EQUIPPING > TEACHING

1 After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go. 2 And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.

- Luke 10:1-2 (ESV)

An intentional relationship

A real life example

A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher.

- Luke 6:40 (ESV)

A clear assignment

1 After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go.

- Luke 10:1 

An accurate assessment

The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!” 18 And he said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19 Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you.

- Luke 10:17-19

Dictator, to Disciple, to Disciple-Maker

Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest 2 and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem.

- Acts 9:1-2 (NIV)

19 and after taking some food, he regained his strength. Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus. 20 At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God. 21 All those who heard him were astonished and asked, “Isn’t he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn’t he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?” 22 Yet Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Messiah.

- Acts 9:19-22 (NIV)

We become disciples through an encounter with Jesus.

3 As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” 5 “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked. “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. 6 “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”

- Acts 9:3-6

We become disciples through encounters with other disciples.

10 In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, “Ananias!” “Yes, Lord,” he answered. 11 The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. 12 In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.”

- Acts 9:10-12

Encounter an empowering community.

19 and after taking some food, he regained his strength. Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus. 20 At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God. 21 All those who heard him were astonished and asked, “Isn’t he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn’t he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?” 22 Yet Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Messiah.

- Acts 9:19-22 (NIV)

Establishing Strong Foundations

Foundations matter.

24 “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. 26 And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”

- Matthew 7:24-27

Beware of bad foundations.

“...everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand.”

- Matthew 7:26

Build a strong foundation.

24 “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 

- Matthew 7:24

How do we establish a strong foundation in God?

1. Established in the Faith

22 “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know— 23 this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. 24 God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it… 37 Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” 38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

- Acts 2:22-24, 37-38

2. Established in the Word

42 And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.

- Acts 2:42

3. Established in Community

42 And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.

- Acts 2:42

Engage the Lost

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 

- John 15:1-2

8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. 9 As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. 10 If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. 11 These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. 

- John 15:8-11

B.L.E.S.S.

Begin with Prayer

Brothers, my heart's desire and prayer to God for them is that they may be saved.

- Romans 10:1

Listen to them

Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger…

- James 1:19

3 Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

- James 2:3-4

Eat a meal with them

And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.

- Acts 2:42

Serve a need

10 As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace:

- 1 Peter 4:10

Share a story

18 As he was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed with demons begged him that he might be with him. 19 And he did not permit him but said to him, “Go home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.”

- Mark 5:18-19

28 So the woman left her water jar and went away into town and said to the people, 29 “Come, see a man who told me all that I ever did. Can this be the Christ?” 

- John 4:28-29

Church on a Mission

16 Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. 17 And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

- Matthew 28:16-20

Believe ALL the claims Jesus made

17 And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.

- Matthew 28:17-18 

8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

- Acts 1:8 

Obey the Commission Jesus Gave - Make Disciples

19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit…

- Matthew 28:19

Make disciples by teaching them

20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.

- Matthew 28:20

A Problem with Love?

May 30, 2021

13 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.

4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

8 Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. 11 When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. 12 For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.

 13 So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

- 1 Corinthians 13

Our highest calling is to love.

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

- Matthew 22:37-20

Love has a high standard.

“4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”

- 1 Corinthians 13:4-7

We don’t meet love’s standard.

“1 If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don’t love, I’m nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate. 2 If I speak God’s Word with power, revealing all his mysteries and making everything plain as day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain, “Jump,” and it jumps, but I don’t love, I’m nothing. 3 If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don’t love, I’ve gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I’m bankrupt without love.”

- 1 Corinthians 13:1-3, MSG

God’s love sets the standard.

3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures...

- 1 Corinthians 15:3-4

9 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

- 1 John 4:9-10

God teaches us to love like Him.

11 When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. 12 For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.

- 1 Corinthians 13:11-12

Game-Changing Gifts

God is real and He does real things.

You know that when you were pagans you were led astray to mute idols, however you were led.

- 1 Corinthians 12:2

For the kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in power.

- 1 Corinthians 4:20

God wants to empower us with spiritual gifts.

4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5 and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; 6 and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. 

- 1 Corinthians 12:4-6

Spiritual gifts give us access to purpose and power.

18 But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. 19 If all were a single member, where would the body be?

- 1 Corinthians 12:18-19

Desire spiritual gifts.

...earnestly desire the spiritual gifts.

- 1 Corinthians 14:1

If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

- Luke 11:13

1. Ask in Faith

2. Be in the right atmosphere

3. Attempt in faith

Seek to love and build.

Pursue love, and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts

- 1 Corinthians 14:1

So with yourselves, since you are eager for manifestations of the Spirit, strive to excel in building up the church.

- 1 Corinthians 14:12

Avoid “the Ditch of the Dead” and “the Ditch of the Weird.”

39 So, my brothers, earnestly desire to prophesy, and do not forbid speaking in tongues. 40 But all things should be done decently and in order.

- 1 Corinthians 14:39-40

All Hands on Deck

1 Now about the gifts of the Spirit, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed… 5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6 There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work. 7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 8 To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues.11 All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.

- 1 Corinthians 12:1-11 NIV

You are gifted.

18 But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body.

- 1 Corinthians 12:18

Your service reveals your gift.

There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. 5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6 There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.

- 1 Corinthians 12:4-6

Your gift creates community.

So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, 12 to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. 14 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. 15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. 16 From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

- Ephesians 4:11-16

The Immeasurable Value of a Mother

The value of a Mother

She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future. When she speaks, her words are wise, and she gives instructions with kindness. She carefully watches everything in her household and suffers nothing from laziness. Her children stand and bless her. Her husband praises her: “There are many virtuous and capable women in the world, but you surpass them all!”

- Proverbs 31:25-30 NLT

The making of a Mother

Then the man—Adam—named his wife Eve, because she would be the mother of all who live.

- Genesis 3:20 NLT

There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.

- John 15:13 NLT

The honor of a Mother

Her children stand and bless her. Her husband praises her: “There are many virtuous and capable women in the world, but you surpass them all!” Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last; but a woman who fears the Lord will be greatly praised. Reward her for all she has done. Let her deeds publicly declare her praise. 

- Proverbs 31:28-31 NLT

Children, obey your parents because you belong to the Lord, for this is the right thing to do.  “Honor your father and mother.” This is the first commandment with a promise: If you honor your father and mother, “things will go well for you, and you will have a long life on the earth.”

- Ephesians 6:1-3 NLT

Standing near the cross were Jesus’ mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary (the wife of Clopas), and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother standing there beside the disciple he loved, he said to her, “Dear woman, here is your son.” And he said to this disciple, “Here is your mother.” And from then on this disciple took her into his home. Jesus knew that his mission was now finished

- John 19:25-28a

Find a Way through the Gray

We’ll need to navigate morally gray issues throughout our lives.

Now concerning food offered to idols… 

- 1 Corinthians 8:1

Gray areas can become a battleground for believers.

“...we know that "all of us possess knowledge." This "knowledge" puffs up, but love builds up.”

- 1 Corinthians 8:1

God gives us freedom on many issues.

4 Therefore, as to the eating of food offered to idols, we know that “an idol has no real existence,” and that “there is no God but one.” 5 For although there may be so-called gods in heaven or on earth—as indeed there are many “gods” and many “lords”— 6 yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist. 

- 1 Corinthians 8:4-6

In our freedom, we love God.

3 But if anyone loves God, he is known by God. 

- 1 Corinthians 8:3  

In our freedom, we love others.

7 However, not all possess this knowledge. But some, through former association with idols, eat food as really offered to an idol, and their conscience, being weak, is defiled. 8 Food will not commend us to God. We are no worse off if we do not eat, and no better off if we do. 9 But take care that this right of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak. 10 For if anyone sees you who have knowledge eating in an idol's temple, will he not be encouraged, if his conscience is weak, to eat food offered to idols? 11 And so by your knowledge this weak person is destroyed, the brother for whom Christ died. 12 Thus, sinning against your brothers and wounding their conscience when it is weak, you sin against Christ.

- 1 Corinthians 8:7-12

Our desire to love should be greater than our desire to exercise personal freedoms.

23 “I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but not everything is constructive. 24 No one should seek their own good, but the good of others.

- 1 Corinthians 10:23-24