GOSPEL :: FAMILY :: MISSION
Five years ago, my wife, our kids and I spent the summer praying through a decision to answer the call to plant a church here in Hastings, NE. And then in August of 2012 we gathered with four other adults and 3 other kids to begin studying the Scriptures, sharing life with one another and praying for one another on a weekly basis.
Last week we talked about confession. This week we are going to talk about commitment. It is a spiritual truth that we cannot serve two masters; it is also a spiritual truth that the one we serve is, our master. If we listen to and obey sin, then sin will be our master. If we listen to and obey God, then God will be our master.
Last week we talked about self-examination – getting to the sin beneath the sin in our lives. This week we are going to talk about a very natural next step, which is confession. If we want freedom from our sins, we must be honest about those sins with others.
In our final passage of Luke’s gospel, Jesus calls his disciples to be his witnesses, he promises to send the Holy Spirit to them, blesses them one final time and leaves them worshipping him with great joy.
We have talked about believing & applying, powerlessness, hope, and surrender. The goal of the first four weeks was to get us to the point where we are ready to seek God and trust him to change us. This week we are going to start digging deeper into our struggles by discussing the principle of self-examination.
I want you to imagine that you’re sitting down with someone you love dearly. Maybe it’s a friend, or a relative, or a coworker, or a spouse, or your child. Now imagine that you know that this is the very last conversation you will have with them in person on this Earth. Now ask yourself, what would I say to them? What would I regret not saying if this was the last time I ever saw them?
Last week we talked about how the truth that though we are powerless to change ourselves, we are not without hope for change. There are two ways to live: (1) on our own strength according to our own wisdom and (2) on God’s strength according to God’s wisdom.
Have you ever felt overwhelmed by the anxiety that comes with the storms of life? Or struggled with trusting God in the midst of your fear or felt totally consumed with doubt and despair?
Last week we talked about how we are powerless to change ourselves. Though we are powerless to change ourselves, we are not without hope for change. When we look at our struggles, we often feel helpless in our sin. But this is right where the heart of the good news meets us: “While we were helpless, Christ died for the ungodly” (Romans 5:6). God can and will liberate us from the power of sin.
One of my deepest desires is to see people grow closer to Jesus; help people experience the power of changed lives; and to equip people to set the world on fire through the proclamation of the gospel. In other words, intimacy with Jesus is a life-changing experience that sets us on fire with the gospel.
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