Doctrine: Bible (John)

Good morning....welcome to our first LM’s of our study of John’s Gospel.

My hope and prayer is that LM will quickly become your favorite morning of the week, if it isn’t already. It’s a time where we are filled..Filled with God’s word’s..with encouragement…with teaching....and with time with God as we gather, pray, train, and dive into scripture together.

Please know that I recognize and understand that serving in BSF leadership is a sacrifice. It’s a sacrifice of your time, and for this reason, your class staff and I are committed to making every minute of LM’s valuable.

We want to encourage you to commit and protect this time every week, so that this LM time prepares you to serve well.

Now, your call to leadership won’t always be easy. There will be challenges along the way…but it’s those challenges that develop your faith and dependance on God. Some of you have barely started and you are feeling the challenges right now- some of you are walking in here today with heavy burdens. I see you…thank you for being here…I know you have a lot of other places you could be...

Remember, God called you to the privilege of serving Him and His people as a BSF leader…What will depending on God look like for you this year as you trust Him with your time?

Imagine the impact we could have in Making Jesus Known if we commit to using this gift of time to get to know Jesus better and depend on Him more in serving Him.

Hollie Roberts reminded us in the Refill video, “Who would be so worthy of that kind of commitment?” Will your commitment this year make others ask that same question?

Before we dive into the doctrine talk for today....I wanted to just take a moment and let you know of an exciting announcement:

I referenced this in our announcements yesterday- which by the way- if you didn’t read those- make sure that you do that. Please get in the habit of reading these every Monday evening. Set an alarm on your phone or turn on your slack notifications.

ok..so…Colleen Carter- who was not able to be here today, and who honestly did not know she was coming back into leadership until last Friday :)…but anyways- she has been serving at the Martha Linder Center for Transportation which is a faith based residential treatment program for women.

God has opened the door for our BSF class to have not only a group in the prison led by Robin, but also here in Cincinnati for women when they get out of prison.

God is on the move friends- Colleen and Robin don’t know each other- in fact, they have never met- but God knew…he went way ahead of us and worked out all the details for both Robin and Colleen.

Tomorrow, we will be asking our class for donations for books so the women who have committed to go through the study will have access to materials. I will be announcing this to the class as well as the sign up process, so group leaders you do not need to announce it to your women.

Please be praying with us as these groups start over the next few weeks. We will be praying for their groups specifically weekly during our leaders meeting prayer time.

Introduction Lesson Text: Overview and Introduction of the Gospel of John

Doctrine: The Bible

The Bible is God’s treasure book, His words are written there. And as I turn each page to look, I handle it with care.

These are God’s true words.

Those words were first said to me as a young toddler at BSF, more than 30 years ago. Those words are still said in our BSF classrooms today and they are just as true now as they were then...

But why do we take such time and energy to focus on the Bible- on God’s true word?

Because in the Bible- you find God- you find truth.

The Bible is God’s written revelation of himself and His divine purposes.

This year- we are going to study John’s Gospel…his words are authoritative because they were inspired by the Holy Spirit and recorded by John- a human author.

John’s words are not just authoritative- they contain truth- truth about who Jesus is and the only way to life in Him.

The Bible reflects the character of God Himself.

We can trust that God’s words are true because God cannot lie- it isn’t in his nature.

At times we may struggle to understand… However, any perceived discrepancies reveal our limited understanding- the problem is us- not God..and not his words...

Through 66 books written by more than 40 human authors, the Bible tells one unified story of God’s plan to redeem mankind from sin and death through God’s Son.

Beyond the facts of history and God’s plan for eternity, the Bible speaks powerfully into the lives of people today.

God’s Word reveals our sinfulness and need for a Savior. The Bible teaches how to know God and live in relationship with Him.

Think about this for a second…what would your life be like without God and his word? Some of you have never known life without God or his word…while for others of you- it isnt hard to imagine because you have lived it for years.

Life without God and His word is terribly hopeless...

When I do not believe in the authority and power of the Bible, I allow other voices to be functionally more authoritative than scripture. I live with only a human perspective on life and eternity and am left to sort things out for myself- creating my own truth, but never being certain of anything.

However, If I truly believe that the Bible is the word of God- then it becomes my most valuable, essential, and treasured possession. I would cling to it for truth, comfort, salvation, and guidance. If I truly believed it was the world of God than it would hold more weight and value in my decision making over my friends, the voices on social media, or the latest podcast or news program I ran to for answers. I would I strive to apply it to every area of my life. And look for every opportunity to share it with others.

Applications for Leaders: The Bible reveals God and speaks truth.

Understanding the authority of the Bible prepares us to embrace the study of John. – B/c John exalts Jesus and explains who He is, what He has done, and what He promises.

The words in the Bible…God’s words... are living and active—teaching us, exposing our hearts, and leading us to God. – The Holy Spirit brings light and life to what we read and study in God’s Word! He reveals himself to us through it.

Think about that for a second…the God of the universe wants to speak to you personally.

It’s why we come to discussion group WITHOUT reading commentaries and notes beforehand- because we don’t want to miss what the Holy Spirit has to tell us because we are too busy focusing on what he gave everybody else.

Whether you have been a Christian and studying the Bible for years or are newer to the Bible- you have the Holy Spirit in you…

He is talking…are you listening? Do you know his voice?

– Will you trust God to speak through every lesson, taking you beyond the facts?

God is personal- he wants you to hear truth…embrace it…and then let it change your life. – Ask God to not only do this in you, but also in those that you lead! –And watch expectantly for God to reveal himself and Make Jesus known in your life, in the lives of your group members, children and students, in your families lives, in your neighborhoods, and our city—through the Gospel of John this year...

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We start every leaders meeting with prayer- prayer is our communication with God- it reminds us that we are doing His work…we need his equipping…His guidance…and time to simply sit before him…and it is a privilege and honor to be able to do this with each of you- together- in this room.

So- we are going to do this a little differently than we have in years past...

We are going to start out with ADORATION and THANKSGIVING all together.

If you read the announcements- you might have seen where I put we would be having a time of confession…well good news- we aren’t. just keeping you on your toes...Apparently that was fresh in my mind when I wrote the announcements yesterday, so I might need to revisit that personally, but... while confession is important- we will not share all of our sins out loud together…your welcome.

So after thanksgiving, we will move into a time of supplication- the purpose of this time is to bring all parts of BSF before the Lord.

So- when we get to supplication, we want you to just break up into small groups of 3-4 (find those nearest you) and pray together.

I am still going to lead us through each section and tell you when to move on- but you can pray as the spirit leads within your smaller groups.

Our announcements had some tips, but just as a reminder:

- Be short and sweet

- no names

- and help us stay organized by keeping your prayer focused on the specific area we are praying over.

So- as a reminder- at BSF- we pray on our knees as a sign of our place before our sovereign God. So, if you are able, please join me on your knees in prayer.

9:42- Adoration-

9:44- Thanksgiving

Supplication- we will now move to supplication, so in groups of 3-4 lift up BSF Global

9:46-BSF Global

HQ-

International- Excitement and enthusiasm around the world to make Jesus known through John’s Gospel: The Truth.

AT-

9:47- BSF Local

Teacher- Hollie Roberts- BSF executive director

Leadership- That we would rely on the Holy Spirit's equipping as we serve Him through BSF this year

Serving Sisters- 1 member per group

Prison/Rehab women's group- God to prompt women to sign up to commit to studying the book of John

Host Church-

Local BSF Classes-

9:48- ADMIN & AL's

9:49- BSF KIDS/PSCL's

9:50- BSF STUDENTS/SPCL's

9:51- Groups/GL's

9:52- Close

DON’T LEAVE- Mary Kay is going to train us on Emergency Procedures and then we will go to role specific training!

VISION CASTING/CHILDREN'S SERVING TRAINING:

The Mission and Vision of BSF informs everything we do in our ministry.

Mission: Global, in-depth Bible classes producing passionate commitment to Christ, his word, and his church

Vision: to magnify God and mature his people.

In your role you can lead well by communicating vision to your groups.

So what is vision? Vision was defined by one Christian leader as:

"A mental picture of what could be, fueled by a passion that it should be."

Whenever you have something you want to communicate to your group members- you have 2 choices:

1. You can give them a list of rules...the do's and don't's

or

2. You can vision cast- let them know the WHY- what is the heart.

When you cast vision- it should ALWAYS align with BSF's vision and mission...

Steps to vision casting:

HERE- Here is the current situation

THERE- where you want to go (THIS TELLS THE WHY)

HOW- How we get there-> series of steps…present one at a time

Time spent vision casting doesn't need to be long and drawn out. It can be quick and to the point and yet, contain all 3 of these elements.

As GL's, you should be doing A LOT of vision casting!

Example:

Group lacks balanced sharing:

1. HERE: There are 15 women in our group, some of you we get to hear from a lot and some of you we do not hear from very often.

2. THERE: Each of you has an important voice- what would it look like for each woman in our group to be heard?

3. HOW: For some of you, that might mean refraining from talking so others have a chance to be heard. For others of you, that might mean speaking up, even when it feels uncomfortable. Let’s work together to create a place where everyone has an opportunity to be heard. Every voice matters- to me, to the group, and most importantly, to God.

People using outside resources:

HERE: When we read scripture- it often brings to mind something from a pastor, commentary, book, tv show, etc. and we often want to quickly share the amazing thought someone else had.

THERE: However, the goal here is that we would share what the Holy Spirit revealed to us personally through reading his word, not what he gave someone else.

HOW: So, please refrain from sharing outside resources, such as pastors, commentaries, podcasts, tv shows, or any other resource other than the Bible when you share in group. This will help you learn to hear from the Holy Spirit and also get to experience what he is teaching others in your group.

Tomorrow- we would like you to take a few moments and vision cast serving in the children's program to your groups. I am going to give you a moment to do this in groups- but first, some things that might be helpful.

HERE

294 children registered

17 PSCL’s and 8 SPCL’s

Class is run on volunteers

Need 15 volunteers weekly

THERE

Vision: BSF mission calls us to reach the next generation for Christ through Bible engagement

Serving sisters- groups serve together weekly to help BSF carry out mission to reach next generation

Each week 1 group will be signed up to serve together in the children's program- you will not meet for discussion that day.

Several weeks before your group serves, you will send out the sign up genius so we know how many volunteers we have and how many we need.

Sister groups- every group is paired with a "sister group." We need 15 volunteers a week for our children's program during class. 6 during LM and 5-6 for PCP (both preschool and student)

If your group is unable to have enough women serve, than we will pull from the sister group to make sure our children's leaders have adequate support. Sometimes, this means we will walk in the morning of and ask for more volunteers.

LM and PCP Volunteers- we need women to volunteer on Tuesday’s so our leaders can be prepared to lead on Wednesday and also to watch leaders kids during PCP

This year we need serving sisters for both pre-school and student program kids. If you have women who are not able to physically be with the pre-school- we need them in the student program. If they can sit in a group- they can be with our older kids.

This year I hope the women in your groups recognize the profound impact that they have when they simply show up to serve. There is power in your presence

LET: Take about 4 minutes in groups of 3-4 and write a vision casting statement using these 3 components that you could give tomorrow to your groups.

1-2 groups share:

So what do we want you to do tomorrow- take about 5 minutes- and vision cast to your group. You have 5 minutes, so maybe share a personal story from when you have been blessed through serving. Don't forget to include these components as you vision cast:

SLIDE- hand out forms

ESSENTIAL POLICY's: Before we move on, I want to remind you of some important essential children's program policy's that are important for all leaders to know. I know you all have already read these on page 5 and 6 of the leaders core in your manual, but just a quick refresher:

2 adult policy- no child should ever be alone with an adult- this applies to classrooms, hallways, bathrooms, etc.

Parental Permission: Every child must have a parental permission before they can attend and this must be filled out by a legal parent/guardian.

To the door policy: BSF adults must accompany their children to and from the classroom. Your group members cannot just tell their kids to go to their rooms- they must walk them there. Remember, we have almost 300 kids in the building- this is going to be very important.

No outside contact: leaders and volunteers are not to have contact with the children outside of the classroom- so no social media or private chats. However, this does not mean that you have to avoid children you go to church with or who is also on your kids soccer team.

CLOSE:

I know shepherding your groups to serve in our BSF kids and BSF students program can feel overwhelming. Please know:

your Role is to cast vision and shepherd- you cannot force your women to sign up. Our hearts desire is that every woman in our class would be a part of reaching the next generation by serving our children.

Your attitude matters- if you excited to serve- they will be too!

We also recognize that there are instances where a women cannot serve in the children's program- if you have women in your group who fall into this category, please reach out to me directly and we will address these on a case to case basis.

SIGN UP GENIUS:

https://m.signupgenius.com/#!/showSignUp/30E0E45A8A829A7FD0-bsfserving

Last year Kay created a WONDERFUL resource to help your women sign up. Karen will be posting this as well as the sign up genius link on the GL page later today. Feel free to send this out to your women a few weeks before you serve so they can start filling it out.

I will also be posting the sister groups

Please reach out if you have questions on how to use sign up genius

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Scope and Sequence

Post calendar

Serving sister vision casting

Post sister groups

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SAFE ENVIRONMENT:

- Confidentiality

compassion