Luke 5

• Luke 5:5 – Peter had the wisdom and knowledge to defer to Jesus’ authority.
• Luke 5:11 – These men immediately left their entire livelihood behind to follow Jesus, apparently including the enormous catch of fish they had just hauled in.
• Luke 5:13 – Jesus didn’t rebuke the man or turn away. Instead, He had compassion and healed the man.
• Luke 5:16 – Even though Jesus was incredibly busy, He took time to pray.
• Luke 5:29 – Levi (Matthew) was clearly a wealthy man based on the reception he gave. This would have been quite expensive.

Introduction

• What does it mean to be called a worshiper of God?
• John 4:7-24

Good worship comes from sincere emotion (but not emotionalism).

• Jeremiah 20:9 – Worship should be like this – we can’t NOT worship.
• Luke 17:15-16
• Romans 1:20

God is the center.

• Matthew 14:32-33 – They worship after seeing Jesus walk on water.
• Matthew 28:8
• Luke 24:50-53 – They worship after Jesus ascended to heaven.
• John 9:35
• Our worship is to God.
• We also edify each other.
• Matthew 4:10
• Revelation 22:8-9
• Colossians 3:16
• My heart and mind need to be fervently connected because we know who is on the receiving end of our worship.
• Hebrews 9:11-12
• Hebrews 10:12

God wants my whole life, not just a few hours a week.

• Malachi 2:13-14
• Romans 1:25-31
• Matthew 15:9

[Due to technical difficulties, the first few minutes of this class were not recorded. Sorry about that! -MRW]

Love unconditionally. It’s a decision, not a reaction.

• Matthew 22:39 – “as yourself”
• Matthew 5:43-48 – “love your enemies”
  • We should treat our spouse at least as good as an enemy!
• Matthew 7:12 – “the same way you want them to treat you”
• Ephesians 5:28-30, 33 – “as their own bodies … himself … his own flesh … himself”
• Ephesians 5:22 – “as to the Lord”
• Ephesians 5:25-27 – “just as Christ also loved the church”
  • Don’t keep score.
    • “If you find yourself keeping score about some issue with your spouse, that suggests it’s an area of tension in your marriage.” (Gottman and Silver 2015, p. 33)
• Genesis 1:27 – “in the image of God”
• I Peter 3:7 – “fellow heir of the grace of life”
• Titus 2:3-4 – “encourage the young women to love their husbands”

Build up the balance in your “Love Bank.”

• Luke 6:27-28 – “love … do good … bless … pray for”
• Romans 13:8-10 – “Love does no wrong”
• Proverbs 31:10-12 – “She does him good and not evil”
• Romans 12:10 – “Outdo one another in showing honor”
• Ephesians 4:31-32 – “bitterness …” vs. “Be kind …”
  • The magic ratio is 5:1 positive to negative interactions. Successful couples manage this even in conflict. When not in conflict, successful couples have a ratio closer to 20:1.
• Proverbs 31:28-31 – “Her husband … praises her”
• David and Michal’s marriage deteriorates
  • I Samuel 18:20 – She loved him.
  • I Samuel 18:27-28 – They get married. She still loves him.
  • I Samuel 19:11-12 – She even helps David escape her father’s wrath.
  • She’s later given to another man, then David reclaims her.
  • II Samuel 6:15-16, 20-23 – She views David with contempt.

Luke 4

• Luke 4:1 – This phrase “full of the Holy Spirit” is used several times in the Bible referring to different people. It is not entirely clear what it means in this case. Possibly it means Jesus had the ability to work miracles or was now fully aware of God’s will.
• Luke 4:2 – Jesus had to be given the opportunity to decide against God or it would not mean anything if He was sinless.
• Luke 4:3 – It’s possible Jesus did not want to submit to Satan in any way, even if the act itself would not have been sinful.
• Luke 4:4 – See Deuteronomy 8:3.
• Luke 4:8 – Jesus is quoting Deuteronomy 6:13.
• Luke 4:5-7 – Why was this a temptation to Jesus? Was Satan offering him the souls of all these people?
• Luke 4:12 – Jesus is quoting Deuteronomy 6:16.
• Luke 4:13 – Satan just left for a time. He didn’t quit. If he didn’t quit trying to tempt Jesus, he certainly won’t stop trying to tempt us either.
• Luke 4:18-19 – Jesus is reading Isaiah 61:1-2.
• Luke 4:30 – This was surely miraculous. How could they lose track of the man they were actively trying to kill?
• Luke 4:35 – Jesus had previously refused to work a miracle, yet here he immediately acts with power. Jesus surely knew how the different crowds would react when He demonstrated His power.

Takeaways

• Satan knows how to tempt us.
• We can use biblical principles to resist temptation.
• We should seek God’s will and do it.

Introduction

• Philippians 4:6
• Being deliberate in your gratitude can be a huge benefit to you.

You can be thankful even in bad situations.

• Daniel 1:1; 2:17-23 – Daniel gave thanks and praise.
  • Jonah on the other hand had a terrible attitude.
  • The Israelites wanted to go back to Egypt after witnessing God’s miracles.
• Job 1:20-22 – Job was suffering terribly, but he praised God.
• Luke 17:11-19 – One of the ten lepers returned to thank Jesus for healing him.
• Habakkuk 3:18
• No matter how bad my day is, there is something to be thankful for. I see what I am looking for.

You can be thankful even when plans don’t work out.

• II Samuel 7:1-29 – God did not allow David to go forward with his plans for the temple, but David showed gratitude.

You can be thankful even when you don’t think you need to be.

• Mark 8:6 – Jesus gave thanks for the loaves.
• John 6:11 – Jesus gave thanks!
• John 11:41-43 – Jesus thanked the Father for hearing his prayer.
• Luke 22:19 – Jesus gave thanks for the Passover meal.
• Why would Jesus thank the Father?