The Book of Books
Popular posts from this blog
Sermon Notes: Learning about the Christian life from Paul's Prayers: Part 1--Colossians
Scripture Readings: Psalm: 25 Gospel: Matthew 6.5-13 Epistle: Colossians 1.9-14 Introduction 1. Last week I mentioned that we can learn a lot about who we think God really is by looking at what we pray for and what we expect of God. We can also learn a lot about what we think the aim of the Christian life is by looking at what we pray for. a. Sometimes prayer reveals that we view the Christian life as a means to a greater end. God is the means by which I get what I want; the means by which I live out my story, my dreams, and my will. b. Moralistic Therapeutic Deism—the aim of the Christian life is to be happy, achieve your goals, to be fair and nice, and to do good. c. And yet, when we read prayers recorded for us in Scripture, we do not find that sentiment at all. Instead, we get another picture of what life, and God, is all about. 2. The next two weeks we are going to learn about the life God has for us, the aims of the
Sermon Notes: Genesis 3.1-13; Psalm 25; Rom 7.7-12; Matt 7.24-27
Prayer of Invocation Father, because without you we are not able to bear fruit, mercifully grant that your Holy Spirit may in all things direct and rule our hearts; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. Prayer of Illumination Father, open our eyes to the ways that we are deceived and enticed; enable us to trust in your goodness and provision; grant us patience as we wait for You to teach us and make us what you want us to be. Teach us to keep in step with the Spirit, who is conforming us to Your Son, Jesus Christ, in whose name we pray. Amen. Proclamation At many times, and in many ways, we come to a fork in the road, where we ask ourselves, Is God good? Should I continue to trust him? Does he really have my best interest in mind? Is he really going to deliver on his promise? Sometimes that junction comes in the form of a disorienting event that seems to contradict God’s pledge to protect us. At other
Comments
Post a Comment