Friday, February 6, 2015

February 15, 2015

Breaking Open the Scripture Scripture for February 15th: 2 Kings 2:1-12; Psalm 50:1-6; 2 Corinthians 4:3-6; Mark 9:2-9; Theme: the brightness of Christ; Song: He is Exalted 2 Corinthians : In this book, Paul is prepping the congregation to be a giving congregation. What does it mean to give Christ our lives? What does it mean to give all that we have to Christ? If we give it all to God, what do we have left for ourselves? We have everything. When God gave us his son, he gave us all that he has. But listening to God, goes against listening to the world. Paul tells us that if we are followers of Christ it is critical that we give the good news to the people of this world. When we spread the gospel, we not being self serving, we are being God serving. We have witnessed the light, now it is to acknowledge what the light is and what the light is for. The light in our lives comes from a reflection of Christ. Mark: This is transfiguration Sunday. It is the Sunday before lent begins. We always read this story of when Jesus took his disciples up the mountain, God shown his light on Jesus, and everything changed. We have been looking at the light of Christ for the season of epiphany. Today it is time for us to listen, to the conversation of Christ, but we also need to think seriously about how God talks directly to our soul. What instructions is he giving us? Who is he speaking through? What changes do we need to make in our life? As the light of Christ shines, as God speaks, we have to respond in our lives. We can know that God holds our future, and that we must prepare ourselves through the lent of life. It is not time to speak what we know about God, it is time to just listen and be silent….. Questions: How do you preach about God to others? What are the differences between the message of Christ and the message of the world? What light is shining in your life that you know is Christ? What will you do for lent? How do you hope that your life will be changed for Easter?

Sunday, February 1, 2015

February 8, 2015

Breaking Open the Scripture Scripture for February 8th: Isaiah 40:21-31; Psalm 147:1-11,20; 1 Corinthians 9:16-23; Mark 1:29-39; Theme: The power of Christ to do ministry; song: I am Gonna sing when the spirit says sing – UMH 333 1 Corinthians : Of all of the things that Paul has in life, Jesus Christ is his greatest gift. Everything else pales in comparison: money, talent, friends, family, confidence. Life is intended to be wonderful, but life in Christ is intended to be so much better. Paul has a message that he wants to get to others, so that they can too see the glory of God in the life and service of Jesus Christ. That does not mean separating ourselves from the things in this life, it is involving ourselves in life. Paul intentionally worked as a tentmaker in the morning in order to develop relationships with others, and he taught and preached in the afternoon and evening when everyone else got off work. He was a partner with the gospel. Mark: Jesus is well into his ministry. Not only does he spend time with his disciples, he is also teaching the people, and healing them with the word. Jesus has a chance to help Peter’s mother return to her normal everyday life. And now he is preparing to go out to the world and to minister to the needs to others in other communities. The gospel is the same for all of us. You know all of us are filled with negative things (demons), and we all need to get the negative out and to replace it with the positive. That is why we go to church, that is why we pray, that is why we be seek Jesus into our lives. There are other communities who need to know that they have a savior. There are people in our community who need to know that they don’t have to live in darkness. Jesus Christ is a savior for all people, for all situations! Questions: How are you a partner with the gospel? How do you make it a part of your everyday life? How do you make sure that you share the gospel with others? Who in your community needs to know that light of Christ in their life? How can you spread the gospel to them? What demons are running rampant in our community today? What cam Christ do to bring out the devil for good?