Sunday Rewind | 10.12.2014
MUSIC & SCRIPTURE
How Great Thou Art (Psalm 145:3) – Hymns Ancient $ Modern by Charlie Hall (Passion)
Hosanna (Mark 11:9-10) – Savior King by Hillsong
Awesome Is The Lord Most High (Psalm 47:1-2) – See The Morning by Chris Tomlin
Unending Love (Romans 8:38-39) – God Is Able by Hillsong
I Lift My Hands (Psalm 46:10) – And If Our God Is For Us… by Chris Tomlin
TEACHING: Take Refuge
Chris Anderson teaches from Psalm 1 & 2 on life as it ought to be, the vain rebellion of man, the coming judgement, and God as the ultimate place of refuge. We cannot take refuge from God, but we can take refuge in God.
CLICK HERE FOR THE SERMON AUDIO
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR SHEPHERD GROUPS
- What was one thing you found particularly interesting, insightful, helpful or difficult to understand from this sermon?
- What things/places/events tend to regularly remind you that the world in which we live is not safe? How do you tend to react when you are reminded of the dangers around us?
- Read through and discuss Psalm 1 & 2. What do you note about the nature of man? What do you see about the nature of God?
- “We cannot take refuge from God, but we can take refuge in God.” How do Psalm 1 & 2 support this statement? What other scriptures can you think of that teach us this?
- What does it mean to take refuge in God? Why is this easier said than done?
- Are there areas of your life where you try to take refuge from God?
- In the sermon, Chris gives this breakdown of the first two Psalms: Life as it ought to be – The vain rebellion – The coming judgement – The place of refuge. Where do you find these in Psalm 1 & 2? What are the implications of each?
- What is “the good life”? How does Psalm 1 define the good life for us? How does the gospel provide this good life?
- Can you think of someone in your life who is hurting or afraid? How can you reach out to them this week to serve them or encourage them to take refuge in the Lord?
- Spend some time praying for the things you have discussed. Give thanks to God that He is our great refuge using Psalm 1 & 2 as a guide.
Sunday Rewind | 10.5.2014
MUSIC & SCRIPTURE
God Is With Us (Psalm 46:10-11a) – Louder Than Creation by Michael Olson (North Point)
Blessed Be Your Name (Job 1:21) – Where Angels Fear To Tread by Matt Redman
Glorious (Psalm 72:18-19) – Glorious by Paul Baloche
Mighty To Save (Zephaniah 3:17) – Yahweh by Hillsong Chapel
10,000 Reasons (Psalm 103:1) – Unrelenting Love by Nick Thurmond
TEACHING: Black Water
In the dark times of life, we are never alone – God teaches us things in the darkness that we would never have learned in the light. God is present and purposeful in our pain.
CLICK HERE FOR THE SERMON AUDIO
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR SHEPHERD GROUPS
- What was one thing you found particularly interesting, insightful, helpful or difficult to understand from this sermon?
- Have you ever had a “black water” experience, where you felt isolated, alone, and in the dark in your Christian life? What happened? Did you struggle to sense God’s presence and purpose in your trial? Did that situation resolve?
- Do you struggle with diving into the living and active Word of God with purpose? How does the Word of God prepare our hearts for trials?
- Consider some of the passages from Mike’s message: Psalm 22:1-2, Psalm 23. Psalm 139:7-12, John 16:33, Job 1:1, Psalm 145:18, James 1:2-4, 2 Samuel 22:5-7, 17, Hebrews 12:7-11, 2 Corinthians 4:17. What do these tell us about out “black water” experiences?
- How would you describe your prayer life? How does this change in times of darkness?
- If God’s Holy Spirit suddenly left you, would you notice? Why or why not?
- If you are in a trial right now how, are you coping with the reality that you don’t know when or if it will end? What perspective does prayer, scripture and the gospel bring to your situation?
- How has God ministered to you during trial in prayer, in the Word, or through connection and guidance?
- In looking back at your own “black water” experiences, what are some things you can see you learned during those times? How do you think God used that time in your life to shape you spiritually into the image of Jesus?
- Spend some time in prayer about the things you’ve discussed.
Sunday Rewind | 9.28.2014
MUSIC & SCRIPTURE
Be Lifted High (John 3:30) – Nothing Is Wasted by Elevation Worship
Open Up The Heavens (Psalm 108:4-5) – Worth It All by Meredith Andrews
The Lord Our God (James 1:17) – Let The Future Begin by Kristian Stanfill (Passion)
God You Lifted Me Out (Psalm 30:1-2) – For The Honor by Elevation Worship
Cornerstone (Psalm 18:2) – Cornerstone by Hillsong
In Your Presence (2 Corinthians 8:9) – Nothing Is Wasted by Elevation Worship
TEACHING: There’s No Time Like the…
Everyone tends to default to living in either the past, the present or the future. Where does God desire us to be?
CLICK HERE FOR THE SERMON AUDIO
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR SHEPHERD GROUPS
- What was one thing you found particularly interesting, insightful, helpful or difficult to understand from this sermon?
- Everyone tends to default to focusing on the past, present or future. What are the strengths of each? What are the weaknesses?
- Which do you tend to think more about – the past, the present or the future? Why do you think that is?
- Read and discuss John 14:1-17. What do you see about the person and works of Jesus Christ? What might these verses also tell us about man? What jumps out at you personally as you read through these verses?
- What does it mean that God’s Spirit “dwells with you and is in you” (v. 15)?
- What does it mean to be in the presence of God? Can you describe a time when you knew you were in His presence?
- How does the gospel of Jesus Christ frame your past? How does the gospel impact your present? What does the gospel promise for our future?
- Spend some time in prayer about the things you’ve discussed. Thank God for His presence and the new life we have in Him. Pray for His grace over any specific struggles you have focusing too much on the past, present and/or future. Ask for a continual awareness of His presence in your daily life.
Sunday Rewind | 9.21.2014
MUSIC & SCRIPTURE
Alive In Us (Ephesians 2:4-5) – God Is Able by Hillsong
Open Up Our Eyes (Ephesians 1:18-19a) – Nothing Is Wasted by Elevation Worship
Rock of Ages (Deuteronomy 32:3-4) – Death of Death by Charlie Hall
Whom Shall I Fear (God of Angel Armies) (Psalm 27:1) – Let The Future Begin by Chris Tomlin (Passion)
Be Thou My Vision (2 Corinthians 3:17-18) – Cathedral by Heartsong
Christ Is Enough (2 Corinthians 12:9) – Glorious Ruins by Hillsong
TEACHING: Rooted: A Study of Deeper Faith in Colossians, Part 11
Character counts. For better or worse, human character always impacts history. But divine character, led & influenced by the Holy Spirit, always impacts eternity.
CLICK HERE FOR THE SERMON AUDIO
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR SHEPHERD GROUPS
- What was one thing you found particularly interesting, insightful, helpful or difficult to understand from this sermon?
- Read and discuss Colossians 3:12-14. What do you see about God? What does this tell us about man?
- What is the significance of “chosen” and “holy & beloved” (v. 12)? What are we to “put on” as a result? Why does this matter?
- What does it mean to be a person of character? Who comes to mind for you when you think of a person of good character? How has their character impacted your story?
- How do the accounts of Abraham, Joseph and Mordecai illustrate the principle that divinely-inspired character impacts eternity? What other examples from scripture can you think of that illustrates this principle?
- Do you ever feel like your life is stuck in a rut or doesn’t count? How does the gospel address that?
- How does the gospel inform, impact and shape our character?
- Spend some time in prayer about the things you’ve discussed. Thank God that we matter to Him and ask Him to be glorified in our character as we become more like Jesus.
TRAIL GUIDE: God’s Gift of Wisdom
The “Trail Guide” devotional is used by our adult leaders of grade school groups in Quest as a way to prepare their hearts and minds for the topics we will be covering with the children on the weekend. We have made them available here to help our parents of grade-schoolers engage with their children around the topics we are discussing and also for anyone else that might be blessed by following along.
EXTREME MAKEOVER, Section 1, Lesson 2: God’s Gift of Wisdom
About two years ago, I started using a Mac laptop instead of my old PC. One thing that prompted that switch was the problems I was having with viruses on my PC. As it turns out, the Mac operating system is much less prone to virus problems. It does a better job on its own, without the expense of extra virus protection services, of keeping out unwanted and damaging material that could slow down or freeze up my machine.
Last week we talked about the good passions and desires that God has put in our hearts – let’s call them the pre-loaded software. We also talked about guarding our hearts from storing up ungodly things – let’s call them malware or viruses. The human heart was made for loving and glorifying God. Sin has corrupted that heart, but by faith in Jesus we can have our hard-drive (heart) wiped clean of sin and reinstalled with God’s programs, so that it is free to function as it was intended. The problem is that we still live in a sinful world where there are new viruses around every corner. That’s where God’s heart operating system comes into play: WISDOM. Wisdom comes from God and is the atmosphere in which all of your pre-loaded heart software works best. It is also highly resistant to viruses and will prevent unwanted items from piling up in your heart and slowing down or freezing up your system. If our kids want to love God with ALL their heart, then they need the right operating system… wisdom. “Whatever else you get, get wisdom.” (Prov. 4:7)
“Above all else, guard your heart, for
everything you do flows from it.” -Proverbs 4:23MEDITATING ON THE WORD:
Prov 2:1-11 | Jer 33:3!
James 1:5 | Psalm 19:7
Prov 10:8 | Prov 16:23
Prov 2:10
From the Field: Mae Phae, Thailand
Last weekend, the RBC congregation was blessed to receive a missions report from Scott McManigle, a former RBC missionary who now serves as the associate missions pastor at Faith Bible Church. Scott, along with his wife Annette and their children, spent eighteen years in northern Thailand. Through their service, the Lord used them to plant a church among the Pwo Karen tribe in a village called Mae Phae. Three Pwo Karen church leaders joined Scott last Sunday in praising the Lord for RBC’s support and involvement in sending the gospel of Christ to their tribe.
“Thank you for sending us a missionary. Thank you for sending the gospel. God has saved us from worshiping the spirits; He has saved us from the deceit of Satan through His son, Jesus.”
We praise God for the fruit He is bearing through the faithful proclamation of the gospel in Northern Thailand. Since the McManigles left Thailand in 2006, the church in Mae Phae has continued to grow and the Pwo Karen believers are teaching the gospel in other tribes around their area.
Please continue to pray for gospel to go forth in the Mae Phae village and to other villages throughout the region. Pray that many Pwo Karen tribesmen would come to saving faith in Jesus and that the church there would be a great light for the glory of God. To learn more about the church in Mae Phae and the Pwo Karen people, check out the video below.
(Video credit: Fellowship Bible Church)
Sunday Rewind | 9.14.2014
MUSIC & SCRIPTURE
Closer (Psalm 89:14-15) – Glorious Ruins by Hillsong
Beautiful Lord (Ephesians 2:4-5) – Sound of Melodies by Leeland
Our God Is Love (1 John 4:9-10) – Yahweh by Hillsong Chapel
Lord I Need You (Hebrews 4:16) – All The People Said Amen by Matt Maher
TEACHING: Rooted: A Study of Deeper Faith in Colossians, Part 10
If you are toying with sin, where will the trajectory of your life lead you? Sin is not a toy.
CLICK HERE FOR THE SERMON AUDIO
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR SHEPHERD GROUPS
- What was one thing you found particularly interesting, insightful, helpful or difficult to understand from this sermon?
- Read and discuss Colossians 3:1-11. What do you see about the person of Christ? What do you note about the nature of man?
- What “tension issues” do you see in these verses? What other “tension issues” do find in Scripture?
- What is “sin”? What is the difference between sin and a mistake? How would you describe sin to someone who does not have a ‘church vocabulary’?
- What does society teach about sin? How does our culture treat sin like a toy?
- Where as the church in general “gotten used to the dark”? In what areas of your life have you gotten used to the dark?
- Is there an area of your life where you are toying with sin?
- How does the gospel deal with sin? How does it change our perspective on sin? How does the gospel motivate and empower us to “Put to death whatever is earthly in you…” (v. 5)?
- Spend some time in prayer about the things you’ve discussed. Thank Him for the “new self” we have in Christ (v. 10) and pray that we will live from the life we have in Christ.
Sunday Rewind | 9.7.2014
MUSIC & SCRIPTURE
With Us (Psalm 46:10-11a) – God Is Able by Hillsong
10,000 Reasons (Psalm 103:1) – Unrelenting Love by Nick Thurmond
Mighty To Save (Zephaniah 3:17) – Yahweh by Hillsong Chapel
I Lift My Hands (Psalm 46:10) – And If Our God Is For Us… by Chris Tomlin
TEACHING: Rooted: A Study of Deeper Faith in Colossians, Part 9
The things you love determine the path and trajectory of your life. Affection determines direction.
CLICK HERE FOR THE SERMON AUDIO
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR SHEPHERD GROUPS
- What was one thing you found particularly interesting, insightful, helpful or difficult to understand from this sermon?
- Read and discuss Colossians 3:1-4. What do you see about the person of Christ? What do you note about the nature of man?
- What is the distinction between being “in Adam” and “in Christ?” What does it mean to be “raised with Christ” (v. 1)?
- What earthly things do you personally tend to “set your mind to” (v. 2)? What draws your affections to them?
- What does it mean to set our minds on things above (v.)? What are those things?
- If you continue your life in the present trajectory of your affections, where do you think you will end up? Where do you need to adjust your affections in order to change your trajectory?
- How does the gospel help us prioritize and shape our affections?
- Spend some time in prayer about the things you’ve discussed. Spend some time thanking God for the life we have in Christ. Ask Him to increase your affections for Jesus.
Sunday Rewind | 8.31.2015
MUSIC & SCRIPTURE
Endless Light (Psalm 113:3-4) – Cornerstone by Hillsong
Always (Psalm 121:1-2) – Here For You by Kristian Stanfill (Passion)
Open Up The Heavens (Psalm 108:4-5) – Worth It All by Meredith Andrews
The Lord Our God (James 1:17) – Let The Future Begin by Kristian Stanfill (Passion)
Cornerstone (Psalm 18:2) – Cornerstone by Hillsong
I Will Look Up (Deuteronomy 7:9) – Only King Forever by Elevation Worship
TEACHING: Do Something, Part 3
Salvation is not earned by the good things you do, but there are good things that have been prepared for you to enjoy if you are in Christ. Knowledge without action robs you of true joy in your walk with Him.
CLICK HERE FOR THE SERMON AUDIO
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR SHEPHERD GROUPS
- What was one thing you found particularly interesting, insightful, helpful or difficult to understand from this sermon?
- How would you describe joy? What is something you find joy in?
- Read and discuss Matthew 4:18-20 and Matthew 19:21-22. Compare and contrast these verses. What themes do you see? How are these accounts similar? How are they different? What do you note about the person of Christ? What might these sections show us about the nature of man?
- “Knowledge without action robs you of true joy.” Have you found this to be true in your walk with Christ? Why or why not?
- Why do we have the tendency to want to live vicariously through others’ experiences? How can this hinder our obedience to God’s word?
- Have you ever had a “wipeout” in your Christian walk or ministry? What happened?
- In the terms of Mike’s surf culture analogy, where are you? Evaluating the beach? On the beach and content to stay there? On the beach or in the shallows suffering from a past wipeout? Catching waves?
- How does fear keep us from obedience?
- How does the gospel propel and enable us to both know and obey – to both hear and do – the word of God?
- Pray through Ephesians 3:17-19, thanking God for His great love. Ask Him to help you be not only a hearer of His word, but a doer of His word.
Gospel Service & Raking Leaves
Since several of you made requests for it, here is the article I referenced in last Sunday’s sermon, Do Something, Part 1. It was originally published in November 2010 on my friend Matthew Wireman’s blog. Raking leaves with my kids seems, on one hand, like such a simple example. Yet I remember it being a moment of profound & helpful clarity in my walk as I considered the topic of laboring with a God who is not served by human hands, as though He needed anything (Acts 17:25). Yet serving matters, not because God needs us to do it, but the God who came to serve (Matthew 20:25-28) is pleased to include us in what He is already doing.
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My church just finished a week-long missions conference. As one might expect from such a conference, there was a repeated appeal for the serious consideration of Jesus’ command regarding sending laborers out into the field (Matthew 9).
With this in mind, on Sunday afternoon I sent my two kids out into the field the yard to labor for their father – and by “labor” I mean “rake leaves.” I was struck by several similarities to missions & service throughout the process. It was like watching a living parable of Gospel-centric labor unfolding before my eyes. Clearly, the analogy is limited, but here are some quick reflections from raking leaves with a 3- and 5-year old.
They went out joyfully. All good laborers should. They were happy to work with their daddy. It is a joy to labor for our Heavenly Father and to be with Him. (Colossians 3:23-24, 1 Peter 1:8)
The work was messy. There were times when it seemed my little laborers were making more mess than was there to begin with. Neatly-raked piles of leaves often became “un-raked.” Arguments broke out from time to time about who was going to do what. Filling bags with leaves one handful at a time was, shall we say …inefficient. Progress was not always evident. Regress often was. (Ecclesiastes 1, Romans 8:28)
They got tired. And distracted. And discouraged. And impatient. Even the best laborers will. For them, raking leaves was new and exciting …at first. About halfway through the process of cleaning up the lawn, those kiddos started to poop out, get whiny and wanted to go do something easier and more fun. But their father loved them still and encouraged them to keep at it. Likewise, our Heavenly Father lovingly encourages us toward perseverance while assuring us of His unfailing love. (Psalm 136, James 1:12, Romans 2:6, Philippians 1:6, Galatians 6:9)
The work was completed. Their partnership with me in raking the lawn was real and legitimate, but the completion of the task did not ultimately rest with them. Even if it was all up to them, they could not have finished. There was simply too much to do for a 3- and 5-year old, and they didn’t have the strength, patience or endurance to do it all. After a couple hours, all they managed to do was rake two piles of leaves and fill one bag about two-thirds of the way full. I do not say that to diminish the legitimacy of their work, but to put it in proper perspective. In the end, it was their father who made sure the job got done. Likewise, our Heavenly Father assures us that He will accomplish the work He has set out to do. (Matthew 16:18, 2 Timothy 1:9, Psalm 23:22-24, Ephesians 2:8-9)
Their father was pleased. As their daddy, it warmed my heart to see my two little ones out there raking their hearts out, even after they got crabby about it, argued, and wasted time, energy, and effort. Let me be honest – the quality of their work was not great. But the fact that they wanted to be out there with me more than made up for that. It was a relational labor where the value – at least, in my eyes as dad – was less in their performance, more in their posture. (Psalm 86:5, Zephaniah 3:17, James 4:8)
Their reward was great. Cheeseburgers and Slurpees. Well done, little laborers.
Do you labor for the joy of simply being near your Heavenly Father? Your reward, too, will be great. (Luke 6:23, 1 Corinthians 3:12-15, Hebrews 6:10-12, James 1:25)
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