StoneBridge Community Church
Truly Natural: "The Moment of Truth"
Associate Pastor Jonathan Lusche
Locations & Times
StoneBridge Community Church
4832 Cochran St, Simi Valley, CA 93063, USA
Saturday 5:15 PM
Sunday 5:20 PM
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http://bit.ly/2glYW8E"Truly Natural"
The title for this sermon series comes from a quote by theologian Jurgen Moltmann:
"Jesus’ healings are not supernatural miracles in a natural world. They are the only truly ‘natural’ thing in a world that is unnatural, demonized and wounded.”
We often think of Jesus' healings as "defying nature," but the truth is that they show us how the world was intended to be. God created the world to be free of illness, disease and injury. In the fall, humans made creation unnatural, corrupting it with sin. In his healings, Jesus gives a glimpse of what the natural order, as God intended it, was made to look like.
In the Gospel of Mark, Jesus is presented primarily as a healer. In this sermon series, we will be looking at Jesus' healings in Mark, seeing how these healings show us what God intends for creation and for our lives.
The title for this sermon series comes from a quote by theologian Jurgen Moltmann:
"Jesus’ healings are not supernatural miracles in a natural world. They are the only truly ‘natural’ thing in a world that is unnatural, demonized and wounded.”
We often think of Jesus' healings as "defying nature," but the truth is that they show us how the world was intended to be. God created the world to be free of illness, disease and injury. In the fall, humans made creation unnatural, corrupting it with sin. In his healings, Jesus gives a glimpse of what the natural order, as God intended it, was made to look like.
In the Gospel of Mark, Jesus is presented primarily as a healer. In this sermon series, we will be looking at Jesus' healings in Mark, seeing how these healings show us what God intends for creation and for our lives.
This Weekend in Worship
Have you ever faced a moment of truth? A moment of truth is a time when a person is confronted with the facts about a situation, then compelled to make a decision, and take action. In this weekend's scripture, two sets of people were faced with the same moment of truth and surprisingly, each set came to a completely opposite conclusion. How could this be?
The Text In Context
"The reason [the Pharisees] are watching Jesus closely is because their last encounter with Him and His disciples dealt with them breaking the Sabbath religious laws of working. They broke at least seven religious laws in the grainfields on the last Sabbath. On top of that, Jesus declared Himself the Lord of the Sabbath. Another way of saying, 'I’m God and you are not.' For the Pharisees their blood was already boiling, they are angry at Jesus, irritated with Him for challenging them, and are now looking for ..." To read more, click link.
https://tinyurl.com/2p9bw3yy1. Jesus...
Jesus saw the need.
2. The Pharisees...
The Pharisees (phari)saw nothin’.
Who are the Pharisees?
"In the 1st century, scribes and Pharisees were two largely distinct groups, though presumably some scribes were Pharisees... Pharisees were members of a party that believed in resurrection and in following legal traditions that..." To read more, click link.
https://tinyurl.com/2p98x5jh3. Jesus...
Jesus committed to caring.
Dave Grohl sets the pace...
He may look like stereo typical depictions of Jesus - long hair, beard, dark complexion - and he'd never describe himself as a saint but he appears to be doin' what Jesus would do.
https://tinyurl.com/3nusbn5k4. The Pharisees...
The Pharisees plotted to kill.
Mother of a Movement
The story of Rosa Parks and how she helped change our country for the better.
https://tinyurl.com/yrccf74pNEXT STEPS:
1. Memorize Mark 3:4 - Then Jesus asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they remained silent.
2. Try to identify five societal or cultural “illnesses” that may be systemic in nature and research how good people are attempting to “heal" them.
3. Prayerfully consider whether there’s a personal “moment of truth” regarding #2 and commit to getting involved.
1. Memorize Mark 3:4 - Then Jesus asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they remained silent.
2. Try to identify five societal or cultural “illnesses” that may be systemic in nature and research how good people are attempting to “heal" them.
3. Prayerfully consider whether there’s a personal “moment of truth” regarding #2 and commit to getting involved.
GROWTH GROUP / PERSONAL REFLECTION QUESTIONS
1. Irregardless of how big or small, share a story of a time you or someone close to you faced a moment of truth?
2. As a group, try to identify five societal or cultural “illnesses” that may be systemic in nature that are global, national, regional and/or local. How are good people attempting to “heal" them.
3. Regarding #2 above, how might your growth group get involved? How might StoneBridge get involved? How might you get involved?
1. Irregardless of how big or small, share a story of a time you or someone close to you faced a moment of truth?
2. As a group, try to identify five societal or cultural “illnesses” that may be systemic in nature that are global, national, regional and/or local. How are good people attempting to “heal" them.
3. Regarding #2 above, how might your growth group get involved? How might StoneBridge get involved? How might you get involved?
Saturday, March 25th; 9am-11am Help spruce up the StoneBridge campus for Holy Week and Easter! From weeding, to raking, to stuffing goody bags for Easter, there are projects suited for all ages. Serve as a family! Let us know you're coming by emailing info@stonebridgesimi.com.
Join us for tons of fun as we kick off Holy Week with our annual Easter Egg Hunt! There will be a (free) family bbq, lawn games, a bounce house, and of course a glow-in-the-dark egg hunt! Please register your family so we can plan accordingly. We are also looking for volunteers to help out during the event. Click below to register and/or volunteer.
Egg Hunt Registration and Volunteer link.
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