HERE

MESSAGE NOTES

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.  Proverbs 3:5-6

• Providential will of God

But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to son-ship.  Galatians 4:4-5

• Moral will of God

It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn to control your own body in a way that is holy and honorable.  1 Thessalonians 4:3-4

Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.  Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted.  Romans 13:1-2

The Providential Will of God and the Moral Will of God determine the plumb line for the Personal Will of God.

•  Personal will of God

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.  Proverbs 3:5-6

“We receive enlightenment only in proportion as we give ourselves more and more completely to God by humble submission and love. We do not first see, then act: we act, then see. . . And that is why the man who waits to see clearly, before he will believe, never starts on the journey.” – Thomas Merton

THINK ABOUT IT

Have you ever asked the question, “what is God’s will for my life?”

Which of these most describes you:  1. I need God’s direction for a specific issue or decision I’m facing.  2. I need God’s direction so I can correct a past decision.  3. I need God’s direction so that I can stay on a good path for the future.

Is there anything concerning God’s “moral will” that you already know you need to be doing?

How can you better know God’s WAYS and God’s WORD?

MESSAGE NOTES

¹⁷ As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. “Good teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”  ¹⁸ “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. ¹⁹ You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, you shall not defraud, honor your father and mother.’”  ²⁰ “Teacher,” he declared, “all these I have kept since I was a boy.”

21 Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

²² At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.

²⁶ The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, “Who then can be saved?”  ²⁷ Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.”  (Mark 10:17-22, 26-27)

•  What has left me feeling the most disappointed?

• What do I sacrifice my time and money for? 

• What do I worry about? 

• Where do I go when I’m hurt and need comfort?

•  What makes me mad?

•  What do I dream of? 

• Whose encouragement means the most to me? 

“As long as you want anything very much, especially more than you want God, it is an idol.”    - A.B. Simpson

“Our Lord is like a Dentist …. Dozens of people go to him to be cured of one particular sin which they are ashamed of … or which is obviously spoiling daily life …. Well, he will cure it all right: but he will not stop there. That may be all you asked: but if once you call him in, he will give you the full treatment.”  - C.S. Lewis

THINK ABOUT IT

Download a copy of the Shoes study guide and journal.

HERE

MESSAGE NOTES

7 When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?” 8 (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.)  9 The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.)

10 Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”

13 Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

15 The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.”  16 He told her, “Go, call your husband and come back.”

17 “I have no husband,” she replied.  Jesus said to her, “You are right when you say you have no husband. 18 The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true.”

 26 Then Jesus declared, “I who speak to you am he.”  28 Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people,  29 “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?”  (John 4:1-29)

“People have forsaken me – the spring of living water and have dug their own cisterns – broken cisterns that cannot hold water.”  (Jeremiah 2:13)

“All men should strive to learn before they die, what they are running from, and to, and why.”     - James Thurber

“If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink.  Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.”  -(John 7:37, 38)

 THINK ABOUT IT

Download a copy of the Shoes study guide and journal.

MESSAGE NOTES

When Jesus had finished saying all this to the people who were listening, he entered Capernaum.

 2 There a centurion’s servant, whom his master valued highly, was sick and about to die. 3 The centurion heard of Jesus and sent some elders of the Jews to him, asking him to come and heal his servant. 4 When they came to Jesus, they pleaded earnestly with him, “This man deserves to have you do this, 5 because he loves our nation and has built our synagogue.”

 6 So Jesus went with them.  He was not far from the house when the centurion sent friends to say to him: “Lord, don’t trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. 7 That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. 8 For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

 9 When Jesus heard this, he was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd following him, he said, “I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel.” 10 Then the men who had been sent returned to the house and found the servant well.    (Luke 7:1-10)

 Authority

Accountability

Affirmation

Acceptance

 He was amazed at their lack of faith.  Then Jesus went around teaching from village to village.     (Mark 6:6)

 “Christ’s word is action. What He commands, He accomplishes…that’s a fact.  What impresses Christ however, is when we believe it’s a fact.”  - Beth Moore

THINK ABOUT IT

Download a copy of the Shoes study guide and journal.

MESSAGE NOTES

46 Then they came to Jericho.  As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus, was sitting by the roadside begging.  47 When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

48 Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

49 Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.”  So they called to the blind man, “Cheer up! On your feet! He’s calling you.”  50 Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus.

51 “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked him.

The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.”

52 “Go,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.   (Mark 10:46-52)

“Daughter your faith has healed you.  Go in peace. ”  (Luke 8:48)

“When Jesus saw their faith he said to the paralyzed man, ‘son your sins are forgiven.’”                   “And I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.”   (Mark 2:5, 11)

“Because you have seen me you believe; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”  (John 20:29)

– Lean your faith up against the person of Jesus and not the works of Jesus

– When Jesus does a miracle OR works in some way in your life it’s pointing to something greater.

THINK ABOUT

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HERE

MESSAGE NOTES

1 Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.  2 At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them. 3 The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group 4 and said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5 In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” 6 They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him.  (John 8:1-6)

• Guilt
• Shame

“We feel guilty for what we do.  We feel shame for what we are.  A person feels guilt because he did something wrong.  A person feels shame because he is something wrong.”(Lewis Smedes, “Shame & Grace”)

But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. 7 When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8 Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground.  9 At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. 10 Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”

11 “No one, sir,” she said.  “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”  (John 8:1-11)

• Grace

“When you’ve made a slobbering mess of your life, compassion becomes a tad easier if you are conscientious in taking your own inventory rather than someone else’s.”   (Brennan Manning, “All is Grace”)

THINK ABOUT IT

Download a copy of the Shoes study guide and journal

MESSAGE NOTES

Momma always says there’s an awful lot you could tell about a person by their shoes. Where they’re going. Where they’ve been. I’ve worn lots of shoes. I bet if I think about it real hard I could remember my first pair of shoes.    (Forrest Gump)

“The trail is a trial.”  (“Becoming Odyssa”)

13 Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles[a] from Jerusalem. 14 They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. 15 As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; 16 but they were kept from recognizing him.   17 He asked them, “What are you discussing together as you walk along?”  They stood still, their faces downcast. 18 One of them, named Cleopas, asked him, “Are you the only one visiting Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?”            19 “What things?” he asked.  “About Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied. “He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. 20 The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him; 21 but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place. 22 In addition, some of our women amazed us. They went to the tomb early this morning 23 but didn’t find his body. They came and told us that they had seen a vision of angels, who said he was alive. 24 Then some of our companions went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but they did not see Jesus.”  (Luke 24:13-24)

– Hope is something we can lose

“we had hoped” (Luke 24:21)

“Emmaus is any place you go trying hard not to care that the bottom has dropped out of your life”   (John Autry)

– Hope is something we can find

25 He said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” 27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.  28 As they approached the village to which they were going, Jesus continued on as if he were going farther. 29 But they urged him strongly, “Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over.” So he went in to stay with them.  30 When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight. 32 They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?”                   33 They got up and returned at once to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and those with them, assembled together 34 and saying, “It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon.” 35 Then the two told what had happened on the way, and how Jesus was recognized by them when he broke the bread.  (Luke 24:25-35)

“In a world where the dead have returned to life, the word” trouble’ loses much of its meaning.”  (Dennis Hopper)

19 And you will know that God’s power is very great for us who believe. That power is the same as the great strength 20 God used to raise Christ from the dead.  (Ephesians 1:19-20)

THINK ABOUT IT

Download a copy of the Shoes study guide and journal.

MESSAGE NOTES

1. Is hell a real place?

Annihilationism

Universalism

Figurative

Literal

destruction – Matthew 7:13

away from his presence  – 7:23

blazing furnace – 13:42

eternal fire – 18:8

thrown outside – 22:13

weeping and gnashing teeth – 24:51

darkness – 25:30

eternal punishment – 25:46

2. Why was hell created?

- A place to deal with Satan and his angels

“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.  (Matthew 24:41)

- A place to deal with Sin

Our Lord Jesus will punish anyone who doesn’t know God and won’t obey his message. Their punishment will be eternal destruction, and they will be kept far from the presence of our Lord and his glorious strength.  (2 Thessalonians 1:8-9)

“Essentially, Hell is a place where all aspects of the presence of God will be completely withdrawn forever…. Thus, in hell there will be no love, for ‘God is love.’ There will be no light, for ‘God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.’ There will be no peace, or rest, or joy, since these are all attributes of God. On the contrary, there will be eternal corruption, strife, rebellion and hatred.”  (Dr. Henry Morris)

3. What is hell like?

Luke 16:19-31

“Hades”

“Gehenna”

4.  Would God really send someone to hell?

“This is God’s universe, and He is doing things His way.  You may think you have a better way, but you don’t have a universe.”  (J. Vernon McGee)

”Those who do not wish to love God must be allowed not to love Him.  Those who do not want to be with God must be allowed to be separated from Him.”  (Peter Kreeft)

“In the long run the answer to all those who object to the doctrine of hell, is itself a question: What are you asking God to do? To wipe out their past sins and, at all costs, to give them a fresh start, smoothing every difficulty and offering every miraculous help? But He has done so, on Calvary. To forgive them? They will not be forgiven. To leave them alone? Alas, I am afraid that is what He does.”  (C.S. Lewis, “The Problem of Pain”)

“There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, “Thy will be done,” and those to whom God says, in the end, “Thy will be done.” All that are in Hell, choose it.  (C.S. Lewis, “The Great Divorce”)

Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.  (John 3:36)

THINK ABOUT IT

Have you ever thought through what you really believe about hell?  Who or what has most influenced your concept of hell?

When you think about hell do you consider it as a “threat” or as a “warning”?

Whether you think hell is temporary or permanent; figurative or literal – do you believe people will actually spend time there?  Why or why not?  What implications does that have for you?  For people you know and love?

MESSAGE NOTES

“Satan need not convince us that heaven doesn’t exist. He need only convince us that it is boring unearthly existence; and if we believe that lie we’ll be robbed of our joy and anticipation, we’ll set our minds on this life and not the next.” (Randy Alcorn, “Heaven”)

“No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.”  (1 Corinthians 2:9)

HEAVEN is a CITY

Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. 2 I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.  (Revelation 21:1-2)

15 The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city, its gates and its walls. 16 The city was laid out like a square, as long as it was wide. He measured the city with the rod and found it to be 12,000 stadia in length, and as wide and high as it is long. 17 The angel measured the wall using human measurement, and it was 144 cubits thick. 18 The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass. 19 The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone.  21 The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of gold, as pure as transparent glass.  (Revelation 21:15-19, 21)

11 It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal.  (Revelation 21:11)

3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 4 ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

5 He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!”  (Revelation 21:3-5)

- Heaven is a place of Renewal

- Heaven is a place of Responsibility

No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. (Revelation 22:3)

- Heaven is a place of Relationships

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.  (Revelation 21:3)

“If I find in myself desires which nothing in this world can satisfy, the only logical explanation is that I was made for another world.”  (C.S. Lewis, “Mere Christianity”)

THINK ABOUT IT

Who or what has most formed your opinions about heaven?

What moments come to mind that make you feel – “it just can’t get any better than this”?  Can you imagine how those are just a small glimpse of what heaven will be like?

What aspect of heaven are you most looking forward to?

Is there someone you hope to be reunited with in heaven?  Do you know for certain that your loved ones will be in heaven?  Will you be in heaven?  Why or why not?

What questions do you still have about what it will be like and what we will do?

HERE

MESSAGE NOTES

“There is a life after death, and if I don’t know where I’m going, it is not safe to die.”  – Dr. Maurice Rawlings

Everyone must die once, and after that be judged by God.  (Hebrews 9:27)

12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done. 14 Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. 15 Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.  (Revelation 20)

“No one is righteous— not even one.”  (Romans 3:10)

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.  (Romans 6:23)

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God.  (Ephesians 2:8)

If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved…For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.  (Romans 10:9-10, 13)

Everyone must die once, and after that be judged by God.  In the same manner Christ also was offered in sacrifice once to take away the sins of many. He will appear a second time, not to deal with sin, but to save those who are waiting for him.  (Hebrews 9:27-28)

• Celebration

For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. It is written: “As surely as I live,” says the Lord, “every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God.” So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.  (Romans 14:10-12)

For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.  (2 Corinthians 5:10)

•  Anticipation

• Motivation

THINK ABOUT IT

Have you ever thought about what happens the moment after you die?  What are all the possibilities?

How do you feel about the idea of being judged by God?  Do you know how that is going to turn out for you?  Why or why not?

What can you do today to “pay it forward” and store up rewards for heaven?

Do you believe that it’s “safe” for you to die at any time?