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| Adult Median Class |
| We continued this week (June 6) by picking up on day three of the lesson on love. After a volunteer read 2 Corinthians 8:1-4,8 we discussed why the Macedonians gave. They gave because they wanted to, to share in the privilege of ministering, and because they loved God. We continued by discussing how they could find joy in giving when it would hurt them to give. Responses were that it didn't necessarily hurt them to give, the rewards were greater than the sacrifice, and it made them feel good (they felt joy). We then completed the final activity of day three. After reading 2 Corinthians 9:7, we learned that the feeling that is involved in actively demonstrating genuine love is cheerfulness. We also discussed if this means that God is displeased when we act benevolenty with a bad attitude. Participants shared that yes, it is a wasted sacrifice, we don't receive spirtual blessing, the OT says God favors obedience over sacrifice, and the ultimate sacrifice has already been made-out of love. After completing the 1st activity of day four we examined the relationship between Paul's pursuit of joy for his sake and for the Corinthians's sake. After some discussion it was that the Corinthians joy gave Paul joy. We continued by discussing the following questions: 1. How are we loving others when we seek joy for ourselves in those relationships? After reading and discussing the material in the book, we learn that love abounds between us when your joy is mine and my joy is yours. I am not loving just because I seeek your joy, but because I seek it as mine. 2. How are we far too easily pleased in how we express love in our relationship? Here we discussed how we are too easily pleased by worldly things. We do not believe Jesus when He says there is more blessedness, more joy, more lasting pleasure in life devoted to helping others than there is in a life devoted to our material comfort. And therefore, the very longing for contentment that ought to drive us to sumplicity of life and labors of love contents itself instead with the broken cisterns of prosperity and comfort. (John Piper, pg 104) We then looked at day five to examine the cost of love. We discussed the three examples of costly love. The 1st was the Christians in Hebrews 10:32-35. We learned how they chose to love those imprisoned and joyfully accepted the plundering of their property. The 2nd was Moses, "his delight in the promised reward overflowed in such joy that he counted the pleasures of Egypt rubbish by comparison and was bound forever to God's people in love." (John Piper, pg 106) The 3rd, Hebrews 12:2 (looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God). We finished this week looking at the last activity of day five. By looking at Hebrews12:2; we discovered the joy Jesus looked forward to in His sufferings. We discussed how it talks about how he has sat down at the right hand of God, but it was pointed out that He had this place before He came to the earth. The joy here is that of lour salvation (finisher of our faith) and the defeat fo Satan. We then looked at the kinds of gains that are wrong motivations and the kinds of gains that are the right motivations. Gains as wrong motivations included love, God's glory, God's pleasure, and joy (your and theirs). Looking at the 2nd activity of day 1 (pg. 99) we see that the gain we seek isn't our personal comfort but the joy of seeing others come to know and love Christ. Next we discussed the question is love what you feel of what you do. Our answer was both. We then moved on to the question of how most of us have been taught that love is more than feelings. After some discussion is was agreed that from the world it is feeling, and are taught from God love is an action (1 Corinthians13). We then worked through the day two material to discover how love is more than deeds. The text contrasts 1 Corinthians 13:3 (If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing) with John 15:13 (Greater love has no one than this, that someone lays down his life for his friends). It concludes that love cannot be equated with sacrificial action! It cannot be equeated with any action! Dr. Piper goes on to look at 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, "love is not jealous and not easily provoked and that it rejoices in the truth and hopes all things". He points out these are all feelings. He goes on to say that yes, love is more than feelings'; but, no, love is not less than feelings. We then commpleted the 1st activity in day two. Here we matched statements with scripture; we found that many seemed to fit with more than one. "The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart" (1 Timothy 1:5) "If a brother or sister is without clothes and Warm feelings can't replace actual loving deeds. lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, _______________________ 'go in peace, keep warm, and eat well,' but you don't give them what the body needs, what Feelings are essential, not optional, to the good is it?" (Jas. 2:15-16) Christian life. _____________________ "Love one another earnestly from a pure heart" We must make an effort to show love, even (1 Peter 1:22) when we don't feel love.______________ "Little children, we must not love in word or Although love is more than feelings, it's not less speech, but in deed and truth" (1 John 3:18) than a feelings either. ___________________ "Let love be genuine...Love one another with brotherly affection" (Roman 12:9-10) We ended this week by completing the final activity of day two. From 1 John 4:7-8 we learned the only way we can love others with our actions and feelings is that we must know and be born of God. |
| June 13- This week we began looking at what it takes to keep the Christian joy burning. We started with the questions; is every day with Jesus really sweeter then the day before? And why is life at times so joyless? In the discussion it came out that no, every day with Jesus is not sweeter. Why? Because we let life be joyless, we let life get to us. After reading 1 Peter 5:8 (Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. NKJ) we discussed how Satan wants to devour us, and that he is also described as a thief. From John 10:10 we learn that Satan wants to steal, kill and destroy us, but Jesus wants togive us abundant life. Pastor Piper states that the Bible is our endless kindling that can keep our joy burning bright. 7The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul; The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple; Psalm 19:7 NKJ Next we looked at what we might have to do to get the kindling to start burning. It was shared that we need to read the word, the instructions from the Lord. We then completed the 2nd activity of day one (pg.110). Here we learn that Paul charged Timothy to "fan into flame the gift of God". The implied reason Timothy needed to fight for his joy is that it would give him power, love and self control, and that it would glorify God. This charge to fan the flame implies work! We discussed that God has given us the sword of the Spirit, the armor of God, the word of God, to work and fight with even when we're afraid. We also looked at how Timothy might have used the word to fan into flames his gift from God. Answers included that he accept the word as God inspired (reliable), and that it is hard to share the truth with others if you haven't read it and know it. We then discussed if we would be willing fight with a weapon we were uncertain was reliable and why. The responses included no, or if we didn't know how to use it because we are liable to do more damage than good with it. We also looked at if we need to be convinced the Bible is trustworthy if we're going to keep our flame of joy burning bright? Yes, we need to have confidence to wield it with confidence. We next broke into two groups to explore why the Scriptures are trustworhy, using the material in Day 2. The 1st group looked at the Old Testament Scripturres and and the New Testament Scriptures. Besides the points Dr. Piper brings out in Day 2, we also talked about how the manuscript evidence supports the authenticity of the Scriptures. To look at the benefits and power of Holy Scripture, we began with the question of why people might think the Bible is a kill-joy rather than a kindler of joy. The main reason shared was that it gives a lot of instructions and rules, the thou shall not's. We then read Deuteronomy 32:46-47 (46 and he said to them: "Set your hearts on all the words which I testify among you today, which you shall command your children to be careful to observe-all the words of this law. 47For it is not a futile thing for you, because it is your life, and by this word you shall prolong your days in the land which you cross over the Jordan to possess"NKJ) To identify the life-giving properties of the Word of God we looked at 1 Peter1:23-25 (the 1st activity of Day 3). From this scripture we identified the following life-giving properties: ~Imperishable ~Living ~Abiding ~Remains forever ~Good news To end this week we explored if the bible gives life because it has magical properties. Of course it doesn't we learn why from John 1:1 1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. So the Word gives life because Christ is the Word of God. |
| July 4- We began this week by reviewing how prayer pursues God's glory. Responses included that it is the foundation to obtain/show God's glory, it builds your relationship with God, and it acknowledges that we need God. We then listened as a volunteer read John 16:24: Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that you joy may be full. We also reviewed the following equations discussed last week: ~ Praylessness = Joylessness ~ Prayerfulness = Joyfulness ~ Separation from Jesus = ~ Death ~ Coma (Spiritual) ~ Nonbelievers-have never truly known joy ~ Believers-worse because you know what you have lost ~ Fellowship with Jesus = Joy Based on these equations, volunteers said prayer leads to joy because it leads you closer to Jesus, and it gives us power. After again readin John 16:24 we discussed what many people think they must receive in order to have complete joy. Responses included things, money, whatever they ask for, and relationships with people. We then completed the final activity of Day 4 (pg 128). This addressed what we obviously need in answer to our prayer to fill our joy, from John 15:7-8,16. Answers included ask, to bear fruit, trust, and obedience. We then looked at how prayer empowers believers for missons and shared how they have experienced joy when God worked through them to love others. We discussed how if we ask we will be empowered to bear fruit through missions. One volunteer asked God to change her heart toward the kids she worked with and how he had answered that prayer and gave her joy through working with those kids. We ended this lesson on prayer by looking at reasons believers should want to pray. These included to glorify God, to bring us joy, comfort, and contentment. To transition to the next lesson on money, we answered the following True or False question: Money can make or break your happiness forever. Answers included both true and false (can't forever). To explore what the bible says is the power of money we read 1 Timothy 6:9, 18-19 9But hose who desire to be rich fall into temptaton and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. 18Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share, 19storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay hold on etenal life. We then discussed what these verses teach about money in relation to joy. Responses included that we are to be generous in our sharing, the more you give the more joy you have, to set our hope on God and not things/$, and to be rich in good works. After looking at Pastor Piper's statement that our greatest sin is that we are far too easily pleased, we discussed how that comment relates tomoney as well. Comments included that nobody thinks they have enough, and that we ae too easily pleased with the things we buy. Next we completed the comparison exercise on pg. 133. This exercise compared qualities associated with the love of money and the love of God found in 1 Timothy 6:3-10. Love Of Money ~ Greed ~ Proud ~ Knows nothing ~ Disputes ~ Arguments ~ Envy ~ Strife ~ Revilling ~ Evil suspicions ~ Corrupt minds ~ Destitute of the truth Love Of God ~ Contentment ~ Food ~ Clothing One of the reasons this letter to Timothy was written was because of the attitude of the false teachers in regards to godliness. They saw and used this desire for godlisness for their own finacial gains. We then shared where we where we see this attitude today. Responses included TV evangelists, scammers, and possibly some writer. All agreed that there is really nothing wrong with desiring gain, as long it is the desire for God's glory. To attain gain we need Godlinesss withcontentment, the secret to contentment is to pursu Godliness, todepend onGod. we ended this week by reading Philippians 4:12-13. 12I know how tobe abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and t suffer need. 13I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. |
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