One

Ephesians 4:4-6

Sermon Notes:

We should be eager to maintain our unity (Eph 4:3) because…

1) We are One Spirit-filled Body, 4a

2) We have One Allegiance-demanding Lord, 4b-5

3) We have One Family with One Father, 6

Reflection questions:

1. Pardon the 17th -century English (and use Google for the hard words if you have to), and ask how this quote should motivate you to maintain unity with your brothers and sisters in Christ: “All saints … being united to one another in love … have communion in each other’s gifts and graces, and are obliged to the performance of such duties, public and private, as do conduce to their mutual good, both in the inward and outward man.” (Westminster Confession of Faith, 26.1)

2. To borrow a line from John Calvin, do you dread every kind of animosity among the people of God? What are some reasons that you should want to strive for unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace?

3. Read Ephesians 4:1-4 and Galatians 5:22-23. How does the Holy Spirit help us to stay unified as a Body of believers?

Clothed in Love

Colossians 3:1-17

Sermon Notes:

1. The God Context | vv 1-4

2. Garments of Death | vv 5-9

3. Wearing Love | vv 10-17

Reflection Questions:

1. What things do you think about most often? Are your thoughts shaped by what Jesus has accomplished and the hope of eternal life, or are they reflections of earthly pursuits? How might The God Context reframe those things that occupy your attention?

2. What ways does our world subtly excuse or even promote the sins and heart attitudes in verses 5-9? How can naming the root sins help you see and protect yourself from treating them as "respectable sins?"

3. Review the qualities in verses 12-13. If you remove love, what happens to these characteristics of the new self? How can we guard ourselves against this temptation?

Walking Worthy of Our Glorious Calling

Ephesians 4:1-3

Sermon Notes:

1) The Master of our Calling | 1

2) The Manner of our Calling | 2

3) The Motivation of our Calling | 3

Reflection Questions:

1) John Stott says, “The life worthy of the calling of God is a life in the fellowship of the people of God.” How are you striving to (or how could you) increase Christian fellowship in your life right now?

2) Why do you think William Hendriksen said that humility (v2) is the “first, second, and third essential of the Christian life?” What can/does lack of humility do to your life, your family’s lives, your church’s fellowship?

3) What’s one way that you can be more patient (“longsuffering towards aggravating people” - Stott) with one person or one group of people in your life? Why does God call us to such patience? See Ephesians 4:32.

God Provides His King

1 Samuel 16

Sermon Notes:

Main Point: Learn to see how God sees.

1. How Man Sees | vv.1-5

2. How The Lord Sees | vv. 6-10

3. How The Lord Provides | vv. 11-13

4. How Man Provides | vv. 14-23

Reflection Questions:

1. Why is it so easy for us to see the world from our perspective rather than Gods? Especially after God has just demonstrated that his ways are better than our own.

2. What difficulties in life are particularly hard for you to trust God in the midst of?

3. In what ways are you particularly tempted to think you know better than God?

4. What do you think of the idea that there is power in beauty?

5. Do you still struggle with elements from this passage? If so, which ones? Why?

A Beautiful Mystery

Ephesians 3

Sermon Notes:

1) The Puzzle Now Solved | 1-6

2) The Proclaimer Now Equipped | 7-13

3) The Prayer: Deeper Knowledge | 14-19

4) The Praise: Greater Glory | 20-21

Reflection questions:

1) What mystery is Paul talking about in vv. 1-13? Is it still a mystery, or has it been revealed?

2) Read the following passages, in order (as best we can tell) of when Paul wrote them: 1 Cor. 15:8-10; Ephesians 3:8; 1 Tim. 1:15. What does this tell you about Paul’s growing self-awareness? Did his growing self-awareness give him more or less assurance of God’s salvation? (See also, 2 Tim. 4:6-8, likely Paul’s final letter.)

3) Read vv. 14-21. How would your life look differently if you were more rooted and grounded in love (v17)?

But God...

Ephesians 2

Sermon Notes:

1) Our Grave Condition without Christ | 1-3, 11-12

2) Our Glorious Change in Christ | 4-10, 13

3) Our Great Privilege in Christ | 11-22

Reflection Questions:

1. Are vv.1-3 negative? Are they trying to make us feel bad about ourselves, or are they trying to show us the greatness of God’s love and grace and mercy (cf v.4ff)? Compare v1 to Ezek 37:1-14. What does want God want Ezekiel to “know”?

2. Is there one sense where mankind is passive when it comes to salvation? (And if so, who or what is active in salvation?) Does God expect mankind to stay passive after salvation? See v.10, especially.

3. While Ephesians 3:11-19 is talking primarily about unity in Christ for Jews and Gentiles, is that same unity amidst diversity true today for Christians with different backgrounds, different nationalities or ethnicities, and/or differences of other kinds?

Before the Foundation of the World

Ephesians 1

Sermon Notes:

1) The Greetings that the Apostle gives us from Christ, 1-2

  • Saints

  • Grace and Peace

2) The Blessings that we have in Christ, 3-14

  • Chosen, 4

  • Children, 4-5

  • Redeemed, 7

  • Rich, 11

  • Secure, 13

3) The Desire to Clearly See the Deep, Deep Love of Christ, 15-23

  • Our Hope

  • Our Inheritance

  • Christ’s Might

  • Christ’s Height

  • Christ’s Headship

Reflection Questions:

1. Why does the New Testament call Christians “saints”? Are we holy/saints if we do enough good things? Or are we holy because of someone else’s work and sacrifice? See 2 Cor 5:21 and Hebrews 10:11-14.

2. Based on Ephesians 1, what does it mean to be “in Christ”? See some other passages where Paul uses similar language: 2 Cor 5:21 (yes, again); Galatians 2:20; Colossians 3:1-4

3. Ephesians 1:15-23, is Paul praying for the Ephesians (and other readers, including us) to know something they’ve/we’ve never heard about it, or to know certain truths more deeply and clearly?

East of Eden

Genesis 4

Sermon Notes:

1) Sin Wins | 1-7

2) Blood Cries Out | 8-11

3) Curse Carries On | 11-14

4) Vengeance Saves | 15-17

5) Culture Advances | 16-24

6) Remnant Calls | 25-26

Reflections questions:

1. Does it ever feel like sin or sinners are winning in this life? See Psalm 73; how did Asaph wrestle with that same feeling?

2. Does it ever feel like sin is winning in your life? Read Romans 7:1-8:1 (just like last week), but also read James 1:14-15. How does sin gain the victory over us? What are some of the preliminary steps? Does God provide a way out? Also see 1 Corinthians 10:12-13.

3. Why doesn’t God wipe out all sinners the minute they sin? Is this a sign of His weakness, slowness, or some kind of idle threat? Or is it good news? See 2 Peter 3:8-10 and Romans 2:3-5.

The First Gospel

Genesis 3:8-24

Sermon Notes:

1) The Presence that Exposes | 8-13

2) The Promise that Sustains | 14-15

3) The Punishment that Reminds | 14-19

4) The Propitiation that Covers | 20-21

5) The Protector that Foreshadows | 22-24

Reflection questions:

1. Do God’s attributes (His presence/omnipresence, omniscience, holiness and more) cause you to run from Him, or to invite Him in? Compare Genesis 3:1-13 to Isaiah 6, Luke 5 (especially v8), and Psalm 139. What does David see in Psalm 139 that causes Him to invite God in (vv23-24)?

2. How is Genesis 3:15 a promise to God’s people and not simply bad news for Satan? Trace the promise through the following passages: Galatians 3:13, 16; 4:4; Romans 16:20; Revelation 12 and 20.

3. How do the continuing effects of sin, the fall, and the curse remind us of our need of (and provision of!) a Savior? See Romans 7:1-8:1.

4. How does God offer us a better covering than the one we can make for ourselves? See Genesis 3:7-8, 21; also see Isaiah 61:10; 64:6; Revelation 19:6-9; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Philippians 3:6-9.