From Death to Life | Ephesians 2:1-10

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Scripture: Ephesians 2:1-10

“The whole range of human miseries, from restlessness and estrangement through shame and guilt… to the agonies of daytime television—all of them tell us that things in human life are not as they ought to be.” – Cornelius Plantinga

+ The default mode of humanity is dead, defiant, and doomed

“Behold my heart, O God, behold my heart which you had pity upon in the bottom of the abyss. Now let my heart tell you what it was seeking there, that I should be gratuitously evil, having no inducement to evil but the evil itself. It was foul, and I loved it. I loved the evil in me—not that for which I was committing the evil, but the evil itself.” – Augustine of Hippo

“The thought is overwhelming, that soon this body of mine must be a carnival for worms; that in and out of these places, where my eyes are glistening, foul things, the offspring of loathsomeness, shall crawl; that this body must be stretched in still, cold, abject, passive, death. It must then become a noxious, nauseous thing, cast out even by those that loved me, who will say, ‘Bury my dead out of my sight.’ Now, endeavour, as well as you can, to get the idea of a dead corpse, and when you have so done, please to understand, that that is the metaphor employed in my text, to set forth the condition of your soul by nature.” – Charles Spurgeon

+ Salvation by grace through faith in Jesus

Romans 5:12; 17

+ Partner with God in Kingdom Expansion

Climbing Trees | Luke 19: 1-10

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Scripture: Luke 19:1-10

Key Takeaways:

+ Zacchaeus was Hungry

‌Luke 19:2

Luke 19:7‌

“But while nearly everyone would agree that Hitler has earned a spot in hell, the Bible says that Billy Graham has earned a spot in hell, too.” – Brady Tarr

‌Ephesians 2:1–5

Luke 19:3‌

Jeremiah 29:13

+ Zacchaeus was Humble

Luke 19:4

+ Jesus sees us

Luke 19:5

‌+ Jesus knows us

‌Luke 19:5

Romans 10:14

+ Jesus saves us

‌Luke 19:9–10

‌+ Zacchaeus climbed a tree to see, Jesus climbed a tree to save.

Luke 19:10

Prayer, Let's Get Practical | John 16:20-28

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Scripture: John 16:20-28

Key Takeaways:

Prayer is a Privilege secured for us by Jesus.

Hebrews 10:19–22

“God is radically committed to my life of prayer. He shed the blood of His Son so that I might be cleansed and rendered fit to stand before Him in love. He also permitted the brutal rending of His Son so that I might now have a way to enter into the Holy Place through the torn flesh of Jesus. ‘Draw near,’ he says… How can I not feel the infinite sincerity of these invitations, especially when considering the painful lengths that God endured so that I might enter his presence in prayer. Indeed the Gospel serves as the sweetest of invitation to pray.” - Milton Vincent. 

Matthew 7:7–11  

Prayer is Adoring and Asking.

Matthew 7:7–11  

True Prayer Prioritizes the Priorities of God.

Matthew 6:9–10

Prayer is an attitude and a habit.

“It’s good to let prayer be the first business of the morning and the last at night. Guard yourself carefully against those false and deluding ideas which tell you, ‘Wait a little while. I will pray in an hour; first I must attend to this or that.’ Such thoughts get you away from prayer into other affairs which so hold your attention and involve you that nothing comes of prayer.” – Martin Luther

“Admit no exception in the prayer schedule, for the exception will break down the habit. The habit is the important thing.” - E. Stanley Jones.

Context for this Week’s Passage

This weekend we held 48 Hours of Prayer, a weekend designed to devote ourselves to pray and ask Him to move in our lives, our church, and our community. God moves when we pray, He just asks that we would humble ourselves before Him and lean on His power. This is an area of our relationship with God that we can all grow in. Pastor JR spent some time this Sunday reminding us of why we pray and how we can grow in our prayer. Spend some time discussing the questions below as a group and end with a time of prayer.

Discussion

• What is spiritual hunger? What gets in the way of our hunger?
• What preconceived thoughts about God do you often bring to prayer? How can you correct those thoughts?
• What is the difference between prayer as duty and prayer as privilege?
• How does adoring God increase your faith?
• What are the benefits of scheduling prayer? Do you have a scheduled time for prayer?

Apply

Pray as a group by beginning in Jesus name. Practice adoring, sharing out loud the the ways you want to praise God. Then ask. Try asking God specifically to increase your prayer lives individually and as a group. Then share some requests that you need God to answer.

Prayer

Pray through John 16:20-28. Think back on the truths of John 16:20-28 and pray. During prayer, allow time for members to speak out loud portions of this text that weighs on them and then pray what comes to mind.

“So basically what you are doing is taking the words that originated in the heart and mind of God and circulating them through your heart and mind back to God. By this means his words become the wings of your prayers. ”
— Donald Whitney, "Praying the Bible”

Spirit-Empowered Community | Acts 2:41-47

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Notes:

Text: Acts 2:41-47

“Beethoven has the real goods, the stuff from Heaven, the power to make you feel at the finish: something is right in the world. There I something that checks throughout, that follows its own law consistently: something we can trust, that will never let us down.” – Leonard Bernsetin, Composer

 

+Spirit-Empowered Community is a place where people grow

  

+Spirit-Empowered Community is a place to invite

 

“The kingdom is to be in the midst of your enemies. And he who will not suffer this does not want to be of the kingdom of Christ; he wants to be among friends, to sit among roses and lilies, not with the bad people but the devout people. O you blasphemers and betrayers of Christ! If Christ has done what you are doing who would ever have been spared?”

Vision for Life as a New Creation | 2 Corinthians 5:14-21

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Notes:

Text: 2 Corinthians 5:14-21

 +A follower of Jesus is no longer a prisoner to death.

+A follower of Jesus is a new creation.

+A follower of Jesus is sent.

“Plainly, if Paul’s conclusion is to be drawn, the ‘for’ must reach deeper than this mere suggestion of our advantage: if we all died, in that Christ died for us, there must be a sense in which that death of his is ours; He must be identified with us in it: there, on the cross, while we stand and gaze at Him, He is not simply a person doing us a service; He is a person doing us a service by filling our place and dying our death.” – James Denney

“But, behold, a new soul (for it was cleansed), and also a new body, and a new worship, and new promises and covenant and life and table and dress, and all things absolutely new.” – John Crysostom

What the Gospel Creates | Colossians 1:3-14

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Notes:

Text:  Colossians 1:3-14

“To have found God and still to pursue Him is the soul’s paradox of love, scorned indeed by the too-easily satisfied religionist, but justified in happy experience by the children of the burning heart.” – A.W. Towzer

+The Gospel creates a secure community that loves

+The Gospel creates a witnessing community that multiplies

+The Gospel creates a wise community that pleases God

+The Gospel creates a thankful community with one allegiance

“You cannot know anything about Jesus, anything, if you miss the kingdom of God…You are zero on Jesus if you don’t understand this term. I’m sorry to say it that strongly, but this is the great failure of evangelical Christianity. We have had Jesus without the kingdom of God, and therefore have literally done Jesus in.” – Gordon Fee

-       Remind one another of the Gospel

-       Repent of any ways we’ve lacked love

-       Renew our minds to know what pleases God

-       Respond with thanks to God for bringing us into his Kingdom

Spiritual Hunger

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Spiritual Hunger

In this sermon, we are reminded of the importance of prioritizing the presence of God in our lives. Pastor JR Vassar highlights hindrances to intimacy with God, such as insecurity, indifference, inaction, inattentiveness, and insubordination. Emphasizing the need to gaze upon God's perfections and inquire about His will, the sermon encourages listeners to seek a deeper encounter with God and cultivate a hungry remnant dedicated to experiencing His presence and bringing renewal in our lives.

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Revive Us Again

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Join us as we listen to guest speaker, Pastor Ray Ortlund, unpack Psalm 85 for us.

Ray Ortlund (ThM, Dallas Theological Seminary; MA, The University of California, Berkeley; PhD, University of Aberdeen, Scotland) is president of Renewal Ministries, and an Emeritus Council member of The Gospel Coalition. He founded Immanuel Church in Nashville, Tennessee, and now serves from Immanuel as Pastor to Pastors. Ray has authored a number of books, including The Gospel: How The Church Portrays The Beauty of Christ and Marriage and the Mystery of the Gospel. He and his wife, Jani, have four children. (bio taken from thegospelcoalition.org)⁠

Contending for Renewal

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“Come, let us return to the Lord; for he has torn us, that he may heal us; he has struck us down, and he will bind us up. 2  After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will raise us up, that we may live before him. 3  Let us know; let us press on to know the Lord; his going out is sure as the dawn; he will come to us as the showers, as the spring rains that water the earth.” 4  What shall I do with you, O Ephraim? What shall I do with you, O Judah? Your love is like a morning cloud, like the dew that goes early away. 5  Therefore I have hewn them by the prophets; I have slain them by the words of my mouth, and my judgment goes forth as the light. 6  For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings. (Hosea 6:1–6) ESV

What blocks Renewal?

"Their concern was for healing rather than cleansing. They wanted God to make things right in their nation, but they did not come with broken hearts and surrendered wills. They wanted happiness but not holiness. They wanted a change in circumstances but not a change in character. They wanted rescue from their situation but not deliverance from their sins. - Warren Wiersbe

What Catalyzes Renewal?  

9 As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed him. 10 And as Jesus reclined at table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and were reclining with Jesus and his disciples. 11 And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” 12 But when he heard it, he said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 13 Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”  (Matthew 9:9-13) ESV

"Halfhearted Christians are the most miserable people of all. They know enough to feel guilty but they haven't gone far enough in Christ to be happy"- Ray Ortland

How do we Contend for Renewal?

Prepare in the Hidden Place

Delight in Discipleship 

  •  O Ephraim, what have I to do with idols? It is I who answer and look after you. I am like an evergreen cypress; from me comes your fruit. (Ho 14:8). 

  • I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. (Jn 15:5) ESV

Patiently play your part