Hey guys... I'm really excited about this message, but also pretty nervous. This is our big week to pitch small groups to the kids. I think a lot of them are already interested, but I want those who are unsure to see the importance of being in a small group, and I want those who are interested to see the purpose. I really want this message to bring those points home.
It's been tough to make this point while keeping our NT study consistent. Mark isn't a great text for community, and I didn't want to just force a point that wasn't there. So I'm really focusing on the idea of discipleship in Mark, and how it was never meant to be done alone. I'm not in love with it, but I think it works. If you have better ideas though, I'm all ears. Anyways...
The big idea is: a life of following Jesus is not mean to be easy. The journey is virtually impossible to make alone - but it can be filled with grace and joy when done with others.
Main text: Mark 8:31-38. The key part of this text is verse 34: if anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.
1. Discipleship is hard. Following Jesus wasn't meant to be a joyride. I might spend some time talking about Mark's conception of discipleship - that the disciples constantly fall short. Mark wants us to see and understand the struggle.
Three points about discipleship are made. We must:
a. Deny the self - We are called to give up our own self-interest, our own worldly desires, and surrender our lives to God. This is a "radical abandonment of one's own identity and self determination." This is a heavy call, to be willing to say that my life is not my own, but God's.
b. Take up one's cross - This is a clear call to a life of suffering and sacrifice. We must be willing to folow Jesus even in the face of suffering and shame. These parts of life are not an exception, but an expectation. We all struggle to accept that we might suffer at times for our faith.
c. Follow Jesus - Lastly, we are called to be like Jesus. Here, the emphasis is following him to the cross, but a basic principle of discipleship is to live a life like Christ. Most of the kids will already understand how hard this is.
2. Despite the struggle, discipleship is possible with help. I may look at some other texts to support this section, but I think the principles are self-evident. Success in all three aspects of discipleship require people to take the journey with us. No one can follow Jesus alone.
You need people in your life to provide you with:
a. Truth: Sometimes it's hard to know which way to go. We might think we're following Jesus, but we need brothers and sisters to guide us back when we stray from the path. Denying oneself is hard - we're naturally self interested and other people can help us see things in our lives that we need to let go of and give to God. WE need to be reminded of times when we need to follow Jesus.
b. Grace: We're going to fall. Period. We need people to pick us up and love us and care for us when we do. When we encounter those times of struggle and sacrifice, we need people with us to suffer alonside us and carry us when we need it.
c. Joy: Jesus didn't mean for faith to be a burden, a struggle. People are what make a life of discipleship worth living. A life alone, trying to be like Jesus, is almost not worth it. Going through it together can bring so much joy.
The controlling metaphor that I really want to emphasize is the idea of faith as a journey. Others make the journey easier and more enjoyable. They make the journey worth going on. Small groups provide people who may be lifelong companions.
I'm interested to hear all your thoughts.... thanks!
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
A tour of the sermon on the mount: a few easy steps for relational kingdom living
hey guys,
here's my outline for the message... You know me, I'm a big sermon on the mount guy, so I thought I'd do a sort of sequel to my last message (salt and light as relational evangelism). Something that hit me in the beginning of seminary is how Jesus' commands can sound so tough sometimes... but my ethics professor suggested that Jesus actually provides what he calls "transforming initiatives" to help break cycles of sin, thus making sin easier to conquer. Its a very "here and now" view of breaking sin that I love. So admittedly, the sermon will seem a little unfocused at the end... but I will try to focus on the fact that Jesus is a savior of the present and that by his word and power and method we are empowered to tackle sin a little bit at a time. I'll then go through some of the items in the Sermon on the Mount and show how kids can work at breaking down these walls bit by bit.
So the end will have a bunch of different applications that hopefully every youth can relate to a few of them. I think I'll try to rely on small groups for tackling those to get at the hearts of those issues more specifically.
LMK your thoughts
I. Being the salt and light… (“I want to be salt and light…”)
a. Relational (like last message)
b. But some of Jesus’ commands are so hard…
II. The impossibility of the law (“…but Jesus’ commands and Kingdom living can be tough… sometimes Jesus asks the impossible…”)
a. The Law, however, still remains
b. Points out sin and its consequences
c. Feels like we can never escape, living with guilt, unable to break free
III. Little Steps offered by Jesus – Kingdom living (Transformation) (Jesus commands might be tough, but he still offers little ways of breaking cycles, especially thinking about them relationally)
a. Jesus is the savior – here and now, transforming initiatives, empowers us with word and method
b. Keep relationship and covenant in mind
c. Highlighting some little ways from the sermon on the mount to be salt and light
i. Meekness
ii. Hunger for thirst and righteousness
iii. Merciful (and compassion)
iv. Peacemakers
v. Anger (reconciliation)
vi. Adultery (lust and such)
vii. Lying
viii. Retaliation
ix. Loving enemies
x. Almsgiving, fasting
xi. Do unto others and Love God, others
here's my outline for the message... You know me, I'm a big sermon on the mount guy, so I thought I'd do a sort of sequel to my last message (salt and light as relational evangelism). Something that hit me in the beginning of seminary is how Jesus' commands can sound so tough sometimes... but my ethics professor suggested that Jesus actually provides what he calls "transforming initiatives" to help break cycles of sin, thus making sin easier to conquer. Its a very "here and now" view of breaking sin that I love. So admittedly, the sermon will seem a little unfocused at the end... but I will try to focus on the fact that Jesus is a savior of the present and that by his word and power and method we are empowered to tackle sin a little bit at a time. I'll then go through some of the items in the Sermon on the Mount and show how kids can work at breaking down these walls bit by bit.
So the end will have a bunch of different applications that hopefully every youth can relate to a few of them. I think I'll try to rely on small groups for tackling those to get at the hearts of those issues more specifically.
LMK your thoughts
I. Being the salt and light… (“I want to be salt and light…”)
a. Relational (like last message)
b. But some of Jesus’ commands are so hard…
II. The impossibility of the law (“…but Jesus’ commands and Kingdom living can be tough… sometimes Jesus asks the impossible…”)
a. The Law, however, still remains
b. Points out sin and its consequences
c. Feels like we can never escape, living with guilt, unable to break free
III. Little Steps offered by Jesus – Kingdom living (Transformation) (Jesus commands might be tough, but he still offers little ways of breaking cycles, especially thinking about them relationally)
a. Jesus is the savior – here and now, transforming initiatives, empowers us with word and method
b. Keep relationship and covenant in mind
c. Highlighting some little ways from the sermon on the mount to be salt and light
i. Meekness
ii. Hunger for thirst and righteousness
iii. Merciful (and compassion)
iv. Peacemakers
v. Anger (reconciliation)
vi. Adultery (lust and such)
vii. Lying
viii. Retaliation
ix. Loving enemies
x. Almsgiving, fasting
xi. Do unto others and Love God, others
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
NT series Matthew
Alright, sorry fellas I’m always so late on these things. But I have been working on this Friday’s message and I’m pretty darn pumped about it. So check it out…
I decided to kick off the series on the NT (Matthew) by doing several chunks of it and bringing it back to these two main questions, “What is this teaching me about Jesus and what Jesus is teaching me?” I really want to emphasize that the gospels are all about Jesus. Sometimes we make them about ourselves and that takes away from really knowing and understanding Christ and letting Him transform you.
The 3 main chunks of Matthew I’m going to go over is
Matthew 13 Parable of the farmer scattering seed
Main points: Jesus is deep and like the crowds on the lakeshore that day, our task, again and again as we read scripture and think about God’s work in our own day, is to think it through and figure it out. It won’t always be easy. Christianity isn’t about cozy little lessons to make us feel better. It’s about what God is doing in the world-what he’s already done in Jesus and what he wants to do through us today.
Matthew 14 Jesus feeds five thousand
Main points: Jesus in compassionate. Whenever someone is close enough to Jesus to catch a glimpse of what he’s doing and how they could help. We come in with our ideas, loaves, fishes, money, a sense of humor, time, energy, talents, love, artistic gifts, and skill, whatever we have to offer. He holds them before his Father with prayer and blessing. Then, breaking them so they are ready to use, he gives them back to us to give to those who need them.
Matthew 28 The resurrection
Main points: Jesus is awesome. Take away the resurrection and you take away the gospel from Matthew. Take away the resurrection and you take away everything we believe in. Nothing matters if Christ didn’t die on the cross and rose again. Our faith, our Friday nights, and our lives would be a huge waste. But, the one who walked this earth and spoke God’s kingdom message in parables, the one who showed compassion to those in need and fed five thousand, the one who gave up his life and sacrificed everything is now the risen Lord.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Community Evangelism
Hey guys... here's my outline for this Friday. It parallels chapters 7 and 8 from Divine Commidity somewhat.
Main idea: the church as a community has to do more than love itself, it has to love and welcome those who are new and different. We need to get better at this
Main text: 1 Corinthians 11:17-32 (and chapters 12 and 13).
1. The problem: Paul is calling out the richer members of the church for eating before the poor at communal meals. Inherent in this action is their own distorted view of community:
a. Own needs as primary: The rich were hungry, so they ate. They never really thought about the very real needs of the poorer members. They were in a position to give, but they were taking. The parallel for us is that we come to our own table (Straightforward) and enjoy community without offering it to others (new or marginal students) who might be starving for it. We get so caught up in our own desire to hang out and have fun, others are forgotten.
b. Affirmation of social categories: The rich were simply thinking the way they thought in the world. In the real world it was normal for the rich to go to the front of the line and eat at the head of the table. These social categories create division, not unity. For us, the same type of division can happen. We are too conscious of how people dress, how they talk, what they're like. We make determinations of who is like us and who is not, and that impacts whether or not we welcome them into our community. We have to stop thinking along those lines.
c. Attitude of superiority: similar to the point B, but a little different. Here the problem is that the rich probably thought of themselves as better and more deserving than the poor. Similarly, at Straightforward we can develop an attitude of spiritual superiority. We can see people who we know from school to be "sinners" or "different" or whatever, and that can prevent us from reaching out. There has to be grace and acceptance of who people are.
2. Paul's vision: One body. Unity.
3. Paul's solution: love. Paul's treatise on love is the antidote to the disease of divions in community.
a. Love is not self-seeking: acknowledges that it's not about us. We have to come here seeking to love, seeking to extend grace. Not looking to simply get ours.
b. Love does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud: love doesn't keep track of social categories. Doesn't look at people as being "too cool" or too "uncool" for us.
c. Love keeps no record of wrongs: love doesn't look down on people whose lives appear less "holy" than ours.
Example: table of Jesus - with sinners.
That's about it. The primary purpose of the message is to deal with the things that prevent us from being welcoming, and call on our kids to be intentionally loving and accepting. At the end, we'll allow them to apply this by giving them the chance to be a part of welcoming groups.
Main idea: the church as a community has to do more than love itself, it has to love and welcome those who are new and different. We need to get better at this
Main text: 1 Corinthians 11:17-32 (and chapters 12 and 13).
1. The problem: Paul is calling out the richer members of the church for eating before the poor at communal meals. Inherent in this action is their own distorted view of community:
a. Own needs as primary: The rich were hungry, so they ate. They never really thought about the very real needs of the poorer members. They were in a position to give, but they were taking. The parallel for us is that we come to our own table (Straightforward) and enjoy community without offering it to others (new or marginal students) who might be starving for it. We get so caught up in our own desire to hang out and have fun, others are forgotten.
b. Affirmation of social categories: The rich were simply thinking the way they thought in the world. In the real world it was normal for the rich to go to the front of the line and eat at the head of the table. These social categories create division, not unity. For us, the same type of division can happen. We are too conscious of how people dress, how they talk, what they're like. We make determinations of who is like us and who is not, and that impacts whether or not we welcome them into our community. We have to stop thinking along those lines.
c. Attitude of superiority: similar to the point B, but a little different. Here the problem is that the rich probably thought of themselves as better and more deserving than the poor. Similarly, at Straightforward we can develop an attitude of spiritual superiority. We can see people who we know from school to be "sinners" or "different" or whatever, and that can prevent us from reaching out. There has to be grace and acceptance of who people are.
2. Paul's vision: One body. Unity.
3. Paul's solution: love. Paul's treatise on love is the antidote to the disease of divions in community.
a. Love is not self-seeking: acknowledges that it's not about us. We have to come here seeking to love, seeking to extend grace. Not looking to simply get ours.
b. Love does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud: love doesn't keep track of social categories. Doesn't look at people as being "too cool" or too "uncool" for us.
c. Love keeps no record of wrongs: love doesn't look down on people whose lives appear less "holy" than ours.
Example: table of Jesus - with sinners.
That's about it. The primary purpose of the message is to deal with the things that prevent us from being welcoming, and call on our kids to be intentionally loving and accepting. At the end, we'll allow them to apply this by giving them the chance to be a part of welcoming groups.
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