December 29, 2019

THE MOST IMPORTANT THING
December 29, 2019
Pastor Jonathan Falwell

The end of another year! They seem to go so quickly, don’t they? Can you share a situation or blessing that has brought great happiness to you this past year?

Open: At the end of any given year many people will reflect on the past twelve months for things that brought joy. Today, however, we are going to look forward to the coming year, particularly trying to be aware of the tremendous potential for God to bless our family and our church with “So Much More,” as we seek to serve Him at a new level of love and obedience. Join as we prepare for a new year and a new decade, anticipating what we can expect God to do, and also understand what it is that He desires us to do!

Focal Passage: Ephesians 3:14-21.

No limit to God’s greatness or God’s goodness

  • Read Eph. 3:15. How did God create the heavens, the earth, and all things that are in them? Read Col. 1:17. Not only did God through Jesus Christ create all things, but what else does He do? What does “consist” mean?
  • Read verse 16. What resources does God have? Who else has this much to draw from? What does He use them for?
  • Where does Paul say we will be strengthened? What is our “inner man”? What are some of the reasons we would need to be strengthened in our  heart or soul? (For instance, to avoid temptation to use profanity.)
  • How do you know there is no limit to God’s provision for strength in your ‘inner man’? Will He ever expect you to do life by yourself? Why or why not?

Our contentment is based on our connection

  • Read verse 17. Can someone liken the verbs in this verse to electricity and its power? Why will we find contentment in life if our “power” is because we are “rooted and grounded” in God?
  • Read Hebrews 4:16. Why would we have boldness, if He is filling us with contentment? Go back to Eph. 3:12 and read. Where do we get our boldness?
  • What is the difference between contentment and happiness? Is contentment and joy the same? Why?

God wants us to trust Him that much

  • Read verse 18. How can we know the “height and depth, and width and length” of God’s love? What is Paul trying to convey?
  • In 1 Cor. 13, the “love” chapter, what are some “love ______” that you can say God does or doesn’t do? (For instance, God never fails).
  • If we were able to fathom such a love as God has for us, how would it change our actions?  How do we treat others if we are filled with His love?

We will be complete

  • Read verse 19. If you spend time in real, soul-satisfying, prayer every day, what begins to happen to your relationship to the Savior? As you start to comprehend the love God has for you, what begins to happen to you?
  • Why will this kind of completeness not come through outward influences?
  • What is our value based on? Why do people think it is in their job, their family, their car, their home or their location?
  • Read verses 20-21. What will limit the power that can be at work in us?

When people ask you, “Who are you?”, how do you reply (“John, I’m a teacher,” or “John, I’m a child of God”)? Again, where is your value?

Close:

Recently a checking account balance revealed resources available to a local lady. When she shopped, there was no concern about prices, her interest was only in the product she needed, not its cost. Most people do not shop like that. They have to be aware of the lowest-priced item, hoping it will be as good as the one that is the higher dollar and more reputable. Their resources are not unlimited!

The resources of the Lord are not second-rate, nor material (although they can be tangible gifts, for sure). If we are “rooted and grounded” in Him, then—like a well-watered tree—we will produce fruit showing the Spirit is truly at work in our lives. The fruits of the Spirit are love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, as we deal with others. There is no limit on these gifts, and they compound the more you use them! Are they gifts you would like to see in your life, but don’t? How much time daily do you spend with the Lord?

Most people are aware of photos of couples who have been married for years and their appearance has become quite similar. Exodus 34:29 says, “Now it was so, when Moses came down from Mount Sinai…that [he] did not know that the skin of his face shone while he talked with Him.” Have you been so complete in Him this past year that your face ‘shines’ like His? Acts 4:13 says, “Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled. And they realized that they had been with Jesus.” Does your face testify to others that you have been spending time with Jesus?

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