Gospel in Life #1: Grace changes everything Noosa: seeking its peace and prosperity Discussion Questions 1. Grace changes everything. Why does the Good News of Jesus necessarily impact every single area of life? Why can t we just enjoy it as one component that makes for a happy life? 2. Why do you think that lady was able to forgive the men who killed her husband? Read 1 Peter 2:9-12. 3. We ve been made God s people. What s our primary role? 4. Why does he call us aliens and strangers in the world? Do you ever feel as a Christian that you don t quite belong here? 5. Can you identify two types of behaviour from vv11-12, that we are urged to adopt as God s aliens and strangers? (If we adopt these, we may be all more seen as alien and strange!) Read Jeremiah 29:1-7 6. 586 years before Jesus turned up, God s people the nation of Israel were kicked out of the promised land God gave them. The professionals of God s city of Jerusalem were marched across the dessert to Babylon. They were told to settle down and seek the peace and prosperity of the foreign city they were now to live in. Their story is not our story but there are parallels because we too are aliens and strangers where we live. How can we actively seek Noosa s peace and prosperity? Is there something your small group could do (for example) to help the people doing it tough out at John s Landing camping area? Or other ideas of how we can bless Noosa? 7. It s not the reason we do it, but what is one of outcomes of seeking the peace and prosperity of the city? (see the end of v7) 8. In v11, God through Jeremiah s letter promises that despite the ordeal they faced of being exiled to a foreign city, his plans were for their good. (Read again v11). This specific promise to the exiles cannot be transferred directly to us, but see from the New Testament the following verses which assure us that God s plans and purposes will be for our good too even though we may find that hard to understand. Romans 8:28; James 1:2-4; 1 Peter 1:6-7 and 1 Corinthians 4:16-18. 9. What are the lies which false prophets of our time promise us in Noosa? 10. The exiles were to cling to the hope of an eventual return to the promised land. As aliens and strangers here in earth, what is the hope to which we now cling? 11. God s people were also told to pray for the city of Babylon. We are also told in the New Testament to pray for our leaders and people. Think of some prayer points for Noosa and then pray together.
Gospel in Life # 1 Noosa seeking its peace and prosperity Jeremiah 29:1-14 Grace changes everything Aliens and exiles Amnesty Video store Gun buy-back scheme Amnesty For the entire human race Nineveh Jonah Australia Noosa I m sorry Have mercy Here s the gospel: There is a King He has come to make his claim He has come to call people back to allegiance to himself He has come to make such a return possible He has come to usher in his rule his kingdom He has come to point to the future when that kingdom will come in all its glory There s an amnesty on at present Like all amnesties based entirely on grace!
Grace changes everything Not desperately trying to earn God s favour What God has done for us, not opposite Certainty not uncertainty Confidence not doubt Clarity not confusion Grace changes everything No part of life is left unchanged, unaffected by God s grace to us...... no part of life is left unchanged as we change our allegiance from ourselves back to the King...! Marriage Family Sex Finances Work Retirement Looking after your bodies The way you think about the future Plan your priorities See other people Understand the world in which we live Approach sickness and death and dying The way we grieve generosity The way we complain The way we read the newspaper The way you think about asylum seeker policy The choices we make about holidays, entertainment, investments, What we want for our children and grandchildren The way we see those struggling with same sex attraction and the whole area of homosexuality It will impact greed, gambling, spending Our relationship with God will shape our day, our week, our month, our year Grace changes everything That s why we re spending these weeks exploring - Gospel in life Not a theory or philosophy Not an add on Not something temporary
Not a compartment or department But whole of life relationship All pervading allegiance which intersects with entire life 8 tips to be happy 1. Look for the positive 2. Nurture relationships 3. Be physically active 4. Express gratitude 5. Offer help to others 6. Forgive 7. Take pleasure in small things 8. Make spiritual practice a habit NO! No! No!...as if Jesus came to be one component out of 8 to make a for a happy life! His grace changes everything Not part of life is left untouched And our happiness is not the aim His glory is the aim! Forgiving your husband s murderer Grace changes everything you see... And grace is going to forever change the way you see yourself the way you see the world the way you see your part your place in the world 1 Peter 2 looked at earlier in the year This is our story as the people of God here in Noosa But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. - Once we were body - We were no-bodies - NOW body of Christ people of God - Priests!! with news to tell - Declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness... What will that look like? Abstaining from sinful desires Living such good lives among the pagans
Aliens and exiles? We never quite feel at home here... Philippians citizenship in heaven... We re here for a short time Our home is elsewhere Often be times we don t quite feel we belong There was another time when God s people the nation of Israel didn t quite feel at home... Not our story but has parallels to our story OT history Creation, flood, Egypt, Moses, wilderness, promised land, judges, KINGS Rebellion Syncretism mixing religions Unfaithfulness Corruption Violence Injustice Result as God had set down banishment from promised land. 1 st northern Kingdom 722BC 2 nd southern kingdom centred around Jerusalem 586BC the elite of the city being marched across the dessert over 1000km to Babylon near current Bagdad. Let s have a look at what God says to these exiles through the prophet Jeremiah and see what parallels there are to our situation 1. Settle not so relevant to us... we re not exiles in a foreign land for a set number of years... but Paul does tell the Thessalonians as we wait the return of Jesus 1 Thess 4:11 get on, work with your hands so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that no one will be dependent on anybody
2. Seek the peace and prosperity of the city use gifts and resources in such a way that benefits the city. They weren t to use the city for their own advancement, but were to seek its advancement. The believers will peace and prosperity not in seeking their own prosperity but in seeking the peace and prosperity of the city. It is only as the Jews give up their resentment and scorn of Babylon and seek to serve it and prosper it that, paradoxically, they will find their own prosperity. v7b if it prospers, you too will prosper. If they seek the peace and prosperity of the city, they will gain p and p through the city. OK so there situation is not exactly like ours But we live among people who are at best indifferent and at worst hostile to our God and to the gospel. We are aliens and strangers so there are parallels. What might it mean for us to seek Noosa s peace and prosperity? New Testament overcome evil with god Romans 12:21, Titus 2:10 slaves showing they can be trusted so that the teaching of God is attractive... and in 1 Peter 2:12 living such good lives among the pagans. It s very similar How might we go about seeking the peace and prosperity of Noosa? Many of you already actively involved... Lions, Rotary, Probus, View club... or whatever... On the village committee... or P and C or P and F Wonderful ways... Here s another... John s Landing... people who would otherwise be homeless... Pat John s and her husband... caravan park and camping ground... how can we bless the poorest in our region...?? Just one of a number of opportunities Kid s breakfast Young adults J Saturday nights COC food bank What other ways can we seek the peace and prosperity... local council? Events? Community festival? 3. Pray v7 pray to the Lord for it... for its peace and prosperity... we must pray for Noosa council and development of new council our reps in state and federal parliament police paramedics
medical personnel firies lifeguards and life savers teachers magistrates business leaders tourism operators and tourists families, marriages, FI-FO workers and their families men and women, boys and girls - That Noosa may be protected - That it may prosper - That no harm may befall it - And that most of all, its people would have soft hearts to hear of the saving news of the Lord Jesus Christ... 4. Don t listen to lies False prophets were telling the exiles what they wanted to hear that their time in Babylon would be short lived that they d be back home before they knew it. Just two years and you ll be back... (see 8:2-4). There are lies from false prophets of varying kinds in our day too! Anything from don t take God too seriously; to you re having yourself on that he even exists Lies like live it up now, don t worry about God Lies like it s all about you remain at the centre of your world and in control Lies like he doesn t really care see how he s forgotten you... The lies of the region like life is about pleasure about surfing and golf and holidays and eating out and pleasure... don t take anything too seriously... Lies of all kinds... Don t listen to them Don t let them sway you from complete allegiance to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ... 5. Trust my plans Finally this letter to the exiles encouraged them to trust God s plans. for God s plans are good all the time even through the midst of the exile and the 70 years which lay ahead, God s plans were only for their good - - v11 to prosper them not to harm them; plans to give them a hope and a future. Now those words cannot be lifted out of there and applied directly to us...
it s a specific word to the exiles in Babylon And yet we know from our New Testaments that this how God is toward us as well... that all things work together for good for those who love God and have been called according to his purpose... God s plans for us are all good! And we wait out our time as aliens and exiles here waiting for Jesus to return... we can totally trust God s great purposes for us!! We don t wait to return to Jerusalem We wait for the heavenly Jerusalem And as we wait we declare the praises of him who transferred us from darkness to light We live such good lives among non-believers that they see we are radically different We seek the peace and prosperity of Noosa And we pray for Noosa... for its peace and prosperity yes and for its salvation!