Bible Study

Don't just take our word for it . . . take His! We would encourage you to spend time examining the following Scriptures that shaped this sermon:

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Sermon Notes

Overview

• Israel is attacked by the Amalekites (Exod. 17:8).
• Moses raises the staff; Joshua fights below.
• When Moses grows tired, Aaron and Hur hold up his hands.
• Israel wins.
• Moses builds an altar: “The Lord is my banner.”

Lesson 1 – God Calls Us to Act in Faith

• At the Red Sea, God fought alone.
• Here, God works through His people.

We pray → we trust → we act.

God often gives us responsibility in:

• Spiritual growth
• Decision-making
• Serving others

Don’t wait for perfect clarity.Take wise steps of faith.

Lesson 2 – We Need One Another

• Moses needed Aaron and Hur.
• Faith is not a solo journey.

“Two are better than one…” (Eccl. 4:9)

We are called to:

• Let others support us
• Support others in return

Conclusion

The wilderness is God’s classroom.There we learn:

• Trust
• Courage
• Dependence on God
• Dependence on one another

You are not alone. God is with you.

Discussion Questions

1. How would you define a "wilderness" season? Can you share an example from your own life? What did God teach you there?

2. How do you make significant decisions in your own life?

3. Compare Exodus 17:-16 (our passage) with Numbers 20:10-13. Why is God upset with Moses and Aaron in the latter story? How can we discern the difference between stepping out in faith and confidence vs. getting ahead of the Lord or even disobeying him?

4. What might it look like to "build an altar to the Lord" in the wilderness (see Ex 17:15)?

Questions?

Do you have a question about today’s sermon? Email Randy Forrester (

).

Bible Study

Don't just take our word for it . . . take His! We would encourage you to spend time examining the following Scriptures that shaped this sermon:

Passage Outline

• Tasting Bitter Waters (Exodus 15:22–27)
• Manna and Quail in the Wilderness of Sin (Exodus 16:1–36)
• "As at Meribah, as on the Day at Massah" (Exodus 17:1–7)

Sermon Questions

1. Reread Exodus 16:13–18.
   1. The omer is a unit of measurement describing what is sufficient for each person — in effect, a cap on what the Israelites are to gather. In modern terms, we call this a "lifestyle cap." (Recall Sam's story about John Wesley and the chambermaid.) Have you ever set a lifestyle cap?
2. Reread Exodus 16:19–21.
   1. Moses forbids the Israelites to hoard the manna. In modern terms, hoarding is using our resources to untether ourselves from relationships. What opportunities is God giving you to use your resources to lean into relationships?
3. Reread Exodus 16:22–30.
   1. Do you practice a Sabbath — a "day of ceasing"? What's getting in the way?
4. Reread Exodus 16:31–35
   1. God commanded Israel to commemorate His provision by reserving manna, doubtless in part to steady their confidence in God's provision over their desert sojourn. Are you confident that God is your provider? If not, how have you commemorated His provision? Where are you "looking" to steady your confidence in your Lord and Master?

Resources Consulted

• Christopher Wordsworth, Notes on Genesis and Exodus (Oxford, 1875)
• Leon Kass, Founding God's Nation: Reading Exodus (Yale, 2021)
• Randy Alcorn, Money, Possessions, and Eternity (Wheaton: Tyndale House, 2003)
• For further resources
  • Explore Randy Alcorn's ministry, Eternal Perspective Ministries.
  • Register for The Ridley Institute's Spring 2026 course, "Practicing Simplicity in the Way of Jesus."

Questions?

Do you have a question about today's sermon? Email Sam Fornecker (

).

Bible Study

Don't just take our word for it . . . take His! We would encourage you to spend time examining the following Scriptures that shaped this sermon:

.

Sermon Notes

I. Introduction: The Word We All Need

• “Please” is a magic word — but there is a deeper one.
• An ancient word written into the fabric of the universe.
• Without it, we wither; with it, we flourish.
• Spoken by the Father, received through the Son.

II. Jesus at the Jordan

• Jesus comes to John for baptism.
• John resists; Jesus insists — “to fulfill all righteousness.”
• Jesus’ baptism marks the beginning of his public ministry.

III. Why Jesus Was Baptized

1. Identification — Jesus stands with sinners.
2. Initiation — Baptism becomes Spirit-filled and ongoing.
3. Inauguration — God’s Kingdom is breaking in.

IV. Heaven Responds

• Heavens opened — God reveals who Jesus is.
• Spirit descends like a dove — humility, new creation.
• Voice from heaven — the climax.
• “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”

V. The Magic Word: Beloved

• Spoken publicly by the Father.
• Defines Jesus’ identity before his work begins.
• From all eternity, the Son is beloved.

VI. Beloved — And Us

• We all long to hear this word.
• Human love is good, but not enough.
• In Christ, the Father now speaks it over us.
• Not earned. Not lost. Not performance-based.
• 2 Corinthians 5:21 — Jesus gives us his righteousness.

VII. Invitation

• • Have you received this word?
  • Through faith in Christ, you are God’s beloved.
  • Feelings may lag — the truth remains.
  • Receive it. Rest in it. Live from it.

Discussion Questions

1. When does Jesus baptize us "with the Holy Spirit"? When we are baptized? When we place our faith in Jesus? At a later time, when we receive the infilling of the Holy Spirit?

2. Can one have assurance in being beloved by God apart from faith in Christ and what he has done? Why or why not?

3. What difference does it make to a person's identity to live as God's beloved?

4. In what ways do you personally experience the reality of being beloved? What gets in the way of it for you?

Bonus

- Watch this music video:

Questions?

Do you have a question about today’s sermon? Email Randy Forrester (

).

Guest Preacher: Joanne Ellison

Joanne Ellison, a long-time member of St. Andrew’s, is the founder of

through which women are equipped to draw near to God and experience the power of a life-changing community. She has reached tens of thousands of women through Christian radio, television, blogging, weekly Bible teachings, speaking events, books, and more.

Bible Study

Don't just take our word for it . . . take His! We would encourage you to spend time examining the following Scriptures that shaped this sermon:

Questions?

Do you have a question about today's sermon? Email us (

).

Bible Study

Don't just take our word for it . . . take His! We would encourage you to spend time examining the following Scriptures that shaped this sermon: Psalm 96; John 1:1-18.

Bible Study

Don't just take our word for it . . . take His! We would encourage you to spend time examining the following Scriptures that shaped this sermon:

.

Sermon Notes

• Story: Moving to Vancouver and longing for sunlight

• Darkness isn’t always extreme—sometimes it’s overcast

• Isaiah speaks to a light-starved people

The Darkness (Isaiah’s World and Ours)

• Israel threatened, fearful, chasing false security

• Blaming God, losing hope

• Today: not pitch black, but distracted, dissatisfied, light-deficient

God’s Promise

• “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light” (Isa. 9:2)

• The night will end; the clouds will break

How the Light Is Experienced

1. Joy Increased

• Rejoicing “before Him” (v.3)

• Joy flows from relationship, not circumstances

• God himself is the source of joy

2. Burdens Lifted

• Echo of the Exodus

• God breaks what weighs us down

• Jesus: “My yoke is easy, my burden is light”

3. Hostilities Ended

• Weapons burned; war finished

• From global conflict to personal hostility

• Light brings peace, reconciliation, forgiveness

The Source of the Light

• A child will be born (Isa. 9:6)

• The government on His shoulders

• King from David’s line, reigning forever

• A kingdom of peace, justice, and righteousness

Christmas Connection

• Christmas = God’s reign breaking into the world

• Announced by Isaiah, Gabriel, and the angels

• This child is born to reign

Conclusion

• We may grow accustomed to the clouds

• Christ’s reign brings joy, lightness, and peace

• “And He shall reign forevermore”

Questions?

Do you have a question about today’s sermon? Email Randy Forrester (

).

Bible Study

Don't just take our word for it . . . take His! We would encourage you to spend time examining the following Scriptures that shaped this sermon:

.

Sermon Notes:

1. A New Beginning That Looks Scandalous (v. 18)

• “Birth” = genesis → a new creation is beginning.

• Conceived by the Holy Spirit, not human effort.

• From God’s view: glorious.From human view: confusing and shameful.

2. Joseph: Righteous and Compassionate (vv. 18–19)

• Betrothal = legally binding marriage.

• Joseph assumes unfaithfulness, yet:

  • Chooses a quiet divorce

  • Willing to absorb personal cost to spare Mary shame.

• A just man who shows mercy.

• Foreshadows the grace and truth we later see in Jesus.

3. God Speaks Into Fear (v. 20)

• An angel appears while Joseph is considering his options.

• “Do not fear” — a repeated Christmas command.

• God’s saving work confronts and overturns human fear.

4. The Grand Miracle: God With Us (vv. 20–23)

• The child is conceived by the Holy Spirit.

• The Virgin Birth makes the Incarnation possible.

• Jesus is:

  • Fully God

  • Fully human

• Christmas is holy ground.

5. Faith That Obeys (vv. 24–25a)

• Joseph believes God’s word and acts.

• Takes Mary as his wife.

• Exercises sexual self-control until after Jesus’ birth.

• Honors the sacred work of the Holy Spirit.

• A model of obedience, reverence, and self-control.

6. The Name: Jesus — Yahweh Saves (v. 21)

• God chooses the name.

• Yeshua = “Yahweh saves.”

• His mission:

  • Not primarily political or social

  • To save his people from their sins

• Mary and Joseph were the first humans to speak his name.

7. The Name: Immanuel — God With Us (vv. 22–23)

• • Fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy.

  • Jesus is God with us:

    • In temptation

    • In suffering

    • In sin (as our substitute)

    • In prayer

    • In Scripture

    • In mission

    • By the Holy Spirit

  • Matthew begins and ends with this truth (1:23; 28:20).

Discussion Questions:

• What's your favorite part of the Christmas story?
• What are some qualities you admire in Joseph?
• Does Christianity still work without the Virgin Birth - why or why not?
• In what ways does a human being need to be saved? How did Jesus accomplish that salvation?
• Where do you need to be assured that God is with you right now?

Questions?

Do you have a question about today’s sermon? Email Randy Forrester (

).

Bible Study

Don't just take our word for it . . . take His! We would encourage you to spend time examining the following Scriptures that shaped this sermon:

.

Sermon Notes:

1. Why Did John Doubt?

• John is imprisoned after confronting Herod.
• From prison he hears Jesus’ ministry reports.
• Jesus is not matching his expectations:
  • John expected judgment (axe, winnowing fork).
  • Jesus is healing, teaching mercy, loving enemies.
• Doubt often grows when God doesn’t meet our expectations.
• We risk:
  • Disbelief (walking away), or
  • Idolatry (reshaping God into our image).

2. What Did John Do With His Doubt?

• He brought his question directly to Jesus.
• The Psalms model honest questioning (“How long, Lord?”).
• Honest questions brought to God are themselves an act of faith.
• We bring our doubts to:
  • Prayer,
  • Scripture,
  • Community (church, classes, Alpha).

3. How Did Jesus Respond?

• Jesus doesn’t condemn John.
• He points to evidence: “What you see and hear”—lives changed, people healed, good news preached.
• He points John back to Scripture (Isaiah).
• Jesus gently corrects John’s expectations and strengthens his faith.
• God often strengthens us by showing us His work in others’ lives.

Conclusion

• The final answer to our doubt is not an argument—but a person: Jesus.

Discussion Questions:

1. Is it surprising to you that great saints sometimes experience great doubt and discouragement?

2. Can you think of a time when God didn't meet your expectations?

3. Why is bringing our doubts to God itself an act of faith?

4. What are the two things Jesus does in response to John's question? How might those also help us in times of doubt or discouragement?

5. Do our doubts separate us from Jesus?

Questions?

Do you have a question about today’s sermon? Email Randy Forrester (

).

Bible Study

Don't just take our word for it . . . take His! We would encourage you to spend time examining the following Scriptures that shaped this sermon: Isaiah 11:1-10,Matthew 3:1-12.

1. Where do you experience peace, and the lack of it, in your life?
2. How does Christianity both satisfy and undermine exclusively human aspirations for the good life? (Don't take too long on this.)
3. What does it mean for the Christian life — personally and communally — to be anchored in and oriented toward Eden?
4. With whom do you need to make peace? [What appropriate steps can your life group take to support you in seeking peace?]

• Commentators: Aquinas, Calvin, Goldingay (Theology of Isaiah)
• James Davison Hunter, Democracy and Solidarity: On the Cultural Roots of America's Political Crisis
• Richard Crashaw, "In the Holy Nativity of Our Lord God," from Carmen Deo Nostro

Do you have a question about today's sermon? Email Sam Fornecker ([email protected]).

Sermon QuestionsResources ConsultedQuestions?

Bible Study

Don't just take our word for it . . . take His! We would encourage you to spend time examining the following Scriptures that shaped this sermon:

Sermon Outline

God's gift is the gift that keeps on giving far beyond Christmas. Advent is not about the past; it's about the future. It's all about the hope that shines in the darkness. When Jesus comes on that day to be glorified in his saints, and to be marveled at among all who have believed." 2 Thessalonians 1:10Four Things to awaken the soul for Christmas and make us marvel.

1. The eternal God - God is and always wasExodus 3:14
2. The Creator Visits - the eternal Creator entered His creation as the God-man Jesus Christ.John 1:11
3. The Savior comes to give His life as a Ransom - Why He came to His creation.Mark 10:45
4. The Giver of the Gift - The Right to become the children of God.John 1:12

Sermon Questions

1. How can John 1:1-18 apply to both Advent and Christmas, to both the Incarnation and the Second Coming?
2. How can both the immensity of God and the minuscule presence of God help us in the challenges in our lives?
3. What happens when you both receive Jesus and believe in Jesus?
4. What would be the "rights" that would be granted as a child of God to those who receive and believe?

Questions?

Do you have a question about today's sermon? Email John Burley (

).

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