I love dreaming about and planning for tomorrow. Want to draw up a strategic plan? Count me in. Want to talk about which young basketball or football star will have the best career? Let’s go. Do you have predictions about the 2024 presidential election? Pull up a chair. Want to prognosticate about what the church is going to look like in 20 years? I would love to hear your thoughts. I’m wired for planning. Thoughtful forecasting can be a wise expenditure of time. Jesus says it even has a place in discipleship. He asks his followers, “For which of you, desiring a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it?” ( Lk 14:28 ). But while planning has its place in the Christian life, it can also serve as a distraction or even fuel sinful tendencies. The focus on tomorrow can feed discontentment, ingratitude, and laziness. If you’re like me, there is a danger that we can poorly steward the relationships and meetings that God has for us today if our eyes are too focused on the horizon. None of us like meeting with someone whose focus isn’t on us, but past us: they tap their foot, look at the clock, and follow other (apparently more interesting) people with their eyes. The discipline of today starts with a heart of contentment. In his letter to the church at Philippi, Paul writes, “…for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content.” [i] And he pens that from prison! How many of the saints have had enormous chunks of their lives that, from a worldly perspective, appeared to be wasted: Joseph’s decades in slavery and jail, David’s years fleeing Saul, Paul’s years in prison? But none of their days were wasted. They were faithful with their lives because they were faithful with their days. The wise author Annie Dillard once said, How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives. What we do with this hour, and that one, is what we are doing. A schedule defends from chaos and whim. It is a net for catching days. It is a scaffolding on which a worker can stand and labor with both hands at sections of time. A schedule is a mock-up of reason and order—willed, faked, and so brought into being; it is a peace and a haven set into the wreck of time; it is a lifeboat on which you find yourself, decades later, still living. There is so much truth packed into that paragraph. Our days compose our lives; what fills my day is what fills my life. How I shape my schedule is how I will shape my life. Our schedules are the lifeboat that we float away from the wreck of time in and find ourselves bound to for years. We better like that lifeboat. How are our days filled? Isn’t the discipline of prioritizing today what we behold when we look at Jesus’ life? We see the destination of Jesus’ life unveiled from time to time in the gospel accounts. However, it isn’t until the last week of his life that the telos of the cross is made clear. Instead, we see Jesus living faithfully in each day he is given: communing with the Father in prayer, present with those he is teaching, and stopping for those in need of healing. Jesus is present in each moment to each person. This is the way of our Savior. This is the way of God. Think of it: the God of all Creation, the God who has secured a future better than we could possibly imagine and who can picture that future perfectly is not distracted for even a second—he is fully present with you at this very moment. My best discipleship of my children has probably happened around our breakfast table in the morning, as we listen and respond to God’s Word together. My best care for our kids probably occurs around the dinner table at night—listening to what filled their days. My love has probably been best displayed at their bed at night—speaking God’s truth and blessing over them in prayer. These are our daily disciplines with our kids. Mapping out their futures and dreaming about what is to come is a healthy component of our relationship, but strategic planning is almost worthless if it isn’t paired with those more essential daily disciplines. So it is with my relationship with God, marriage, and vocational development. The route to success is built by today’s cobblestones, not tomorrow’s plans. May the faithful discipline of today characterize our lives as we reflect our ever-present Savior. [i] Philippians 4:11 You Might Also Appreciate: The Secret Ingredients To Helping Your Teens Thrive In Their Faith

The Apostle Paul writes back to a church that he began to encourage them about remaining faithful amidst opposition and persecution. He celebrates what he’s hearing about indicators that mark their faith as authentic and genuine. Faith lived out loud will have signs of authenticity and will have an impact that radiates outward. Authen c Faith In these works, he inspires a people that are living in uncertainty, to keep living by a dynamic faith in Christ and to persevere with hope, even as they were facing opposition and pressure from a culture that didn't believe or so much care for their beliefs. Followers of Jesus Christ should live with one foot in this world and the other in the world to come. We should be fully engaged with this life AND we should also live with an awareness of eternity. Having this double perspective - gives us wisdom for our 'here and now'. It shapes our priorities, impacts our schedules, influences our dreams and our decisions. It fuels our hearts for the gospel and for people around us to know and experience Jesus. Followers of Jesus Christ should live with one foot in this world and the other in the world to come. We should be fully engaged with this life. But we should also live with an awareness of eternity. One day—Jesus Christ will break through the sky, and He will make all things new - set all things right! But until then we’re to navigate with wisdom and influence. Having that double perspective of this world and the world to come can grow us in living wisely for God… Date: First and Second Thessalonians may be the earliest of Paul’s letters, written shortly after the evangelization of the Thessalonians, hence by about a.d. 50, within two decades of Jesus’ resurrection. Situation. While preaching Jesus as Messiah (the Jewish king) in Thessalonica, Paul had been accused of preaching another king besides Caesar (Acts 17:7). “Jesus is Lord” > Caesar is Lord”. The very young Thessalonian church continued to experience persecution after Paul’s departure, but he encourages them with the promise of a future hope. 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10 NLT 1 This letter is from Paul, Silas, and Timothy.We are writing to the church in Thessalonica, to you who belong to God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.May God give you grace and peace. 2 We always thank God for all of you and pray for you constantly. 3 As we pray to our God and Father about you, we think of your faithful work, your loving deeds, and the enduring hope you have because of our Lord Jesus Christ. 4 We know, dear brothers and sisters, that God loves you and has chosen you to be his own people. 5 For when we brought you the Good News, it was not only with words but also with power, for the Holy Spirit gave you full assurance that what we said was true. And you know of our concern for you from the way we lived when we were with you. 6 So you received the message with joy from the Holy Spirit in spite of the severe suffering it brought you. In this way, you imitated both us and the Lord. 7 As a result, you have become an example to all the believers in Greece— throughout both Macedonia and Achaia. 8 And now the word of the Lord is ringing out from you to people everywhere, even beyond Macedonia and Achaia, for wherever we go we find people telling us about your faith in God. We don’t need to tell them about it, 9 for they keep talking about the wonderful welcome you gave us and how you turned away from idols to serve the living and true God. 10 And they speak of how you are looking forward to the coming of God’s Son from heaven—Jesus, whom God raised from the dead. He is the one who has rescued us from the terrors of the coming judgment. v3 As we pray to our God and Father about you, we think of your faithful work, your loving deeds, and the enduring hope you have because of our Lord Jesus Christ.v7-8a As a result, you have become an example to all the believers in Greece—throughout both Macedonia and Achaia. 8 And now the word of the Lord is ringing out from you to people everywhere,... Authentic believers communicate their faith. These new believers embodied the truth— acted on the truth. They also communicated the truth. They openly announced the news of the gospel. “Rang out,” which translates a term related to our English word “echo.” It is used for trumpets or thunder or other loud sounds as they echo across space. Q) does the gospel 'echo' from your life and how you talk, how you live for others to hear, bump into and experience? Q) is your faith in Jesus authenticated? Are you aligned with Jesus to live out his ways more and more this year than last? Are you allowing Him to grow you and thus to radiate His love outward so others can see it - do you talk about Him and your hope in him with others? Domino Effect:As Christians, we are all dominoes in the chain reaction set off by Jesus 2,000 years ago. The amazing thing about dominoes falling is that the chain reaction always starts small—with just one, seemingly insignificant domino.…we have no idea what or how big the impact will be as God multiplies your faithfulness friend. Live an authenticated faith in Jesus - out loud for others to see, bump into and experience…and watch what God can do... www.elementscitychurch.org

Dear Roger, I know God said, “It is not good for man to be alone” (Genesis 2:18). I’ve been thinking a lot about friends—it’s been tough to make time for mine lately. Can you give me some insight into why friends are so important? Sincerely, Dale Dear Dale, I would be glad to share a few thoughts. 1. If Jesus needed close friends, think how important close friends must be for us. Jesus said to His disciples, “No longer said do I call you servants, but I have called you friends” (John 15:15). Before Jesus went to Jerusalem to die, he stopped along the way to see his good friends, Mary, Martha, and Lazarus Jesus had the Twelve disciples (well, eleven anyway), and three of these were His intimate friends. Jesus shared His glory with Peter, James, and John on the Mount of Transfiguration. He wanted his three best friends to experience the joyous shining of His glory with Him. He didn’t want to experience His transfiguration alone. Jesus was struggling in the Garden the night before the crucifixion. He pleaded with His disciples to watch and pray for Him. He needed his close friends to provide encouragement and comfort. Unfortunately, in that case, they did not measure up to the task. That happens sometimes. Every Christian needs close friends to walk with through life. 2. We live in a lonely culture. Everyone could use some friends. I was sitting in the Tulsa airport when the man next to me began talking about friends. He shared that he didn’t have any. In fact, he told me that recently his wife said to him, “You need some friends.” “So, I went out and bought a dog. You know, dogs are a man’s best friend!” Is that sad or what? Don’t get me wrong; dogs can be wonderful companions. My daughter, Brianna, says that God must have created dogs right before Eve, because they love well, respond to emotion, and show loyalty. But don’t miss this. Even in the Garden of Eden, even with the Creator as his companion, God looked at Adam’s loneliness and said, “It is not good for man to be alone; I will make a helper fit for him.” So, he created Eve. God created us to live in relationship with one another. 3. Our world is filled with people who outwardly look content but inwardly are crying out for someone to love them. Many are confused, lonely, frustrated, frightened, guilty, and unable to communicate, even with their own families. Other people look so happy and contented that we seldom have the courage to admit our own deep needs. Don’t be fooled. If only these people who seem so happy and contented would just take off their masks, we would often see that they are in as much pain as we are—perhaps even more. 4. Close friends have the ability to sense inner turmoil and then administer love, comfort, and grace at just the right times. Pastor Alexander MacLaren used to say, “Be kind to everyone you meet, because everyone is fighting a battle.” During my forty-plus years of pastoring, I discovered that most people have one word—just one—that will pierce through their façade and reveal the hurt underneath. I’m sure that’s true for you, too, whether it be a wayward child’s name, an illness or disease, a deep disappointment, or a painful memory. That’s why in many ways, the church, not the building, but the people, is a hospital for hurting people. We come together and help one another heal through intimate friendship and understanding. We all need authentic love and acceptance! 5. Close friends allow us to experience the “wonder of with.” Jesus appointed twelve—designating them apostles—that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach.” (Mark 3:14) Notice that Jesus didn’t send His disciples—his close friends—out to preach until the final year of His ministry. They spent two and a half years just being with Him. Imagine what people said to the disciples during the first two and a half years. “What do you do here in ministry?” “Well, we are here with Him.” “Yeah, but what do you do?” “We just hang around with him.” The only one who held a job during those two and a half years was who? Judas. I bet Judas never embraced the “wonder of with.” In the western world, we have lost the “wonder of with. We are always frantically wanting to go out and do! But God intended for us to walk through life with one another, simply experiencing life together. Where do you learn the “wonder of with”? You learn it in Jerusalem—just hanging out with your spouse, family, and friends. My son-in-law, Brad, began practicing the “wonder of with” alongside my granddaughters from the moment they were born. Heading to the grocery store? He bundled them into the car. A late afternoon at work? He picked them up from school, grabbed a drink at Sonic, and they listened to music in his office. An evening at home? He brought everyone into the living room to snuggle on the couch and watch a movie—no phones allowed. Today, I wish you could see the love those young women have for their daddy. Every week, each one claims a “daddy-daughter” date. Great relationships grow out of the “wonder of with.” 6. Friendship is a “sheltering tree.” Samuel Coleridge was a British essayist and poet who is best remembered for The Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner, which told the story of a becalmed ship filled with dead men. Coleridge was victimized by rheumatism. He tried to mask his pain with opium and became addicted. He was lonely and in unhappy marriage. His wife died young of cancer. Coleridge died in his sixties under a doctor’s care--still addicted, miserable, and unable to settle the voices which were raging inside. But he had a close friend named William Wordsworth. If you love poetry, that name should be very familiar. He stood by Coleridge through it all, offering comfort, acceptance, and strength. One of Coleridge’s best works has never been published. My favorite line is, “Friendship is a sheltering tree.” I think of close friends like great trees with leafy limbs that come around us and spread themselves over us. They bring shade from the sun, protection from storms, and combat winter’s wind of loneliness. Picture a great sheltering tree. That is a close friend. 7. Friends must be cultivated. They don’t come automatically. “A man who has friends must show himself friendly” (Proverbs 18:24). Samuel Johnson wrote: “If a man does not make new acquaintances as he advances through life, he will soon find himself left alone. One should keep his friendships in constant repair.” In the wake of Covid, many of us became incredibly isolated. We discovered artificial substitutes for close friendships like social media or even binge-watching TV. We text more often than we talk! Today, getting together “in person” often seems like too much effort. But let’s be real. There is no substitute for face-to-face interaction. We need genuine, heartfelt conversation where we can respond to each other’s facial expressions. Emojis don’t cut it! We need hugs and handshakes, not hashtags. We need to clasp hands and pray together, not just copy and paste “praying” into the comment section of a Facebook post. Close friendship is worth the effort every time. Please, don’t stay isolated. We need each other now! 8. Friends aren’t neutral. If you run with good friends, you become a better person. If you run with poor friends, you will risk your faith. Choose your friends wisely. In 1 Corinthians 15:33, Paul warns, “Do not be misled: Bad company corrupts good character.” If you are a gossip, you usually run with gossips. If you are a rebel, you run with rebels. Or on the other hand, if you run with rebels, you become one. If you want to be wise, run with wise people and you become wise. It’s amazing how our friends influence who we are. 9. Friends come in four classifications, not one. (Thank you, Chuck Swindoll!) 1. Acquaintances are those with whom we have spasmodic contact and superficial interaction. We don’t ask hard questions. For example: “How are you doing?” “I’m really not doing very well, but I can’t tell you.” 2. Casual friends may share with us some common interests. Maybe we will even ask an opinion of a casual friend. We are a little closer but not too close. We still keep a safe distance. 3. Close friends often have similar life goals. We feel free to ask close friends the hard questions. We often go out to eat with close friends or have them over for meals. These are the folks with whom we invest much time as we open up and share with them. 4. We keep no secrets from intimate friends. We can tell them anything. Our hearts are laid bare before them. We share our very lives with intimate friends. Now, let me tell you a tragedy. Many people have no intimate friends. They are the loneliest people in the world. There is no one with whom they can open up. That’s why life is so tough. You are very fortunate if you’ve had one or two intimate friends. Most people never have even one. 10. Good friends stand beside us when we need them. An old legend says that Gabriel the Angel came to Christ after His ascension and asked Him about His plan for sharing the Gospel with the whole world. Jesus said: “I have selected twelve men and told them to take the gospel to the entire world.” Gabriel replied, “But they are just men. Men get sick and die. They can be lazy and disobedient and confused. What if they fail? What is your backup plan?” Jesus said: “I don’t have a backup plan. I am counting on them.” And they didn’t let Him down. They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. (Acts 2:42-47) Well, I hope this both answers your question and encourages you to pursue close friendships. Love, Roger .

When Jesus was crucified, the disciples wondered what was next. The Man they had followed for over three years, the Man they believed would save Israel and the world, had died a horrible death. They scattered and hid, grief-stricken and frightened, wondering if they too would be targeted. But then, three days after His crucifixion, Jesus rose from the grave! MESSAGE SUMMARY SERIES: Easter Messages MESSAGE: Easter Sunrise Service 2016 - What's Next? Skip Heitzig SPEAKER: SCRIPTURE: John 16:16-33 When Jesus was crucified, the disciples wondered what was next. The Man they had followed for over three years, the Man they believed would save Israel and the world, had died a horrible death. They scattered and hid, grief-stricken and frightened, wondering if they too would be targeted. But then, three days after His crucifixion, Jesus rose from the grave—He was alive! In this special Easter message, we see what's next for us as we examine three benefits the resurrection gives believers today. STUDY GUIDE Connect Group Recap: March 27, 2016 Speaker: Skip Heitzig Teaching: "What's Next?" Text: John 16:16-33 Path With the terrorist attacks in Paris, San Bernardino, and most recently, Brussels, many people want to know what's next for the world. In this Easter message, Pastor Skip taught what came next after the crucifixion and burial of Christ: the resurrection---Jesus is alive! Jesus always knew what would come next, and we look at three benefits for those who receive Him as Lord and Savior: I. II. III. Living Hope (vv. 16-20) Lasting Joy (vv. 21-23) Lingering Peace (vv. 31-33) Points Living Hope (vv. 16-20) • The disciples were confused when Jesus said, "You will not see Me" (v. 16). Their confusion turned to comfort when Jesus pointed out that their sorrow would turn into joy (see v. 20). Easter Sunrise Service 2016 - What's Next? - John 16:16-33 | SkipHeitzig.com/4056 Page | 1 • Jesus changed Peter's life, transforming him from a fisherman to a fisher of men. When Jesus was crucified, Peter's hopes were crushed. But when Jesus showed Himself alive, hope made its debut, causing Peter to write, "[God] has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead" (1 Peter 1:3, NIV). • Probe: Discuss your conversion to Christ. How did Christ take you from spiritual death and doubt to a living hope? Lasting Joy (vv. 21-23) • In John 16:21, Jesus used the example of a baby being born as metaphor for the resurrection: from pain to proclamation, as grief gives way to gladness. • Two thousand years ago, the followers of Jesus asked, "What's next?" after Jesus was crucified and buried. The disciples were concerned and afraid. Yet something crucial happened: Jesus rose from the dead, bringing great joy. Joy is a byproduct of our relationship with God. • Probe: Take a moment to compare a physical birth to a spiritual birth. What are their similarities and differences? Why do you think Jesus used the metaphor of birth to convey the truth of salvation both in this text (resurrection) and in John 3:7 (spiritual birth)? Lingering Peace (vv. 31-33) • Jesus told the disciples to "be of good cheer" (v. 33), because He was in control; He knew the resurrection would come from the debris of death. • Jesus prepared His disciples for what was next: pain, sorrow, and confusion---but also hope, joy, and peace. His crucifixion resulted in the first three, but His resurrection provided the latter. • How do we know Jesus really rose from the dead? o Evidence for the resurrection: § Fulfilled prophecy: Jesus predicted His death on several occasions (see Mark 8:31; John 2:19). § Eyewitness accounts: these historical accounts include Roman (Tacitus), Jewish (Josephus), and Christian testimonies (the Gospels). § Personal testimony: the changed lives of Jesus' followers • Probe: Why is evidence important to demonstrate the reality of the resurrection? As in any legal trial, evidence is needed to support a claim. Discuss a few of the claims, and if needed, take a look at the evidence provided by Josh McDowell: http://www.josh.org/resurrection/evidence-for-the-resurrection/ Practice Connect Up: Paul stated, "If Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty" (1 Corinthians 15:14). The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the heartbeat of the body of Christ; it is the reason we are Christians. Discuss the importance of the resurrection in your relationship with God. How does the reality of the resurrection affect your daily walk with Christ? Connect In: Paul further encouraged us as believers, saying that we "may know [Jesus] and Easter Sunrise Service 2016 - What's Next? - John 16:16-33 | SkipHeitzig.com/4056 Page | 2 the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings" (Philippians 3:10). How does Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection bring fellowship with other believers? Connect Out: Because there is power in Jesus' resurrection, what is the believer's role in proclaiming that power? Think about this: because of the resurrection, the gospel has changed the world by the Holy Spirit through His body---you and me. Discuss ways you can share the gospel with your family, friends, and neighbors. Take a moment to pray for the nonbelievers you know. DETAILED NOTES I. II. Introduction A. People are asking, "What's next?" now more than ever before 1. People ask this question every time there is a catastrophic event 2. 3. B. 2,000 years ago, there was a catastrophic event outside the city walls of Jerusalem a. b. Jesus Christ was executed The disciples hid behind locked doors because they feared they would be arrested next Even Jesus' enemies wondered what was next a. They asked for a special guard to be placed outside Jesus' tomb b. They did not want anyone to steal the body (see Matthew 27:64) Today, we can answer the question they asked 2,000 years ago 1. Thousands of people who claimed to know Jesus Christ flooded Jerusalem 2. 3. 4. 5. C. Saul of Tarsus was converted a. He spread the gospel to the north and east b. By the end of the first century, Christianity spread through the entire Roman Empire By the fourth century, Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire 2,000 years after Christ's death, two billion people claim to be adherents of Jesus Christ Massive expansion During the Last Supper, Jesus sat with His disciples, and He knew what was going to happen next 1. 2. 3. Jesus would be arrested a. He would go through a mock trial b. c. He would be sentenced to death He would die Jesus always knew what was next a. He knew Judas would betray Him b. c. He knew Peter would deny Him He knew the disciples would run away and be confused He also knew what the future held for them Living Hope (vv. 16-20) A. The disciples did not understand what Jesus told them Easter Sunrise Service 2016 - What's Next? - John 16:16-33 | SkipHeitzig.com/4056 Page | 3 1. Even the closest, most intimate followers of Jesus Christ did not know what He was talking about 2. B. John 14:1-5 Jesus was talking about His upcoming death and resurrection 1. Their hopes died when their Savior died 2. 3. C. Their hopes were raised back to life when Jesus their Savior was resurrected 1 Peter 1:3 Before they met Jesus, the disciples' days were very routine 1. Anything can become boring if you do it every day 2. D. One day, Jesus stepped into their lives and changed everything Some of His disciples met Him on the road to Emmaus (see Luke 24:13-21) 1. He asked why they were so sad 2. 3. E. They did not realize who they were talking to and said they had hoped Jesus was the one to redeem Israel Past-tense hope When Jesus showed Himself alive, their hope was reignited and became a living hope 1. 2. F. All Jesus' promises were true Anything was possible if the one who said He would die and rise again, died and rose again Some of Jesus' promises did not make any sense until He was raised from the dead 1. 2. III. "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live" (John 11:25) "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me" (John 14:6) Lasting Joy (vv. 21-23) A. When Jesus died on the cross, it was the disciples' worst nightmare 1. It was the saddest day of their lives 2. 3. B. They thought they would never be happy again There was no joy when Jesus was laying in the tomb Those who loved Jesus were overjoyed when they discovered He was risen 1. When He appeared to the disciples in the upper room, they rejoiced (see John 20:20) 2. C. The women left the empty tomb with fear and great joy (see Matthew 28:8) Jesus illustrated this by comparing it to having a baby 1. Painful, sorrowful, distressing, all-consuming 2. D. Once you hear the first cry of the baby, your agony is eclipsed by ecstasy God turns darkness into joy 1. There is a risen, living Christ alive today who loves you 2. 3. E. Joy is an inward condition of a soul that's fixed on God A by-product of a relationship with God "If you have no joy in your religion, there's a leak in your Christianity somewhere" —Billy Sunday 1. If you have no joy in your life, it says something about your view of God Easter Sunrise Service 2016 - What's Next? - John 16:16-33 | SkipHeitzig.com/4056 Page | 4 2. It is an admission that you don't believe God takes care of you 3. IV. Paul instructed the Philippians to "Rejoice in the Lord always" (Philippians 4:4) a. b. He wrote this while he was sitting in prison He thought he would be executed for his faith Lingering Peace (vv. 31-33) A. Jesus told the disciples that they would be hopeless and full of sorrow and that they would run away B. C. D. V. How could they have peace? 1. It showed them He was in control 2. 3. He knew what was next, even though they didn't Nothing catches God off guard What's next for the followers of Christ? 1. Pain, sorrow, and confusion 2. Hope, joy, and peace because of the life, death, and resurrection of Christ How did they know He had risen from the dead? 1. Jesus predicted His death and resurrection 2. 3. Closing A. There were eyewitness accounts who saw Him after the resurrection The lives of Jesus' followers were changed a. They changed from cowards to people with confidence b. They were willing to die for their faith What's next for you? B. C. Death does not end the existence of anyone 1. Everyone will live forever, either in hell or in heaven 2. Physical form Beyond living hope, lasting joy, and lingering peace, you can have heaven Figures referenced: Billy Sunday Cross references: Matthew 27:64; 28:8; Luke 24:13-21; John 11:25; 14:1-6; 20:20; Philippians 4:4; 1 Peter 1:3 Topic: Easter Keywords: catastrophe, disciples, Last Supper, hope, joy, peace, future, resurrection, living hope, promises, rejoice, sorrow, the cross, tomb, faith, hell, heaven Easter Sunrise Service 2016 - What's Next? - John 16:16-33 | SkipHeitzig.com/4056 Page | 5 www.connectwithskip.com

“The Role of Prophecy” SERMON by Skip Heitzig Scripture: Genesis 12:1-3 SERMON TRANSCRIPT I trust you brought a Bible, so turn to Genesis, first book in the Bible, Genesis, chapter 12. Genesis chapter 12. This is a series that we are doing on the end times, a study on biblical eschatology. It's called, The end is near? And to give you a little synopsis of where we have been, we began with a New Year's message, what does the future hold? We talked about some current signs going on in the world that are pretty good indicators that we are living in very unique times. Our second study, we looked at how close are we to the end. People have been saying we're in the end times for quite some time. Where do we fit in that? Our third study. We talked about the problem of Jesus' return. On one hand, the Bible says, be ready. He can come any time. On the other hand, it says certain signs have to be fulfilled before He can come. How do we reconcile those texts? We talked about that. Then we looked at the Millennium on the next study. The Millennium, not in terms of what it's going to be like, but in terms of the theological differences that people hold regarding the rule and reign of Christ on the Earth or not. We talked about millennialism. Then we-- a couple of weeks ago, read Daniel, chapter 9, how God tells time, the 70 weeks of Daniel, and we looked at the first 69 weeks of that 70-week prophecy. Last week, we dealt with the 70th week of Daniel, just that last seven-year period. Today, I want to look at the role of Israel in prophecy. The role of Israel and prophecy. I don't know if you caught this or not, but a bill was introduced this week in the Israeli Knesset, the parliament in Israel, that would have outlawed the sharing of the gospel in Israel. That is, it would become illegal to even say to another person that Jesus is the Messiah. They already have very strict conversion laws, but this is a law that would have given you a jail sentence if you are caught saying that Jesus is the Messiah. Well, thankfully, the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu said, and I quote, we will not advance any law against the Christian community. We're grateful for that. Believers in Israel are grateful for that. But there has been an antagonism between Judaism and the claims of Christ as Messiah, and because of that antagonism, some have flatly said-- some in the church, some in Christendom have said, God is done with Israel as a nation. And so we posed the question, is that true? Is it true? Is God finished with Israel as a nation? Does God's plans for the future in the end times have a plan for literal Israel as a nation, not spiritual Israel, not just the church, but for Israel as a literal nation? Now, I pose the question because that's the question Paul asked. He almost asked it that way in Romans chapter 11. Paul the apostle asked and answered his own question. He said, has God cast away His people? Then he answered it, certainly not. Certainly not. In the Old King James, God forbids-- because it's the strongest negative you can use in the Greek language. It would be translated no, no, no. Has God castaway His people? No, no, no. Now, a couple of weeks ago, I made the statement that many pulpits, many pastors do not teach on prophecy, in general. Even though 27% of the Bible is prophetic, you've got a group of pulpits and pastors, who refuse to deal with 27% of the Bible. Even fewer pulpits and pastors broach the subject of Israel. They don't talk about it. They don't talk about God's plan for Israel. Now why is that? Well, there's probably many reasons, but let me give you a couple of reasons. First, is a political ideology. There is a conflict, as you know, between the Israelis and the Palestinians. They have had that conflict for some time. And so in hearing what people are saying, especially on college campuses, that Israel is the bad guy. They're the big guy. They're the aggressor, and the Palestinians have been given a bad deal. Without really doing the necessary digging and background to find out if that's verifiably true or not, it becomes a political flashpoint for some. And so God doesn't have any plans for Israel. Look, they're the bad guys. It's for political reasons. Second, and what disturbs me the most, is that it's for theological reasons. And there is a brand of theology, we've talked about it, it's a pretty enormous brand, that believes in all millennialism. There's no literal future rule and reign of Christ on the Earth. And part of all millennial thinking is something called replacement theology. Anybody ever heard of replacement theology? So replacement theology does exactly that. It replaces Israel with the church, so that all the promises that God gave to Israel are no longer for Israel, literally, but they are now for the church, their spiritual application. So we replace the Jews. So the belief is that the modern state of Israel is purely accidental and unrelated to Bible prophecy. That when Israel rejected Jesus Christ as a nation that God rejected them. And in rejecting them God transferred all of the promises that He had given to them, and He transferred them all over to the church, which is really an interesting way of thinking, because God promised blessings and cursings to Israel. What's funny about this all millennial replacement theology is they say, well, all of the curses belong to them, and all the blessings belong to us. So any prediction, any prophecy that Israel will be regathered now refers to the elect being gathered into the church. That, in a nutshell, is replacement theology. So for the next few weeks, we're going to be looking at the role of Israel in prophecy. We're going to look at Genesis 12 today. Next time, we're going to look at Ezekiel 36 and 37, the promise of them being restored to the land and a spiritual transformation taking place. And then, after that, we're going to look at the next two chapters of Ezekiel, which describe a very interesting war that's going to take place in the Middle East. Today, we're looking at Genesis 12, which is the Abrahamic covenant. Why is it called the Abrahamic covenant? Pretty simple it's a covenant God made with Abraham. So it goes by the name Abrahamic covenant. So pretty handy how that works out. So we're going to be looking at that. That's what this chapter is all about. But I want you to hear a quote. This is from a Jewish source called the Midrash. Midrash are comments on different texts of the scripture that have been handed down through the centuries. It goes like this. The land of Israel is at the center of the world. Jerusalem is at the center of the land of Israel. The temple is at the center of Jerusalem. It's their fanciful way of saying, the temple is the center of the Earth. It's a clever saying. It's sort of an oversimplification. I don't know about all of that, but I do know this that Israel is at the center of Bible prophecy. It occupies a central place. We saw that last week in the Book of Daniel and the week before in the Book of Daniel. Remember, 70 weeks are determined for Your people, Jewish people, and for Your Holy city, so Israel, Jerusalem, is at the center of Bible prophecy. It's astonishing, really, that seminaries that teach theology will teach their students theology proper, the study of God. They'll then talk about Christology, the study of Christ, who He is, what He's going to do. They'll then teach their students pneumatology, the study of the Holy Spirit. They'll teach ecclesiology, the study of the church anthropology, the study of humanity, especially after the fall. They'll teach eschatology, what we're doing, end times. But they fail, often, to teach a very important biblical subject, Israelology, the place and role of Israel throughout the scripture. It is literally everywhere. So let's look today at Genesis 12. Really, the first three verses, but I'll read the fourth verse for a little more context. And we're going to notice five promises that God gives, five unconditional-- underline that word, unconditional promises God gives to Abraham. Verse 1, Now the Lord had said to Abram-- Abram was the original name before God changed it to Abraham. Get out of your country. He was living in Mesopotamia, Ur of the Chaldees. Get out of your country, from your family, and from your father's house to a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation. I will bless you and make your name great. And you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you, and in you all the families of the Earth shall be blessed. So Abraham departed as the Lord had spoken to him, and Lot with him. And Abraham, get this, was 75 years old when he departed from Harran. Life's just getting started for Abe at 75. So five unconditional promise. First, God says you'll be a great nation. That's verse 2, I will make you a great nation. Now in the very least, can we agree that God has a sense of humor? [LAUGHTER] To tell a man who's 75, hey-- and infertile, by the way. His wife is also old. She cannot have children. She has never borne children. To tell this old couple, hey, you're going to have a baby. Not only that. You're going to have a family. Not only that. It's going to be a great nation. He's 75 when God makes the promise. He'll be 99 when it happens. 100 years old. Eventually he did have a family. The family grew. The family grew. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, 12 sons became tribes. They went down to Egypt because of a famine. They were there 400 years. The nation grew to two, three million people, we believe. They left Egypt. They eventually settled in the promised land called Canaan. There they grew again, multiplied again. A monarchy developed, King Saul, King David, Solomon, et cetera, et cetera. It's been pretty great. Now, today, here we are, years later, after the promise made to Abraham, and we're still noticing that there is a nation over in the Middle East called Israel, the descendants of Abraham. Today, it is still a great nation. Today, in the land of Israel, it's the size of New Jersey, and there are 9.3 million people that live in Israel. 6.9 million of them are Jewish. They have enjoyed a 43% growth due to immigration. People are moving there, moving there, moving there still to this day. 43% growth. And they're a pretty great nation as nations go. They have a $500 billion per year economy. It's a very strong economic nation. It's one of the largest growers and exporters of citrus in the world. You'll be a great nation God says to him. If you go to the West Bank, there's a ridge of mountains down the middle, and there's a town about the middle portion of the land, the ancient city of Bethel-- Bethel, where God appeared to Jacob. And there is a grocer, who put a sign in an intersection outside of Bethel. I want you to read what it says on the sign. Here in Bethel 3,800 years ago-- actually it was a couple years longer than that-- the Creator of the world promised the land of Israel to the people of Israel. It is by virtue of this promise that we dwell today in Haifa, Tel Aviv, Shiloh and Hebron. That's a sign that simply reminds us God made a promise made, a covenant with Abraham and He has kept that promise. I love Israel. I love going there. I've been there now 42 times. I'm going again next year. We invite you to come along with us. I love going there because when I walk on the land, I remind myself, this is where Abraham came. This is where Isaac lived, Jacob lived. The tribes lived here. This is where a King David reigned. This is where the prophets spoke. This is where Solomon reigned. This is where Jesus was born, and died, and rose, and will come again too. It's a great, great place. But part of the promise of them being a great nation is tied to the land. I want you to notice something in verse 1. In verse 1, it says, get out of your country, from your family, from your father's house to a land that I will show you. Now, get this, all millennialists will interpret or reinterpret the land promise here and elsewhere in the Bible as a non-literal promise. That is, it is simply now to be seen as a promise that God is giving heaven to the elect, to the church. Well, listen to the words of John Walvoord, who was the president of Dallas Seminary for 30-plus years, taught eschatology there for 50 years. Quote, the term land used in the Bible means exactly what it says. It is not talking about heaven. It is talking about a piece of real estate in the Middle East. After all, if all God was promising Abraham was heaven, He could have stayed in Ur of the Chaldees. Why go on a long journey? Why be a pilgrim and a wanderer? No, God meant land. Get up. Leave your home. Leave your land. Leave your country. Go to a land that I will show you. So verse 4, he departed. He went on a journey, and he goes to the land. When he gets to the land in chapter 15 God repeats that promise and actually expands a little bit on the promise. So you have your Bible open in Genesis 12. Turn a few pages to the right and go to Genesis chapter 15, please. And notice with me Genesis 15 verse 18. On the same day, the Lord made a covenant, a covenant, a pact, a deal, a promise with Abraham, saying, to your descendants, your descendants Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, I have given this land. Now notice this, from the River of Egypt to the Great River, the River Euphrates. That's up in Iraq. The Kenites, the Kenesites, the Cadmanites, the Hittites, the parasites, the turn on the lights-- Oh, they're not there. [LAUGHTER] The Rephaim, the Amorites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites, the actual borders are given, the geographical borders are stated in ancient terms. They're specified. By the way, if you were to go to a map and look at this configuration, you would discover that God promised to Abraham and his descendants 300,000 square miles. 300,000 square miles. They have never occupied that much land in their history. At their very peak, at their zenith, under David and Solomon, they occupied about a tenth of that, about 30,000 square miles, but God promised them 300,000 square miles. And the borders encompassed the land of Lebanon, the land of Iraq, part of Iran, Persia, an enormous section of land, so they've never occupied it yet. That's the key word there. So He promises land, and He gives them the configuration of this land. I have given it to you. Then He reinforces this promise to his son, Isaac, in Genesis 17, verses 6 through 8. You don't have to turn there. We don't have time to chase it all down. He gives it again to Jacob later on. You, Jacob, and your descendants, I've given this land, Genesis 28, verses 13 through 14. He repeats it again in Genesis 35. He repeats it again in Deuteronomy 1. Moses says it to the children of Israel. This is the land God has given this to us as a people. So the Abrahamic covenant is woven throughout all of the Old Testament. It shows up in 1 Samuel 12, it shows up in Psalm 94, Psalm 106, Jeremiah 30, Jeremiah 31, Isaiah chapter 14, on, and on, and on, and all the prophets, the Psalms speak about this promise of the land. And get this, God says, even if you totally blow it and disobey Me and reject Me, I'll spank you. I'll send you into captivity, but I'm bringing you back. I'm bringing you back, because I made a covenant to Abraham. I'm bringing you back to the land. So it is often repeated. Now, for centuries, let's just be honest, for centuries Israel was a group of people, but no land. It was an ethnicity. There were Jewish people, but there was no homeland. And so it seemed impossible that they would ever regather back in their ancient homeland. Dr. G Campbell Morgan, whom I've always loved, one of my favorite old dead guy Bible teachers, I've always loved him, but in 1932, he made this statement. I am now quite convinced that the teaching of scripture, as a whole, is that there is no future for Israel as an earthly people at all, end quote. I wish he would have just lived a little longer, because on May 14th in 1948 miraculously and against all odds the state of Israel, the modern state of Israel, was born by declaration and agreed upon by the United Nations. And there they are today. The rebirth of a nation. God promised that to Abraham, and to Isaac, and to Jacob, and repeated it in all those scriptures I just mentioned. Now, something I want you to notice in our text, this is part of this unconditional covenant, leave your family, your father's house to a land I will show you, verse 2. I will make you a great nation. I will bless you. Verse 3, I will bless those who bless you. I will curse him who curses you. Five times God says, I will. I will. I will. I will. I will. So I'm going to take God's I will over any of you saying He won't. He won't do that. He won't do this. God said, I will. I will. I will. I will. And it is an unconditional covenant. There are no strings, no covenants. When God gave this to Abraham in chapter 15, Abraham watched God perform this odd ceremony of a torch going between pieces of an animal because God was doing it all. Abraham would just watch this and take in that promise, so that's the first promise you'll be a great nation. Second unconditional promise, you will bear a great name. Verse 2, I'll make you a great nation. I will bless you. Here it is. And make your name great. Hey, isn';t it interesting? Here we are 4,100 years after the initial promise God gave to Abraham. We're still talking about Abraham. We're talking about this man 4,100 years later. He's still revered by millions. Jews and Arabs are both physical descendants of Abraham. Currently, there are 470 million of them alive, descendants, literal fleshly descendants of Abraham. Jews, Christians, and Muslims all trace their spiritual heritage back to Abraham. Even if you're not Jewish, you trace a spiritual legacy of faith back to Abraham. I can prove it. I can prove it right now, because you're going to sing a song that you remember from Sunday school called "Father Abraham" Go ahead, sing it. Ready? (SINGING) Father Abraham had many sons. And many sons had Father Abraham-- Look at you. You actually did it. It was just sort of a joke, but you did it. Way to go. [LAUGHTER] Way to go. Way to go. Way to go. Father Abraham, here we are singing it. God identifies himself about a dozen times in the Bible under this name. I am the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I'm not just God. I'm not just almighty God. I'm the Got Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And the greatness of Abraham has been a legacy. And the Jewish people have experienced that as a whole. A couple of weeks ago, I told you that the population of the world was 7.8 billion people, and that 15 million of them are Jews. Can I just remind you again, that's two-thirds of 1%. Very small percentage. Two-thirds of 1% are Jewish people in this world. But get this, that tiny little minority, two-thirds of 1%, they have collected between 25% and 33% of all the Nobel prizes ever awarded in science, in music, and in literature. Ever taken an aspirin? Well, then thank Friedrich Bayer, who is a Jew, who had a pharmaceutical company in Germany for that invention. If you've ever been vaccinated for polio, you should know that Dr. Albert Sabin and Dr. Jonas Salk, both Jews, came up with the vaccine. If you've ever gone to a dentist, and he's deadened or she's deadened your gums, it's because of Dr. Albert Einhorn, a Jewish chemist, who invented that substance. If you ever get a bacterial infection and take streptomycin, that's the invention of another Jewish doctor named Abraham Waksman. If you have ever been tested for syphilis, and I hope you haven't-- [LAUGHTER] --but you can thank Dr. Neusland, who developed the Wassermann test to discover that. And then when it comes to just studying the DNA and the double helix model we have to thank Dr. James Watson and Francis Crick, both Jews, for that. And if you've ever been forgiven of your sins, it's because a Jewish Savior did it named Yeshua. [APPLAUSE] So you'll be a great nation. You'll bear a great name. Here's the third unconditional promise, you'll bring great news. You'll bring great news. God says in verse 2, I will bless you. The end of verse 2, you shall be a blessing. Verse 3, the end of verse 3, and in you all the families of the Earth shall be blessed. Think how amazingly that promise has been kept through the conduit of the Jewish nation. Think of all the good news we would be missing if there was no nation of Israel. You know what we'd be missing? We'd be missing this. I couldn't say, turn in your Bibles to-- you wouldn't have a Bible. They meticulously made sure by copying it with the most incredible means to make sure that it has been preserved. Without the Jews there would be no Ten Commandments. The Ten Commandments are the basis of American jurisprudence. Without the Jews, there would be no Savior, and without the Jewish Savior, there be no Christianity. That's the whole premise of Romans chapter 9 in your New Testament. Now, primarily, this promise is fulfilled in Jesus, the Messiah. In you, all the families of the Earth shall be blessed. Every single family on planet Earth has access to salvation if they believe in the Lord Jesus. It's a promise given to anyone and to everyone. In you, all the families of the Earth will be blessed. The very word gospel, it means good news, great news. And it went from Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the uttermost parts of the Earth. First time I went to Israel, I said, I've been there 42 times, the first two times I went, I went to live there as a worker on a farm known as a kibbutz. And so here I am, a Gentile German, an American of German descent, no Jewish blood at all, loving Israel with a group of young kids working on the land in Israel. And this mystified them. They're trying to figure us out. Like, why are you here? I mean, we understand why we're here. We're Jewish. We kind of come. We're working the land. We';re trying to make it a great place, but why are you here? What interest do you have in Israel? Why do you love Israel? And I was asked that question a number of times. And I remember answering. I said, I love Israel because your Messiah happens to be my Savior. And in falling in love with Him, He introduced me to the people that He came through which is you. And they're still trying to get their heads around that. But I guess the question for you is have you personally been blessed by the great news of Jesus Christ? It's a blessing to all the families, but don't let it just be something, oh, my family's always believed in that stuff. What about you, personally? You, personally? So the good news, the great news is for you, personally. So three unconditional promises. You're going to be a great nation. You'll bear a great name. You'll bring great news. Fourth unconditional promise, you'll become a great need. You'll become a great need. What do I mean by that? Well, look at verse 3, I will bless those who bless you. Anybody here up for a blessing? Want to be blessed? OK, I will bless those who bless you. Bless Israel. And God says, I will bless you. Some people think, well, Israel, poor little Israel over there surrounded by all those people who hate them and want to drive them into the sea. Boy, Israel really needs America. Well, I understand what you mean by that in a geopolitical sense. It's always good to have friends anywhere. But I see it the exact opposite. We need Israel. We need Israel. A few years ago, I had a conference here an Epicenter conference with Joel Rosenberg, and I had a little panel discussion. We were interviewing them and asking them a few questions. And we had leaders, pastors from-- Arab pastors, Jewish pastors from Israel, different parts of the land. And I asked this question, if there's one truth you want American Christians, the church here in America, to understand, what would it be? And one of the leaders paused, collected himself, put a smile on his face, and said, well, with all due respect, what I want the American church to know and America to know is we don't need you. We love you. We want a partnership with you, but when it comes down to it, we are trusting the promises God gave to us, and that's good enough for us. If the whole world is against us, we trust him. So he just said, I just want you to know, we love you, but we don't need you. And I thought, well, you know what? Based on what I'm reading here, he's absolutely right. I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you. And all you have to do is look at history. Look at those nations that historically have supported Israel's freedom, and independence, and right to exist versus nations that have come against the land of Israel. Think of the great nations of the past, Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Rome, Persia all lying in ruins, and they have something all in common. They attacked or came against God's people. In modern times, consider Spain, Germany, Russia, who once were world powers have become now second, third, fourth-rate nations. I'm hoping and praying the United States doesn't get added to that list. We will get added to that list if we follow in their footsteps. So when people say, well, why do you support Israel? It always becomes this political thing. Why do you support Israel? I support Israel, not because I agree with every one of their policies, I do not, or I agree with everything their prime minister says, or because I want to take tourists to Israel. I support Israel because of Israel's sovereign, Israel's scriptures, and Israel's Savior. I support Israel because of the God of Israel, who made a covenant with the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, period. I love Him for that covenant. Number two, they gave us the Bible, I respect that, and thank them for that, and honor them, and support them for that, and because my Savior came from them. So I want to get blessed. Let me ask you this? Ever met a Hittite? Ever met a Hittite? Anybody here met a Hittite, raise your hand. What about a Girgashite? When was the last time you saw a Girgashite? Any Canaanite whatsoever? Yeah, I didn't think so. Yeah, it's because they don't exist anymore. They weren't blessed. I want to be part of the blessing. I will bless those who bless you. You'll become a great need. Fifth, and finally, you'll be called a great nuisance. Now, that's implied in this promise, I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you. Obviously, the implication is not everybody is going to like you, Abe, and your descendants. You're going to incur lots of flak, and lots of blowback, and lots of enemies. There'll be people who are going to curse you. And it's true, this great nation has seen great conflict. They're always in the news. There's always something being stirred up over there. The sons of Abraham are still struggling. Now, Ishmael and Isaac. And when Rebecca, Isaac's wife, was pregnant and she was having pregnancy issues, it was because she had twins, right? Jacob and Esau. And God said, two nations are in your womb. Well, that would cause anybody discomfort if you got two nations running around in there. [LAUGHTER] So two nations are in your womb, and the older will serve the younger. But the wrestling match in the womb is still being experienced today. They're still wrestling it out. According to Leon Uris, a Jewish author, he said Jerusalem has seen 36 wars, been reduced to ashes 17 times, has risen 18 times. The nation has heard the hoof beats of the Assyrians, the Babylonians, the Egyptian war chariots. It has seen the battering rams of the Roman army, the swords of Saladin, and the crusaders. That's their history. War after war after-- throughout the centuries in the Middle East. So this begs the question, will there ever be peace in the Middle East? Boy, I wish I could stand here as an optimist, and say, oh, yeah, we're going to sign all these accords, and shake hands, and hug, and everybody is going to live happily ever after. I can't do that. But I will say this, no. There will never be peace in the Middle East until the Prince of Peace comes. Then there will be peace in the Middle East. [APPLAUSE] Until then, there will not be. As was given to Daniel, desolation as are determined until the end. So not until Jesus comes and sets up His kingdom. Oh, yeah, they'll be short periods of peace. And we'll get along. They';ll get along. And then something will break out. But it's not because there aren't Jews and Muslims who want peace over there. There are many who want peace and are working for it. But part of the problem is you have a Jewish nation surrounded by an Islamic belief system of other nations. Islam itself will not allow there to be peace with Israel. I want you to hear me on this. Islam, as a religion itself, will not allow there to be peace with the Jewish nation. The existence, just the existence of Israel as a nation is an affront to Islam. Every country around Israel is essentially Islamic, and the reason that they say that Israel's existence is an occupation-- ever heard of that term? It's an occupation. They're occupying. The occupiers. The reason Israel is called occupiers is because these other people, Palestinians, greater Muslim world don't even agree that Israel has a right to exist at all, at all. Now, yes, there are moderate Muslims like there are moderate Jews. Yes, there are people who want peace, but understand this, the Quran itself fuels hatred against the Jewish people. Three times in the Quran, the holiest book of the Muslims, three times the Quran calls Jews pigs and apes. I'll cite you the reference, Sura 2:65, Sura 5, verse 60, and Sura chapter 7, verse 166. All three refer to Jews as apes and pigs. So imams will stand up at Friday prayer and often refer to Jewish people as sons of pigs and apes. In the Quran, it teaches, number one, Jews are the greatest enemies of Islam. Number two, Jewish people do not love Muslims. Number three, it's the Jews that start wars and cause trouble on the Earth. And number four, Muslims are not to be friends with Jewish people. When that's in the Holy Book, though not all Muslims are haters, if they want to hate, they'll find reasons to do so in their Bible. So given that, I don't see much hope for peace in the Middle East until Jesus comes. Now all that is a setup for next week's study in Ezekiel chapter 36 and 37, because what we're going to discover is that Israel is regathering to the covenant land that God gave to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and their prosperity in that land will invite conflict. And we'll see that conflict the week after in the War of Gog and Magog. Listen to this text. This is Zechariah chapter 12. God said through Zechariah, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling to all the surrounding nations. Just think of Hamas, Hezbollah, the PLO, the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, on and on, and all the different multitude of organizations that their primary objective is the utter total destruction of the Jewish state. And they're fueled by the largest world sponsor of terrorism, Iran. So I don't see a whole lot of smiles and hugs going on there any time soon. In the United Nations that meets regularly, in the General Assembly, this happened three months ago, for every one country that voted to support Israel three nations called the very existence of Israel a catastrophe. That's how the world is turning. Now I hope that you're not surprised by that because it makes sense. It makes sense that if Israel is indeed the center of God's prophetic plan, it would be also the center of Satan's attack. You would expect that to happen. And so the return of the Jewish nation to the homeland in 1948 is stage one of a promised regathering that we're going to look more in depth at next time. Now what does all this mean to me? Well, think of it this way. God keeps His promises. 4,100 years ago God made a promise to Abram, and then to Abraham, same guy, different name. 4,100 years ago, He made a promise. And here we are saying today, 4.100 years later. God is going to keep his promise. He's already kept it. They're there. And there's more to come. There's more to come. See, this is how I look at it. How are you going to ask anybody to sign up to believe in a God who doesn't keep His promises? Yeah, man. You ought to believe in God. Well, why? He didn't keep his promise to Abraham, did he? Well, yes, He did, actually. Yes, He did. If God doesn't regather Israel like He said to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, then He's a liar. If God says, oh, I'm going to promise you the land, promise you the land, promise your land, then later on go, I've changed my mind. You know what? I'm just going to give all that to them. That's a lie. That's not true, and it's not a truthful way to interpret scripture. The very existence of Israel as a nation with so many enemies surrounding them is proof that God keeps his promise. We have a faithful God, who made promises to Abraham, and we're seeing the fulfillment of them. I would say, in a legal sense, the nation of Israel is exhibit A in the case does God keep His promises. Well, let's see, exhibit A, Israel. God promised them the land. Well, wouldn't you know? The're there now. So some of you are struggling with the promises that God has given to you. You might be suffering harsh economic situation, something with your employment, something in your family, things aren't working out. You believe, but now life is hard post-pandemic, all these complications. I want you to rest on this idea that even when God makes a promise 4,100 years ago, He keeps it. He keeps. It and you can trust His word. There was a professor, an agnostic professor, he visited the Fiji islands. Obviously, an agnostic, an unbeliever. He goes to the Fiji islands, and he looks around. And he notices there's crosses on buildings. There's churches and schools, and they have crosses on them. And he can tell that a missionary has come. Missionaries in the past have come, and this is an evangelized culture. So the professor very arrogantly met the chief of the tribe. And he said, happy to meet you. You seem like a wise man. You have wonderful people. But it's a shame, really, that you've been so duped by the missionaries who came here telling you about Jesus. We know now that the Bible is a hoax. Nobody believes in it anymore. And these missionaries just pulled a fast one. You don't need this stuff. And the tribe leader said to the professor, come here, I want to show you something. Look over there. You see that big rock over there? That's the rock where we used to smash the heads of our victims on that rock. And then below that, you see that big furnace there? That's where we used to burn our victims before we ate them. And then he said this, if it hadn't been for those missionaries, and the love of Jesus Christ, and the gospel message that changed us from cannibals into Christians, you'd be our supper by now. [LAUGHTER] So you better thank God, Mr. Professor that we believe that hoax of the Bible, because you'd be dead and dinner by now. The gospel changes individuals. The gospel changes cultures. In you, all the families of the Earth shall be blessed. You've experienced, we've experienced that great blessing of God and the promise to Abraham. [APPLAUSE] Father, we thank You for the covenant that You made. Here we are recipients of a new covenant, not like the ones made in the Old Testament, not like the one given through Moses in the law. But you made an unconditional covenant with Abraham, and again with his son, Isaac, and again with his son, Jacob. And you repeated that throughout the scripture. [MUSIC PLAYING] For us to come along, and say, yeah, but that's not going to happen is irresponsible in the very least and perhaps even blasphemous. You're a God who keeps His promise. We're seeing it now with this nation in the land. And we, as Your people, stand for the covenant you made with that land in trust, in hopes that one day their eyes will be open, as Your word says it will and Israel in the future will believe and be saved, at some point. You're going to restore them fully, completely. Until that time, in the days in which we live, may we be responsible sons and daughters of the living God, in Jesus's name. Amen.

“Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” Colossians 3:13 NIV Forgiveness is more than just a word or action. It is something that that affects us mentally, emotionally and spiritually. It helps us heal n ways we are only just beginning to understand. This is due to the law of entanglement in quantum physics, which keeps everything in a relationship—toxic or otherwise—entangled, affecting each component. Forgiveness helps us sever the toxic hold someone who hurt us has over us. It helps us disconnect from the source of our pain and find true healing. We cannot escape the fact that we are all entangled in each others lives. When we forgive, we are not just doing so for the sake of the person who has hurt us. We help heal ourselves too! In fact, some amazing things start happening in our mind, brain and body when we forgive. For example, we grow a part of our brain called the anterior superior temporal sulcus (aSTS), and the more we grow this area, the easier it will become to manage the pain of what happened to us. Forgiveness is a part of our healing journey. If someone does something bad to us and we forgive them, we essentially transfer the “pain energy” from what happened to “recovery energy”. We have to take the sting out of the story—yes, it’s still emotional, but it’s managed emotion. Of course, this is a lot easier said than done, and is something that we need to work on using self-regulation and mind management. We can’t just say “I forgive you” as if they are magic words—there needs to be intentionally and work behind what we say and do when someone hurts us. Forgiveness is a mental process, not a one off event. Consider these 5 steps:  1) Gather awareness of how you feel mentally and physically when you think about what happened to you. Are you frustrated? Angry? Fearful? Angry? Sick to your stomach? 2) Reflect on how you feel. Why do you think you feel this way? What is happening in your brain and body as you respond to your pain in this way? Why do you feel like you are struggling to move on from this or forgive this person? 3) Write down your reflections to help organize your thinking.  4) Recheck: think about what your thoughts and feelings are trying to tell you. What does it say about how you view the situation? What is your antidote—how will you take the sting out of your story? How will you disconnect from the pain through forgiveness? Look for clues in your writing, then start to re-conceptualize the way you are thinking about what happened to you and who hurt you. 5) Do your active reach. This is a thought or action you need to practice daily to help you re-conceptualize what you thought about in the previous step – that is, practice seeing the pain differently to change the way it affects your wellbeing and practicing forgiving the person who harmed you. Some great ways to do this are:  When you catch yourself rehearsing your trauma, speak the newly re-conceptualized though out loud, such as “I forgive x for x. I don’t know what they are going through, but I understand that they acted from a place of pain. I will no longer give what happened paper over me…”. This helps remove energy from the “wound”, redirecting your attention to focusing on your own healing by letting go of the sting of what happened. As you do this, it will change the energy patterns in your mind, making you more resilient and stronger! Remind yourself that you get to write your own story. You cannot control the circumstances of life, but you can control your reaction to what happens to you. You have power over your own story, and you do not have to stay connected to the person who harmed you. Speaking with friends or family to help you get perspective when you feel yourself teetering on the brink of toxic stress. Therapists or other mental health professionals are great too! Remember, asking for help takes courage! It is not “weak”. Asking for help or for someone to hear what we are going through is one of the most human things we can do, and it can be incredibly helpful.  www.drleaf.org .

I often see couples wince in marriage counseling  when I bring up Paul’s admonition to wives in Ephesians 5 . Paul’s instructions to married couples begin with those fated words, “Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord.” Denominations have divided over that verse and been misunderstood by many more. Recently we were studying Ephesians 5 in our connection group. We had a rich conversation about the passage that hinged on the chapter’s two most important truths about marriage. Each of those truths is grossly neglected in contemporary discussions around Ephesians 5 , and each deserves to be re-examined. Before we even jump into the passage about marriage, let’s remember that Ephesians 5 and 6 speak of what it looks like to live the Christian life. The section begins and ends with a practical call to live out that faith in community (5:1-20) and with an understanding of the spiritual realm in which we live (6:10-21). Sandwiched between these two general calls to the community is an invitation to live that out as husband and wife, as children, and as bondservants. In the first section, Paul urges us to “be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us” ( Eph. 5:1-2 . He goes on to speak about how we are to live that out with our sexuality, our tongues, our hearts, our partnerships, our use of alcohol, and even our songs. He concludes that as we give thanks, we are to submit “to one another out of reverence for Christ” ( Eph. 5:21 ). With this invitation to the community, Paul then speaks about how this is worked out in marriage. There are two truths that Paul wants us to ensure we don’t miss as he considers marriage. First: Paul argues in Ephesians 5 that marriage is a God-ordained drama that points to something bigger than us. Several times in the passage Paul tells us that our marriages are a play that God has designed to point to his relationship with the church. Would you re-read the passage with me and look for all the times Paul likens the wife to the church and the husband to Jesus in this drama? Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands. Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, because we are members of his body. “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.”   This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.   However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.wife In the passage, Paul draws the line between wives and the church or the husband and Christ seven times. Before we get tied up in the details of how we should live out this divine-directed drama, let’s not forget that the most important thing is what the drama is pointing to: Jesus and his love for the church. And who is Jesus in the drama? The husband! Before we bury ourselves in the admonitions Paul has for husbands and wives, consider the weight of the metaphor. The husband bears the responsibility of portraying Jesus in the drama of marriage. To play the role of the church is a high calling, but more daunting still is the calling to portray Jesus! To play the role of the church is a high calling, but more daunting still is the calling to portray Jesus! However we read this passage, whatever we make out of the wife’s call to respect her husband, we must necessarily understand the husband’s role to be held to a higher standard. It is the husband, not the wife, after all, who is to play out the part of Jesus, who “loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.” Take note, men. This is a more taxing calling than submission and respect (which, if we take verse 20 seriously, husbands are also called to). The second fundamental truth as we live out this drama is that it reminds us how much God loves us. The fact that God uses marriage as the drama to display his love for us shows us how intimate the relationship he calls us into is. Paul’s words in verses 31 and 32 are wild. Paul says that all the way back to the very first marriage—Adam and Eve—God has been creating a picture to demonstrate that his Son would one day leave heaven to come for us, his bride. Every time we see a husband love his wife sacrificially, we ought to be reminded of Christ’s great love for us and the intimate relationship he desires to have with us. We come to the Bible with so much cultural baggage, but If we stand back from the passage and read it afresh, we should not miss what is most explicit in the text. Paul’s call for marriages to portray Jesus’s love for the church and the church’s respect for her Savior ought to challenge us profoundly and encourage us greatly. Let’s not miss the forest through the trees. Wherever we fall on the complementarian-egalitarian debate, our marriages are intended to aim at this holy target. In our marriages, we live out a divine drama that points to the most profound truth: God loves you and gave his Son so that you could be in a relationship with him.

THE SMARTPHONE HAS SIGNIFICANTLY RESHAPED SOCIETY. WITH THIS POWERFUL TOOL IN HAND, WE HAVE INSTANT ACCESS TO ALL THINGS DIGITAL: TEXTS, EMAILS, GOOGLE ADS AND SEARCHES, AND SOCIAL MEDIA. BUT IS BEING DIGITALLY CONNECTED 24/7 A GOOD THING? How is it affecting our youth, specifically Gen Z (also known as iGen), who are currently between 6 and 24 years old? Gen Z Snapshot Technology is an indistinguishable part of the Gen Z identity. They admit their online connections give them comfort, purpose, and focus. But many, as they increase their social media and chat room usage, find the engagement is also fueling their anxiety.  We need social connection with others; it’s a key factor in our feeling positive and happy. But many youth feel pressured to spend so much time on social media because of “FOMO”  — fear of missing out. Many worry that jumping off could negatively affect their social ranking. And then there’s the reality that the engagement is really fun —  until it’s not.   One iGen in this survey admitted : “I clearly am addicted, and the dependency is sickening.”Some alarming usage stats: a 2015 study by  Common Sense Media  found that teens spend nearly 9  hours a day consuming media; tweens spend nearly 6 hours. More than 40 percent of teens admit to being on their device  “ almost constantly. ”  Some are juggling 100+ text exchanges each day. That’s a lot of stimulus and focus for young brains working hard to develop properly. Cut the 24/7 digital connection, and these young people really feel it:  31 percent admit they feel uncomfortable being away from their phones for 30 minutes. 58 percent feel uncomfortable if they are without their phones for a few hours. More than 65 percent of surveyed Gen Z admit they experience  a high level of stress  when their phone is lost, broken, or stops working. Connected, But Lonely When television came out, it was marketed as a way to  bring families and friends together .  Now most homes have more than one television, so users can watch on their own.  Social media has been similarly marketed. Despite the promised online community of “friends,” Gen Z is experiencing high levels of loneliness, depression, and even suicide. Reduced in-person interaction is a factor. But so is comparison. A 2014 survey of 180 college students found that the more time the students spent on Facebook, the more they experienced mild symptoms of depression. In 2015 a team of childhood development experts worked with CNN to survey the social posts of 200 13-year-olds from across the U.S. After reviewing 150,000+ posts, the experts concluded that being 13 is “like being in a real-time 24/7 popularity contest. ” Imagine the social pressure our youth are feeling as they work hard to gain social nods to validate their self-worth. Imagine how comparison is preventing them from feel satisfaction and gratitude.  It was  Eleanor Roosevelt  who wisely noted, “Remember always that you not only have the right to be an individual, you have an obligation to be one.” We lose the ability to like and love ourselves when we allow others to assign our value. As brain research shows, what we think matters. Our thoughts form our beliefs, which dictate how we view ourselves and our place in the world. STUDIES SHOW THAT SELF-ESTEEM AND LIFE SATISFACTION LEVELS DROPPED SHARPLY IN THE U.S. AFTER 2012 — THE YEAR THAT THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE OWNING A SMARTPHONE CROSSED 50 PERCENT. Healthy Social Media  It’s too late to close and lock Pandora’s box, but we can help Gen Z to:       Understand that social media platforms are intentionally designed to entice them into addiction. We’re talking psychological manipulation. Even when we’re not on social media, we’re thinking about it, right? And it doesn’t help that Facebook tries to be “helpful” in letting you know you’ve missed posts because your “engagement” is down. Set healthy limits on their social use at specific times (at bedtime, during dinner, at social events, etc.), and hold them accountable, if needed. This  smartphone usage contract  might be helpful to your kids. Push back on their belief (and fear) that self-worth comes from their gained likes and followers. When our youth ground their worth in Scripture, they gain confidence to fight conformity and social acceptance. Our youth need to hear and believe this truth: God alone sets their value. He calls them  “valuable,” “cherished,” “loved,” and “chosen.”  God accepts them, warts and all. God will never “unfriend” or “unfollow” them. THAT MAKES HIS LOVE A MILLION TIMES BETTER THAN A MILLION “LIKES.” www.josh.org .

Dear Roger, I’m really struggling with my church. So many people seem to be hypocritical—they just don’t live out what they say on Sunday during the rest of the week. What should I do? Sincerely, Kyle Dear Kyle, First, we must clearly define hypocrisy. The word “hypocrisy” comes from the Greek masks of comedy and tragedy. The actor reads the comedy lines and then changes to a mask of tragedy and reads those lines. He was not called an actor. He was called a “Hypocritos,” which means “One who hides behind a mask.” Everyone wears masks. One mask Julie and I sometimes put on is the one we call “Church Face.” We were in San Diego on a family vacation with our children and Julie’s mom and dad. Grandparents and grandchildren don’t mix well at Sea World. We stepped behind the bushes to have a rather heated discussion as to what to do next. Suddenly, a couple from our church walked up. Instantly, the fighting stopped, and we all put on “Church Face!” After they left, we all marveled at how quickly we transitioned from fighting family to loving Christians. We were well practiced at using the “Church Face” mask. Fortunately, as we have matured in Christ, that mask is lost somewhere in the back of the closet. We seldom feel the need to utilize it. We all want to put our best foot forward. No one wants to display character traits that are not the best! The problem occurs when we are attempting to lead double lives! There is a difference between hypocrisy and occasionally putting on the proper masks in social settings. Hypocrisy occurs when we claim to be someone we are not, and we wear a fake mask most all of the time. Hypocritical living promotes all sorts of dysfunctional behavior—and can lead to dysfunctional behavior in our spiritual lives as well. As teenagers, we wear four or five masks depending on the social group we’re associating with at any moment. We have different masks for peers, parents, teachers, acquaintances, and close friends. How we represent ourselves to one group will be different than how we represent ourselves to another. We are subconsciously in the process of deciding who we will be as we transition into adulthood. Eventually, we decide and then discard all the other masks. Unfortunately, many people keep several masks and never figure out who they really are. Hopefully, early on in our Christian faith, we decide that we will live what we believe. In other words, “I am a Christian, and who you see is who I really am.” But few of us throw away the other masks all at once. As we grow to spiritual maturity, more and more masks are discarded until only one is left. When people think of us, we remind them of the Lord Jesus. Paul revealed that as we mature, we even throw away the last mask: “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit” (2 Corinthians 3:18). People are watching, especially non-Christians. Don’t let them down. Hypocrisy Is the First Recorded Sin in the Christian Church The church of Jesus Christ began so beautifully. The Acts 4:32-37 church was filled with generosity, unselfishness, and love. The early first-century Christians were known as the people who loved God and loved each other. Unfortunately, we don’t get past Acts chapter 5 before we see that the church is ripped apart by Satan’s schemes. Acts 5 is the first description of sin in the New Testament church. The devastation began when Ananias and Sapphira sold a piece of property for $2000 and kept back $500 for themselves. There was nothing wrong with their gift, but they lied to Peter and told him they were giving the full amount to the church. They had no intention of doing so. God put both husband and wife to death instantaneously. Today, God still takes hypocrisy very seriously, especially in the shepherds who lead and teach his flock! When I was in seminary, I worked for a highly successful pastor who was caught in bed with another man’s wife. Her husband had suspicions, so one day, he came home early from work. There they were. The pastor’s car was hidden in the garage. We all were shocked when his sin was exposed. His duplicity spilled over into shock, anger, shame, embarrassment, and rejection to all who knew him. The church family was decimated, especially when it came out that he’d been involved in sexual promiscuity since his days in college. He loved beautiful blonde women. Such a tragedy! His own wife was stunning and loved him with all her heart. Several months later, he was walking in downtown Dallas when he had a brain aneurysm. This popular pastor died in the hospital several hours later. No Church Is Perfect! The church is a hospital for sin-sick souls. We are all fallen, sinful creatures. Only God can unmask us. People often say, “Well, I want to go back to the First Century Church. That was the true church. I say, “Which first-century church do you want to attend?” The Roman church? Paul wrote about them in Romans 16:17: “I urge you, brothers, to watch out for those who are causing church division among you” (NIV). The Corinthian Church? Paul said to them, “I can’t speak to you as spiritual, but as carnal, because you’re fighting each other all the time” (1 Corinthians 3:1-3 NIV). The Galatian Church? Paul chided them, “Oh foolish Galatians, who tricked you? You began in the spirit, and now you’re finishing in the flesh” (Galatians 3:1 NIV). The Ephesian Church? Their love for Jesus was faltering (See Revelation 2:4 NIV). The Philippian Church? Two women, Euodia and Syntyche, were spoiling the church unity by their fighting (See Philippians 4:2 NIV). The Colossian Church? Paul repeated a whole list of good things that they had in Christ, and then said, “But not all is well. There’s sin in your church!” (See Colossians 3:7-9 NIV). The Best Way to Heal Hypocrisy in the Church Is to Examine Your Own Heart Ask yourself these questions: Have you ever led people to believe that you are better at some things than you really are? Have you ever put people “down” so that you feel better about yourself while they feel less about themselves? Have you ever said, “I love you” to someone when you really don’t? Have you ever told someone that you like them when you really despise or hate them? Do you ever brag about yourself in a way that causes people to think more highly of you than they really should? Have you ever given the impression that you had your life “together” and they don’t? Do you ever intentionally put others down so that you can look better than they look? Have you ever criticized others’ failures when your problems are similar? Have you ever told people the things about yourself that you want others to know instead of what is true? Have you ever lied about things that happened to cover up what you did? Have you ever lied to gain the acceptance of others? Have you ever given money to gain the praise of men? Have you ever tried to impress others with your spirituality? Have you ever pretended to be excited about service for the Lord when you are merely doing it out of obligation? Have you ever pretended to be spiritual when you know that you are not? Do you ever pretend to have pure, moral thoughts while all the time yielding to lustful thoughts and fantasies? Do you ever pretend to be close to God while not desiring or enjoying a relationship with him? Do you ever pray to impress others with your spirituality? Have you ever committed a sin and continued living as if nothing had happened? List adapted from “ Freedom In Christ Ministries ” Dr. Neil Anderson, founder. How Can I Be Free from the Sin of Hypocrisy? We all struggle with hypocrisy at times—but when we seek to live according to God’s will, He will give us the ability to change! Start here: Consciously choose to take off your mask. Ask the Holy Spirit to identify areas of hypocrisy in your life so that you can live with integrity. Repent and ask Jesus for forgiveness so that you may have a fresh beginning. Allow the Holy Spirit to convict you of the sin of hypocrisy. Listen to the people who listen to God. In other words, invite some of the wise and godly people who know you to point out areas of hypocrisy you might’ve missed. Well, I hope this helps. Let me know if you have more questions. Love, Roger

DEFINITION Sexuality refers to God’s anthropological design and pattern for the procreative relationship between male and female and to the experience of erotic desire within that design. Gender refers to biological differences in male and female embodiment and the different cultural ways in which the creational distinctions between male and female are manifested. SUMMARY Sexuality refers to God’s anthropological design and pattern for the procreative relationship between male and female and to the experience of erotic desire within that design. Gender refers to biological differences in male and female embodiment and the different cultural ways in which the creational distinctions between male and female are manifested. The creational narrative of  Genesis 1–2  provides the Christian with the foundational truths behind these distinctions:  God created humanity, male and female, in his image for one another.  To deny any part of this teaching is to subject God’s purposeful design to the desires of humanity. While much of modern culture desires to deny these distinctions and to untether gender from sexuality, the New Testament reaffirms the Old Testament’s teaching on this topic and brings the male-female distinction to its culmination in the Christ-Church relationship. A Christian framework for gender and sexuality begins with understanding that each find their origin, structure, and purpose within God’s will for creation. Gender and sexuality, from a Christian perspective, are enchanted realities imbued with divine meaning and purpose. But as the drama of Scripture unfolds, gender and sexuality become impacted by sin. Yet, in light of redemption, the original design and purpose of gender and sexuality are reaffirmed and heightened as the New Testament explains their ultimate  telos —to reflect the Christ-Church union. The assumption that gender and sexuality are ordered  by  God, and  for  God, stands in stark contrast to modernity’s view that divinizes gender and sexuality, understanding both to be ordered to, and determined by, consent and human will alone. Sexuality and Gender in God’s Design When speaking of sexuality and gender, what is meant by these terms? Sexuality  can have broad and narrow meanings. In a broad rendering, sexuality refers to God’s anthropological design and pattern for the procreative relationship between male and female. In a narrower scope, sexuality refers to the experience of erotic desire. Accordingly, in Scripture, sexuality is a constitutive part of human nature and human experience shaped by God’s will for creation; it is not the singular defining aspect of human identity itself. Gender  can also have broad and narrow connotations. More broadly, gender refers to biological differences in male and female embodiment. Narrowly speaking, gender refers to the creational distinctions between male and female manifested in culture (e.g., baby girls adorned in pink; baby boys adorned in blue). Gender should be understood as the cultural reality resulting from God making men and women biologically sexed and distinct. Christians need to understand that as partakers of God’s good creation, we are to acknowledge and participate in culturally-appropriate gender distinctions. This is because each culture discovers culturally-defined ways to reflect the biological and created difference of men and women. This means Christians should abide by the gender norms set by their culture insofar as what the culture dictates does not transgress God’s moral law for upholding the sex distinction between male and female ( Deut. 22:5 ;  1 Cor. 11:3–16 ). For example, cross-dressing is sinful because it violates the creational boundaries between male and female that come to be expressed in culturally-appropriate gender norms. We ought to care about the gender distinctions our culture holds up since gender distinctions are a common grace mechanism for acknowledging the innate differences of males from females. Sexuality and gender are first made known in the creational accounts of Scripture. In  Genesis 1:26–28 , we read of God creating man and woman in His image. Equal in their dignity, but different in their design and calling, the man and woman are then commissioned to “be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion.”  Genesis 1  communicates both the identity of male and female, and that this identity is oriented toward a procreative union meant to populate the earth. Seen through this light, gender and sexuality are substantive pillars in fulfilling what theologians refer to as the cultural mandate. In another rendering of humanity’s origins, we read in  Genesis 2  that it is not good for man to be alone; that a helper was needed. This helper is both similar and dissimilar; similar in her humanity, yet dissimilar in her design. The man and woman—as counterparts—are intended to form a complementary union. In 2:24, it is written that “Then a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” This language is at once both figurative and literal; figurative in that it describes the establishing of a distinct family unit; literal in that it testifies to the bodily union for which male and female anatomy are designed. This sexual pattern is the archetype for the Bible’s expectation for human sexual arrangements. Several axiomatic truths related to gender and sexuality are found in the  Genesis 1–2  narrative. God created . A Christian understanding for gender and sexuality begins with a foundational assumption about the universe itself. The Triune God is a God of order, not chaos, and random combination. Christians believe that the Triune God alone brings reality into existence. Reality and human experience are not self-creating or self-constituting. Christians confess that the God who creates the cosmos is the holy, sovereign, and just God who orders all aspects of reality—including sexuality and gender. Gender and sexuality are not evolutionary quirks; both find their origin in the creative will of God. God created humanity.  A Christian understanding for gender and sexuality also begins with a foundational assumption about human nature. God is the creator of humanity, and as such, has the right to speak authoritatively over our lives. We are his subjects, and sexuality and gender are constitutive aspects of God’s rule over humanity. We are not self-creating or self-constituting. Sexuality and gender, then, are not plastic and endlessly malleable to fit human preference. Rather like the body, Christians believe that gender and sexuality are purposefully ordered to fit God’s will for humanity ( 1 Cor. 6:13 ). This means obedience and a commitment to living in line with God’s creative will is where holiness and human flourishing form an intersection. God created humanity in His image.  Genesis speaks of God making man and woman in His image. Theologians debate all that being made in God’s image entails, but in general, we can say that we image God in our relational dimension, our structural design, and our functional capacity. While exercising caution to not reduce sexuality and gender as the defining marks of bearing God’s image, it is appropriate to assume that they contribute to the entirety of what it means to bear God’s image. Humanity existing in male and female iterations implies that our sexual design and gendered existence are participants in the fundamental nobility and dignity that human beings are said to possess because of being made in God’s image. To be made in God’s image means that no part of our humanity is purposeless or irrelevant to God’s creative intention. God created humanity male and female.  When God created humanity, He did not make us sexless monads. He made humanity in male and female forms. This means that gender, and gender identity—if such a construct is at all intelligible—is an embodied reality. Male and female self-conception are not constructed from psychology alone. Male and female, according to the biblical portrait, are fixed, bodily realities; meaning they are not interchangeable or eradicable. They are objectively known; such that the identity of who we are as sexed humans is not a mystery. Lastly, male and female imply substantive differentiation. This differentiation is observed down to the chromosomal, anatomical, reproductive, physiological, and emotive levels. This physical difference starkly manifests itself in the anatomical design of male and female, which makes procreation possible and the fulfillment of the cultural mandate actionable. God created male and female for one another.  God commands sexual activity to be experienced exclusively within the marital relationship of one man and one woman. The sexual distinction in Scripture bears witness to the sexual and procreative union that male and female bodies are capable of engaging in. In Scripture, sexual union ratifies the marriage covenant, signifying the existence of the marriage union intended to be permanent, monogamous, and exclusive ( Gen. 2:24 ;  1 Cor. 6:16 ). Notice in  Genesis 1:26–28  that the creation of man and woman in Genesis both is structural and dynamic. As male and female beings made in God’s image, their design is ordered toward a particular purpose—filling the earth, subduing it, exercising dominion. More specifically, that purpose is accomplished by male and female design—that the act of being fruitful and multiplying hinges on, and springs from, their respective sex distinction. In this account, general revelation parallels with special revelation. As each of us knows, sexual intercourse is capable of producing children, and this reality is exclusive to only one reality, male-female complementarity. The Bible and Creation’s Manifold Witness of Gender and Sexuality At least in contemporary debates on these issues, Christians are often tempted to treat our vision for sexuality and gender as ethical matters relevant and pertaining to Christians only. This is not a biblical way to approach such subjects. Such a view is a truncated account for explaining why Christians’s convictions on such matters are not only Christian, but universally applicable. The Bible casts a vision for sexuality and gender that is true on both special and general revelation grounds. As biblical scholar Richard Bauckham writes, “biblical commands are not arbitrary decrees but correspond to the way the world is and will be” (see  God and the Crisis of Freedom: Biblical and Contemporary Perspectives , 70). When Christians discuss gender and sexuality, they must understand that the design for gender and sexuality in Scripture is the design that all humans are obligated to live within, even if they do not appear most the natural or easiest in light of sin. What Christians believe about sexuality and gender is not an “in-house” argument for debate among Christians only. The Bible understands gender and sexuality as creational realities that determine whether a society will organize itself in subjection to God’s authority or in rejection to God’s authority. As ethicist Bernd Wannenwetsch writes, “The Christian doctrine of creation is precisely such a way of explaining why there are aspects of reality that are invested with normative moral significance” (see “Creation and Ethics: On the Legitimacy and Limitation of Appeals to ‘Nature’ in Christian Moral Reasoning,” in  Within the Love of God: Essays on the Doctrine of God in Honour of Paul S. Fiddes , 209). This means that the Bible’s teaching on gender and sexuality are not sectarian. These teachings are not built on fideistic decrees or fiat. Instead, the Bible speaks to created reality in both a sinful and redeemed state—because the Lord Jesus reigns over creation and unites both creation and redemption in His gospel (see see Oliver O’Donovan,  Resurrection and Moral Order: An Outline for Evangelical Ethics ) .  Gender and sexuality do not require an exclusively Christian epistemology for their authority or intelligibility, but insofar as sin warps human perception, the Bible’s teaching do require explanation in line with the full drama of Christian doctrine. A vision for gender and sexuality that fails to satisfy the demands set forth in Genesis will be subject to endless redefinition, which is why revisionist accounts of gender and sexuality—such as same-sex marriage and gender fluidity—retain no coherent limiting principle. Sexuality and Gender in Revolt The five axioms above are the backdrop that explain Scripture’s prohibition on sexual practices and gender displays that transgress God-ordained creational distinctions and creational boundaries. Sin’s impact demonstrates how each of the axioms are assaulted. Concerning axiom one, a culture of unbelief either rejects God’s existence or God’s authority. Man’s agency, in this paradigm, is the measure of all that is. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the never-ending redefinition of sexual morality and ensuing gender confusion. Since there are no binding rules, sexuality and gender are a matter of personal will and preference. Sexuality and gender are self-chosen, issuing from the autonomous self. Since humanity is not bound by a code of objective and universal morality, what Christians consider sexually immoral or out of step with God’s intent for gender expression, is shorn of all taboo and prohibition— whether pornography ( Ps. 101:3 ;  Matt. 5:28 ;  Col. 3:5 ) , bestiality ( Lev. 18:23, 20:15–16 ;  Exod. 22:19 ), polygamy ( Gen. 2:24 ), lust ( Matt. 5:28 ;  Mark 7:20–23 ) , adultery ( 1 Cor. 6:9–11 ), orgies ( Gal. 5:19–21 ), non-monogamy ( Matt. 19:1–10 ), rape ( Deut. 22:23–29 ;  Ezek. 45:9 ;  Mark 12:31 ), pedophilia ( Matt. 18:5–6 ), homosexuality ( Rom. 1:26–27 ;  1 Cor. 6:9–11 ), fornication ( Gen. 2:24 ;  Deut. 22:28–29 ;  Eph. 5:3 ;  1 Thess. 4:1–8 ), incest ( Lev 18:8–18 ;  1 Cor. 5:1–5 ), prostitution ( Hos. 4:14 ) cross-dressing ( Deut. 22:5 ;  1 Cor. 11:3–16 ), effeminacy ( 1 Cor 6:9–10 ), androgyny ( Gen 1:27–28 ;), illicit seduction ( Gen. 34 ;  Prov. 7:6–23 ), transgenderism ( Gen. 1:27–28 ), and sexual abuse ( Deut. 22:25–27 ;  Mark 12:31 ). In axiom two, humanity denies that it is a divine creation born of an intelligent and divine will, or inscribed with any inherent, fixed meaning. Any sexual arrangement is thus allowable insofar as consent is present; and any gender expression is permissible insofar as it comports with a person’s self-perception. Since humanity may or may not be the creation of a divine being, saying that a particular sexual arrangement or gender expression is prohibited is simply a product of social convention. With axiom three, humanity divests itself of any particular calling in light of being made in God’s image. Since we are not special creations endowed with a mission to exercise dominion, we subsist by vain expressions of human autonomy and self-seeking justification. Our liberation from God’s constraints becomes our abolition. In axiom four, humanity denies that male and female are objective and fixed realities. Instead, gender fluidity and suppression of sexed realities paint a portrait of gender and sexuality that is endlessly malleable and psychologically grounded. This allows such sins as transgenderism. In axiom five, the beauty of male-female complementarity is denied, meaning that the creational guardrails for sexuality are nullified. This licenses such sexual sins as homosexuality. It is not that homosexuality is worse than all other sins; but that it narrates through vivid and graphic portrayal an expulsive rejection of God’s authority concerning creational design and boundaries. In all five axioms, what is at the root of humanity’s assault on God-defined expressions of sexuality and gender? God’s authority over sexual desire and sexual relationships, and God’s design for how gender is conceived and expressed, is cast off. As it is with every issue of ethics and morality, the idea that any objective standard exists and is binding begins and ends with whether God exists and whether He intends to hold individuals accountable for their actions. Sexuality and Gender in Redemption While this essay has strived to present an argument for the Bible’s teaching on gender and sexuality that is true on both general and revelation grounds, it would be incomplete if it failed to examine how sexuality and gender are understood within the horizon of the gospel. The New Testament reaffirms the vision for gender and sexuality taught in Genesis.  The gospel offers the promise of the Holy Spirit’s guidance to live lives of holiness; the gospel does not create a radically new or disjunctive expectation for sexual morality and appropriate gender expression. In  Matthew 19 , Jesus affirms that the creational pattern for male and female set forth in  Genesis 1–2  remains authoritative and binding for humanity. In  Acts 15 , the earliest church leaders confirmed that obedience to Old Testament law was not expected for Gentle Christians, but Christians were expected to uphold the same standard of Old Testament sexual morality inaugurated at creation. The pattern for sexual relationship and gender expression laid out for the early Christians thus validates the pattern begun in Genesis. Furthermore, New Testament prohibitions on sexual practices (e.g., homosexuality, incest) are echoes of the Old Testament’s sexual ethic. This ethic is grounded in God’s moral law and cannot be discarded or excused as pertaining only to Israel. The New Testament makes clear that sexual rebellion and rejection of appropriate gender boundaries renders culpable before God’s judgement ( 1 Cor. 6:9–11 ). The gospel brings fulfilling clarity to the vision for gender and sexuality taught in Genesis.  The storyline and arc of the Bible’s teaching on gender and sexuality is one that relies upon narrative climax. In  Ephesians 5:22–23 , Paul explains that the union of husband and wife is meant to foreshadow the most visceral union in the cosmos—the Christ-Church union. Nowhere is the explanation of the Christ-Church union meant to overwhelm, supplant, or eradicate the underlying validity of male-female complementarity set forth in Genesis. The story of the gospel’s relationship to created nature—which includes our sexuality and gender—is that created nature would be led in the direction it was always intended (see Wannenwetsch, “Creation and Ethics,” 210). Though sexuality and gender remain creationally intelligible despite the fall, as Christians, we believe that both are ultimately designed to reflect the union of Christ and the church. The gospel empowers Christians to live in accord with the biblical vision for gender and sexuality taught in Genesis.  The gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ calls us to glorify God with our bodies because they were purchased by Him ( 1 Cor. 6:20 ). This purchase comprises the whole man ( 2 Cor. 5:17 ). We are called to honor the Lord Jesus and to submit to Him our sexual desires as well as our conduct ( Matt. 5:28 ;  Gal. 5:19–21 ;  Eph. 4:22–24 ;  Col. 3:5 ;  1 Thess. 4:1–8 ). We are to flee all forms of sexual morality ( 1 Cor. 6:18 ;  Eph. 5:3–5 ;  1 Thess. 4:1–8 ). We embrace appropriate gender norms so as not to scandalize or give offense with impropriety of gender expression ( Deut. 22:5 ;  1 Cor. 6:9; 11:3–16 ;  1 Tim. 2:9 ). Christians believe that we are not our own, and that we owe every facet of our existence—our gender expression and our sexuality—to Jesus Christ ( Col. 1:15–20 ). FURTHER READING Andreas Köstenberger,  God, Marriage, and Family: Rebuilding the Biblical Foundation Andrew T. Walker,  God and the Transgender Debate . See this  author interview . Andrew T. Walker and Eric Teetsel,  Marriage Is: How Marriage Transforms Society and Cultivates Human Flourishing Andrew T. Walker, “ On Creation, Revelation, and the Meaning of Male and Female ” Christopher C. Roberts,  Creation & Covenant: The Significance of Sexual Difference in the Moral Theology of Marriage Daniel Heimbach,  True Sexual Morality: Recovering Biblical Standards for a Culture in Crisis Dennis Hollinger,  The Meaning of Sex: Christian Ethics and the Moral Life Denny Burk,  What is the Meaning of Sex? John Piper and Wayne Grudem,  Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood: A Response to Evangelical Feminism Ryan T. Anderson,  When Harry Became Sally: Responding to the Transgender Moment Sherif Girgis, Ryan T. Anderson, and Robert P. George,  What is Marriage? Man and Woman: A Defense Stanley Grenz,  Sexual Ethics: An Evangelical Perspective The Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood ,  The Nashville Statement , Todd Wilson,  Mere Sexuality: Rediscovering the Christian Vision of Sexuality

One day I was surprised when a childhood friend said to me, “Oh Jan, you never thought the rules applied to you.” I wasn’t sure what she was referencing, but it was obvious from her comment that as a child I was perceived as one who regularly broke the rules or was not a good rule keeper. So, think about it for a moment were you a rule breaker as a child, or a rule keeper and why?   A casual reading of the parable of the prodigal son might confuse the average reader, leaving them stunned, “Why is Jesus’ portraying the older brother as being in the wrong in this story? Isn’t it a good thing to work hard and protect your families assets? Isn’t it a good thing to serve your father?” But, if we dig deeper we see that in this story, neither son actually knew their father’s heart. Both boys believed their father’s love had to be earned.   Who do you think the oldest brother is a picture of in this parable? We find a hint in Luke 15:1-2 when the pharisees and the scribes complain about Jesus welcoming sinners and eating with them. To address their charges Jesus tells three parables about himself. All three stories are interconnected and really important to understanding God’s love for us. He is the Good Shepherd in Luke 15:3-7 , he is the Good Woman searching for her lost coin in Luke 15:8-10 , and in Luke 15:11-31 Jesus portrays himself as the Good Father. It is in this last parable we discover the oldest son. This son has never wandered far from his father’s fine home, but he still sees his life as hard and impoverished. The oldest brother clearly represents the scribes and pharisees who are blind to the merciful heart of God.   Look at Luke 15:25-32               25  “Now his older son was in the field; as he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. 26  So he summoned one of the servants, questioning what these things meant.               27  ‘Your brother is here,’ he told him, ‘and your father has slaughtered the fattened calf  because he has him back safe and sound.’                         28  “Then he became angry and didn’t want to go in. So his father came out and pleaded   with him.  29  But he replied to his father, ‘Look, I have been slaving many years for you,  and I have never disobeyed your orders, yet you never gave me a goat so that I could celebrate with my friends. 30  But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your  assets with prostitutes, you slaughtered the fattened calf for him.’             31  “‘Son,’ he said to him, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours   32  But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’”  CSB   When we believe God’s favor is scarce, we will expect him to be more stingy with his mercy. The pharisees possessed an incredible amount of head knowledge concerning the Old Testament scriptures, but sadly their heart knowledge of God was extremely shallow. Like them, the older brother was living a life of rule keeping without joy. When his father chooses to celebrate his wasteful brother’s return, the older brother immediately felt threatened. His jealousy and perception was that his father was not being fair to him. Ironically, his anger is directed at the one event that has brought his father the greatest happiness and joy he has had in a long time, the safe return of his wandering son. Imagine the sleepless nights this father has endured. With his exploding temper though this oldest son forces his joyous father to leave his guests, and his party, so he can plead with his angry son. How we view God’s favor is one of the biggest challenges we will face in our walk with God because how we reason matters. If we think God is not being good to us we will feel like we are impoverished regardless of the level of our blessings. Jesus came to give us the abundant life ( John 10:10 ). And, this abundance is released by the power of his sacrifice, and not by our persistent rule keeping. For many years I struggled to view my spiritual walk as the abundant life promised in scripture. Many of my misperceptions were first planted in me by my sweet daddy who was raised in extreme poverty. And, of course I was able to add my own fears to the mix. My grandfather was a sharecropper in Kentucky before the depression. Sharecroppers did not own the land that they farmed and they had to pay a portion of their profits back to the landowner that they were working for. My grandparent’s lived in a sharecropper’s cabin which sadly was first built to house slaves before the Civil War. My dad slept on the floor with no mattresses, and was regularly bitten by the rats that infested these cabins as he tried to sleep. Then the depression hit and things only got worse for them. This mental state of scarcity was deeply rooted in my father’s childhood trauma. When I would ask my dad for something I wanted he would always make me feel guilty for asking and then he would say, “We can’t afford it.” This was true even though my childhood was one of financial comfort. Our homes were always heated in the winter and cooled during the hot desert summers, and my mother was a fantastic seamstress who made all my cute clothes. We never missed a meal. But unfortunately, I went into adulthood envious of other people’s prosperity, and was completely blinded to my own abundance. I constantly worried about money. By contrast, my husband’s mother, who was also a child of the depression, took a very different approach when her children asked for something they wanted. She would always answer them by saying, “You don’t really need that.” Consequently, for years my husband Gary felt more financially secure than I did even though we were looking at the same bank account. One day when my son asked me for a new pair of tennis shoes because his old ones had holes, my attitude of scarcity reared it’s ugly head. Without thinking I began to make him feel guilty for asking for new shoes and I then I heard myself say this, “We can’t afford it.” This was definitely a lie. What was I doing? I knew if I didn’t correct my comments quickly I was going to pass on this mindset that money is scarce and we are poor, to the third generation in my family. Immediately, I apologized to my son and I tried to explain budgets and how you have to plan for expenses, but this necessity was not the same as not having money. I have no idea if this was a teachable moment for him, but it was for me. And, we went shopping for new shoes as soon as we could. Thankfully, when I started meditating on God’s generosity toward me I began to witness how gloriously he has provided. When we believe God’s favor is scarce, we will be tempted to think that the rules are in danger.   When favor has to be earned, it is easy to believe people might go soft on sin if we don’t strive to hold them accountable. We see mercy as dangerous instead of something God wants to richly provide ( Ephesians 2:4 ). These beliefs come from viewing our lives as in want. Everything can change when we understand our provision is based on Jesus’ sacrifice and not our ability to follow the rules.   Ironically, this older brother’s passion for purity was not driven by his love for his father or his love for holiness. But, because he saw his father as a harsh slave master that was constantly driving him to work harder, and could never be pleased ( Luke 15:29 ). The older brother only believed his father would gift him with a party for his friends, if he was good enough. He never imagined the depth of the father’s love, commitment and generosity. The oldest son is harsh because he has been blinded to the unconditional love of God.   How might becoming a militant rule keeper destroy our spiritual lives?    When we believe God’s favor is scarce, we will be tempted to see sin primarily as a behavioral problem instead of a condition of the heart.   In his judgement the older son focused on outward appearances, and not the secret sins of the heart that give birth to our behavior. Secret sins like hatred, envy, jealousy, lust, and coveting will destroy us from the inside out. James 1:14-15 wrote this about how our desires start small but grow larger in our hearts.               14  But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.  15  Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death. ESV   Maybe the oldest brother was concerned about what the neighbor’s might think. In the end his faulty reasoning caused him to value rules over relationships.   The oldest son was probably horrified that his father had, so quickly forgotten that an inheritance had been squandered. He accuses his sibling of wasting money on prostitutes even though that possibility never appears in the text. Once envy entered his heart it easily escalated to where he was adding accusations to his brother’s already wounded reputation. At this point he definitely believed his father was a cheapskate. Presumably, the older brother was also concerned that he would have to pay the price for his brother’s misconduct and could not trust his dad. The father wants to assure both his sons that there is an abundance of provision and that family reunions are worthy of celebrations.   Why is a sinful heart more dangerous than the breaking of a specific rule?    When we believe God’s favor is scarce we will expect him to be more stingy with his mercy, we will believe the rules are in danger, and we will see sin primarily as a behavioral problem instead of a heart condition.   The older brother has never left the financial comfort of his father’s estate, and yet he sees himself as living a life of scarcity, absent of joy. We want to carefully avoid his reasoning. Our reality is God’s mercy will provide everything we need ( Psalm 23:1 ). He is not tightfisted in his provision, nor in his special care for each one of us. In Christ, he promises us the abundant life ( John 10:10 ). The Bible teaches that God owns it all, but for a season we are stewards of his resources ( Matthew 25:14-30 ). For far to long we have let ourselves be conformed to the image of the envious older brother, instead of letting God conform us to the image of the good father. If we really we want to look like Jesus, we will have to let mercy rise.

In psychology, mental health has a scale from FLOURISHING to DEPRESSION. FLOURISHING is evidenced by things like optimism and empathy and authenticity. DEPRESSION is evidenced by things like hopelessness and helplessness. In between FLOURISHING and DEPRESSION, there is what Adam Grant calls “the neglected middle child of mental health,” and it may be the “the dominant emotion of 2021.” Languishing is basically BLAH. It’s a feeling of apathy. It lacks focus, motivation, and vision. There are no easy answers or quick fixes, but there is a way out. Message begins at 16:22. The Best Is Yet to Come: From Languishing to Flourishing Sept 12 Speaker: Dr. Mark Batterson Scripture: Nehemiah 1 Series Overview We live at the intersection of two theologies, two realities. The faithfulness of God is pursuing from the past—SO FAR SO GOD. And the sovereignty of God is setting us up for the future. We live forwards, but God is working backward. God is ordering our footsteps. God is preparing good works. We live in a fallen world, a broken world, but heaven is invading earth right here, right now. We don’t believe in happily ever after. We believe in something so much bigger and better and longer—happily FOREVER after. THE BEST IS YET TO COME. Series Discussion Questions: ● Where do I see God at work in my life? Message Overview In psychology, mental health has a scale from FLOURISHING to DEPRESSION. FLOURISHING is evidenced by things like optimism and empathy and authenticity. DEPRESSION is evidenced by things like hopelessness and helplessness. In between FLOURISHING and DEPRESSION, there is what Adam Grant calls “the neglected middle child of mental health,” and it may be the “the dominant emotion of 2021.” Languishing is basically BLAH. It's a feeling of apathy. It lacks focus, motivation, and vision. There are no easy answers or quick fixes, but there is a way out. Message-Specific Discussion Questions: How do we go from languishing to flourishing? Read Nehemiah 1: ▪ Nehemiah is no expert in construction or design. God does not call the qualified, He qualifies the called. © 2021 National Community Church Page 1 Sermon Discussion Guide The Best is Yet to Come ▪ AGod sized vision is going to be beyond your ability, beyond your ability, and beyond your resources ▪ What is one strength God has given you? ▪ 2 Corinthians 12:9 says, “…My power works BEST in weakness”. What do we think about that scares you? Perhaps something impossible to do without divine intervention? Read Psalm 56:8. Tears are one way we worship God. Our emotions often double as God ordained passions. Take time to reflect: ▪ What makes you cry? What makes you sad? What makes you pound your fist on the table? What makes you mad? ▪ What lights your fire: What puts a smile on your face and lets you feel closest to God? Reflect on Psalm 37:4. Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart ▪ This “desire test” is a great reminder to check your motives and emotions. Alignment with scripture helps us keep from “getting ahead of the Ark” (God’s leading) ▪ Praise God for opposition – where are you experiencing opposition? ▪ Prayer for the favor of God– what are 5 prayers for favor you can add to your prayer time this week? Read Isaiah 58:12: 2021 is an outrageous time to dream! ▪ What is a dream inside your heart that feels outrageous right now? Prayer: Lord change the desires within me to reveal my God ordained passions Don’t put a period where God puts a comma. By faith, the best is yet to come. Practical Application o When Nehemiah gets to the city of Jerusalem, he tours the ruins in private, reflecting on the desire God gave him. Take time to journal what God is putting on your heart, this week. o Plug into a small group ncc.re/groups. Commissioned is a great way to engage further into this discussion of how God works in us and through us o Climb the stairs to the Upper Zoom each Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at 7:14am. We’ll come together as a community to start our days in His presence together, listening intently, and responding in prayer. Register at ncc.re/UpperZoom © 2021 National Community Church www.theaterchurch.com