LEARNING
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ANNOUNCEMENTS:
TONIGHT: Veritas 10 year Party @ Short North (6pm)
Welcome
We’ve been looking at our Rhythms at Veritas. Really diving deep into (1) what it looks like to live as a Christian and (2) What you can expect from Veritas as a church.
What we believe, what we prioritize, how we live
We talked about how we’re grounded on the gospel!
For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.
There this old hymn — The Solid Rock that was written in the mid 1800s that embodies this idea perfectly!
My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus Christ, my righteousness;
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
But wholly lean on Jesus’ name.
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;
All other ground is sinking sand,
All other ground is sinking sand
2
When darkness veils His lovely face,
I rest on His unchanging grace;
In every high and stormy gale,
My anchor holds within the veil.
When darkness veils His lovely face,
I rest on His unchanging grace;
In every high and stormy gale,
My anchor holds within the veil.
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand; All other ground is sinking sand, All other ground is sinking sand
ll other ground is sinking sand,
All other ground is sinking sand
We are saved, formed, founded upon — the Gospel of Jesus Christ!
Secondly, we talked about WORSHIP. Where we recognise that in all of life, we are to attribute value and glorify God — this is the most life-giving reality!
Week three we talked about COMMUNITY. We’re made by God, redeemed by Jesus, and saved through his work and the regeneration of the Holy Spirit to be in relationship with God and with God’s people. We’re made to be in healthy life-giving relationships with others.
Last week we talked about SERVICE. God is a God who serves. God humbled himself by taking the form of a servant, Jesus. He calls us to take a similar posture… To serve those inside and outside the church — representing God’s character to the world around us.
We have two week left in our RHYTHMS series. Today we’re tackling our 4th rhythms and that is LEARNING.
We never arrive in this life. No matter how much we age, we should always be growing, remaining humble enough to grow and be taught.
We should be a teachable people.
We talk about discipleship a lot in Christian spirituality. The word for disciple is really the word ‘learner’.
We follow the way of Jesus. We follow other people as they follow the way of Jesus. We LEARN the way of Jesus. CONTINUALLY…
If you’re able, please stand with me for the reading of God’s Word.
I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
Today, (1) we’re going to talk about Christian Discipleship, (2) What it means and the Importance of Renewing the Mind (as Paul states) and close with some (3) Practical Considerations around Learning.
CHRISTIAN DISCIPLESHIP
Defining Terms
A.W. Tozer
Whatever comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us. A.W. Tozer
last year a Lifeway study found…
46% of Christians believed you don’t have to trust Jesus to be saved.
52% Thought their good deeds contributed to earning their salvation.
64% Believed God accepts worship of all religions… if you think that was just the result of those liberal millennials… actually more people over 50 believed that than people under 35! The lie of pluralism is leading people of every age and ever race away from the truth.
64% of those claiming to be evangelicals Also believe that heave is a place where all people, everyone will be united with their loved ones… which was higher than the General American Public… Evangelicals were more Universalist Humanists than the average American.
51% of Americans Believe that Bible was written for each person to interpret how they want…
Half believe that Jesus was Created by God
While most believed that Jesus rose from the dead to save us… Most don’t believe that they needed to be saved!
Theology is the study regarding the nature of God. Therefore, we are all doing THEOLOGY in some way at some time.
Theology is the study regarding the nature of God. Therefore, we are all doing THEOLOGY in some way at some time. Some of our theology is just really BAD.
When we think about God, when we believe certain things to be true about God, we are essentially acting as theologians.
And if God is real — if God made the world and everything in it, US… Then Tozer’s words ring even louder and more true… “Whatever comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.”
Discipleship is wrapped up in this idea of LEARNING. The posture of being a learner is supposed to mark us as Christians. This is something we should prioritize.
Usually earlier in life and earlier in our walk with God — those times can mark us as being a time of eager learning and a willingness to be taught.
But something interesting happens as we age in life and even in faith — at times — what do we often call it? THEY ARE STUCK IN THEIR WAYS… THEY’RE NOT GOING TO CHANGE
We are all prone to become more and more rigid in our ability to learn and grow. We become rigid in our willingness to be challenged.
But with practice and with consistency, we can condition ourselves to enjoy the ACTION OF BEING A CONSTANT LEARNER!
What does it look like to learn?
Mind, Heart, Hands
It’s not ALL intellectual
Heart
We get it wrong when we think it’s ONLY about idea, concepts, and thinking.
Here is why that is dangerous. IT ISN’T HELPFUL TO ALWAYS BE AFTER THE LATEST GREATEST TEACHING WHEN YOU AREN’T PRACTICING WHAT YOU’VE ALREADY LEARNED!
Our learning needs to penetrate to our heart. How does our knowledge influence our character?!
We mustn’t confuse us having facts about God as equal to us having a relationship with God.
Because we can have facts and ideas down — and still be living a life of blatant unrepentant sin.
Our mind must be learning, our heart must be learning (character) and our hands (practice)… We must put the knowledge we’ve acquired to the test!
What does it matter if I know all kinds of theories about relationships and care and I never spend time with sinful and hurting people?
HEAD, HEART, HANDS
Hands
We’re Not Merely Spiritual Consumers
Engaged participants.
We’re so used to getting what we want so quick!
It’s easy then to see the CHURCH as a SERVICER OF RELIGIOUS GOODS AND SERVICES.
I go to church sometimes, I get my fix
I go, to be served
I go, to be fed
I go, to be taught
I go, to be challenged
This is where we can misuse the Bible so poorly —> because we read the Bible and assume it’s in our context. We forget that the Bible was written 2,000 years ago by specific people, in specific places, with a specific agenda!
1st Century Christians would look at how many of us do church and they would be stunned! It would be unrecognizable to them.
The Temptation of Technology
I can be lazy
At the time of Jesus, the people would come to synagogue and they would listen to the Old Testament being read.
There was no way of printing anything, so all the documents were written by hand and it was an incredible time-consuming and difficult process
So people weren’t able to read the texts for themselves. They had to hone other skills — like listening. People could listen to a teacher speak and then recite everything they said, almost word for word.
This is true of cultures where written materials are more scarce.
So the hearers were very engaged with the materials being taught. They were engaged in conversation. They were engaged with the practice of learning.
We have books. We have blogs. We have websites devoted to Christian theology and practice. We have archived sermons on websites. We have digital books and materials.
But we still complain and still remain ignorant. Why? Because we’re lazy. “Do it for me. And do it quicker and better.”
As Disciples, leaners of Jesus, we must invest in our own development. We mustn’t simply be a consumer but a participant — a contributor even!
RENEWING THE MIND WITH TRUTH
Our Minds are Radically Habitual
I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
Romans 12:
The pathways along which information travels through the neurons (nerve cells) of the brain can be compared with the paths through a forest. ... Every time you learn something, neural circuits are altered in your brain.
Regarding the nature of our brains, one author states: “The pathways along which information travels through the neurons (nerve cells) of the brain can be compared with the paths through a forest. ... Every time you learn something, neural circuits are altered in your brain.”
Simply put and a lot of great research coming out proves this: When we are making decisions, our brain chemistry changes. We literally create these pathways when we make certain decisions — this is why we tend to always go back to certain behaviors.
Because our brains are radically habitual
[EX] Imagine a dirt road with a rut in it. A tire went through the dirt when it was wet and muddy, creating the rut. You are driving down the road, trying to avoid it… but the earth beneath you makes it difficult and you inevitably slide and drive through the rut.
has a stark and disgusting verse that illustrates this concept:
Like a dog that returns to his vomit is a fool who repeats his folly.
Why do we continue to make the same, dumb, and painful decisions?
Why does the drug user go back to using after quitting?
Why does the porn viewer continue to consume even though it’s negative impact on relationships ?
Why does the person overeat when stressed even though they are trying to lose weight?
Our brains are radically habitual and we’ve learned certain behaviors and it has created mental ruts — we go there even though we would reason that we don’t want to!
New Neural-Pathways
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
How do I renew my mind then?
This greek word for renewal — literally we are talking about re-establishing something into a ‘like-new’ manner!
How do we fill in those ruts? Or how do we create new and healthier ones?
Don Carson Quote
“People do not drift toward holiness. Apart from grace-driven efforts, people do not gravitate toward godliness, prayer, obedience to scripture, faith and delight in the Lord.” - DA Carson
It’s natural for us to create unhealthy patterns of behavior — in effect, to have an unhealthy mind. We then gravitate towards poor behaviors and the consequences that result from them.
So what do we do?
We must inundate ourselves with new ways of THINKING, BEING, and DOING!
This is why it’s incredibly important to learn about God.
All of us have major assumptions about what is good, true, and right. We must evaluate all of those in light of who God is and what God has said.
This is def apart of that renewal.
We must do everything we can to apply what we’re learning to our character.
This is must be done in community
we cannot grow our character in isolation
accoutability
feedback
challenge
We must practice what we’re learning — ACT in the world.
Serving others
Talking to other about the Gospel
Listening to those who need to wrestle through issues
Participating in the life of the church
In all of this — we’re re-learning how to be!
We are creating new neural-pathways.
We are developing a new and better worldview — one that is centered upon God rather than self!
We have a surer footing and foundation which will most definitely lead to healthier results!
PRACTICAL CONSIDERATIONS
Church-Size Dynamics
Expectations
In his influential article on church-size dynamics Tim Keller states:
We tend to think of the chief differences between churches mainly in denominational or theological terms, but that underestimates the impact of size on how a church operates. The difference between how churches of 100 and 1,000 function may be much greater than the difference between a Presbyterian and a Baptist church of the same size. Tim Keller
The reason I say this — is right away we need to all recognize our biases and expectations when we come into a place… specifically, this place. Some of you are new to church, so you don’t know what to expect. Some of you are from a smaller church so you have particular kinds of expectations… Some of you are from a larger church and have a whole different set of expectations.
Here’s the reality though — we are all expecting something from Community and from the church and those expectations are all over the place!
It’s healthy then, to first consider what your’s might be!
Some of our expectations are realistic and some are not!
And how do we work together towards UNITY when we have such varying expectations? THIS DEFINITELY TAKES MUCH PATIENCE & GRACE
SURVEY
How might you encourage someone to “learn” more about the Bible or about God outside sermons and classes?
How might you encourage someone to “learn” more about the Bible or about God outside sermons and classes?
Read the Bible and purchase a really good study Bible
I recommend the ESV study Bible [IMAGE]
Read good books!
[list of resources]
BLOGS
the gospel coalition
desiring God
PODCASTS
White Horse Inn
TGC Podcast
Cultivated by Harbor Media
Acts 29
Happy Rant
Find someone who is more seasoned in their faith and ask them to mentor you!
What do you want to learn?
Ask them to walk alongside you
What would you tell someone if they had a gift for teaching but no noticeable outlets?
How might you encourage someone to “learn” more about the Bible or about God outside sermons and classes?
Tell a pastor
Tell a community group leader
maybe lead discussion time
Let us know!
At West there aren’t reasonable opportunities for people new to the faith to learn about the Bible when the sermons are theologically lofty.
“Big theological words not helpful for demographic nor people new to the faith.”
What would you tell someone if they had a gift for teaching but no noticeable outlets?
If this is you, start looking into the resources I just stated above.
Invest in your own development
We invest in facebook, instagram, and netflix!
Why not invest in our theological development.
People at West are aware of the bible studies and hermeneutics classes offered at Tri-Village and have remarked that they wish the same could be offered at West.
Offer classes again
“Offer classes again.”
Classes take a lot of work!
If we have your email, you will see a quick survey in your inbox soon.
We are going to put some options for classes in that and want you to pick which one you’d most want us to offer
Again, size dynamics… because we’re smaller, we don’t have the staff to put a bunch of different things together. But we can do something.
SO we want to do some investigating and figure out what might be the best things we can do to serve the most amount of people
Again, these things take time and effort to put together
Women learning doesn’t feel important (or it’s only focused on teaching children)
Women learning doesn’t feel important (or it’s only focused on teaching children)
When it comes to learning — men and women are treated pretty equal around here.
At West there aren’t reasonable opportunities for people new to the faith to learn about the Bible when the sermons are theologically lofty.
Men and women are both in the gatherings, which are the primary formats for learning
We don’t offer other regular formats right now.
We had a women’s study that happened last year — we’ve never had that for guys...
Again, it comes down to a CALLED person to lead something like that and is also aligned with our mission & theology
If there are other specific ways we can learn together, please let me or the other pastors know what you’re thinking!
Some preachers are not gifted speakers and need training.
People at West are aware of the bible studies and hermeneutics classes offered at Tri-Village and have remarked that they wish the same could be offered at West.
Part of learning anything has to do with getting reps — part of training preachers and leaders is giving them the opportunities to speak and lead
Some preachers are not gifted speakers and need training.
Again, we’re not a huge church, so we don’t have dozens of professionals at anything.
We have who God, in his goodness, has brought!
We are what we are
And one thing we’re not interested in becoming is polished and flashy and perfect
So if that’s your expectation, that’s not us!
Again, fundamentally, we’re not here to be entertained but to WORSHIP God!
How can you contribute! Learn and grow in your faith and encourage others to do the same!
Be patient
we’re at different places in our journey with God
Be gracious
people might mess up or say something that’s wrong
lovingly point them to the Bible
Be kind
let’s give one another space to learn and to grow together!
APPLICATION:
Take Responsibility for your Theological Development.
What are you reading?
What are you listening to?
What are you watching?
Who are you interacting with?
Who is mentoring you?
Where are you spending your leisure time?
***take responsibility for your theological development!
I pray that you would LEARN about God and that it would capture your affections, your character would change, and you would make an impact for God in your family, with your friends, and in all your spheres of influence!
COMMUNITY GROUP REFLECTION:
Reread . What does it mean to be a living sacrifice?
What does Paul mean when he calls us to “be transformed by the renewal of our minds?”
What are some practical things we can do to take responsibility for our theological development?
COMMUNION
L: In the night in which he was betrayed, Our lord Jesus took bread,He gave thanks; broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying: Take and eat; this is my body, given for you.Do this for the remembrance of me.
L: Again, after supper,He took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it for all to drink, saying; this cup is The new covenant in my blood, shed for you and for all people for the forgiveness of sin.Do this for the remembrance of me. Silent Reflection – to prepare our hearts toCome to the Lords table
L: Jesus' death brings us life and this meal reminds us that we are fed by Jesus and forgiven because of Jesus.
C: We rejoice that You have died, have risen, and are now with the Father advocating for us. Amen.
L: With our money, time, and talent we give generously, knowing that through Your Son, Jesus, You have generously given to us.
C: We rejoice that You have given everything and we joyfully give everything back to Your care. Amen.
L: If you believe Jesus died to forgive you your sins you are welcome to come,
L: Come for all is ready
BENEDICTION
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. Now to him who is able to strengthen you with his grace and power, to the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ.
NOTES
renew your mind on the Gospel
what does it mean to renew your mind?
perpetual lie from Satan — “did God really say?”
do not be conformed to world — what does that mean?
testing?
L: Peace be with you.
will of God?
perfect acceptable and good —> referring to “the will of God”
46% of Christians believed you don’t have to trust Jesus to be saved.
52% Thought their good deeds contributed to earning their salvation.
C: And also with you.
64% Believed God accepts worship of all religions… if you think that was just the result of those liberal millennials… actually more people over 50 believed that than people under 35! The lie of pluralism is leading people of every age and ever race away from the truth.
64% of those claiming to be evangelicals Also believe that heave is a place where all people, everyone will be united with their loved ones… which was higher than the General American Public… Evangelicals were more Universalist Humanists than the average American.
51% of Americans Believe that Bible was written for each person to interpret how they want…
Half believe that Jesus was Created by God
While most believed that Jesus rose from the dead to save us… Most don’t believe that they needed to be saved!
You see, you can't just not be conformed… and yet, how many people fill churches every week and their goal is simply to not be conformed to the world. And if that is the entirety of the goal it's a fools errand. Because you can't run from the world… you can only run to Jesus! The only way you can not be conformed is to be transformed!
You will be formed... That is unavoidable, what ever you worship is going to mold you and form you… You are going to become like what you behold!
Conformed, syschematizo... Is passive it is the inevitable process of becoming like what you treasure in the world. Like melting metal and pouring it into a mold.
Transformed, metamorphoo… thats the same word used to describe Jesus on the mount of transfiguration when he revealed his glory! It's communicating the hard intentional work of becoming like what you treasure in Jesus. Like hot metal being beaten into the shape of a tool.
