Unmatched

Unmatched – Part 2

Jesus as the Shepard I am the Good Shepard. The Good Shepard risks and lays down His [own] life for thesheep. John 10:11 I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, he who does not enter by the door into the sheepfold, but climbs up some other way (elsewhere, from some other quarter us a thief and a robber. John 10:1 The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I come that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows). John 10:10 If you follow Jesus, you need to imitate Him. How would you know that? You would be bearing fruit.If you choose to follow Christ then you walk into headship and authority. If you choose not to thenyou are not walking in the ministry you are called to. In order to imitate Christ, we must draw closeand walk with Him. We must come under His authority – to submit and obey Him. True obediencearises from and marks the growth of a loving relationship with Jesus. You can be a good Shepard or abad Shepard. It’s your decision.Quick Fact: Sheep are mentioned more than 200 time sin the bible. More than any other animal. Challenges of being sheep– Sheep get lost easily– Sheep are defenceless– Sheep are stubborn– Sheep are filthy Why is the road narrow? Because Jesus wants you to be in a place where you never get lost. Allsheep need a Shepard.What does a good Shepard do? He guidesHe calls and leadsJohn 10:3-4 |3 The watchman opens the food for this man, and the sheep listen to his voiceand heed it; and he calls his own sheep by name and brings (leads) them out. 4 When hehas brought his own sheep outside, he walks on before them, and the sheep follow himbecause they know his voice.We have to be able to understand our Shepard’s voice. We need to be able to heed it. Hisjob is to guide. Our job is to follow. He provides Psalm 23:1-3 |1 A Psalm of David. The Lord is my Shepard [to feed, guide, and shield me], Ishall not lack. 2 He makes me lie down in [fresh, tender] green pastures ; He leads mebeside the still and restful waters [Rev. 7:17.] 3 He refreshers and restores my life (my self);He leads me in the paths of righteousness [uprightness and right standing with Him – not formy earning it, but] for His name’s sake.He provides but not always in the way we assume. We must trust Jesus as the Good Shepardthat He will provide us with what we need when we need kit. He correctsJob 5:17-18 | 17 But consider the joy of those corrected by God! Do not despise thediscipline of the Almighty when you sin. 18 For thought he wounds, he also bandages. Hestrikes, but his hands also heal.The Shepard “brakes” a stray the sheep’s leg. Putting a brake on the sheep’s leg allows thesheep to stay close to the Shepard. It shows the sheep that it needs to rely on the Shepard.Hebrews 12:11 | No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening – it’s painful! But afterwardthere will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.When we are corrected by Christ, we are not being punished. When we are corrected byJesus it means Jesus is leading us on a journey to perfection. There are many ways Jesuscorrects us, through the Holy Spirit, the Bible or even the people He places in our lives. He protectsLuke 15:4-6 | 4 If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do?Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others in the wilderness and go to search for the one that islost until finds it. 5 And when he has found it, he will joyfully carry it home on his shoulders.6 When arrives, he will call together his friends and neighbours, saying. ‘Rejoice with mebecause I have found my lost sheep.’ God constantly circles around your life day and night to protect you. We need to listen andto heed Him. Psalm 23:4-6 | Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you areclose beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me. 5 You prepare a feast forme in the presence of my enemies. You honour me by anointing my head with oil. My cupoverflows with blessing. 6 Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all thedays of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever. Talk it Over for Destiny Groups – Unmatched Part 2 Key ScripturesJohn 10:11,14-1511 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.14 “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— 15 just as theFather knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep.Start talking• Share something good that happened in the last week. Start thinking.• What’s one idea from the message that really stood out to you? Why did this ideagrab your attention?• How do you know when God is guiding you? Start sharing.• Describe a time when God provided for you during a time of need. How did thatexperience affect your relationship with God?• Describe a time when God corrected you. How did you respond to His correction?• What’s one thing you will do this week because of something you learned fromthis message? Start praying.Jesus, I thank you that are the Good Shephard. Thank you that you call me by nameand you lead me by green pastures.. Thank you that lay down your life me. Thakthat as put my focus on you and your Word that my and trust in your grow. I knowthat as I put my trust in you, I will never need to be ashamed. In your name, Amen.

Unmatched – Part 1

God is unmatched in, love, grace and power. We don’t worship God because of the stuff we can get. We can worship Him because what he has done for us and what He can do for us. So, we need to know the bad news before we can appreciate the good news Let’s talk about Sin The subject of Sin offends people more than anything else in Christianity. It’s the one thing Christians don’t want to hear about. Its difficult to talk about sin because it then requires us to do some introspection. Essentially, we all subjected to sin because of our flesh. The flesh does not want to be obedient to God. Sin is NOT: A behaviour problem to be solved Lack of knowledge needed to be improved through training Offense we need to make up through rituals Now, there is three things that sin does. Sin is a 3-D disaster It is a debt we cannot repay Matthew 18: 23-27 | 23 Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a human king who wished to settle accounts with his attendants  24 When he began the accounting, one was brought to him who owed him 10, 000 talents 25 And because he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and his children and everything that he possessed, and payment to be made 26 So the attendant fell on his knees, begging him, ‘Have patience with me and I will pay you everything’ 27 And his masters heart was moved with compassion, and he released him and forgave him [cancelling] the debt. Our sin is so astronomical, we can never repay God. It would take 1 million days to repay the debt. The price of the debt we owe God is beyond calculation. If there’s any hope at all of paying the debt, it won’t be in working harder or doing a few more good deeds.  It creates a distance between us and God Since all have sinned and are falling short of the honour and glory which God bestows and receives Romans 3:23 Sin creates such a distance between us and God that cannot be just jumped over. If we try to meet the high standards of God, we will always fall short. When you want to cross a river 100m wide, you don’t need to improve your jumping – you need a bridge. It creates a deadness so final we have no spiritual life And you [He made alive], when you were dead (slain) by [your] trespasses and sins Ephesians 2:1 whereas she who lives in pleasure and self-gratification [giving herself u to luxury and self-indulgence] is dead even while she [still] lives 1 Timothy 5:6 Existence without God is a living death.  We need to understand that at the crux of it, there are no degrees of sin. All sin is the same in the eyes of God. Sin is 100% disaster.  Good News The Christian faith bases everything not on our potential and possibilities, but on the power of God to save us.   Sin is 100% disaster but Jesus is 100% saviour 3 For we also were once thoughtless and senseless, obstinate, and disobedient, deluded and misled; [we too were once] slaves to all sorts of cravings and pleasures, wasting our days in malice and jealousy and envy, hateful (hated, detestable) and hating one another. 4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our saviour to man [as man] appeared 5 He saved us, not because of any works of righteousness that we had done, but because of His own pity and mercy, by [the] cleansing [bath] of the new birth (regeneration) and renewing of the Holy Spirit, 6 which He poured out [so]richly upon us through Jesus Christ our Saviour. 7 [And He did it in order] that we might be justified by His grace (by His favour, wholly undeserved), [that we might be acknowledged and counted as conformed to the divine will in purpose, thought, and action], and that we might become heirs of eternal life according to [our] hope.  Titus 3:3-7 The bad news of the Bible is that we can’t do anything to solve our sin problem, but the good news is that we don’t have to. Jesus provides; Redemption  Jesus provides redemption for our debt. In Him we have redemption (deliverance and salvation) through His blood, the remission (forgiveness) of our offenses (shortcomings and trespasses), in accordance with the riches and the generosity of His gracious favour.  Ephesians 1:7 Jesus said it is finished. Finished as a business term meaning – to cancel, paid in full. You can’t add a thing to the payment He has already provided. The canyon f sin that separates us form God is so wide we can’t ever jump across it.  Reconciliation Jesus bridges the gap and brings us nearer to God. But now in Christ Jesus, you who once were [so] far away, through (by, in) the blood of Christ have been brought near.  Ephesians 2:13 Jesus bridges the canyon of alienation from God and removes the distance brought about by sin. If even the smallest part of our connection to God depends on our own achievements, we’re in trouble. If our connection to God is 100 percent Jesus, we can be completely confident. Re-birth God’s solution to spiritual deadness is rebirth.  1 And you [He made alive], when you were dead (slain) by [your] trespasses and sins. 2 In which at one time you walked [habitually]. You were following the course and fashion if this world [were under the sway of the tendency of this present age], following the price of the power of the air. [You were obedient to and under the control of] the [demon] spirit that still constantly works in the sons of disobedience [the careless, the rebellious, and the unbelieving, who go against the purposes of God]. 3 Among these we as well as you once lived and conducted ourselves in