June 5-6, 2010 - You: Rock

Rocks show up in interesting places all through the Bible. Jesus said that if people failed to honor him, even the rocks would cry out (Luke 19) Simon was called "Peter", which meant "Rock". Jesus was "the stone the builders rejected, who became the cornerstone" (Acts 4:11). Rocks were an important building material as well. Jesus himself was a tekton, a "builder", and he could well have been a stonemason as well as a carpenter. So he spoke on good authority when he compared those who put his teachings into practice to those who build their houses on rock rather than sand. In the Old Testament, we have record of stones being set up and altars being constructed as reminders of where God acted. As we transition our 6th graders out of children's ministry, we want them to remember where God acted during these last three years, and to commit to building their lives "on the rock", Jesus, the one who never changes and the one who holds the key to our worth, our potential, and our future.

April 3-4: Easter is a Celebration of Miracles

1. We should celebrate miracles

1. Some people called the 1980 Olympic Hockey victory over Russia a "miracle"

2. Was it a miracle? The world typically defines a miracle differently

3. What a miracle really is: the impossible happens and is seen

2. Today we celebrate a miracle:

1. The miracle in Jesus: God raised the man from the dead

2. The miracle in us: Our sins are forgiven, they are no longer a part of us
3. Example: Sand of more than one color, mixed – is it impossible to separate?

3. A miracle from Numbers 21:4-9

1. The people of Israel are wandering through the desert. Many are forgetting or disbelieving the promises of God

2. God sent snakes among the people - not to punish them, but to remind them they were reliant on him

3. The people call out, desperate to be saved

4. Moses lifts up the snake in the desert, they look to it, and they are saved

5. God did this miracle to prove that he could do things they couldn't do for themselves.

4. We are also sick & in need of God

1. Our sin makes us imperfect - we are stained, broken, scratched up, and it cannot be undone on our own.

2. Yet, the Bible says only perfect people can stand before God

3. What God wants is the same as he wanted Moses' people to do - to turn to him for help

5. The parallel reference is in John 3

1. v. 13 - 16 - when Jesus was "lifted up" it was on the cross

2. When we believe in him we're like a man bitten by a snake…we tell God that we are sick and need his help

March 27-28: Answering the Question - Where did God come from?

What do I do if someone asks me, "How do you know God created the world?" or "How do you even know there is a God?"

Universe in a Box
Sometimes we are asked, "When did God begin? How can God not have a beginning?"
The answer is that God is outside of time. Think of the universe as a box. Contained inside are height, depth, and width (what we call the three dimensions) - but God stays outside the box. God can't be measured - he does not have a height, or depth, or width. The 4th dimension inside the universe is time - but God is outside of time. He does not age, and he does not have a starting point - all of time is contained in the universe, and God is not contained by the universe.

Rolling Ball
If I see a ball rolling, what do I know had to have happened to it? That someone or something acted on the ball to start it rolling. In the same way, I can look at the universe, which exists, and know that something had to be the "first cause", coming before it.

The Watchmaker
If I see a watch on the ground and pick it up and examine it, does it cause me to think, "These parts must have come together by accident"? No - I automatically assume someone was behind the design of it. It is simply too complex to be an accident. We can look at the universe and all things that live in the same way. It is too complex to have come together by accident.

Who Wrote the Rules?
There are always "rules behind rules" ... and it usually comes down to: it's wrong to hurt other people, wrong to hurt yourself, wrong to take what doesn't belong to you, wrong to be selfish, etc. Who wrote those rules? Are those human-invented rules? Could the rule-maker - the parent, the teacher, the principal - re-write the rule and suddenly it would become ok to hurt others? Or to take their things? No...and that's an argument that moral truths came from something other than humans, making them up.

1 Peter 3:15 - In your hearts, set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to anyone who asks you for the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.

Why should we answer questions with gentleness and respect?
1. People belong to God - to speak harshly to them is to disrespect them
2. If you are rude, they will stop listening to what you say
3. You want people to continue asking questions - a conversation is better than an argument

March 20-21: Created or Evolved?

Does nature and the complexity of organisms point us toward a creator? Or did everything we see in the world come from Evolution?
"Evolution" can have two meanings:
"micro"evolution refers to changes or variations within species. Example: parents with blond hair can have a child with dark hair; certain tendencies for diseases can be "carried" in certain people; short parents can have kids who grow up to be tall...BUT two parents with arms will not have a child who has wings.

"macro"evolution refers to the change of one species into another. This is what is often meant by "evolution" as a way of explaining where all life came from...that it started simple and then became more and more complex.

From last week: if a certain species evolved into (branched off into) different, other species, we would expect to find lots of "in-between" fossils in the ground - we don't.

Let's say all of the complex life we see today came from one, simple, single-celled creature...which evolved into higher and higher forms of life: the question still has to be asked - Where did that first living thing come from?

Two scientists - Miller and Urey - set out to answer that question by combining a mixture of gases in test tubes and sending an electric charge through them. By doing this, they produced amino acids, which strung together make proteins. They said this simulated what happened at the beginning of the universe. But - did they use the right chemicals? Were the gases they used really the ones present at the beginning of the universe? And in what amounts? If you use different starting products, you get different results. (For instance, many models of the early earth contain cardon dioxide and nitrogen which would form nitrates, and nitrates destroy amino acids, which are the building blocks of proteins.)

But suppose the amino acids did form that way...couldn't they have come together to start life? NASA has found that the simplest protein that could be considered "life" is a string of 400 amino acids in a specific sequence. So, to come together by accident would be like blindly drawing the numbers 1-400 out of a bag, one by one, and getting them in perfect order.

Moreover, there are structures in complex living things that couldn't have evolved. (This is called the problem of "irreducible complexity".) One example is your eye. Every part is necessary - missing one structure, the whole eye fails. Think of your eye as being like a mousetrap: without any one of the parts, the mousetrap is of no use. For eyes to have evolved piece by piece would have meant some creatures had useless eye-parts-that-would-become-eyes...so these parts would have evolved (because they were necessary) - even though they were worthless.

Where did cells get the information to "know" what to become? Cells have "information" in them that tell them how to function and what to be...where did this "intelligence" come from if the first single-celled organism came together by accident?

Does all of this point to a Creator?
We can't "prove" that God was the originator of life. But neither can a person who believes evolution is the answer "prove" that life came from non-living things, or that one species turned into another, or that amino acids arranged themselves into proteins, which led to cells, which led to organisms...anytime someone concludes that something "probably" happened, it's a statement of faith.

Where will you put your faith? In the idea that living things all came from chance, randomly as chemicals came together, and that all living things we see today, in all their variety, started out as the same single-celled creature? Or that living creatures came from the mind and will of God?

March 13-14: The Beginning - Investigating the Theory of Evolution

Where did the world and everything in it come from? It's natural for people to be curious about this and to try to form answers.

Charles Darwin was a zoologist who traveled the world and observed different species of animals. He observed that most animals had similar body types. He also believed that animals adapted to their different environments, in ways that helped them survive. Those that couldn't adapt didn't survive. He called this idea, "Survival of the fittest."

But, he also believed that all living things could be traced back to one common ancestor. When we talk of "evolution", this is what is usually meant - that one type of animal turned into another type of animal.

However, the Bible says that God created living things "according to their kinds". The variety of species that we see today is not the result of one species turning into another. Why?

For one thing, it would've taken a very long time for all species to have evolved from the first organism (or "common ancestor"). How long? No one knows, because evolution takes so long it cannot be observed. If it can't be observed, it can't be studied in a lab. But, it could well have taken longer than the earth has even existed.

For another, you would expect to find lots of fossils representing the "in-between" forms of animals - the "ancestor" of the two modern animals. But you don't see that. What you see instead is a number of new species showing up, fully formed, in the fossil record at one time. Remember that Genesis says God created living things "according to their kinds".

March 6-7, 2010: The Beginning - Theories

A theory is an educated guess about how something happened or happens.

A theory is a combination of two things:

• Things we know to be true
• Things we suppose to be true.

In this way, a theory is kind of like a brick wall: we "build" our conclusions on facts and educated guesses. If the "bricks" of our wall are weak (or the facts we're using are wrong), the wall won't hold.

The Theory of Evolution is a theory about how the world came to be and where nature - plants, but especially animals and humans - came from.

The Bible teaches that God made the world and everything in it. Before God moved, the earth was without form and empty. (Gen. 1:2)

January 2-3, 2010 - Paul goes on a missionary journey

History of Skateboarding - it started in California, when surfers put wheels on the bottom of planks of wood and rode down the street - "Street Surfing". But, it was a fad...it died out by about 1965.

Three big things happened to bring it back:
1. The invention of polyurethane wheels, which replaced unsafe clay wheels
2. A drought in California in 1976, which led people to drain their swimming pools. People discovered they could skate in them - the beginning of vert skating.
3. Invention of the "ollie" - a jump trick - in Florida. The ollie spread to California when its founder visited California and the trick took off.

Skateboarding went from a died-out fad to a revived sport that spread around the world; the spread of Christianity is similar.

By Acts chapter 12, Christians were being persecuted; James had been killed (the second Christian martyr, after Stephen). Some of the "big things" that happened in Christian history were:
1. The coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost
2. The miracles performed by the apostles
3. The conversion of Paul
4. Peter's vision showed that God intended to offer salvation to everyone
5. The sending of Paul on missionary journeys

Acts 13 - Paul and Barnabas are commanded by the Holy Spirit to take the message out.

At Paphos, on the island of Cyprus, they encounter a proconsul (government official) who wants to hear about the Lord, and a false prophet who opposes them. By the Holy Spirit's power, the false prophet is blinded. Paul had words & a message, but the Holy Spirit supplied the power to change and to convince the proconsul that what was preached about was real.

If God was going to send us out from NCCC, where would he send us?
He may send us to a far-off place; but he also needs us to take the message right here, to where we live: our schools, our neighborhoods, etc.

But - God's intention is not that we receive the message and keep it - it's that once we go out, we will return - with ourselves and others.

We have 5 Big Events this year that are great to bring friends to:
1. "Believe It With Your Own Eyes"
2. Kids Games
3. Summer Camp (July 5-9)
4. Christmas Party & Sleepover (December)
5. Next year's Winter Camp

November 21-22, 2009: Peter's Vision

"I saw something that looked like a large sheet. It was being let down from heaven by four corners. It came down to where I was. I looked into it and saw four-footed animals of the earth. There were also wild animals, reptiles, and birds. Then I heard a voice speaking to me. 'Get up, Peter,' the voice said. 'Kill and eat.'"

Peter's vision happened in Joppa, a city on the coast of Israel.

In the Old Testament, people were either Jews (followers of God), or Gentiles. Among the Gentiles, some were believers in God ("god-fearers"), but they could not become Jewish.

Foods were also divided into "clean" and "unclean" - but the meaning of this was "acceptable, special" vs. "common".

In Acts 10, two men receive messages from God: Cornelius & Peter.

Cornelius - God told him to send some men to Joppa to get Peter and invite him to his house.

Peter's vision was of a sheet being lowered onto a roof, filled with clean and unclean animals. Peter protests: I will not eat what is unclean. The voice answers: do not call anything unclean that God has made clean.

Peter is brought to Cornelius' house. Normally a Jew would not enter the home of a Gentile, but based on Peter's vision, he knows that God does not show favoritism and that salvation is for the Gentiles as well as the Jews.

What does this story teach us about God? In God's eyes - everyone is equal. That is, no one has special status because of their skin color, past, family, money, religious background, or anything like that. What if we really believed that?

This does not mean we are all the same. Rather, that differences don't make people any less.

Think about the people you associate with. Then think about who you don't or wouldn't associate with. We often draw distinctions for pointless reasons.

When Peter takes the story back to Jerusalem, that he has shared the gospel and had fellowship with Gentiles, the disciples believe he's done a bad thing (violated the Law) until Peter explains his vision. How many of us would have that courage if we were confronted about hanging out with the wrong sort of people?

When you can look at all sorts of faces - colors, rich vs. poor, disabled vs. normally able - and see dignity and value in each one, you have the mind of God.

November 14-15, 2009 - Saul's Conversion

Saul (who would become Paul) stood by at the stoning of Stephen. He was a good Jew, who kept all of the law. In other words, he was an enemy of the early Christians.

This made Saul an unlikely choice to be God’s messenger!
Abraham Lincoln was raised in a log cabin, his mother died when he was 9, he didn’t finish high school or college, he lost 8 of 13 elections in his life. Yet, he was elected President of the United States.
In a similar way, God used someone we wouldn’t expect in a very important way.

Video: “Peter & Paul - Saul’s conversion”

Saul had to overcome his reputation as a man dangerous to Christians and regain their trust: first, with Ananias, then with the disciples in Jerusalem.
At the same time, his own standing among the Jews took a hit: he had to escape from Damascus, and then angered the Jews in Jerusalem. The apostles sent him by ship to Tarsus.

Paul would go on to suffer greatly for standing up for Jesus - see 2 Corinthians 11.

Paul had great knowledge and kept the law - but it was his encounter with the living God that actually changed him.

Nov. 1 - Stephen and Persecution of Christians

In the book of Acts, we see the gospel message spreading - and like a trick birthday candle, whenever attempts are made to extinguish it, it just keeps coming back:

The Jewish leaders told the disciples to stop speaking...Peter refused
They threw the apostles in jail...an angel let them out
They threatened and whipped the apostles...the Holy Spirit made them bolder

Acts 6-7 tell the story of Stephen...Stephen was chosen as one of seven who were to oversee the church's distribution of food to the needy. "The Body is a unit, made up of many parts....so it is with Christ." In the church, we divide responsibilities because no one person can do it all - yet everything that is done is important and necessary.

Stephen was arrested and accused of speaking words against the Jewish religion, specifically teaching against the laws of Moses and the temple.
To the Jews, three things were important:
1. Living in the land God had promised them
2. Following strictly the law God gave through Moses
3. Building and maintaining the temple, the house of the Lord

Stephen, in his defense, says the Jews are missing the point, which is the Messiah - God promised him through the prophets, but the prophets were ignored. He calls them "stiff-necked" (stubborn) people, who rejected and killed the Messiah. This makes them angry and they stone him to kill him.

Stephen becomes the first Christian martyr - someone who is killed for an idea

There are still martyrs today - "closed" countries in which practicing the Christian faith is dangerous or illegal. (See www.kidsofcourage.com for some great information on where persecution is happening)

After Stephen's martyrdom, the believers are spread, but the threat of death doesn't kill the movement, it makes them bolder!

Standing by at Stephen's death is Saul, who will shortly become Paul, the great Christian missionary.

October 3-4: God Sends the Holy Spirit (Acts 2)

Superheroes have super powers - their purpose? To be used for the benefit of others.
God gives his believers powers as well - in fact, God gives us the power to do anything.

Acts 1:12-22 - a replacement is chosen for Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus. Whoever is chosen is to join the others in being a witness of the things they saw Jesus say and do.

A Witness -

• Tells about what they've seen and heard
• Needs to be truthful
• Needs to have courage
• Sometimes needs protection from the people they're testifying against

One more thing the apostles needed was the ability to speak the language of the many foreigners who had gathered in Jerusalem.

Acts 2:1-13
The Holy Spirit comes on the apostles, and they begin to speak in foreign languages. The people are amazed - kind of like when you meet someone in a foreign country who can speak your own language. People had gathered from all over because it was Pentecost, 50 days after the Passover celebration, and they were all in Jerusalem. The disciples are filled with the Holy Spirit, and Peter begins to speak.

Acts 2:14-40
Peter speaks to the crowd. Since Jews believe in the Old Testament, he used two prophecies from there. (A prophecy is a prediction of a future event.)

Joel predicted that on "The Day of the Lord," God would pour out his holy spirit and people would have dreams and visions and speak in foreign tongues. Peter says this is what they are witnessing.

David predicted that God would raise someone from the grave, not letting the body decay. But, Peter says, it was not David - he is still in his grave. The one raised was Jesus - whom they had crucified. Peter tries to convince the crowd that the one they turned against was God's chosen one.

When the crowd heard this, many were convinced and asked what they should do - Peter told them to repent (turn from sin) and be baptized, and they would be saved and they would also receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

What the Holy Spirit did here: It gave the disciples courage, it protected them from the opposition (this will become really important later in Acts), and it allowed them to speak other languages and be understood.

Why God sent it: This was the beginning of getting the message out. The Bible says after Peter spoke, 3,000 people became believers. The new "church" began to grow, and grow...until the Jewish leaders took notice, which begins chapter 3.

Can a Christian really do anything? Yes - you can do anything God needs you to do. In this case, God needed the apostles to be able to speak in other languages. He has given us the power to do what we can't do on our own - to forgive, to love difficult people, to stand up for him. God will never ask us to do something that he doesn't also, at the same time, help us to do.

Sept 26-27, 2009: Jesus Promises the Holy Spirit (Acts 1)

What's the most amazing thing you've ever seen? When we've seen something amazing, we can't help but want to tell everyone we see.

That's the situation the disciples were in after Jesus visited them after having risen from the dead. The Book of Acts - tells their story.
The book of Acts (written by Luke) is all about...Acts! Theirs, but also God's through his Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit is key in the book of Acts - Jesus told them to wait for it before they did anything else in his name.

2 Questions throughout our study of Acts:
What did the Holy Spirit do?
Why did God send it?

The disciples expected that maybe Jesus himself would return soon and restore the kingdom of Israel - then they would reign with Jesus as king! They did not know how much they were going to suffer for his name. Instead - they waited. And waited. They prayed and met together, and they selected a replacement for Judas, who had hung himself after betraying Jesus.

Important verses: 7 & 8 - it's not for them to know the time God is going to act. Sometimes we want God to act on our timetable, and we get impatient when he doesn't act right away or in the manner we want. But, we can be reassured that God has the time set - he knows - we wait.

As we wait...God is making us ready, and he is also building our faith. "Faith is being sure of what we hope for, and certain of what we do not see." (Hebrews 11:1) How can we be certain of something we do not see? Belief in God and waiting on him to act takes faith.

August 22-23: Had a Bad Day?

Movie clip: How to Eat Fried Worms

In this clip, the new kid, Billy, has a bad day, his first day at his new school. He's not accepted. He's late for class. He has to talk in front of everyone. They play a prank on him.

In small groups, discuss these questions:

• Have you ever had a day like Billy? Explain.
• How do you think Billy felt at the end of the day? Explain. How did you feel the last time you had a bad day? Explain.
• What do you do to deal with a bad day? (watch TV, listen to music, pray, ignore it, etc.) Does it make you feel better? Why or why not?
• If you're upset or frustrated, is it better to let it out or just try to ignore it? Why?
• Have you ever been new at school? New at church? New in the neighborhood? How was that for you? How many of you are starting at a new school this fall? What are your feelings about that?

Activity: We stuff balloons into an oversized sweat shirt and pair of sweat pants, then make the person wearing them run around and do exercises. It's difficult. Why? Because the balloons stuffed inside keep us from moving the way we should.

Worries and frustrations are like the balloons. If we stuff them inside and pretend they're not there, they hurt our ability to be at peace with each other, to enjoy our friends, to be positive, to be kind to others...in fact, when we've been hurt or insulted or embarrassed, often we look for someone else to do the same thing to, so we don't have to feel so rotten. This is what bullies do.

Instead, God tells us (1 Peter 5:7) to cast all our cares on him - he cares for us.

1. It's ok to have negative feelings - that's normal to get upset sometimes, or angry, or have hurt feelings.

2. The wrong thing to do is "stuff" them.

3. The right way is to acknowledge when we're hurt, fearful, angry, or whatever, and to give those concerns to God. How? Some people do this by praying - by getting what's on the inside out. Others give it away by journaling - like a prayer, but it's written down, and it's only between you and God. Meditating - in Christianity, meditating is not emptying our mind but filling our mind with thoughts about what is true, and helpful, and reliable (God created me, God is in control of everything, in the midst of rotten days and events, God is working for my good). Solitude - being only with God - and not with TV, computers, homework, toys, other people - reminds us that he's in charge.

Birds were meant to fly. A weight around their neck or a broken wing = a bird is not living like a bird should. You were not meant to be weighed down by worries and disappointments - you were meant to live. Anything that keeps us from having "life to the full" is something God wants to help us handle.

Esther: Right place at the right time

"In the right place at the right time" usually means you were lucky - you were with the right people or caught in a situation that was lucky for you.

In the story of Esther, Esther was put in a position that benefited others. She was a Jew living in exile, that is, away from her homeland, among other conquered peoples.

The story of Esther:

The king, Xerxes, banished the old queen and Esther was chosen as his new queen. She had been warned by her cousin Mordecai not to reveal her Jewish identity. Mordecai is a gatekeeper, and overhears a plot by two of the king's men to assassinate him. Mordecai passes this along to the queen, Esther, and the plan is foiled. The two men are executed and the king is safe.

A man named Haman becomes the king's highest official. Haman hates it, though, that Mordecai will not bow down to him. Knowing that Mordecai is Jewish, he asks the king to issue a decree that all the Jews be killed, since they don't follow the king's orders and are dangerous to his rule.

Mordecai learns of the decree and goes into mourning. He knows only one person can save them - the king - and that Esther is in a position to make that happen. He reasons with her that if she keeps quiet, even she will lose her life, but the Jews will be saved from some other place (we assume God); and he says, "Who knows? Maybe you were made queen for such a time as this?" Esther agrees to speak to the king, even though she can lose her life for going to him without being asked, and says, "If I die, I die."

Esther goes to the king and he agrees to see her. At a banquet, he promises to give her whatever she wishes, even up to half the kingdom. She tells the king and Haman to come to another banquet the next day, when she will tell him what she wants. That night, the king cannot sleep. He asks for the book telling the story of his reign to be read aloud. They read to him about the plot to take his life that was foiled by Mordecai. The king asks why Mordecai has not been honored. He assigns Haman to parade through the streets with Mordecai, honoring him and drawing attention to what he has done. Now Haman hates Mordecai more than ever.

At the banquet the next day, Esther asks that the king spare the life of her people (he does not know that she is Jewish). She says there is a plot to wipe out her and her people. The king asks who would devise such a terrible plot, and Esther says Haman is responsible. Haman is killed by the king for his evil plan. Then the king promotes Mordecai to Haman's high position and issues a new decree, that the Jews are to defend themselves against anyone who tries to kill them. When the day arrives, the Jews are victorious over those who want to take their lives.

The memory of this event is celebrated in the Jewish holiday called "Purim".

Esther is the only book of the Bible that does not contain the word "God". Yet, it is still a story about God because it is about God's people, the Jews, and how God acted through Mordecai and Esther to save his people. Both Mordecai and Esther took risks - Mordecai by reporting the plot and Esther by daring to go to the king without being summoned, but they had to courage to do it or else the Jews would face destruction.

Esther was put in a position where she could serve God and his people - what positions have you been placed in to serve others?

June 7-8: Last Words to a 6th Grader

I still remember - 24 years later - what my pastor said when he retired (I was 12) - be very, very careful about false gods.

To our sixth graders, two messages:
1. It really does matter if God is in your life

There's a difference between knowing about God and actually believing in him (trusting him)

Ex: Like the difference between seeing sunlight through a window and breaking through the window to benefit from the light fully. Behind the glass, you get some benefit, but it isn't until you get surrounded by the light that you derive the full benefit. Likewise, it's OK to know there is a God, but best to actually have God. No one can teach you that - it must come by faith, because you are willing!

2. God wants to save every part of your life.

The Woman at the Well (John 4) - initially it was Jesus asking her for a drink; it ended up with her asking him for living water.

We all like receiving gifts, but most of us settle for gifts that will spoil or fade. God wants to give you gift after gift, but - we don't get the choice of keeping certain parts of our life "off limits" to him. If you let him in, you're letting him into all the parts.

"God doesn't want to be a part of your life...he wants to be a part of all of the parts."

Ex: When you clean underneath your bed, you'll usually find lots of things you'd forgotten were there. When we ask God to "search our hearts", we are giving him permission to bust down the doors to every part of our lives.

May 23-24: We can influence people toward Christ through words and through actions

Consider someone the Bible calls "Lost".
What are some things that person has to do to become a Christian?
1. admit they're a sinner
2. admit their sin keeps them from God
3. want to be with God
4. believe that Jesus died for their sins
5. choose to trust the cross for forgiveness

People will try lots of other things to be forgiven - good works, going to church, praying and reading the Bible; or, they'll "get around" sin by just saying it isn't real and God doesn't exist

Q: Would you share the message about Jesus with someone you didn't know first? Why or why not?
Advantages of knowing who you were sharing with: You might be able to anticipate their questions, they would know you really cared
Advantages of not knowing someone before sharing: It can be less nerve-wracking; what if they think I'm weird??

Jesus commanded: Matt. 28:19-20. How are Christians supposed to spread the gospel message through the whole world? Especially when there are areas of the world with very few Christians living there?

To "Proclaim Christ" - share the story of salvation with someone
To "Practice Christ" - be Christlike to someone

Both are ways of influencing someone toward salvation
But, when is the right time to "proclaim" and the right time to just "be Christ"? Is it ok if I just "Practice Christ" but never speak his name, never tell the other person about him? Is that the same thing??

If I want to influence someone to believe in Jesus…practicing Christ is more likely to do that than proclaiming Christ. Agree or disagree, and why?

You should always practice Christ before proclaiming Christ to someone. Agree or disagree, and why?

Even if you never proclaimed Christ to someone, it's just as good to practice Christ. Agree or disagree, and why?

It's wrong to make friends with someone just so you can proclaim Christ to them. Agree or disagree, and why?

May 9-10: No one can tame the tongue

Guest Speaker: Brian Day, Pastor of Junior High
James 3:1-12
“That flapping piece of meat”

Boating and flying illustration.
Such small adjustments affect so much (controls and instruments).
James seeks to show us how such a small body part can blow it for us too.

1. Do not use the tongue to do BAD
• Vs. 2 – It’s not if we make a mistake with our tongues, but when we do.
• Vs. 3-5 – Are you going to be like these examples…ruled completely by such a small part of your body?
• Vs. 6 – Just one small thing can contaminate your whole witness.
• Vs. 7,8 – You cannot tame the tongue completely. It will bite you again. Are you trying to stop it and what are you going to do when it does?

2. Do not use the tongue to mix BAD and GOOD
• Vs. 9-12 – How can we use our tongues for such good and such evil at the same time?
• Our tongue shows us what’s really inside. If you have Christ inside, Christ like things will come out.
• This is one reason swearing is not healthy or good.

3. Do not use the tongue to do GOOD
• 2:15,16 - Use your tongue to say good things but not to do good things. We must be people of action, not just words.

Action steps:
• Identify what needs to change in your language.
• Identify where it comes from.
• Ask God to take it away and help you to not be ruled by your tongue.

Boating and flying illustration. Let God be the one steering you, not yourself.

He will steer you right to eternal life.

We will always steer ourselves to destruction.

May 2-3: Lost People Need to Hear God's story

2 Corinthians 5:20 - We are Christ's Ambassadors, or official messengers.
So...what's the message? And how do we share it?

Are the following true, false, or absolutely false?
As the phrase is used in the Bible, a lost person is someone who goes on a hike in the mountains and gets lost for ten days without food or water…absolutely false. "Lost" means they are separated from God.
God doesn't start loving people until they become Christians…absolutely false. If God didn't love sinners, there'd be no way for anyone to be saved.
The best thing to do to Lost People is avoid them, because their beliefs might rub off on you…absolutely false. We are Christ's Ambassadors - God wants us to interact and share the message.
When talking to a lost person, the best thing to do is start arguing with them. Give them the top five reasons you're right and they're wrong, and wait for them to hit back…Absolutely False. They will stop listening if you do that. Be gentle, but be firm.
Most of the lost people in the world can be found in Texas and Hollywood...absolutely false. 97% of the world that is not Christian lives in the 10/40 window, between 10 degrees north latitude and 40 degrees north.
God will almost always appear in a dream to people who don't believe in him...false. While it's true Jesus does appear in dreams to some people, most people need to hear the gospel from someone else.

The Bridge Illustration - a way of sharing what we believe
Start by asking what someone believes. If you listen politely, chances are they'll listen when it's your turn.

Show them a person, separated from God by a canyon.
Explain that the Bible says because of sin, we cannot be with God. In fact, sin leads to death.
We need a way across. That way is Jesus.
When Jesus died, his cross made a way for us to avoid death and be with God.
Sending Jesus was God's choice; our choice is whether or not to accept God's gift and trust the cross for our salvation.

Q: What are some reasons we don't share this with people?
A: KNOWLEDGE LEVEL (I can't explain it clearly)
COMFORT LEVEL (I am not comfortable bringing it up with this person)
FEAR LEVEL (I'm afraid of what they might say to me)

April 25-26: Lost people can be reached through friendships

We know God cares about lost people - 2 Peter 3:9 says "God is patient...not wanting anyone to perish".

God is like a father, looking for lost kids. He wants people to come back to him.

What's your job? 2 Corinthians 5:20 says "We are Christ's ambassadors".

Ambassador = "someone chosen for an official, special mission"
An ambassador does his or her job when they deliver the message faithfully, and represent the ruler (usually a king) well. Do you do that?

The 10/40 Window: In the world, approximately half of the people are Christians. Half are not. Of the half that is not, about 97% live in an area of the world between 10 degrees north and 40 degrees north latitude, stretching through Southern Europe and Northern Africa, the Middle East, China and India. (Google "10/40 window" and you'll see a map).

Q: If most of the people in the world who don't know Jesus live in the 10/40 Window, what can I, in Carlsbad, CA, do?
A: Plenty! Even though most live "over there", there are people who don't know Jesus right here in our own country...community...and school.
You can reach out to lost people through friendships.

Luke 19 - Jesus befriended Zacchaeus. "I must stay at your house today." Zacchaeus was a despised man. But God's heart changed him. God doesn't want us to shun or avoid people who don't know him, but to share with them.

April 18-19: Lost People Matter to God

What is it like to be LOST?

Is it more dangerous for someone to be lost and know they're lost, or lost and not know they're lost? Why? Actually can be more dangerous to be lost and not know it; you can be away from safety but think you're just fine.

When we're lost, often the people looking for us are more concerned than we are. We know where we are! And we don't have any idea of the danger we're in.

Today we start series on "The Lost World"
a. "lost" means they don't have a relationship with God; Jesus is not in their life
b. Not a word the church made up; "lost" is the word Jesus used
c. Lost people don't always know they're lost

If we believe that God is necessary to a person's survival...then we have a job to do! Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life...no one comes to the Father but through me."

God uses people to get his message out...because he cares very deeply about people who are lost - whether they know it or not.

Luke 15 - the Parable of the Lost Son - the Father rejoiced when the son came back.