FBC Daily Devotions

What are some truths you learned from last Sunday’s message? How can it make a difference this week?

In previous weeks, we looked at the priority of Reaching Up. The need to reach up to God with a life of worship, to love Him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength is our highest calling. Jesus is clear, however, that reaching up should result in Reaching Across – loving others as Christ loved us. While these devotions are about our personal relationships with Christ, the outworking of that relationship is seen in our relationships with one another. For the next month we will take a closer look at our relationships with our Community in Christ, From fellowship to friendships, may these devotions help you be a part of a healthy, growing community. –Pastor Mike

Home Group Questions
Week of October 6, 2008

*If time is short, be sure to ask these questions.

Opening: How have you seen God work this week?

1. We all share a common bond in Christ. There is no greater bond we can have with other people. But that bond can be damaged when we place other things ahead of our commonality. Sometimes that unity or commonality can be disturbed when we treat one another in ways that are unbecoming of Christ. How does knowing “we are all in this together” help in your treatment of a fellow believer?
2. When it comes to building a healthy, biblical community, Jesus set the standard by showing us what love looks like. It is a commitment to death. That is a high standard! We may not be called to die for someone (I doubt many of us will), but to the extent that we act sacrificially toward others shows the extent of our love. Over the past week, how were you challenged to go the “extra mile” to show sacrificial love?
3. God calls us not to merely respond in love, but to initiate love as well. Are there relationships in your life that need that kind of initiative? How can the group pray for you in this area? Have you ever been the recipient (outside of Christ) of an initiating kind of love? If so, what effect did it have on you and your relationship with the other person?
4. Jesus accepted and valued the lowly ones of this world. And then He called us to follow Him. Who are the lowly ones in your world? What are ways you can reach across to them?
5. *The Body of Christ should be a place where you feel valued. We should be able to be ourselves, even bring the worst of ourselves and not be rejected. It should be a place we can admit our failings and struggles and have them met with grace and support. What makes it difficult for people to live completely “inside-out”? Do you feel your Home Group is a place where you can admit your failings and struggles? Take some time to discuss this very important matter. If applicable, why might you be afraid to be vulnerable in this group?
6. Nothing builds community like spending time together. The early church met daily in houses and larger group gatherings. The greatest impact on people’s lives occurs in the context of consistent and frequent contact. How have you seen this to be true in your life? Have you seen the opposite to be true as well (i.e. that community is difficult without contact)? Take a look at your schedule – do you meet often enough with others to build a healthy community? If you are serious about community, what might need to change?

As you go into your prayer time, consider the following questions:

• How have you struggled this week?
• How can the others in the group help you?

Look over your notes from the past week. What one or two things did God impress upon you this week?

Read John 15:26-27; 16:5-11.

For the last several days, we have seen the role of the Holy Spirit in the life of God’s children. But what about those who do not know Christ, those who have turned a blind eye to God?
Our passage today reveals the Holy Spirit’s work in the unbeliever:

• He testifies to Christ (15:26)
• He convicts the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment (16:8)

In the Spirit’s testimony, the Holy Spirit’s power confirmed the truth of the gospel (see Acts 2:43; 3:6-16; 14:3). Jesus commanded the disciples to testify as well since they had been with Him from the beginning and could not be accused of creating a fictional account. Together their testimony would carry the gospel to the ends of the earth (see Acts 1:8). As one commentator has noted, “Without the witness of the Spirit, the disciples’ witness would be powerless; without the disciples’ witness, the Spirit would be restricted in his means of expression.” (EBCNT)

Personal thought:

As we continue the work of testifying of Christ, how much more we need the testimony of the Spirit today for us who were not present with Christ from the beginning! God continues to work in ways we may not see to validate the truth of the gospel. That is clear from the convicting work of the Holy Spirit (John 16:8). It is encouraging to know that as we share the gospel, we are not alone. We have a Helper who does the harder work of convicting people of sin, righteousness, and judgment. Our responsibility is to merely testify of the gospel from the words of Christ (Scripture) and from our own experience (just as the early disciples did). Our responsibility is not to guilt people into believing – that convicting work is accomplished by the Holy Spirit.

To consider:

How does knowing the Holy Spirit works in collaboration with your efforts affect your attitude and approach to sharing Christ? In hindsight, how have you seen the Spirit work behind-the-scenes in your efforts to share Christ?

Read Galatians 5:16-26.

In today’s passage, living by the Spirit is contrasted with living according to the flesh (NIV – sinful nature). The battle to gratify the desires of the flesh (and note that those desires seek gratification meaning there is a strong draw) is won by living by the Spirit. The flesh and Spirit are in conflict with one another, and the passage indicates that we are only able to stand up to the temptation (i.e. “so that you do not do what you want”) by the power of the Spirit. Trying to defeat the flesh’s power in our own strength in the spirit of the law (i.e. trying to live a do’s and don’ts kind of life) is not the answer. The answer is found in living by the Spirit. Paul expands this thought in Romans 8:5-6. I encourage you take 30 seconds and read the passage.

Living by the Spirit means setting our minds on what the Spirit desires (Rom. 8:5). Rather than fighting off the flesh’s thoughts and temptations (this, giving our attention to the flesh), we are to turn our thoughts toward what is godly and pleasing to God (turning our attention to the Spirit). With our minds continually turned toward the things of God, the desires of the flesh are transported away – the desire for gratification gone.

Personal thought:

What sounds simple is not always easy. Keeping our minds on the things of God can be a struggle with our eyes and ears constantly bombarded with the immoral. The fast pace of life overcrowded with activities can add stress to an already stressful life of work. I recently saw a television commercial that encouraged teenagers to “pause” before jumping in to something regrettable. That is practical advice when we are tempted to gratify the impulses of the flesh. Pausing and taking a breath and turning our thoughts to God may help. Ultimately, though, we need to develop a continual awareness of God’s presence and live with Him moment by moment. That is a process that will take time and effort. The combination of knowing what pleases God through Scripture, the prompting of the Holy Spirit on our heart and conscience working through that knowledge, our desire to set our minds on the things of God, and the power of the Holy Spirit to enable us to live in step with the Spirit, helps us develop more and more fruit.

To consider:

Galatians 5:19-23 reveals the difference between the flesh and the Spirit. In looking at the list of fleshly acts, are there some areas that you struggle with? In those struggles, what do you believe “setting our minds on what the Spirit desires” looks like practically for you in relation to that struggle?

Gal. 5:22-23 lists the fruit of a life lived in the Spirit. Here, they are not given as goals to pursue, but the product of a Spirit-led life. Looking at the list of fruit, how is your Spirit-led life progressing?