Ps 118:19-26 CSB

¹⁹ Open the gates of righteousness for me;
I will enter through them
and give thanks to the Lord.
²⁰ This is the Lord’s gate;
the righteous will enter through it.
²¹ I will give thanks to you
because you have answered me
and have become my salvation.
²² The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone.
²³ This came from the Lord;
it is wondrous in our sight.
²⁴ This is the day the Lord has made;
let’s rejoice and be glad in it.

²⁵ Lord, save us!
Lord, please grant us success!
²⁶ He who comes in the name
of the Lord is blessed.
From the house of the Lord we bless you.

Scripture Reading

Isaiah 6:1-8 (ESV)

6 In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple. ² Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. ³ And one called to another and said:

“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory!”

⁴ And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. ⁵ And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!”

⁶ Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. ⁷ And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.

⁸ And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here I am! Send me.”

Scripture Reading:

CSB: Isa 5:13-16

¹³ Therefore my people will go into exile
because they lack knowledge;
her dignitaries are starving,
and her masses are parched with thirst.
¹⁴ Therefore Sheol enlarges its throat
and opens wide its enormous jaws,
and down go Zion’s dignitaries, her masses,
her crowds, and those who celebrate in her!
¹⁵ Humanity is brought low, each person is humbled,
and haughty eyes are humbled.
¹⁶ But the Lord of Armies is exalted by his justice,
and the holy God demonstrates his holiness through his righteousness.

Scripture Reading:

1 John 2:18-21 CSB

¹⁸ Children, it is the last hour. And as you have heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. By this we know that it is the last hour. ¹⁹ They went out from us, but they did not belong to us; for if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us. However, they went out so that it might be made clear that none of them belongs to us. ²⁰ But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth. ²¹ I have not written to you because you don’t know the truth, but because you do know it, and because no lie comes from the truth.

Application:

What do we do when Christianity becomes socially inconvenient?

1. Critically evaluate the benefit/loss of our social networks. Which meets your greatest need (i.e., forgiveness of sin)? The church is the only social group that enjoys atonement for our offenses against God. The gathering of the church is the place where you are reminded of this, built up in it, and encouraged to deepen your identity in God.
2. Curb associations that compete for your identity. Our work and hobbies and entertainments and families and citizenship and…can compete for our identity. We may need to curb how much we seek identity in these.
3. Cultivate your identity in Christ and the church. Praying through the church directory and reading the church covenant can help. As you participate in the Lord’s Supper, be mindful of the person sitting behind you and beside you.

Sermon Application:

1. God’s intervention in Christ grounds the ministry of motherhood in God’s power operating in the local church.
2. Christian moms enjoy a new identity in Christ, their story and the story of their family woven into God’s redemptive story.
3. Christian women have a broad field of ministry, called to influence all the young women of the local church.

Application Questions:

1. Which of the four ways we experience eternal life that were mentioned in the sermon today most impact you?

2. How does the world tempt you to find satisfaction outside of Christ? How can I help you enjoy all of God has for you  in Jesus and the Spirit?

Scripture Reading:

John 3:16-18, 36

¹⁶ “For God loved the world in this way: He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life. ¹⁷ For God did not send His Son into the world that He might condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. ¹⁸ Anyone who believes in Him is not condemned, but anyone who does not believe is already condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the One and Only Son of God.

³⁶ The one who believes in the Son has eternal life, but the one who refuses to believe in the Son will not see life; instead, the wrath of God remains on him.

John 10:1-5 CSV

10 “Truly I tell you, anyone who doesn’t enter the sheep pen by the gate but climbs in some other way is a thief and a robber. ² The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. ³ The gatekeeper opens it for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. ⁴ When he has brought all his own outside, he goes ahead of them. The sheep follow him because they know his voice. ⁵ They will never follow a stranger; instead they will run away from him, because they don’t know the voice of strangers.”

Scripture Reading:

John 6:11-15

¹¹ Then Jesus took the loaves, and after giving thanks he distributed them to those who were seated—so also with the fish, as much as they wanted.

¹² When they were full, he told his disciples, “Collect the leftovers so that nothing is wasted.” ¹³ So they collected them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces from the five barley loaves that were left over by those who had eaten.

¹⁴ When the people saw the sign he had done, they said, “This truly is the Prophet who is to come into the world.”

¹⁵ Therefore, when Jesus realized that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, he withdrew again to the mountain by himself.

The resurrection of Jesus displays the fulfillment of the Incarnational ministry of Christ, God’s power over death (Acts 2:22-33), and the fulfillment of His redemptive plan for humanity (Psalm 16 & Acts 13:34-39).

Scripture Reading:

Psalm 16:8-11 CSB

I have set the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices; my flesh also dwells secure. For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol, or let your holy one see corruption. You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

In 1 Corinthians 1:10-2:16, Paul argues that sharing in God's word humbles and unifies the local church.

Outline:

1. Vision 1: The Redeemed’s Rest and Song of Salvation (14:1–5)
2. What John Saw: The Reigning Christ with the Redeemed in His Presence (14:1)
3. What John Heard: The Redeemed Singing a New Song of Salvation (14:2–5)
4. Vision 2: The Hope of God’s Judgment and Reward (14:6–13)
5. What John Saw: Three Angels Declaring God’s Judgment and Urging Perseverance (14:6–12)
6. What John Heard: The Spirit Declaring the Redeemed’s Reward (14:13)

Scripture Reading:  Isaiah 14:12-20  (ESV)

12 “How you are fallen from heaven,
    O Day Star, son of Dawn!
How you are cut down to the ground,
    you who laid the nations low!
13 You said in your heart,
    ‘I will ascend to heaven;
above the stars of God
    I will set my throne on high;
I will sit on the mount of assembly
    in the far reaches of the north;
14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;
    I will make myself like the Most High.’
15 But you are brought down to Sheol,
    to the far reaches of the pit.
16 Those who see you will stare at you
    and ponder over you:
‘Is this the man who made the earth tremble,
    who shook kingdoms,
17 who made the world like a desert
    and overthrew its cities,
    who did not let his prisoners go home?’
18 All the kings of the nations lie in glory,
    each in his own tomb;
19 but you are cast out, away from your grave,
    like a loathed branch,
clothed with the slain, those pierced by the sword,
    who go down to the stones of the pit,
    like a dead body trampled underfoot.
20 You will not be joined with them in burial,
    because you have destroyed your land,
    you have slain your people.

“May the offspring of evildoers
    nevermore be named!

It is God’s will for Christians to pray for and evangelize all people,

especially those in authority (1 Tim 2:1-4) since those in authority

are still in need of the Gospel (1 Tim 2:5-7).

Discipleship Season Application...What are the present  benefits of forgiveness?