Brave To Love
Notes
Transcript
Welcome/Introduction
Welcome/Introduction
Good morning, everyone! How are we all doing today?!
It is so good to be here with you this morning.
Let me see a show of hands —
who’s thankful to be here today?!
Now, who had a great spring break?!
Alright… be honest now:
who is happy to be back at school?!
My name is Pastor Mitchell, and I’m a pastor at Edgewood Community Church in Waupun.
Raise your hand if you’ve ever been to the great city of Waupun!
How about this — raise your hand if you’ve ever been to Edgewood Community Church.
Alright, let’s switch things up a little.
Raise your hand if you have ever been scared before.
Really? No one? I don’t know if I believe that!
Okay, let me ask some of you —
what’s something that has made you feel scared?
Maybe for some of the older students: what’s something scary you’ve had to do?
Believe it or not, I was (a little bit) scared to move to Waupun.
3 and a half years ago, God called us to move to Waupun, Wisconsin from living in Northwest Indiana. Nearly 4 hours south of here, just south of Chicago.
Everything about Waupun, and this area of Wisconsin, is different than where I’m from. I’m from the city and suburbs. Everything out here is small-town and country.
The Northwest Indiana / Chicago area is where my wife, Nicole, and I lived our whole lives. All of our family and friends were there, and everything we had ever known was there… the schools we attended, our church, our favorite restaurants…
But, God was leading us to move — so that we would serve Him at Edgewood Community Church in Waupun.
But, it felt like if we followed where God was leading, we would have to say goodbye to our friends and family — because they wouldn’t be just down the road from us anymore.
Even though it was scary, God promises us in His Word that He will be with us wherever we go — when we are following Him.
God even gives us examples in the Bible of when we was with His people.
Can anyone name a time when God was with His people through a scary time?
…
Imagine your best friend is the leader of the entire school, and then your best friend dies. Now, you have to be the leader of your entire school.
Wouldn’t that be a bit scary?
A version of this happened in the Bible.
Who has ever heard of Moses?
Moses was the leader of the people, then he died… and then Joshua needed to lead the people.
God was calling Joshua to lead even though he was in a scary situation.
Here’s what God said to Joshua after Moses died…
5 … Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you. 6 Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them.
God sees that Joshua is in a scary situation.
God comforts Joshua.
God gives an example of how He will be with Joshua — just as He was with Moses.
God promises to never leave Joshua or turn away from him.
After God equips Joshua with what he needs, He commissions Joshua to a task.
He says that Joshua will lead the people to the Promised Land.
How many of you would be scared to do this?
Your best friend is no longer there, and now you need to lead a huge group of people.
God presses in this idea to Joshua that he needs to be “strong and courageous”.
He says in verses 7-8…
7 Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go. 8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.
7th and 8th graders: what is God telling us here?
God is telling us to cling to the Bible.
He says “meditate on it day and night”… READ it and LOVE God’s Word! It is the source of Truth and LIFE!
SO…
God tells Joshua that He will be with him and will never leave him. — this is already an AMAZING promise.
God tells Joshua to be “strong and courageous”.
Question: How can Joshua be strong and courageous?
Answer: because God is with him.
See, God gives you the ability to carry out what He is calling you to… He gives you the ability before He even calls you to it!
THEN, God tells Joshua to read His Bible and love His Bible… and do what His Bible says to do.
God promises Joshua that he will have “good success” if he does this.
After this, God emphasizes this message again by saying:
9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
God doesn’t ask us to be strong and courageous.
God commands that we be strong and courageous.
God knows that we might be frighten, scared, and discouraged, so He says “do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed”.
God’s comfort to Joshua and His comfort to us is that: God is with us wherever we go.
God will never leave us or reject us.
So what does this mean for you?
So what does this mean for you?
Acknowledge that you need help… that you can’t do this life on your own… you need God to help you… ultimately, you need God to save you from your sins… you need to trust in Jesus for your salvation…
Cling to God’s Word. Believe the Bible. It is true. It is the very Word of God. When you read the Bible, you are reading exactly what the God of the universe has said… WOW. Does that not blow your mind?!
Obey God’s Word.
Just as God instructed Joshua to read, love, and obey the Bible, so God also calls the same thing of us.
SO, what is God calling of us?
Well, who can tell me what your school theme is this year?
“Agents of Change”
Agents of change.
You are an agent of change. You have the power to impact your school and community positively because of God working in and through you.
37 [Jesus says] “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
Loving our neighbor is a way we can be an Agent of Change in our school and community.
And, because God has commanded us to be strong and courageous, and has promised to be with us, we can be “Brave To Love” our neighbors.
How can we love our neighbor?
How can we love our neighbor?
— like we love ourselves…
Treat others as you would like to be treated.
Don’t gossip about others.
Would you want someone doing that about you?
Don’t make fun of someone who is different than you.
When you do that, you’re insulting God because every human being is made in the image of God.
Be a giver.
Be generous.
If you have something you don’t need, give it to someone who needs it… give generously to others. It feels good!
Considering going through your toys or belongings once a month and look for one thing you can donate to someone in need.
Be a friend.
If you’re at school or at church, and you see someone who is new and uncomfortable… they want to make a friend but they don’t know anyone, you need to be the person who walks over to them and make them feel welcomed, seen, and loved. — BE THAT PERSON! This is what Jesus would do.
Be a Truth-teller.
We all want to know the “Truth” right?
Don’t lie, of course…
Tell the Truth.
What is the Truth?
Ultimately, the Truth is that Jesus died for us and He rose again from the dead! Tell people this!
But, how?
But, how?
Won’t it be scary?
Maybe… likely, yes, it will be at times…
But, God is with you… just as He promised Joshua.
God commanded Joshua to be strong and courageous, and the way that Joshua could be strong and courageous is because God promised to be with him.
Look at this with me…
Jesus commands us to “go and make disciples of all nations” in Matthew 28…
“teaching them to obey all that He has commanded us” in the Bible…
Does this sound sort of similar to what God told Joshua?
Then, Jesus says, as we do that “He will be with us”…!
Jesus will be with us when we go and make disciples of all nations!
NOW, look at what Jesus tells us in Acts 1:8…
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
The Holy Spirit is inside of you and has given you power to be an “Agent of Change” for God’s glory!
You never need to worry if you’re not good enough or smart enough…
God is with you, and the Holy Spirit lives within you. He will shine through you.
There is no need to fear. God is faithful to fulfill His promises in His Word.
Praise the Lord!
God works all things for His glory and for the good of those who love Him. That’s from Romans 8:28.
Trust in Him.
Give your life to Him.
Acknowledge that you are broken, sinful, and scared without Him.
Trust in the work of Jesus for you… He died on the cross for your sins… and then He rose again from the dead on Easter! This is what we celebrated last weekend!
Trust in Jesus. Give your life to Him… then, the Holy Spirit will dwell inside of you and give you the power and ability to share the Good News of Jesus and be an Agent of Change.
Let’s pray…
Let’s pray…
