Monday June 30, 2014

Coming Up: Sonday July 6, 2014

Psalm 1

 Read: Psalm 1:1-6

It doesn't take much imagination to picture the effects of a drought on trees and other plants. For many of us, especially those in Australia, this picture is all too familiar after years of drought. Imagine a tree without water. It cannot flower or bear fruit. Gradually healthy green leaves turn brown, shrivel up and fall off the tree. Given long enough without water the tree will die completely.

In Psalm 1 the Psalmist employs this metaphor powerfully to vividly contrast the life of the wise person and the life of the foolish person. The foolish or wicked person is like the tree without water, they cannot bear fruit, they wither and ultimately die. On the other hand the wise person is like a tree planted by a stream of running water. They are constantly being nourished and fed by fresh water. As a result their lives are fruitful and they prosper rather than withering and dying.

When the Psalmist writes about wisdom and foolishness he is not talking about wisdom and foolishness in the way that we think of it. It's not about smart and dumb or knowing what is right from what is wrong. When the Old Testament talks about the wise and the foolish it is talking about those who are in relationship with God and those who are not. Those who do right because they know God and live for Him as opposed to those who do not live for Him and do only evil. One person has a rich and living relationship with God, the other does not.

What is the difference between these lives? The life of the wise man is a life soaked in God's Law. We see this in verse 2: "But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on His law he meditates day and night." For the wise man God's law is a constant and refreshing source of life.

The idea is not that we must somehow work our way into relationship with God by delighting in and meditating on His word. That would be works righteousness. The Psalmist is writing to God’s people, to those who have already come into relationship with God because of God’s grace and mercy. Rather, the idea is that those who have that relationship with God will delight in and meditate on His word. Those who are wise and who are in relationship with Him cannot help but desire and feed on the words of God.

As we study this Psalm in detail this week spend time to actively meditate on God’s word and to cultivate a deep delight for all that He says to us. Sink the roots of your heart deep into the fresh, living stream of God's word and allow the spirit to work in you in a new way. Let the words of the living God change you and grow you so that you might bear fruit this week.

Prayer:

Use the Bible passage from today and the reading notes to write down your prayer points before you pray.

Adoration:

Confession:

Thanks:

Supplication:

¥ Pray that God would work in your heart and the hearts of all those in the church to stir up a deep delight and passion for the word of God. Pray that He would help you to meditate on it day and night and grow in your love for Him and for His people.

¥ Pray for those families that are on school holidays at the moment. Pray that this time would be at time of rest and recovery for both children and parents. Pray that through their time together that the family might grow closer and grow in love for one another.

 Word Moment:

Those who are in relationship with God find nourishment and life in the stream of fresh water that is His word. Do you set aside time to feed from it? Do you nourish yourself from God’s word? Don’t neglect time to feed on His word.

 Discussion Questions For Families and Groups

1. If you are comfortable, share with the group about your quiet times. If you are having trouble it’s okay to share it and ask for prayer.

2. How could you encourage one another in this area?

3. How can you make an effort this week to meditate on God’s word?

 Discipleship Moment For Girls

Intro: People need water. When we are thirsty after running around or because it is hot, we all need water.

Share: A time when you have been super thirsty for some water. How did it feel when you finally had a drink?

Read: Psalm 1:1-3. The Psalmist talks about the Bible like a stream of fresh water. Trees need water to grow and survive just like people need the Bible to grow in relationship with God. What does it mean to delight in the Bible? (vs 2) How can you make sure that you are getting fed from the Bible?

Pray Together: Pray that God would help you to read and to understand His word. Pray that He would help you to put it into practice.

 Discipleship Moment For Boys

Intro: People need water. When we are thirsty after a big game or because it is hot, we all need water.

Share: A time when you have been super thirsty for some water. How did it feel when you finally had a drink?

Read: Psalm 1:1-3. The Psalmist talks about the Bible like a stream of fresh water. Trees need water to grow and survive just like people need the Bible to grow in relationship with God. What does it mean to delight in the Bible? (vs 2) How can you make sure that you are getting fed from the Bible?

Pray Together: Pray that God would help you to read and to understand His word. Pray that He would help you to put it into practice.

Saturday June 28, 2014

Read Romans 5:20-21

The role of the law has caused confusion among God’s people for quite some time. It’s clear that the Jews in Jesus’ day and Paul’s day thought that they could earn God’s favour by keeping the Law.

Paul declared in Romans 3:20 ‘Therefore No one will be declared righteous in His sight by observing the law…’ This verse is Paul’s conclusion to a 3 chapter argument designed to prove that all people both Jew and Gentile are under the power of sin and cannot save themselves.

In Galatians 2:16 he also writes ‘a man is not justified by observing the law…’  and repeats it again at the end of the verse! If Paul were not countering a false belief, it seems odd that he would repeat himself so often!

In our day, it’s quite common in the modern church to hear talk of good Christians and bad Christians. While we may all struggle with obedience at times such talk hints at a works righteousness. We see it also in our condemnation of and back turning towards Christians who commit certain sins. Some sins like greed, anxiety and disbelief of certain doctrines are quite acceptable but others are shunned as totally and completely unacceptable! This should not be. Through the giving of the law we see the punishment that sin deserves.

The law of God was given so that we might know  what sin is and that we might be able to call sin ‘sin’. It was given so that we might understand the full gravity of sin and that we might see more of how offensive sin really is to our holy and righteous God.  But God in his righteousness, holiness and compassion is gracious. We read in the Old Testament in Exodus 34:6 that He is gracious and compassionate and even slow to anger. We read in the New Testament, in 1 Tim 2:4, that God longs for all men to be saved. Where sin increased and burdened us all the more, grace increased to offset it. As such we understand why grace flows so freely out of the cross. As God brings to our heart and mind an awareness of our sins and deserved condemnation the result without grace would be hopelessness and despair. But God also brings to our heart and mind an understanding of the grace of the cross. As we comprehend the horror and sheer stupidity of our sins we also begin to understand the love of Christ at the cross. The more we see of our sin, the more we see of God’s free and unlimited grace.

Before God opened our eyes to His grace sin reigned in death. We were dead in our sins and trespasses. We were enslaved to sin. We were by nature objects of wrath. But God, being rich in mercy, lavished us with His grace and allowed grace to reign in us through eternal life.

The law shows us our hopelessness and deserved condemnation. It brings us to Christ and having received Christ shows us how to live to please our gracious God.

Prayer:

Use the bible passage from today and the reading notes to write down your prayer points before you pray.

Adoration:

Confession:

Thanks:

Supplication:

¥ Church this Sonday to bring glory to God and to edify all who come along. Pray for 95% attendance. Pray for God to be powerful among us and in us.

¥ Pray that those who don’t know Jesus to be converted.

 Word Moment:

 Don’t dismiss the law of the OT. It’s there to show us about God, about ourselves and about how we can please God. . Love it. Live it. Learn it.

 Discussion Questions For Families and Groups

1. If a person comes to Christ as healer, will that person be saved? Defend your answer.

2. How can Christians tend to become legalistic?

3. If someone said to you that the idea of having to come to church weekly is just legalism, how  would you defend the truth?

 Discipleship Moment For Girls

Intro: It’s great that we want to be good and to do the right thing. But God looks at our heart and weighs up our motives. Sometimes good things on the outside are driven by bad things on the inside. Can you think of any such examples in your own life?

Discuss how motives can make a good thing bad or vice - versa.

Read  Ephesians 2:8-10

Why do we do good works?

What should we do if our motives are not good in a particular instance?

What do good works achieve for us?

Pray together that God would cleanse your heart and lead you to many good works.

 Discipleship Moment For Boys

Intro: Boys can often goof off and act silly just for the sake of it. How good is it to know that God looks at our heart and at our motives, not just our outward actions.

Discuss how motives can make a good thing bad or vice - versa.

Read  Ephesians 2:8-10

Why do we do good works?

What should we do if our motives are not good in a particular instance?

What do good works achieve for us?

Pray together that God would cleanse your heart and lead you to many good works.

Friday June 27, 2014

Read Romans 5:18-19

I can think of no teaching with greater and more abominable implications than that of universalism. This theory argues that Christ died for the sins of the world and thus all humanity will eventually be saved without the need to repent and believe in Christ Jesus. It is, at its base, antagonistic to the teaching of the Scriptures about condemnation and judgement.

From a human perspective this theory should make us sick to the stomach. Consider the crimes that have been committed, even in just our own life time. We read regularly of rape, child abuse, murder and even genocide. The theory of universalism posits that these people are heaven bound without repentance and faith in Jesus. If we add to our list of crimes the horrors of Nazi Germany, Stalinist Russia and Maoist China we see the abomination of this theory.

Biblically speaking we can also easily see the absurdity of universalism. If God intends to save all people regardless of their repentance and faith in Jesus then God proves Himself to be a liar (because he has said that we must believe in Jesus to be saved) - a condition which is impossible. Hence the foregoing conclusion is that the Bible is neither infallible nor inerrant!

Consider just one simple example. We read in John 3:16 that any one who believes in Jesus shall not perish but have eternal life.  If universalism is true then Jesus’ words here are not true. No one will perish (as all are saved) and there is no need to believe because everyone is saved! If Jesus’ original words are not true then either Jesus or the Bible lied. If Jesus lied then He could not complete the work of atonement at the cross because such a substitute had to be perfect. We would still be in our sins and headed for condemnation which, according to universalism is a non possibility so we have a self contradicting and self destructing world view/interpretation.

If the Bible is incorrect at this point then the Scriptures are neither infallible nor inerrant. You have no certain way of knowing which other bits of Scripture are true or not. Hence with errors in Scripture we have no way of knowing wether or not Jesus died for our sins and we are still in sin, under condemnation. The same self destructing self contradiction result applies.

 Romans 5:18-19 cannot and should not be used to defend universalism. The verse is continuing the comparison between Adam’s sin and Christ’s righteousness.

Rather than talk about universal salvation we need to differentiate and talk about the universal offer of salvation. The Church, because of Christ’s atoning work, offers salvation to all and sundry without discrimination. Salvation through repentance and faith in Christ is preached to all. Those who believe in Christ are granted eternal salvation. The others are judged and condemned.

God will not let evil and wickedness reign. He will not punish all who continue in evil and who reject the reign of Christ in their lives.  Justice will reign supreme.

Prayer:

Use the bible passage from today and the reading notes to write down your prayer points before you pray.

Adoration:

Confession:

Thanks:

Supplication:

¥ Pray that the truth will be faithfully taught this Sonday in your church.

¥ Pray that God would use you to grow your church.

Witness Moment:

Our job is tell people about Jesus and to invite them into the kingdom. They have to make up their own minds. Unlike so many other religions we do not force people to convert.

We leave that to our God!

 Discussion Questions For Families and Groups

1. What would a church that believes in universalism look like?

2. What would a church that does NOT believe in universalism look like?

 Discipleship Moment For Girls

Intro: Sharing about Jesus with non believers can be scary and difficult. We fear many things about it.

What things do you fear about sharing your faith?

Discuss the things in the past that have stopped you from sharing Jesus with others.

Read  Acts 2:40-47

What do you learn about evangelism in this passage?

What is God’s role?

What is your role?

Pray together that you would have opportunities to share your faith.

 Discipleship Moment For Boys

Intro: Sharing about Jesus with non believers can be scary and difficult. We fear many things about it.

What things do you fear about sharing your faith?

Discuss the things in the past that have stopped you from sharing Jesus with others.

Read  Acts 2:40-47

What do you learn about evangelism in this passage?

What is God’s role?

What is your role?

Pray together that you would have opportunities to share your faith.