Thrive.Church Weekly Message

Anything that competes with Jesus is a ________________.

[Exodus 14:11-12] 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!'"

God didn't ________________ you so you could go ________________ to bondage!

[Galatians 5:1] So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don't get tied up again in slavery to the law.

Christ's work has already ________________ our chains of bondage.

True ________________ comes from Christ alone.

[Romans 6:16-18] Don't you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living. [17] Thank God! Once you were slaves of sin, but now you wholeheartedly obey this teaching we have given you. [18] Now you are free from your slavery to sin, and you have become slaves to righteous living.

True freedom is found in surrendering to God's __________ and walking in ________________.

[2 Corinthians 3:17] For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.

Your mess isn't the ________________ mess God has seen.

[1 Peter 2:16] For you are free, yet you are God's slaves, so don't use your freedom as an excuse to do evil.

True freedom isn't found in ________________ but in dependence on God.

[Romans 8:1-2] So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. [2] And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death.

Most people think freedom is the ability to do ____________ you want ____________ you want.

[Philippians 4:6-13] Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. [7] 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. [8] And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. [9] Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you. [10] How I praise the Lord that you are concerned about me again. I know you have always been concerned for me, but you didn’t have the chance to help me. [11] Not that I was ever in need, for I have learned how to be content with whatever I have. [12] I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. [13] For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.

Jesus came to defeat __________ through the resurrection.

[1 John 4:9-10] God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. [10] This is real love--not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.

We can't have _____________ until we have been rescued.

[Romans 5:6-8] When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. [7] Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. [8] But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.

You __________________ save yourself.

[Luke 24:1-7] But very early on Sunday morning the women went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. [2] They found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. [3] So they went in, but they didn't find the body of the Lord Jesus. [4] As they stood there puzzled, two men suddenly appeared to them, clothed in dazzling robes. [5] The women were terrified and bowed with their faces to the ground. Then the men asked, "Why are you looking among the dead for someone who is alive? [6] He isn't here! He is risen from the dead! Remember what he told you back in Galilee, [7] that the Son of Man must be betrayed into the hands of sinful men and be crucified, and that he would rise again on the third day."

The stone was rolled away to show us that our rescue was __________________.

The __________ __________ is the ultimate symbol of God’s power over death.

[Ephesians 2:4-5] But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, [5] that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God's grace that you have been saved!)

Death is not the __________ for those who put their __________ in Jesus.

[Colossians 1:13-14] 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 and forgave our sins.

Doing ____________ things brings more satisfaction that doing ____________ things.

It's easy to forget God in the middle of life's ____________.

[Ecclesiastes 12:1-3, 6] Don't let the excitement of youth cause you to forget your Creator. Honor him in your youth before you grow old and say, "Life is not pleasant anymore." [2] Remember him before the light of the sun, moon, and stars is dim to your old eyes, and rain clouds continually darken your sky. [3] Remember him before your legs--the guards of your house--start to tremble; and before your shoulders--the strong men--stoop. Remember him before your teeth--your few remaining servants--stop grinding; and before your eyes--the women looking through the windows--see dimly. [6] Yes, remember your Creator now while you are young, before the silver cord of life snaps and the golden bowl is broken. Don't wait until the water jar is smashed at the spring and the pulley is broken at the well.

So many things are competing for our _________________.

[Psalm 103:2] Let all that I am praise the LORD; may I never forget the good things he does for me.

We need find ways to remember God's _________________ and ____________________ in our lives.

[Deuteronomy 8:18-19] Remember the LORD your God. He is the one who gives you power to be successful, in order to fulfill the covenant he confirmed to your ancestors with an oath. [19] "But I assure you of this: If you ever forget the LORD your God and follow other gods, worshiping and bowing down to them, you will certainly be destroyed.

Don't _________________ that God made a way.

[Mark 11:9-10] Jesus was in the center of the procession, and the people all around him were shouting, "Praise God! Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the LORD! [10] Blessings on the coming Kingdom of our ancestor David! Praise God in highest heaven!"

We should remember to _________________ and _________________ God in our lives.

[Mark 15:11-14] But at this point the leading priests stirred up the crowd to demand the release of Barabbas instead of Jesus. [12] Pilate asked them, "Then what should I do with this man you call the king of the Jews?" [13] They shouted back, "Crucify him!" [14] "Why?" Pilate demanded. "What crime has he committed?" But the mob roared even louder, "Crucify him!"

Don't _________________ God on one day and _________________ Him the next?

Hypocrite (Greek: hypokritēs): an ______________ under an assumed character; stage player. Impersonator. Pretender.

[Ecclesiastes 7:1-3] A good reputation is more valuable than costly perfume. And the day you die is better than the day you are born. [2] Better to spend your time at funerals than at parties. After all, everyone dies--so the living should take this to heart. [3] Sorrow is better than laughter, for sadness has a refining influence on us.

________________ shapes us more than ___________________.

[Ecclesiastes 9:2-4] The same destiny ultimately awaits everyone, whether righteous or wicked, good or bad, ceremonially clean or unclean, religious or irreligious. Good people receive the same treatment as sinners, and people who make promises to God are treated like people who don't. [3] It seems so tragic that everyone under the sun suffers the same fate. That is why people are not more careful to be good. Instead, they choose their own mad course, for they have no hope. There is nothing ahead but death anyway. [4] There is hope only for the living. As they say, "It's better to be a live dog than a dead lion!"

Life is _________________ and death is ___________________.

[Ecclesiastes 6:12] In the few days of our meaningless lives, who knows how our days can best be spent? Our lives are like a shadow. Who can tell what will happen on this earth after we are gone?

Death should be a motivation for us to use our ______________ effectively.

[Ecclesiastes 10:8-9] When you dig a well, you might fall in. When you demolish an old wall, you could be bitten by a snake. [9] When you work in a quarry, stones might fall and crush you. When you chop wood, there is danger with each stroke of your ax.

[1 Corinthians 15:50] What I am saying, dear brothers and sisters, is that our physical bodies cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. These dying bodies cannot inherit what will last forever.

Death is God's way of giving you ________________ life.

[1 Corinthians 15:54-57] Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled: "Death is swallowed up in victory. [55] O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?" [56] For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. [57] But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Even in death Jesus gives us ________________.

[Matthew 6:19-20] "Don't store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. [20] Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal.

Our legacy isn't in the ________________ we gain but in the difference we make.

[Matthew 7:1-5] “Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. [2] For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged. [3] “And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? [4] How can you think of saying to your friend, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? [5] Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye.