Sermon 528: The Lord Sets Prisoners Free (Psalm 146)

Today’s Bulletin

OUTLINE

I. Praise then LORD, O My Soul! (v.1-2)
II. The Human Condition (v.3-4)
III. The God who… (v.5-9)
IV. A Diamond God Is Forever (v.10)

Psalm146

1 LORD! Praise the LORD, O my soul!

2 I will praise the LORD as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.

3 Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation.

4 When his breath departs, he returns to the earth; on that very day his plans perish.

5 Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD his God,

6 who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, who keeps faith forever;

7 who executes justice for the oppressed, who gives food to the hungry. The LORD sets the prisoners free;

8 the LORD opens the eyes of the blind. The LORD lifts up those who are bowed down; the LORD loves the righteous.

9 The LORD watches over the sojourners; he upholds the widow and the fatherless, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.

10 The LORD will reign forever, your God, O Zion, to all generations. Praise the LORD!”

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Sermon 527: The King & His Bride (Psalm 45)

Today’s Bulletin

OUTLINE

I. The Glory of the King (v.1-9)
II. The Beauty of the Bride (v.10-15)
III. The Eternal Kingdom (v.16-17)

Psalm 45

To the choirmaster: according to Lilies. A Maskil of the Sons of Korah; a love song.

1 My heart overflows with a pleasing theme;

I address my verses to the king;

my tongue is like the pen of a ready scribe.

2 You are the most handsome of the sons of men;

grace is poured upon your lips;

therefore God has blessed you forever.

3 Gird your sword on your thigh, O mighty one,

in your splendor and majesty!

4 In your majesty ride out victoriously

for the cause of truth and meekness and righteousness;

let your right hand teach you awesome deeds!

5 Your arrows are sharp

in the heart of the king’s enemies;

the peoples fall under you.

6 Your throne, O God, is forever and ever.

The scepter of your kingdom is a scepter of uprightness;

7 you have loved righteousness and hated wickedness.

Therefore God, your God, has anointed you

with the oil of gladness beyond your companions;

8 your robes are all fragrant with myrrh and aloes and cassia.

From ivory palaces stringed instruments make you glad;

9 daughters of kings are among your ladies of honor;

at your right hand stands the queen in gold of Ophir.

10 Hear, O daughter, and consider, and incline your ear:

forget your people and your father’s house,

11 and the king will desire your beauty.

Since he is your lord, bow to him.

12 The people of Tyre will seek your favor with gifts,

the richest of the people.

13 All glorious is the princess in her chamber, with robes interwoven with gold.

14 In many-colored robes she is led to the king,

with her virgin companions following behind her.

15 With joy and gladness they are led along

as they enter the palace of the king.

16 In place of your fathers shall be your sons;

you will make them princes in all the earth.

17 I will cause your name to be remembered in all generations;

therefore nations will praise you forever and ever.”

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Sermon Discussion questions
The King & His Bride: Psalm 45

Ice Breaker: What’s one memory that sticks out from your wedding or honeymoon?

This Week Specific

1. The sermon highlights the advice for the bride to leave her past and cleave to her husband. How does this concept apply to your relationship with Christ?

2. What aspects of your old life have you found difficult to leave behind, and how can you fully embrace your new identity in Christ?

3. Ephesians 5 compares the relationship between Christ and the church to a marriage. What practical steps can you take to nurture and strengthen your relationship with Jesus, similar to how you would with a spouse?

4. The sermon mentions the future marriage supper of the Lamb. How does this future hope influence the way you live today?

Weekly Questions

1. What stood out to you/challenged you most in this sermon?

2. What’s one area you feel the Lord wants to grow you into more Christ likeness?

3. How can this group pray for you this week?

Sermon 526: A Joyful Noise (Psalm 95)

Today’s Bulletin

OUTLINE

I. Joyful Noise For the OmniLord (Psalm 95:1-5)
II. Shepherd Revering Sheep (Psalm 95:6-7a)
III. Y’all. Do Not Harden Your Hearts (Psalm 95:7b-11)

Psalm 95

1. Oh come, let us sing to the LORD;

let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!

2 Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;

let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!

3 For the LORD is a great God,

and a great King above all gods.

4 In his hand are the depths of the earth;

the heights of the mountains are his also.

5 The sea is his, for he made it,

and his hands formed the dry land.

6 Oh come, let us worship and bow down;

let us kneel before the LORD, our Maker!

7 For he is our God,

and we are the people of his pasture,

and the sheep of his hand.

Today, if you hear his voice,

8 do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah,

as on the day at Massah in the wilderness,

9 when your fathers put me to the test

and put me to the proof, though they had seen my work.

10 For forty years I loathed that generation

and said, “They are a people who go astray in their heart,

and they have not known my ways.”

11 Therefore I swore in my wrath,

“They shall not enter my rest.””

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Sermon Discussion questions
A Joyful Noise: Psalm 95

Ice Breaker: What's one area in your life where you're currently struggling to trust God? Or Describe a moment when you felt closest to God during worship.

This Week Specific

1. What are some specific ways you can better prepare your mind and heart to worship God weekly with your local church?

2. In what ways do you struggle to make worship a priority in your daily life? How can you cultivate a habit of "making a joyful noise" to God throughout your week?

3. The sermon mentions that true worship begins with listening to God's voice through Scripture. What practices help you, not merely read, but listen attentively to God's Word? How can you improve in this area?

4. Reflect on a time when you experienced a "hardening of heart" towards God. What led to this, and how did you (or how can you) overcome it?

5. How does understanding God as your shepherd impact your trust in Him during difficult circumstances? Can you share an example from your own life?

6. The sermon warns against hypocritical worship - honoring God with lips while our hearts are far from Him. In what areas of your life do you see a disconnect between your outward actions and your inner attitudes towards God? How can you address this?

Weekly Questions

1. What stood out to you/challenged you most in this sermon?

2. What’s one area you feel the Lord wants to grow you into more Christ likeness?

3. How can this group pray for you this week?

Sermon 525: The Lord Is Our Refuge (Psalm 7)

Today’s Bulletin

Psalm 7

A Shiggaion of David, which he sang to the LORD concerning the words of Cush, a Benjaminite.

1 O LORD my God, in you do I take refuge;

save me from all my pursuers and deliver me,

2 lest like a lion they tear my soul apart,

rending it in pieces, with none to deliver.

3 O LORD my God, if I have done this,

if there is wrong in my hands,

4 if I have repaid my friend with evil

or plundered my enemy without cause,

5 let the enemy pursue my soul and overtake it,

and let him trample my life to the ground

and lay my glory in the dust. Selah

6 Arise, O LORD, in your anger;

lift yourself up against the fury of my enemies;

awake for me; you have appointed a judgment.

7 Let the assembly of the peoples be gathered about you;

over it return on high.

8 The LORD judges the peoples;

judge me, O LORD, according to my righteousness

and according to the integrity that is in me.

9 Oh, let the evil of the wicked come to an end,

and may you establish the righteous—

you who test the minds and hearts,

O righteous God!

10 My shield is with God,

who saves the upright in heart.

11 God is a righteous judge,

and a God who feels indignation every day.

12 If a man does not repent, God will whet his sword;

he has bent and readied his bow;

13 he has prepared for him his deadly weapons,

making his arrows fiery shafts.

14 Behold, the wicked man conceives evil

and is pregnant with mischief

and gives birth to lies.

15 He makes a pit, digging it out,

and falls into the hole that he has made.

16 His mischief returns upon his own head,

and on his own skull his violence descends.

17 I will give to the LORD the thanks due to his righteousness,

and I will sing praise to the name of the LORD, the Most High.”

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Sermon 524: Open Mouths & Stubborn Hearts (Psalm 81)

Today’s Bulletin

OUTLINE

I. God’s People, Joyfully Sing Aloud To Yahweh! (v.1-5a)

   [Worship]

II. God Has Delivered (v. 6-7)

    [Remembering]

III. Open Your Mouth Wide! (v. 8-10)

     [Obedience]

IV. Unrestrained Stubborn Hearts (v. 11-12)

     [Consequences of Disobedience]

V. Walk In God’s Ways (v. 13-16)

    [Restoration]

Psalm 81

Psalm 81:1–16 “1 Sing aloud to God our strength;

shout for joy to the God of Jacob!

2 Raise a song; sound the tambourine,

the sweet lyre with the harp.

3 Blow the trumpet at the new moon,

at the full moon, on our feast day.

4 For it is a statute for Israel,

a rule of the God of Jacob.

5 He made it a decree in Joseph

when he went out over the land of Egypt.

I hear a language I had not known:

6 “I relieved your shoulder of the burden;

your hands were freed from the basket.

7 In distress you called, and I delivered you;

I answered you in the secret place of thunder;

I tested you at the waters of Meribah. Selah

8 Hear, O my people, while I admonish you!

O Israel, if you would but listen to me!

9 There shall be no strange god among you;

you shall not bow down to a foreign god.

10 I am the LORD your God,

who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.

Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.

11 “But my people did not listen to my voice;

Israel would not submit to me.

12 So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts,

to follow their own counsels.

13 Oh, that my people would listen to me,

that Israel would walk in my ways!

14 I would soon subdue their enemies

and turn my hand against their foes.

15 Those who hate the LORD would cringe toward him,

and their fate would last forever.

16 But he would feed you with the finest of the wheat,

and with honey from the rock I would satisfy you.””

---

Shophar Horn

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Phases Of The Moon

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OUR HAPPINESS TO OBEY: PRAYER BY RICHARD BAXTER

You, O God, are our Sovereign King, to rule and judge us.
It is our duty and happiness to obey and please you.
May we labour therefore to bring our souls and bodies
into the most absolute subjection to you,
and to make it our delight and business s
incerely and exactly to obey your will.

May our obedience be practical, and not merely notional.
May our obedience be deep-rooted and fixed.
May our obedience be constant and continual.
May our obedience be universal, respecting all your laws.
May our obedience be resolute and powerful,
victorious against temptation.
May we respect you as our supreme King,
recognising no authority against you,
nor any except that which is subordinate to you.
May our obedience be voluntary, pleasant, cheerful.
May it be our delight to obey you to our utmost power.

Though obedience is so difficult for us, yet it is so reasonable, necessary, and good.
For we, we are unable and unfit to govern ourselves.
We are so blind and ignorant;
so biased by a corrupted will;
so turbulent are our passions;
so unable to protect and reward ourselves, that we should fear nothing in the world more, than to be given over to our stubborn hearts, to follow our own devices.

But you have perfect wisdom, to know what is best.
You have perfect goodness, with no evil in your laws.
You are almighty, to protect your subjects.
You are most just, and therefore can do no wrong.
You are infinitely perfect, using no unrighteous means.
You are self-sufficient, with no need to lie or deceive.
You are our end,
our interest,
our happiness,
with no interest other than our good.
You are our dearest Friend and Father,
and love us better than we love ourselves.
Therefore we have every reason confidently to trust you
and so cheerfully and gladly obey you
as one that rules us to bless us.

---

Sermon Discussion questions
Open Mouths & Stubborn Hearts: Psalm 81

Ice Breaker: You have 30 seconds to list all your favorite things or experiences, things you’re grateful to the Lord for.

This Week Specific

1. Pastor Brian mentions various forms of idolatry in our modern lives. What are some potential idols you struggle with in your own life? How do these idols compete with your devotion to God?

2. The Psalm calls us to "sing aloud" and "shout for joy" to God. How can we cultivate a more joyful, expressive worship in our personal and corporate worship times? Also, What is the connection between remembering and rejoicing?

3. God says "Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it" (v.10). In what areas of your life do you need to trust God more fully to provide for your needs?

4. The sermon discusses the dangers of God giving people over to their "stubborn hearts." Can you think of a time when you experienced negative consequences from insisting on your own way rather than following God's guidance?

5. The Psalm ends with God's desire to satisfy His people. In what ways have you experienced God's satisfaction in your life? Are there areas where you're still seeking fulfillment apart from God?

Weekly Questions

1. What stood out to you/challenged you most in this sermon?

2. What’s one area you feel the Lord wants to grow you into more Christ likeness?

3. How can this group pray for you this week?

Sermon 523: The Wondrous Word of God (Psalm 119:129-136)

Today’s Bulletin

OUTLINE

I. The Wonder of God’s Word (v.129-131)
II. Seeking God & Mourning Those Who Rebel (v.132-136)

Psalm 119:129-136

Pe פּ

129   “Your testimonies are wonderful;

therefore my soul keeps them.

130 The unfolding of your words gives light;

it imparts understanding to the simple.

131 I open my mouth and pant,

because I long for your commandments.

132 Turn to me and be gracious to me,

as is your way with those who love your name.

133 Keep steady my steps according to your promise,

and let no iniquity get dominion over me.

134 Redeem me from man’s oppression,

that I may keep your precepts.

135 Make your face shine upon your servant,

and teach me your statutes.

136 My eyes shed streams of tears,

because people do not keep your law.

Sermon Discussion questions
The Wondrous Word of God: Psalm 119:129-136

Ice Breaker: What are you most insatiable about? A food, a hobby? A subject, etc.

This Week Specific

1. The psalmist declares that God's word is "wonderful" or "wondrous." When was the last time you felt a sense of awe or wonder at God's word? What might help rekindle that sense of amazement at the power and beauty of Scripture?

2. Verse 131 says the psalmist "pants" and longs insatiably for God's commandments. Are you currently experiencing that kind of eager desire to read and obey God's word? If not, what steps could you take to cultivate a deeper longing for Scripture?

3. Is asking God to protect you from sin a regular pattern in your life? Why or why not? How could this request help you?

4. The sermon mentions praying for protection from sin and temptation (v. 133). What specific areas of sin or temptation do you need to ask God to help you overcome through the power of His word?

5. When you see blatant sin and rebellion against God in society, does it grieve you to tears like it did the psalmist (v. 136)? How do you usually respond? Why is that? How can developing a deeper love for God's word increase our holy sorrow over sin?

6. What is one specific plan you can make to prioritize reading and meditating on God's word this week? When and where will you do it? What portion of Scripture will you focus on?

Weekly Questions

1. What stood out to you/challenged you most in this sermon?

2. What’s one area you feel the Lord wants to grow you into more Christ likeness?

3. How can this group pray for you this week?

Sermon 522: True Worship (Psalms 134)

Today’s Bulletin

OUTLINE

I. True Worship (Psalm 134)

Psalm 134

Come, bless the LORD, all you servants of the LORD, who stand by night in the house of the LORD! Lift up your hands to the holy place and bless the LORD! May the LORD bless you from Zion, he who made heaven and earth!

Sermon Discussion questions
True WOrship: Psalm 134

Ice Breaker: What non Bible/notes app are you most tempted to use during worship?

This Week Specific

1. The sermon emphasizes that worship is primarily about glorifying God, not about what we get out of it personally. How can you prepare your heart before corporate worship to make it more God-centered and focused on adoring Him?

2. What emotions or affections do you typically experience during worship services? How can you cultivate deeper feelings of awe, reverence, and joy towards God during times of worship?

3. Pastor Brian encourages using physical expressions like lifting hands as a way to engage mind and body in worship. What helps you become more fully engaged in worshipping God with your whole being?

4. Psalm 134 presents worship as something that should happen day and night. How can you make the daily worship of God more of a priority and practice in your life?

5. John Piper is quoted saying we shouldn't "replace Christ this summer with trifles." What trifles or distractions tend to pull your focus away from Christ during the summer months? How can you intentionally "seek the things that are above" this summer?

Weekly Questions

1. What stood out to you/challenged you most in this sermon?

2. What’s one area you feel the Lord wants to grow you into more Christ likeness?

3. How can this group pray for you this week?

Sermon 521: The Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16)

Today’s Bulletin

Leviticus 16

The LORD spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they drew near before the LORD and died, and the LORD said to Moses, “Tell Aaron your brother not to come at any time into the Holy Place inside the veil, before the mercy seat that is on the ark, so that he may not die. For I will appear in the cloud over the mercy seat. But in this way Aaron shall come into the Holy Place: with a bull from the herd for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering. He shall put on the holy linen coat and shall have the linen undergarment on his body, and he shall tie the linen sash around his waist, and wear the linen turban; these are the holy garments. He shall bathe his body in water and then put them on. And he shall take from the congregation of the people of Israel two male goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering.

“Aaron shall offer the bull as a sin offering for himself and shall make atonement for himself and for his house. Then he shall take the two goats and set them before the LORD at the entrance of the tent of meeting. And Aaron shall cast lots over the two goats, one lot for the LORD and the other lot for Azazel. And Aaron shall present the goat on which the lot fell for the LORD and use it as a sin offering, but the goat on which the lot fell for Azazel shall be presented alive before the LORD to make atonement over it, that it may be sent away into the wilderness to Azazel.

“Aaron shall present the bull as a sin offering for himself, and shall make atonement for himself and for his house. He shall kill the bull as a sin offering for himself. And he shall take a censer full of coals of fire from the altar before the LORD, and two handfuls of sweet incense beaten small, and he shall bring it inside the veil and put the incense on the fire before the LORD, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is over the testimony, so that he does not die. And he shall take some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the front of the mercy seat on the east side, and in front of the mercy seat he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times.

“Then he shall kill the goat of the sin offering that is for the people and bring its blood inside the veil and do with its blood as he did with the blood of the bull, sprinkling it over the mercy seat and in front of the mercy seat. Thus he shall make atonement for the Holy Place, because of the uncleannesses of the people of Israel and because of their transgressions, all their sins. And so he shall do for the tent of meeting, which dwells with them in the midst of their uncleannesses. No one may be in the tent of meeting from the time he enters to make atonement in the Holy Place until he comes out and has made atonement for himself and for his house and for all the assembly of Israel. Then he shall go out to the altar that is before the LORD and make atonement for it, and shall take some of the blood of the bull and some of the blood of the goat, and put it on the horns of the altar all around. And he shall sprinkle some of the blood on it with his finger seven times, and cleanse it and consecrate it from the uncleannesses of the people of Israel.

“And when he has made an end of atoning for the Holy Place and the tent of meeting and the altar, he shall present the live goat. And Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, and confess over it all the iniquities of the people of Israel, and all their transgressions, all their sins. And he shall put them on the head of the goat and send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a man who is in readiness. The goat shall bear all their iniquities on itself to a remote area, and he shall let the goat go free in the wilderness.

“Then Aaron shall come into the tent of meeting and shall take off the linen garments that he put on when he went into the Holy Place and shall leave them there. And he shall bathe his body in water in a holy place and put on his garments and come out and offer his burnt offering and the burnt offering of the people and make atonement for himself and for the people. And the fat of the sin offering he shall burn on the altar. And he who lets the goat go to Azazel shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward he may come into the camp. And the bull for the sin offering and the goat for the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the Holy Place, shall be carried outside the camp. Their skin and their flesh and their dung shall be burned up with fire. And he who burns them shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward he may come into the camp.

“And it shall be a statute to you forever that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict yourselves and shall do no work, either the native or the stranger who sojourns among you. For on this day shall atonement be made for you to cleanse you. You shall be clean before the LORD from all your sins. It is a Sabbath of solemn rest to you, and you shall afflict yourselves; it is a statute forever. And the priest who is anointed and consecrated as priest in his father’s place shall make atonement, wearing the holy linen garments. He shall make atonement for the holy sanctuary, and he shall make atonement for the tent of meeting and for the altar, and he shall make atonement for the priests and for all the people of the assembly. And this shall be a statute forever for you, that atonement may be made for the people of Israel once in the year because of all their sins.” And Aaron did as the LORD commanded Moses.

Sermon 520: Starry Eyed Faith (Genesis 15)

Today’s Bulletin

OUTLINE

I. From Fear to Faith Through the Word of God (v.1-6) 

A. God tells Abe, “I got you” (v.1)
B. Abe, “But I got no kids” (v. 2-3)
C. Star Gazing Promises (v.4-5)
D. Justified By Faith (v. 6; Romans 4:3)

II. A Bloody Covenant (v.7-21)
A. Abe Seeking Confirmation (v.7-8)
B. The Strange Obedience Of Splitting Animals (v.9-11)
C. A Dreadful & Great Darkness (v.12-16)
D. The Covenant Confirmation (v.17-21)

Genesis 15

After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.” But Abram said, “O Lord GOD, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” And Abram said, “Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir.” And behold, the word of the LORD came to him: “This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir.” And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” And he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness.

And he said to him, “I am the LORD who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess.” But he said, “O Lord GOD, how am I to know that I shall possess it?” He said to him, “Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.” And he brought him all these, cut them in half, and laid each half over against the other. But he did not cut the birds in half. And when birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away.

As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. And behold, dreadful and great darkness fell upon him. Then the LORD said to Abram, “Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years. But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions. As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age. And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.”

When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces. On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your offspring I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates, the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites and the Jebusites.”

Sermon Discussion questions
Stary Eyed Faith: Genesis 15

Ice Breaker: What's the most awe-inspiring experience you've had looking up at the night sky? OR What's one thing in your life that you had to wait patiently for over a long period of time?

This Week Specific

1. The sermon highlights that fear is one of the most common human experiences addressed in Scripture. What are some of the fears or anxieties you are currently struggling with? How can focusing on God's promises and trusting in His character help alleviate those fears?

2. Abram is presented as a model for how we can honestly express our doubts, frustrations and anxieties to God in prayer. Why is it important to bring our whole selves, including the difficult emotions, before the Lord? How can doing so strengthen our faith?

3. The passage emphasizes that Abram's righteousness came through faith, not works. How can resting in the finished work of Christ free us from striving to earn our own righteousness? What does it look like practically to live by grace through faith?

4. God made a unilateral, unconditional covenant with Abram, promising blessings despite Abram's inability to uphold his end. How does this foreshadow the new covenant in Christ? What assurance can we take from God's faithfulness depicted here? What’s that mean for you personally?

5. The sermon connects this passage to the means of grace - Scripture, prayer and the sacraments. How can actively engaging with these means strengthen your faith and apprehension of God's promises? What steps could you take to prioritize the means of grace in your life?

Weekly Questions

1. What stood out to you/challenged you most in this sermon?

2. What’s one area you feel the Lord wants to grow you into more Christ likeness?

3. How can this group pray for you this week?

Sermon 519: Night Ops In the Valley of Siddhim (Genesis 14)

Today’s Bulletin

OUTLINE

I. Faithfulness In Conflict (v.1-12)
II. Night Ops (v.13-16)
II. Mysterious Melchizedek (v.17-24)
A. Abe’s Response (v.17-20)
B. Abe’s Declaration (v.21-24)

Genesis 14

Abram Rescues Lot

In the days of Amraphel king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of Goiim, these kings made war with Bera king of Sodom, Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar). And all these joined forces in the Valley of Siddim (that is, the Salt Sea). Twelve years they had served Chedorlaomer, but in the thirteenth year they rebelled. In the fourteenth year Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him came and defeated the Rephaim in Ashteroth-karnaim, the Zuzim in Ham, the Emim in Shaveh-kiriathaim, and the Horites in their hill country of Seir as far as El-paran on the border of the wilderness. Then they turned back and came to En-mishpat (that is, Kadesh) and defeated all the country of the Amalekites, and also the Amorites who were dwelling in Hazazon-tamar.

Then the king of Sodom, the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah, the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar) went out, and they joined battle in the Valley of Siddim with Chedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of Goiim, Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar, four kings against five. Now the Valley of Siddim was full of bitumen pits, and as the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, some fell into them, and the rest fled to the hill country. So the enemy took all the possessions of Sodom and Gomorrah, and all their provisions, and went their way. They also took Lot, the son of Abram’s brother, who was dwelling in Sodom, and his possessions, and went their way.

Then one who had escaped came and told Abram the Hebrew, who was living by the oaks of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol and of Aner. These were allies of Abram. When Abram heard that his kinsman had been taken captive, he led forth his trained men, born in his house, 318 of them, and went in pursuit as far as Dan. And he divided his forces against them by night, he and his servants, and defeated them and pursued them to Hobah, north of Damascus. Then he brought back all the possessions, and also brought back his kinsman Lot with his possessions, and the women and the people.

Abram Blessed by Melchizedek

After his return from the defeat of Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley). And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. (He was priest of God Most High.) And he blessed him and said,

“Blessed be Abram by God Most High,
Possessor of heaven and earth;
and blessed be God Most High,
who has delivered your enemies into your hand!”

And Abram gave him a tenth of everything. And the king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the persons, but take the goods for yourself.” But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have lifted my hand to the LORD, God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth, that I would not take a thread or a sandal strap or anything that is yours, lest you should say, ‘I have made Abram rich.’ I will take nothing but what the young men have eaten, and the share of the men who went with me. Let Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre take their share.”

Sermon Discussion questions
Night Ops & Mysterious Melchizedek: Genesis 14

Ice Breaker: After a rough exhausting day, what meal would you most want someone to provide for you?

This Week Specific

1. Brian highlighted the importance of not defaulting to an attitude of "not my problem" when others are facing difficulties, especially family and fellow believers. Can you think of a situation in your life where you were tempted to have that attitude, but getting involved made a positive impact? What motivated you to get involved then, and how can you cultivate that mindset more consistently?

2. Abram demonstrated faith-fueled courage by pursuing the powerful army that captured Lot, despite being vastly outnumbered. When has God called you to have courageous faith in a daunting situation of any sort? What were the results of stepping out in obedience? Not just huge ways, what little ways have you seen this?

3. The sermon contrasts Abram's responses to the king of Sodom and Melchizedek. How can you cultivate an attitude like Abram's of not seeking wealth or status from ungodly sources, but instead being focused on glorifying God as the true source of blessing?

4. Melchizedek is described as a foreshadowing or "type" of Christ. What insights does this give you into the supremacy, priesthood, and kingship of Jesus? How can meditating on these truths shape your worship and obedience?

5. The sermon closes with the exhortation to view Jesus rightly as our eternal High Priest who intercedes for us. How can you actively set your mind on this reality throughout your day or week? What difference might it make in your thought patterns, attitudes, and actions?

Weekly Questions

1. What stood out to you/challenged you most in this sermon?

2. What’s one area you feel the Lord wants to grow you into more Christ likeness?

3. How can this group pray for you this week?

Sermon 518: A Lot Going Eastward (Genesis 13)

Today’s Bulletin

OUTLINE

I. Don’t Call It A Comeback: Abram’s Return (v.1-4)
II. Mo Money Mo Problem: Too Rich To Dwell Together (v.5-7)
III. The Fork of Peace (v.8-9)
IV. Eastward (v.10-13)
V. God Speaks, Abe Listens & Worships (v.14-18)

Genesis 13

“So Abram went up from Egypt, he and his wife and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the Negeb.

2 Now Abram was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold. 3 And he journeyed on from the Negeb as far as Bethel to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Ai, 4 to the place where he had made an altar at the first. And there Abram called upon the name of the LORD. 5 And Lot, who went with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents, 6 so that the land could not support both of them dwelling together; for their possessions were so great that they could not dwell together, 7 and there was strife between the herdsmen of Abram’s livestock and the herdsmen of Lot’s livestock. At that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were dwelling in the land.

8 Then Abram said to Lot, “Let there be no strife between you and me, and between your herdsmen and my herdsmen, for we are kinsmen. 9 Is not the whole land before you? Separate yourself from me. If you take the left hand, then I will go to the right, or if you take the right hand, then I will go to the left.” 10 And Lot lifted up his eyes and saw that the Jordan Valley was well watered everywhere like the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt, in the direction of Zoar. (This was before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.) 11 So Lot chose for himself all the Jordan Valley, and Lot journeyed east. Thus they separated from each other. 12 Abram settled in the land of Canaan, while Lot settled among the cities of the valley and moved his tent as far as Sodom. 13 Now the men of Sodom were wicked, great sinners against the LORD.

14 The LORD said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him, “Lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward, 15 for all the land that you see I will give to you and to your offspring forever. 16 I will make your offspring as the dust of the earth, so that if one can count the dust of the earth, your offspring also can be counted. 17 Arise, walk through the length and the breadth of the land, for I will give it to you.” 18 So Abram moved his tent and came and settled by the oaks of Mamre, which are at Hebron, and there he built an altar to the LORD.”

Sermon Discussion questions
A Lot going eastward: Genesis 13

Ice Breaker: If you could pick any piece of land/real estate to have for yourself, where would you choose and why?

This Week Specific

1. The sermon highlights how Abram had moments of both faithfulness and unfaithfulness to God. When have you experienced seasons of feeling distant from God or struggling with unbelief? What helped you return to a place of trust and worship?

2. Abram initiated peacemaking with Lot and was willing to sacrifice his rights for the sake of reconciliation. Are there any conflicts or strained relationships in your life where you need to take the first step towards making peace? What would it look like to humble yourself and prioritize reconciliation?

3. Lot chose the land that looked most prosperous and desirable from an earthly perspective, but it led him towards the sinful culture of Sodom. When making important decisions, how can you ensure you are considering spiritual priorities and not just worldly or material gain? Any decisions you’re currently making that you need to consider?

4. God renewed his covenant promises to Abram,. how does remembering God's faithful promises encourage you to obey and follow Him, even when it requires sacrifice?

5. At the end of the sermon, Pastor Brian challenges the congregation to be peacemakers in various areas of life. What are some practical ways you can pursue peace this week - in your home, workplace, friend groups, or church community?

Weekly Questions

1. What stood out to you/challenged you most in this sermon?

2. What’s one area you feel the Lord wants to grow you into more Christ likeness?

3. How can this group pray for you this week?

Sermon 517: A Faltering Faith, A Sister-Wife, A Faithful God: GENESIS 12:10-20

Today’s Bulletin

OUTLINE

I. The Fear Spiral; aka Faltering Faith (v.10-13)
II. The Unsettling Success of Sin (v.14-16)
III. God's Gracious Intervention (v. 17-20)
IV. Apps For Everyone

Genesis 12:10-20

“Now there was a famine in the land. So Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn there, for the famine was severe in the land. 11 When he was about to enter Egypt, he said to Sarai his wife, “I know that you are a woman beautiful in appearance, 12 and when the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife.’ Then they will kill me, but they will let you live. 13 Say you are my sister, that it may go well with me because of you, and that my life may be spared for your sake.” 14 When Abram entered Egypt, the Egyptians saw that the woman was very beautiful. 15 And when the princes of Pharaoh saw her, they praised her to Pharaoh. And the woman was taken into Pharaoh’s house. 16 And for her sake he dealt well with Abram; and he had sheep, oxen, male donkeys, male servants, female servants, female donkeys, and camels.

17 But the LORD afflicted Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai, Abram’s wife. 18 So Pharaoh called Abram and said, “What is this you have done to me? Why did you not tell me that she was your wife? 19 Why did you say, ‘She is my sister,’ so that I took her for my wife? Now then, here is your wife; take her, and go.” 20 And Pharaoh gave men orders concerning him, and they sent him away with his wife and all that he had.”

Canceling Calvin

John Calvin on how Sarai could be beautiful despite being older…
“her sterility (not having had children) availed to preserve her beauty, and to keep her whole habit of body entire; for there is nothing which more debilitates females (beauty) than frequent parturition (child bearing).”

Translation in sermon, Calvin says, the reason Sarai is still stunning at 65 is that she has not given birth to any children. He then adds, “Nothing debilitates the appearance of women more than frequent childbirth.”

Nate Bargatze Ording Coffee like Pharaoh Dismissing Abram

Sermon Discussion questions
A Faltering Faith, A Faithful God: Genesis 12:10-20

Ice Breaker: Ice Breakers will return in fall with Small Groups

This Week Specific

1. The sermon this week highlighted how Abram faltered in his faith and acted out of fear instead of trusting God's promises when the famine hit. Can you think of a recent situation where you struggled to trust God's promises and acted out of fear or self-reliance instead? What were the consequences?

2. Abram's lie to protect himself ended up putting his wife Sarai in a compromising situation with Pharaoh. Have you ever made a decision motivated by fear or self-preservation that ended up negatively impacting or putting loved ones at risk? What did you learn from that experience?

3. Pastor Brian emphasizes that despite Abram's lapses in faith, God remained faithful to His promises. How have you seen God's faithfulness evident in your own life, even during periods when your faith wavered?

4. What is one practical step you can take this week to grow in trusting God more fully with the situations and relationships you are facing? What promise from Scripture can you cling to?

Weekly Questions

1. What stood out to you/challenged you most in this sermon?

2. What’s one area you feel the Lord wants to grow you into more Christ likeness?

3. How can this group pray for you this week?

Sermon 516: One Word That Changed The World (Genesis 12:1-9)

Today’s Bulletin

OUTLINE

I. Abram’s Call and Promise (v.1-3)
II. Abram’s Obedience (v.4-5a)
III. Abram’s Sojourn (v.5b-9)

Genesis 12:1-9

Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. 2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

4 So Abram went, as the LORD had told him, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. 5 And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all their possessions that they had gathered, and the people that they had acquired in Haran, and they set out to go to the land of Canaan. When they came to the land of Canaan, 6 Abram passed through the land to the place at Shechem, to the oak of Moreh. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. 7 Then the LORD appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.” So he built there an altar to the LORD, who had appeared to him. 8 From there he moved to the hill country on the east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. And there he built an altar to the LORD and called upon the name of the LORD. 9 And Abram journeyed on, still going toward the Negeb.

TULIP Explained

Total depravity: This doctrine asserts that as a result of the Fall, humanity is thoroughly affected by sin, rendering individuals incapable of saving themselves or even seeking God without divine grace.

Unconditional election: This doctrine emphasizes that God's choice of whom to save is not based on any foreseen merit or goodness in individuals but is solely based on God's sovereign will.

Limited atonement (also known as particular redemption): This doctrine holds that Jesus Christ's atonement is effective only for the elect, those whom God has chosen to save, rather than for all of humanity.

Irresistible grace: This doctrine teaches that God's grace is efficacious and irresistible, meaning that when God chooses to save someone, that individual cannot resist God's grace but will inevitably be brought to faith.

Perseverance of the saints (also known as the preservation of the saints): This doctrine asserts that those whom God has chosen for salvation will persevere in faith until the end and cannot ultimately lose their salvation.

Calvin’s Real Quote

“For it is better with closed eyes to follow God as our guide than by relying on our own providence to wander through those circuitous paths which it devises for us.”

Summarized version, “It’s far better to go with your eyes closed while holding the Lord’s hand, than to go with your eyes open, but on your own.”

Abraham’s Travel from Ur to Canaan

Sermon Discussion questions
One Word That Changed The World: Genesis 12:1-9

Ice Breaker: What's your favorite way to relax and rest after a long day?

This Week Specific

1. Consider the phrase "verbum dei nudum" or the "naked word of God.” When has God called you to obey His word even when you didn't have proof or couldn't see the full picture? What helped you trust God's bare word?

2. We heard in the sermon, "It's far better to go with your eyes closed while holding the Lord's hand, than to go with your eyes open, but on your own." When have you experienced the truth of this in your own spiritual journey? What are some practical ways we can learn to better trust and follow God's lead?

3. In the seven promises of God (v.2-3; 7) who does the action? Who fulfills these promises? What do you make of that? Which of these promises encourages or challenges you the most right now? Why?

4. Nancy Guthrie said we are "called to leave behind our comfortable way of life, our earthly pursuits and priorities, and to follow after Christ with reckless abandon and wholehearted commitment." What earthly comforts, pursuits or priorities might God be calling you to leave behind or re-prioritize?

5. In what areas of your life do you need to more wholeheartedly worship, the building of altars, and calling upon the name of the Lord as Abram did? How can we as a small group encourage another in this? What does it look like to build an alter today?

6. The sermon highlights obstacles Abram faced in believing God's promises (Sarah's barrenness, the Canaanites in the land, etc.). What obstacles to faith are you currently facing? How can you imitate Abram's example of persevering faith amidst difficulties? How can you better learn to truly rest in the Lord, take breaks from the rushing, and devote undistracted time to worship as modeled by Abram?

7. In what ways do you need to be more public or bold in proclaiming the name of the Lord and the gospel, following Abram's example? What fears or hindrances keep you from doing this?

8. How can we as a group better encourage and spur one another on to the kind of obedient, worshipful, outward-focused faith modeled by Abram?

Weekly Questions

1. What stood out to you/challenged you most in this sermon?

2. What’s one area you feel the Lord wants to grow you into more Christ likeness?

3. How can this group pray for you this week?

Sermon 515: To Live Is Christ (Philippians 3:19-26)

Today’s Bulletin

OUTLINE

Philippians 3:19-26

Yes, and I will rejoice, 19 for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, 20 as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. 21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22 If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. 23 I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. 24 But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. 25 Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith, 26 so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again.

“All of the pain in this world is the closest we Christians will ever get to hell and all of the happiness in this world is the closest that unbelievers will ever get to heaven. In death we have God to comfort us, but the unbeliever has no one.” - Harriett Reymond

Sermon Discussion questions
It’d Be A Shem To Begot Terah: Genesis 11:10-32

Ice Breaker: If you had to eat one meal from a fast food restaurant for the rest of your life, what would it be?

This Week Specific

1. From the statistics shared about death, what stuck out to you the most? Why do you think the reality of our mortality is so easy to ignore or downplay in our daily lives?

2. Brian said our goal should be, “Teaching people to live, preparing people to die.” How can focusing on this goal change your daily perspective and priorities? What are some practical ways we can remind ourselves of this each day?

3. Paul says in Philippians 1:21 "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain." If you're honest, is living for Christ your highest priority and biggest passion? What are some things that compete for that top spot in your heart?

4. Brian said, “Paul did not think those things were true (about Christ), he knew them as absolutely true." What are some areas of biblical truth that you intellectually believe but don't fully live out with deep hearted conviction? How can you grow in that?

5. The 13-year-old's profound quote was, "All of the pain in this world is the closest we will ever get to hell and all of the happiness in this world is the closest that unbelievers will ever get to heaven." Discuss how this perspective aligns with or challenges your typical view of suffering and pleasure.

6. In what ways are you using your talents, money, time and energy for "fruitful labor" that helps yourself and others grow in their faith in Jesus? What is one practical step you can take to be more intentional about this?

7. The sermon said pursuing intimacy with Christ requires "seeking Him in the Scriptures." What are some ways we can prioritize diligently seeking the Lord through studying and meditating on God's Word?

8. The sermon concludes "May we view death, not as something to be feared, but an event that brings us into the very presence of God." Does the reality of being with Jesus after death fill you with more hope, joy or apprehension? How can we grow in our eternal perspective?

9. Paul says that he is “hard pressed” to choose between life and death. What can we do to get that same mindset Paul?

Weekly Questions

1. What stood out to you/challenged you most in this sermon?

2. What’s one area you feel the Lord wants to grow you into more Christ likeness?

3. How can this group pray for you this week?

Sermon 514: It'd Be A Shem To Begot Terah (Genesis 11:10-32)

Today’s Bulletin

OUTLINE

I. The Line of Shem (v.10-26)
II. Terah & His Sons (v.27-32)
III. Leaving Ur (v.31-32)

Genesis 11:10-32

These are the generations of Shem. When Shem was 100 years old, he fathered Arpachshad two years after the flood. And Shem lived after he fathered Arpachshad 500 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Arpachshad had lived 35 years, he fathered Shelah. And Arpachshad lived after he fathered Shelah 403 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Shelah had lived 30 years, he fathered Eber. And Shelah lived after he fathered Eber 403 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Eber had lived 34 years, he fathered Peleg. And Eber lived after he fathered Peleg 430 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Peleg had lived 30 years, he fathered Reu. And Peleg lived after he fathered Reu 209 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Reu had lived 32 years, he fathered Serug. And Reu lived after he fathered Serug 207 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Serug had lived 30 years, he fathered Nahor. And Serug lived after he fathered Nahor 200 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Nahor had lived 29 years, he fathered Terah. And Nahor lived after he fathered Terah 119 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Terah had lived 70 years, he fathered Abram, Nahor, and Haran.

Now these are the generations of Terah. Terah fathered Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran fathered Lot. Haran died in the presence of his father Terah in the land of his kindred, in Ur of the Chaldeans. And Abram and Nahor took wives. The name of Abram’s wife was Sarai, and the name of Nahor’s wife, Milcah, the daughter of Haran the father of Milcah and Iscah. Now Sarai was barren; she had no child.

Terah took Abram his son and Lot the son of Haran, his grandson, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, his son Abram’s wife, and they went forth together from Ur of the Chaldeans to go into the land of Canaan, but when they came to Haran, they settled there. The days of Terah were 205 years, and Terah died in Haran.

Age of Terah & Abram Issue

There is an age issue here that critics of the Bible like to point out, but is not really an issue.

The issue goes like this. In verse 26 we are told Terah was 70 when he fathered these three sons and some assume Abram is the first born. In chapter 12, verse 4 we learn that Abram is 75 years old when he leaves the town of Haran which is sometime after his father dies, that adds up to 145, but in verse 32 we learn his father was actually 205 years old when he died.

It’s simple math and off by 60 years, Moses can do simple math so it’s not a mistake.

The error here is not the math, it’s assuming Abram was the first born son, he’s not. He’s listed first here because his line becomes the most significant, just like Shem was listed first when we learned about Noah’s sons in Genesis 10:1 even though Shem was not the firstborn.

So mostly likely Haran was born first and when Terah was 70 years old and Abram wasn’t born until Terah was 130 years old and Abram was 75 years old when his father died at the age of 205.

Terah’s Family Tree

Sermon Discussion questions
It’d Be A Shem To Begot Terah: Genesis 11:10-32

Ice Breaker: If you had to eat one meal from a fast food restaurant for the rest of your life, what would it be?

This Week Specific

1. Why might they have settled in Haran instead of Canaan?

2. This weeks’ sermon highlights how Abraham's family was steeped in idolatry and moon worship before God called them. Can you identify any "idols" or unhealthy priorities in your own life that you need to leave behind in order to wholeheartedly follow God? Or perhaps some you had to leave behind in the past?

3. Pastor Brian asks, "Have you settled somewhere less than where God has called you to?" Reflect on your current spiritual walk. Are there areas where you have settled or compromised instead of fully obeying and following God's call? If that feels too personal, what are some common areas you see people do this?

4. "Following Christ means leaving behind so much of our former lives of sin and idolatry." What specific sins, habits, or mindsets have you had to purposefully leave behind to follow Jesus more closely?

5. Like Abraham's father Terah, have you ever started out in obedience to God but then settled partway instead of going "all the way to Canaan"? What caused you to settle, and how can you regain motivation to fully obey?

6. “Idols offer no grace, no mercy, and cannot save you from your sin or give you an eternal home." How have you experienced the grace, mercy and eternal life that only comes through faith in Jesus Christ?

7. What influential voices, relationships or situations in your life currently make it tempting to "settle in Haran" instead of wholeheartedly following Jesus? How can you counter those influences?

8. Share a time when you had to deny yourself and "take up your cross daily" (Luke 9:23) in order to obey Christ's call. What challenges did you face and what helped you persevere?

9. Brian talks about idols - what's one modern-day "idol" you see people commonly worshipping today in our culture?

10. How should God’s selection of Abram’s family offer us encouragement?

Weekly Questions

1. What stood out to you/challenged you most in this sermon?

2. What’s one area you feel the Lord wants to grow you into more Christ likeness?

3. How can this group pray for you this week?

Sermon 513: Compassion of the Weary (Mark 6:30-44) [Jon Dunning]

Today’s Bulletin

OUTLINE

Mark 6:30-44

30 The apostles returned to Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught. 31 And he said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. 32 And they went away in the boat to a desolate place by themselves. 33 Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they ran there on foot from all the towns and got there ahead of them. 34 When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. And he began to teach them many things. 35 And when it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, “This is a desolate place, and the hour is now late. 36 Send them away to go into the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.” 37 But he answered them, “You give them something to eat.” And they said to him, “Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give it to them to eat?” 38 And he said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.” And when they had found out, they said, “Five, and two fish.” 39 Then he commanded them all to sit down in groups on the green grass. 40 So they sat down in groups, by hundreds and by fifties. 41 And taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing and broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the people. And he divided the two fish among them all. 42 And they all ate and were satisfied. 43 And they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. 44 And those who ate the loaves were five thousand men.

Sermon Discussion questions
Compassion Of the Weary: Mark 6:30-44

Ice Breaker: What fills you up?

This Week Specific

1. How does Jesus respond to the needs of the disciples? To the needs of the people? To our needs?

2. What other shepherds do we look to?

3. Read Psalm 23 -replacing all words referring to God with ‘no one’. How does the psalm make you feel now?

4. What are some ways you are weary or wandering? Or both? How does Jesus’ seeing you in that place change things?

5. In what ways do your lack and limits prevent you from serving where Jesus leads you?

6. What are some ways you have seen Jesus, in his grace, provide for your needs? How can you share these things to the benefit of others?

Weekly Questions

1. What stood out to you/challenged you most in this sermon?

2. What’s one area you feel the Lord wants to grow you into more Christ likeness?

3. How can this group pray for you this week?

Sermon 512: This Jesus (Acts 2:22-36) Easter Sunday

Today’s Bulletin

OUTLINE

I. Peter & The Situation
II. “This Jesus” You Crucified (v.22-23)
III. “This Jesus” is Alive (v.24-32)
IV. “This Jesus” is Lord & Christ (v.33-36)
V. This Jesus Will Come Again (Acts 1:11)

Acts 2:22-36

22 “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know— 23 this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. 24 God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it. 25 For David says concerning him,

“‘I saw the Lord always before me, for he is at my right hand that I may not be shaken; 26 therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced; my flesh also will dwell in hope. 27 For you will not abandon my soul to Hades, or let your Holy One see corruption. 28 You have made known to me the paths of life; you will make me full of gladness with your presence.’

29 “Brothers, I may say to you with confidence about the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. 30 Being therefore a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on his throne, 31 he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption. 32 This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses. 33 Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing. 34 For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself says,

“‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, 35 until I make your enemies your footstool.”’ 36 Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”

Sermon Discussion questions
This Jesus: Acts 2:22-39

Ice Breaker: What’s your favorite Easter tradition?

This Week Specific

1. What impacted or stood out to you most from this sermon on Peter's message about Jesus?

2. Peter confronts his listeners with their role in crucifying Jesus (v.23, 36). Why is it important to recognize our own sinfulness and need for a Savior? How can remembering this lead us to a deeper appreciation for Christ's sacrifice?

3. The sermon highlights how the crucifixion was part of God's sovereign plan, yet the people bore responsibility for their actions. How do you reconcile God's sovereignty with human responsibility? What does this teach us about God's character?

4. What evidences for Jesus' resurrection are presented in the sermon? Why is the resurrection so crucial to the Christian faith? How can we discuss this truth winsomely with others?

5. Peter says Jesus is both "Lord and Christ" (v.36). What does it mean practically in your life for Jesus to be your Lord? What areas do you need to submit more fully to His lordship? What does it mean that Jesus is the Christ? Why is it important that Jesus was “the Christ” before the resurrection? What evidence is there for this?

6. The sermon describes those hearing Peter's message as being "cut to the heart" (v.37). What have you found renews that sense of awe over what Christ has done?

7. Peter calls the crowd to "repent and be baptized" (v.38). What is the relationship between repentance and faith? If you are a believer, how is continual repentance still needed in your Christian walk?

8. When did you place your faith in Jesus? Who was influential in that process? What convinced you of your need for Christ?

9. Why does Peter emphasize Jesus’ humanity at the start of the passage?

Weekly Questions

1. What stood out to you/challenged you most in this sermon?

2. What’s one area you feel the Lord wants to grow you into more Christ likeness?

3. How can this group pray for you this week?

Sermon 511: The Tower (Genesis 11:1-9)

Today’s Bulletin

OUTLINE

I. Humanistic Hubris (v.1-4)
II. The Lord Knows (v.5)
III. Ya Basic! (v.6-7)
IV. You’re Dispersed (v.8-9)

Genesis 11:1-9

“Now the whole earth had one language and the same words. And as people migrated from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. And they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly.” And they had brick for stone, and bitumen for mortar. Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.” And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of man had built. And the LORD said, “Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language, and this is only the beginning of what they will do. And nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them. Come, let us go down and there confuse their language, so that they may not understand one another’s speech.” So the LORD dispersed them from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city. Therefore its name was called Babel, because there the LORD confused the language of all the earth. And from there the LORD dispersed them over the face of all the earth.”

Chiastic Structure of Genesis 11

Ziggurat

Most likely the tower was what the Babylonians called a Ziggurat Temple like the example below.

Sermon Discussion questions
The Tower: Genesis 11:1-9

Ice Breaker: What foreign languages can you speak or understand? Or What’s the highest thing you’ve ever climbed?

This Week Specific

1. The sermon mentions pride and the desire to "make a name for ourselves" as the main sin displayed at the Tower of Babel. In what areas of your life do you struggle with pride or the desire for personal recognition/achievement over glorifying God?

2. What "towers" or sources of identity/purpose apart from God are you tempted to build your life around (career, relationships, hobbies, etc.)? How can we reorient our lives to find meaning and purpose solely in knowing and glorifying God?

3. How does the gospel unite diverse peoples and languages, reversing the scattering and division that occurred at Babel? How can we as a church better reflect the beauty of people from every tribe and tongue being brought together in Christ?

4. The sermon states: "You don't need to be great in this life, you need to know the Lord. That's all." Discuss what it looks like practically to have this mindset and find your identity and worth in Christ alone rather than achievements.

5. How can we encourage one another to pursue excellence and technological/cultural advancement, but do so for God's glory rather than human pride and self-exaltation?

6. The final charge is: "Stop thinking strictly in terms of what you will accomplish...and start thinking about what God is doing in and through you for His glory." What are some ways God may want to use you and our group for His purposes?

Weekly Questions

1. What stood out to you/challenged you most in this sermon?

2. What’s one area you feel the Lord wants to grow you into more Christ likeness?

3. How can this group pray for you this week?

Sermon 510: The Laborers In The Vineyard (Matthew 20:1-17)

Today’s Bulletin

OUTLINE

Matthew 20:1-17

“For the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. 2 After agreeing with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. 3 And going out about the third hour he saw others standing idle in the marketplace, 4 and to them he said, ‘You go into the vineyard too, and whatever is right I will give you.’ 5 So they went. Going out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour, he did the same. 6 And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing. And he said to them, ‘Why do you stand here idle all day?’ 7 They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You go into the vineyard too.’ 8 And when evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last, up to the first.’ 9 And when those hired about the eleventh hour came, each of them received a denarius. 10 Now when those hired first came, they thought they would receive more, but each of them also received a denarius. 11 And on receiving it they grumbled at the master of the house, 12 saying, ‘These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.’ 13 But he replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? 14 Take what belongs to you and go. I choose to give to this last worker as I give to you. 15 Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity?’ 16 So the last will be first, and the first last.”

17 And as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside, and on the way he said to them,

Sermon Discussion questions
The Laborers In The Vineyard: Matthew 20:1-16

Ice Breaker: What was your first job? Do you have an interesting story about it?

This Week Specific

1. What strikes you the most about this parable? What aspects of the story stand out to you?

2. Put yourself in the shoes of the workers who were hired early and worked all day. How would you feel about getting the same pay as those who worked only an hour or two? How would you respond to the landowner's actions?

3. The landowner says to one of the workers, "Don't I have the right to do what I want with my own money?" (v. 15). What does this reveal about God's sovereignty and His right to distribute His grace as He sees fit?

4. Do you relate with the workers hired first or last more? Why?

5. How can this parable challenge our sense of entitlement or our tendency to compare ourselves to others? What does it teach us about having a spirit of humility and gratitude?

6. Think about Jonah & the prodigal son, what does it say about our hearts that we get angry at mercy?

7. Where have you struggled to believe God is right and faithful to you?

8. Are there any areas in your life where you struggle with envy, resentment, or a sense of unfairness? How can the truths of this parable help address those attitudes?

9. What is one practical way you can apply the lessons of this parable to your life this week?

Weekly Questions

1. What stood out to you/challenged you most in this sermon?

2. What’s one area you feel the Lord wants to grow you into more Christ likeness?

3. How can this group pray for you this week?

Sermon 509: The Table of Nations (Genesis 10)

Today’s Bulletin

OUTLINE

I. The Reliability of Scripture
II. The Unity, Diversity & Depravity of Mankind
III. The Line of Shem, The Seed Identified
IV. God’s Love For The Nations

Genesis 10

These are the generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Sons were born to them after the flood.

2 The sons of Japheth: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. 3 The sons of Gomer: Ashkenaz, Riphath, and Togarmah. 4 The sons of Javan: Elishah, Tarshish, Kittim, and Dodanim. 5 From these the coastland peoples spread in their lands, each with his own language, by their clans, in their nations.

6 The sons of Ham: Cush, Egypt, Put, and Canaan. 7 The sons of Cush: Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah, and Sabteca. The sons of Raamah: Sheba and Dedan. 8 Cush fathered Nimrod; he was the first on earth to be a mighty man. 9 He was a mighty hunter before the LORD. Therefore it is said, “Like Nimrod a mighty hunter before the LORD.” 10 The beginning of his kingdom was Babel, Erech, Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar. 11 From that land he went into Assyria and built Nineveh, Rehoboth-Ir, Calah, and 12 Resen between Nineveh and Calah; that is the great city. 13 Egypt fathered Ludim, Anamim, Lehabim, Naphtuhim, 14 Pathrusim, Casluhim (from whom the Philistines came), and Caphtorim.

15 Canaan fathered Sidon his firstborn and Heth, 16 and the Jebusites, the Amorites, the Girgashites, 17 the Hivites, the Arkites, the Sinites, 18 the Arvadites, the Zemarites, and the Hamathites. Afterward the clans of the Canaanites dispersed. 19 And the territory of the Canaanites extended from Sidon in the direction of Gerar as far as Gaza, and in the direction of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboiim, as far as Lasha. 20 These are the sons of Ham, by their clans, their languages, their lands, and their nations.

21 To Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber, the elder brother of Japheth, children were born. 22 The sons of Shem: Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad, Lud, and Aram. 23 The sons of Aram: Uz, Hul, Gether, and Mash. 24 Arpachshad fathered Shelah; and Shelah fathered Eber. 25 To Eber were born two sons: the name of the one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was divided, and his brother's name was Joktan. 26 Joktan fathered Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah, 27 Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah, 28 Obal, Abimael, Sheba, 29 Ophir, Havilah, and Jobab; all these were the sons of Joktan. 30 The territory in which they lived extended from Mesha in the direction of Sephar to the hill country of the east. 31 These are the sons of Shem, by their clans, their languages, their lands, and their nations.

32 These are the clans of the sons of Noah, according to their genealogies, in their nations, and from these the nations spread abroad on the earth after the flood.

The Sons of Noah in table form

General idea of where all these lines of Noah went in this era…

Jump to 37 seconds to hear Nimrod…

Sermon Discussion questions
The Table of Nations: Genesis 10

Ice Breaker: What is your ancestry, where your people from? Or Who is your most famous relative or ancestor?

This Week Specific

1. The passage highlights the reliability and trustworthiness of Scripture. What are some practical ways we can develop a habit of regularly reading and studying God's Word? How can we approach the Bible with the right attitude of trust and reverence?

2. Brian emphasized God's love and plan for all nations and people groups. How does the Table of Nations challenge or confirm your understanding of human diversity, unity, and the overarching narrative of God's plan throughout history as depicted in the Bible?

3. Reflect on the vision of Revelation 5:9 and 7:9, where people from every tribe, language, and nation worship before the throne of God. How should Christians approach concepts of identity, unity, and diversity within the context of faith and community?

4. Discuss the importance of abandoning cultural tribalism within the Church and embracing gospel unity. How can we practically apply this principle in our interactions with fellow believers?
   What are some potential barriers or challenges we might face, and how can we overcome them?

5. In the sermon Brian mentioned the importance of prayer for the spread of the gospel and the growth of the church in different parts of the world. What specific nations, people groups, or missionary efforts do you want to commit to praying for regularly? How can we collectively stay informed and engaged with global missions?

6. In what ways can we actively engage with our local "mission field" and demonstrate Christ's love to those around us? Share practical ideas or experiences of reaching out to neighbors, coworkers, or friends with the gospel message.

7. How can the exploration of biblical genealogies and historical narratives like the Table of Nations deepen our understanding of God's sovereignty, providence, and the interconnectedness of human history?

8. We learned that Japheth's descendants occupied most of the world, and many in the group may be descended from him. As "middle children," how can we avoid feeling overlooked or insignificant in God's plan? What are some practical ways we can find our identity and purpose in Christ?

Weekly Questions

1. What stood out to you/challenged you most in this sermon?

2. What’s one area you feel the Lord wants to grow you into more Christ likeness?

3. How can this group pray for you this week?