In this new series we're studying "faith" and we're using the story/life/journey of Abraham as a case study. In this series we'll use a GO, GROW, GOSPEL framework to each sermon so that we're not just talking about faith, talking about Abraham - but we're choosing to use Abraham's story as a springboard for our growth and we're looking for where the Gospel is present in the passage.
Title: The Swarm
Date: January 5, 2020
Synopsis: In our “GO” segment we read about the call of Abraham in Genesis 12. In our “GROW” segment we discuss trust, lying and listening. In our “GOSPEL” segment we look at a connection to the gospel message present in the Exodus story and in Jesus' reading of scroll of Isaiah.
Title: The Dust
Date: January 12, 2020
Synopsis: In our “GO” segment we read Genesis 13 as a congregation. In our “GROW” segment we talk about the conflict between togetherness and possessions that we see present with Abram and Lot. In our “GOSPEL” segment we look at God’s promise in 13:16 for Abram’s descendants to outnumber the dust on earth. Dust makes us look back to creation in Genesis 1 and ahead to Jesus work in the Gospels.
Title: The Priest
Date: January 19, 2020
Synopsis: In our “GO” segment we read Genesis 14 as a congregation. In our “GROW” segment we talk about mission and how to decide what good thing we put our time, energy and resources toward. And we discuss what tithing is and why we do it. In our “GOSPEL” segment we pay particular attention to Melchizedek and his role in our understanding of being made into royal priesthood (as described in 1 Peter 2).
Title: The Firepot
Date: January 26, 2020
Synopsis: In our “GO” segment we read Genesis 15 as a community. In our “GROW” segment we discuss how the church has historically approached asking question and how we should see this as a faith building exercise. In our “GOSPEL” segment we talk about how God continues to covenant with us despite the fact that we break covenants. Whats more is that Jesus comes to create a New Covenant with us.
Title: The Servant
Date: February 2, 2020
Synopsis: In our “GO” segment we read Genesis 16 together. In our “GROW” segment Pastor Nick challenges the congregation not to have short memories when it concerns the grace we’ve been given and the grace we need to give one another. In our “GOSPEL” segment we compare the story of The Woman At The Well side by side with Hagar at the well. God is speaking to us in a wider way than we might imagine.
Title: The Renamed
Date: February 9, 2020
Synopsis: In our “GO” segment we read Genesis 17 together. In our “GROW” segment we discuss our ability to control how we respond to both God and one another. In our “GOSPEL” section we discuss bounded and centered sets and how that applies to God’s people and our passage this morning.
Title: The Intercessor
Date: February 16, 2020
Synopsis: In the “GO” segment we read Genesis 18 as a congregation. In our “GROW” segment we talk about hospitality, why its part of our Christian witness and how to do it. In our “GOSPEL” segment we talk about intercessory prayer and how Jesus playfully interceded for us and his pray calls for us to come together in unity.
Title: The Unwelcome
Date: February 23, 2020
Synopsis: In our “GO” segment we journey through the story of Genesis 19 together. In our “GROW” segment we talk about the company we keep and the community that we make our own - especially how that impacts us. In our “GOSPEL” segment we discuss how no one is beyond the redemption of Jesus and we connect Lot to Jesus in a long term look at how God uses all of our stories.
Title: The Dead Man
Date: March 1, 2020
Synopsis: In our “GO” we read Genesis 20 as a community. In our “GROW” we talk about how our actions are representative of our faith. When people know we are Jesus followers our actions, words and decisions are often speaking loudly about God. In our “GOSPEL” segment we prepare for a time of communion and discuss that in our story today, Abimelech was “the dead man” but that we are all the dead man since we have sinned. But it takes a “dead man who wouldn’t stay dead” to restore us to God.
Title: The Birth
Date: March 8, 2020
Synopsis: In the “GO” section we read Genesis 21. In our “GROW” section we talk about mocking and bullying. Pastor Nick challenges us with four considerations when it comes to bullying. In our “GOSPEL” section we look at Paul’s writing in Galatian’s 4 when he quotes from Genesis 21. We learn that we are children of promise and not slaves to the law.
Title: The Sacrifice
Date: March 15, 2020
Synopsis: In our ‘GO’ section we read Genesis 22. In our ‘GROW’ section we talk about testing and trials. Does God still test us today? In or ‘GOSPEL’ section we do a side by side comparison of Isaac and Jesus. And then we press in just a bit deeper to see that we are, like Isaac, are on the altar. We like Isaac are bound up - but for us we are bound up in sin and death. Just like God stays Abraham’s hand by shouting stop, he shouts stop into death itself and brings us the chance for eternal life.
Title: The Stranger
Date: March 22, 2020
Synopsis: In today’s “GO” section we work our way through Genesis 23 where we learn that Abraham’s wife, Sarah, has died. In our “GROW” section we talk about mourning, grief, pain and sadness. We talk about the importance of allowing people to lament when they’re in a season of lament. In our “GOSPEL” section we revisit the story of Lazarus and we notice two things - one, Jesus also mourns. Two, he moves through his time of mourning and speaks life into death; light into darkness.
Title: The Future
Date: March 29, 2020
Synopsis: In the series finale we study Genesis 24 for our ‘GO’ section where we watch Abraham secure a bride for his son. In our ‘GROW’ section we discuss what it means to be a witness and how our witness leads to understanding. In our ‘GOSPEL’ section we looked at the big picture of Genesis 22, 23 and 24 and connected Isaac’s search for a bride with Christ’s betrothal to the church.