StoneBridge Community Church
Revealed - God at Work: "The Man Went Away"
Senior Pastor Jon Saur
Locations & Times
StoneBridge Community Church
4832 Cochran St, Simi Valley, CA 93063, USA
Saturday 5:00 PM
Saturday 6:00 PM
Online Connection Card
<b>Thanks for joining us today!</b> Follow this link to our online Connection Card where you can let us know you were here and share any prayer concerns.
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http://bit.ly/2glYW8EThe Text In Context
"... Signs and wonders do not necessarily produce faith, and the faith they do produce is second-class,... Here, the miracle Jesus performs does not even produce faith in the one who is healed..."
https://bit.ly/3gAt0gANew Testament scholar Marianne Meye Thompson writes about "signs" in the Old Testament and what they signified, so that we can better understand the context of Jesus' "signs." Thompson writes:
The term "'Signs,' often linked with 'wonders,' occurs frequently in the Old Testament to refer to plagues and others acts accompanying God's deliverance of Israel from Egypt. But many other things are also called 'signs': the rainbow; circumcision; the lamb's blood on the doorposts; the Sabbath; the words of God to be bound on one's hand, forehead and doorposts; the birth of a child; the fertility of crops in the land; and heavenly portents. Such things are "signs" because they are indicators of God's work in the world. Whether extraordinary (portents in the heaven) or ordinary (the slaying of the lamb; the circumcision of a baby), these things are 'signs' because they are not ends in themselves; signs function primarily to point to to God's work."
Pool of Bethesda
The pool where Jesus performed his third sign is a famous site. Here is some background information on this pool, its importance and what people have believed about this pool.
https://bit.ly/3grZ32qBelow is the passage from Exodus that Pastor Jon mentioned. Many have debated the meaning of this passage and argued that Moses didn't really change God's mind. If we take the text at face value, though, Moses is able to persuade God to do something differently. This can be a difficult text to line up with our theology. How do you interpret this passage?
Article on Curiosity
Pastor Jon talked about how curiosity can be one of the most underrated qualities for Christians. He was talking about curiosity about Jesus, but also curiosity about how God works in the world and how the world God created functions. Below is an article from the Gospel Coalition that talks about the value of curiosity for the Christian life.
https://bit.ly/3dGchXm1. Are you familiar with the story of Jesus' third sign in the Gospel of John? How have you interpreted this man's story? Is Pastor Jon's interpretation the same, similar or different? How so?
2. How do you interpret the man's response to Jesus? Is it positive? Negative? Ambiguous?
3. After the man is healed, he shows little to no curiosity about Jesus. Do you see people responding to God's work in their lives similarly? Do you ever respond to God's work in your life similarly? Why or why not?
4. God isn't here to be our genie and fulfill our every desire. But, that doesn't we mean should stop bringing our desires to Jesus in prayer. What is the appropriate balance between letting Jesus know our desires and trying to control God? How can Christians best strike that balance?
5. Does your relationship with Jesus raise more questions about God's work in the world, or fewer questions?
1. Has someone ever done something nice for you? What was it?
2. How did you respond to that person? Did it make you more or less curious about who they were and why they were nice?
3. When Jesus does something good in our lives, it should make us more curious about who he is. What are some questions you wonder about Jesus?
StoneBridge’s May re-opening includes preparing our campus for welcoming back members, friends, and new guests. And if our church is a family, then our home needs spring cleaning! If you enjoy gardening and landscaping, have ever wielded a paintbrush or broom, or have general “fix-it” skills, then invest in StoneBridge’s future by lending a hand. Come when you can, leave when you must. Sign-up below.
Spring Cleaning Sign-Up
https://stonebridgesimi.com/serve/work-day-form
We continue to be in partnership with the Samaritan Center by assisting our community's disenfranchised by providing boxed dinners to clients. If you would like to take an active part in providing food and/or assembling boxed dinners, please contact the church office at info@stonebridgesimi.com to be added to the volunteer roster.
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