Christian Valley Christian Church

 “The New Normal”   If we believe in the Bible, then we must believe that the road to heaven is possible because Jesus died for us.   Acts 17:18 John 14:6 Acts 4:12   John 11:25-26   How did we get the idea that “all roads lead to heaven”?   Romans 1:20 Romans 3:22-24

“THE NEW NORMAL – FINANCES”   Proverbs 16:16   Rich and poor are relative terms that change with the new normal.   I Timothy 6:6-10   Godliness with contentment is rare.   Ecclesiastes 5:10 

“THE NEW NORMAL – MISSIONS” What is normal when it comes to missions?   I Corinthians 12:27   We need to focus on making our current missions program better.   I Corinthians 16:2   We need to focus on making our future missions program better.   Matthew 28:19-20 

 “The New Normal”   Romans 12:2   “Normal” people fit in.   II Timothy 3:1-5   Don’t feel guilty if you are “weird”!   Titus 2:7-8   The Bible doesn’t condone “normal”.   Revelation 3:15-18 James 1:5

  Talk about wrapping up the series today. Next week we start the new series “the new normal”  Spend some time talking about Romantic Comedies. Talk about how I am generally not a big fan of them, (I know that shocks you!). Talk about how the general plot of all of these movies is really the same. Boy and Girl meet, Boy and Girl overcome amazing circumstances to form a relationship, Boy or Girl has something from their past that comes back to haunt them and drives a wedge between them. Boy comes back to fight to win Girl back. Boy and Girl live happily ever after. The funny thing is we all know this is basic outline of every Romantic Comedy ever, but if it doesn’t end the same way, we get rather upset. Introduce the unusual love story we are going to talk about today. Briefly talk about who Hosea was, prophet to the northern kingdom, King Jeroboam II, the north was very prosperous, but they decayed morally and began to follow baal. #1 God’s Uncommon Example of Love  Read Hosea 1:2-9 ~ Hosea was a prophet, and God used his life as a living example. Talk about the kids that were born, point out how it only says the first one was his (we don’t know about the others.) Talk about how bad this was.  God asked Hosea to marry Gomer to make the comparison between Hosea and Gomer’s relationship and God and Israel’s relationship. For years the nation of Israel had cheated on God. They stopped worshipping God and started worshipping idols. Some didn’t leave God wholly alone, but thought they could straddle a religious fence. We are just like Gomer we “marry God and then cheat on him with the world! We start off our Christian walks with great intentions, and high hopes and standards and then we cheat on God! The amazing thing about all of this is that God knows about it and still takes us in!! Read Revelation 3:16 ~ We have all become lukewarm! #2 I’ll Never Let You Go, and I’ll Always Take You Back  Read Hosea 3:1-5 ~ If Hosea had let her go, it would have been like everyone else saying I love you, only to let weakness, and unfaithfulness break the bond. But Hosea said I will not let you go. And proved it. Also talk about how Hosea bought his wife back for next to nothing, about $185 and 10 bushels, she wasn’t worth much. He spent all he had to buy back his own wife, Talk about the fact that no matter what we have done God will take us back! Read Ephesians 3:17-19 ~ talk through “wide” “long” “high” “deep” Where ever you’ve been, no matter how you’ve turned your back on God’s love. He still says to you, I’ve never let you go and I’ll always take you back.   Closing: Read Romans 5:6-8 Talk about the story of the prodigal son. We can never outreach his love! Lost and Found ad - Lost dog, brown fur, some missing due to mange, blind in one eye, three legs, slightly arthritic, goes by name of Lucky. Most of us are like this dog, used, broken, dirty, not wanted by most people in the world, but we are still wanted by God. 

 MINOR PROPHETS… MAJOR MESSAGES   Haggai 1:2-3   The people lost their focus.   Haggai 1:5-6   Their spiritual lives were on the back burner.   Haggai 1:13-14, 2:9   Our mission is no different from those in Haggai’s day.   Mark 10:45 I Corinthians 6:19   God is for you.  God is with you.  God is in you.

 “MINOR PROPHETS – MAJOR MESSAGES”   Habakkuk 1:2-4 II Kings 23:36-37   Habakkuk complained to God.   Habakkuk 1:5-6   Sometimes we don’t receive the answer we expect.   God wants to be with you.   Habakkuk 3:9

 “Minor Prophets… Major Messages”   The Old Testament is divided into five sections: Law, History, Poetry, Major Prophets, Minor Prophets   The prophets focused on three sins: 1) Idolatry “Our contemporary society is not fundamentally different from those ancient ones… Whether office towers, spas and gyms, studios and stadiums, sacrifices are made in order to secure the blessings of the good life and ward off disaster.”  ~Tim Keller, Counterfeit Gods 2) Social Injustice Matthew 25:40 3) Religious Hypocrisy   Joel’s message is this: Repentance Leads to Restoration. Joel 1:14 Joel 2:5 Joel 2:11 II Chronicles 7:14   What we don’t remember, we forget.  What we forget, we repeat.

 “SUMMER IN THE VALLEY”   Mark 6:30-44   Admit your need.   Assess your resources.   Mark 10:27   Offer your resources to God.   Anticipate that God’s power will multiple your resources.   Psalm 77:14

“It Is Good”   Genesis 1:1 Psalm 24:1   Where’s the disconnect between “It is good”, and the attitude we have?   Genesis 3:13   What do you put in front of people to take their focus off the real you?   Ephesians 2:10 

“SUMMER IN THE VALLEY: FAITHFUL IN TIMES OF DROUGHT”   Psalm 33:18-22   I Kings 17:1-6   Elijah did what God told him to do.   Galatians 6:9   We need to be a generous and giving church.   Proverbs 11:25 

 “Summer in the Valley – Freedom”   Colossians 2:8   True freedom comes from Jesus.   John 8:36   Colossians 2:16-19   We have to be careful not to worry so much about someone taking away our freedoms that we take them away ourselves.   Colossians 2:13-15

 “MASKS “   Matthew 23:4-12   The religious leaders confused knowledge with intimacy.   Luke 18:9-14   Self-righteous superstars are conscious, but not aware. Self-righteous superstars love to compare themselves. Self-righteous superstars focus on their own accomplishments.

 “MASKS”   “The bottom line is that every single human being has an unbelievable capacity for self-deception.  It’s no wonder we fall for those empty promises over and over and over.”     ~ Pete Wilson, Broken Promises   Matthew 23:1-3   “My dad decided I would be the #1 tennis player in the world.  I never chose this life.”    ~Andre Agassi   Matthew 15:8   John 14:6   I John 2:6   James 5:16

 “MOTHER’S DAY 2012”   We need to give mom our best.   Ephesians 5:25 I Samuel 2:26   We need to understand what is important to mom.   I Samuel 1:8   We need, in the case of Christian moms, to imitate her faith.   I Samuel 1:24-28 I Samuel 2:18-21

 “ETERNITY: 2 DESTINATIONS, 1 CHOICE”   Luke 16:22-31   You will be aware right after you die.   You will either be happy or regretful right after you die. I Corinthians 2:9   You will reflect on your earthly life right after you die.   Acts 2:38, 41

 “ETERNITY: 2 DESTINATIONS, 1 CHOICE”   Matthew 13:47-50 II Thessalonians 1:8-9 Matthew 13:51 Romans 2:5   What about good people who never became Jesus followers? How could God send someone to hell who has not heard of Him?   Romans 1:18-20 Acts 2:38

 “ETERNITY: 2 Destinations, 1 Choice”   II Peter 3:3-10   What does the Bible say about the end of the world?   Matthew 24:42-44 Genesis 19:24   When does the Bible say this will happen?   Revelation 20:6-7   Why is this a big concern?   Romans 6:23

 “Eternity: 2 Destinations, 1 Choice”   One of the most intriguing things about the Bible is that it takes faith to believe without knowing all the answers.   Matthew 24:36 I Thessalonians 4:18 II Timothy 3:16 Matthew 25:13   We need to be alert as we await the coming of Jesus.   II Corinthians 15:52 I Thessalonians 4:16   We need to be prepared as we await the coming of Jesus.

 “BECAUSE OF THE RESURRECTION…”     Matthew 28:5-6   Because of the resurrection, your life is worth something.   Because of the resurrection, your future doesn’t have to be at risk.   John 11:25-26   Because of the resurrection, your past is forgivable.   Romans 5:6   Because of the resurrection, better times are ahead.   II Corinthians 8:9

 “40 Days of Purpose”   Matthew 21:6-11   I Corinthians 9:26   Colossians 1:16   We were created for God’s pleasure. We were formed for God’s family. We were made to be like Christ. We were created to tell others about God.   John 13:17

 “40 DAYS OF PURPOSE”   Ephesians 4:14-16   God uses trouble to teach us to trust Him.   James 1:12   God uses temptation to teach us to obey.   James 1:13-15   God uses trespasses to teach us to forgive.   Genesis 50:20

“40 Days of Purpose”   Hebrews 2:10-13   We were created to be a part of God’s family.   Ephesians 1:5   I John 1:5-7   I Corinthians 12:12-13   Matthew 25:40   Love for God is worship.  Love for each other is fellowship.   I John 3:10