Sermon Point #1 - Narrative - a way of presenting or understanding a situation or series of events that reflects and promotes a particular point of view or set of values Sermon Point #2 - False Narrative - We Change By Our Willpower Sermon Point #3 - We Change By Indirection How Do We Change? 1) Changing our narratives Romans 12:2 - Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. How Do We Change? 1) Changing our narratives 2) Practice Soul Training Exercises 1 Timothy 4:7-8 - Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. How Do We Change? 1) Changing Our Narratives 2) Practice Soul Training Exercises 3) Participate in Community Hebrews 10:24 - And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, John 1:38-39 - Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?” They said, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?” “Come,” he replied, “and you will see.” So they went and saw where he was staying, and they spent that day with him. It was about four in the afternoon.

Living Stones Church - South Bend

Changing our Narratives

Habakkuk 1:2-4 – How long, Lord, must I call for help, but you do not listen? Or cry out to you, “Violence!” but you do not save? Why do you make me look at in injustice? Why do you tolerate wrongdoing? Destruction and violence are before me; there is strife and conflict abounds. Therefore the law is paralyzed and justice never prevails. The wicked hem in the righteous, so that justice is perverted. Habakkuk 1:6 – I am raising up the Babylonians, that ruthless and impetuous people, who sweep across the whole earth to seize dwellings not their own. Habakkuk 1:12-13 – Lord, are you not from everlasting? My God, my Holy One, you will never die. You, Lord, have appointed to execute judgment; you, my Rock, have ordained them to punish. Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrongdoing. Why then to you tolerate the treacherous? Why are you silent while the wicked swallow up those more righteous than themselves? Habakkuk 2:4 – “See, the enemy is puffed up; his desires are not upright – but the righteous person will live by his faithfulness.” Habakkuk 2:14 – For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. Habakkuk 2:20 – The Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth be silent before him. SERMON POINT #1 – HOPE CAN EXIST ALONGSIDE GRIEF Habakkuk 3:16 – I heard and my heart pounded, my lips quivered at the sound; decal crept into my bones, and my legs trembled. Yet I will wait patiently for the day of calamity to come on the nation invading us. SERMON POINT #2 – HOPE COMES FROM REMEMBERING AND REPEATING SERMON POINT #3 – HOPE IS A CHOICE Habakkuk 3:17-19 – Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior. The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to treat on the heights.

Habakkuk

Malachi 3:7 – Ever since the time of your ancestors you have turned away from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord Almighty. SERMON POINT #1 – RELIGIOUS…BUT SELF-SEEKING Malachi 1:13 – And you say, “’What a burden!’ and you sniff at it contemptuously,” says the Lord Almighty. “When you bring injured, lame or diseased animals and offer them as sacrifices, should I accept them from your hand?” says the Lord… “I am a great king,” says the Lord Almighty, “and my name is to be feared among the nations.” SERMON POINT #2 – RELIGIOUS…BUT SELF-CENTERED Malachi 2:13-16 – Another thing you do: You flood the Lord’s alter with tears. You weep and wail because he no longer looks with favor on your offerings and accepts them with pleasure from your hands. You ask, “Why?” It is because the Lord is the witness between you and the wife of your youth. You have been unfaithful to her, though she is your partner, the wife of your marriage covenant. Has not the one God made for you? You belong to him in body and spirit. And what does the one God seek? Godly offspring. So be on your guard, and do not be unfaithful to the wife of your youth. “The man who hates his wife and divorces his wife,” says the Lord, the God of Israel, “does violence to the one he should protect,” says the Lord Almighty. So be on your guard, and do not be unfaithful. SERMON POINT #3 – RELIGIOUS…BUT UNBELIEVING Malachi 2:17 – You have wearied the Lord with your words. “How have we wearied him?” you ask. By saying, “All who do evil are good in the eyes of the Lord, and he is pleased with them” or “Where is the God of justice?” Malachi 3:13-14 – “You have spoken arrogantly against me,” says the Lord. “Yet you ask, ‘What have we said against you?’ “You have said, ‘It is futile to serve God. What do we gain by carrying out his requirements and going about like mourners before the Lord Almighty?” SERMON POINT # 4 – RELIGOIUS…BUT UNTRUSTING Malachi 3:8-10 – Will a mere mortal rob God? Yet you rob me. “But you ask, ‘How are we robbing you?’ “In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse – your whole nation – because you are robbing me. Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.” Malachi 3:7 – Ever since the time of your ancestors you have turned away from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord Almighty. Malachi 4:1-2, 5-6a – “But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its rays. And you will go out and frolic like well-fed calves… See, I will send the prophet Elijah to you before the great and dreadful day of the Lord comes. He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the hearts of the children to their parents.”

Malachi

SERMON POINT #1 – SOMETHING IS WORTH WHAT SOMEONE ELSE IS WILLING TO PAY FOR IT SERMON PIONT #2 – HOSEA’S NAME IN HEBREW MEANS “SALVATION” Romans 5:8 – “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Hosea 1:2 - “When the Lord began to speak through Hosea, the Lord said to him, “Go, marry a promiscuous woman and have children with her, for like an adulterous wife this land is guilty of unfaithfulness to the Lord.” Hosea 1:3 – “So he married Gomer, daughter of Diblaim and she conceived and bore him a son.” SERMON POINT #3 – GOMER’S NAME IN HEBREW MEANS “COMPLETION” SERMON POINT #4 – GOD TOOK SALVATION AND COMPLETION AND JOINED THEM TOGETHER Hosea 3:1 – “The Lord said to me, “Go, show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another man and is an adulteress. Love her as the Lord loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes.” Hosea 3:2 – “So I bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and about a homer and a lethek of barley.” SERMON POINT #5 – HOSEA WAS WILLING TO PURCHASE WHAT ALREADY BELONGED TO HIM Psalm 24:1 (NLT) – “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it. The world and all its people belong to him.” Hosea 3:3 – “Then I told her, “You are to live with me many days; you must not be a prostitute or be with any man, and I will be have the same way toward you.” 1 John 4:10 (NLT) – “This is real love – not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.”

Hosea

PSALM 42 1 As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. 2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God? 3 My tears have been my food day and night, while people say to me all day long, “Where is your God?” 4 These things I remember as I pour out my soul: how I used to go to the house of God under the protection of the Mighty One[d] with shouts of joy and praise among the festive throng. 5 Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God. 6 My soul is downcast within me; therefore I will remember you from the land of the Jordan, the heights of Hermon—from Mount Mizar. 7 Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls; all your waves and breakers have swept over me. 8 By day the Lord directs his love, at night his song is with me— a prayer to the God of my life. 9 I say to God my Rock, “Why have you forgotten me? Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy?” 10 My bones suffer mortal agony as my foes taunt me, saying to me all day long, “Where is your God?” 11 Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God. PSALM 43:4 4 Then I will go to the altar of God, to God, my joy and my delight. I will praise you with the lyre, O God, my God ISAIAH 61:1-3 1 The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners,[a] 2 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, 3 and provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor

SERMON POINT #1 - TALK TO YOUR FRIENDS Mark 14:32-33 - They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. Mark 14:33 - MSG - He plunged into a sinkhole of dreadful agony. Mark 14:34 - “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.” SERMON POINT #2 - TALK TO YOUR FATHER Mark 14:35-36 - Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. “Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” SERMON POINT #3 - TALK TO YOUR FEELINGS Mark 14:36 - “Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” Philippians 4:6-7 - Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Fear

Ephesians 4:26-27 – “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold. Matthew 21:12-14 – Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. “It is written,” he said to them, “‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’ but you are making it ‘a den of robbers.’” The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them. SERMON POINT #1 – JESUS WAS ANGRY ON BEHALF OF THOSE WHO WERE MISTREATED SERMON POINT #2 – WHEN JESUS GOT ANGRY, HE FLIPPED TABLES, NOT PEOPLE SERMON POINT #3 – WHEN JESUS GOT ANGRY, HE LOVED AND HEALED THOSE WHO WERE HURTING Matthew 21:14 – The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them. Colossians 2:13b-15 – NLT – for he [GOD] forgave all our sins. He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross.

When Jesus Got Angry...

Luke 10:21 – At that time, Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this is what you were pleased to do.” Matthew 9:36 – When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. John 11:35 – Jesus wept. Mark 10:13-14 – People were bringing little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.” Hebrews 5:7 – During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. John 2:13-16 – When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the temple courts he found people selling cattle, sheep and doves, and the other sitting at tables exchanging money. So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; he scattered coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!”

Introduction to Inside Out

Acts 16:25-26 - About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose. Acts 16:27 - The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. Acts 16:28-32 - But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!” The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. He then brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.” Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. Acts 16:33-34 - At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his household were baptized. The jailer brought them into his house and set a meal before them; he was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God—he and his whole household.

Filled with Joy

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Act Justly, Love Mercy, Walk Humbly

Matthew 5:12-16 – “Let me tell you why you are here. You’re here to be salt – seasoning that brings out the God-flavors on the earth. If you lose your saltiness, how will people taste godliness? You’ve lost your usefulness and will end up in the garbage. Here’s another way to put it. You’re here to be light, bringing the God-colors to the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand – shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.” SERMON POINT #1 – RELATIONSHIPS ARE KEY TO THE KINGDOM OF GOD Acts 11:1-3 – The apostles and the believers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles had received the word of God. So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him and said, “You went into the house of uncircumcised men and at with them.” Galatians 3:28 – There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. Colossians 3:11 – Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Chris is all, and is in all. Genesis 1:26-27 – Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and all the creatures that move along the ground.” So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them, male and female, he created them. SERMON POINT #2 – WHO IS YOUR “THEM”? Matthew 5:46-47 – “If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?”

Who is your "them"?

Acts 7:57, 58, 8:1-3 - At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul… On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison. Acts 26:9-11 - “I too was convinced that I ought to do all that was possible to oppose the name of Jesus of Nazareth. And that is just what I did in Jerusalem. On the authority of the chief priests I put many of the Lord’s people in prison, and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them. Many a time I went from one synagogue to another to have them punished, and I tried to force them to blaspheme. I was so obsessed with persecuting them that I even hunted them down in foreign cities. 1 Corinthians 15:9-10a - For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. 1 Timothy 1:12-16 - I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me trustworthy, appointing me to his service. Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience as an example for those who would believe in him and receive eternal life. SERMON POINT #1 - YOUR STORY IS A BLESSING Luke 8:38-39 - The man from whom the demons had gone out begged to go with him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, “Return home and tell how much God has done for you.” So the man went away and told all over town how much Jesus had done for him.

Your Story is a Blessing

Genesis 3:6-10 - When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LordGod among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?” He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.” Genesis 3:21 – The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. 2 Corinthians 7:10 – Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death. SERMON POINT #1 – Guilt says, “I did something bad.” SERMON POINT #2 – Shame says, “I am bad.” Luke 22:59-61 – About an hour later another asserted, “Certainly this fellow was with him, for he is a Galilean.” Peter replied, “Man, I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed. The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three time.” And he went outside and wept bitterly. Philippians 1:6 – being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Jesus Christ. John 3:17 – For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.

Guilt

Matthew 5:43-44 – “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate you enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” Ephesians 4:32 – Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Luke 17:1,3-5 – Jesus said to his disciples: “Things that cause you to stumble are bound to come… So watch yourselves. If your brother or sister sins against you, rebuke them; and if they repent, forgive them. Even if they sin against you seven times in a day and seven times come back to you saying, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive them.” The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” SERMON POINT #1 – FORGIVENESS IS NOT FORGETTING SERMON POINT #2 – FORGIVENESS IS NOT FAIR Psalm 103:10-12 – He does not always treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. SERMON POINT #3 – FORGIVENESS IS GIVING OTHERS WHAT GOD GAVE ME 1 John 1:9 – If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

Forgiveness is not Forgetting

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Living Stones Church - South Bend

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