hear today about what Christ has done for them and that many would come to faith in Him.
¥ Pray for the Presbyterian church in Maranoa. Praise God for the increase He has brought in regular numbers. Pray that God would raise people who are passionate to get involved in ministry and to share the gospel with others. Pray that God would grow all the members of the congregation in their relationship with Him.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Tell the group about an area of your life where you are involved with those who don't know Jesus. What would it look like to do such good deeds in that area so that those who don't know Jesus would glorify Him?
2. How can you practically help one another to live out these ideas this week?
How do you think unbelievers would view the different characters we met at the beginning of the week? Firstly we met 'everyone's-a-heretic' Harold who judges everyone's salvation and state before God on the basis of his own beliefs and standards. In his eyes if you don't adhere to Harold's beliefs you might as well be an unbeliever. Imagine that Harold also has a number of sins in his life which he is unwilling to admit to or work to deal with. In the eyes of the world this would seem to be the typical fundamentalist Christian: a person who is unwilling to budge on any issues with no grace for anyone else. How effective do you think that Harold's witness is going to be to the non-Christians around him?
Secondly we met 'nobody's-wrong' Nelly who will willingly accept any kind of teaching or beliefs without question or argument. 'Nobody's-wrong' Nelly won't stand for anything, let alone argue about true and false teachings. Imagine how the non-Christians in Nelly's life will view her and her beliefs. She probably won't bother or trouble them but, without standing for the gospel how can she possibly accomplish the mission of sharing her faith? When she refuses to stand up for Christianity around others what does that communicate about the gospel?
What about our friend 'discerning' Damian? Damian is willing to stand up and fight for his beliefs but approaches them in a way which is gracious and humble. Damian is more than willing to have a spiritual conversation with someone who doesn't know Jesus, in fact he often initiates those conversations. Imagine too that Damian is always striving to be more like Jesus in the way that he lives his life and is actively striving for holiness. Damian is going to be much more effective in sharing the gospel with others than either Nelly or Harold because of the way that he lives and the way that he approaches sharing his faith.
Jesus command to judge true and false teachers by their fruits cuts both ways. If we are going to effectively teach the world about their sinfulness and brokenness before God and preach to them the wonder of salvation through Christ the fruit of our lives must match the message we preach. Those around you who don't know Christ will be constantly assessing you by your fruit and judging your message by it. Peter commands us to live such holy lives before those who don't know Christ that they cannot help but turn and give the glory to God for what He has done. It is only by standing for the truth and backing up our message by our fruit that we can truly be the salt and light in our fallen world.
What about you? Does your life properly reflect the wonder of what Christ has done for you? Does the message of your life confirm the message of Christ? Are you preaching the gospel by how you live and by the things that you stand for?
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray for the gathering of God's people at your church tomorrow. Pray that God would be glorified in every aspect of the service. Pray that the preaching of God's word would be faithful to His word and bold in its delivery. Pray that many around the world would hear today about what Christ has done for them and that many would come to faith in Him.
¥ Pray for the Presbyterian church in Maranoa. Praise God for the increase He has brought in regular numbers. Pray that God would raise people who are passionate to get involved in ministry and to share the gospel with others. Pray that God would grow all the members of the congregation in their relationship with Him.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Tell the group about an area of your life where you are involved with those who don't know Jesus. What would it look like to do such good deeds in that area so that those who don't know Jesus would glorify Him?
2. How can you practically help one another to live out these ideas this week?
Friday 24 May 2013
Friday 24 May 2013
Read: Matthew 7:21-23, Matthew 24:23-28, 2 Thessalonians 2:5-12
Think back to Moses and the Israelites as slaves in Egypt. God commands Moses and Aaron to go before Pharaoh and demand the release of His people. To show that God is with them Aaron throws his staff on the ground and it becomes a snake. Quite an amazing trick! You would think that this would convince Pharaoh but Pharaoh's magicians perform the same trick. Because of this, Pharaoh hardens his heart and ignores the message God is sending. magicians continue to emulate the first of the 10 plagues but, by the third plague, are admitting defeat before the almighty God.
The point is this: it is very easy to be convinced and persuaded the working of miracles but they are not always a sign from God. In fact, the Bible warns us many times to be wary of miracles as they can lead people astray. In 2 Thessalonians 2 confirms the existence of false and misleading miracles in verse 9: "The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders." Jesus also warns His followers to be wary of signs and miracles in Matthew 24.
When we understand that false miracles exist and can lead people astray it begins to make sense why Jesus would start talking about miracles in the middle of a discussion on true and false teaching. We are to be like 'discerning' Damian and discern true teaching from false teaching we cannot measure its merits based on signs and miracles. We must avoid being 'sucked in' but such things and instead measure truth against what is taught in the Bible and wisely observe the fruit of the teachers. Only then can we properly discern true teaching.
These words of Jesus should make us pause for another reason. Even though these people are doing miracles in the name of Jesus, they are not saved and they don't know Him. We should pause and reflect on our own lives. We can get so caught up in things that we do for Jesus that we don't actually have saving faith in Jesus. This is not to say that we can lose our salvation, but we must reflect on whether or not we truly have faith in Christ. Do you truly know Christ? If you would like to know more have another look over last weeks readings.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray for the church camp happening this weekend at Goomburra. Pray that God would watch over everyone as they travel to and from the campsite and that they would grow in fellowship as they gather together over the weekend and learn about what it means to honour God in relationships.
Pray for the 400,000 known Christians in North Korea, the most difficult country to be a Christian in the world for the past 10 years. Pray that God would strengthen them and give them courage to preach the Gospel boldly and with confidence despite the harsh treatment of Christians by the government. Pray that many in North Korea would come to saving faith in Jesus.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Do you think that you would be sucked in by a false teacher doing amazing miracles in front of you? What can you do to protect yourself against this sort of trickery?
2. What can you do as a group to help protect each other from false teaching?
Think back to Moses and the Israelites as slaves in Egypt. God commands Moses and Aaron to go before Pharaoh and demand the release of His people. To show that God is with them Aaron throws his staff on the ground and it becomes a snake. Quite an amazing trick! You would think that this would convince Pharaoh but Pharaoh's magicians perform the same trick. Because of this, Pharaoh hardens his heart and ignores the message God is sending. magicians continue to emulate the first of the 10 plagues but, by the third plague, are admitting defeat before the almighty God.
The point is this: it is very easy to be convinced and persuaded the working of miracles but they are not always a sign from God. In fact, the Bible warns us many times to be wary of miracles as they can lead people astray. In 2 Thessalonians 2 confirms the existence of false and misleading miracles in verse 9: "The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders." Jesus also warns His followers to be wary of signs and miracles in Matthew 24.
When we understand that false miracles exist and can lead people astray it begins to make sense why Jesus would start talking about miracles in the middle of a discussion on true and false teaching. We are to be like 'discerning' Damian and discern true teaching from false teaching we cannot measure its merits based on signs and miracles. We must avoid being 'sucked in' but such things and instead measure truth against what is taught in the Bible and wisely observe the fruit of the teachers. Only then can we properly discern true teaching.
These words of Jesus should make us pause for another reason. Even though these people are doing miracles in the name of Jesus, they are not saved and they don't know Him. We should pause and reflect on our own lives. We can get so caught up in things that we do for Jesus that we don't actually have saving faith in Jesus. This is not to say that we can lose our salvation, but we must reflect on whether or not we truly have faith in Christ. Do you truly know Christ? If you would like to know more have another look over last weeks readings.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray for the church camp happening this weekend at Goomburra. Pray that God would watch over everyone as they travel to and from the campsite and that they would grow in fellowship as they gather together over the weekend and learn about what it means to honour God in relationships.
Pray for the 400,000 known Christians in North Korea, the most difficult country to be a Christian in the world for the past 10 years. Pray that God would strengthen them and give them courage to preach the Gospel boldly and with confidence despite the harsh treatment of Christians by the government. Pray that many in North Korea would come to saving faith in Jesus.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Do you think that you would be sucked in by a false teacher doing amazing miracles in front of you? What can you do to protect yourself against this sort of trickery?
2. What can you do as a group to help protect each other from false teaching?
Thursday 23 May 2013
Read: Hebrews 4:14-16, 2 Corinthians 5:16-21
How can we be sure that we can trust Jesus' teaching? If we are truly taking seriously His command to evaluate the teaching of others then shouldn't we apply the same standard to His teaching? Surely the teacher is not above the rules. As we study Jesus' command for us to evaluate teaching by the fruit we see in the lives of the teacher we should also turn the microscope on Jesus' life. Did He really live up to the standard He taught?
In Hebrews 4:15 the writer makes the most stunning statement about the character (or fruit) of Jesus life: "For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are -yet was without sin." If we ever had any questions about the character of Jesus or the fruit in His life this passage seems to quash them all. Jesus is the perfect example of good fruit showing the truth of one's teachings. Not only is the trustworthiness of Jesus' teachings proved by His sinless life, the fact that He was tempted in every way means that He is able to sympathize with our weaknesses and His teaching becomes practical and relevant to our lives.
2 Corinthians 5:21 also proves Jesus' character: "God made Him who had no sin be sin for us..." Because Jesus had no sin and resisted all temptation He is able to die in our place, taking the penalty for our sins, and restore us to right relationship with God. However, Jesus did more than just live without sin, He also exemplified the fruit we studied yesterday in Galatians. Think about this:
Love - Jesus showed perfect love for all of us by dying on the cross for His enemies.
Joy - Despite being homeless and many trying to kill Him Jesus demonstrates a life of incredible joy and love for others.
Peace - When enemies surrounded Him, Jesus was not flustered or stressed, His peace was in God.
Patience - Jesus showed boundless patience with mankind, dying for us when we continually turn away from Him.
Kindness - Jesus demonstrated love and kindness even to the outcasts of society.
Goodness - As God, Jesus is perfectly good, demonstrating this in giving good things to us, even His own life.
Faithfulness - Jesus promises to be with us always, even to the end of the age. Jesus always keeps his promises.
Gentleness - Jesus shows incredible gentleness to the abused and the broken, even allowing the sinful woman to wash His feet.
Self-control - Despite being tempted in every way Jesus never gave in to sin (Hebrews 4)
The fruit shown in Jesus' life is overwhelming. We can trust Jesus' teachings without any question or hesitation. Of course, no other teacher can live up to the perfect standard set by Christ, but we should be constantly weighing up the teaching we hear with the fruit we see in the life of the teacher. We should compare the way they live with the way that Jesus' lived and see how they are striving to live a holy life. Only then can we trust their teaching.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Praise God that He lived a life without any sin so that you might be able to have a relationship with Him. Pray that God would help you to be more like Christ in every way and that He would show you the areas where you fall short of His standard.
¥ Pray for Andrew and Marilyn Schache in the service at the Talua Ministry Training Centre in Vanuatu. Praise God that He has supplied the necessary financial support. Pray that they would be a blessing to the staff and students at the centre and that God would use them to build His kingdom.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Why do you think it was important that Jesus was without sin?
2. How would Christianity and the message of Jesus be different if Jesus had sinned?
How can we be sure that we can trust Jesus' teaching? If we are truly taking seriously His command to evaluate the teaching of others then shouldn't we apply the same standard to His teaching? Surely the teacher is not above the rules. As we study Jesus' command for us to evaluate teaching by the fruit we see in the lives of the teacher we should also turn the microscope on Jesus' life. Did He really live up to the standard He taught?
In Hebrews 4:15 the writer makes the most stunning statement about the character (or fruit) of Jesus life: "For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are -yet was without sin." If we ever had any questions about the character of Jesus or the fruit in His life this passage seems to quash them all. Jesus is the perfect example of good fruit showing the truth of one's teachings. Not only is the trustworthiness of Jesus' teachings proved by His sinless life, the fact that He was tempted in every way means that He is able to sympathize with our weaknesses and His teaching becomes practical and relevant to our lives.
2 Corinthians 5:21 also proves Jesus' character: "God made Him who had no sin be sin for us..." Because Jesus had no sin and resisted all temptation He is able to die in our place, taking the penalty for our sins, and restore us to right relationship with God. However, Jesus did more than just live without sin, He also exemplified the fruit we studied yesterday in Galatians. Think about this:
Love - Jesus showed perfect love for all of us by dying on the cross for His enemies.
Joy - Despite being homeless and many trying to kill Him Jesus demonstrates a life of incredible joy and love for others.
Peace - When enemies surrounded Him, Jesus was not flustered or stressed, His peace was in God.
Patience - Jesus showed boundless patience with mankind, dying for us when we continually turn away from Him.
Kindness - Jesus demonstrated love and kindness even to the outcasts of society.
Goodness - As God, Jesus is perfectly good, demonstrating this in giving good things to us, even His own life.
Faithfulness - Jesus promises to be with us always, even to the end of the age. Jesus always keeps his promises.
Gentleness - Jesus shows incredible gentleness to the abused and the broken, even allowing the sinful woman to wash His feet.
Self-control - Despite being tempted in every way Jesus never gave in to sin (Hebrews 4)
The fruit shown in Jesus' life is overwhelming. We can trust Jesus' teachings without any question or hesitation. Of course, no other teacher can live up to the perfect standard set by Christ, but we should be constantly weighing up the teaching we hear with the fruit we see in the life of the teacher. We should compare the way they live with the way that Jesus' lived and see how they are striving to live a holy life. Only then can we trust their teaching.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Praise God that He lived a life without any sin so that you might be able to have a relationship with Him. Pray that God would help you to be more like Christ in every way and that He would show you the areas where you fall short of His standard.
¥ Pray for Andrew and Marilyn Schache in the service at the Talua Ministry Training Centre in Vanuatu. Praise God that He has supplied the necessary financial support. Pray that they would be a blessing to the staff and students at the centre and that God would use them to build His kingdom.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Why do you think it was important that Jesus was without sin?
2. How would Christianity and the message of Jesus be different if Jesus had sinned?
Thursday 23 May 2013
Wednesday 22 May 2013
Read: Matthew 7:15-21, Galatians 5:16-26
Do you ever have trouble picking good fruit in the supermarket? You can't cut a piece of fruit open in the supermarket to check if it is ripe enough, we need to figure out what is going on inside the fruit based on its outside. Every fruit has a different 'good fruit rule' for determining if it is ripe or not. For example, the skin of a ripe Hass avocado will turn brown and the fruit will be soft to the touch. When ripe, bananas go from green to yellow and begin showing black spots. By using these rules you can determine what is going on inside the fruit and whether or not it is worth eating.
Jesus commands us to be just as discerning and careful (if not more!) about false prophets and teachers in the church. But what are the 'good fruit rules' for teachers in the church? How do we tell which teachers are bad apples and which teachers serve up the sweet goodness of the Truth?
Jesus explains how to be discerning in Matthew 7:16: "By their fruit you will recognise them." In fact this is so important that Jesus repeats it again in verse 20! Jesus explains that a false teacher will always produce bad fruit whereas a good teacher will always produce good fruit. This is the 'good fruit rule' for teachers and prophets. We don't look for brown skin or squeeze them to see if they are soft, we look for the good fruit in their lives.
So what sort of good fruit is Jesus talking about? Verse 21 shows us: "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my father who is in heaven." Good fruit is not merely acknowledging that Jesus is Lord or crying out to Him. Good fruit is doing the will of God by obeying and honouring Him with our actions and by our character. Good fruit is about how we live. Galatians 5 shows us what this sort of life looks like.
Think about the Bible teachers who you benefit from in your own life. This could include those who you read, listen to or watch. Can you see good fruits in their lives? Does the way they teach the Word show the fruits of the spirit in Galatians? Can you see that they honour God in their family life, in their work life, in their speech and actions? Do you discern good teachers by their fruits?
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Praise God that technology allows good Bible teaching to be distributed globally with ease. Pray that Jesus' followers all over the world would be discerning and wise with what teaching they consume. Pray that the true gospel would be preached boldly and faithfully all over the world and that many would come to faith in Jesus.
¥ Pray for the MOPS group which is gathering this morning. Pray that the mothers who attend from the community would be encouraged and blessed by the time and that they would hear the truth of Christ and turn to faith in Him. Pray that God would raise up carers who can serve the mothers and bless the children.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. What sort of bad fruit would you have to see in the life of someone before you rejected them as a false teacher?
2. What sort of good fruit would you expect to see in the life of someone who is faithfully teaching the word of God?
3. How should we maintain a humble attitude as we measure teachers by their fruits so that we don't slip into the judgment talked about in Matthew 7:1-5?
Do you ever have trouble picking good fruit in the supermarket? You can't cut a piece of fruit open in the supermarket to check if it is ripe enough, we need to figure out what is going on inside the fruit based on its outside. Every fruit has a different 'good fruit rule' for determining if it is ripe or not. For example, the skin of a ripe Hass avocado will turn brown and the fruit will be soft to the touch. When ripe, bananas go from green to yellow and begin showing black spots. By using these rules you can determine what is going on inside the fruit and whether or not it is worth eating.
Jesus commands us to be just as discerning and careful (if not more!) about false prophets and teachers in the church. But what are the 'good fruit rules' for teachers in the church? How do we tell which teachers are bad apples and which teachers serve up the sweet goodness of the Truth?
Jesus explains how to be discerning in Matthew 7:16: "By their fruit you will recognise them." In fact this is so important that Jesus repeats it again in verse 20! Jesus explains that a false teacher will always produce bad fruit whereas a good teacher will always produce good fruit. This is the 'good fruit rule' for teachers and prophets. We don't look for brown skin or squeeze them to see if they are soft, we look for the good fruit in their lives.
So what sort of good fruit is Jesus talking about? Verse 21 shows us: "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my father who is in heaven." Good fruit is not merely acknowledging that Jesus is Lord or crying out to Him. Good fruit is doing the will of God by obeying and honouring Him with our actions and by our character. Good fruit is about how we live. Galatians 5 shows us what this sort of life looks like.
Think about the Bible teachers who you benefit from in your own life. This could include those who you read, listen to or watch. Can you see good fruits in their lives? Does the way they teach the Word show the fruits of the spirit in Galatians? Can you see that they honour God in their family life, in their work life, in their speech and actions? Do you discern good teachers by their fruits?
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Praise God that technology allows good Bible teaching to be distributed globally with ease. Pray that Jesus' followers all over the world would be discerning and wise with what teaching they consume. Pray that the true gospel would be preached boldly and faithfully all over the world and that many would come to faith in Jesus.
¥ Pray for the MOPS group which is gathering this morning. Pray that the mothers who attend from the community would be encouraged and blessed by the time and that they would hear the truth of Christ and turn to faith in Him. Pray that God would raise up carers who can serve the mothers and bless the children.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. What sort of bad fruit would you have to see in the life of someone before you rejected them as a false teacher?
2. What sort of good fruit would you expect to see in the life of someone who is faithfully teaching the word of God?
3. How should we maintain a humble attitude as we measure teachers by their fruits so that we don't slip into the judgment talked about in Matthew 7:1-5?
Tuesday 21 May 2013
Tuesday 21 May 2013
Read: Galatians 1:6-10, Acts 17:10-12
Yesterday we met 'everyone's-a-heretic' Harold and 'nobody's-wrong' Nelly. Let's meet a third member of the band: 'discerning' Damian. 'Discerning' Damian is always wise and careful with the teaching that he listens to or reads. He is careful about false prophets and more than willing to have a difficult conversation with someone who is teaching falsely. He is gracious and humble in his approach and manner whilst still holding tightly onto the matters of central importance to the gospel. So how does 'discerning' Damian do it? What are his weapons in the fight for truth? How can we seek to emulate 'discerning' Damian by being gracious and humble yet still carefully discerning matters of truth? Let's see how 'discerning' Damian does it.
On close examination of 'discerning' Damian's life the first thing we see is that he measures any and all teaching he hears or reads against the standard set out in the Bible. Our first and most important standard for measuring truth is the Bible. We see this standard at work in Galatians. The letter to the church in Galatia was written to counter false teaching in the church. A group called the Judaizers were going into the church in Galatia and teaching the gentile believers there that in order to be saved they needed to follow the law as well as accepting the work that Christ has done on their behalf. Paul writes to correct them and remind them that, in the words of an American preacher, "Jesus plus anything ruins everything!" Paul strongly condemns any other gospel which would be taught to the Galatians and, by implication, commands them to compare every teaching they hear against the true gospel.
Scripture is full of other places where believers are commanded to compare the teaching they hear against the truth of the Scriptures. Just like the Bereans in Acts 17 we are to examine the scriptures every day to see if what we hear is true.
Are you like 'discerning' Damian? Do you compare every teaching you hear against the truth of God's word? Do you examine the Scriptures daily? Do you study the Word to grow in your knowledge and understanding of Jesus and to be able to test every teaching against God's standard?
Let me challenge you; if you are not growing in your knowledge of God's word and filling your mind with truth, you will be easily taken in by the lies.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Praise God for the free gift of grace that you have been given through Jesus Christ and that you do not need to earn your salvation, rather that it is a gift of God. Pray for those in your life who do not know Jesus and have not received this great gift.
¥ Pray that God would give you opportunities and courage to share the good news. Pray for the Presbyterian church at Goondiwindi, Inglewood and Texas. Praise God for the slight increase in giving and numbers at Goondiwindi. Pray that this trend would continue and that God would powerfully grow His church. Pray that God would give consistency and growth to the other two centres and that they would be a powerful witness for Christ into their communities.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. What could you do this week to grow in your understanding of the Word and your ability to test and discern false teaching?
2. How can you help one another as a group to study the Word of God and grow in your understanding of it?
Yesterday we met 'everyone's-a-heretic' Harold and 'nobody's-wrong' Nelly. Let's meet a third member of the band: 'discerning' Damian. 'Discerning' Damian is always wise and careful with the teaching that he listens to or reads. He is careful about false prophets and more than willing to have a difficult conversation with someone who is teaching falsely. He is gracious and humble in his approach and manner whilst still holding tightly onto the matters of central importance to the gospel. So how does 'discerning' Damian do it? What are his weapons in the fight for truth? How can we seek to emulate 'discerning' Damian by being gracious and humble yet still carefully discerning matters of truth? Let's see how 'discerning' Damian does it.
On close examination of 'discerning' Damian's life the first thing we see is that he measures any and all teaching he hears or reads against the standard set out in the Bible. Our first and most important standard for measuring truth is the Bible. We see this standard at work in Galatians. The letter to the church in Galatia was written to counter false teaching in the church. A group called the Judaizers were going into the church in Galatia and teaching the gentile believers there that in order to be saved they needed to follow the law as well as accepting the work that Christ has done on their behalf. Paul writes to correct them and remind them that, in the words of an American preacher, "Jesus plus anything ruins everything!" Paul strongly condemns any other gospel which would be taught to the Galatians and, by implication, commands them to compare every teaching they hear against the true gospel.
Scripture is full of other places where believers are commanded to compare the teaching they hear against the truth of the Scriptures. Just like the Bereans in Acts 17 we are to examine the scriptures every day to see if what we hear is true.
Are you like 'discerning' Damian? Do you compare every teaching you hear against the truth of God's word? Do you examine the Scriptures daily? Do you study the Word to grow in your knowledge and understanding of Jesus and to be able to test every teaching against God's standard?
Let me challenge you; if you are not growing in your knowledge of God's word and filling your mind with truth, you will be easily taken in by the lies.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Praise God for the free gift of grace that you have been given through Jesus Christ and that you do not need to earn your salvation, rather that it is a gift of God. Pray for those in your life who do not know Jesus and have not received this great gift.
¥ Pray that God would give you opportunities and courage to share the good news. Pray for the Presbyterian church at Goondiwindi, Inglewood and Texas. Praise God for the slight increase in giving and numbers at Goondiwindi. Pray that this trend would continue and that God would powerfully grow His church. Pray that God would give consistency and growth to the other two centres and that they would be a powerful witness for Christ into their communities.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. What could you do this week to grow in your understanding of the Word and your ability to test and discern false teaching?
2. How can you help one another as a group to study the Word of God and grow in your understanding of it?
Monday 20 May 2013
Monday 20 May 2013
Weekly Challenge
Make a list of the sources from which you receive teaching about the Bible. This could include books, radio, church, small groups etc. Consider this week how you might be able to discern whether the teaching from these sources is true teaching or false teaching.
Read: Matthew 7:15,
2 Peter 2:1-3
In my experience Christian's seem to fall somewhere between two extremes. At one extreme sits 'everyone's-a-heretic' Harold. Harold can and will pick an argument with just about anyone. Harold thinks he has a monopoly on the truth. Unless you believe the very, very specific set of beliefs which he holds in his mind you are a total heretic. If he can't convince you of his views, to him you might as well be unsaved. At the other extreme sits 'nobody's-wrong' Nelly. Nelly has never picked a fight with anyone. She would never speak up or disagree about theology or teaching. Instead she is more than willing to accept almost anything she is told. In Nelly's mind it doesn't matter what you believe. After all, we're all saved aren't we?
Let's start with 'nobody's-wrong' Nelly. Is it really true that it doesn't matter what you believe or what you take in? Is it really 'anything goes' when it comes to teaching about the Bible? Jesus would disagree. In Matthew 7:15 Jesus commands us to "watch out for false prophets". Think about the implications of this. For there to be false prophets or false teachers there must be false teaching. There is true teaching and there is false teaching. There is right and wrong. God's people are called to discern between the two.
Peter doesn't mince words about these false teachers in 2 Peter 2:1, "They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them - bringing swift destruction on themselves." We would often prefer to assume that all those who teach the Bible have the best interest of the people at heart, but the truth is that there are those who are actively seeking to pervert the Gospel. There are those in the Christian church who are maliciously trying to deceive people for their own purposes. Jesus is commanding us not to be 'nobody's-wrong' Nelly but to be discerning and wise about teaching that we hear.
So how? How do we wisely discern true and false teaching, being careful about false prophets and false teachers, while not swinging to the other extreme and becoming 'everyone's-a-heretic' Harold? This week we will be discussing a Biblical approach for weighing up teaching, discerning about teachers and staying true to the gospel.
What about you? Do you consume whatever teaching is served before you? Are you happy to accept whatever is said without discernment? Do you measure all teaching you hear against the standard of God's word? Think this week about how you can be more discerning with what you consume.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray for the preaching of God's Word around the world this coming week. Pray that everywhere where believers gather to hear the Word that the teaching would be faithful and true. Pray that through the preaching of the Word this week that many would come to saving faith in Christ.
¥ Pray for all the cell groups that are gathering throughout this week. Pray that those who gather would be an encouragement to one another and that God would change lives through His Word.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Should a Christian confront someone who is teaching falsely? Why or why not?
2. Imagine you have a Christian friend who is listening to or reading false teaching. Should you get involved? Why or why not?
Make a list of the sources from which you receive teaching about the Bible. This could include books, radio, church, small groups etc. Consider this week how you might be able to discern whether the teaching from these sources is true teaching or false teaching.
Read: Matthew 7:15,
2 Peter 2:1-3
In my experience Christian's seem to fall somewhere between two extremes. At one extreme sits 'everyone's-a-heretic' Harold. Harold can and will pick an argument with just about anyone. Harold thinks he has a monopoly on the truth. Unless you believe the very, very specific set of beliefs which he holds in his mind you are a total heretic. If he can't convince you of his views, to him you might as well be unsaved. At the other extreme sits 'nobody's-wrong' Nelly. Nelly has never picked a fight with anyone. She would never speak up or disagree about theology or teaching. Instead she is more than willing to accept almost anything she is told. In Nelly's mind it doesn't matter what you believe. After all, we're all saved aren't we?
Let's start with 'nobody's-wrong' Nelly. Is it really true that it doesn't matter what you believe or what you take in? Is it really 'anything goes' when it comes to teaching about the Bible? Jesus would disagree. In Matthew 7:15 Jesus commands us to "watch out for false prophets". Think about the implications of this. For there to be false prophets or false teachers there must be false teaching. There is true teaching and there is false teaching. There is right and wrong. God's people are called to discern between the two.
Peter doesn't mince words about these false teachers in 2 Peter 2:1, "They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them - bringing swift destruction on themselves." We would often prefer to assume that all those who teach the Bible have the best interest of the people at heart, but the truth is that there are those who are actively seeking to pervert the Gospel. There are those in the Christian church who are maliciously trying to deceive people for their own purposes. Jesus is commanding us not to be 'nobody's-wrong' Nelly but to be discerning and wise about teaching that we hear.
So how? How do we wisely discern true and false teaching, being careful about false prophets and false teachers, while not swinging to the other extreme and becoming 'everyone's-a-heretic' Harold? This week we will be discussing a Biblical approach for weighing up teaching, discerning about teachers and staying true to the gospel.
What about you? Do you consume whatever teaching is served before you? Are you happy to accept whatever is said without discernment? Do you measure all teaching you hear against the standard of God's word? Think this week about how you can be more discerning with what you consume.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray for the preaching of God's Word around the world this coming week. Pray that everywhere where believers gather to hear the Word that the teaching would be faithful and true. Pray that through the preaching of the Word this week that many would come to saving faith in Christ.
¥ Pray for all the cell groups that are gathering throughout this week. Pray that those who gather would be an encouragement to one another and that God would change lives through His Word.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Should a Christian confront someone who is teaching falsely? Why or why not?
2. Imagine you have a Christian friend who is listening to or reading false teaching. Should you get involved? Why or why not?
Saturday 18 May 2013
Saturday 18 May 2013
Read: 1 John 5:1-5,
Matthew 28:16-20
What is our response to all that Christ has done on our behalf? If we know that we can be 100% confident in the salvation we have in Christ it would seem easy to sit back now and do nothing. If we can be confident in Christ's work for us as we see God at work making us more like Him, why should we do anything more? But we aren't left any time or room to sit on our laurels.
In 1 John 5:2, John describes that we respond to what Christ has done by: "loving God and carrying out His commands." Our first response to what God has done for us is to love God and to worship Him with all of our being. If Christ has sacrificed His life so that we might live our only real response can be to give our lives for Him. Our lives are no longer our own, they have been bought with the precious blood of Jesus Christ. We are to worship God with every breath. All of our work should be done for His glory. Our time with our friends and family should be worship of our glorious God. Even our entertainment time should be motivated and driven by our love for God and our desire to worship Him. Given what Christ has done on our behalf nothing less would be sufficient.
Notice the second part of our response in 1 John 5:2. We are to carry out His commands. If we truly love and follow Christ we will obey his commands to us. Through the whole of the Bible Jesus teaches us how His followers are to live, in fact, the whole sermon on the mount is about what life looks like as a follower of Jesus. Jesus has not just given us commands about how to live and sent us off to live quiet lives in our own communities. Jesus has given us a mission! In Matthew 28 Jesus gives His disciples (and US!) their marching orders, their mission to make disciples of all nations by telling them the good news of Christ. If we truly love and follow Jesus we must respond by telling others about what He has done for them. How often do we do the unthinkable and keep such incredible, life changing news to ourselves.
Let me ask you this: if Christ has done all this for us because of His grace how could our response be anything less than to live the life He has given us wholly for His glory and His mission!? If we are truly thankful for what Christ has done there is nothing else we can do in response than to live for His glory. We don't do these things to earn our salvation or to rebuild our relationship with God. We have seen this week that we can be 100% confident in the work Christ has already done on our behalf. Rather, out of great joy and thankfulness we live our lives to worship Him and to be on His mission.
So what is our response to all that Christ has done on our behalf? Our response is to, together with all those who follow Jesus, worship Christ Jesus and to share Him with others. Are you worshipping God with your life and living for His mission?
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Confess to God times in your life where you have not taken advantage of the opportunities He has given you to share Him with others. Pray that He would give you opportunities today as well as the wisdom and courage to take advantage of them. Pray that God would grow in the hearts of His people a passion and desire to see many come to know Jesus.
¥ Pray for Extreme at Christlife today. Pray that many families from the community would come, would hear about Jesus and would commit their lives to Him. Pray that the leaders would be wise in the way that they run their games and activities and that the message from God's word would be powerful and clear.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Think about the idea of living your life in worship of Jesus and sharing Him with others. What would it look like to live this sort of life at your workplace, at school, at University or at Home?
2. Your local church will provide many opportunities for you to be involved in ministries to reach the lost. What are some ways that you could get involved with bringing the message of Jesus to the lost?
Matthew 28:16-20
What is our response to all that Christ has done on our behalf? If we know that we can be 100% confident in the salvation we have in Christ it would seem easy to sit back now and do nothing. If we can be confident in Christ's work for us as we see God at work making us more like Him, why should we do anything more? But we aren't left any time or room to sit on our laurels.
In 1 John 5:2, John describes that we respond to what Christ has done by: "loving God and carrying out His commands." Our first response to what God has done for us is to love God and to worship Him with all of our being. If Christ has sacrificed His life so that we might live our only real response can be to give our lives for Him. Our lives are no longer our own, they have been bought with the precious blood of Jesus Christ. We are to worship God with every breath. All of our work should be done for His glory. Our time with our friends and family should be worship of our glorious God. Even our entertainment time should be motivated and driven by our love for God and our desire to worship Him. Given what Christ has done on our behalf nothing less would be sufficient.
Notice the second part of our response in 1 John 5:2. We are to carry out His commands. If we truly love and follow Christ we will obey his commands to us. Through the whole of the Bible Jesus teaches us how His followers are to live, in fact, the whole sermon on the mount is about what life looks like as a follower of Jesus. Jesus has not just given us commands about how to live and sent us off to live quiet lives in our own communities. Jesus has given us a mission! In Matthew 28 Jesus gives His disciples (and US!) their marching orders, their mission to make disciples of all nations by telling them the good news of Christ. If we truly love and follow Jesus we must respond by telling others about what He has done for them. How often do we do the unthinkable and keep such incredible, life changing news to ourselves.
Let me ask you this: if Christ has done all this for us because of His grace how could our response be anything less than to live the life He has given us wholly for His glory and His mission!? If we are truly thankful for what Christ has done there is nothing else we can do in response than to live for His glory. We don't do these things to earn our salvation or to rebuild our relationship with God. We have seen this week that we can be 100% confident in the work Christ has already done on our behalf. Rather, out of great joy and thankfulness we live our lives to worship Him and to be on His mission.
So what is our response to all that Christ has done on our behalf? Our response is to, together with all those who follow Jesus, worship Christ Jesus and to share Him with others. Are you worshipping God with your life and living for His mission?
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Confess to God times in your life where you have not taken advantage of the opportunities He has given you to share Him with others. Pray that He would give you opportunities today as well as the wisdom and courage to take advantage of them. Pray that God would grow in the hearts of His people a passion and desire to see many come to know Jesus.
¥ Pray for Extreme at Christlife today. Pray that many families from the community would come, would hear about Jesus and would commit their lives to Him. Pray that the leaders would be wise in the way that they run their games and activities and that the message from God's word would be powerful and clear.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Think about the idea of living your life in worship of Jesus and sharing Him with others. What would it look like to live this sort of life at your workplace, at school, at University or at Home?
2. Your local church will provide many opportunities for you to be involved in ministries to reach the lost. What are some ways that you could get involved with bringing the message of Jesus to the lost?
Friday 17 May 2013
Friday 17 May 2013
Read: John 6:35-40, Romans 8:28-39
I went for a hike recently in some bushland near Toowoomba. We chose a track which went along the edge of the park and then turned back to meet up again with the main track. Somehow, we missed the turnoff to go back to the main path. When our path clearly ended we decided to blaze a trail through the untamed scrub. Unwilling to give up and turn back we pushed on until finally (3 hours later!) we found a road and a way back to civilization. As we talk about choosing between the narrow road and the wide road we have to ask whether we can do the same thing. Can we be on the narrow road one day, take a wrong turn, and end up on the wide road? Can we lose our salvation in Christ?
Jesus' words in John 6 give us great comfort when we are fearful or doubt our place in Christ: "And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all that he has given me, but raise them up at the last day." If we are in Christ God has promised that we will not get lost. We will not fall out of our relationship with God. Rather, we can be secure and sure that we are in Christ and that He will raise us up on the last day. Jesus has promised that we can be sure in the work which He has done for us.
Paul's oft quoted words in Romans 8 back up these words of Jesus. What could possibly separate us from the love of Christ? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Re-read Paul's incredible list Romans 8:35-39 and take a moment to ponder the significance of these words. Absolutely nothing can separate you from the love you have in Christ. Paul is emphatic about the absolute certainty that we can have in Christ Jesus.
What does this mean for you? If you are doubting your relationship with Christ or fearful that you might wander off the narrow road and end up on the wide road be encouraged! God has promised that nothing can separate you from the love of Christ! You can live with 100% certainty and knowledge the if you are saved by faith through Christ, nothing at all could possibly separate you from His love.
Spend some time today meditating on the work of Christ, your salvation and faith in Him and the trust that you can have in the work which He has completed. Praise God for all that He has done on your behalf and that you can be 100% in your trust in Him. Pray that He would help you to live confident in what He has done and striving to be more like Him.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray for the youth group as they gather together tonight to study God's word and to grow in the love for Him. Pray that God would encourage them and challenge them to live passionately for His glory. Pray that they would take advantage of every opportunity to share Him with others.
¥ Praise God that He is the one who builds and grows His church. Pray that God would raise up in your church people who are passionate to use their gifts and abilities to grow God's kingdom and to serve His people. Pray that God would give you wisdom to use your gifts for His glory.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. How does it make you feel to know that your salvation is secure in what Christ has already done on your behalf? How should this knowledge change the way that you live?
2. If we cannot lose our salvation why should we seek to put sin to death and seek to live holy lives? Have a look at Romans 6 if you are stuck for ideas.
I went for a hike recently in some bushland near Toowoomba. We chose a track which went along the edge of the park and then turned back to meet up again with the main track. Somehow, we missed the turnoff to go back to the main path. When our path clearly ended we decided to blaze a trail through the untamed scrub. Unwilling to give up and turn back we pushed on until finally (3 hours later!) we found a road and a way back to civilization. As we talk about choosing between the narrow road and the wide road we have to ask whether we can do the same thing. Can we be on the narrow road one day, take a wrong turn, and end up on the wide road? Can we lose our salvation in Christ?
Jesus' words in John 6 give us great comfort when we are fearful or doubt our place in Christ: "And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all that he has given me, but raise them up at the last day." If we are in Christ God has promised that we will not get lost. We will not fall out of our relationship with God. Rather, we can be secure and sure that we are in Christ and that He will raise us up on the last day. Jesus has promised that we can be sure in the work which He has done for us.
Paul's oft quoted words in Romans 8 back up these words of Jesus. What could possibly separate us from the love of Christ? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Re-read Paul's incredible list Romans 8:35-39 and take a moment to ponder the significance of these words. Absolutely nothing can separate you from the love you have in Christ. Paul is emphatic about the absolute certainty that we can have in Christ Jesus.
What does this mean for you? If you are doubting your relationship with Christ or fearful that you might wander off the narrow road and end up on the wide road be encouraged! God has promised that nothing can separate you from the love of Christ! You can live with 100% certainty and knowledge the if you are saved by faith through Christ, nothing at all could possibly separate you from His love.
Spend some time today meditating on the work of Christ, your salvation and faith in Him and the trust that you can have in the work which He has completed. Praise God for all that He has done on your behalf and that you can be 100% in your trust in Him. Pray that He would help you to live confident in what He has done and striving to be more like Him.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray for the youth group as they gather together tonight to study God's word and to grow in the love for Him. Pray that God would encourage them and challenge them to live passionately for His glory. Pray that they would take advantage of every opportunity to share Him with others.
¥ Praise God that He is the one who builds and grows His church. Pray that God would raise up in your church people who are passionate to use their gifts and abilities to grow God's kingdom and to serve His people. Pray that God would give you wisdom to use your gifts for His glory.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. How does it make you feel to know that your salvation is secure in what Christ has already done on your behalf? How should this knowledge change the way that you live?
2. If we cannot lose our salvation why should we seek to put sin to death and seek to live holy lives? Have a look at Romans 6 if you are stuck for ideas.
Thursday 16 May 2013
Thursday 16 May 2013
Jesus Challenge:
Are you willing to work to create opportunities to share your faith with those who don't know Jesus? Discuss as a cell how you can make opportunities to invite those who don't know Christ and share Jesus with them. This might look like hosting some kind of event as a cell and inviting your unbelieving friends or family along. Plan it out and put it into action!
Read: John 3:31-36, 1 John 1:5-2:6
There is an old saying that says "the proof of the pudding is in the eating." The ideas is this: that to know whether a pudding is good or not, you have to eat it! It's only as you taste and eat the pudding that you can see whether or not it is properly cooked and tastes good.
It is the same for us as followers of Jesus. For us, the proof of the pudding really is in the eating. That is, only our actions, the result of our faith, can truly prove whether or not we are in Christ. As we examine Matthew 7:13-14 this week we do well to as the question: are we on the narrow road or the wide road? Or, how do we know that we are in Christ?
These two passages show us how we can know that Christ is at work in our lives and that we are saved in Him. Firstly notice the promise in John 3: "Whoever believes in the son has eternal life." What a promise! If we truly believe and have faith in Christ God has promised that we will have eternal life through Him! Hallelujah! We can take God at His promise and know that if we believe in Christ we have salvation in Him.
But believing in Christ is not merely intellectual assent (read James 2:14-26 if you want to know more), real faith in Jesus results in action. John puts it like this in 1 John: "The man who says, "I know Him," but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him."
Do you have faith in what Christ has done on your behalf? Can you see how the Holy Spirit is working in your life, changing you to be more like Jesus and helping you to obey His commands? It is easy to become discouraged and lose hope that the Holy Spirit is working in us when we are judging ourselves against God's perfect standard. Just because we aren't perfect though doesn't mean that God isn't working in us or that we don't truly have faith in Christ. 1 John 2:1 gives us hope for those occasions when we still fall. Instead we should look at the way the Holy Spirit has already been working in our lives. Can you see sins in your life which were once major struggles which are no longer a problem for you? Can you see the way the Holy Spirit has been working? Once we realise that God is working in us we can turn our face again to God's perfect standard and continue striving for it with the knowledge that, although we haven't arrived yet, God is working in us.
If you can't see God working in your life today is the day to talk to your pastor or one of the elders about it. Today is the day to repent of your sins and turn to faith in Christ. Today is the day to invite the Holy Spirit to begin the work of changing you to be more like Him. Call your pastor or one of the elders now to make a time to talk with them about faith in Jesus. You'll be glad you did!
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Praise God for the work that He is doing in your hear to change you to be more like Christ. Pray that God would grow in you a passionate desire to live a holy life for Him. Pray that all those in the congregation would be seeking after God with their whole hearts and allowing Him to work in their lives.
¥ Pray for the Presbyterian church of South Toowoomba. Pray that God would uphold the current elders and leaders as they seek a new minister to fill the vacancy. Pray that God would raise up people to do the work which needs to be done and that each person would be using their gifts to edify and bless the body of Christ.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Often we struggle with doubts about our salvation and about what Christ has done for us. Based on these passages what should you remember next time you struggle with doubt?
2. Imagine than another cell member comes to you struggling with doubt about their salvation. What would you say to encourage them?
Are you willing to work to create opportunities to share your faith with those who don't know Jesus? Discuss as a cell how you can make opportunities to invite those who don't know Christ and share Jesus with them. This might look like hosting some kind of event as a cell and inviting your unbelieving friends or family along. Plan it out and put it into action!
Read: John 3:31-36, 1 John 1:5-2:6
There is an old saying that says "the proof of the pudding is in the eating." The ideas is this: that to know whether a pudding is good or not, you have to eat it! It's only as you taste and eat the pudding that you can see whether or not it is properly cooked and tastes good.
It is the same for us as followers of Jesus. For us, the proof of the pudding really is in the eating. That is, only our actions, the result of our faith, can truly prove whether or not we are in Christ. As we examine Matthew 7:13-14 this week we do well to as the question: are we on the narrow road or the wide road? Or, how do we know that we are in Christ?
These two passages show us how we can know that Christ is at work in our lives and that we are saved in Him. Firstly notice the promise in John 3: "Whoever believes in the son has eternal life." What a promise! If we truly believe and have faith in Christ God has promised that we will have eternal life through Him! Hallelujah! We can take God at His promise and know that if we believe in Christ we have salvation in Him.
But believing in Christ is not merely intellectual assent (read James 2:14-26 if you want to know more), real faith in Jesus results in action. John puts it like this in 1 John: "The man who says, "I know Him," but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him."
Do you have faith in what Christ has done on your behalf? Can you see how the Holy Spirit is working in your life, changing you to be more like Jesus and helping you to obey His commands? It is easy to become discouraged and lose hope that the Holy Spirit is working in us when we are judging ourselves against God's perfect standard. Just because we aren't perfect though doesn't mean that God isn't working in us or that we don't truly have faith in Christ. 1 John 2:1 gives us hope for those occasions when we still fall. Instead we should look at the way the Holy Spirit has already been working in our lives. Can you see sins in your life which were once major struggles which are no longer a problem for you? Can you see the way the Holy Spirit has been working? Once we realise that God is working in us we can turn our face again to God's perfect standard and continue striving for it with the knowledge that, although we haven't arrived yet, God is working in us.
If you can't see God working in your life today is the day to talk to your pastor or one of the elders about it. Today is the day to repent of your sins and turn to faith in Christ. Today is the day to invite the Holy Spirit to begin the work of changing you to be more like Him. Call your pastor or one of the elders now to make a time to talk with them about faith in Jesus. You'll be glad you did!
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Praise God for the work that He is doing in your hear to change you to be more like Christ. Pray that God would grow in you a passionate desire to live a holy life for Him. Pray that all those in the congregation would be seeking after God with their whole hearts and allowing Him to work in their lives.
¥ Pray for the Presbyterian church of South Toowoomba. Pray that God would uphold the current elders and leaders as they seek a new minister to fill the vacancy. Pray that God would raise up people to do the work which needs to be done and that each person would be using their gifts to edify and bless the body of Christ.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Often we struggle with doubts about our salvation and about what Christ has done for us. Based on these passages what should you remember next time you struggle with doubt?
2. Imagine than another cell member comes to you struggling with doubt about their salvation. What would you say to encourage them?
Wednesday 15 May 2013
Wednesday 15 May 2013
Read: Ephesians 2:1-10, Romans 10:5-13
Our culture is obsessed with stories of redemption and restoration. Nearly every major movie or bestselling book has some kind of redemption story in it. Think of the great classic Les Miserables where Valjean is redeemed from a life of crime to rescue and care for others. Think of Superman, who is sent to Earth to live amongst us and to rescue humanity by being a perfect example. Think of Star Wars, the tale of good fighting evil to rescue and redeem the galaxy. It seems nearly every story is one where people are craving for rescue and redemption.
Our story is no less dramatic than the most wild story fiction has to offer. Ephesians 2 captures the full wonder of our story. We were dead in our transgressions and sins (vs 1) when Jesus Christ mounted a daring rescue mission to Earth to save His people. Jesus died and was raised again to eternal life securing, at great personal cost to himself, rescue for His people. We have been raised with Christ (vs 5) and made right with God, a totally free gift (vs 7) given because of God's great grace to His people.
Verses 8 and 9 makes it clear how we can be a part of this salvation: "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast." We do not do anything to earn the salvation which God gives, it is only by faith. It is only by accepting what He has done on our behalf and believing in Him that we can be made right before God. Romans 10:10 backs this up: "That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved."
We only need to believe in what Christ has done on our behalf and put our total faith and trust in Him. He has done the work of salvation. All we need to do is accept that work through faith. Hallelujah! Have you accepted what Christ has done on your behalf? Have you cast your faith and trust in Him and believed in His completed work for your salvation? If not today is the day to believe and to be saved.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray for the children of your church. Pray that God would grow them in their faith and love for Him. Pray that their parents would raise their children to know and to love the Lord Jesus. Pray that through the example of Christian families in your community that many would come to saving faith in Christ.
¥ Pray for the government and leaders of Australia. Pray that God would give them wisdom in their leadership and that they would make the best decisions for the sake of the people. Pray that they would work to protect the innocent and helpless members of society above their own agendas.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Imagine that someone asked you what they need to do to be saved. What would you tell them from these passages? Try to use language that someone who isn't familiar with the Bible would understand.
Our culture is obsessed with stories of redemption and restoration. Nearly every major movie or bestselling book has some kind of redemption story in it. Think of the great classic Les Miserables where Valjean is redeemed from a life of crime to rescue and care for others. Think of Superman, who is sent to Earth to live amongst us and to rescue humanity by being a perfect example. Think of Star Wars, the tale of good fighting evil to rescue and redeem the galaxy. It seems nearly every story is one where people are craving for rescue and redemption.
Our story is no less dramatic than the most wild story fiction has to offer. Ephesians 2 captures the full wonder of our story. We were dead in our transgressions and sins (vs 1) when Jesus Christ mounted a daring rescue mission to Earth to save His people. Jesus died and was raised again to eternal life securing, at great personal cost to himself, rescue for His people. We have been raised with Christ (vs 5) and made right with God, a totally free gift (vs 7) given because of God's great grace to His people.
Verses 8 and 9 makes it clear how we can be a part of this salvation: "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast." We do not do anything to earn the salvation which God gives, it is only by faith. It is only by accepting what He has done on our behalf and believing in Him that we can be made right before God. Romans 10:10 backs this up: "That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved."
We only need to believe in what Christ has done on our behalf and put our total faith and trust in Him. He has done the work of salvation. All we need to do is accept that work through faith. Hallelujah! Have you accepted what Christ has done on your behalf? Have you cast your faith and trust in Him and believed in His completed work for your salvation? If not today is the day to believe and to be saved.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray for the children of your church. Pray that God would grow them in their faith and love for Him. Pray that their parents would raise their children to know and to love the Lord Jesus. Pray that through the example of Christian families in your community that many would come to saving faith in Christ.
¥ Pray for the government and leaders of Australia. Pray that God would give them wisdom in their leadership and that they would make the best decisions for the sake of the people. Pray that they would work to protect the innocent and helpless members of society above their own agendas.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Imagine that someone asked you what they need to do to be saved. What would you tell them from these passages? Try to use language that someone who isn't familiar with the Bible would understand.
Tuesday 14 May 2013
Tuesday 14 May 2013
Read: John 14:1-11, Acts 4:5-12
"God can be realized through all paths. All religions are true. The important thing is to reach the roof. You can reach it by stone stairs or by wooden stairs or by bamboo steps or by a rope. You can also climb up by a bamboo pole." Ramakrishna
These words from the famous Indian mystic of the 19th century summarize well the commonly accepted view of our society: that it does not matter what path you take to God, we all end up in the same place. Is this really a Biblical idea however? Is there a narrow path, a set of bamboo stairs and a bamboo pole which all lead to the same God? Does it really matter what we believe as long we we truly believe it?
Notice what Jesus has to say about this idea in today's reading from John 14:6: "Jesus answered, "I am the way the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except through me." Jesus doesn't muck around. He doesn't use vague, inclusive type language. He clearly states that there is no way to God except through Him. Peter backs this up in Acts 4:12: "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."
Jesus is exclusive. There is no bamboo staircase. There is no bamboo pole. There is only the narrow road. All other ways lead to destruction. The irony is this: normally a narrow road would be the place for an ambush. In the case of life and salvation the narrow way is the way to salvation and the ambush actually lies on the wide road.
The upshot is this: we must choose. Jesus leaves us with a choice we cannot avoid. There are only two options. Do we choose to enter through the narrow gate, through faith in Jesus Christ or do we choose to travel the wide road to destruction? Do we choose to live our lives our own way, being our own Lord, or do we choose to surrender our lives in faith to Him? Do we think we can keep Jesus as a swipe card to only use when we die and want to go to heaven or do we live our lives for Him every day? We must choose whether to accept Christ or to reject Him? There is no other option, no other way to God. Where do you stand?
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
Pray for the eldership at the church. Praise God that He has raised up men who are willing to faithfully serve God and lead the church well. Pray that God would encourage them, would unify them and would strengthen them in their leadership. Pray that they would be able to minister to the congregation well.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. "There are many ways to God, Jesus is just one of them." More than likely you would have heard some version of this from an unbelieving family member or friend. Roleplay together as a group how you would respond to this kind of statement from a non-christian. Make sure you challenge them to respond to Christ.
"God can be realized through all paths. All religions are true. The important thing is to reach the roof. You can reach it by stone stairs or by wooden stairs or by bamboo steps or by a rope. You can also climb up by a bamboo pole." Ramakrishna
These words from the famous Indian mystic of the 19th century summarize well the commonly accepted view of our society: that it does not matter what path you take to God, we all end up in the same place. Is this really a Biblical idea however? Is there a narrow path, a set of bamboo stairs and a bamboo pole which all lead to the same God? Does it really matter what we believe as long we we truly believe it?
Notice what Jesus has to say about this idea in today's reading from John 14:6: "Jesus answered, "I am the way the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except through me." Jesus doesn't muck around. He doesn't use vague, inclusive type language. He clearly states that there is no way to God except through Him. Peter backs this up in Acts 4:12: "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."
Jesus is exclusive. There is no bamboo staircase. There is no bamboo pole. There is only the narrow road. All other ways lead to destruction. The irony is this: normally a narrow road would be the place for an ambush. In the case of life and salvation the narrow way is the way to salvation and the ambush actually lies on the wide road.
The upshot is this: we must choose. Jesus leaves us with a choice we cannot avoid. There are only two options. Do we choose to enter through the narrow gate, through faith in Jesus Christ or do we choose to travel the wide road to destruction? Do we choose to live our lives our own way, being our own Lord, or do we choose to surrender our lives in faith to Him? Do we think we can keep Jesus as a swipe card to only use when we die and want to go to heaven or do we live our lives for Him every day? We must choose whether to accept Christ or to reject Him? There is no other option, no other way to God. Where do you stand?
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
- Pray for the ministry of Shiloh Church Ministries in India. Pray that, in a culture with many Gods, that the pastors would be able to preach the gospel of Christ powerfully and effectively and that many would see Jesus as they only way of salvation. Pray that God would raise up support for this ministry.
Pray for the eldership at the church. Praise God that He has raised up men who are willing to faithfully serve God and lead the church well. Pray that God would encourage them, would unify them and would strengthen them in their leadership. Pray that they would be able to minister to the congregation well.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. "There are many ways to God, Jesus is just one of them." More than likely you would have heard some version of this from an unbelieving family member or friend. Roleplay together as a group how you would respond to this kind of statement from a non-christian. Make sure you challenge them to respond to Christ.
Monday 13 May 2013
Monday 13 May 2013
Weekly Challenge
In every choice we make we choose whether to follow Christ or to follow the world. Keep a journal this week of the choices you make and whether you are walking on the narrow road or the wide road in that area. Pray that God would help you to make choices for Him.
Read: Matthew 7:13-14, John 10:1-18
Imagine that you go on a bushwalk to an amazing lookout you have heard about. About halfway along the walk, the track you are on runs out and turns into thick scrub. Not knowing which way to go you consult the map you picked up at the information kiosk on the way in. You find your location on the map and notice something curious. You can see the lookout just up ahead but that map doesn't show the trail to get there. Instead it is inscribed with the enigmatic words, "Find the narrow gate."
Imagine what you would do in this situation. You have no point of reference, no idea where this narrow gate is or what it would look like. You are left with no way to get to the lookout. Thankfully God does not leave us in that position in our lives. Instead, God has clearly identified the path that we should take to Him. Reread today's reading from Matthew 7. Jesus' words in this passage seem just as enigmatic and vague as the note on our imaginary hiking map! How do we follow the road and go through the gate which leads to life if we don't know what Jesus is referring to? Thankfully Jesus doesn't just leave it up to us to figure out what he means. In John 10 He clearly shows us that He is our gate.
See how the words of Jesus in John 10:7 so closely reflect our reading from Matthew? "I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved." Jesus explains in verses 14 and 15 how this is possible: "I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me - just as the father knows me and I know the father - and I lay down my life for the sheep."
Jesus doesn't promise that life with Him will be easy. The narrow road is filled with potholes, trouble and trial. But Jesus does promise that we will arrive at the destination safely and that He will travel with us the whole way. Jesus truly is the narrow gate and the only way.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
Praise God that through Jesus Christ He has made a way for us to be in relationship with Him. Praise Him that He provides a narrow road for us to choose that we might be right with Him. Pray this week that the congregation would be passionate to share Jesus with those who don't know Him and that many would choose the narrow road.
¥ Pray for the Presbyterian Church in North Toowoomba. Pray that the minister of the church would recover quickly and be able to transition back to work after a long time of sick leave. Pray that visiting preachers would be faithful in their preaching of the Word and that the congregation would seek to apply that Word to their lives.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Imagine that you are talking with an unbelieving friend of yours about Jesus. When they look at you blankly you realise their only knowledge of Jesus has come from popular media. What do you think are the important things that they need to know about who Jesus is? Make a list together as a group.
2. Time to practice. Practice telling each other these important points as if you had never heard them before.
In every choice we make we choose whether to follow Christ or to follow the world. Keep a journal this week of the choices you make and whether you are walking on the narrow road or the wide road in that area. Pray that God would help you to make choices for Him.
Read: Matthew 7:13-14, John 10:1-18
Imagine that you go on a bushwalk to an amazing lookout you have heard about. About halfway along the walk, the track you are on runs out and turns into thick scrub. Not knowing which way to go you consult the map you picked up at the information kiosk on the way in. You find your location on the map and notice something curious. You can see the lookout just up ahead but that map doesn't show the trail to get there. Instead it is inscribed with the enigmatic words, "Find the narrow gate."
Imagine what you would do in this situation. You have no point of reference, no idea where this narrow gate is or what it would look like. You are left with no way to get to the lookout. Thankfully God does not leave us in that position in our lives. Instead, God has clearly identified the path that we should take to Him. Reread today's reading from Matthew 7. Jesus' words in this passage seem just as enigmatic and vague as the note on our imaginary hiking map! How do we follow the road and go through the gate which leads to life if we don't know what Jesus is referring to? Thankfully Jesus doesn't just leave it up to us to figure out what he means. In John 10 He clearly shows us that He is our gate.
See how the words of Jesus in John 10:7 so closely reflect our reading from Matthew? "I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved." Jesus explains in verses 14 and 15 how this is possible: "I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me - just as the father knows me and I know the father - and I lay down my life for the sheep."
Jesus doesn't promise that life with Him will be easy. The narrow road is filled with potholes, trouble and trial. But Jesus does promise that we will arrive at the destination safely and that He will travel with us the whole way. Jesus truly is the narrow gate and the only way.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
Praise God that through Jesus Christ He has made a way for us to be in relationship with Him. Praise Him that He provides a narrow road for us to choose that we might be right with Him. Pray this week that the congregation would be passionate to share Jesus with those who don't know Him and that many would choose the narrow road.
¥ Pray for the Presbyterian Church in North Toowoomba. Pray that the minister of the church would recover quickly and be able to transition back to work after a long time of sick leave. Pray that visiting preachers would be faithful in their preaching of the Word and that the congregation would seek to apply that Word to their lives.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Imagine that you are talking with an unbelieving friend of yours about Jesus. When they look at you blankly you realise their only knowledge of Jesus has come from popular media. What do you think are the important things that they need to know about who Jesus is? Make a list together as a group.
2. Time to practice. Practice telling each other these important points as if you had never heard them before.
Saturday 11 May 2013
Saturday 11 May 2013
Read: Matthew 7:12, Luke 10:25-37
As Christians we tend to think rather negatively about the law. We know that the law cannot save us and that we are only justified through faith in Christ. We know that in Romans, Paul talks about the law revealing our sin and our sin taking advantage of the opportunity presented by it. As a result we tend to assign the law to a low place in our list of priorities.
Jesus, however, has a different view. We have already seen previously in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:17) that Jesus has not come to abolish the law, as if it was some kind of divine mistake, but to fulfill it. This alone should cause us to take the law more seriously. Additionally the law was given by God not because of some kind of divine malice or desire to end fun but to give and to protect abundance of life. That is why God constantly says to the Israelite people that He sets before them life or death for them to choose.
If we truly take the law seriously then we must pay special heed to Jesus' summary of the law here in Matthew 7:12. What about you? Would you truly be able to say that you have always treated others as you would like to be treated? Can you say that in this way, you have fulfilled God's law perfectly? None of us can. In this way the law shows us our utter sinfulness before God and our desperate need for the reconciliation that comes through Christ. That is the point of Jesus' parable in Luke 10. Loving others is not just about loving those who we get along with but about loving everyone, even our most despised enemies. The lawyer, who had hoped to earn eternal life, goes away sad, knowing he cannot love his enemies. This principal shows us our own inability to keep God's law and our utter sinfulness before God.
Why then would Jesus command His followers to keep a principal of the law we absolutely cannot? We have something the lawyer did not, the Holy Spirit. God is actively working on our hearts so that His people can show the love of God to everyone, even our worst enemies. We are to do as the lawyer could not, to treat our enemies as we would like to be treated. Think about how that might look practically in your own life. How can you treat those around you in your workplace, your school, your university or your home in the way that you would like to be treated? How do you demonstrate the love of Christ even to those who hate and despise you? As you live according to this principal you will shine the light of Christ where you are and draw people to our great and gracious saviour.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Praise God for His great grace to you through Jesus Christ. Pray that He would give you wisdom and courage today to take advantage of every opportunity to share Him with others and to demonstrate His love to the world. Pray that He would grow a passion in your heart to see the lost come to know Him.
¥ Pray for the preaching of God's word tomorrow around the world, in Australia, in the Darling Downs and at Christlife. Pray that everywhere where God's people are gathered the Word would be preached and proclaimed faithfully, boldly and powerfully. Pray that God would work through His word and that many around the world would come to saving faith in Him.
My Additional Prayer Points.
1/.
2/.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Think about a place where you spend a lot of time during the week. What would it look like to do to others as you would have them do unto you in that situation?
2. Tell the group about how you can practically love others in that environment.
As Christians we tend to think rather negatively about the law. We know that the law cannot save us and that we are only justified through faith in Christ. We know that in Romans, Paul talks about the law revealing our sin and our sin taking advantage of the opportunity presented by it. As a result we tend to assign the law to a low place in our list of priorities.
Jesus, however, has a different view. We have already seen previously in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:17) that Jesus has not come to abolish the law, as if it was some kind of divine mistake, but to fulfill it. This alone should cause us to take the law more seriously. Additionally the law was given by God not because of some kind of divine malice or desire to end fun but to give and to protect abundance of life. That is why God constantly says to the Israelite people that He sets before them life or death for them to choose.
If we truly take the law seriously then we must pay special heed to Jesus' summary of the law here in Matthew 7:12. What about you? Would you truly be able to say that you have always treated others as you would like to be treated? Can you say that in this way, you have fulfilled God's law perfectly? None of us can. In this way the law shows us our utter sinfulness before God and our desperate need for the reconciliation that comes through Christ. That is the point of Jesus' parable in Luke 10. Loving others is not just about loving those who we get along with but about loving everyone, even our most despised enemies. The lawyer, who had hoped to earn eternal life, goes away sad, knowing he cannot love his enemies. This principal shows us our own inability to keep God's law and our utter sinfulness before God.
Why then would Jesus command His followers to keep a principal of the law we absolutely cannot? We have something the lawyer did not, the Holy Spirit. God is actively working on our hearts so that His people can show the love of God to everyone, even our worst enemies. We are to do as the lawyer could not, to treat our enemies as we would like to be treated. Think about how that might look practically in your own life. How can you treat those around you in your workplace, your school, your university or your home in the way that you would like to be treated? How do you demonstrate the love of Christ even to those who hate and despise you? As you live according to this principal you will shine the light of Christ where you are and draw people to our great and gracious saviour.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Praise God for His great grace to you through Jesus Christ. Pray that He would give you wisdom and courage today to take advantage of every opportunity to share Him with others and to demonstrate His love to the world. Pray that He would grow a passion in your heart to see the lost come to know Him.
¥ Pray for the preaching of God's word tomorrow around the world, in Australia, in the Darling Downs and at Christlife. Pray that everywhere where God's people are gathered the Word would be preached and proclaimed faithfully, boldly and powerfully. Pray that God would work through His word and that many around the world would come to saving faith in Him.
My Additional Prayer Points.
1/.
2/.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Think about a place where you spend a lot of time during the week. What would it look like to do to others as you would have them do unto you in that situation?
2. Tell the group about how you can practically love others in that environment.
Friday 10 May 2013
Friday 10 May 2013
Read: Mark 11:20-25, James 1:2-8
"God is the great objective of faith; for faith rests its whole weight on His Word. Faith is not an aimless act of the soul, but a looking to God and a resting upon His promises...Faith is not believing just anything; it is believing God, resting in Him, trusting His Word."
The necessity of prayer, E.M. Bounds
What is faith? Many people today would claim faith it is merely belief in something more, something supernatural in this world. This type of definition could be applied to any religion or belief that you like. Christian faith however, a central cornerstone of our salvation in Christ, is about more than just general belief in something supernatural. Christian faith is belief in a person, belief in the person of Jesus Christ and what He has done. Christian faith is specific and focused on Christ. Faith is not aimless belief. Faith is, as E.M. Bounds describes, "a looking to God and a resting upon His promises".
This is the sort of faith we must have when we pray. Faith is vitally linked with prayer many times throughout the Bible. Consider today's reading from Mark 11. Jesus clearly links the faith of the person praying to God with the possible results of the prayer. Notice the way he phrases it however: "Have faith in God". Our faith is in God and His promises and God promises that when we pray to Him with faith He will answer.
James echoes a similar thought: if we are lacking wisdom in trial we should ask God with faith, free from doubt, to provide wisdom to us. James reminds us that God gives generously to all without finding fault. He reminds us that the basis of our faith is trust in God and trust in His character. This makes James' pointed comment about the man who doubts in verses 7 and 8 make more sense. The person who doubts is not trusting in God and who He is.
Do you pray with faith? Do you actually believe that God is who He says He is? Do you believe God promises to answer your prayers? Do you believe that God hears your prayers and promises that He will respond? Do you trust that God is able to do more abundantly than all you ask or think? If we lack faith our response needs to be to cry out in prayer, "Lord, help me overcome my unbelief!" like the man in Mark 9:24 and remember that we can trust God to answer.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Confess to God any lack of faith that you have had in His ability or desire to answer your prayers. Pray that the Holy Spirit would grow and deepen your faith in Him and help you to pray with confidence and expectancy.
¥ Pray for GRUNT and Girl Chat as they meet this afternoon. Pray that the boys and girls would be encouraged in their faith and would grow in their passion and love for Him.
My Additional Prayer Points.
1/.
2/.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. If faith is in the person of Jesus and not just in a universal idea what are some things that you can do to deepen and grow your faith in Him?
2. How can you help and support each other to put these things into practice?
"God is the great objective of faith; for faith rests its whole weight on His Word. Faith is not an aimless act of the soul, but a looking to God and a resting upon His promises...Faith is not believing just anything; it is believing God, resting in Him, trusting His Word."
The necessity of prayer, E.M. Bounds
What is faith? Many people today would claim faith it is merely belief in something more, something supernatural in this world. This type of definition could be applied to any religion or belief that you like. Christian faith however, a central cornerstone of our salvation in Christ, is about more than just general belief in something supernatural. Christian faith is belief in a person, belief in the person of Jesus Christ and what He has done. Christian faith is specific and focused on Christ. Faith is not aimless belief. Faith is, as E.M. Bounds describes, "a looking to God and a resting upon His promises".
This is the sort of faith we must have when we pray. Faith is vitally linked with prayer many times throughout the Bible. Consider today's reading from Mark 11. Jesus clearly links the faith of the person praying to God with the possible results of the prayer. Notice the way he phrases it however: "Have faith in God". Our faith is in God and His promises and God promises that when we pray to Him with faith He will answer.
James echoes a similar thought: if we are lacking wisdom in trial we should ask God with faith, free from doubt, to provide wisdom to us. James reminds us that God gives generously to all without finding fault. He reminds us that the basis of our faith is trust in God and trust in His character. This makes James' pointed comment about the man who doubts in verses 7 and 8 make more sense. The person who doubts is not trusting in God and who He is.
Do you pray with faith? Do you actually believe that God is who He says He is? Do you believe God promises to answer your prayers? Do you believe that God hears your prayers and promises that He will respond? Do you trust that God is able to do more abundantly than all you ask or think? If we lack faith our response needs to be to cry out in prayer, "Lord, help me overcome my unbelief!" like the man in Mark 9:24 and remember that we can trust God to answer.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Confess to God any lack of faith that you have had in His ability or desire to answer your prayers. Pray that the Holy Spirit would grow and deepen your faith in Him and help you to pray with confidence and expectancy.
¥ Pray for GRUNT and Girl Chat as they meet this afternoon. Pray that the boys and girls would be encouraged in their faith and would grow in their passion and love for Him.
My Additional Prayer Points.
1/.
2/.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. If faith is in the person of Jesus and not just in a universal idea what are some things that you can do to deepen and grow your faith in Him?
2. How can you help and support each other to put these things into practice?
Thursday 9 May 2013
Thursday 9 May 2013
Read: 1 Thessalonians 5:12-18, Colossians 4:2-6
Have you ever been around someone who talks constantly? It is tiring isn't it? Their words just seem to have no end and gradually your frustration builds and you lose your patience. For some people this happens sooner than for others. Can you imagine actually asking someone to talk constantly to you forever!? It defies imagination doesn't it? But our God, in His grace and mercy to us, has done just that. God is so eager for relationship with us and cares so deeply for us that He has invited us to be in constant communication with Him.
We see this invitation in today's reading from 1 Thessalonians 5:17-18. God not only invites us into constant communication with Him, He commands it! We are to pray continually and to give thanks in all circumstances! What an invitation to be in constant communion and relationship with our gracious God! Paul writes the same thing in Colossians, we are to be devoted to prayer.
This might seem impossible to you but we don't have to leave our lives, give up our possessions and move into a monastery to be devoted to prayer and to be praying constantly. Instead, we are to cultivate a life and attitude of constant dependency on God. All that we do should be focused and motivated on Christ and prayerful in focus and intention. We are to live our lives with His glory in Mind and with the focus of our hearts on Him.
What about you? Do you pray constantly, being practically inseparable from God or is your prayer life patchy at best, non-existent at worst? Do you set aside regular time for prayer and make an effort to be constantly turning your mind to things above or is your mind and heart firmly rooted in the world below? Does this seem like too lofty a goal? Does your present mindset make being in constant prayer seem like an idealistic dream? Pray that God would grow this attitude in your heart and be constantly intentionally turning your mind to Christ. God can help you too to be devoted to prayer.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Praise God that through Christ we can be in His presence and in fellowship with Him all the time, not just once a year. Pray that God would help you to cultivate a lifestyle of devotion and constant prayer.
¥ Pray for the Oakey Presbyterian Church. Pray that God would bring more children into the church so that they might be able to start a Sonday school ministry. Pray that God would grow the congregation and bring unity amongst them for the sake of His kingdom.
My Additional Prayer Points.
1/.
2/.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Praying constantly does not just mean that we need to lock ourselves in a monastery for a life of solitude and silence. What would it look like for a follower of Jesus to be praying constantly in 21st Century Australia?
2. What would this look like in your life?
Have you ever been around someone who talks constantly? It is tiring isn't it? Their words just seem to have no end and gradually your frustration builds and you lose your patience. For some people this happens sooner than for others. Can you imagine actually asking someone to talk constantly to you forever!? It defies imagination doesn't it? But our God, in His grace and mercy to us, has done just that. God is so eager for relationship with us and cares so deeply for us that He has invited us to be in constant communication with Him.
We see this invitation in today's reading from 1 Thessalonians 5:17-18. God not only invites us into constant communication with Him, He commands it! We are to pray continually and to give thanks in all circumstances! What an invitation to be in constant communion and relationship with our gracious God! Paul writes the same thing in Colossians, we are to be devoted to prayer.
This might seem impossible to you but we don't have to leave our lives, give up our possessions and move into a monastery to be devoted to prayer and to be praying constantly. Instead, we are to cultivate a life and attitude of constant dependency on God. All that we do should be focused and motivated on Christ and prayerful in focus and intention. We are to live our lives with His glory in Mind and with the focus of our hearts on Him.
What about you? Do you pray constantly, being practically inseparable from God or is your prayer life patchy at best, non-existent at worst? Do you set aside regular time for prayer and make an effort to be constantly turning your mind to things above or is your mind and heart firmly rooted in the world below? Does this seem like too lofty a goal? Does your present mindset make being in constant prayer seem like an idealistic dream? Pray that God would grow this attitude in your heart and be constantly intentionally turning your mind to Christ. God can help you too to be devoted to prayer.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Praise God that through Christ we can be in His presence and in fellowship with Him all the time, not just once a year. Pray that God would help you to cultivate a lifestyle of devotion and constant prayer.
¥ Pray for the Oakey Presbyterian Church. Pray that God would bring more children into the church so that they might be able to start a Sonday school ministry. Pray that God would grow the congregation and bring unity amongst them for the sake of His kingdom.
My Additional Prayer Points.
1/.
2/.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Praying constantly does not just mean that we need to lock ourselves in a monastery for a life of solitude and silence. What would it look like for a follower of Jesus to be praying constantly in 21st Century Australia?
2. What would this look like in your life?
Wednesday 8 May 2013
Wednesday 8 May 2013
Jesus Challenge:
Get each member of your cell to write down a list of names of people they know who don't know Jesus and commit to pray for those people persistently. Spend time praying each week as a cell that they would come to know salvation through Christ. Brainstorm some ways that you can be reaching into the lives of these people as a cell.
Read: Matthew 7:9-11, Ephesians 3:20-21
Imagine if Jesus taught us to pray without expecting God to answer. It might sound something like this:
"Our father in heaven,
Hallowed be your name
If it is possible, would your kingdom come,
Maybe would your will be done?
on Earth as it is in heaven.
If it is your will, and if you could, would you provide us today our daily bread?
If you can would you forgive us our debts
as we also have forgiven our debtors?
And, if it is your will, lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from the evil one."
The Lord's Prayer
New Unexpectant Version
Can you imagine if this was the sort of prayer that Jesus prayed when His disciples asked Him to teach them to pray? Can you imagine if this weak, doubt filled prayer was all Jesus could come up with? Praise God that Jesus taught us to pray with confidence and with the expectation that God will work. How often do we revert to this type of doubting, half-hearted prayer though? Do we really pray as if we confidently expect God to answer our prayers?
This is Jesus' point in today's reading from Matthew 7 though. Have a look closely at what Jesus is saying. If we, people who are broken by the fall and (apart from Christ) sinful at heart, give our children good gifts how much more will God, the perfectly holy, perfectly good ruler of the universe, give His people good gifts. Do you see why this means we can pray confidently and expectantly? Our trust and our faith when we pray is in the person of God, our perfectly good, perfectly kind God. We can truly pray expecting God to answer because of who He is.
But that's not quite enough is it. God might be the kindest, most good being in the universe (and He is!) but if He was powerless to act we would have no reason to pray with confidence. Ephesians blasts that out of the water! Not only is God good, He is able to do more than we could possibly ask or imagine! Our God is powerful and more than able to act to answer prayer and to keep His promises.
Turn your mind to your own prayer life. Do you pray confidently, truly believing that God will act? Do you pray with expectant faith, knowing that God is good and more than able to answer your prayers?
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Praise God that He is good and able to do more than we could ask or imagine! Pray that He would grow your faith in Him and that He would help you to pray boldly, confidently and expectantly.
¥ Pray for the ministry of Shiloh Church Ministries in India. Pray that God would protect and encourage the orphans which they look after. Pray that they would preach the Word of God boldly and with power and that many might come to faith in Christ.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Often we are not bold or ambitious in our prayers because we don't truly expect that God will answer our prayers. How should we pray differently if we truly expect that God will answer our prayers?
2. What are some practical ways that we can encourage one another to pray with expectancy?
Get each member of your cell to write down a list of names of people they know who don't know Jesus and commit to pray for those people persistently. Spend time praying each week as a cell that they would come to know salvation through Christ. Brainstorm some ways that you can be reaching into the lives of these people as a cell.
Read: Matthew 7:9-11, Ephesians 3:20-21
Imagine if Jesus taught us to pray without expecting God to answer. It might sound something like this:
"Our father in heaven,
Hallowed be your name
If it is possible, would your kingdom come,
Maybe would your will be done?
on Earth as it is in heaven.
If it is your will, and if you could, would you provide us today our daily bread?
If you can would you forgive us our debts
as we also have forgiven our debtors?
And, if it is your will, lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from the evil one."
The Lord's Prayer
New Unexpectant Version
Can you imagine if this was the sort of prayer that Jesus prayed when His disciples asked Him to teach them to pray? Can you imagine if this weak, doubt filled prayer was all Jesus could come up with? Praise God that Jesus taught us to pray with confidence and with the expectation that God will work. How often do we revert to this type of doubting, half-hearted prayer though? Do we really pray as if we confidently expect God to answer our prayers?
This is Jesus' point in today's reading from Matthew 7 though. Have a look closely at what Jesus is saying. If we, people who are broken by the fall and (apart from Christ) sinful at heart, give our children good gifts how much more will God, the perfectly holy, perfectly good ruler of the universe, give His people good gifts. Do you see why this means we can pray confidently and expectantly? Our trust and our faith when we pray is in the person of God, our perfectly good, perfectly kind God. We can truly pray expecting God to answer because of who He is.
But that's not quite enough is it. God might be the kindest, most good being in the universe (and He is!) but if He was powerless to act we would have no reason to pray with confidence. Ephesians blasts that out of the water! Not only is God good, He is able to do more than we could possibly ask or imagine! Our God is powerful and more than able to act to answer prayer and to keep His promises.
Turn your mind to your own prayer life. Do you pray confidently, truly believing that God will act? Do you pray with expectant faith, knowing that God is good and more than able to answer your prayers?
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Praise God that He is good and able to do more than we could ask or imagine! Pray that He would grow your faith in Him and that He would help you to pray boldly, confidently and expectantly.
¥ Pray for the ministry of Shiloh Church Ministries in India. Pray that God would protect and encourage the orphans which they look after. Pray that they would preach the Word of God boldly and with power and that many might come to faith in Christ.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Often we are not bold or ambitious in our prayers because we don't truly expect that God will answer our prayers. How should we pray differently if we truly expect that God will answer our prayers?
2. What are some practical ways that we can encourage one another to pray with expectancy?
Tuesday 7 May 2013
Tuesday 7 May 2013
Read: Matthew 7:7-8, Luke 18:1-8
"Faith does not grow disheartened because prayer is not immediately honoured; it takes God at His Word, and lets Him take what time He chooses in fulfilling His purposes, and in carrying on His work. There is bound to be much delay and long days of waiting for true faith, but faith accepts the conditions — knows there will be delays in answering prayer, and regards such delays as times of testing, in the which, it is privileged to show its mettle, and the stern stuff of which it is made."
The Necessity of Prayer, E.M. Bounds
The specific words that Jesus has chosen in today's reading from Matthew 7, ask, seek and knock, reveal an important principal of prayer for God's people. The tense of these words shows that these actions are in fact ongoing actions, not only once-off actions. In fact a better translation for these words might be "keep on asking", "keep on seeking" or "keep on knocking". The idea is not that God's people are to pray once and then leave it at that. God's people are to pray persistently. God's people are to continue coming before Him with their prayers and requests. They are to continue asking God for the things that they need. They are to continue seeking God and His will. They are to continue knocking on the door of God's throne room with their prayers. What an amazing invitation!
The parable of the persistent widow in Luke 18 shows even more clearly the need for God's people to be persistent in their prayer. In fact, until she has justice, the widow never gives up in coming before the judge. Neither are God's people to give up in bringing their prayers and requests before Him. In fact, God promises that He will answer the prayers of His people who continue to cry out to Him day and night.
The amazing quote from E.M. Bounds sheds a little more light on the persistence of God's people in prayer. We are able to persist in prayer, waiting patiently for God to answer because we have faith in God and His promises. We "take God at His word" and believe that if we keep praying, keep asking and seeking, that God will answer the prayers of His people. If we do not persist in prayer, if we are quick to give up then it is our faith which needs growth, not our God.
Think about your own prayer life. What things have you given up on praying for? What areas of your life have you resigned to never see God work powerfully in? How many persistent prayers have you stopped praying because you got discouraged? Spend some time praying for those things today. Pray that God would give you patience in prayer and grow your faith in Him today.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Praise God that although we often give up on praying for things that He has never and will never give up on us. Pray that God would grow in your heart a persistence of prayer and help you to be patient for His provision
¥ Pray for MOPS as they gather together tomorrow morning. Pray that the mums from the community would be shown the love of Jesus by the other mums and would come to faith in Him.
My Additional Prayer Points.
1/.
2/.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. God's word tells us to confess our sins one to another (James 5:16). Spend some time sharing with each other some things that you may have given up praying for because of a lack of persistence.
2. Pray together for some of these things as a group.
"Faith does not grow disheartened because prayer is not immediately honoured; it takes God at His Word, and lets Him take what time He chooses in fulfilling His purposes, and in carrying on His work. There is bound to be much delay and long days of waiting for true faith, but faith accepts the conditions — knows there will be delays in answering prayer, and regards such delays as times of testing, in the which, it is privileged to show its mettle, and the stern stuff of which it is made."
The Necessity of Prayer, E.M. Bounds
The specific words that Jesus has chosen in today's reading from Matthew 7, ask, seek and knock, reveal an important principal of prayer for God's people. The tense of these words shows that these actions are in fact ongoing actions, not only once-off actions. In fact a better translation for these words might be "keep on asking", "keep on seeking" or "keep on knocking". The idea is not that God's people are to pray once and then leave it at that. God's people are to pray persistently. God's people are to continue coming before Him with their prayers and requests. They are to continue asking God for the things that they need. They are to continue seeking God and His will. They are to continue knocking on the door of God's throne room with their prayers. What an amazing invitation!
The parable of the persistent widow in Luke 18 shows even more clearly the need for God's people to be persistent in their prayer. In fact, until she has justice, the widow never gives up in coming before the judge. Neither are God's people to give up in bringing their prayers and requests before Him. In fact, God promises that He will answer the prayers of His people who continue to cry out to Him day and night.
The amazing quote from E.M. Bounds sheds a little more light on the persistence of God's people in prayer. We are able to persist in prayer, waiting patiently for God to answer because we have faith in God and His promises. We "take God at His word" and believe that if we keep praying, keep asking and seeking, that God will answer the prayers of His people. If we do not persist in prayer, if we are quick to give up then it is our faith which needs growth, not our God.
Think about your own prayer life. What things have you given up on praying for? What areas of your life have you resigned to never see God work powerfully in? How many persistent prayers have you stopped praying because you got discouraged? Spend some time praying for those things today. Pray that God would give you patience in prayer and grow your faith in Him today.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Praise God that although we often give up on praying for things that He has never and will never give up on us. Pray that God would grow in your heart a persistence of prayer and help you to be patient for His provision
¥ Pray for MOPS as they gather together tomorrow morning. Pray that the mums from the community would be shown the love of Jesus by the other mums and would come to faith in Him.
My Additional Prayer Points.
1/.
2/.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. God's word tells us to confess our sins one to another (James 5:16). Spend some time sharing with each other some things that you may have given up praying for because of a lack of persistence.
2. Pray together for some of these things as a group.
Monday 6 May 2013
Monday 6 May 2013
Weekly Challenge
What things have you given up on praying for in the past? Set aside a block of time this week to spend time in silence, solitude and prayer regarding those things.
Read: Matthew 7:7-12, Luke 11:1-13
I (Josh) genuinely look forward to the day that my daughter can talk to me. Since she is only four months old she will quite happily make all sorts of cute baby noises but she is not yet able to have a conversation with me. I can only imagine what it would be like to be able to talk to her one day. Conversely my heart aches at the idea that she would be able to talk to me and yet would choose not to. I wonder if this is the way God feels about us praying to Him. Does God also, like a loving father, long for the times when we sit and talk with Him. Does the fact that we could freely communicate with God through prayer and yet end up too busy to do so grieve God?
This comparison between the prayer relationship of God and mankind and the relationship of a parent and child is an important one to allow us to truly understand prayer. Jesus actually uses this language to describe prayer both in today's reading from Luke and earlier in the sermon on the mount. Before we explore how God's people are to pray and what Jesus teaches us about prayer in this section of the sermon on the mount it is worthwhile to briefly define prayer and discuss why God would have us pray to Him.
Simply put: "Prayer is personal communication with God." (Grudem, 2004 Systematic Theology: An introduction to biblical doctrine). Chuck Missler once put it this way "We have a 24-hour hot line to the throne room of the universe". The simplest way to think of the prayer relationship is to think of the way a child can personally communicate with a parent. That communication is not only about expressing needs but also talking about dreams, discussing life in general, proclaiming love and building relationship. Prayer is the same between man and God. Prayer is personal communication with the ruler of the universe where we are able to express our needs, praise God for who He is, talk about our lives and build relationship with Him.
God does not need prayer to know our needs. Jesus teaches in Matthew 6:8 that He knows what we need even before we ask, but still Jesus teaches about the need for us to be actively asking God, seeking God and knocking at God's door through prayer. Why? Because God desires that we pray in order to express our faith in Him and reliance on Him, to deepen our relationship with Him and to be involved in His work around the world. As a result He promises to answer our prayers: to the man who asks it is given, it is the man who seeks who finds and it is the man who knocks to whom the door is opened.
Consider your own prayer life this week. Do you regularly spend time together with God in prayer? Do you aim to build your relationship with Him by praying or do you neglect your prayer life? Do you set aside time to pray together with your family? With your spouse? With your cell? With the other members of your congregation? Consider again how you might grow in your relationship with God this week through intentional, regular prayer.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Praise God for who He is. Praise God that He has made a way for us to have relationship with Him through Jesus Christ. Pray that God would grow in His people deep faith in Him and a passion to pray to Him.
¥ Pray for all the members of the congregation who are going back to work again today after the weekend. Pray that they would be able to glorify God in their work and that their focus would be on Him in all they do.
My Additional Prayer Points.
1/.
2/.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Is prayer for God's sake or for the sake of mankind?
2. Do you think prayer ever changes the way God acts? Why or why not?
What things have you given up on praying for in the past? Set aside a block of time this week to spend time in silence, solitude and prayer regarding those things.
Read: Matthew 7:7-12, Luke 11:1-13
I (Josh) genuinely look forward to the day that my daughter can talk to me. Since she is only four months old she will quite happily make all sorts of cute baby noises but she is not yet able to have a conversation with me. I can only imagine what it would be like to be able to talk to her one day. Conversely my heart aches at the idea that she would be able to talk to me and yet would choose not to. I wonder if this is the way God feels about us praying to Him. Does God also, like a loving father, long for the times when we sit and talk with Him. Does the fact that we could freely communicate with God through prayer and yet end up too busy to do so grieve God?
This comparison between the prayer relationship of God and mankind and the relationship of a parent and child is an important one to allow us to truly understand prayer. Jesus actually uses this language to describe prayer both in today's reading from Luke and earlier in the sermon on the mount. Before we explore how God's people are to pray and what Jesus teaches us about prayer in this section of the sermon on the mount it is worthwhile to briefly define prayer and discuss why God would have us pray to Him.
Simply put: "Prayer is personal communication with God." (Grudem, 2004 Systematic Theology: An introduction to biblical doctrine). Chuck Missler once put it this way "We have a 24-hour hot line to the throne room of the universe". The simplest way to think of the prayer relationship is to think of the way a child can personally communicate with a parent. That communication is not only about expressing needs but also talking about dreams, discussing life in general, proclaiming love and building relationship. Prayer is the same between man and God. Prayer is personal communication with the ruler of the universe where we are able to express our needs, praise God for who He is, talk about our lives and build relationship with Him.
God does not need prayer to know our needs. Jesus teaches in Matthew 6:8 that He knows what we need even before we ask, but still Jesus teaches about the need for us to be actively asking God, seeking God and knocking at God's door through prayer. Why? Because God desires that we pray in order to express our faith in Him and reliance on Him, to deepen our relationship with Him and to be involved in His work around the world. As a result He promises to answer our prayers: to the man who asks it is given, it is the man who seeks who finds and it is the man who knocks to whom the door is opened.
Consider your own prayer life this week. Do you regularly spend time together with God in prayer? Do you aim to build your relationship with Him by praying or do you neglect your prayer life? Do you set aside time to pray together with your family? With your spouse? With your cell? With the other members of your congregation? Consider again how you might grow in your relationship with God this week through intentional, regular prayer.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Praise God for who He is. Praise God that He has made a way for us to have relationship with Him through Jesus Christ. Pray that God would grow in His people deep faith in Him and a passion to pray to Him.
¥ Pray for all the members of the congregation who are going back to work again today after the weekend. Pray that they would be able to glorify God in their work and that their focus would be on Him in all they do.
My Additional Prayer Points.
1/.
2/.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Is prayer for God's sake or for the sake of mankind?
2. Do you think prayer ever changes the way God acts? Why or why not?
Saturday 4 May 2013
Saturday 4 May 2013
Read: Matthew 7:1-6, Romans 2:17-24
There are few things which seem to raise as much media attention as the moral failure of a church leader. Just think of paedophilia cases in the Roman Catholic Church or the recent story on Today Tonight about alleged financial deception in the Hillsong churches. The media loves to turn on religious people like vicious dogs and tear them to pieces.
We see this sort of reaction in Matthew 7:6. Jesus has just outlined the process by which His people can confront others about their sin. Jesus' followers are to first examine themselves and, once they have worked on their own sin, can confront others about their sin. Jesus is not only talking about confronting other believers about their sin, He is talking more broadly. Before we can confront those in the world with their sin and point them to faith in Jesus Christ we must be working on our own lives. The consequence for failing to do so is that those with whom we share may trample our message and turn on us, tearing us to pieces in the process.
Paul describes a similar situation in Romans 2. Whilst describing the utter inability of the law to justify people before God Paul points out that those who are preaching against stealing are stealing and those who are preaching against adultery are committing adultery. Whilst God's people are preaching about God's law they are in fact breaking God's law. What is the result of this sort of behaviour? Look at vs 24: "God's name is blasphemed among the gentiles because of you." The consequence of their sin is clear; the power of their message is lost and the gentiles respond not by praising God's name, but by blaspheming it.
Think about your own life. Do you lack power in sharing the gospel with others? Do people laugh at you or even mock you if you try to tell them about what Christ has done in your life? Is your life telling a different story to your words? Jesus' commands are clear. Examine your own life, pray that God would reveal to you sin in your life and strive to live a holy life before God. Then and only then will you be able to effectively point out sin in the world and share Christ with others.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray that the witness of God's people would be powerful and effective as they seek to live Holy lives before Him. Pray that God would reveal to you many opportunities to share Him with others and give you the wisdom and the courage to take them.
¥ Pray that more and more people in your church would stand up to use their spiritual gifts to bless and edify the body and to glorify God. Pray that God would give you wisdom regarding your gifts and help you to use them for the sake of His church.
My Additional Prayer Points.
1/.
2/.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Can you think of some examples where the Christian church has sought to confront sin in society without dealing with their own sin first? How did this go for the church?
2. How holy do you think we should be before we confront others about their sin? Explain your answer.
There are few things which seem to raise as much media attention as the moral failure of a church leader. Just think of paedophilia cases in the Roman Catholic Church or the recent story on Today Tonight about alleged financial deception in the Hillsong churches. The media loves to turn on religious people like vicious dogs and tear them to pieces.
We see this sort of reaction in Matthew 7:6. Jesus has just outlined the process by which His people can confront others about their sin. Jesus' followers are to first examine themselves and, once they have worked on their own sin, can confront others about their sin. Jesus is not only talking about confronting other believers about their sin, He is talking more broadly. Before we can confront those in the world with their sin and point them to faith in Jesus Christ we must be working on our own lives. The consequence for failing to do so is that those with whom we share may trample our message and turn on us, tearing us to pieces in the process.
Paul describes a similar situation in Romans 2. Whilst describing the utter inability of the law to justify people before God Paul points out that those who are preaching against stealing are stealing and those who are preaching against adultery are committing adultery. Whilst God's people are preaching about God's law they are in fact breaking God's law. What is the result of this sort of behaviour? Look at vs 24: "God's name is blasphemed among the gentiles because of you." The consequence of their sin is clear; the power of their message is lost and the gentiles respond not by praising God's name, but by blaspheming it.
Think about your own life. Do you lack power in sharing the gospel with others? Do people laugh at you or even mock you if you try to tell them about what Christ has done in your life? Is your life telling a different story to your words? Jesus' commands are clear. Examine your own life, pray that God would reveal to you sin in your life and strive to live a holy life before God. Then and only then will you be able to effectively point out sin in the world and share Christ with others.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray that the witness of God's people would be powerful and effective as they seek to live Holy lives before Him. Pray that God would reveal to you many opportunities to share Him with others and give you the wisdom and the courage to take them.
¥ Pray that more and more people in your church would stand up to use their spiritual gifts to bless and edify the body and to glorify God. Pray that God would give you wisdom regarding your gifts and help you to use them for the sake of His church.
My Additional Prayer Points.
1/.
2/.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Can you think of some examples where the Christian church has sought to confront sin in society without dealing with their own sin first? How did this go for the church?
2. How holy do you think we should be before we confront others about their sin? Explain your answer.
Friday 3 May 2013
Friday 3 May 2013
Jesus Challenge:
There are many people in the congregation at Christlife who are not connected with a cell or close to other people in the church. With an attitude of humility and love consider how you might be able to bless some of these people as a cell. Feel free to use your imagination regarding how this might look. It could include things like inviting them to your normal gathering or inviting them for dinner or lunch or maybe something more radical. If you don't know who to invite look for visitors or people who are by themselves this Sonday.
Read: Matthew 7:3-5, Colossians 3:1-14
Remember our friend who took us out for a hypothetical coffee yesterday? Not only did our friend confront us about our sin in an unloving and rude manner, he also showed a great deal of pride in his approach. I once heard the story of an elder who stood before the congregation and said, "Why can't you be more like me?" In today's readings we see why such a proud or arrogant approach is not fitting for God's people. Instead, before we confront another about their sin, we should carefully and humbly consider the sin in our own lives.
Look again at the word picture Jesus gives in today's reading from Matthew 7. The image is quite striking when you imagine it. Can you see the plank or tree sticking out of the person's eye as they say, "Now hold still for a minute". I wouldn't be letting that person anywhere near my eye! Jesus is not only entertaining us with amusing imagery though. He is making an important point. Unless we first examine ourselves and deal with our own sin we will be unable to confront others about their sin in a way which is helpful and encouraging.
Paul's words in Colossians 3 give us more detail about what this should look like. As those who follow Christ we should put to death sin in our lives and grow in holiness. We are to put to death the actions listed in vs 5-9 and grow in godliness as described in vs 12 to 17. This work isn't passive! We don't just wait to become more holy, instead we are to actively be putting sin to death. Now I'm not denying the role of the Holy Spirit in changing us to be more like Christ. Without His work we would be unable to put to death sin. But we also have a responsibility. We have an active role in dealing with sin in our lives and living in a holy manner.
When we are actively dealing with sin in our lives and keeping our eyes on Christ it becomes easier for us to be humble instead of proud; gracious instead of judgmental. Often though, we are our own harshest critic or judge. It is important for us to understand that humility is not beating ourselves up or thinking less of ourselves than we ought to. Rather, humility is seeing ourselves accurately as sinners who are saved by grace through Christ. We no longer have to hold onto the guilt or shame of old sin because Christ has freely, fully and forever forgiven us. Once we have an accurate understanding of ourselves and our standing before God we are free to live in service to God and others and to actively put to death sin in our lives. Now that is true humility.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray that God would show you areas of sin in your life and help you to put them to death by His power. Pray that He would grow you in humility and love for other believers and help you to encourage them in love.
¥ Pray God would raise a passion for Christ and to share Him with others in your church. Pray that each member of the congregation would be bold in sharing their faith and that many would come to know Christ.
My Additional Prayer Points.
1/.
2/.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Practically, how can you work to put to death sin in your life?
2. How could you help each other to be putting sin to death in your lives? How can you encourage one another to live lives of holiness before God?
There are many people in the congregation at Christlife who are not connected with a cell or close to other people in the church. With an attitude of humility and love consider how you might be able to bless some of these people as a cell. Feel free to use your imagination regarding how this might look. It could include things like inviting them to your normal gathering or inviting them for dinner or lunch or maybe something more radical. If you don't know who to invite look for visitors or people who are by themselves this Sonday.
Read: Matthew 7:3-5, Colossians 3:1-14
Remember our friend who took us out for a hypothetical coffee yesterday? Not only did our friend confront us about our sin in an unloving and rude manner, he also showed a great deal of pride in his approach. I once heard the story of an elder who stood before the congregation and said, "Why can't you be more like me?" In today's readings we see why such a proud or arrogant approach is not fitting for God's people. Instead, before we confront another about their sin, we should carefully and humbly consider the sin in our own lives.
Look again at the word picture Jesus gives in today's reading from Matthew 7. The image is quite striking when you imagine it. Can you see the plank or tree sticking out of the person's eye as they say, "Now hold still for a minute". I wouldn't be letting that person anywhere near my eye! Jesus is not only entertaining us with amusing imagery though. He is making an important point. Unless we first examine ourselves and deal with our own sin we will be unable to confront others about their sin in a way which is helpful and encouraging.
Paul's words in Colossians 3 give us more detail about what this should look like. As those who follow Christ we should put to death sin in our lives and grow in holiness. We are to put to death the actions listed in vs 5-9 and grow in godliness as described in vs 12 to 17. This work isn't passive! We don't just wait to become more holy, instead we are to actively be putting sin to death. Now I'm not denying the role of the Holy Spirit in changing us to be more like Christ. Without His work we would be unable to put to death sin. But we also have a responsibility. We have an active role in dealing with sin in our lives and living in a holy manner.
When we are actively dealing with sin in our lives and keeping our eyes on Christ it becomes easier for us to be humble instead of proud; gracious instead of judgmental. Often though, we are our own harshest critic or judge. It is important for us to understand that humility is not beating ourselves up or thinking less of ourselves than we ought to. Rather, humility is seeing ourselves accurately as sinners who are saved by grace through Christ. We no longer have to hold onto the guilt or shame of old sin because Christ has freely, fully and forever forgiven us. Once we have an accurate understanding of ourselves and our standing before God we are free to live in service to God and others and to actively put to death sin in our lives. Now that is true humility.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray that God would show you areas of sin in your life and help you to put them to death by His power. Pray that He would grow you in humility and love for other believers and help you to encourage them in love.
¥ Pray God would raise a passion for Christ and to share Him with others in your church. Pray that each member of the congregation would be bold in sharing their faith and that many would come to know Christ.
My Additional Prayer Points.
1/.
2/.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Practically, how can you work to put to death sin in your life?
2. How could you help each other to be putting sin to death in your lives? How can you encourage one another to live lives of holiness before God?
Thursday 2 May 2013
Thursday 2 May 2013
Read: Romans 14:13-21, Galatians 6:1-5
Imagine that a friend of yours takes you out to coffee under the pretense of needing to talk to you about "something". The conversation begins something like this: "I asked you out to coffee today because I think you are a dirty, rotten sinner and I need to talk to you about it. Why can't you be more holy like me?" How do you think that conversation will go? I imagine that things would get very heated very quickly. Would you respond well to that kind of approach? Do you think that you will be encouraged to be more holy as a result?
We have seen that God commands us to confront one-another about sin but thankfully He has also given us guidelines about how this should look.
Firstly, notice the foundational motivation for these sorts of conversations in Romans 14. In context, Paul is referring to debates over disputable matters in the church. These are things like what food is okay to eat or what day God's people should meet. The most important principal behind dealing with these matters is that of loving one another. Notice especially vs 19, "Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification." The principal also applies to confronting one another about sin. We should always be careful to only confront one another out of love and do so in a way which leads to peace and to mutual edification.
Paul backs up this approach in today's reading from Galatians. When someone is caught in sin we should approach them gently with the aim of carrying their burdens and building them up. This should guide the way we conduct these types of conversations, not by attacking our brother or sister but by seeking to build them up in Christ.
Think about the way that you have approached others about sin in the past. Have you done so out of love and a desire to build others up? Spend some time today thinking about what it would look like to confront another believer in a loving, encouraging manner.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray for youth group as they gather together tomorrow night to study God's word and to encourage one another. Pray that they would be encouraged in their walk with Christ and would be passionate about living their lives for Him.
¥ Pray for the Presbyterian church at Bell. Pray that God would raise up more active elders who would be seeking to minister to the congregation and encourage them in their faith. Pray that God would raise up men to lead the church as their student minister has to move on.
My Additional Prayer Points.
1/.
2/.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. What things could you do to cultivate an attitude of humility and love in your own life?
2. How can you practically help and encourage one another to cultivate an attitude of humility and love? Put some of those things into practice this week!
Imagine that a friend of yours takes you out to coffee under the pretense of needing to talk to you about "something". The conversation begins something like this: "I asked you out to coffee today because I think you are a dirty, rotten sinner and I need to talk to you about it. Why can't you be more holy like me?" How do you think that conversation will go? I imagine that things would get very heated very quickly. Would you respond well to that kind of approach? Do you think that you will be encouraged to be more holy as a result?
We have seen that God commands us to confront one-another about sin but thankfully He has also given us guidelines about how this should look.
Firstly, notice the foundational motivation for these sorts of conversations in Romans 14. In context, Paul is referring to debates over disputable matters in the church. These are things like what food is okay to eat or what day God's people should meet. The most important principal behind dealing with these matters is that of loving one another. Notice especially vs 19, "Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification." The principal also applies to confronting one another about sin. We should always be careful to only confront one another out of love and do so in a way which leads to peace and to mutual edification.
Paul backs up this approach in today's reading from Galatians. When someone is caught in sin we should approach them gently with the aim of carrying their burdens and building them up. This should guide the way we conduct these types of conversations, not by attacking our brother or sister but by seeking to build them up in Christ.
Think about the way that you have approached others about sin in the past. Have you done so out of love and a desire to build others up? Spend some time today thinking about what it would look like to confront another believer in a loving, encouraging manner.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
¥ Pray for youth group as they gather together tomorrow night to study God's word and to encourage one another. Pray that they would be encouraged in their walk with Christ and would be passionate about living their lives for Him.
¥ Pray for the Presbyterian church at Bell. Pray that God would raise up more active elders who would be seeking to minister to the congregation and encourage them in their faith. Pray that God would raise up men to lead the church as their student minister has to move on.
My Additional Prayer Points.
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Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. What things could you do to cultivate an attitude of humility and love in your own life?
2. How can you practically help and encourage one another to cultivate an attitude of humility and love? Put some of those things into practice this week!
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