Blessing of the Lord Church

We do not own the rights to this music Colossians 3:2-13

Welcome to Bible study

We do not own the rights to this music Lamentations 3:22-32

Welcome to Wednesday Bible Study

We do not own the rights to this music Luke 16:1-15

Welcome to Bible Study. Today we start the New Testament

Seek unity. Believers are never told to become one; we already are one, and are expected to act like it. Joni Eareckson Tada As Christ followers, unity is important because the goal of it is God’s glory. In order to be like-minded, our community must have the same handbook that we live by: the Bible. When the Bible is the blueprint for our lives, we can live in unity with other believers.... But it isn’t always easy. There are so many groups in the Christian community that think their way and their interpretation is the only way. We get bothered about the smallest of things and then ger even more bothered when others don’t feel the same about those small things. In order to find common ground as Christ followers, here are a few ways to seek unity: Start with yourself. Pastor Craig Groeschel says, We judge others by their actions while judging ourselves by our intentions. It is so natural to focus on the shortcomings of others while overlooking our own deficiencies. Because of this, disunity is kindled in our hearts, if we would spend more time showing the grace to others that we show to ourselves, we would experience more unity among those with whom we may not see eye to eye. Love above all. When asked about the most important commandment, Jesus replied that there are two: love the Lord and love our neighbors. On the days when we find ourselves upset and feeling anything but love toward a fellow Christ follower, we must always go back to love. We have to remember that we are not each other’s enemy. Connect, don’t clash. We can always find someone we don’t agree with. What’s more challenging is to focus on what we do agree on. The gospel message is simple: God sent His son to earth to die on a cross to cover our sins, when we accept that free gift of salvation, we get to spend eternity with God. What a point of unity! If we find ourselves gripping and arguing about smaller doctrines, we have handed Satan a gold medal. Unity is critical for like-minded community with other Christ followers. We don’t have to agree on everything but we should strive to connect and love above all. If we would all fix our eyes on Jesus, allow Him to lead us completely, and receive His Spirit’s conviction willingly, unity would be within our grasp. REFLECT: Do you tend to be a person who looks at your own issues or focusses on the shortcomings of those around you? What is one thing you can adjust in your life in order to walk in unity with fellow believers in Jesus as well as your close-knit community?

Faith makes us sure of what we hope for and gives us proof of what we cannot see. To deepen our understanding, lets define faith as the trade secret of the Kingdom which separates kingdom culture from neighboring cultures. When the people of God apply faith they move towards a promise without knowing the outcome and start to hear things like how do you smile when your going through so much? Or, how is your online store growing and innovating while major retailers are clo...sing? Faith and work can qualify the unqualified. In the Old Testament; by faith (belief), Abram became a great nation and received a promise by leaving his comfort zone. Joshua remembered the Lord’s voice that said do not be afraid of them, no one can hamr you, and commanded the sun and moon to stand. Elijah caused a drought (for three years), got fed by ravens, prohesied to a widow that the flour and oil would last, raised a boy from the dead, then made it rain again. Faith stands beside you and answers fear, insecurity, and failure by empowering you with courage and boldness.

We don’t own rights to this music James 1:21-25

Lord, this is intimidating. Trusting You means I might lose everything but You. I’m going to need Your boldness, Your confidence really, Your Spirit to lead me in this way. Amen.