tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18128295494939454672024-03-18T00:00:31.965-05:00Your Daily ChapterRead through the Bible, one chapter every weekday, with a discussion guide for your family. A ministry of alvinmbc.com.The New Testament in 2020http://www.blogger.com/profile/13242989514653270522noreply@blogger.comBlogger57125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-55379193266251303762024-03-18T00:00:00.002-05:002024-03-18T00:00:00.349-05:00March 18 - Luke 9<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcFQSiWXv5C-kHvEchuIx6Zc1BKeMrpgGBlnSoDW7SrgC0_IeQmJj6Mplm1XwXB3-CNnLn_OsxIyVgXXUAaZ_WdyBmeSXsJIcsAP-cO_8kNTzHDhml9LE3liJw4Zs3wMAGzAj-RTvKXIA/s1600/Luke+9+58.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcFQSiWXv5C-kHvEchuIx6Zc1BKeMrpgGBlnSoDW7SrgC0_IeQmJj6Mplm1XwXB3-CNnLn_OsxIyVgXXUAaZ_WdyBmeSXsJIcsAP-cO_8kNTzHDhml9LE3liJw4Zs3wMAGzAj-RTvKXIA/s400/Luke+9+58.png" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><b>Key Verse: </b>Luke 9:58</b></div><b></b><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Big Idea: </b>The Son of Man calls us to follow Him in sacrifice.</div><br />Wouldn't it be nice if life were always easy? If the stock market were always up, if pets lived forever and if brussels sprouts tasted like cotton candy? Of course, this is not reality. Life is hard. Sometimes it is made hard because of other people and their sin, sometimes it is hard because of the kinds of diseases and disasters that we have in a fallen world. But sometimes, life is hard because following Jesus does not always mean taking the easiest path.<br /><br /><b style="font-style: italic;">Younger Kids: </b><i>Have you ever been tempted to take the easy way out or to half do something? How does that hurt your witness for God? </i><br /><br />If Jesus is our example, then it is obvious that He did not take the path of least resistance. He left the riches of Heaven to be poor on Earth, and those who wanted to become His followers on Earth had to choose radical faith. They did not know where they would sleep that night, they just knew that Jesus was leading them. If we are led by Jesus, who loved others so much that He gave His life for them, then we must love others more than we love our own comfort or pleasure. We must be willing to sacrifice alongside Him, knowing that ultimately being with Him is greater than anything we could ever give up.<br /><br /><b style="font-style: italic;">Older kids: </b><i>What are you most afraid of losing? What would be worth giving that up? </i><br />This chapter includes several people who wanted to follow Jesus on their own terms. In other words, they wanted to be labeled as Jesus' followers, but really be their own leaders. We can't do that. If we do what God wants when it is also what we want, it is not God we are following, but ourselves. Jesus does not call us to be half-followers, but totally devoted to Him. Sometimes that means ordinary life, like the man who had been possessed in Luke 8. Sometimes it means great sacrifice. Sometimes it is something in between. Every time it is worth it.<br /><br /><b>Discussion Idea: </b>A famous missionary and martyr, Jim Elliott, wrote: "He is no fool who gives up that which he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose." What did he mean by that? Do you agree?<br /><br /><b>Prayer focus: </b>Pray for Christians who suffer persecution around the world (check out persecution.com for some examples) as they give up so much for Jesus. Pray that God would break our love of the things that keep our eyes on this life, and turn us to Him.Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-53735683143044707612024-03-15T00:00:00.001-05:002024-03-15T00:00:00.241-05:00March 15 - Luke 8<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7GkHdDKR8IQs7P6yLnmMuWFRynuJwRDOPfKbFIUwAoNe87Pf0TcdRiI1VmFrF__8iECZCnKTW1hahJ6zqMJnRHkmuNtVGH2jSfdB3bpNbIqTJq85pIRXkeUM098r0SzT9ldzMLCT2ID0/s1600/Luke+8+39.png" imageanchor="1" style="color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7GkHdDKR8IQs7P6yLnmMuWFRynuJwRDOPfKbFIUwAoNe87Pf0TcdRiI1VmFrF__8iECZCnKTW1hahJ6zqMJnRHkmuNtVGH2jSfdB3bpNbIqTJq85pIRXkeUM098r0SzT9ldzMLCT2ID0/s320/Luke+8+39.png" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="320" /></a><span style="text-align: left;"> </span></div><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Key Verse:</b> <a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Luke 8.39" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Luke%208.39" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Luke 8:39</a></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Big Idea:</b> Sometimes following the Son of Man looks like ordinary life.</div><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">What does following Jesus look like? Does it look like a missionary, walking through the jungles of Africa, risking life and limb to take the gospel where it has never been heard? Does it look like a pastor, working day after day on preaching, counseling, and prayer? Does it look like someone who is very poor? Or someone who is very rich?</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Any of these may be right, any of these may be wrong. God's calling on every life is different. Sometimes following the Son of Man does not involve getting on an airplane, but going into the kitchen to make breakfast for young children who are soaking up God's truths. For several missionary families I know, following Jesus meant both going to a foreign field and faithfully raising their children in the struggles and joys of everyday life. The truth is that God is nor impressed by the things we are impressed by. You would have a hard time finding a more dramatic story than the man described at the end of Luke 8</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">, who was possessed by 5000 demons and liberated by Jesus. In gratitude for what Jesus had done for Him (like the woman in Luke 7</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">, he loved much because he was loved much), the man wanted to go with Jesus to preach to the world.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">But Jesus told him no.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Imagine for a minute, the desire to do something grand, but to have the Son of Man tell you that the greatest impact you can have will seem much more ordinary: "Go home and tell the people here what God has done for you." For all of us, even those who God does call to more dramatic forms of ministry, the beginning of our service is at home. We must help each other in our family, share the gospel with our friends and worship together if we are ever going to lead others outside of our homes.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">What does following Jesus look like? It looks like living for Him, right where He put you. Charles Spurgeon once said that if God had made you a cricket and told you to chirp, you could do no better than to obey His will.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Discussion idea: </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Why do you think the man wanted to travel with Jesus? Why do you think Jesus told him to stay? Does God ever tell us not to do something good, so we can do what is </span><i style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">best</i><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">?</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Prayer focus: </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Pray for contentment with the opportunities and challenges God has given to you and for eyes to see His work in your life.</span>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-60809226032934442822024-03-14T00:00:00.001-05:002024-03-14T00:00:00.131-05:00March 14 - Luke 7<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHEjT8hgUseGUsFoyiOoV7BwjM7tam89yw6ZQ5fCmTVHrHg7DuM4a-mJ63xF7ppzwWICEZIrrfLe_In-GqEicpsG3aoK5cKqLh3HfIV9UtsPj2SxVkmAg7kfOdVNKLLQv738tKDRXwKjo/s1600/Luke+7+47.png" imageanchor="1" style="color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHEjT8hgUseGUsFoyiOoV7BwjM7tam89yw6ZQ5fCmTVHrHg7DuM4a-mJ63xF7ppzwWICEZIrrfLe_In-GqEicpsG3aoK5cKqLh3HfIV9UtsPj2SxVkmAg7kfOdVNKLLQv738tKDRXwKjo/s400/Luke+7+47.png" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Key Verse:</b> <a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Luke 7.47" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Luke%207.47" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Luke 7:47</a></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Big Idea:</b> We love the Son of Man because He first loved us.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">As human beings, we are not very lovable. We are sinners, who often bite the hand of the One who feeds us. Yet God, because of His incredible mercy, has chosen to love us and to forgive us. Luke 7 describes a series of incredible events, where those who were outcasts from Jewish social world were received by Jesus. First, a Roman centurion, directly responsible for leading a unit of the troops that occupied the Israelite territory, was praised by Jesus for his faith, and saw his servant healed. A widow who lost her only son, and thus her economic security, stood by as Jesus touched the (ceremonially unclean) dead body and raised him to life again. John the Baptist, in prison and soon to be executed, was described by Jesus as the greatest prophet that had ever lived. </div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Finally, in the text from which our key verse is drawn, Jesus was sitting at dinner with a Pharisee and a notorious sinner came up behind him and begin weeping. She took the water from her tears and used her hair to wash the grime of people, animals and earth from His feet. She loved Jesus so much that the most disgusting part of His body was precious to her. Then she took an expensive jar of perfume, although she was likely poor, and broke it over His feet in what seemed like an extravagant waste to the rest of the table.<br /><br />The host, Simon, failed to offer any of the normal components of hospitality. He offered Jesus no cooling oil for His head or water for His feet. He believed that his own doubts about Jesus were confirmed: a true prophet would have known who this woman was and would have rejected her. He was half right, of course, God's true prophet knew this woman's heart was broken by her sin in a way that all of Simon's external righteousness could not compete with. She had experienced God's love when she was unworthy and loved Him in return. Simon knew self-righteousness and loved only Himself. </div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">To illustrate the point, Jesus told a simple parable. Two people are forgiven sizeable debts, but one is much larger than the other. Who loves more? The answer is obvious. In the same way, God's love for those the deepest in sin often results in the greatest love when they have been redeemed. Luke, the companion of Paul who had persecuted the church, knows this better than most. We ought to know it too. The more we realize our dependence on God, and our inability to earn His love by anything we do, the more we will actually love and serve Him.<br /><br /><b>Discussion idea: </b>How does Jesus' ministry as a friend of sinners actually help Him to reach the people who will do the most? How does being "good" come between us and godliness?<br /><br /><b>Prayer focus: </b>Pray for God to reveal the hidden sins of self righteousness and pride, and replace them with gratitude. </div>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-2658798306233465492024-03-13T00:00:00.001-05:002024-03-13T00:00:00.136-05:00March 13 - Luke 6<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr9oNfkpv5J0YamGhr6VIl2pbP6yI-G2FREL4U4eKNMUmKqpAx6Li1fs-_yiemWB6yw-jYgtsRwmrG5g6Uu_bAyADG1QtSpwCb3cSgCwSyU5DKAxUNqv4FuX5mzyNrjPCjKYXMCYRaGUA/s1600/Luke+6+48.png" style="color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr9oNfkpv5J0YamGhr6VIl2pbP6yI-G2FREL4U4eKNMUmKqpAx6Li1fs-_yiemWB6yw-jYgtsRwmrG5g6Uu_bAyADG1QtSpwCb3cSgCwSyU5DKAxUNqv4FuX5mzyNrjPCjKYXMCYRaGUA/s400/Luke+6+48.png" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="400" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b>Key Verse:</b> <a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Luke 6.48" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Luke%206.48" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Luke 6:48</a></span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b>Big Idea: </b>The Son of Man is the foundation of our lives.</span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span face="Tahoma, sans-serif" style="line-height: 19.26px;">In the town where I used to live, they built a new neighborhood with massive homes on big lots. Their HOA has a private boat ramp and a private dog park. The developed who set it up undeniably made a fortune. But you can hardly get there because they did not take all of the steps necessary to build quality roads. Instead, when pulling off of FM-2004 in Brazoria County, you are teleported to the potholes of Louisiana. </span><br /><br />Everyone is building something with their life. Some people are building lives that look impressive physically: lots of friends, lots of money and lots of influence. Some people are building lives that look impressive spiritually: lots of followers, lots of Scripture memorized, and lots of good deeds. None of those things are wrong! But if you could dig just a little bit beneath the surface, you might be surprised at what you would find. Some lives that look unimpressive are built on a sturdy foundation, and can safely be expanded and improved. Some lives that seem to be amazing have no foundation, and the first storm will bring them crashing to the ground.<br /><br /><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span face="Tahoma, sans-serif" style="font-size: x-small; line-height: 19.26px;">In the parable which concludes the Sermon on the Plain, today’s chapter, Jesus tells us that hearing His words may seem impressive, and people may be amazed at our knowledge, but if we do not do them, we are a house with no foundation. At the first crisis, the life that seemed so beautiful is suddenly so much rubble and disappointment. Too often, we are caught up in what is visible and forget that God is looking at our hearts. If we are to build our lives on Jesus, sometimes it will seem counter-intuitive to those around us, who are mostly concerned with what is visible. But it is the life founded on the rock which can stand the storm. When we make all of who we are on the Rock of Jesus, then even death itself cannot shake us. If we follow Him, He holds us securely in His hand.<br /><br /><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b><span face="Tahoma, sans-serif" style="line-height: 19.26px;">Discussion idea:</span></b><span face="Tahoma, sans-serif" style="line-height: 19.26px;"> The most important things cannot be lost in life or by death. What are some things that seem important, but are not on the foundation of Jesus? What are some things that seem unimportant, but will last forever?<br /><br /><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b><span face="Tahoma, sans-serif" style="line-height: 19.26px;">Prayer focus:</span></b><span face="Tahoma, sans-serif" style="line-height: 19.26px;"> Pray for the strength and wisdom to build your life on Jesus alone, repent of any areas of your life which are not. </span></span></div>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-11108607443178109822024-03-12T00:00:00.001-05:002024-03-12T00:00:00.232-05:00March 12 - Luke 5<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0y7TYrhKUBDiAr9vcFScxnQGomq7lhyeA-KaqpTjJuPB8N844wi47K4ODIlwTB32C6r_dgQoHcGDUVJgHw-7LUa1bfihqjNzLzxECwYT4ufiQTAAHgzTiFWq-C638lGD2RRaE41f8Nv0/s1600/Luke+5+10.png" imageanchor="1" style="color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0y7TYrhKUBDiAr9vcFScxnQGomq7lhyeA-KaqpTjJuPB8N844wi47K4ODIlwTB32C6r_dgQoHcGDUVJgHw-7LUa1bfihqjNzLzxECwYT4ufiQTAAHgzTiFWq-C638lGD2RRaE41f8Nv0/s400/Luke+5+10.png" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="400" /></a></div><p></p><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Key Verse: </b><a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Luke 5.10" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Luke%205.10" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Luke 5:10</a></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Big Idea: </b>The Son of Man calls us out to bring people in.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Jesus' public ministry was not one that He would accomplish alone. He knew that His time was short, because a cross loomed in the distance and He would need to gather a group of people to carry on His ministry. He built an institution which persists to this day, the church, and laid the groundwork for everything else which would come on this day on the seashores of Galilee. Simon, one of John's disciples, loaned Jesus His boat to use as a platform to preach to a crowd; Jesus then miraculously gave Him a massive catch of fish. Peter, who had heard of Jesus from John, had heard Him teach and seen His power was now faced with a choice. It was time to leave fishing for fish to start fishing for people. </div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><i><b>Younger Kids: </b>What do you think that Jesus means when He says that Peter will "catch men"?<br /></i></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Later in the chapter, Jesus continues His ministry of healing and preaching, until he came across a tax collector, named Levi (to us, he is better known as Matthew). Tax collectors were a despised group of people. Considered religious and political traitors for their alignment with the Roman Empire, they were so hated that the Pharisees and scribes would not eat with them. Jesus invited Levi to follow Him, and Levi did what Jesus had told the fishermen to do earlier: he threw a party to introduce people to Jesus. The Pharisees challenged Jesus, asking why He would eat with these tax collectors and sinners. Jesus described His ministry simply as like a doctor, who needed to be among the sick to do His work (<a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Matt 5.31-32" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Matt%205.31-32" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Matthew 5:31-32</a>).<br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Peter, his brother Andrew, the brothers James and John and Matthew would be the first apostles, the ones that Jesus sent out to preach the good news that He brought. Jesus does not use perfect angels to bring His message, but calls ordinary people out of ordinary life to do extraordinary work. Peter and the others were just like any other sinners, they were fishermen, not rabbis or scribes, and James and John's nickname was "the sons of thunder," for their riotous tempers. But God uses these imperfect people to reach other imperfect people: the men who had been caught will now do the catching. They left everything behind, boat, fish, and family, and followed Jesus (<a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Luke 5.11" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Luke%205.11" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Luke 5:11</a>).<br /><br /><i style="font-weight: bold;">Older kids: </i><i>If God has given you the job of catching people, what can you learn from the way that fishermen work? How do they catch fish? How do we reach people for Jesus?</i><br /><br /><b>Discussion idea: </b>Who is someone that you can talk to about Jesus this week? How does knowing that we have been pulled out of sin motivate us to try and rescue others?<br /><b>Prayer focus: </b>Thank God that, although we are not any better than anyone else, we have been saved by His grace. Ask Him for eyes that are open to others we can reach for Him. </div>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-75723175558302024782024-03-11T00:00:00.002-05:002024-03-11T00:00:00.126-05:00March 11 - Luke 4<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA8DVPtESfhoju7VtCW3xUJZgcdutOZNyads-ov1kLZajy29xFyMI-QypG-euFMiew23OC052ymifjMebNZiAmslQD_P6KN5nFDfamy8gmlR37j0LkJhgzyq1UrCHwf5Eq8FFDzxDIj_8/s1600/Luke+4+4.png" imageanchor="1" style="color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA8DVPtESfhoju7VtCW3xUJZgcdutOZNyads-ov1kLZajy29xFyMI-QypG-euFMiew23OC052ymifjMebNZiAmslQD_P6KN5nFDfamy8gmlR37j0LkJhgzyq1UrCHwf5Eq8FFDzxDIj_8/s400/Luke+4+4.png" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="400" /></a><span style="text-align: left;"> </span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Key Verse: </b><a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Luke 4.4" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Luke%204.4" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Luke 4:4</a></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Big Idea: </b>When He was tempted, the Son of Man responded with the Word of God. </div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">In some sense, Jesus' public ministry began when He was baptized at about 30 years old. Yet the first thing He did was to retreat from the public view to spend 40 days alone in the desert with God. This is strongly reminiscent of the 40 years the Israelites spent in the desert after being "baptized" in the Red Sea, where they were tempted to trust God for bread, kingdom and leadership, but failed. During this time, Jesus fasted, the traditional method of reminding yourself that you are hungry for God, beyond what anything physical can satisfy. It was at this point of physical weakness that Jesus was tempted. The three temptations He faced were representative of the temptations that we all face: the desire for physical comfort, the need for prestige and the pull of power (the Bible calls these the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life in <a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="1 John 2.16" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/1%20John%202.16" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">1 John 2:16</a>). Each time Jesus responded to these tests, He used the same method: He simply quoted the book of Deuteronomy. </div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><i><br /><b>Younger kids: </b>When are you most tempted to do something wrong? When you are tired/hungry/lonely? How can knowing that help you stay on your guard? </i></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Rather than resisting the temptation directly, Jesus chose to focus on the truth instead. It has been said that Secret Service agents learning to detect counterfeit bills spend much more time studying real bills than they do the counterfeit ones. It is easy to recognize the false when you know the real thing. Incredibly, although Jesus is entirely God, He resisted every temptation using the same resources available to you and to me, the Scriptures. The Devil quoted Scripture back at Him for the third temptation, suggesting that if Jesus is really the Son of God, He should prove it by jumping into a valley and letting God rescue Him. He misquoted the Scripture slightly, removing the words "in all your ways" and removed it from the context, where <a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Ps 91.1" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Ps%2091.1" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Psalm 91:1</a> restricted the promise to the one who dwells in intimacy with God. This half truth was a whole lie. Jesus responds by quoting another Scripture: Don't put God to the test. It is one thing to walk closely with God and know that He protects us wherever we go, but it is quite a different scenario to put ourselves into a bad situation and trust that God will bail us out. <b><br /></b><i><br /><b>Older kids: </b>A lot of the toughest temptations we face are self-made. We let ourselves get in the wrong place, with the wrong people at the wrong time until "one thing leads to another." Jesus deliberately allowed Himself to get hungry to be tempted. How is recklessly entering a position of temptation different than what He did? </i><br /><br />After Jesus had faced these temptations, the Devil left Him for a while, and He continued His ministry, announcing the good news that God's reign had come, healing the sick and casting out demons. Perhaps most significantly, He began by going to the synagogue and once again using the Bible to show who He had come to be. The boy who had learned in the Temple was still about His Father's business.<br /><br /><b>Discussion idea: </b>When you are tempted, how do you resist it? What happens when you try to resist a temptation head on, versus substituting it for something good?<br /><br /><b>Prayer focus: </b>Thank God that in Jesus, we have the power to resist temptation. Identify a specific area of temptation in your life and ask God to help you find a corresponding truth to replace it with. </div>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-16084585032770895592024-03-08T00:00:00.001-06:002024-03-08T00:00:00.123-06:00March 8 - Luke 3<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpBdEstlwxqeBjlAICBUcmmiBAnLpmz_YUkLxXC0nsvpWpg8txiK8VTU-2LxQ1sPl-r1TpjfZO9U45ElltmkwwzQk60Gu13jw_eS4ijaj3_wQnN66Oorqqq8zPAwd8mpH3pjvwOCLi7c0/s1600/Luke+3+38.png" imageanchor="1" style="color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpBdEstlwxqeBjlAICBUcmmiBAnLpmz_YUkLxXC0nsvpWpg8txiK8VTU-2LxQ1sPl-r1TpjfZO9U45ElltmkwwzQk60Gu13jw_eS4ijaj3_wQnN66Oorqqq8zPAwd8mpH3pjvwOCLi7c0/s400/Luke+3+38.png" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"> </span></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Key Verse: </b><a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Luke 3.38" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Luke%203.38" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Luke 3:38</a></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Big Idea: </b>The Son of Man came as the Savior of all humanity.</div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Before Luke described the birth of Jesus in the first chapter, he talked about the man who would be born before Jesus, to prepare the people for His arrival: John the Baptist. John would call the people to repentance and faith, baptize them as a symbol of that faith and so prepare the raw materials which Jesus would use to assemble His first church. Fulfilling the prophecy of <a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Isa 40.3-5" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Isa%2040.3-5" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Isaiah 40:3-5</a>, John would come and prepare the path for the Lord, and did so by teaching the people to trust the One who was coming and to obey Him. By our chapter today, Jesus is a man, ready to make His public debut through His baptism. Before Jesus comes to John, the religious hypocrites ask to be baptized. John's words against them are sharp: they are hypocrites and vipers, wanting protection from God's wrath by ritual, without changing their hearts. Neither the water of the Jordan River nor their Jewish ancestry would protect them, because God could raise up children for Abraham from dead stones if He wanted to.</div><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">In a sense, that is exactly what He did. From the dead, rock hard hearts of the Gentiles, God would draw people out and bring them into Abraham's family: people who were not circumcised in their bodies, but in their hearts. Baptism, as the symbol of the new covenant, was only meaningful if the person had already repented of their sins and trusted in the Messiah. Anything less than that was a mockery. But for those who did repent and believe, forgiveness was free. There was no ancestral requirement, no economic, political or social distinctions: Jesus was coming to be the Savior of all humanity, and that salvation would be received by everyone who received Him.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Luke reinforced that point (and the portrait of Jesus as both fully God and fully human from the first two chapters) by giving the genealogy of Jesus here, even though we might have expected it earlier. While Matthew's genealogy goes back to Abraham, Luke takes His ancestry all the way to Adam and to God. Jesus has not come just for one tribe or nation, but for all of humanity. Just as Adam was born without parents, Jesus was born of a virgin, as the second Adam come to recreate humanity in His image. You and I may not be important by the world's standards, not pretty enough or rich enough to be worth much trouble, but the Son of God came down from Heaven for us.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Discussion Idea: </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">How does Jesus' impartial love for all of humanity influence the way we should treat other people? If we are tempted to pride, how should it correct that? If we are tempted to depression and self-pity, how should it correct that?</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Prayer focus: </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Pray that the next time you are interacting with someone you do not know well, that God would open your eyes to see them as He does: sinners, yet loved. Praise God for His mercy in dying for us, not on the basis of who we are or what we have done, but because of who He is.</span>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-49304008182039297742024-03-07T00:00:00.001-06:002024-03-07T00:00:00.137-06:00March 7 - Luke 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV0GAyUsQn9bOO5iXeWA5i8TqIUSRyE-WNWGvJg0QssDHZwfbl5mLABWkISKDkEKNzfkiLPvRR_8foe5gyAJIE_P7eo8ei6puf6bsUdLxA4DvL9Db4tAzeoDVKmAjH4RiH3rrs3aIFPds/s1600/luke+2+52.png" imageanchor="1" style="color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV0GAyUsQn9bOO5iXeWA5i8TqIUSRyE-WNWGvJg0QssDHZwfbl5mLABWkISKDkEKNzfkiLPvRR_8foe5gyAJIE_P7eo8ei6puf6bsUdLxA4DvL9Db4tAzeoDVKmAjH4RiH3rrs3aIFPds/s400/luke+2+52.png" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Key Verse: </b><a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Luke 2.52" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Luke%202.52" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Luke 2:52</a></div><b><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Big Idea: </b>The Son of Man grew as a man.</div></b></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">In the first chapter of Luke, we saw that Jesus is truly the Son of God: entirely human. In Luke 2, which includes the only description of Jesus' childhood, we see a different side of the same truth. When Jesus became a human being, He did not stop being God, but he did choose not to take advantage of the privileges that included. He added to His divine perfections all the frailty of humanity: hunger, exhaustion and infancy. Jesus entered our world as a baby, born into poverty and laid in a manger.<br /><br />When He was twelve years old, His parents took Him to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover, as they did each year. But Jesus, on the cusp of manhood in Jewish culture, spoke with the teachers of the Law in a way that amazed them. Mary and Joseph left Jerusalem to begin the journey home, and did not realize that He had been left behind. When they returned, they worried about where He had been, but He explained that He had been about in His Father's House, about His Father's work. But while He knew who His real Father was, He submitted to Mary and Joseph, learning obedience. Although He is, and always has been, all knowing and all powerful, He grew in wisdom and size, and deepened in His relationships with His Heavenly Father and with other people.<br /><br />Consider for a moment that Jesus took on humanity so completely that He needed to learn to walk, to hold a spoon and to be the Man He had come to be. The Infinite One grew. What is the implication for our lives? We can follow the path that Jesus has shown us and grow too, not being satisfied with what we have already accomplished, but maturing in body and mind and spiritually growing in love for God and other people.<br /><br /><b>Discussion Idea: </b>What part of growing up is/was hardest for you? How does the example of Jesus' growth encourage you?<br /><b>Prayer focus: </b>Pray for the strength of God to grow and for the wisdom to know how to grow. </div>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-37691852435850194112024-03-06T00:00:00.000-06:002024-03-06T00:00:00.133-06:00March 6 - Luke 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFyErd1Uyk3mBdapgyfEy6MtuAEmnonzyoUTPhnyeKCKM64cJhoYXng-z6NttRxrBxoAwKDq3HUNVRATjsMkmcbtab6EkwpbTG5FwIZ6jvV4YKm6as8oDbA1HcUECJhLcT5o1yP67Iv-0/s1600/Luke+1+35.png" imageanchor="1" style="color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFyErd1Uyk3mBdapgyfEy6MtuAEmnonzyoUTPhnyeKCKM64cJhoYXng-z6NttRxrBxoAwKDq3HUNVRATjsMkmcbtab6EkwpbTG5FwIZ6jvV4YKm6as8oDbA1HcUECJhLcT5o1yP67Iv-0/s320/Luke+1+35.png" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Key Verse:</b> <a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Luke 1.35" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Luke%201.35" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Luke 1:35</a></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Big Idea:</b> The Son of Man is the Son of God.</div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">In <i>Alice in Wonderland</i>, when the White Rabbit asks the King where to begin reading, the King told him to "Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end: then stop." This is good advice for reading a book or telling a story, but in the case of the story of Jesus, it is not possible. Jesus has no beginning and no end, all of history is His Story and for all eternity we will continue to know Him more and more. Yet, when Dr. Luke, the companion of Paul, picked up his pen to put the ministry of Jesus into an orderly account so that Theophilus and other Gentile (non-Jewish) people might read and believe, He had to begin somewhere. He chose to begin with the forerunner of Jesus' earthly ministry, John the Baptist, then to the pregnancy of the virgin Mary.</div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">The angel, Gabriel, came to Mary and announced to her that she would have a Son. Mary asked how this could be: she and her fiance Joseph had not yet been married, and she knew that a child required both a father and a mother. The angel explained that this would not be any ordinary child. He is not the son of any human Father, but the Son of God Himself, coming down to become the Son of Mary.</div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><i>Older kids: Sometimes skeptics say that stories like the virgin birth were possible in the ancient world, but we know better now, because scientifically it is impossible for a woman to bear a child without a man. This is a silly idea. Mary shows that she knows this is impossible: it is why she asks the question. But nothing is impossible with God.</i></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><i><br /></i></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><i>Younger kids: What do you have in common with your parents? Maybe you have your mom's sense of humor and your dad's eyes, or your mom's nose and your dad's kindness. We get traits from both of our parents, both from the time we are babies and from the way they raise us. Jesus is 100% God and 100% human - He gets His humanity from Mary, but keeps His divinity as the eternal Son of God.</i></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Luke is giving us a hint that he will develop more fully later in the book: this is not the beginning of the life of Jesus, but the beginning of its human form. </div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">The job of rescuing us from our sins was too great for any ordinary human to handle, or even for an angel. Instead, it required God Himself to come down. He did not come down in some kind of halfway trick, but the Son of God became fully the Son of Man, born under the rule of the Romans, under the Jewish law and into poverty. He humbled Himself so that He could lift us up.<br /><br /><b>Discussion idea:</b> Based on what you know about Heaven, what do you think Jesus gave up when He became a human being? Remember that He remained 100% God, but did not take advantage of the privileges that provided.<br /><b>Prayer focus:</b> Thank God for coming down to us, when we could never get to Him. Pray for the humility to serve others, like He humble served us.</div>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-2707767792464019652024-03-05T00:00:00.001-06:002024-03-05T00:00:00.438-06:00March 5 - Jude<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi51pMqHFCA8YGAe61hv9NHa8UBCPAE9bo2g3E7GLl_phJLoxvpk8jAbob38jZLzbxAeCbTPAPmutTmHzRvcdJiP6JPP-a9oZriEsZBoEbEEM0IbP3_gTbOZLQmGzLZrB6JDEFRnRvwU20/s1600/Jude+24.png" imageanchor="1" style="color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi51pMqHFCA8YGAe61hv9NHa8UBCPAE9bo2g3E7GLl_phJLoxvpk8jAbob38jZLzbxAeCbTPAPmutTmHzRvcdJiP6JPP-a9oZriEsZBoEbEEM0IbP3_gTbOZLQmGzLZrB6JDEFRnRvwU20/s400/Jude+24.png" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><i><b><br /></b></i></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><i><b>Key Verse: </b><a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Jude 24" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Jude%2024" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Jude 24</a></i></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Big Idea:</b> In the face of temptations, it is God that holds us up.</div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Jude, like James, was written by one of the other sons of Mary. Interestingly, rather than call himself the “brother of Jesus,” he introduces himself as James’ brother and Jesus’ slave. This letter is a somber one, warning about hypocrites who had worked their way into the congregation. They told people what they wanted to hear, but were like clouds in a drought that looked promising but offered no rain. There is probably nothing worse than someone who has the appearance of faith, but not the power of the cross.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">In the past, vaccines were based on giving someone a weakened form of a disease or a similar, but less dangerous one. The immune system would be trained by that pathogen, and would be ready to resist the real thing later. Christianity as taught by these teachers is just a weakened mockery of the real faith, that does nothing except desensitize people so that they never catch the real disease. They are worst off then when they started, because they make a mockery of the grace of God.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">How do we deal with these kinds of temptations? It will not be in our own strength, because being told what we want to believe is too tempting of an offer to refuse. James offers a simple answer: keep growing in faith, keep praying, keep looking for Jesus to return and keep leading others to Jesus. The key to prevent the infection of extravagant false teachers is to live the ordinary Christian life. How can that be? While the false teachers point to themselves and their pleasures, authentic Christianity is a continual dependence on God. As the benediction explains, believers are eternally secure because Jesus is the one who keeps us from stumbling. We simply trust and worship, and He brings us to Himself washed clean.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Discussion idea: </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">What makes certain lies appealing? How do fake friends, salespeople, etc. offer us the bait we want to hear? How and why are God’s portraits of Christianity in the Bible different?</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Prayer focus: </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Thank God for a specific instance when He protected you from yourself and for the eternal security we have in Christ.</span>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-26447549347291882912024-03-04T00:00:00.009-06:002024-03-04T00:00:00.150-06:00March 4 - James 5<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj29zDIj5qaqkwycaC4J1ZjreZckl6ZnLNq6d6RalMlvCmsPOJJEbThpwMc0NPqrmm-FOWtHkO7XS5hEKvjFvenlcdXPl9spsHhtqYE3fQsRXPPReFzBV38BabIqhRW2nmFRsQn_3WWoow/s1600/James+5+3.png" style="color: #3778cd; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj29zDIj5qaqkwycaC4J1ZjreZckl6ZnLNq6d6RalMlvCmsPOJJEbThpwMc0NPqrmm-FOWtHkO7XS5hEKvjFvenlcdXPl9spsHhtqYE3fQsRXPPReFzBV38BabIqhRW2nmFRsQn_3WWoow/s400/James+5+3.png" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><b>Key Verse</b>: <a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="James 5.3" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/James%205.3" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">James 5:3</a></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Big Idea:</b><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-size: 13px;"> A person who is wise will keep life in perspective.</span></div><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;">If you knew that tomorrow your bank account would be empty and all that you would have left were the things you had purchased, what would you do? Obviously, you would buy everything you could. What if you owned a large amount of stock in a company that was going to collapse the next day? You would sell. Only a very strange person would hold onto something they knew they were about to lose. It is obvious that we ought to invest in the things we can keep, and try to use the things we are losing as wisely as possible to purchase the things that will last.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;">It is a cliche, but not a false one, that there are no U-Haul trailers for hearses. Material possessions are passing away; James says that they are already corroded and moth-eaten. A wise person will see that, and invest their life in the life to come. The situation is really more dire: our possessions will testify against us for wasting the precious lives that God entrusted us with. Failing to use the gifts of God is not just foolish, it is wicked, because we are stockpiling our treasures for the last days. </div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;">We must live like we expect Jesus to return at any moment. That means being slow to anger, quick to love and eager to invest the blessings we receive. We have to patiently endure, waiting on Jesus to finish in the world what he started in our hearts. </div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Discussion Idea: </b>What things distract you from eternity? How can you use those things to bring glory to God instead of yourself?</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Prayer focus: </b>Pray for an opportunity to give up something this week that would bring glory to God in exchange. </div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Note</b>: At the risk of self-promotion, I did write a commentary on James available from Bogard Press on <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Spring-2024-Adult-Lesson-Commentary-ebook/dp/B0CRZBP6PM/ref=sr_1_3?crid=30PEDIFGO9N4A&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.MadVd-VMgfalpp4dj-Njc5rUKoYLOCt60v0ENb7SCv-JZPl5bKEjzCMsodPI81AgpYuBDO5cUv_c52sdNjokht3zL8TdoSSF2ZHhVmOF6IkU5e6E-qMaM6d_RgIHYUSmEzjzj0hvOBlff7P41RclhYdO50lGv4Oh1hzAt-aOfVFVGCfH1kuHMNo7XCg5ZN7j5otztZLc8g_br5_LT_yNIxL2YeW8R9KsUA1vT9HvqrA.mue9NAvNrsPomJXYgrCY7A0DEuU30X2MRKpSurC1CHM&dib_tag=se&keywords=Bogard+Press&qid=1709230352&sprefix=bogard+press%2Caps%2C139&sr=8-3">Kindle </a>and in <a href="https://bogardpress.org/sunday-school-lesson-commentary-spring.html" target="_blank">print</a>.</div><div><br /></div></div>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-25011970324765714822024-03-01T00:00:00.001-06:002024-03-01T00:00:00.238-06:00March 1 - James 4<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmP3ro6BY2bKvXyERuL5xhBJWALPA_RQ_PEIiS9OkfahEReYbKNet2HSmc27jFYiRsrsnYvD7bX3FiOCLDpFIJuVdqLavLWyhlhVP9cHnkbnKvMb0w2AqxLdYMqm7dRs48vCaiT0JR1RE/s1600/James+4+6.png" imageanchor="1" style="color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmP3ro6BY2bKvXyERuL5xhBJWALPA_RQ_PEIiS9OkfahEReYbKNet2HSmc27jFYiRsrsnYvD7bX3FiOCLDpFIJuVdqLavLWyhlhVP9cHnkbnKvMb0w2AqxLdYMqm7dRs48vCaiT0JR1RE/s400/James+4+6.png" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="400" /></a></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><i><b><br />Key Verse: </b><a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="James 4.6" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/James%204.6" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">James 4:6</a></i></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Big Idea:</b><i> </i>A heart that is wise will also be humble.</div><br /><div style="text-align: left;">Why do we have conflicts with other people? James says that it is ultimately because of conflict within ourselves. The greed and lust in our own hearts makes us discontent with what God has given us, and we take it out on other people. Why do we not have those things? James says it is because we do not humble ourselves enough to simply ask God - or when we do ask God, it is with impure motives, desiring a holy God to support our lives of sin. As long as we want to lift ourselves up, whether with a thin veneer of spirituality or not, we will find God resisting our efforts, trying to give us the wake up call that we need. When we humble ourselves, God gives us more than we deserve, and draws us closer to Himself.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">It is one of the big paradoxes of the Christian life that the tighter we hold onto ourselves, the quicker we lose ourselves, and as soon as we give ourselves away, we find that God gives us more than we ever could have imagined. This means that being wise sometimes goes against "common sense." During the black plague, it meant that Christians cared for their infected neighbors when their own families turned them out on the streets to die. When believers give their lives for their testimony, it meant knowing that their blood spoke louder than their mouths. In the parable of the Good Samaritan, the hero of the story stopped to help someone laying on the side of the road, knowing that on that street, people often pretended to be hurt while gangs of thieves hid, ready to ambush. True wisdom is a life in tune with God, and the desire to humbly let Him show us the way.<br /><br />To live a wise life is to realize that our pleasure is too small a thing to live for. Tomorrow is not promised, and all boasting about what we will accomplish is simply evil. The wise life is a life not lived for itself, but for God and others. When we are not trying to secure blessings for ourselves, we are certain to find them.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Discussion Idea: </b>What does humility mean to you? How is it different than low self-esteem? How does humility prepare us for God's use?<br /><b>Prayer focus: </b>Pray that God would help us to see how desperately we need Him.</div></div>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-76828317718530431712024-02-29T00:00:00.001-06:002024-02-29T12:10:16.669-06:00February 29 - James 3<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHBeeMmmWT9DKFWf1F16CQ5SgJTmfs6_PZ9fDrQWNIam1ZdoitSzJTjD3sq9Z-QuGRRLR3PU4PLGRPdjR935i-OetW1QF_Mz-HkZcn89mEZtcRuoIxxo2Pc6TfszAPGa9YyD1nvI-9eQM/s1600/James+3+2.png" imageanchor="1" style="color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHBeeMmmWT9DKFWf1F16CQ5SgJTmfs6_PZ9fDrQWNIam1ZdoitSzJTjD3sq9Z-QuGRRLR3PU4PLGRPdjR935i-OetW1QF_Mz-HkZcn89mEZtcRuoIxxo2Pc6TfszAPGa9YyD1nvI-9eQM/s400/James+3+2.png" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="400" /></a></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><i><b><br /></b></i></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><i><b>Key Verse:</b> <a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="James 3.2" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/James%203.2" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">James 3:2</a></i></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Big Idea:</b> Wisdom begins with our words.</div><br /><div style="text-align: left;">Words are powerful things. We can build someone up or tear them down. We can strengthen a relationship or destroy one. Words are also uniquely easy to employ. We do not need anything special to speak, because our mouths are with us all the time. Various forms of technology give us the ability to speak easily and without immediate consequence, emboldening us even more. In modern society, our marriages, our child rearing, our friendships and our politics are all in chaos, largely because of untamed tongues. That tongue, James says, is a fire. Fire has three characteristics I think are relevant here: it only needs a little bit to start, once is starts spreading is is very difficult to stop and it leaves destruction behind it. Our words are the same way, and a life of wisdom must weigh each one carefully.<br /><br /><i><b>Younger kids:</b> What is something you say when you are upset that you might not mean? How can this cause problems?</i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><br /></i></div><div style="text-align: left;">But James also explains that a tongue is like a horse's bridle or a ship's rudder; although it is small, it sets the course for everything else. Our words can set a course for our actions, where we set off a chain reaction with an ill advised remark that takes us farther than we want to go. Even in our own emotions, choosing to complain can set us deeper into a feeling of irritation and discontent. If your words are the rudder of your life, are they pointing you in the direction you really want to go?<br /><br />God made the world with His words, spoke His Word to us and called Himself the Word when He became a human being. Speech is no casual thing, but a central part of what it means to be an image bearer of God, a special gift of humanity. Then how blasphemous is it for us to take that gift and use it to speak against people who are also made in the image of God? No one would burn a picture of someone they loved, yet people claim to love God while slandering the people made after His likeness. James tells us that this is as insane as one plant bearing two kinds of fruit. Our words reveal our hearts, and when we control our language with love, the whole body will follow in wisdom.<br /><br /><b>Discussion idea:</b> When someone says 'I just speak my mind,' what are they really saying? Should we be concerned when a date, a politician, a friend or a church leader cannot control their words? What does that say about their wisdom and the state of their hearts? Read <a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Prov 18.6-7" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Prov%2018.6-7" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Proverbs 18:6-7</a> and compare it to what James is saying here.<br /><br /><b>Prayer focus:</b> No one can totally tame the tongue except the One who made it. Pray for God's help to think of Him before you speak and to only say the words which glorify Him.</div></div>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-46442122136085964542024-02-28T00:00:00.000-06:002024-02-28T00:00:00.134-06:00February 28 - James 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJP8Z2-P1N-QWW8xhRXQ3sQvqH_jrGgqLxfrQJmpCMjswqPURmopKD0DMgsrESBF42ji827TghrjBHO7oWsnkm5NVHvPHgcV7xYeU2u0IoLXOKQVcOq7KGCWLqrAH7WCawrP0Cd7L93pM/s1600/James+2+11.png" style="color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJP8Z2-P1N-QWW8xhRXQ3sQvqH_jrGgqLxfrQJmpCMjswqPURmopKD0DMgsrESBF42ji827TghrjBHO7oWsnkm5NVHvPHgcV7xYeU2u0IoLXOKQVcOq7KGCWLqrAH7WCawrP0Cd7L93pM/s400/James+2+11.png" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="400" /></a><span style="text-align: left;"> </span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><i><b>Key Verse:</b> <a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="James 2.11" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/James%202.11" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">James 2:11</a></i></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Big Idea:</b> A life of wisdom cannot be taken in bits and pieces.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Imagine a long, strong iron chain. It can lift tremendous weights and remain as strong as it has always been. Imagine now that someone has come with a file and weakened the chain. How many links must be broken until the chain is broken? Obviously just one. James teaches us that God's Law is the same way. We can rightly say that murder is worse than lying and that in the chain of a moral life, murder is a larger, heavier link. But when either is broken, the whole Law is broken. Disobedience in one area of life is not an isolated problem, but one aspect of the basic sin of rebellion. The same God gave every command, and to disobey one is less about disobeying the command than it is about disobeying God. God is not a respecter of persons: one person who rebels in something scandalous and dramatic is not any less redeemable by God than the one who sinned by gossip and envy. Indeed, even the one who shows favoritism to the rich, the powerful or the socially acceptable sinners has by their partiality shattered the whole law. We cannot follow God in one area of life when we are willfully disobedient in another.<br /><br />If all sin is an expression of disobedience, then all righteousness can also be understood as diverse aspects of one thing: love (<a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Gal 5.14" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Gal%205.14" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Galatians 5:14</a>). Love is the distinguishing mark of a person who has been truly saved. Even the demons recognize God mentally, but to recognize Him in our hearts is to be changed. The kind of faith that led Abraham to offer up Isaac, trusting that God would provide Himself a lamb was the same kind of faith that led Rahab to show hospitality to the spies, and trust that God would use His people to show hospitality to her. The kind of faith that is alive shows itself in loving kindness and love cannot be fragmented. To live a real life of wisdom, we must let love for God and our neighbor shine through in every area of life.<br /><br /><b>Discussion idea: </b>Where are you tempted to show favoritism instead of godly love? How can you love someone that might seem unlovable in the next week?<br /><b>Prayer focus: </b>Pray for the single-mindedness to love God with your whole heart.</div>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-39322985115368068262024-02-27T00:00:00.001-06:002024-02-27T20:31:41.536-06:00February 27 - James 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLBImMFAst1lxoD6JWVtUuzuqTvyFox3gi2wf4AHkDcn8hrHTxZbMTDcQE_Hv2Dyz1kodYfd1A2plYWdw9j8d2djD2eDleTAOhFv8b6obDUGCy9dAQAMXLEqP6_FlY5q_t2UAGnTjru_0/s1600/James+1+5.png" imageanchor="1" style="color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLBImMFAst1lxoD6JWVtUuzuqTvyFox3gi2wf4AHkDcn8hrHTxZbMTDcQE_Hv2Dyz1kodYfd1A2plYWdw9j8d2djD2eDleTAOhFv8b6obDUGCy9dAQAMXLEqP6_FlY5q_t2UAGnTjru_0/s400/James+1+5.png" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><i><b>Key Verse</b>: <a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="James 1.5" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/James%201.5" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">James 1:5</a></i></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Big Idea:</b> Wisdom comes from God.</div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></div><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">James is a short letter, written by the half-brother of Jesus (the son of Mary and presumably Joseph, rather than Mary and God), but is extremely rich. In many ways, it is a kind of loose commentary on the Sermon on the Mount, taking and applying many of the things that Jesus taught during His earthly ministry. Going back much further, it reflects some of the content of Proverbs in the Old Testament, and could be described as where the rubber meets the road in the Christian life. Living for Jesus is not just a matter of theological learning, but of wisdom - the skill of living well.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">It is easy to live well when things are going smoothly, but life is full of bumps that threaten to throw us off course. James 1</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"> warns us that when these trials come, we have to patiently endure, and let the challenges of life mature and grow us. The only what that this can happen is to have the wisdom to know how we ought to respond to difficult situations. But where do we get that wisdom? Do we need to go to a special school? Does it require a certain amount of failure in life to learn the lessons to succeed? The answer that James gives is surprising in its simplicity: just ask. Ask, and like when Solomon asked, God will give generously without finding fault (</span><a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="1 Kings 3.1-14" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/1%20Kings%203.1-14" rel="noopener" style="background-color: white; color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">1 Kings 3:1-14</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">). We must not ask in a double-minded way, where we look for God's guidance, but still intend to keep our own counsel. Instead, we must ask with the kind of humility that shows that rich and poor, young and old and everything in between are all just as fragile before God.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><i style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><b>Older kids:</b> At a certain age, most people enter a "know it all" phase. Some people are blessed enough to leave it! Why do you think that when we gain a little bit of confidence, we go too far and assume we do not need anyone else's advice? Why is it so tempting to get set in our ways?</i><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">In our own hearts, we find only the soil that is fertile for the growth of our darkest temptations. But every good gift, including the wisdom to use those gifts well, comes from God and God alone. The secret to living life well is to simply ask God, in faith, to show us what to do, and then humbly do it. If we trust and obey, we can live the life God intends for us.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Discussion idea: </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Why might we be reluctant to ask God for the wisdom to deal with a situation? How might our own desires keep us from asking in faith?</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Prayer focus: </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">What is the most challenging decision facing you right now? Pray for God to give you the wisdom to know what to do and the courage to do it.</span>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-85132798292186824812024-02-26T00:00:00.001-06:002024-02-26T00:00:00.123-06:00February 26 - Hebrews 13<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLj3P3d23vVKjW3BNv_8eOhlVsv1VP4Bj4h80tE9chEzKb6MWFanJozj9ZrmVnIPxI2EAmmkP56bXSqtebf3f0DpjPHPf9a9lRue7jXGFRSPCFWTl6r4ziio7vB6OxURPVeZUh7GzIWUQ/s1600/Heb+13+13.png" imageanchor="1" style="color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLj3P3d23vVKjW3BNv_8eOhlVsv1VP4Bj4h80tE9chEzKb6MWFanJozj9ZrmVnIPxI2EAmmkP56bXSqtebf3f0DpjPHPf9a9lRue7jXGFRSPCFWTl6r4ziio7vB6OxURPVeZUh7GzIWUQ/s400/Heb+13+13.png" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="400" /></a></div><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"></span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><i><b>Key Verse</b>: <a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Heb 13.13" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Heb%2013.13" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Hebrews 13:13</a></i></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Big Idea:</b> Following the Son of God is to be at home with God and exiled from the world.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">In the final chapter of the book of Hebrews, the supremacy of Jesus is applied to real life. If we have a better word from God, better promises and a better priest, we ought to live in a better way. Some of the ways this works out are mundane: show hospitality to foreigners or follow the pastors of your church. Others are extreme, describing how we should grieve with fellow Christians in prison unjustly. But they all point out that as Christians, we live in this world but are not of this world. We are pilgrims, only living here for a little while, but our true citizenship is not of Texas, the United States or even the Earth. The cities of this world are passing away, but our eyes must be fixed on the New Jerusalem coming down from Heaven, where our citizenship lies.<br /><br /><i>Older kids: <a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Heb 13.4" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Heb%2013.4" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Hebrews 13:4</a> talks about the marriage bed being undefiled. Why do you think that sexual morality is included in a chapter like this, in between being arrested for your faith and greed? Does adhering to a biblical morality in this area cause people to be outcasts?<br /><br />Younger kids: <a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Heb 13.16" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Heb%2013.16" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Hebrews 13:16</a> says that when we do good and share (the King James Version says "communicate"), that is a sacrifice God is pleased with. Why is sharing hard? How is sharing with someone else a sacrifice that pleases God?</i></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><i><br /></i></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Jesus was crucified just outside the gates of Jerusalem, like the sacrifices of old were taken outside of the camp. They were removed from the community because they were defiled by the sins of the people and Jesus, in the same way, was rejected by the people before He carried away their guilt. As Christians, we must be ready to follow Him there. We must go where the Son of God is, even if it is a place of stigma and shame. We must go where the Son of God is, even if following Him means that we stand out from the crowd. We must go where the Son of God is, because He gives us a real home, that we can never lose. The God of peace will give us peace, even when we are being rejected.<br /><br /><b>Discussion idea:</b> Why is the idea of being rejected so painful for us? When does following Jesus make us lower in the eyes of other people?<br /><b>Prayer focus:</b> Think of an area in your life where you are tempted to worry about what people think instead of what God thinks. Pray for the wisdom to follow Jesus, wherever He leads.</div>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-84139293404689681282024-02-23T00:00:00.001-06:002024-02-23T00:00:00.231-06:00February 23 - Hebrews 12<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjvlQDpdZdk1kZb9dkKEsQDxxXk-lSHXXsjMdWySkkcyCCJeKqqA7J2DKRdm70rWeclfu0akjnjer-8CW2QGcp2GRV21gFlsOQe0vG32UdmcIvaExaLokeD4n9JCa5oIHDsAlSzDkzZytIJBDd0DDWNhVXiBRxJHtTfP8De5ZkMeowd1eHnDmniGHXUDQ=s1920" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjvlQDpdZdk1kZb9dkKEsQDxxXk-lSHXXsjMdWySkkcyCCJeKqqA7J2DKRdm70rWeclfu0akjnjer-8CW2QGcp2GRV21gFlsOQe0vG32UdmcIvaExaLokeD4n9JCa5oIHDsAlSzDkzZytIJBDd0DDWNhVXiBRxJHtTfP8De5ZkMeowd1eHnDmniGHXUDQ=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-size: 13px;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-size: 13px;">Key Verse: </span><a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Heb 12.2" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Heb%2012.2" rel="noopener" style="background-color: white; color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Hebrews 12:2</a><br /><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-size: 13px;">Big Idea: Our faith’s trailblazer and completer is the Son of God.</span></p><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-size: 13px;">Many advances are started by one person and finished by another. Much of what we know about planetary motion was discovered by Johannes Kepler, but he built on years of observations by his mentor Tycho Brahe. Edward Jenner invented vaccines when he discovered that infecting someone with cowpox would keep them from getting smallpox, but Jonas Salk changed the world by applying the principles to polio. Even in our families, we often see things unfulfilled and picked up by others. We might read the Hall of Faith in the last chapter and think that Christianity is like that: Moses had some, David added a little more, the prophets added to that and Jesus finished it off. But today’s verse reminds us that this is not the case: Jesus is the author and the finisher of faith - the beginning and the end.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-size: 13px;">Younger kids: Do you have an easier time learning to do something if someone shows you or tells you? Why do you think that is?</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-size: 13px;">This is what gives chapter 12’s call to endurance its bite. We have been given the perfect example of where to go and how to get there, because Jesus came to the beginning of the path when He was born in Bethlehem and followed it all the way through the cross to return to Heaven again. The example of Jesus is not a rosy picture. It involves pain, rejection and separation from the temptations for the world. If we stray from that path, God disciplines us to bring us right to the path.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-size: 13px;">Older kids: How do you react to different kinds of discipline? Why does one person respond to correction by improving, while another gets harder hearted?</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-size: 13px;">But we do not do it because it is easy. We should hold fast to our faith, no matter the cost, for at least two reasons. First, the trail has already been blazed by the Son of God. Second, the path leads straight into the presence of our Heavenly Father. Jesus has showed us the path, and His presence empowers us to take it.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-size: 13px;">Discussion idea: If Jesus were just a perfect human, we could admire the life He lived. How does the fact that He was also God allow us to follow His footsteps?</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-size: 13px;">Prayer focus: Is there some area in your life that you have given up and decided that some sin or act of obedience is unattainable? Pray for forgiveness and confidence that Jesus had taken the path before us.</span>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-44980059903421708552024-02-22T00:00:00.001-06:002024-02-22T00:00:00.140-06:00February 22 - Hebrews 11<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf4ndFEmIwXzdjm3HlpbBgaqXHUWvVttctCnqtDM7p32Iu-H5Uhek8k-_8nReRXq32qgVd1izpm-v_4IYTEAwwoVlnn5sjeehE8T9coHx8f8Cv_SdNf_9G48EvKkhirSdp63qp6Ifn2ls/s1600/Heb+11+26.png" imageanchor="1" style="color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf4ndFEmIwXzdjm3HlpbBgaqXHUWvVttctCnqtDM7p32Iu-H5Uhek8k-_8nReRXq32qgVd1izpm-v_4IYTEAwwoVlnn5sjeehE8T9coHx8f8Cv_SdNf_9G48EvKkhirSdp63qp6Ifn2ls/s400/Heb+11+26.png" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="400" /></a><span style="text-align: left;"> </span></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><i><b>Key Verse: </b><a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Heb 11.26" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Heb%2011.26" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Hebrews 11:26</a></i></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Big Idea:</b> The Son of God lets us see the unseen.</div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Hebrews 11 is one of the most famous chapters in the Bible, often called something like the "Hall of Faith." It begins with the definition of faith - the substance of what we hope for and the assurance or conviction of what is still unseen. Faith lets us hold onto what God has promised, but that has not yet occurred. The chapter then proceeds to give the stories of major exemplars of faith throughout the ages, from Abel down through the ages. While some of these are quite short, the description of Moses is lengthy, beginning with the faith of his parents, and moving through the Exodus.</div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">This mini-biography of Moses is the story of how Moses, who was raised as a prince of Egypt, turned his back on the pleasures that he saw in the moment to throw in his lot with the Israelites instead, confident that they would go to the land God had promised. He saw that his unseen reward was greater than the visible things that he gave up. Moses traded the treasures of Egypt for what ended up being 40 years wandering in the desert and never lived to enter the Promised Land. Still, he trusted that it was better to suffer with Jesus than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of this world and he trusted that even death itself could not keep God from fulfilling His promises. Moses knew that one day, Jesus would come again and raise him from the dead to dwell in the land with Him.<br /><br />Throughout the letter, Hebrews has been explaining to us that Jesus is better. He is better than the Law, better than sacrifices, better than the priesthood and better than the Temple. But Moses' example shows us that even the pain of the Christian life is better than the pleasure of the world. Faith is our confidence that God's Word is worth more than we can see. When we walk by faith, we realize that we may face suffering and heartache in this life, but trust that when we cannot see what God is doing, we can still trust who He is. In Jesus, we see the unseen.<br /><br /><b>Discussion idea:</b> When have you ever traded short term pleasure for the longer term?<br /><b>Prayer focus:</b> Pray for the ability to see and trust God with the bigger picture.</div>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-13635408155138245272024-02-21T00:00:00.003-06:002024-02-29T12:18:26.844-06:00March 21 - Luke 12<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTSONjSqHf6_Xc5CAqdcm51B0HlltB9BcKcU-RriKrKUZo7UOKI2-gy-wlw3CYPfc-U7iOOiErQJA4w3tl01UaG04s9TbRoN2OZQ7LqL09yKcZtA3hyphenhyphengyjCleY858SXWDaH-TBp3o4tX8/s1600/Luke+12+37.png" imageanchor="1" style="color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTSONjSqHf6_Xc5CAqdcm51B0HlltB9BcKcU-RriKrKUZo7UOKI2-gy-wlw3CYPfc-U7iOOiErQJA4w3tl01UaG04s9TbRoN2OZQ7LqL09yKcZtA3hyphenhyphengyjCleY858SXWDaH-TBp3o4tX8/s400/Luke+12+37.png" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Key Verse: </b><a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Luke 12.37" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Luke%2012.37" rel="noopener" style="background-color: white; color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Luke 12:37</a><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Big Idea: </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">We ought to live with priorities that reflect the Son of Man is coming.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Luke 12</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">, like Luke 11</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">, is a chapter rich in warnings against anxiety. The birds are fed by their Maker, but He is your Father; don't you realize He will care for you? But the sharpest warnings against worry in this chapter seem to be rooted in the fact that the most important things are the ones we could not stockpile anyway. How many smiles can you deposit in the bank? How many hugs from someone you love can you put off today so you can have them tomorrow instead? The things that we can pile up are the very things that we cannot keep anyway. Either they will rot, moths will eat them, or we will die. All the things we can worry about, we are going to lose.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; font-style: italic;"><br />Younger Kids: </b><i style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">When you are playing hide and seek, how high do you normally count? How would you play differently if you did not know how high the person was counting? Would you get ready right away, or take your time looking for the best spot? If we do not know when Jesus will come again, how should we act today?</i><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><i style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; font-weight: bold;">Older Kids: </i><i style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">When your parents leave you at home with chores to do and say they will be back at a certain time, when do you start working? What do you do with the rest of the time? What would you do if you did not know when they would be back? How do you think God will respond if He has told us He is coming and we waste the time He has given us?</i><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">If we realize that Jesus is coming again to set up His Kingdom, we will live with a sense of urgency and purpose. If He finds we have been serving faithfully, then He will come to serve us, giving us rewards which we could never dream of. But if when He returns, we have wasted our time on games, we will lose everything we thought we had. Jesus left us when He died on the cross and took the punishment for our sins, then He rose again on the third day and ascended up to Heaven. He has told us He will return, although we don't know when, and told us to be about the business of making disciples in the meantime. If we are fishers of men, then we will have nothing to worry about, because the things we love will be the things we can never lose.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Discussion idea: </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Why do you think that people who believe in God are still tempted to live for the physical stuff of this world like money, prestige and power?</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Prayer focus: </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Pray that Jesus would let us live with the joy of security in Him and the passion of expecting Him to return at any moment.</span>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-26007377883251556502024-02-21T00:00:00.001-06:002024-02-21T00:00:00.124-06:00February 21 - Hebrews 10<p><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-size: 13px;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjUCfndTk45T0gYjcbyB9eJWGjQcvqyeYAtvBz_yKjQgec360K3v9GEMLjwl9NaaIm63lM44N5ctiObaLzC1hg48BKYm5ZX51ytJkgs-3q2URanR1AANCFAiQGEtA9tG7j3K_sNSqmIAZUGXp7lUqdX_JUl6A5dEqfFP4NPROdZvIg0Zu-c7SKB6BSqYQ=s1920" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjUCfndTk45T0gYjcbyB9eJWGjQcvqyeYAtvBz_yKjQgec360K3v9GEMLjwl9NaaIm63lM44N5ctiObaLzC1hg48BKYm5ZX51ytJkgs-3q2URanR1AANCFAiQGEtA9tG7j3K_sNSqmIAZUGXp7lUqdX_JUl6A5dEqfFP4NPROdZvIg0Zu-c7SKB6BSqYQ=s320" width="320" /></a></div><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="color: #444444;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></span></span></div></div></div><p><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-size: 13px;"><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="color: #444444;">Key Verse: </span><a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Heb 10.26" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Heb%2010.26" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Hebrews 10:26</a><br /></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-size: 13px;">Big Idea: If we reject the Son of God, there is no plan B.</span></p><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-size: 13px;">The story is told about a man who got some terrible news from a doctor. He was certain to die unless he had a medication which would cost more than a million dollars, which he did not have and could not hope to get. A single vial was all he needed, but it was so far out of reach. He fell to his knees and sobbed, begging the doctor for mercy, begging the doctor to find some way to get him the medicine. When he left, the doctor sought out to do just that:cashing out retirement, working extra hours and more. For the patient, it was unattainable, for the doctor, possible, but painful. A few weeks later, the doctor called the patient to meet him at the office at a certain time. The patient arrived shortly before the doctor did, but when he did come through the door, his hair was disheveled, his white shirt was splattered with fresh blood and a single red vial was in his hand.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-size: 13px;">“I have it. I raised the money, and found out there was only one vial left in the trial. I knew that you would not make it to the next round, so I drove too fast across town and my car was hit. My son died in the accident, but I told the police that I had to get back here, or someone else would die too.’ Exhausted, he handed the vial to the patient and collapsed in the chair.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-size: 13px;">The patient took the vial, looked at it and poured it on the carpet, where it soaked into the fibers, lost forever. “I don’t want this one. Isn’t there something else you can do for me? Doctor, I don’t want to die. You have to help me.”</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-size: 13px;">If there were another way, would the doctor have given up everything, including his own son? Of course not. And with this sacrifice rejected, there is no other sacrifice to give. The parallel is clear, with the death of Jesus God purchased our deliverance. If we reject that gift we condemn ourselves and mock the price paid so we could receive it. If we reject Jesus there is no plan B, no hope, only “the fearful expectation of judgement.” We must recognize we are sinners and come to the Son of God for forgiveness. There is no plan B.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-size: 13px;">Discussion Idea: What is the gift you have given someone that you are most proud of? What did it cost you? How would you feel if it was rejected?</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-size: 13px;">Prayer Focus: Ask God to help us realize that goodness, religious rituals, and everything else we can do are no substitute for being born again.</span>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-40851578400063203562024-02-20T00:00:00.001-06:002024-02-20T00:00:00.143-06:00February 20 - Hebrews 9<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8pf0nIfWxjPkNLb5Y5xHbVePGuM_8eykbuTRbNhM5XbjJy6RMTtfXAIRyx9L6EvGMnoaMfq3D_T_kMOP5Fs_DQO8i-DXtd_7Z2NKAougejueezmyC2v3tHia0zXjcsFg_BNTD0qqzGrk/s1600/render.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8pf0nIfWxjPkNLb5Y5xHbVePGuM_8eykbuTRbNhM5XbjJy6RMTtfXAIRyx9L6EvGMnoaMfq3D_T_kMOP5Fs_DQO8i-DXtd_7Z2NKAougejueezmyC2v3tHia0zXjcsFg_BNTD0qqzGrk/s400/render.jpeg" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="400" /></a></div><p> </p><i style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><b>Key Verse</b>: <a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Heb 9.26" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Heb%209.26" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Hebrews 9:26</a></i><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Big Idea</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">: The Son of God saves us once and for all.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Did you make your bed this morning? How about brush your teeth? Do you ever notice how dishes seem to keep piling up? The truth is that many of the tasks of our daily lives are never done and never can be done. You may think all of the laundry is done, but you are already wearing the next set of dirty clothes. Housework is never finished. There is never any rest. Is our relationship with God an eternal treadmill like that, where we can stay on if we continue to put in the effort, but will fall off the back the moment we let up?</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">A lot of people think so. They assume that pir relationship with God is about continually proving ourselves to Him and eventually doing more good things than bad. But this is not the picture the Bible describes. The Bible says that we can know that we have eternal life (</span><a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="1 John 5.13" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/1%20John%205.13" rel="noopener" style="background-color: white; color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">1 John 5:13</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">). That confidence is not possible if it depends on our efforts tomorrow or the next day. It is only possible because the Son of God ascended to Heaven with the perfect sacrifice - Himself - and purged our sins once and for all. He does not need to be sacrificed over and over again, because there are always more sins.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">If we try and get to God by our own goodness, we will never have any rest or any success, because the treatment will never be able to get past the surface to where the real problem lies. In fact, by adding in self-righteousness, all of our good works give us more that needs to be cleansed, rather than less (</span><a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Heb 9.14" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Heb%209.14" rel="noopener" style="background-color: white; color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Hebrews 9:14</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">). Only one thing will do the job: the blood of Jesus received in faith. He died once and for all, so that when we die, we can live with Him.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Discussion idea: How would your life be different if every day's sins required more sacrifice? What confidence can we have in knowing that Jesus had made a way for all of our sins to be covered before we were even born?</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Prayer focus: Pray for forgiveness for our own self-righteousness and ask Jesus to help hs to trust that His work is good enough for all time.</span>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-63771099938401897122024-02-19T00:00:00.002-06:002024-02-19T00:00:00.126-06:00February 19 - Hebrews 8<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvlvaXSCckseRi4sSH4M1iNRZDyulAxYxAP5ZFPbhL8NOyQ1WB55EnWRbdAYvsuUsqqREvWMEHeAZ63mepS-jkFZYraZE_g2VJ0b5V7ALAuchTcrxb1CQYHclQrQ83MWHbD8R1fQKmzFA/s1600/Heb+8+1-2.png" imageanchor="1" style="color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvlvaXSCckseRi4sSH4M1iNRZDyulAxYxAP5ZFPbhL8NOyQ1WB55EnWRbdAYvsuUsqqREvWMEHeAZ63mepS-jkFZYraZE_g2VJ0b5V7ALAuchTcrxb1CQYHclQrQ83MWHbD8R1fQKmzFA/s400/Heb+8+1-2.png" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="400" /></a></div><p> </p><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Key Verse: </b><a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Heb 8.1-2" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Heb%208.1-2" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Hebrews 8:1-2</a></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Big Idea: </b>In the Son of God, we find the bridge between Heaven and Earth.</div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">One of the most frustrating experiences which I have driving in cities is the ability to see where I want to be, without an easy way of getting there. With most of the highways in Houston under perpetual construction, sometimes it seems like it is just impossible to get from point A to point B. It is there, tantalizing but untouchable. In a sense, worshiping God ought to be like that. We can look at the heavens, the mountains or the oceans and see God's power. God's skill and wisdom are displayed in the delicate balance of the laws of physics, the patter of a hummingbird's wings or the complexity of the trillions of cells that make up our bodies. On our own, we could see that there was someone to worship, but could never actually get there.</div><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">We know who God is, not because of the might of our brains, but because He has come down and revealed Himself to us. He gave us the Law and the Prophets to tell us about who He was, what His expectations were and what He does. To begin to bridge the gap, He gave Moses plans for the tabernacle, where each element served as a shallow shadow of the spiritual realities.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><i style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><b>Younger kids</b>: When playing pretend, what could you use to remind you or a horse? What about a castle? God used the symbols like the temple and tabernacle to tell His people about what Heaven was like, although they could not see it directly.</i><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><i style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></i><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Jesus goes beyond the pictures of the Old Testament and, as the God-Man who came down to earth, staggers both Earth and Heaven. He serves as the bridge that gives humanity access to God, as the place where Heaven and Earth collide. In the Temple’s Holy of Holies, Jews believed that Heaven came down and touched the Earth. But Jesus claimed that these were all shadows of the true place God would come to dwell: Him. He, as our great High Priest, gives us access to the real Heaven. We can really know and worship that God that otherwise we could never touch. In Jesus, God reaches down to us and in Jesus, we are given the pathway to God.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Discussion idea: </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Why did we need a bridge to connect us to God? What are some of the things that keep us from accessing Him directly?</span><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"> </b><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Prayer focus: </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Pray</span><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"> </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">that God would help us to see the permanent, spiritual reality that He gives us access to, and to realize that those unseen things are eternal, while the visible and material things are temporary. </span>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-86468683347030154312024-02-16T00:00:00.001-06:002024-02-16T00:00:00.251-06:00February 16 - Hebrews 7<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3yKFTVVLl8rNWcBgTs7LjoBl_1jgMI-arM3oDcB1DOjmt8Vk_jwUNHCRylBESbMSAY60WhGlM5jctQsZSi-Rzcy4AdGB-ya9pZ0i-7iCT9HgKa2QBsbh7U3vcdM5tw8WR5jj8_VjWuCo/s1600/heb+7+26.png" imageanchor="1" style="color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3yKFTVVLl8rNWcBgTs7LjoBl_1jgMI-arM3oDcB1DOjmt8Vk_jwUNHCRylBESbMSAY60WhGlM5jctQsZSi-Rzcy4AdGB-ya9pZ0i-7iCT9HgKa2QBsbh7U3vcdM5tw8WR5jj8_VjWuCo/s400/heb+7+26.png" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="400" /></a></div><p> <i style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><b>Key Verse</b>: <a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Heb 7.26" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Heb%207.26" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Hebrews 7:26</a></i></p><p><b style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;">Big Idea:</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;">The Son of God is our perfect priest.</span></p><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Hebrews 7</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"> involves a complex argument. In the Old Testament (</span><a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Gen 14.17-20" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Gen%2014.17-20" rel="noopener" style="background-color: white; color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Genesis 14:17-20</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">), after rescuing his nephew Lot in a battle, Abraham gave a tithe (the first ten percent) of the spoils to the Gentile king of a city called Salem, which would later be known as Jerusalem. That king, Melchizedek (mel-KIZ-uh-dek), was only mentioned in one other Old Testament text (</span><a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Ps 110.4" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Ps%20110.4" rel="noopener" style="background-color: white; color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Psalm 110:4</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">) that predicted God would raise up another priest after the order of Melchizedek. The anonymous author of Hebrews explains that Melchizedek serves as a portrait of Jesus: with no genealogy listed, no birth and no death, he points to the King and Priest who would be born of a virgin, and live forever. In fact, Abraham paying a tithe to a priest showed that his grandson Levi would not be the father of the only legitimate priesthood. When the Son of God became the eternal high priest, He would not be reversing what had come before, but going back to fulfill the original model.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">In the Old Testament, priests would make sacrifices for their own sins, and once purified kill animals for the sins of the people. There was no forgiveness by ancestry, citizenship or future good works, only by a conscious decision to come and ask the priest to intercede on their behalf. Jesus, the ultimate high priest, did not need to make any sacrifice for Himself - he is eternally sinless. He did not offer animals as the bloody reminder that sin deserved death, but offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">This is the kind of high priest who we need. Not someone weak, who might fall into sin and need another priest to intercede for them. Not someone mortal, who might through illness or death be unable to help, even if willing. Not someone who sits like the angels, untouched by our suffering. Not someone indistinguishable from us, who might offer comfort but no help. No, we needed a high priest who was fully human and fully divine, holy and blameless, exalted above the heavens.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">It is not enough to believe in God intellectually. It is not enough to be "good," because all of us have sinned. We must go to this High Priest, confess our sin, and let His sacrifice make us clean. He is willing and able to bring us peace with God, if we will ask Him. All we have to do is admit that we are sinners, deserving God's judgment, believe that Jesus died on our behalf and rose again and call on Him to save us. Why not now?</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Discussion idea</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">: When was a time that someone made peace between you and someone else? What did they need to do that? How is Jesus the supreme example of that?</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" /><b style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Prayer focus</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">: Pray to God, thanking Him for the opportunity to pray to Him because Jesus has made peace.</span>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-2845406159802081002024-02-15T00:00:00.001-06:002024-02-15T00:00:00.128-06:00February 15 - Hebrews 6<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSaEKF_oaKhrSBhonPHfGzRNxFhRZreeKt9Pi9mF0kYcPn24o8H4bzCZsOcYEC4XIoI5DgJsfwkDIGCVy0XR42VZBqms6VRC7Y0WWzLWKy372AyvDrrcd48GIZ2IO1icz7n-66ruRpL7g/s1600/Heb+6+19.png" imageanchor="1" style="color: #3778cd; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSaEKF_oaKhrSBhonPHfGzRNxFhRZreeKt9Pi9mF0kYcPn24o8H4bzCZsOcYEC4XIoI5DgJsfwkDIGCVy0XR42VZBqms6VRC7Y0WWzLWKy372AyvDrrcd48GIZ2IO1icz7n-66ruRpL7g/s400/Heb+6+19.png" style="background: transparent; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="400" /></a></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><i><b>Key Verse</b>: <a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Heb 6.19" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Heb%206.19" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Hebrews 6:19</a></i></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Big Idea: </b>The Son of God is our anchor.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;">When people say things, sometimes they follow through, and sometimes they do not. When they don't, sometimes it is their fault, and sometimes it it beyond their control. Because of this uncertainty, when someone wants to assure you that they are going to make a particular effort, they say things like "I promise." Jesus taught that Christians should not need these kinds of oaths, because we should be people of such integrity that when we say "yes," people know we mean "yes," and when we say "no," people know we mean "no." But with God, the situation is even more dramatic. He never lies, and can always accomplish what He says: His word needs no special assurances, because He is faithful and true to everything He says. Yet, when He made His promise to Abraham, He did swear. He went beyond what He really needed to do to reassure us that our hope was secure. </div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;">When we face difficulties in this life, we can know that God's promise to make us His own is sealed with an oath, and testified by the death of His Son. We can hold tight to the refuge we have found, because it will never move. The author of Hebrews uses a powerful image: our hope is an anchor for our souls. For a boat, an anchor means that you are secure no matter what happens on the surface, and our hope in God is the same way. Jesus has promised that all of us who put our faith in Him are secure, and no tossing and turning of life can shake that anchor. </div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;">The anchor of our hope is not in an abstract idea or theological construct. The anchor of our hope is Jesus Himself, who entered into the throne of Heaven, giving us a link to the very heart of God, and who has promised to come again and receive us to Himself. We have an anchor because we know that the greatest struggles of this life were already beaten by Jesus. We have an anchor because we know that whatever struggles we face, we have a perfect advocate in Heaven. We have an anchor because we know that the same Jesus who is enthroned in Heaven is coming again to end death and pain once and for all. While the waves of this life may toss us side to side, we know that beneath the surface, God's plan is secure. The Son of God is our anchor!</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: left;"><b>Discussion idea:</b> When was a time that you felt unstable and insecure? How did someone help you to feel better? How does Jesus' role as our anchor help us to handle the storms of life?<br /><br /><b>Prayer focus:</b> Identify some turbulence in your life, and specifically pray for God to be your anchor in those areas.</div></div>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1812829549493945467.post-60210333170387387092024-02-14T00:00:00.001-06:002024-02-14T00:00:00.129-06:00February 14 - Hebrews 5<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzUKBrvstCLr9IaK7M8-rugSm48BF_OoDKuK6vKlzvYnwVEzCWVP_lZZBiG4-hDEuJmymrs0YFBnx_wuPIqZmVgaNLrX8aBq4DXDUjl4OTvuHz5vynDhf0hczzmc6W0JGwdu_wjelTjDY/s1600/Heb+5+12.png" imageanchor="1" style="background-color: white; color: #3778cd; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzUKBrvstCLr9IaK7M8-rugSm48BF_OoDKuK6vKlzvYnwVEzCWVP_lZZBiG4-hDEuJmymrs0YFBnx_wuPIqZmVgaNLrX8aBq4DXDUjl4OTvuHz5vynDhf0hczzmc6W0JGwdu_wjelTjDY/s400/Heb+5+12.png" style="background: transparent; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="400" /></a></div><p> <i style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;">Key Verse: <a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Heb 5.12" data-version="hcsb" href="https://biblia.com/bible/hcsb/Heb%205.12" rel="noopener" style="color: #3778cd; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Hebrews 5:12</a></i></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><i><br /></i></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><b>Big Idea</b>: The Son of God teaches the sons and daughters of God how to grow up.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Growing up is a gradual process. We trade being carried for crawling, crawling for walking, and walking for running. Strollers give way to tricycles, tricycles give way to bicycles with training wheels, the training wheels fall away and eventually, all of them are left in the rearview mirror when a teenager gets a vehicle with a rearview mirror. Each of these is appropriate at one phase, but like a baby driving a car or a 30-year-old being swaddled and carried, when someone's behavior does not match their phase, something is wrong.<br /><br />The author of Hebrews reprimanded the Hebrew Christians for their hard hearts. They had been believers for a long time, yet had never fully grasped the most basic principles of the faith. Instead of growing up, they happily stayed on their tricycles, covering the same ground over and over again. Yet, their older sibling, the Son of God, showed the example of growing up by obedience. Jesus, our High Priest, lived a life of prayer and obedience to become the perfect (or complete) mediator and set the example for us of how we too can be complete. Do we know how to read God's Word and live by it? Then we are mature. If not, we are babies.<br /><br />This is, like growing up physically, a process. Every time we study God's Word, we are faced with the choice of obedience or disobedience. If we choose obedience, then our spiritual muscles grow stronger, and we will be better equipped to face the next test. If we choose disobedience, our spiritual muscles will atrophy, and we will slide further away from God. The more we exercise obedience, the stronger we will be to differentiate and choose between good and evil. That is what it means to grow up.<br /><br /><b>Discussion idea:</b> What part of growing up has been the hardest for you physically? Why? Spiritually? Why?<br /><br /><b>Prayer focus:</b> Think about a specific area of weakness in your life. Pray for the wisdom to know the right thing to do, and the strength and courage to do it.</div>Chrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16500670722503178487noreply@blogger.com0