Preacher: Jeremy Herbert

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Preacher: Caleb Ogle

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Preacher: Jeremy Herbert

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Preacher: Jeremy Herbert

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Preacher: Jeremy Herbert

Text: Acts 18:24-28

Thesis:
The church needs growing pastors,
working together with gracious people,
filled with gospel power,
to accomplish God’s mission.

Notes:

Q: What is the baptism of John?
A: see Malachi 4:5-6, Isaiah 40:3 (OT); see also Luke 1:17, Matthew 3:1-3 (NT)

mikvah–baptism for Gentile converts to Judaism

John’s baptism was similar–except it was a sign of repentance for Jews

1. A growing pastor works hard to know and communicate God’s word
   • Acts 18:24, “…Apollos…was an eloquent man, competent in the Scriptures”
     • Competent in understanding
       • 2 Tim 2:15, “…Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved….”
         • a godly pastor preaches for God’s approval
     • Capable in communication
       • “…rightly handling the word of truth.”
         • It’s not hard to find something to say about a passage of Scripture
         • What is more difficult is to understand and communicate what God is saying
     • Compelling in application
       • 1 Tim 2:14, “Remind them of these things, and charge them before God….”
         
2. A growing pastor strives to teach accurately
   • Acts 18:25, “..he spoke and taught accurately the things concerning Jesus, though he knew only lthe baptism of John.”
   • Three questions to answer when studying a passage to preach:
     • What does it say?
     • What does it mean?
     • Why does it matter?
3. A growing pastor boldly preaches the gospel
   • Acts 18:26, “He began to speak boldly in the synagogue….”
     • The Bible doesn’t address every single topic
     • But what it does speak of it does so authoritatively
     • Courageous in delivery
       • Titus 2:15-16, “Declare these things; exhort and rebuke with all authority.
         Let no one disregard you.”
       • 1 Tim 1:1-7, “…charge certain persons not to teach any different doctrine….”
       • Acts 18:27-28, “he greatly helped those who through grace had believed,
         28 for he powerfully refuted the Jews in public, showing by the Scriptures that the Christ was Jesus”
       • refute–to defeat false arguments with truth–not with ad hominem attacks
4. A growing pastor is passionate about discipling people
   • Discipleship is not informational, it is transformational
     • Rom 12, “fervent in spirit”
       
5. A growing pastor is humble and teachable
   • Acts 18:26, “…but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him nthe way of God more accurately.”
     
6. A growing pastor is Christ-centered, gospel-saturated, and Spirit-filled
   • Acts 18:27, “he greatly helped those who through grace had believed,”

Live It Out!

1. You may know the Scripture, make moral choices, and serve in the church–and yet not be a genuine believer in Jesus Christ–
2. Get this settled

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Preacher: Jeremy Herbert

Text: Acts 18:24-28

Thesis: The Church needs growing pastors,
working together with gracious people,
filled with Gospel power,
to accomplish God’s mission.

Notes:

Interpreting Acts:

1. Acts is descriptive, not didactic
2. Acts is transitional, not normative
   • From old covenant to new covenant
   • From Israel to Church
   • From Law to Grace, John 1:17
   • From Jewish to Gentile
   • From exclusive Israel to inclusive ends of the earth
   • From central temple to local church
   • From prophets & apostles to pastors & deacons
   • From Peter (Acts 1-12) to Paul (Acts 13-28)
3. Acts was written by Luke
   • The book is organized more thematically than chronologically
4. It was always God’s plan to reach all peoples of the earth
   • This plan was revealed progressively throughout the history of Israel
   • The NT reveals fully what was pictured in the OT
5. However–the OT is still important
   • The NT is built on the NT
   • The NT quotes the OT over 850 times
   • Much of the NT is incomprehensible without the OT
   • The OT points to Christ
   • Christ fulfilled the Law
   • The OT was written for our benefit & instruction
   • All Scripture is make us wise to salvation–including the OT
   • But–we are not to revert to Jewish ceremonial customs
     • Colossians 2:16-23
     • Galatians 1-6

Apollos

• Hellenistic Jew from Alexandria, Egypt
• An eloquent academic
• Kept his connection with Paul
• Was an “OT Believer+”
  • Saved by faith in God’s promises of the promised Christ
  • He just didn’t know that Jesus was the Christ, or that He had died and was resurrected

Priscilla & Aquila

• Tentmakers like Paul
• Likely already Christians when they first met Paul
• Important ministry partners for years
• Amazing disciplers
• Used their home and vocation for ministry

Live It Out!

1. Embrace identity as a Gentile, New Testament, Church member
   • Do not return to Old Testaments shadows that point to Christ
2. Thank God for the diversity and unity of the church
   • Major on the majors, minor on the minors, and grace in all things
3. Embrace the role God has called and equipped you to fulfill in the local church
   • God has a plan and a function for each member of the body

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Preacher: Joshua Paxton, Ed. D.,
Director of the Burnham Center for Global Engagement,
Calvary University

Text:

Thesis: Relational Partnerships for Mobilizing Generation Z

Notes:

Missions is the responsibility of the local church.

Relational Partnerships for Mobilizing Generation Z

• • 3.1 Billion unreached peoples
  • Why do the maps of where missionaries are going and where missionaries are needed most not the same?
    • A number of factors, but a large factor is they don’t want us there
  • Generation Z
    • Born between 1995 – 2010
    • First to grow up in a world where internet, computers, cell phones have always existed
    • Virtual world shapes them as much as the real world
    • Prefer andragogical to pedagogical teaching style
      • More adult style, self-directed, hands-on teaching style
      • Teachers are viewed more as facilitators rather than SMEs
    • How do experiences shape them?
      • Greater awareness of global issues
      • Greater exposure to different cultures
      • Greater preference for relational/face-to-face communication
    • Recession minded
      • Distrustful of future, don’t believe in security/safety
      • Exposed to adult concepts early
      • View financial success very important
    • “Always On”
  • Most diverse generation in history
    • Ethnic / cultural diversity is a normal part of life–uniquely suited for missions
  • Sexually fluid
    • Individual freedom
    • Personal achievement
    • Where do they find their identity?
      • Individualism–needs of the individual outweigh needs of the many
        • We (the West) do not teach people their identity–we expect them to find it
      • Collectivism–the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the individual
        • More prevalent in Eastern & Mid-Eastern cultures
  • Post-Christian
    • 4% self report as Biblical worldview
    • 34% self report as no faith
  • What does Gen Z need from us?
    • Real safety & security
      • We need to point them to a relationship with Christ
    • Real mentoring relationships
  • Intercultural Appreciation
    • Separate Biblical Christianity from its Western cultural form
    • Install a Biblical worldview at home and at church
      
  • Real Identity
    • Ground them in an identity of union with Christ
    • Grounding doctrine within a context of a real relationship
  • A Sense of Mission
    • Gen Z struggles less with faith than with experience at church
  • We are not all missionaries, but we are all tasked with sharing God’s plan of reconciliation

Preacher: Jeremy Herbert

Text: Act 18:22-23

Theme: Biblical Fellowship

Notes:

Harmony: working together in God’s mission.

Philippians 2: Christ, our model of humility and unity

The more you draw close to Christ, the more you will draw close to fellow believers.

Not:

• What is the church going to do for me?
• What am I going to do for the church?

But Instead:

• What are we going to do together for Christ?

It is easier to live for God on our own–but what’s easier isn’t necessarily biblical.

Ministry: Serving one another in love

• fellowship produces love and service
• fellowship shares goods and gifts
  • Goods–sharing God’s material gifts
  • Gifts–sharing God’s spiritual gifts

Maturity: helping one another to become more like Christ

• All God’s people–for all time–have been designed to experience spiritual health within the context of a faith family
• Spiritual health requires encouragement and accountability
  • Hebrews 3:12-13
  • Hebrews 10:24-25

Live It Out!

1. Harmony: work with your church family to do God’s work
2. Ministry: cultivate and use your spiritual gifts in church ministry
3. Maturity: invest your life in others and let them invest in yours

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Preacher: Caleb Ogle

Text:

Theme: Sing Unto the Lord: A biblical theology of singing (part 1)

Notes:

“I can’t sing”

What people mean by this statement, is “I can’t sing well,” or, “I can’t sing to the standard I would like.”

We are Created to Sing

• God doesn’t make mistakes
• No matter what voice God has given you, He has created you to sing
  • Psalm 139:13-14, God has formed your body–including your voice
  • Psalm 98:4-9, “Shout joyfully to the LORD.”
  • Colossians 1:16, “…all things were created by Him, and for Him.”
• God desires to hear you sing
  • When you denigrate your voice, you are denigrating the gift–and the Giver of the gift
  • Admittedly–that doesn’t mean that you are naturally good at it
  • “…we seek to improve in what we truly value…we sing to encourage and praise….” –Keith Getty in Sing!

We Are Commanded to Sing

• At least 50 times in Scripture God commands us to sing
• Around 450 times in Scripture singing is referenced
  • Psalm 100:1-2, “Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands….serve the LORD with gladness”
  • Colossians 3:16, teaching and admonishing one another (horizontal), singing to the LORD (vertical)
  • Psalm 147:1, “it is good to sing praises to our God….”
  • Ephesians 5:19-20, to one another, to God
  • Isaiah 12:5

Singing is not just a duty, but it is no less than a duty.