Sermon Notes

June 18th & 19th

SERIES TEXT:  Genesis 2:15-25

But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. 1 Corinthians 11:3 (NIV)

Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. Ephesians 5:22-24 (NIV)

1. Lead as a Man of  God

But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. 1 Timothy 6:11 (NIV)

2. Lead as a Man of    the      Word

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.  Deuteronomy 6:4-7 (NIV)

3. Lead as a Man of    Responsibility

• Pastor               Spiritual
• Provider           Physical
• Protector          Emotional

4. Lead as a Man of    Grace

Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.       Ephesians 6:4 (NIV)

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for for her. Ephesians 5:25 (NIV)

Difficult People: dealing with overly-needy people

Emotional Vampires:
Incurably insecure
Drama queens (kings)
Blabbers
Financial leeches

Helping without Enabling:

1. Offer what they need, not what they want.
   Then Peter said, Silver and gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk. Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up…     Acts 3:6-7a (NIV)
   • Identify the real need.
   • Pay attention to actions, not words.
2. Set healthy boundaries.
   And in the morning, long before daylight, He got up and went out to a deserted place, and there He prayed. And Simon Peter and those who were with him followed Him (pursuing Him eagerly and hunting Him out), and they found Him and said to Him, Everybody is looking for you. Mark 1:35-37 (Amplified)
   • Time Boundaries.
   • Resource Boundaries.
3. Allow them to face their consequences.
   Don’t be misled. Remember that you can’t ignore God and get away with it. You will always reap what you sow! Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful desires will harvest the consequences of decay and death. But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit…  Galatians 6:7-8 (NLT)

• • Rescuing isn’t always helping.
  • Jesus is the Savior,  not you
    Jesus replied, “Every plant not planted by my heavenly Father will be uprooted, so ignore them. They are blind guides, leading the blind…they will both fall into a ditch. Matthew 15:13-14 (NLT)

Sermon Text:

2 Corinthians 9:5-15  (NIV)

5 So I thought it necessary to urge the brothers to visit you in advance and finish the arrangements for the generous gift you had promised. Then it will be ready as a generous gift, not as one grudgingly given. 6 Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. 7 Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 8 And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. 9 As it is written:

“They have freely scattered their gifts to the poor;
their righteousness endures forever.”

10 Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. 11 You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God. 12 This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of the Lord’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God. 13 Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, others will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else. 14 And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you. 15 Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!

Two Kinds of Giving

• Not grudgingly , but willingly (verse 5)
• Not sparingly , but generously (verse 6)
• Not  reluctantly , but cheerfully (verse 7)

Two Types of Hearts

• The Heart to Hold Back
• The Heart to Share Things

Two Views of God

• The Heart that Sees God as Taker
• The Heart that Sees God as Giver

The Results of Generosity

• You will receive an even greater ability to be generous

You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion  (verse 11)

• God will receive greater thanksgiving and praise

…your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.    (verse 11)

• You will enjoy seeing God meet the needs of His people

This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of God’s people but it is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God.    (verse 12)

• Affection and love will grow among God’s people

And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you.   (verse 14)

Sermon Text

Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he. Proverbs 29:18 (NLT

1. Lost people  matter to God.
2. Biblical teaching is the catalyst for life – change  .
3. Christ-followers should  grow in Christ-likeness
4. Generosity in giving is the lifestyle of Christ-followers.
5. Church should be culturally  relevant ,  yet doctrinally  pure .
6. Ongoing life-change happens best in small groups .
7. Gift – based ministry is God’s design for the church.
8. Ministry is best accomplished in  teams.
9. Excellence honors God and inspires people.
10. Healthy churches  plant new churches.

Personal Goals for 2011:

1. Invite unchurched friends, family, and co-workers to church.
2. Increase personal Bible study and prayer.
3. Join a small group.
4. Volunteer to serve.

Church Goals for 2011:

1. Reduce the 88 dots.
2. Improve our discipleship systems.
3. Support church plant in Mt. Home.

Sermon Text

This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. Joseph, her fiance was a good man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly. As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. Joseph, son of David, the angel said, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. And she will have a son,  and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord’s message through his prophet: Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and they will call him Immanuel, which means God with us. When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took Mary as his wife. But he did not have sexual relations with her until her son was born. And Joseph named him Jesus.  Matthew 1:18-25  (NLT)

Joseph’s Character

He believed and honored God –  Matthew 1:24

He   honored Mary –  Matthew 1:19

He  protected Jesus – Matthew 2:13-14

Joseph was a reflection of God as…

….the Father

• Loves  unconditionally
• Keeps no record of the past
• Protects and provides

…the Carpenter

Restores broken things – 2 Corinthians 5:17

Creates and  builds – Genesis 1:1