Mark 4:1–20 1. The Parable 2. The Parable Explained 3. The Part Left Unsaid: How Did the Good Soil Get Good? 4. How to Farm
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All in the Family
Acts 10:1–11:18 Who’s in God’s family? Everyone washed clean by Jesus, welcomed by grace, and sealed by His Spirit. The SetupGod is setting up a meeting between Cornelius and Peter, proactively dismantling Old Covenant barriers The SurpriseThe Gentiles are sealed by the Spirit in the New Covenant through Jesus, without becoming Jewish The SortingIn the New Covenant, Jews and Gentiles alike come directly to the Father, through Jesus alone, by the Spirit Takeaway: “Ever welcome to this house of God are strangers and the poor”
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Unlikely Christians
Acts 11:19–30; 12:25–13:3 What happens when the Gospel reaches the least expected? Unlikely people become world changers through Christ. Unlikely DiversityThe Gospel embraces the unlikely. Unlikely UnityThe Gospel unites the unlikely. Unlikely MinistryThe Gospel pursues the unlikely. Takeaway: The Gospel is for every unlikely one of us.• “People sensed in their hearts that Jesus did not mock their respect for the sacred nor their clamor for an invincible Savior, and so they beat their sacred drums for him until the stars skipped and danced in the skies. After that dance, the stars weren’t little anymore. Christianity helped Africans to become renewed Africans, not re-made Europeans.” —Lamin Sanneh, Whose Religion is Christianity?
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Work in Progress
Acts 9:32–43 We’re all works in progress living in a world under construction—yet Jesus is still working, healing, and bringing resurrection hope. Expansion∙ Jesus’ work is reaching further Extension∙ Jesus’ work is multiplying wider Expectation∙ Jesus’ work is pointing higher Takeaway: “I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” – Philippians 1:6
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Faith Over Fear
1 Kings 18:30–39
Though fear grips tight, faith can take root. What threatens to undo us can become the ground where trust in God grows strong. Elijah’s experience with fear provides several lessons for the church today on how to endure anxieties and setbacks. Discover how our Father in heaven responds to our emotional vulnerability.
1. Fear is normal.
2. Fear interrupts faith. 3. Fear cannot revoke your calling.
Takeaway: Fear is the opportunity to experience God’s comfort, restoration, and guidance. Spiritual strength is grounded in unwavering dependence upon God.
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