Wednesday Night Overview
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Introduction
Introduction
It’s January
We ask all of the purpose and vision questions
We reflect on the past year and look towards the year to come
So the question is: Why do we join together on Wednesday nights?
What is the reason for doing what we do?
We are a community of followers of Jesus that are seeking Jesus together
Another word: Fellowship
Fellowship (Koinonia) - “To have in common/To share”
This is one the beautiful things about Christian community
We are so unique and diverse
We have different interests and likes
But we all have one thing that ties us together
We are committed to following Jesus
And that is what we do here
And what this looks like can look different
But there are some key pillars of community that I want to emphasize today
When we read the book of Acts, we see a beautiful vision of what this fellowship looked like:
Acts 2:41–42 (CSB)
So those who accepted his message were baptized, and that day about three thousand people were added to them. They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to prayer.
Acts 2:46–47 (CSB)
Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple, and broke bread from house to house. They ate their food with joyful and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. Every day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.
Whenever I read this I am inspired, why cant God do this again?
This year we want to be able to practice these things regularly
But First I want to talk briefly about four pillars of Christian community
Communion and Prayer
The Apostle’s Teaching (The Scriptures)
The Fellowship (Testimony)
Community (Eating food with joyful and sincere hearts)
Communion and Prayer
Communion and Prayer
As we have been doing the past several years, we want to take the first Wednesday of the month to slow down, pause, and worship the Lord
We take communion together
We all acknowledge together, our need for the gospel and Jesus’s sacrifice
We want to have a regular time where we reorient ourselves back to Jesus
And a time where we can pray over each other in love
So we are continuing the rhythm of our first Wednesdays
But from here, our Wednesdays will have a cycle each month
We won’t be working through a sermon series or a book of the Bible every week, but we are going to practice and devote ourselves to the same things the early church in Acts did
The Apostle’s Teaching
The Apostle’s Teaching
Another thing the early Church devoted themselves to was the Apostle’s teaching
It wasn’t only a time of fellowship and worship, but teaching
God’s people were instructed and encouraged to live as followers of Jesus
Knowing and learning Scripture is invaluable as we follow Jesus
It is how we come to know and understand God’s will for our life
It is our weapon in Spiritual warfare
It is the foundation of truth and our relationship with God
Romans 10:14–17 (CSB)
How, then, can they call on him they have not believed in? And how can they believe without hearing about him? And how can they hear without a preacher? And how can they preach unless they are sent?
So faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the message about Christ.
Acts 8:30–31 (CSB)
When Philip ran up to it, he heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, “Do you understand what you’re reading?”
“How can I,” he said, “unless someone guides me?” So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.
Acts 8:35 (CSB)
Philip proceeded to tell him the good news about Jesus, beginning with that Scripture.
If you join us on Sundays, next month we will spend a lot of time talking about the importance of the Scriptures
But for us here, on Wednesday nights, the second Wednesday of each month we are going to do and overview of a book of the Bible
We are going to start at the epistles (with Romans) and work our way forward
Our goal is not to have an exhaustive study verse-by-verse but to teach you the purpose of each letter, the main themes, the key verses, that you might read them and understand them deeper
So as we go through books (1 each month) we strongly encourage you to read through that book!
Next week we are going over Romans (so you can get a head start!)
Come with questions!
Watch the Bible Project Videos!
Read it in advance!
The Fellowship (Testimony)
The Fellowship (Testimony)
The next main pillar is fellowship
Remember it is the things that we have in common (namely Jesus)
The Third Wednesday of each month we will have someone (either a leader or student) share a testimony
What is a testimony?
It isn’t necessarily the story of how someone was saved
But think of a courtroom
It is someone testifying to something they have seen/experienced
A testimony is us sharing what we have seen and experienced God doing in our lives
So because we all have Jesus in common (not just me)
Once a month someone else will share what God is showing them in their life
With that: If there is something God has put on your heart or something that you want to share with others: reach out to me!
I’d love to hear the great things God is doing in your life!
And even if you are not sharing:
It is always a good question to ask:
What is God doing in my life?
What is God showing me in this season?
And sometimes hearing how God is working in someone else’s life can help us see how he is working in ours!
Community (Eating food with joyful and sincere hearts)
Community (Eating food with joyful and sincere hearts)
And finally we have community
Church wasn’t just a place people would go to to be around other people that believe the same things about them
The Chruch is a community
Acts 2:46–47 (CSB)
Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple, and broke bread from house to house. They ate their food with joyful and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. Every day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.
The Church is a community
The Church is comprised of many unique and diverse people that each bring something to the table
The Church is made up of friends and family members, people who share their lives with other people
Look around!
These people are your friends
They are your family in Christ
And you might not know everyone here very well, but we want to make time and space for friendships to form and strengthen
So the last Wednesday of each month will be a community event
Whether its a movie night, board game night
Pickle-ball or Dodgeball contest
Whether its a feast that we eat or a craft that we make
We want to make time for friendships
We want to have a time where you can invite a friend to hang out
We want to make time for joyful and sincere hearts to praise the Lord
So if you have any ideas of things you would love to do, talk to Tami or me!
But with all of this to say: I am excited for this New Year
And we want you guys a part of the process of what Wednesday Nights look like
When we study the Bible, come with questions to talk about it!
If you want to share a testimony, come talk to me about it!
If you have ideas for fun events, come to us!
We want Wednesday Nights to be a safe and Christ-centered community where friendships can flourish in this season of your life
So to start to foster this community we have and icebreaker game to play!
You have to choose someone you don’t usually talk to!
2 Truths and a Lie in groups of Two
2 commonalities
Pray