We discussed Philippians 2:12-30 this evening. Here are the themes we talked about:
-Feel the weight of "my beloved" in v. 12 and let God's overwhelming love for you affect your whole life.
-Cooperate with God because God is at work within you. Have a holy fear of God that moves you to walk and obey Him reverently.
-God's divine order is that He has laid the foundation of our lives (justification, washing, filling with the Spirit), so now we can live a holy life and work hard for His purposes.
-These verses mean so much especially during times of trial.
-Verses 14-18 are challenging to any christian. They mean that we should never act like entitled children who are always complaining about someone else's actions or motives.
-Grumbling is unbelief and not trusting God.
-Getting sucked into these horrible kinds of patterns (grumbling, complaining) steals our joy and is destructive to our souls. It's like getting pushed along by a current that makes us realize, all of a sudden, that we have drifted so far from where we want to be with God.
-Verses 19-30 - God gives us great examples of putting others first, laying ourselves down and serving God.
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
October 9 Care Group
We discussed Philippians 2:1-11. Tony divided it into 4 sections. Here's what we talked about:
Part 1: The Foundation for the Command - verses 1-2
-Paul must have been addressing problems and divisions because he stressed loving unity, encouragement and affection in that church. Later he mentions 2 women whom he calls upon to work out their differences.
-We must remember all that Christ did for us and be focused on the gospel as a body. It's the only thing that will get us "on the same page."
-God always lays the foundation for our obedience first before He commands us to do something.
-It's very simple. We confuse each other when we try to make things more complicated than they really are.
Part 2: The Command - verses 3-4
-There's no wiggle room for us to excuse our selfishness.
-We all have the boastful pride of life and we lean toward our own interests naturally.
-Jesus is the only One who is really important.
-God is determined to root out pride from our lives, all evil intentions, rivalry, conceit, jealousy, and envy.
-God has plans for us to care for others in big ways and small ways. He sees all our actions and wants to challenge us to care for others, especially those who don't care for us in return.
-It's encouraging to know that God sees!
-Because of Christ in us we are being used for His glory. In heaven one day there will be so much rejoicing over "When did I visit You, Lord?" and finding out that He was pleased with things we did for Him in caring for others.
Part 3: The Humility of Christ - verses 5-8
-In loving our Savior, the most humble servant who ever lived, we are called to live in humility every moment.
-Jesus didn't grasp at equality with God! We are so small and should live in light of that as well.
-Our selfish desires to grasp heaven and glory is the opposite of what Jesus did. He gave it all up for us.
-In His washing the disciples' feet Jesus did what others were not willing to do. He taught us how to live as servants.
-Part 4: The Exaltation of Christ - verses 9-11
-The cross was a foul and odious way to die. Jesus chose the worst and most painful death, including all the torture beforehand, because it was part of the plan. He is our example. Doesn't this put our minuscule life issues in perspective?
-Now Our Savior is The Most Exalted One!
Part 1: The Foundation for the Command - verses 1-2
-Paul must have been addressing problems and divisions because he stressed loving unity, encouragement and affection in that church. Later he mentions 2 women whom he calls upon to work out their differences.
-We must remember all that Christ did for us and be focused on the gospel as a body. It's the only thing that will get us "on the same page."
-God always lays the foundation for our obedience first before He commands us to do something.
-It's very simple. We confuse each other when we try to make things more complicated than they really are.
Part 2: The Command - verses 3-4
-There's no wiggle room for us to excuse our selfishness.
-We all have the boastful pride of life and we lean toward our own interests naturally.
-Jesus is the only One who is really important.
-God is determined to root out pride from our lives, all evil intentions, rivalry, conceit, jealousy, and envy.
-God has plans for us to care for others in big ways and small ways. He sees all our actions and wants to challenge us to care for others, especially those who don't care for us in return.
-It's encouraging to know that God sees!
-Because of Christ in us we are being used for His glory. In heaven one day there will be so much rejoicing over "When did I visit You, Lord?" and finding out that He was pleased with things we did for Him in caring for others.
Part 3: The Humility of Christ - verses 5-8
-In loving our Savior, the most humble servant who ever lived, we are called to live in humility every moment.
-Jesus didn't grasp at equality with God! We are so small and should live in light of that as well.
-Our selfish desires to grasp heaven and glory is the opposite of what Jesus did. He gave it all up for us.
-In His washing the disciples' feet Jesus did what others were not willing to do. He taught us how to live as servants.
-Part 4: The Exaltation of Christ - verses 9-11
-The cross was a foul and odious way to die. Jesus chose the worst and most painful death, including all the torture beforehand, because it was part of the plan. He is our example. Doesn't this put our minuscule life issues in perspective?
-Now Our Savior is The Most Exalted One!
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