"Jesus and His authority go before you."

This week we finished our sermon series on the Practices of Discipleship, and Brett discussed how we are to make disciples. He cited Matthew 28:16-20, which tells that Jesus has all authority (v.18), we are to go and make disciples (v.19), and we are to baptize (v.19). Brett also referenced Colossians 1:28-29, which reads, "Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me." From this passage we learn:

1. To proclaim (who He is, what He did, how it affects us)

2. To present everyone (help people come to know Jesus)

3. This is His purpose

4. He works powerfully within us

"Making a disciple involves communication of the Gospel."

This week, we continued with our Practices of Discipleship series, and Brett discussed the practice of Evangelism, citing 1 Corinthians 15:1-8. He also referenced 2 Corinthians 5:20-21, which says, "Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." Brett explained that as followers of Christ we're called to be:

1. Truth tellers (Witness to the fact that Jesus was who He said He was, He did what He said He would do, and He was raised from the dead)

2. Ambassadors (Learn how to tell that truth in a culturally acceptable/appropriate way without diminishing the truth)

Some of the key takeaways from the sermon were:

1. The Gospel is of first importance

2. We are to preach and receive the Gospel

3. To proclaim the Gospel, we need to know and live it

4. We need to question others with compassion

"Formation requires knowledge of Christ and knowledge of self, both Christ-awareness and self-awareness."

We continued with our Practices of Discipleship series this week, and Jerell discussed the practice of Formation, citing Ephesians 2:1-10. He explained how this passage of Scripture is divided into two sections. Verses 1-3 are an honest description of the human condition before knowing Christ ("dead") and verses 4-9 describe the human condition after knowing Christ ("alive").

The two major themes we discussed in this section were:

1. What this says about who we are

2. What this says about what we do

Jerell also gave us Four Practices for Faithful Character:

1. Confession

2. Faithful Suffering

3. Work

4. Our Individual Calling

He then invited us to determine which of these practices is most pressing on our heart, and gave applications for each:

1. Confession - Spend time alone confessing/journaling and then find a close friend to confess to

2. Suffering - Write out your life story and focus on formative memories

3. Work - Spend time at the end of each day examining your day and what you did

4. Our Individual Calling - Write a personal purpose statement

"For a follower of Jesus there is no distinction between our love of God and our treatment of other people."

We continued with our Practices of Discipleship series this week, and Jerell talked about the practice of Compassion, citing Luke 10:25-37 (The Parable of the Good Samaritan). He explained that compassion requires two things: Proximity (verses 29-33) and Humility (34-35).

Verse 33 of this passage reads: "But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion." Jerell explained how we see this pattern of the words "see" and "had/have compassion" in the Gospel accounts of the life of Jesus:

1. Matthew 9:36

2. Matthew 14:14

3. Luke 7:13

4. Luke 15:20

"If you're serious about being a disciple, if you're serious about building practices into your life and wanting to change, the community of believers is essential in that process."

This week, we continued with our Practices of Discipleship series and Brett discussed the practice of Community and how it affects us as we seek to be disciples of Jesus. We discussed Colossians 3:12-17 and how the descriptions in this passage are given in the context of being in a group of people (the body of Christ):

1. Compassion (Do you feel what others feel?)

2. Kindness (Respond as God would respond)

3. Humility (Put others needs ahead of your own)

4. Gentleness (Willingness to suffer the burden of another's sin)

5. Patience

6. Bear with one another

7. Forgive each other

8. Put on love

Brett also explained how when the body of Christ comes together it does two things:

1. "It bugs us" 

   -When we gather with other people, the odds of having conflict increases

2. "It blesses us"

   -The conflict refines us and causes us to be Christ-like

   -It forces us to consider if we're doing our part in the community that God has placed us in

   -It equips and encourages us

"Salvation is the restoration of the broken relationship that humanity had with God, and we are restored to the love of the Father through our union with His Son."

We continued with our Practices of Discipleship series this week with a sermon from Jerell discussing the practice of communion. He taught on John 15:1-17 and explained how this passage of Scripture is broken into two categories:

1. Extended image/metaphor that describes our salvation (a vine and branches)

2. A mirror of the metaphor

Jerell explained that, "Salvation is first and foremost, a vital and organic union to Jesus." It is vital because it is life-giving and it is organic in that the image that Jesus uses and John focuses on isn't abstract formula or codes; it's in relational terms. He also described how our participation in Christ is "a shared union with the life, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus where we receive the ultimate prize; fellowship in the love that God the Father has for God the Son."

He also posed the question of, "What does it look like to abide in Christ?," and gave these explanations:

1. Jesus is the prize

2. We abide by doing less (Sabbath, silence, simplicity, fasting)

3. We abide by doing more (prayer, reflective Bible reading, our other practices)

"It is only in Jesus that someone comes to have knowledge of God."

This week, Sean continued with our new Practices of Discipleship series, and discussed the practice of learning. He focused on Matthew 11:25-30 and explained that, "Human intellect does not expose the presence of the Kingdom;" God reveals it to those He chooses. We also learned that verses 25-27 in this passage are an exclusive revelation and verse 28 is an inclusive invitation. Verse 28 reads: "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." 

In response to verse 28, Sean posed the question, "How do we accept this invitation?," and told that the answer is by binding yourself to Christ and learning from Him.

In conclusion, Sean explained four ways we can learn from Jesus:

1. Read the Bible (Jesus is the subject and author of the Bible)

2. Apply the Bible

3. Rest in the Bible

4. Enjoy the Bible

 

"This isn't a command for the faint of heart. It demands that we love God with every ounce of our being every moment we draw breath."

This week, we started our new series, "Practices of Discipleship," and Brett discussed the practice of following Jesus. He started in Mark 12:28-31 (The Greatest Commandment), which calls us to "love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength." 

   1. Heart (the center of our emotions)

   2. Soul (referring to the image of God in us)

   3. Mind (we are to love God with everything we have, including our intellect)

   4. Strength (this pushes our love out into actions)

We also discussed Luke 14:25-33, Deuteronomy 6:4-9, and how, "We are called to follow Jesus even if it means sacrificing our own lives." To conclude the sermon, Brett posed the questions:

   1. Am I willing to learn about God?

   2. Am I willing to understand the truth of God's Word and how it applies to me?

   3. Am I willing to invest in my family and those people that God has put in my sphere so that I can teach them what it means to follow       Jesus?"

 

This week, Brett concluded our series through the book of Hebrews, discussing Hebrews 13:20-21. He explained how benedictions "remind us where we've been and where we're to go." From this section of Hebrews, he drew these points:

1. "the God of peace" (v.20)

   -"God has done everything He can to provide peace for us now."

2. "who brought up from the dead the great shepherd of the sheep" (v.20)

   -"The truth of Christianity hinges on the resurrection" 

3. "the great shepherd of the sheep" (v. 20)

   -Do you hear His voice?

4.  "by the blood of the eternal covenant" (v. 20)

   -"The blood of this new covenant is central to the covenant's reality"

5. "Jesus our Lord" (v. 20)

   -"We're saved to be obedient in the present"

6. "equip you in every good thing to do his will" (v.21)

   -Are you using the tools that God gave you?

7. "through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and every. Amen."

   -"The goal of our lives is to bring glory to God"

"We're called to worship with passion, work with conviction, obey with faith, and pray with purpose."

This week, Brett continued with our series through the book of Hebrews, focusing on Hebrews 13:15-19, and identified four practices that "help our relationship with God move beyond the head, into the heart, and out the hands and feet." They are:

1. Worship (verse 15)

   -"How often do you get overwhelmed by the beauty of the gospel?"

2. Work (verse 16)

   -We please God through worship and works. Works don't save us but they show that our heart has been redeemed 

   -"The world around us can sense God's love when they experience God's generosity."

3. Obey Your Leaders (verse 17)

4. Pray for the Leaders in the Church