Pastor’s Blog

Sunday, July 25, 2010

The Holiness of God: Pure

How can impure/sinful people ever be connected with a pure/sinless God?

I can connect with a sinless God if I believe that He wants me.

I can connect with a sinless God if I am honest about who I am.

I can stay connected with a sinless God if I allow Him to “clothe” me in holiness.

I can stay connected with a sinless God if I go and tell others what Jesus has done for me.

1.)  Read Mark 5:1-8.  In what ways does this man’s outward condition reflect the condition of your inner soul (lived among the tombs; no one could bind him; the fetters he broke in pieces; night and day…always crying out; bruising himself with stones)?  Why does he run to worship Jesus and at the same time accuse Jesus of tormenting him?  Is there a way in which you do the same thing?  How is it that Jesus demonstrates that He wants a relationship with this man?  How has Jesus shown you that He wants a relationship with you?

2.)  Read Habakkuk 1:13 and Psalm 51:1-3.  Habakkuk, seeing the sin of others; and, David, seeing his own sin; both recognize the same thing: a holy God will not be in the presence of sin.  Yet, God comes to us in Jesus.  How can this be?

3.)  Read Mark 5:9-13.  Again the man does two contrary things: he is honest about the Legion of evil spirits within him, but he begs Jesus not to send them away.  Why would he do that?  Pastor Craig pointed out that after the man was honest, even though he begged Jesus not to cast the spirits out, Jesus did cast them out.  What do you make of that?  Pastor Craig stated that when you get honest with Jesus about who you are, the power of Jesus’ death on the Cross comes to you.  Do you agree?  Why, or why not?

4.)  Read Ezekiel 16:1-6 and Revelation 3:17.  Why is it so hard to recognize, and then be honest about, the true state of your soul?

5.)  Read Mark 5:14-15 and Psalm 24:3-4.  As Jesus and His disciples provide clothing for this man to wear, so the Lord will clothe us in goodness and righteousness.  How do we put on the “clothing” He provides?  Why is that we will not be able to remain in relationship with the Lord if we won’t put on that clothing of goodness and righteousness?  Can you share a time when you refused to be done with some sin, and that refusal caused distance or brokenness in your relationship with the Lord?

6.)  Read Mark 5:16-20 and Romans 10:9.  Does it seem to soon for Jesus to insist that the man go and tell others what the Lord has done for him?  Why, or why not?  Why is it that we fall away from Jesus if we do not go and tell others about what He’s done for us?

Sunday, July 18, 2010

The Holiness of God:  Mysterious

How can I trust in a mysterious God?

I can trust in a mysterious God if I’m willing to believe even when I cannot see.

I can trust in a mysterious God if I’m willing to believe He always wants and always works for the best for me and all His children.

I can trust in a mysterious God because in Jesus God shows us His heart - He reveals the mystery of His heart.

1.)  Read Isaiah 40:25.   In what ways have you found the Lord, who is the Holy One, and cannot be compared to anyone or anything, to be mysterious?  Can you share an experience that caused you to think of God as mysterious?

2.)  Read Psalm 77:16-20 and Romans 11:33.  As you think of the account of the Israelites crossing through the Red Sea (full account found in Exodus 14), do you think you would have gone through that sea, with walls of water piled up high on either side of you?  Why, or why not?  In Psalm 77 we read that the Lord led them through the sea, yet His “footprints were unseen.”  In Romans 11 we read that the ways and judgments of the Lord are beyond our searching out or scrutinizing.  Are you willing to believe and trust in the Lord even when you cannot see what He’s doing?  Why, or why not?  Does believing without seeing make sense?  Why, or why not?

3.)  Read Daniel 6:1-5; Daniel 6:19-22; Daniel 6:25-27; Romans 8:28.  What makes it so very difficult, at times, to believe that in everything God is working for the good of His children?  How would you define the word “good” as it is used in Romans 8:28?  Pastor Craig stated that if you are willing to believe, then you will be able to believe.  Do you agree with that?  Why, or why not?

4.)  Read Colossians 2:1-3 and Colossians 1:27.  How is the mystery of God revealed in Jesus?  In what ways have you seen the heart of God in the stories of the things that Jesus did while He walked this earth?  Pastor Craig told the story of meeting his wife Lisa who was beautiful, fun, exciting, and mysterious.  He couldn’t figure her out, but as they got to know each other she shared her heart with him.  Though we never totally figure anyone out, if the person you fall in love with does not reveal his or her heart to you, but simply remains mysterious, you cannot trust that person enough to marry.  In the same way, if God had not revealed His heart to us through Jesus, we would not be able to trust Him; because His ways remain mysterious to our limited minds.  Do you agree with this?  Why, or why not?

Sunday, July 11, 2010

The Holiness of God:  How Big?

How big is the God you believe in?

Are you willing to believe in a God who is bigger than your understanding?

Are you willing to believe in a God who is bigger than your ability to control?

Are you willing to believe in a God whose love is bigger than you can imagine?

1.)  Read Isaiah 40:25 and Genesis 3:1-5.  What does it mean to say that the Lord is the Holy One?  What is the appeal of the temptation to be like God?  What is it in us that doesn’t want a God who is above us, beyond us, greater than us, etc.?

2.)  Read Exodus 2:11-15 and Exodus 2:23-3:4.  What are the various dynamics going on here that are beyond our understanding?  Can you share an experience when you chose to believe, trust, have faith in God though what He was doing was beyond your understanding?  What would have happened in Moses’ life, and what happens in our lives if we’re not willing to believe in a God who is bigger than our understanding?

3.)  Read Isaiah 55:8-9.  Does it make sense to believe in a God who is beyond your understanding?  Why or why not?  What is the good news in this passage?

4.)  Read Exodus 3:5-6.  Moses hides his face (but doesn’t run away!!!) knowing this God He is encountering is far beyond his control.  Have you ever gone away from God when He did something beyond your control that you didn’t like?  Why did you, or didn’t you, go away from God?

5.)  Read Jeremiah 18:1-6 and Romans 9:20-21.  Why do we resist being clay in the potter’s hands?  Why is it good news that we are, in fact, like clay in the potter’s hands?  Why is it even good news to know that He makes, “one vessel for beauty and another for menial use”?

6.)  Read Exodus 3:7-10.  In what ways do you see God’s infinite love in these words?  Share about a time that you experienced the love of God to a degree that you never could have imagined.  Are you willing to believe in God’s love that is bigger than you can imagine?  Why or why not?

Sunday, July 4, 2010

In These Last Days: Wait???

How can I learn to accept the things I cannot change?  To accept the things I cannot change does not mean to do nothing, but rather it means to keep doing all the Lord commands of us without a bitter heart even though things in my life and this world are not as I desire.

I can learn to accept difficult circumstances in my life that I cannot change if I am willing to wait for the Day of the Lord.

I can learn to accept weaknesses and challenges in my own heart that I cannot change if I am willing to wait for the Day of the Lord.

I can learn to accept those things about this world that I cannot change if I am willing to wait for the Day of the Lord.

1.)  Read James 5:1-8.  Most of the first Christians were poor, a large percentage of them slaves.  They had very little opportunity to change the circumstances of their lives.  How would you describe what James’ counsel to the poor Christians in the Roman Empire was in verses 7 and 8?  What is, and is not, the meaning of his words to, “be patient…until the coming of the Lord”?  What does he mean by the words, “Establish your hearts”?  Has knowing that the Lord is coming given you strength to accept difficult circumstances that you could not change?  Why, or why not?

2.)  Read Romans 8:18, 24-25.  What does Paul mean by the words, “the glory that is to be revealed to us”?  What makes it so hard to patiently wait for the Day of the Lord?  What is the alternative to waiting for the Day of the Lord when there are difficult circumstances that truly cannot be changed?

3.)  Read Colossians 3:1-4 and Philippians 1:6.  What happens if we don’t believe the promise in these verses that God will bring to completion the work that He has begun in us?  Why is it often so difficult to see what God is doing within us?  Pastor Craig stated that accepting the weaknesses in your character doesn’t mean that you don’t work to change them; but rather the opposite, that as you accept those weaknesses you find strength to keep working to overcome them even when you don’t see in yourself any visible progress.  Have you experienced this?  If so, how did that work out?

4.)  Read  II Corinthians 4:16-18.  Describe an “unseen, eternal work” that you came to realize God was doing in your heart.  Do you find it easy or difficult to believe, “our inner nature is being renewed every day”?  Why?

5.)  Read Revelation 21:1-4 and Isaiah 35:5-6, 10.  What does John mean by a, “new heaven and a new earth”?  The Bible tells us that wickedness continues to multiply as time moves on, yet at the end of time God suddenly intervenes and establishes righteousness over all the earth.  How does believing these two claims of Scripture motivate us to continue to serve the Lord no matter what?