Untitled Sermon

Icebreaker

Valerie in charge

Announcements

Envision team pick up needed slips and envelopes

LRS Seminar for Parents tomorrow

DCCYC pre-camp rally coming up

Body

Seth

Brilliant kid, was more religious than me, became Atheist when I became Christian

Told me, “The bible says there is no god, so why should I believe?”

Does it say that? Let’s find out

Psalm 14:1 ESV

1 The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds; there is none who does good.

He was right

I regret to inform you that my faith is a lie

What? But why would context matter?

He was wrong

Taking God out of context is ridiculous

Meeting Vince Vaughn, had conversation, he was friendly with me

Are we friends? I’m an idiot if I think we’re friends

Context defines everything

We act this way towards God

certain things are ok if I want them to be: gossip, abortion,

Context Care shows God you care

You want to know what He thinks and feels?

We can definitely learn to know and grow from that!

A few years ago, I saw a calendar with a photo like this

Luke 4:9 ESV

9 And he took him to Jerusalem and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here,

Luke 4:9

Can anyone look at this and tell me what’s wrong with this?

Isegesis vs Exegesis

Isegesis

we put our ideas and desires INTO the text

we filter everything from that mindset

Story of the man who thought he was dead

NO isegesis

Exegesis

OUT of the text

God’s Word is abundantly clear, but we must be humble

Reading the Bible rightly

My wife: “I’m really tired, but I guess I’ll make myself some food”

Observation:

Interpretation:

Application:

Brian: “Ah, my foot is killing me”

Observation:

Interpretation:

Application:

Observe what God is saying, Interpret what it means, Apply

Luke 14:26 ESV

26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.

Observation:

Jesus, “

Interpretation:

Application:

God’s Word is not a textbook, it’s His love-letter of communication with us

Best communication technique is the same way we read God’s Word

Observe, Interpret, Apply

NOT: Hear, introspect, redefine, use when you feel like it

NOT: What does this mean to me, BUT: What did God mean by this?

NOT: I disagree, so maybe the Bible is wrong, BUT: I’ve disagreed with this before, but maybe I’m wrong

NOT: God doesn’t care about me, BUT: God clearly loves me so much I’d be a fool to miss out on a relationship with Him!

Here’s an opportunity to properly hear God’s communication together

Split up into groups, guys with guys, girls with girls

Questions

GROUP ICEBREAKER: Introduce yourself, and answer the following questions:

Read . Then answer these questions as a group

Observations

Who, what, when, where, why, how? Who is talking, and who is listening? What is happening in the text? What is the context, what happens afterwards? What questions arise from reading the text? (e.g. What is lustful intent? What is hell?)

Interpretation

What do you think this text means? What did the original audience think about this? What does it mean to “tear it out and throw it away”? What does “it is better to lose one or your members” mean? Does this mean that if you don’t lose body parts to resist sin that you’ll be thrown into hell? Does this only apply to lust, or is this talking about all sin? How does God feel about sin?

Application

How did this apply to the audience? Is it any different from you? How aggressively should someone resist sin? What do you entrust to faithful believers, and how? Are you currently entrusted? What opportunities are open for you to be entrusted?

How was this? Was it very different than how you typically read the Bible?

Do you think there there people who might take this passage too literally?

Do you think there are people who don’t take this passage seriously enough?

Close in prayer at the end with whatever format you like. Recommended: ask prayer requests, discuss what ACTS stands for, then give everyone the time to either pray together as a group, or pray quietly before you [the leader] close in prayer.

Adoration

Confession

Thanksgiving

Supplication

Conclusion