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Nailed to the Cross

Amanda and I are smack-dab in the middle of what parents call the "Terrible Two's." Lucas is almost 3 and Sylas is a year and a half (although he started his terrible two's early since he has such a wonderful example in his brother...). With parenting comes the joys and watching your children grasp new and exciting concepts (the "ahha" moments) and well as the laughter that comes as you listen to your kids learn to talk...or lack thereof.
But also with raising kids is the act of discipline.  Sitting in timeout, saying your sorry to appease your parent's wishes (although you don't meant it 97% of the time), and the "gentle" smack of the backside (the "this hurts me a lot more than it hurts you wasn't true when I was a kid and it isn't true now as a parent). Let's face it...my kids are little sinners...they will sin.  They will talk back, scream, run in the house, throw hard/sharp objects in the house (and at people) and bite (they learned that from their daddy!). But no matter how many times I place Lucas in timeout I won't stop being his daddy. As a new dad, I am trying to help him understand that even if I ask him to sit in timeout, it is because I love Him. I am in this for the long haul and I am not leaving.  Our goal in raising our kids to make them more like Jesus, and sometimes that comes through discipline. But ultimately, if Lucas does his "time" by sitting on the steps, we aren't going to love him more or less afterwards.  We love him the same...He is ours.  And nothing will change that.
I think for a lot of kids who grew up in church, we get that Jesus forgives our sins. But how you define sins is where things get gray.  I know for me, I thought Jesus forgave my have sins (or even the ones I was currently doing).  That makes sense...we tend to ask for forgiveness (or sit on the stairs in timeout) to "make up" for our past mistakes...but what about tomorrow...and the next day?  Did Jesus really forgive us for those? How can I have confidence that God is my forgiver...what my sins have been "nailed to the cross" and that I can't out-sin His love for me?  This is a question that all Christians wrestle with...but especially those who grew up in the church.

Use the questions and passages below to wrestle with this idea of "God as Forgiver" this week.

1. Read Romans 8:29. What is the purpose of our faith?  To be better people or to be conformed into the image of Jesus?
- How are these two "goals" different?

2. Re-read Colossians 2:13-14 from Sunday night.
- What does it mean that God "nailed our sins to the cross" of Jesus?
- Agree or disagree: We should remember our sins and struggles because it humbles us before God and causes us to desire holiness (the image of Jesus)?

3. Read Hebrews 4:14-16
- What does it mean that Jesus is our "high priest" before God?  What does a priest do?
- Read verse 16..."confidence"...when do you have the most confidence that God is your forgiver?
          * When life is going well and you are morally good?
          * When you are struggling and you know you are forgiven and can go to Jesus for strength?
- Answering this question will help you recognize if you have confidence more in your ability to be good and keep God's love or your confidence that you are forgiven and His love for you won't change depending on how you live.

4. Read Hebrews 12:6-11
- Knowing what we know from Romans 8:29...do you trust that God's discipline...even when you are sinning is not meant to hurt you and isn't out of anger, but is out of love for you as His child and is meant to make you more like Jesus?

*When you put your faith in Jesus, God takes your sin...past, present and future, and nails it to the cross.  You are covered in the perfect life, death and resurrection of Jesus.  So when you sin, you don't have to beat yourself up or put yourself in timeout hoping that God will love you more and accept you again.  You need to trust in Jesus more.  Cling to the cross. Be fully confident in God as your forgiver. 

Join us this Thursday night at 7pm at Matt & Amanda's as we continue to build our confidence that Jesus is our forgiver.

The Great Provider

A right understanding of God will give us a right understanding of ourselves and our world. 

Think about that statement for a second. If our view of God isn't big enough, we will be led to trust ourselves, or the people or things around us, too much.  On the other hand...if our view of ourselves or the people and things around us is too big, we won't trust God enough. It works both ways.
This past Sunday night we continued looking at what it means to have "Full Confidence" in who God is.  Beyond just agreeing that we trust God and that we have put our faith in Him...what does full confidence in God look like practically...everyday for a teen?
This past Sunday we looked particularly at God's promise to be our great provider.  In Philippians 4:11-13, 19...we saw that whether like is going great or life is terrible, we can be content because God has promised to provide for our every NEED.
Ultimately, our greatest need is a Savior...our greatest need is Jesus. So if we have our greatest need, and we do because Jesus came and gave His life for us, we don't really need anything else. But because of His love, God still provides us with other things that we NEED...things that are meant to in turn, cause us to worship God.
While this is how we were meant to live...with God being the only one we "hook our caribiner" into with full confidence that He will always be our provider...there are people and things making promises to us everyday that they can be our provider...
They promise to provide us with:
- Love
- Acceptance
- Success
- Wealth
- Popularity
- Etc...

And here is the catch...if our view of God isn't big enough...we will fall for their promises...we will put all of our hope and trust in something that was "not meant for climbing"...not meant for all of your hopes and trust to provide...only Jesus can do that.  So this week, lets strive to gain a big picture of God...that He is in control...that He loves us...that He is for us...and that He is our great provider...lets strive to hook our full confidence in Him.

Use the questions and passages below to go deeper with this week's topic: Fully Confident in God as my Great Provider.

1. Read Colossians 1:15-17.
- Look at verse 16...why is it important for our confidence in God as our provider, to understand that everything was made through God and for God?
- What does this tell us about God's control over creation and our lives?

2. Read Colossians 1:17 again.
- What is it like to know that God is not only holding the world together with His hands...but He is also holding your life and my life together in the palms of His hands?

3. What are some things or who are some people that you sometimes trust to provide for you more than you should?
- What do they promise to (or what do you think they will) provide for you?

4. Read Philippians 4:11-13. Think of your life. What does it mean to be content in all circumstances? What are some examples in your life of what it means to be content?

This week is a 3rd Thursday. The guys and girls are doing their own things.  Hope you can make it!

Jesus Is Greater Than _______________.

Fully Confident

Do you have a hard time trusting people?  Think about it.  I mean really trusting people...?  I think for a lot of us, confidence or assurance are words we don't use much.  Yeah, we will say in a whim that we trust people, or we have confidence that they are who they say they are or will do what they promise to do.  But really, do we actually mean that?  When it comes down to it, when asked to bet your life on that "assurance"...would you?
The truth is, we live in a broken world.  Another way to say it, is that we live in a fallen world filled with sin.  This means that trust and assurance are hard to come by because quite frankly, people let us down and the things of this world that promise us anything and everything...well...oftentimes don't come through.
Here is our issue.  Most of us have tried to put our full confidence and assurance in something or someone and it has let us down in a obviously hard way.  For others of us, we haven't found what we were looking for when we put our confidence and assurance in something, and we are left wondering "Is this it?"
Here are some examples...
- Yours parents let you down
- Your closest friend lets you down
- You put all your confidence in being a great athlete, only to find out, its not totally satisfying
- You try to master a skill or ability to win people's approval only to find out, they don't care, or if they do, you don't really care that they care...know the feeling?
We go our entire lives trying to find full assurance and confidence...something can rest in...something that won't let us down, let us fall, or leave us feeling empty.  Problem is, we won't find that in this life...it has got to be something out of this world...it has got to be Jesus.
Are you fully confident that Jesus is who He says He is?  That He will do what we promises to do?  Using the analogy of a carabiner, are you fully confident that Jesus can hold you...that He won't let you go...that He really does love you and nothing can change that...?
As you begin a new school year surrounded by a bunch of things that want your full confidence...our prayer is that you will find that Jesus is greater than anything else in this world and the only one we can find full confidence and assurance in!

Use these questions and passages of scripture to help you diagnose where you are when it comes to full confidence in Jesus.

1. How do you define what confidence is?

2. What does it look like to have partial confidence vs. full confidence?  Is full confidence even possible?

3. How have you been let down by something or someone in your life that you had confidence in?

4. Read Hebrews chapter 11 this week a few times.  What seems to be the theme between faith (confidence enough to move you) and actions?

5. Describe your relationship with Jesus?  On a scale of 1-10, where is your confidence level?

6. Sometimes we feel like we can never be good enough...never have enough faith...never be as confidence as the people in Hebrews 11 were...and
we end up feeling guilty. Put look at some of those people...Abraham, Moses, David...these guys didn't have perfect confidence in God.
- Read Hebrews 11:26...the key looking towards the reward...looking to Jesus.
- What does looking to Jesus look like in your life as a teen?

Turn your eyes upon Jesus
Look full in His wonderful face
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim
In the light of His Glory and Grace

Join us at Matt & Amanda's this Thursday night at 7pm as we take this first week of "Fully Confident" deeper in our lives and with each other!

I will be with you...

"I will be with you..."  Those are some comforting words aren't they?  Think about it.  There are probably a few times in life that we have all heard words like these...usually when we need them most.  A close friend or relative dies..."I'll be here if you need anything."  You are stressing about what do with your life..."If you need to talk, you know I am here for you."  Even when you first learned to ride a two wheeler...remember?  Dad or mom was there right behind you holding onto the seat...and as you began to lean into those pedals, they would whisper in your ear, "Don't worry, I am here, I will be with you, I won't let you fall."

Usually these words come when we are on the brink of a major decision, there is a huge obstacle in our way, or we are taking a leap of faith into a place where we have never lept before...

"I will be with you."

Those are some comforting words...words that help get us through the adventures of life. 

Lets face it...following Jesus...at least the way the Bible describes it, is like an adventure.  Jesus, knowing that those who would truly follow Him were up against a challenging adventure proclaimed these same few words to his followers before He left them with their life mission..."I will be with you always, even until the end of the age..."

I was thinking this past week about how often, in my day to day life do I live like I need those words of Jesus to be true...?  Of course I needed Jesus to die for me and to give me a relationship with God.  But in my day to day life...living as a follower of Jesus, do I live like I need Jesus to be with me...as if I am riding a bike and the only way it is going to work is if he is right there guiding me along...?  Or do I look at following Jesus as a safe, sit on the sidelines, be a good guy, keep my faith to myself type of "adventure" (which doesn't seem like an adventure at all!). 

What I am really asking is:
Do I look at following Jesus...making disciples...living for Him everday, as such an adventurous journey that I am dependent on His strength everyday?  Or do I do just enough to get by on my own strength? 
Jesus calls us to be His ambassadors...to make disciples...that sounds like a scary adventure...just like when I first learned to ride a bike...I don't know if I can do it...lucky for me when I was a kid, my mom and dad where right there with me...Jesus, being the perfect daddy, says the same thing..."I've got this...trust in me...I am with you..."

Use the questions the below to help guide you through this idea of what God's Mission looks like in your everyday life as a teen!

1. Re-read 2 Cor. 5:13-15

- How have you been persuaded by God's love?  What does a persuaded life look like?

- Are you TRULY convinced that what Jesus did on the cross for your sin was enough to make you right before God?

- How does this affect your everyday life?  How you act, how you view people, how you react to certain situations, etc...?

2. Re-read 2 Cor. 5:17

- What does it mean to be a NEW creation?

- What does "new" mean?

3. Verse 20

- How do you respond to the part where it says that God choose us as His followers to be the way He reaches the world with His love...?

     - Why us?

     - Why not just use His own power to do it Himself?

4. An ambassador is someone who represents someone else...this is what we are for God...we represent the changed life we can have from God through Jesus and what He did on the cross for our sins...

     - Ambassadors are APPOINTED to a specific territory...where has God PLACED you to live out His mission?

     - Ambassadors may face DANGERS in their jobs...what may be DANGEROUS about being an ambasadors for God in your life?  What "dangers could you face?"

     - Ambassadors, in a way, give up a certain way of life by living in thei

r appointed country or territory...When we say yes to following Jesus...What are you giving up?  What are you gaining?

Join us at Matt & Amanda's on Thursday night at 7pm as we take this material deeper in our lives!

The Mission Explained

Have you ever watched an artist draw a picture?  Usually it starts off looking like complete nothingness.  Maybe a few lines here and there, but really it doesn't take shape until later on in the process.  As you gaze at the finished product, it always amazes me,  that this final product began with just a few lines and shaded areas on a piece of paper.
Even though I have no idea what the artist is doing, I know that the artist has an intentional purpose with each stroke of pencil as to what the finished product will be.  Every single line, cicle, and angle on that piece of paper has an intentional purpose in the grand scheme of things when it comes to that finished piece of art.
I think for alot of us, we have this piece of paper in front of us called Christianity.  What we have been taught is to have faith in Jesus and to trust in Him for our salvation...but now what...?  We have this idea that faith is only about after this life is over- a ticket to eternity.  So what we end up doing is taking our piece of paper called "Christianity" and we try to protect it from any stains, scratches, or mistakes.
But in the midst of all this, we know in our hearts, there has to be a greater purpose to our faith.  Once we put our faith in Jesus, what is next?  Do we just try our hardest not to sin?  To be good people?  Live a safe, controlled life?  Or does God have something else in mind for us?  Does he have a finished product picture in mind for our pieces of paper that we call "Christianity?"

We saw Sunday night that God does in fact have a mission for us while we walk this earth. 
Make disciples.
That is the mission.  Become deeper, more devote folllowers of Jesus and help others see the beauty of being a follower of Jesus.
Most of us would say we know that God has some type of mission for us.  Some would even know it has something to do with "making disciples."  But when it comes to picking up the pencil, what does that actually look like?  We saw that God has given us a specific mission...it is clear...it is urgent. 
Make disciples.
That is the mission He is extending to us.  Do you understand the mission?  Will you accept this mission?

Use the questions and scripture passages below as you dig into this "mission" more over this next week.  Plan to join us at Matt & Amanda's on Thursday night at 7pm as we will work together through this mission that God has for us!

Note: As you work through these questions, try to keep from looking ahead and asking yourself "What does this look like in my life?"  I know we usually encourage you to apply what we learn to your every day life, but this week, try to focus simply understanding the mission God is extending to us.

1. Read Matthew 28:18-20.
- Jesus gives us three things that a disciple-maker does: Go, Baptize (Connect), Teach.  GO-live with the intent to help others know Jesus, BAPTIZE- help people the see the importance of being a apart of the church, and TEACH- show others who Jesus is and what it means to be a follower of Him.
-  Why do you think Jesus would give us three commands in His mission for us to make disciples?

2. Read Romans 8:29
- Our faith ultimiately isn't just about becomming a Christian, but becoming more like Jesus.  Why is this key to remember that God's purpose is for us, and others, to become more like Jesus?

3. We live to fulfill missions everyday in our lives.  Big missions...small missions...medium missions.  We live with intentional focus to fulfill these missions...pass a test...get into college...make a team. 
-  How is living our God's mission like these others missions?
-  How is it different?

4. Read Acts 1:8.
- How important is the role of the Holy Spirit in us fulfilling this mission?
- Do you understand the role of the Holy Spirit in your faith journey?

5. What fears, questions, confusions do you have as it pertains to this mission?  Write these down and bring them Thursday night!

Another New Year...Another Broken Resolution...

Have you ever made a New Year's resolution?  Be honest.  I have.  And if you are like me and the rest of the world, you haven't kept up your side of the plan. At all.

- How is that diet coming?

- Make a resolution to read through the entire Bible...again? Got stuck on Leviticus again didn't you?

- Getting 8 hours of sleep every night?  I saw that yawn...

Let's face it...we aren't that great at keeping promises.  In fact, one website says that only about 8% of people stick with their new year's resolution.  If this is who we are, then here is the profound question...

If we aren't able to keep a few silly promises to ourselves, then why do we put so much trust in ourselves...

This past Sunday night, we finished up our "Jars of Caly: Imperfect People used by a Perfect God" study.  We focused on our FUTURE IMPERFECTIONS.  The amazing truth that Jesus won't let us go, even though He knows better than we do that our future's aren't going to be a perfect 100% when it comes to living for Him.  We will stumble, we will fall, we will turn our backs on Him...yet His Word says He still loves us. 

Amazing.
This is a truth that we should stake our lives on.  Jesus is the one who brings us to God and keeps us there, no matter what happens in our future...and believe me, if it is anything like our New Year's resolutions...it won't be pretty.  It is all about keeping our eyes on Jesus...trusting in Him.

Here is where we get off track...we tend to choose 1 of 2 ways...both wrapped around the idea of trusting ourselves...

1. Worldliness- "I trust myself when it comes to knowing what is best for me.  I am free to do whatever I want...whatever makes me feel good, b/c I know what is best..."  Call it living in sinfullness or just plain stupidity...but people on this path trust in themselves to know what life is all about...and it doesn't end very well for them...

2. Religion- "It is up to me and good deeds to earn God's love and acceptance.  If I read my Bible everyday, go to church every week, go on a mission's trip, put some money in the offering plate, erase all the devil music off my Ipod...then God will accept me."  Let's be honest...we would love to be this person...we look good on the outside and seem really "Christian."  Now again, not that all of these things are bad...but ultimately, this person is trusting in themselves to be good enough to earn God's love...

In our Christian circles...we would call one of these paths "foolishness" (worldliness) and the other...well, we often strive for it with all of our might (religion).  But to be honest...both put trust and ability to come through, in US.

And as we have seen...WE can't be trust...yeah, we can do some good stuff...but ultimately...our futures are full of brokenness, fallenness, and struggles...we can't be trusted...

This is why Jesus came...not just to save us from our sins once and for all...but to be the glue that holds up together as we live our lives everyday...

Use the questions below to help guide you deeper this week into this week's topic.  And then join us Thursday night as we talk about it as a group at Matt & Amanda's barn at 7pm!

1. Re-read Romans 7:15-25
          - Have you ever felt like Paul?
          - Why are we so prone to trust in ourselves to be good enough before God?
          - How will trusting in self turn out bad in the end...all of the time?
          - Verse 24-25a- Why is it important to come to the end of ourselves and realize we are broken and can't do it all ourselves?
          - How does realizing our PAST, PRESENT and FUTURE imperfections, point us to a perfect Jesus who we can put our faith, hope and trust in?

2. Read Hebrews 12:1-2
          - What do you think the author of Hebrews means when He says that Jesus is the "author" of our faith?
          - What does it means for Jesus to ALSO be the "perfector" of our faith?

3. Read Romans 8:1 & Hebrews 12:3-7
          - What does it mean when it says there is no more "condemnation" for those who have put their faith in Jesus?
          - Why is Romans 8:1 important to understand when reading Hebrews 12:3-7?
               * How do you respond to the fact that God doesn't discipline us because He is angry at us, but rather because He loves us like Father a Son?  How should that encourage us as we strive to become more like Jesus?