Harvest ABC s Lifestyle Handbook Loving God during Alone Time, with Believers in Small Groups, and in Corporate Worship Romans 15:8-13 Preparing for Sunday, December 23, 2018
Harvest s Believers Lifestyle Essentials The ABC lifestyle encourages us to grow in loving God more fully in a unified way. The hope is that we all will get back to the basics as a church and growing in unity as we study God s word together by studying the same verses. LOVING GOD DURING ALONE TIME is to retreat to a quiet place, in an attitude of surrender and trust, for an unhurried time of communion with God through His Word, prayer and other spiritual disciplines. Biblical Basis: Josh 1:8, 1 Tim 4:7, Ps 91:1, Matt 6:5-6. LOVING GOD WITH BROTHERS AND SISTERS IN SMALL GROUPS is to gather together, in an environment of love and trust, with a small group of believers who are growing in intimacy with God through the ABC s, in order to spur one another on to love God more fully through sharing, accountability, and prayer. Biblical Basis: Prov 27:17, Heb 10:24, 1 Thes 5:11. LOVING GOD IN CORPRATE WORSHIP is to gather together as a church family on a weekly basis to worship God and delight in His presence; in song we express our love for Him and through the preaching of the Word we hear His voice. Biblical Basis: Ps 22:22, Heb 10:25, Rom 12:4-5. The Practice of Loving God during Alone Time There are four key components in the practice of Loving God during Alone Time that we encourage each person to do on a daily basis: PRAY. Settle into God s presence by expressing to Him where you are right now. Ask Him to draw near to you as you draw near to Him. The following is a suggestion: Father, my desire is to draw near to You and commune with You during this time. Create in my heart and mind a quietness and rest as I place my burdens and concerns, and confess my sins Protect this time from interruption and distractions. Allow this to be more that a discipline, but an encourage with You where I delight in Your presences as You delight in me. Give me ears to hear Your voice as I read Your Word. Teach me, rebuke me, correct or train me so that I will be thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Tim 3:16) Holy Spirit fill me with Yourself, refresh my soul and nourish my spirit. My heart s desire is to enjoy loving intimacy with You now and throughout my day. In Jesus name I pray. Amen. READ THE SCRIPTURE PASSAGE MEDITATIVELY. Sink into the sermon-based scripture for a number of days, until you have plumbed the depths of it. Use the cross references. Once you have plumbed its depths, move on to another bible passage (i.e. the complementary passage, or one of your own choosing) and sink into that for the remainder of the week. Study the passage of scripture to gain an understanding of the context of the passage and the key point(s) of the truth taught in the passage. Listen to God s personal word to you through His written Word; attend to and linger over a word/phrase/verse that catches your attention. Ask God to show you how this word/phrase/verse connects with your life right now. Record what God is saying to you. RESPOND TO GOD IN PRAYER. Allow your God-led ponderings be a catalyst to prayer, talking to Him about what He has revealed to you. Take time to intercede for your own accountability partners or small group members. CONTINUE TO MEDITATE ON THIS WORD/PHRASE THROUGHOUT THE DAY. Allow God to further form, shape and apply these words in your life as you go into your day. James 1:23-24 WORK ON THE MEMORY VERSE. It is important to equip yourself with God s word. Joshua 1:8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. If you want to be successful in life Joshua 1:8 makes it clear that success in life come through memorizing and meditating on God s Word.
Romans 15:8-13 ESV 8 For I tell you that Christ c became a servant to the circumcised to show God s truthfulness, in order d to confirm the promises given to the patriarchs, 9 and in order e that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written, f Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles, and sing to your name. 10 And again it is said, g Rejoice, O Gentiles, with his people. 11 And again, h Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles, and let all the peoples extol him. 12 And again Isaiah says, i j The root of Jesse will come, even he who arises to rule the Gentiles; k in him will the Gentiles hope. 13 May the God of hope fill you with all l joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. Romans 15:8-13 NLT 8 Remember that Christ came as a servant to the Jews to show that God is true to the promises he made to their ancestors. 9 He also came so that the Gentiles might give glory to God for his mercies to them. That is what the psalmist meant when he wrote: For this, I will praise you among the Gentiles; I will sing praises to your name. 10 And in another place it is written, Rejoice with his people, you Gentiles. 11 And yet again, Praise the LORD, all you Gentiles. Praise him, all you people of the earth. 12 And in another place Isaiah said, The heir to David s throne will come, and he will rule over the Gentiles. They will place their hope on him. 13 I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit. Cross-references c. Matt15:24, John 1:11, Heb 3:1, Acts 3:26 d. Rom 4:16, 2 Cor 1:20 e. Rom 3:29 f. 2 Sam 22:50, Ps 18:49 h. Ps 117:1 i. Isa 11:10 j. Isa 11:1, Rev 5:5, 22:16 k. Matt 12:21
Alone Time: Journaling As God speaks to you through His Word write down what is impacting you, what He is saying to you personally and/or your response back to Him. Scripture Memorization: 2 Corinthians 4:6 (ESV) For God, who said, Let light shine out of the darkness, made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God s glory displayed in the face of Christ. Prayer Focus: Pray for Elders and Pastors as they lead our church.
Alone Time: Optional Complementary Passage Romans 12:11-12 English Standard Version (ESV) 11 Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. 12 Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. 1 Peter 1:3-9 English Standard Version (ESV) Born Again to a Living Hope 3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls. Acts 15:7-9 English Standard Version (ESV) 7 And after there had been much debate, Peter stood up and said to them, Brothers, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe. 8 And God, who knows the heart, bore witness to them, by giving them the Holy Spirit just as he did to us, 9 and he made no distinction between us and them, having cleansed their hearts by faith. Alone Time: Journal What God Is showing me through this passage? How is God s Word convicting me? How is God s Spirit leading me to respond? What did I learn today? How am I different as I go about my day?
Corporate Worship: Sermon Notes How will what I heard impact my life this week?
Believers in Small Groups: Responsive Accountability Pre-work before Small Group Personal Reflection (5 minutes) Prayerfully consider your practice of Alone Time over the previous week, as well as how God spoke to you as you lived the ABC lifestyle. Is God inviting you to Focus on your practice of Alone Time Take a step of obedience? Repent from a sin? Trust and rest in a truth? Or do something else? This coming week God is inviting me to / My response to God s invitation is to How I did with last week s accountability item During Small Group Group Accountability & Prayer (30-45 minutes) Group Member s Accountability Items (&Other Items) to Pray For:
Harvest Homes Supplemental: For the week of December 9th Dear Parents, This week and next week, we step out of the Bible s big story chronology to celebrate Christmas. This week we remained in the Old Testament to learn about Jesus birth from the prophet Isaiah. Isaiah s name means Yahweh is salvation. God called Isaiah to be a prophet when King Uzziah s reign was ending more than 700 years before Jesus was born. At the time Isaiah spoke to the people of Judah, the kingdom of Judah was very wealthy. But the people did not follow God. They worshiped false idols, cheated one another, and mistreated the poor. Isaiah spoke to the people of Judah at a critical time in their history. After King Uzziah died, the people were afraid. They were vulnerable to their enemies, and unlike Uzziah, their new king was less than ideal. Isaiah s prophecies warned the people that God would judge them, but Isaiah also spoke words of hope. He told of how God would one day rescue those who were faithful to Him. Perhaps the most amazing of all are Isaiah s detailed prophecies about Jesus His birth and His suffering and death. Jesus Himself read from the Book of Isaiah, telling the people that He was the One the Scriptures spoke of. Jesus fulfilled God s promises spoken by the prophet Isaiah. God kept His promise to send a king from the family of Jesse, the father of King David (Luke 3:23-32). The Spirit of the Lord rested on Jesus (Matt. 3:16-17). He was filled with wisdom and understanding (Luke 2:40). He came to bring salvation to all the nations (Acts 13:47-48). Isaiah and many other prophets in the Old Testament told about a King who would come and rule forever. Jesus is the promised Messiah. He will make all these words come true. Help your kids understand that Isaiah s prophecies from God did not speak just to the people of his time; they also speak to us. Hundreds of years before it happened, Isaiah told of how Jesus would be born and how He would suffer and die to take away the sins of His people. Because of Isaiah s prophecies, and those of the other Old Testament prophets, we have great confidence in the Bible and that Jesus is the Messiah. Check this session s Activity Page and Big Picture Card as well as the Gospel Project for Kids Family App for ways to interact with the Bible content this week. FAMILY STARTING POINTS Babies and Toddlers Jesus was born. God said someone from David s family would be king forever. God gave Isaiah a message about the special King. Jesus is our special King. Preschool Why was Jesus born? Jesus was born to rescue us. Isaiah wrote about the Messiah. Kids Why was Jesus born? Jesus was born to rescue us from sin. Isaiah prophesied about the coming Messiah. UNIT KEY PASSAGE Matthew 1:21 NEXT WEEK Jesus Was Born (Luke 2:1-20)