Yet Another Example of God at Work I. A THREE-PART story. (v.1-48; Acts 1:1-2)A. God at work BEFORE the VISION. (v.1-8)B. God IS at work DURING. (v.9-22)C. God CONTINUES working AFTER. (v.23-48) Luke reminds us at at the very beginning that the...
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Acts: Jesus at Work Through the Church – Part 5 | Acts 9:1-19
Signposts of the Spiritual Journey I. Two DIFFERENT people, two SIMILAR stories. (v.1-19)A. Both SEEKING to live COMMITTED to the truth. (v.1-2,13-14)B. Saul – A DIFFICULT yet TRANSFORMATIVE moment. (v.1-9)C. Ananias – The CALL to a...
Read moreActs: Jesus at Work Through the Church – Part 4 | Selections from Acts 6:1-8:3
Jerusalem, Part 3 – The Ever Expanding Temple I. What we have SEEN this FAR. (Acts 1-5)A. A new HABITATION of the PRESENCE of God. (Acts 1:8)B. The TEMPLE is now EMBODIED. (Acts 2:1-4)C. The rhythm: INDWELT, empowered, WITNESSING. (Acts...
Read moreActs: Jesus at Work Through the Church – Part 3 | Selections from Acts 3:1-4:31
Jerusalem, Part 2 – A Clash Between Two Temples I. The EMBODIED temple goes to the BUILDING. (3:1-26)A. SHARING the divine LIFE. (3:1-10)B. An EXAMPLE of being a WITNESS (3:11-26) 1. HONESTY about the PAST...
Read moreActs: Jesus at Work through the Church – Part 2 | Acts 2:1-13, 42-47
Jerusalem, Part 1 – A Different Kind of Temple I. The GIFT that was coming ARRIVES. (1:4-5, 2:1-13)A. Sound of WIND and sight of FIRE. (v.2-3)B. They are FILLED with the SPIRIT. (v.4; 1:5)C. They are WITNESSES to the WONDERS of God. (1:8...
Read moreActs: Jesus at Work through The Church – Part 1 | Acts 1:1-11
Jesus Continues What He Started I. Luke/Acts: The CONTINUING work of JESUS. (v.1-5)A. He is ALIVE and WELL. (v.1-3)B. The MESSAGE has not CHANGED. (Lk. 4:43; v.3)C. The GIFT that is COMING. (v.4-5) For the season of Mission here at GBC we...
Read moreLent 2022 – Longing for Justice – Part 6 | Luke 22:39-23:49
Journey to the Cross I. Notice the ROLE Jesus PLAYS here. (22:47-23:49)A. As one CLEAR on His IDENTITY. (22:48, 69-70; 23:3,46)B. CARING for the needs of OTHERS. (22:51, 23:28-34,43)C. As LEADER, not as a VICTIM. (22:48, 51-53, 67-70; 23:3...
Read moreLent 2022 – Longing for Justice – Part 5 | Joel
The Day of Justice Will Come I. PAIN that brings PERSPECTIVE. (Chapter 1-2) A WORLD that has been DECIMATED. (1:1-12) Loss makes SPACE for REPENTANCE. (1:13-20) SEEING a larger PATTERN. (2:1-17) Joel is a very interesting prophet. He has lived...
Read moreLent 2022 – Longing for Judgement – Part 2 | Micah
Hoping in the Justice of God I. Three cycles of JUDGMENT and HOPE. (Micah 1-7)A. First DESTRUCTION, then the SHEPHERD. (Micah 1-2)B. The sin of the LEADERS and PROPHETS. (Micah 3-5) 1. RESTORATION will COME. (Micah...
Read moreLent 2022 – Longing for Justice – Part 1 | Book of Habakkuk
Questioning the Justice of God I. LONGING for justice in an UNJUST world. (Hab. 1-3)A. Habakkuk speaks FOR us as well as TO us. (1:1-4,1:12-2:1)B. We QUESTION the reality we ENCOUNTER. (1:1-4)C. We QUESTION the METHODS of God. (1:12-2:1) Lent is...
Read moreLuke – The Story of Jesus: Part 9 | Luke 20:9-19
Don’t shoot the messenger I. The CONFLICT is coming to a HEAD. (19:39-20:19)A. Jesus’ SORROW at their BLINDNESS. (19:39-44) B. Days of TENSION and CONFLICT. (19:45-48) C. A QUESTION of AUTHORITY. (20:1-8) The thread of conflict we spoke of last...
Read moreLuke – The Story of Jesus: Part 8
Do We Want To See? I. CONTINUING the flow of the TEXT. (Lk. 18:9-30)A. Jesus’ TEACHINGS and ACTIONS draw a line. (15:1-2)B. The NEEDY and WEAK are welcomed. (18:9-16)C. The POWERFUL and PRIVILEGED resist. (18:17-30) Luke consistently portrays...
Read moreLuke – The Story of Jesus: Part 7 | Luke 18:1-8 (17:20-37)
Living in the Meanwhile I. A PARABLE about persistent PRAYER. (18:1-8)A. Persistent but NEEDY versus evil and POWERFUL. (v.2-5)B. HOPE is grounded in the NATURE of God. (v.6-7)C. An UNUSUAL ending to a PRAYER parable. (v.8) Jesus tells a story to...
Read moreLuke – The Story of Jesus: Part 6 | Luke 15:1-32
Three Familiar Stories I. Quick LESSON in ENGAGING the text. (v.1-32)A. Put YOURSELF in the CONTEXT. (v.1-2)B. LISTEN closely for REPETITION. (v.3,8,11; 6,9,22-24; 7,10,32)C. Watch for SIMILARITIES and DIFFERENCES. (v.3-7,8-10,11-32) I like the...
Read moreLuke – The Story of Jesus: Part 4 | Luke 9:18-36
The Truth and its Implications I. A DECLARATION of the TRUTH. (V.18-20)A. READING the REALITY around them. (v.18-20)B. “But WHAT about YOU?” (v.20) After more examples of Jesus living out the mission we come to a familiar story where Jesus...
Read moreLuke – The Story of Jesus: Part 3 | Luke 6:12-49
The Manifesto of the Kingdom I. JESUS does two specific ACTS. (v.12-49)A. He SELECTS a TEAM. (v.12-16)B. He PREACHES a SERMON. (v.17-49)C. But WHEN you put the two TOGETHER… (v.12-49) Today we cover 2 things that Jesus did which at first...
Read moreLuke – The Story of Jesus: Part 2 | Luke 4:31-6:11
Fulfilling the Mission of the Messiah I. Diverse STORIES, but common THEMES. (4:31-6:11)A. The POWER to HEAL and set FREE. (4:31-44; 5:12-26; 6:6-11)B. An EMBRACE of the OUTSIDERS. (5:1-11; 5:27-32)C. Continuing CONFLICT with the INSIDERS...
Read moreLuke – The Story of Jesus: Part 1 | Luke 4:14-30
For those who have eyes to see I. SETTING the STAGE for the text. (3:23-4:15)A. A GENEALOGY, and a TEST. (3:23-4:13)B. LOCAL boy becomes FAMOUS. (v.14-15) We’ve followed Luke’s telling of the story through Advent, and we’ve seen his focus on the...
Read moreAdvent 2021 – Christmas Sunday | Luke 2:21-40
The Slow but Sure Plan of God I. A life ROOTED in OBEDIENCE. (v.21-40)A. A NAME filled with MEANING. (v.21; 1:31)B. Every act in ACCORDANCE with the LAW. (v.21-24,39) Luke wants us to be clear on one thing. Jesus’ life was rooted in obedience...
Read moreAdvent 2021 – Week 4: Love | Luke 2:1-20
The Coming of Love…to all people I. REFLECTING on the Bethlehem JOURNEY. (v.1-7)A. The EPITOME of POWERLESSNESS. (v.1-5)B. The BEST they could with what they HAD. (v.6-7) It’s a story we hear every year. A young Jewish couple make their way...
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