The Summit Neighboring U Pastor Matt Manning Sermon Series Study Notes mat t. m a nni ng April 25 & 26, 2015 @ cr os s r oa ds ab c .c o m Luke 10 :1-7 Preparing for the Hike SERMON NOTES 1. God promises that REFRESHMENT will come when we are living in our design. 2. Back to school with Jesus: 101: Move from the backyard to the FRONT PORCH. 201: Find a PARTNER. 301: Pray for your neighbors – EVEN THE ONES YOU DON’T LIKE. 401: Neighbor in HUMILITY. 501: Eyes open for the PERSON OF PEACE. 601: Don't get DISCOURAGED. In this series we have discussed knowing the names of our neighbors and developing enough knowledge about them to go beyond a smile and “hello.” As a child I knew the names of most of the families on my block. Why do you think our neighborhoods today are different than these friendly, neighborly places where many of us used to live? Below the Tree Line 1. Luke 9:1-6 says the Lord sent the 12 disciples out into the villages on a serving mission. By repeating the assignment for 72 more followers, the Lord proved that the lessons learned by a small fraction of the people He had been teaching had a bigger application. 2. This was a temporary serving assignment. It was designed to teach several lifetime lessons. It had a definite beginning and a definite end (Luke 10:17). 3. We too can have temporary assignments. But they can have huge learning lessons when we are “thrown into the fire” of a task that takes us out of our comfort zone. If I had been one of these 72, I probably would have been uncomfortable with the assignment! 4. Lessons we can learn from their assignment: They were to accept hospitality. The lesson to us is that we should give hospitality – to friends and even to strangers. My mother had a plaque on her wall that talked about entertaining strangers which quoted Heb. 13:2. “Greet no one” was not an instruction to be aloof. We greet by saying “hello” or just smiling. To the middle eastern person of Jesus’ day, greeting someone might consist of a series of prostrations followed by embracing, kissing the hands, cheek or beard perhaps ten times or more. An hour or two later you could move on. The issue was that the task was so urgent that they were not to dawdle and loiter or participate in tedious ceremonies of etiquette. The Summit Neighboring U Above the Tree Line 4. What are the signs that the 72 were sent into a hostile environment? Are we Christians in a hostile environment? Discuss what makes our situation hostile in today’s world. How do you relate to the metaphor “lambs in the midst of wolves?” How can this 2. The Lord will give us important assignments, but there is always a need make us more dependent on God? for more workers. Is the labor force for 5. Personal comfort articles were Gods work ever saturated? Why? left behind. Why were they to 3. What details in this passage convey a travel light? Is poverty always a sense of urgency? Why was this matter good thing? Are riches always a bad thing? Do you struggle to find the presented as urgent? Is the message still urgent? Why or why not? What are right balance between giving / keeping money and possessions? the implications for us? Discuss your experiences and ways to improve that balance. 3. What qualifications did the people who Jesus sent out possess? Higher 6. Take a moment to look back on education? Preaching, teaching or the issues you have just discussed. missionary experience? Business management? What does your answer What one or two issues seem to be suggest about the kinds of people Jesus the most important to you? Which issues can you adopt first? wants to work for Him? 1. What part should prayer play in our assignments? What followed their prayers for laborers? Are we to just wait for others to do the work? Discuss what can happen when we wait for someone else to do God’s work. Back at the Trailhead “…Take courage! Do not let your hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded.” (2 Chronicles 15:7) One thing I learned raising teenagers was, “Just do what is right.” Sometimes I felt helpless because “they” were not doing what was right. I wanted to respond harshly, but knew that would be wrong. That is a message that can be applied to school, work, personal relationships—and being a good neighbor. Sometimes you see results right away. Sometimes the results come days, weeks, or even years later. But you’ll never see results unless you take productive action. My challenge is to put the practical steps from the sermon and this Bible study into action. Just do it, and if it is right, the Lord will bless your efforts. NEXT WEEK’S CLIMB Next week we start the final sub-set of the Strange Love series – to love the “other” others. That starts by knowing who we are in Christ Jesus. See 1 Pet. 2:9-10. After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go. And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. (Luke 10:1-2) This week’s Summit was written by Ken McGhee. If you have any questions regarding this Summit, you can reach him at … ken.mcghee@ crossroadsabc.com