“Things Unseen” Hebrews 11:1-3
Pastor Zach Bearss
June 2, 2019
THINGS UNSEEN: KNOWING FAITH: ACTS 17:1-4, 16-24: JUNE 2, 2019
CONNECT
Culture today tells us that faith is all about feelings and science is all about reasoning. Where are you in this discussion? Do you believe faith and science collide or are in harmony with one another?
ENGAGE
Read Hebrews 11:1-3. Discuss the definition of faith.
There are 4 misconceptions about faith and reasoning. Discuss each one:
1. Faith means trusting things for no good reason. Acts 17:17-32
“God is no fonder of intellectual slackers than of any other slackers. If you are thinking of becoming a Christian, I warn you, you are embarking on something which is going to take the whole of you, brains and all.”
–C.S. Lewis
2. Science and God cannot be believed at the same time. Psalm 33:6
“faith was never understood by the people who engaged it to be opposed to reason but to be tested by reason.” –Dallas Willard
3. You cannot have knowledge of moral or spiritual truth.
John 8:3b, 32, 2 Peter 1:5-6, Proverbs 2:3-5
“Science is the only reliable way to understand the natural world but is powerless to answer questions such as “What is the meaning of human existence.”–Francis Collins
4. Being a Christian is about being right. I Corinthians 8:1-3,
Mark 12:30-31.
APPLY
Discuss these questions: Does science disprove faith? Is science the only way to reliably know about something? Where does science collide with your own personal faith?
PRAY
Pray that the Lord will strengthen your faith and that He will help you in your unbelief in the areas of life that you have no answers at this point in time.
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“Things Unseen”: Knowing Faith: John the Baptist
Pastor Zach Bearss
June 9, 2019
THINGS UNSEEN: KNOWING FAITH: JOHN THE BAPTIST: JUNE 9, 2019
CONNECT
Did you learn something new about John the Baptist’s faith that inspired you after the sermon today?
ENGAGE
Read and discuss the life of John the Baptist in the following passages:
Luke 1: 5-25, Matthew 3:1-17, Mark 1:1-8, John 3: 22-26, Matthew 11:1-15, Matthew 14:1-12.
APPLY
How can you apply John the Baptist’s example that I must decrease so that Christ might increase in my life day to day?
Jealousy had broken out amongst John’s disciples of Jesus emerging in His ministry. Where have you been jealous of others working alongside you in the kingdom?
John faithfully submitted to God’s will for His life. How will His example inspire you in your walk with Christ?
PRAY
Pray that the Lord would reveal where we each have been prideful in the work that He has given you to do in His kingdom and make us each realize that our role in the kingdom is not our reward, but Jesus is.
“Things Unseen”: When God Gives Us More Than We Can Handle
Pastor Zach Bearss
June 16, 2019
THINGS UNSEEN: WHEN GOD GIVES US MORE THAN WE CAN HANDLE: JUNE 16, 2019
CONNECT
Discuss a time when you have been in overwhelming circumstances and had to learn to trust God more because of it.
ENGAGE
Read Judges 6 and 7. Paint the picture of what was happening in Israel at this time in their nation’s history and in Gideon’s life.
Discuss how many times the word fear or afraid is mentioned.
Discuss verse 6:12 of how the Lord saw Gideon differently than he viewed himself.
APPLY
The Lord asked Gideon to tear down the alter of Baal and the Asherah beside it. What false gods or idols need to be torn down in your life?
God told Gideon to only take 300 men with him to fight 135,000 Midianites. When has God given you more than you can handle so He can prove that he a bigger God in your life than your circumstances?
PRAY
Pray that our understanding of God will grow more and more so that our faith will increase in who He is and that we will not trust in our own strength to walk by faith.
“Things Unseen”: Learning to Face the Impossible
Pastor Zach Bearss
June 23, 2019
THINGS UNSEEN: LEARNING TO FACE THE IMPOSSIBLE: JUNE 23, 2019
CONNECT
Share a time in your life when fear beat out faith in your walk with Christ.
ENGAGE
Read Romans 4:1-3, 16-21 and Hebrews 11:8-19. How is Abraham described in these passages of scripture?
Read Genesis 12:1-3, 15:1-6. What are the promises God made to Abraham? Was God faithful to keep His promises?
Read Genesis 12:10-20, Genesis 16:1-5, Genesis 20. Did Abraham always trust in the promises of God? Where did fear and lack of trust lead to failure? Was God faithful to keep His promises?
APPLY
Discuss these 4 things that grow your faith and discuss where you have experienced one or more of these in your life.
1) We have to hear the call of God.
2) We must become disillusioned.
3) We must learn that God Himself is better than what life can give you now and better than what death can take from you later.
4) Our faith grows as our worship of God increases.
PRAY
Stop and thank the Lord for His attributes and where He has been faithful in your life when you have not been faithful to Him.
“Things Unseen”: God is More Than Able
Pastor Zach Bearss
June 30, 2019
THINGS UNSEEN: GOD IS MORE THAN ABLE: JUNE 30, 2019
CONNECT
Did you attend VBS when you were younger? What did you enjoy in the service as you heard the stories and sang the songs from VBS at Clearview this past week? Tell of your experience of being a volunteer with VBS this past week.
ENGAGE
God chooses the weakest to display His power.
Read Exodus 2:23-25, Exodus 17:8-13 Discuss the Israelites journey of going from being slaves in Egypt to doing battle against the Amalekites. What weapon did the Israelites use in the battle?
Read Psalm 146:1-6, Isaiah 41:10, Philippians 4:6, Ephesians 3:20-21. How does the power of prayer affect our lives?
APPLY
GOD IS MORE THAN ABLE. Name situations in the Bible in which God stepped in and intervened in the lives of Biblical characters and stories.
GOD IS MORE THAN WILLING. Name situations, both large and small, in your own life in which God stepped in and intervened in our life or the life of someone you know.
PRAY
Ask others to pray for you and come alongside you in your hour of need just as Moses did.
“Things Unseen”: Unfaithful Faith
Pastor Zach Bearss
July 7, 2019
THINGS UNSEEN: UNFAITHFUL FAITH: JULY 7, 2019
CONNECT
God has given each of us with many talents and giftings to be used for His glory. What has He blessed you with to further His kingdom?
ENGAGE
Read the story of Samson in Judges 13-16. What stands out in the story to you? What seems a bit bizarre? What is hard to understand?
Read Numbers 6:1-6 and Deuteronomy 7:3. What commands did Samson break either as a Nazarite or an Israelite? Did Samson’s walk with God align with the giftedness and leadership given to him by God?
APPLY
Discuss these 4 points and how it applies to our lives:
1) Just because we are gifted by God does not mean we are walking with God. (Galatians 5:16-17)
2) God may be slow to anger but it is a mistake to think that His patience is a license to sin. ( Romans 6:1)
3) Samson believed that God would be faithful to His word, but Samson did not believe that he needed to be faithful to God’s word. (John 14:12-15)
4) Samson trusted God to give him supernatural strength but he did not believe God to fulfill his natural appetites. (Psalm 37:3-5)
PRAY
Pray for forgiveness when we have hurt others with our giftings but our spiritual maturity did not align with those giftings. Pray for those that have hurt us when their giftings did not align with the spiritual maturity with the spiritual giftings God has given to them.
“Things Unseen”: When Everything You See is a Wreck
Pastor Zach Bearss
July 14, 2019
THINGS UNSEEN: WHEN EVERYTHING YOU SEE IS A WRECK: JULY 14, 2019
CONNECT
We can each see God in the miracles of life, but where have you seen Him at work lately in the day to day, ordinary events of life?
ENGAGE
Read the book of Ruth, Chapters 1-4.
Discuss the faithfulness of Ruth throughout the book.
Discuss the transformation of Naomi’s perspective of the Lord’s dealings in her life throughout the book.
Discuss the role of Boaz as the kinsmen redeemer throughout the book.
APPLY
Discuss these lessons from the story of Ruth:
1. God can work through us even when we are suffering.
2. God often makes His presence known through friendship.
3. When all we see is the mundane, God is doing more.
PRAY
Ask the Lord for us to walk by faith and not by sight and to show us where He at work in the day to day ordinary.
“Things Unseen”: Faith and the Love of Money
Pastor Zach Bearss
July 21, 2019
THINGS UNSEEN: FAITH AND THE LOVE OF MONEY: JULY 21, 2019
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Our desires are too small. (I Corinthians 2:9)
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The gospel is not just a good trade. (Matthew 5:20)
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You are not just a sinner saved by grace. (I Peter 2:9)
“Things Unseen”: Faith and Calling
Pastor Zach Bearss
July 28, 2019
THINGS UNSEEN: FAITH AND CALLING: JULY 28, 2019
Has you experienced personally a calling on your life by God? If so, share your story with the group. Did God affirm your calling at a point of weakness or a point of strength?
ENGAGE
Read Matthew 26:31-35, 69-75 and John 21:15-22. Discuss Peter’s life and the contrast of 3 denials by Peter and 3 affirmations by Jesus in His discussion with Peter after His resurrection.
Discuss Peter’s question to Jesus about what would happen to the other disciple (John) in comparison to Peter’s life. (Church history tells us that Peter was crucified upside down while John was placed on an island by himself as persecution but lived a longer life than Peter.) Do our callings in life look the same as others in the body of Christ?
APPLY
Discuss these 2 points and how they apply to your life.
1) Our repentance is personal. Psalm 51:4 and 2 Corinthians 7:10
2) God’s grace is personal. 2 Corinthians 12:9.
Worldly repentance says I am sorry only when we get caught in our sin or we make excuses and blame others so that we never truly repent. Spiritual repentance confesses our specific sin to the Lord and to those we have hurt. Where do you need to be specific in reconciliation with God and with others?
PRAY
Pray that the Lord would reveal to you situations in which you need to be truly repentive in a very personal way and help to bring healing in your relationships. And pray that the Lord would reveal His specific calling on your life.