God, Guys & Girls (Part 1)
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Big Idea: Unless I'm wholeheartedly pursuing a relationship with Christ, all other relationships will be a hopeless attempt to fill that void.
*All Scriptures are NIV.
Introduction
Teenage dating scene
Talk about going on a first date with Leah
Talk about how our relationship ended
Have you been there?
Break up
Rejection
Love, dating and relationships = big deal to us.
Also, “Sex”
Next four weeks: What God has to say about these things
Tonight = relationships.
First crisis = relationsal crisis
Genesis 1 and 2: God creating things: “Good”
[SLIDE]
10 God called the dry land earth, and the gathering of the waters He called seas; and God saw that it was good.
12 The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
It continues...
In Genesis 1:18 (after creating the sun, moon and stars)
1:21 (after creating the sea creatures)
1:25 (after creating the land creatures)…
each verse ends with the statement, “And God was that is was good.”
Chapter 2: Not good (before snake)
Check it out in Genesis 2:
7 Then the Lord God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.
15 Then the Lord God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it.
16 The Lord God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely;
17 but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.”
18 Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him.”
Verse 18: “It is not good.”
First human crisis = loneliness
God has solution
21 So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then He took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh at that place.
22 The Lord God fashioned into a woman the rib which He had taken from the man, and brought her to the man.
God creates relationships to deal with loneliness
Gets risque
23 The man said,
“This is now bone of my bones,
And flesh of my flesh;
She shall be called Woman,
Because she was taken out of Man.”
24 For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.
25 And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.
25 Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.
Adam = poetic and romantic.
Verse 24 = super loaded.
“Becoming one flesh”
Bond of marriage
Sex
No clothes & no cares
Dive into God’s design
Pause and make it clear...
God created sex.
It’s kind of a big deal to Him.
The key = approaching with God’s plan and design
More in weeks to come.
But right now = all relationships.
Two thoughts:
We need relationships.
Something inside = “not good” to be alone
The first relationship: man and woman > husband and wife.
It had a romantic part to it.
However, romantic relationship not necessary to not feel alone.
Belonging and comfort in relationship with...
Parents
In friendships
Coaching/mentoring relationships.
Non romantic guy/girl
The point: Better with relationships than alone
We need relationships.
Relationships are complicated.
This past week = stress or frustration with another person?
From excitement to brokenness
Not complicated to figure out why they are complicated
2 unique individuals seeking common ground = messy
Sin.
Little messes
Somebody rubbing us the wrong way
Saying something hurtful
Huge messes
· Girl consistently bullied by former friends
Now questions value in life
· Guy who feels pressure to succeed in football from his dad
Now is starting to hate sport
· Couple: “in like” > love.
Physical boundaries at first but later compromised
Guilt and shame
· Married couple going through a divorce (Wife cheated)
Kids watching their world crumble
Happen all the time.
Impossible to avoid
Remember: we need relationships.
Navigating these relationships
Avoiding the messes
Working through them when they happen
Teenage relationships: two common issues that will lead to complications and messes.
Messes happen when relationships push us away from God.
Back to Adam and Eve
Freedom
O
16 The Lord God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely;
17 but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.”
The serpent enters
4 The serpent said to the woman, “You surely will not die!
5 “For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
Serpant = pushing Eve away from God
Relationship with serpent affects relationship with Adam
6 When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate.
Huge complications because they chose to push away from God rather than toward.
Consider if any relationships are pushing you away from God.
Don’t think Christian vs. non-Christian.
If any relationship is pushing you away from God, need to get away, or headed for a mess
At least a clarifying conversation
Or more drastic steps.
Take break.
If you have any kind of relationship that is pushing you away from God, something needs to change, or you are heading toward a mess.
Messes happen when relationships push us away from God.
Messes happen when our relationships become God
Ten CommandmentsT
Rooted on relationship. The first four are more focused on how our relationship with God should work, and the last six are about relationship with others. The very first commandment is a short one, but it’s a doozy…
Exodus 20:3
You shall have no other gods before me.
Students, this may be the most important thing you are going to hear from me this entire series. In fact, I have had more students come back to me years later and tell me how significantly the statement I’m about to share with you impacted their lives through the years. Here it is:
[SLIDE]
Unless I'm wholeheartedly pursuing a relationship with Christ, all other relationships will be a hopeless attempt to fill that void.
Let me say it again…
Unless I'm wholeheartedly pursuing a relationship with Christ, all other relationships will be a hopeless attempt to fill that void.
No relationship can take the place of the relationship we are meant to have with God. This is the heart of that first commandment God gave. Now, we need relationships in our lives, but they cannot fulfill what only God can fulfill.
This idea is HUGE when it comes to love, dating, and/or marriage. You may be sitting there just feeling so incomplete, and the thought is, “If I could just get _____________ to notice me/date me/marry me, then everything would fall into place.”
[Author Note: The next section paragraph is only usable if you are married. If you aren’t married, you can just speak hypothetically… “If someone is married, that spouse is probably an amazing encouragement…”]
I’m married. I LOVE MY WIFE. She is an amazing encouragement, support and partner as I walk through life. I can’t imagine life without her. But she will never be able to provide the cure for my disease called sin. She will never be able to fully discern and tell me what the ultimate point and direction of my life should look like. And at the end of my life, it will not be her that I stand before to give an account of my life. We will never be able to fully grasp what love is without walking in love with the one who is the source of love.
We are just starting this journey on God, Guys & Girls… but this is the right place to start… focusing on our relationships with God. Students, do you want to avoid the greatest complications that arise in relationships? Wholeheartedly pursue your relationship with Christ!
Can I pray for us?
[Author Note: If you plan to use the “God’s Word on Love” devotional during the series, you may want to close out the time by handing out the booklets and encourage them to dive in. Talk through accountabilities and ways to give feedback (like commenting on the daily “Lovestagrams” on social media if you plan on using those as well). You can also plug the fact that you are going to lean into the topic of Love vs. Lust next week!]
