Devoted Church

Galatians 5:14-15

For the whole law can be summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” 15 But if you are always biting and devouring one another, watch out! Beware of destroying one another.

Proverbs 12:18

Some people make cutting remarks, but the words of the wise bring healing.

Ephesians 4:29

Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.

Who Do You Want To Be?

A Person Who Finds Faults

Proverbs 21:19

It’s better to live alone in the desert than with a quarrelsome, complaining wife.

A Person Who Deals Hope

Romans 15:13

I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.

2 Corinthians 13:11

Dear brothers and sisters, I close my letter with these last words: Be joyful. Grow to maturity. Encourage each other. Live in harmony and peace. Then the God of love and peace will be with you.

Life Group Questions:

1. Who are you most critical of?

2. What could your criticism be destroying?

3. Who can you start dealing hope to in your family? How will you do that?

4. Who can you start dealing hope to in your work/school?

5. What encouragement can you share with someone in Life Group? What’s something positive you’ve noticed about someone else in group?

a phrase used to indicate that we refuse to defend a claim we've made---in other words, that we refuse to offer reasons that what we've said is true

Complaining is to express grief, pain, or discontent.

Complaining is usually what hypocritical people do when something displeases them. They would rather use a verbal indication to express their displeasure of a certain thing, rather than taking a stand and doing something about it.

What in your life do you complain about?

Pictures of a smaller house (starter home)

Being alone

Married

Job

Money

Church

As Pharaoh approached, the people of Israel looked up and panicked when they saw the Egyptians overtaking them. They cried out to the Lord, 11 and they said to Moses, “Why did you bring us out here to die in the wilderness? Weren’t there enough graves for us in Egypt? What have you done to us? Why did you make us leave Egypt? 12 Didn’t we tell you this would happen while we were still in Egypt? We said, ‘Leave us alone! Let us be slaves to the Egyptians. It’s better to be a slave in Egypt than a corpse in the wilderness!’”

Exodus 14:10-12

Yes, your complaints are against the Lord, not against us.”

Exodus 16:8

Do everything without complaining and arguing, 15 so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people. Philippians 2:14-15

Dr. Travis Bradberry

Repeated complaining hardwires brain do more complaining.

Find it easier to be negative than positive.

If You Can Change Your Circumstances, Do Something About It.

If You Can’t Change Your Circumstances, Change Your Perspective.

But I will rejoice even if I lose my life, pouring it out like a liquid offering to God, just like your faithful service is an offering to God. And I want all of you to share that joy. 18 Yes, you should rejoice, and I will share your joy.

Philippians 2:17-18

And I want you to know, my dear brothers and sisters, that everything that has happened to me here has helped to spread the Good News. 13 For everyone here, including the whole palace guard, knows that I am in chains because of Christ. Philippians 1:12-13

Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me. He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases. He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies. 5 He fills my life with good things. Psalms 103:2-5

Life Group Questions:

1. Have you ever went on vacation and found yourself or one of your family members complaining?

2. What do you complain about most?

3. When you think about what you complain about most, do you need to change your circumstances or your perspective?

4. Read Philippians 1:12-13. How could you, like Paul, flip your perspective about the struggles your facing?

5. What are some blessings you haven’t been grateful for lately?

6. How can you turn these blessings into gratitude toward God more regularly?

How does the Resurrection give us Hope?

People look for Hope in a lot of places:

Health

Relationships

Education

Money

Justice

Politics

“Take from a man his wealth, and you hinder him; take from him his purpose, and you slow him down. But take from man his hope, and you stop him. He can go on without wealth, and even without purpose, for a while. But he will not go on without hope”

Hope is Not a feeling or an emotion.

Hope is the Knowledge of the Facts.

How does the Resurrection give us Hope?

1. It Provides Freedom.

Let me now remind you, dear brothers and sisters, of the Good News I preached to you before. You welcomed it then, and you still stand firm in it. 2 It is this Good News that saves you if you continue to believe the message I told you—unless, of course, you believed something that was never true in the first place.

3 I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. 4 He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said.

Why Did Christ Die for Our Sins?

The Penalty of our sin is death.

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23

For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Romans 3:23

But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. Romans 5:8

“For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16

2. It Provides Confidence!

It is Certain.

5 He was seen by Peter and then by the Twelve. 6 After that, he was seen by more than 500 of his followers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died.7 Then he was seen by James and later by all the apostles. 8 Last of all, as though I had been born at the wrong time, I also saw him. 9 For I am the least of all the apostles. In fact, I’m not even worthy to be called an apostle after the way I persecuted God’s church.

10 But whatever I am now, it is all because God poured out his special favor on me—and not without results. For I have worked harder than any of the other apostles; yet it was not I but God who was working through me by his grace. 11 So it makes no difference whether I preach or they preach, for we all preach the same message you have already believe.

3. It provides Peace!

And if Christ has not been raised, then all our preaching is useless, and your faith is useless. 15 And we apostles would all be lying about God—for we have said that God raised Christ from the grave. But that can’t be true if there is no resurrection of the dead. 16 And if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless and you are still guilty of your sins. 18 In that case, all who have died believing in Christ are lost! 19 And if our hope in Christ is only for this life, we are more to be pitied than anyone in the world.

1 Corinthians 15:1-11, 14-19

Isaiah 9:6

For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

EVERLASTING FATHER

• What does that mean? Everlasting…

• Not too many things in this world are everlasting

• Define father, it means something different to everyone

• Characteristics of a father

LOVE

1 John 3:1

3 We proclaim to you what we ourselves have actually seen and heard so that you may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.

Galatians 2:20

20 My old self has been crucified with Christ.[a] It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

Jeremiah 31:3 (Everlasting)

Long ago the Lord said to Israel:“I have loved you, my people, with an everlasting love. With unfailing love I have drawn you to myself.

John 15:13

13 There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.

Romans 5:8

8 But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.

Romans 8:37-39

37 No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.

38 And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,[a] neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love.

39 No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

ADOPT/INHERITANCE

Ephesians 1:5God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure.

Romans 8:15 So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.”

Galatians 4:5God sent him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children.

DISCIPLINE

Hebrews 12:5-115 And have you forgotten the encouraging words God spoke to you as his children? He said, “My child, don’t make light of the Lord’s discipline, and don’t give up when he corrects you.6 For the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes each one he accepts as his child.” 7 As you endure this divine discipline, remember that God is treating you as his own children. Who ever heard of a child who is never disciplined by its father?

8 If God doesn’t discipline you as he does all of his children, it means that you are illegitimate and are not really his children at all. 9 Since we respected our earthly fathers who disciplined us, shouldn’t we submit even more to the discipline of the Father of our spirits, and live forever?

10 For our earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years, doing the best they knew how. But God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in his holiness. 11 No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.

• No matter what your relationship with your earthly father is, your heavenly father is always there for you.

• Will you allow God to be your everlasting father, a love like no other?

Colossians 1:11-14

11 We also pray that you will be strengthened with all his glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. May you be filled with joy,[c]12 always thanking the Father. He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light.

13 For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, 14 who purchased our freedom[d] and forgave our sins.

Prince of Peace

Isaiah 9:6

For a child is born to us, a son is given to us.The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

We all search for peace

We can’t create peace

We can’t earn peace

We CAN receive peace

John 14:27

“I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.

Phil 4:6-7

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

The best gift you will ever receive

Peace is not a possession to be pursued, it is a gift that is given to you

Prince of Peace

Isaiah 9:6

For a child is born to us, a son is given to us.The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

We all search for peace

We can’t create peace

We can’t earn peace

We CAN receive peace

John 14:27

“I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.

Phil 4:6-7

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

The best gift you will ever receive

Peace is not a possession to be pursued, it is a gift that is given to you

Isaiah 9:6

For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

EVERLASTING FATHER

• What does that mean? Everlasting…

• Not too many things in this world are everlasting

• Define father, it means something different to everyone

• Characteristics of a father

LOVE

1 John 3:1

3 We proclaim to you what we ourselves have actually seen and heard so that you may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.

Galatians 2:20

20 My old self has been crucified with Christ.[a] It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

Jeremiah 31:3 (Everlasting)

Long ago the Lord said to Israel:“I have loved you, my people, with an everlasting love. With unfailing love I have drawn you to myself.

John 15:13

13 There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.

Romans 5:8

8 But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.

Romans 8:37-39

37 No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.

38 And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,[a] neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love.

39 No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

ADOPT/INHERITANCE

Ephesians 1:5God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure.

Romans 8:15 So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.”

Galatians 4:5God sent him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children.

DISCIPLINE

Hebrews 12:5-115 And have you forgotten the encouraging words God spoke to you as his children? He said, “My child, don’t make light of the Lord’s discipline, and don’t give up when he corrects you.6 For the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes each one he accepts as his child.” 7 As you endure this divine discipline, remember that God is treating you as his own children. Who ever heard of a child who is never disciplined by its father?

8 If God doesn’t discipline you as he does all of his children, it means that you are illegitimate and are not really his children at all. 9 Since we respected our earthly fathers who disciplined us, shouldn’t we submit even more to the discipline of the Father of our spirits, and live forever?

10 For our earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years, doing the best they knew how. But God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in his holiness. 11 No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.

• No matter what your relationship with your earthly father is, your heavenly father is always there for you.

• Will you allow God to be your everlasting father, a love like no other?

Colossians 1:11-14

11 We also pray that you will be strengthened with all his glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. May you be filled with joy,[c]12 always thanking the Father. He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light.

13 For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, 14 who purchased our freedom[d] and forgave our sins.