Passage: Ephesians 5:1-2

We tend to think that we will be the happiest when we get what we want, when our needs are met, when our dreams are fulfilled. And we make grand promises on our wedding day, with starry-eyed expectations that this person will be “the one” who will do it all for us.

But reality hits quickly. He always leaves his clothes on the floor. She mangles the toothpaste tube every morning. He never listens. She always complains. He loses his job. She gets a hard diagnosis.

And then the real gift of marriage begins. Because we find our deepest joy when we are most like Jesus. And we are most like Jesus when we give ourselves in love…especially when it isn’t easy to love.

That kind of love and joy isn’t the result of having a perfect spouse. It’s the result of knowing the love of a perfect Father.

Passage: 2 Corinthians 4:7

[pou-er] Noun - “Ability to do or act; capability of doing or accomplishing something.”

Do your circumstances control you? Does suffering draw your eyes off the Lord and on to you? How is it that Paul could be bold (3:12), and have a no-quit attitude (4:1) when trials came at him one after another (4:8-9)? Because he knew that God’s great power was seen most clearly in his life at his weakest and most frail moments. He delights in the light and embraces his weakness. This is the crazy recipe for the glory of God to be seen through His children. Will you embrace it too?

The two ways your life magnifies the surpassing power of God:

1. Delighting in the Content [4:7]

2. Diminishing the Container [4:7]

Gaining Gratitude – Thank God for the ugly parts of your story and how God brought you to your knees. Thank Him for crafting your suffering into a voice of witness to His glorious deliverance. Thank Him for what is hard in your life right now.

Prompting Prayer – Ask God to use the tough stuff to magnify His power through you. Beg Him to give you a greater delight in your knowledge of the Gospel. Pray that you come to embrace your weakness and frailty as the greatest tool for witness that you possess.

Passage: 2 Corinthians 4:1-6

[kwit] Verb - “To stop, cease, or discontinue; to give up or resign; let go; relinquish.”

Do you ever feel like quitting? Caring for people is too hard, walking in truth too hard, following Christ too hard? What will keep you from giving up? Paul, who has faced much difficulty, lays out what keeps him going. Though he knows he will face trouble, there is no ‘quit’ in his ministry vocabulary. I’m quite certain you need a stronger commitment to not give up. This text brings it!

Four commitments that will keep you from losing heart in Gospel ministry:

1. No Lack of Mercy [4:1]

2. No Tampering with the Word [4:2]

3. No Fear of Rejection [4:3-4]

4. No Doubt in the Light [4:5-6]

Gaining Gratitude – Thank God for the straight-forward teaching of the Scriptures. Thank Him that the Spirit is the One who changes lives. Thank Him for the preaching of truth you have received over the years.

Prompting Prayer – Ask God to refocus your heart on these Biblical commitments. Confess where your commitment to not quit has been based in your stamina, discipline, and pride. Invite the light of the Spirit to shine over you, reminding you of the work of ‘new creation’ accomplished in you.

Passage: Psalm 78:1-8

The title of today's message refers to the proverb that says, “It takes a village to raise a child.” With us recognizing our graduating seniors today, it’s an appropriate topic to discuss. Many of us have been involved in the lives of not just these students—but students who have come before and the students that will come after. However, our church is more than a “village”, it’s a family united by the greatest commonality-- salvation in Christ. That commonality is what leads us to be deeply invested in one another through all stages of life. As we focus on our graduates today, what does it mean to send young men & women from our church body and out into the world? How do we prepare our next generation to represent Christ? What do we want to pass along?

Three Things for Our Church to Pass Along

1. To Discern & Defend Gospel Truth (Matthew 24:11)

2. To Invest In & Disciple Christian Brothers & Sisters (Titus 1:9)

3. To Go Forth in Gospel Mission (Mark 16:15)

Passage: 2 Corinthians 3:12-18

[free-duh m] Noun - “Exemption from external control, interference, regulation, etc. The power to determine without restraint. Personal liberty as opposed to bondage or slavery.”

Do you know what freedom feels like? When you hear that the Spirit of God is at work in the children of God, do you wonder what that really means? The New Covenant has profound effects on those who believe, giving us a robust theological foundation. At the same time, it produces clear practical effects, revealing the person walking in the power of the Spirit. Is it obvious that you walk by the power of the Spirit? Does freedom characterize your daily living? How would you know?

Let’s reflect on what Gospel freedom produces …

Three ways you know you are feeling the freedom:

1. Boldness Motivated by Hope [3:12-13]

2. Understanding Created by Repentance [3:14-16]

3. Transformation Produced by Beholding [3:17-18]

Gaining Gratitude – Thank God for your freedom. It is not something you bought, an army fought for, or was granted to you based on your heritage. Jesus removed the veil over your heart and now you see. What overwhelming love He has shown you!

Prompting Prayer – Ask God to help you in your beholding. Change comes by the Spirit who gives you understanding … to turn daily to Him … and look at the only place glory is found - the beautiful Son of God! Pray for greater understanding at how change happens so more change will happen!

Passage: 2 Corinthians 3:7-11

[glawr-ee, glohr- ee] Noun - “Something that is a source of honor, fame, or admiration. A distinguished ornament or an object of pride. Resplendent beauty or magnificence.”

Do you struggle to understand what to do with the Old Testament? Does Christianity feel to you like it’s just a set of rules? Now that Paul has established that he has been made sufficient by God to competently minister the New Covenant, he describes the glory of the New Covenant. But what is it? And how is it better than the Old Covenant Law the Jews received? By grasping Paul’s lesson here in New Covenant theology, you will come to cherish the Gospel of Jesus Christ even more and live in its freedom forever!

Three ways living in the New Covenant is much more glorious than the Old Covenant …

1. The Spirit at Work in Your Heart [3:7-8]

Versus the Law’s ministry of death

2. The Righteousness of Christ Applied to Your Obedience [3:9]

Versus the Laws’ verdict of condemnation

3. The Permanent Glory of Your Freedom [3:10-11]

Versus the Law’s fading glory

- Gaining Gratitude – Thank God that you were born during the New Covenant age of grace! Thank Him for the Spirit who indwells and empowers obedience rather than the Law that just shows you your failure. Thank Him that your worst days don’t bring condemnation and your best days don’t earn you your righteousness.

- Prompting Prayer – Ask God to have your confidence and boldness match your growing understanding and delight in the New Covenant Gospel of Jesus Christ. Ask God to give you clarity to see your sin the Law exposes and embrace the grace Jesus provides daily.

Passage: 2 Corinthians 3:4-6

[suh-fish- uh nt] Adjective - “Adequate for the purpose; enough.”

Do you feel totally inadequate in yourself? Do you easily convince yourself that others should take your place? If so, you’re in good company; the company of Moses, Gideon, Isaiah, and Paul. Yet if you lack confidence as a child of God to boldly move forward, it is a trust in God issue. Are you self-sufficient and feel up for the task? Do you quickly assert your gifts? This is a false-confidence, and it too is a trust in God issue. Be careful because both kinds of people are standing on shaky ground. This text rightly aligns our hearts to find our sufficiency in God alone!

Three powerful truths that make Christ-followers OK …

1. A Confidence Created through Christ [3:4]

2. A Sufficiency Sourced in the Father [3:5]

3. A Ministry Marked by the Spirit [3:6]

Gaining Gratitude – Thank God for new covenant grace. Thank Him that you are not sufficient in yourself, but completely worthy through the work of Christ. Can you learn to give thanks for your weaknesses?!

Prompting Prayer – Ask God to show you the depth of your inadequacy right alongside the power of God’s gracious empowerment for life and ministry. Ask Him for a boldness that exceeds human merit. Invite the rest of the Gospel that comes through abiding in Christ.

Passage: 2 Corinthians 3:1-3

[rek-uh- men-dey- shuh n] Noun - “Anything that serves to recommend a person or thing, or induce acceptance or favor.”

Do you secretly itch for commendation from others? Do you find it hard to stop talking about yourself? This section on the new covenant confidence that comes through the work of Christ could just change all of that. Because of the internal work of the Spirit on your heart, you can find greater and greater freedom from the shameless external self-promotion that the flesh longs for. What letter of recommendation will you point to? Which letter will people read from your life?

Two Kinds of Recommendation …

1. The “Check Me Out” Response [3:1]

Self-Promotion

External Commendation

2. The “See What God Has Done” Response [3:2-3]

An Un-Erasable Love for People

A Christ-Transformed Life

A Spirit-Empowered Obedience

Gaining Gratitude – Thank God for new covenant grace. Thank Him that you are not under the old covenant which makes demands you can never fulfill. Express your gratitude for the Spirit written on your heart over ink written on stone.

Prompting Prayer – Ask God to keep your heart soft amid any and every circumstance. A soft (fleshy) heart is a sign of genuine salvation. Beg Him for ongoing spiritual fruit that flees self-promotion and rests in the Father’s

acceptance of you through Jesus!

5 Implications of the Incarnation for a Missional Life:

1. Living with Humility (Phil 2:5-8)

2. Serving Intentionally (John 13)

3. Loving Sacrificially (Eph 5:2)

4. Enduring Suffering (1 Pet 2:21)

5. Being Sent (John 20:21)

Pastoral Encouragement:

Pray and Rest

Stay and Die