Vision 2020 series Week 1: We exist to glorify God. Discussion Questions

Transcription

1 Vision 2020 series Week 1: We exist to glorify God Discussion Questions 1. What do we mean when we say of someone (usually by way of criticism), they just want all the glory? 2. What does it mean to glorify God? Only one Lord Read Psalm 96: What songs do you remember from you youth which had a powerful impact on you? What made them memorable or influential? 4. This song commended to the people of God by the Psalmist is ultimately to be sung to whom? What is the basic message? Why should this message be proclaimed? 5. Why do we have something to sing about as Christians and how does our message compare? 6. If all the gods of the nations are idols (literally nothingness) what does this say about the way we understand the nature and place of other religions? 7. Some of God s creation has been led astray. What is God aiming to do through his people? Liberation to come Read Psalm 96: Why does the Psalmist consider that the judgement of God is something clearly to sing about something of great joy? 9. Mark suggested that God isn t pictured in the Psalm as an angry school master looking for bad children to punish, but 10. How/why is the message appropriate for today s world? 11. We are not going to glorify God by literally singing a new song, so how can we put the intent of this Psalm into practice, remembering that we live now on this side of Jesus life, death, resurrection and gift of the Spirit? 12. We exist to glorify God by making disciples as we love and serve Noosa. Do you consider this statement will serve us well as a guide and driver of all we do at our church? Does it help you get what we re on about as a church? Discuss. 1

2 Date: 27 July 2014 Services: 7.30 and 9.30 Series: Vision 2020 Title: We exist to glorify God Passage: Psalm 96 Aim: To completely uplift and totally inspire people as to our role to glorify God in the world and help people to see exactly what that means. Outline: God s mission our vision There is only one LORD There is a liberation to come How? The mission of the church the mission of our church, is not something we have to come up with. It is not ours to invent or discover We can t ask your input into the church s mission or go round asking Noosa for their ideas about our mission. Our mission is entirely given by God. Our mission is his mission. What is his mission? It can be expressed in all sorts of ways but we ve chosen to express in our Vision2020 document is: We exist to glorify God by making disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ as we love and serve Noosa. That s it. That is what he s called us to do. How we go about that in our local context is our what our Vision 2020 is all about how to go about God s mission how to make disciples. in our local context here with our local opportunities and challenges How to allocate limited resources How to determine what is best to do out of all that would be good to do How to make best use of plant and facilities How to be good stewards of all that s entrusted to us How to make contact with people How to advertise the love of the Lord Jesus How to nurture children and young people and whole families.and parish council can t wait to share with you what we ve prayerfully discerned over the past months about how to go about God s mission. But I want us to see from God s word over the coming weeks, the Biblical foundation for our series I want us to see from the Bible, what we mean when we say we exist to glorify God What we mean when we say to make disciples And what we mean by as we love and serve Noosa. Because if we re not on about what God wants us to be on about we re wasting our time And if we can t show from the Bible why we think our mission is God s mission, then well then we re just doing our own thing // So today what do we mean when we say we exist to glorify God? 2

3 It sounds like one of those regular churchy phrases we often use but do we really have a handle on what it means? And the best way of exploring this with you is by looking at Psalm 96 will you turn there with me this morning? p592 And I want to look at this Psalm with you this morning under the two headings: Only one Lord Liberation to come 1. Only one Lord vv1-9 singing songs story telling country music ballads or protest songs John Lennon s imagine advertising jingles get in your head hymns Praise my soul; When I survey, Amazing Grace; strong associations you remember eras, you smell the smells, you recall the clothing dementia units the songs of yesteryear people connect It s a long way to Tipperary music - very powerful African churches joy movement praise Jewish culture music important Psalms joy, lament, complaint, praise And here in Psalm 96, the Psalmist is telling God s people to sing a song communicating the very glory of God V2 Sing to the Lord, praise his name; proclaim his salvation day after day Proclaim his salvation = proclaim the gospel the glorious news of the God who saves. And who is the song for? Not just for themselves that they will have a good time singing V3 declare his glory among the nations his marvellous deeds among all peoples Only two types of people Jew and Gentile This is an exhortation to declare the glory of God to those who weren t God s people Hebrew poetry same or similar thing in the next line or line 1 st proclaim his salvation 2 nd declare his glory 3 rd - his marvellous deeds Friends the salvation of God is his glory To declare his glory is to tell of saving power His marvellous deeds are his deeds of salvation 3

4 And how much more do we know now than the original readers? they knew God s saving power from slavery to Egyptians We know God s saving power from slavery to sin and death They were rescued from Egypt We ve been rescued from darkness They were rescued from physical slavery We ve been rescued from spiritual slavery They were rescued through the death of a lamb in their place We were rescued through the death of THE lamb in our place So they were to tell the nations of the God who saves, the God who rescues, the God who frees his people, the God who loves and serves his people. Now why were they to make this news known? Why not leave other people to their ways? I ve been asked from time to time couldn t our Lord be the same Lord as Hinduism/Islam/Buddhism? It would certainly make life easier wouldn t it if we didn t have to care about sharing the gospel and it would arguably stop a lot of religious fighting! Well have a look with me at vv4-5 For great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; he is to be feared about all gods. For all the gods of the nations are idols, but the Lord made the heavens The gods of the nations are idols The word is nothingness They don t exist They are man made Human invention So we owe it to the world to let people know that there is only one God. How could it be possible that the Lord who said there is one God is the same as Krishna who said there are many? How is it that the Bible teaches God became a man and died on a cross and the Quran says it s a blasphemy to say that God became a man and died on a cross? No we must declare that this only one Lord. The world needs to know. Imagine a child stolen at birth, raised by kidnapper What mother, on finding the imposters, wouldn t fight to expose them and reclaim her status as mother God longs for his creation to know: Creator, Judge Saviour In asking for his glory and teachings to be heralded throughout the world, God isn t being an imperialistic bully He s fighting for his children against imposters 4

5 As you ve grown in your love for God As you ve grown in your understanding of how good he is As you ve grasped his marvellous deeds in the Jesus died for you Don t you long that more people see him as you see him?? As you see the confusion in the world Hamas vs Israel, Sunni vs Sheeted, Russian pro separatists vs the Ukraine; North vs South Sudan, Christian vs Muslim; black vs white; left vs right; don t you long that the world knew that there is but One glorious, powerful, majestic, wonderful Lord who is worthy of all praise and to be feared above all gods which are nothingness?? Sing a new song Sing to the Lord Praise his name, Proclaim his salvation day after day! For there is only one Lord and there is a great liberation to come! 2. Liberation to come vv10-13 The world this week has not been a nice place to live MH 17 lost lives; crime scene and evidence compromised; bodies laying unrecovered; flight recorders initially hidden away article yesterday The creaking old Soviet-era train defines this crisis for me. It s everything that flight MH17 wasn t. The fun of that near time-machine sense of modern aviation, hundreds of people packed into a metal bullet that hurtles through thin air; having a dinky little meal or a snooze, head on a loved-one s shoulder; a drink and a movie; is one of the status symbols of our time. Sadly, so too is being packed anonymously into a blood-soaked body bag as it sits on a train with no destination and no departure The week has been an ugly revelation about mankind. That the bodies of so many people could be left broiling in the sun for no good reason and that none of the power pivots in the world could release them was,...well, you choose despicable, disgusting, depraved etc. Then there was another African place crashed due to bad weather taking off from Burkina Faso Israel vs Gaza with many hundreds of Palestinian civilians killed Stop the world we want get off! But here in Psalm 96 is the answer. For the One Lord of all the world is the one Judge of all the world Now often when we think of God coming to the judge the world we think of sermons with fire and brimstone it s awful thing to contemplate But what do you notice about God s judgement being announced here? Have a look with me a vvv10ff 5

6 Say among the nations, the LORD reigns The world is firmly established, it cannot be moved; his will judge the peoples with equity. God made the world and he will judge the world That is the logic here. He established is and will re-establish it. Part of the gospel to be preached the good news to be declared is God s judgment. And it s good news look at v11 Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let the sea resound, and all that is in it; let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them. Then all the trees of the forest will sing with joy; they will sing before the LORD, for he comes, he comes to judge the world in righteousness and the peoples in his truth. This is not here as a warning watch out world God is out to get you it s about the overthrow of injustice and the establishment of equity! It s about liberation not revenge! God established the world It s gone astray. It s lost the plot. He will re-establish it. God isn t an angry schoolmaster looking for bad children to punish; he s the heroic justice commissioner promising to root out corruption and overthrow injustice. Friends, surely this is what the world wants to hear right now needs to hear right now. That there will be an end to this mess There will be justice An end to evil and war and fighting And end to death and dying An end to pain and mourning There is only one Lord of all the world And we exist to glorify him to advertise him Promote him Draw attention to him Sing his praises Show his greatness Tell of his power Share of his love Draw attention to his mercy Declare there will be justice in the end 6

7 To proclaim the hope to come He s saved us from sin and death through the death of his son He s coming back to bring in a new heavens and a new earth HOW HOW are to glorify him?? By living consistently with what we believe By our prayers Good works Though our gifts By serving others. By making our a song of praise to him!! Primarily. As we make disciples As we are all involved in one way or another big or small in the work of promoting the gospel and seeing others come to know and bow the knee to Jesus. Nothing will help bring glory to God than by more and people loving, following and serving Jesus! Why are we here as a church? Not a club to come to on Sunday because none of the other clubs meet Not to impress God and get in his good books Not just to fill up empty seats We exist to glorify God Drawing people s attention to the fact that There is only one Lord And that he will one day re-establish the world, putting an end to evil, and ushering in a new heavens and new earth To Him be the glory! 7