Messages from Island Christian Church in Northport

"So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift." Matthew 5:23-4

"Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working." James 5:16

Questions:

• Which of the following contributes to feelings of guilt?

- My pride and unbelief

- The accusations of the Devil

- My own conscience which is overactive

- I have not completed God's process--both the vertical elements toward God and the horizontal elements toward other people

• Who is God showing me that I need to go to in order to clear an offense? What have I done about it?

Matthew 18:21-35

21 Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” 22 Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times.

23 “Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. 24 When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. 25 And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. 26 So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ 27 And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt. 28 But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’ 29 So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ 30 He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt. 31 When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place. 32 Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. 33 And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ 34 And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt. 35 So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”

Questions:

• What did you learn about forgiveness from the Scripture?

• Those you need to forgive--did you get it done by sundown?

Scripture: Deuteronomy 6:3-9

{ 3 Hear therefore, O Israel, and be careful to do them, that it may go well with you, and that you may multiply greatly, as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has promised you, in a land flowing with milk and honey.

4 “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. 6 And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. 7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. 8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. }

Questions:

• How does this Scripture speak into your life today?

• The three questions that Pastor Lee referred to:

Who is God?

Who am I?

Who are they?

As you ask yourself these questions, what is God showing you about what you truly believe?

Parents: You may wish to share what God showed you and then ask your kids to share what they are learning about God, themselves and others.

Scriptures: Psalm 112, Exodus 4:1-5 —

Application Questions —

• Have you ever had an experience with God where He was asking you to lay something down so that He could transform it and you take it up again? What was that like?

• What areas of life were you convicted to release to God when you heard this message? How is that process going? How are you remaining able not to pick those areas up again? What transforming work do you see God doing as you have placed them in His hands?

Scripture—Matthew 5:13-16

Applications—

• Think about someone who has been instrumental in your growth in life and as a Christian—maybe they were called a mentor, maybe they never took a role like that yet God used them in your life. What was it about them that enabled God to use them in your life?

• What was God leading you to do as a result of the message this morning?

Scripture—Genesis 1:27-28a, Jeremiah 1:5, Romans 5:8

Application—

• What was your take away from this service?

• How was Jennifer Shaw’s testimony an affirmation of God’s view of the value of life?

• What beneficial action is God directing in your life to bring His value of life more fully into your life?

Scripture—Revelation 12

Application—

• Are there practical ways that this message has affected how you see your everyday life?

• Which of the schemes of the enemy are you most aware of right now?

• How does this group help us to avoid being deceived by the enemy?

Scripture—I Corinthians 9:19-23

Application—

• This whole passage rests on the need for people to be won to Christ. (To win more, win Jews, win those under the law, win those without law, win the weak.) If Paul is a “10” in passion for evangelism, what number would you give the average Christian today? What number would you give yourself? Has that number grown higher or gotten lower over the years?

• The starting point—“I have made myself a servant of all.” What does that commitment look like for you?

• YOU CAN DO MORE THAN WHAT YOU THINK YOU CAN DO! Why is this true? In what ways have you told yourself this truth this week?

If you want to learn more about the ministries the Restrepo's are working in, please visit www.restrepoministries.org

Scripture—2 Timothy 1:3-7

Application—

• How is your story like that of Timothy—not perfect, but God is still able to use it?

• As a parent, or one who is influencing the lives of others in discipleship, how was this message encouraging? Challenging?

Message from Rev. Pete Jansson on May 14, 2017