Introduction

• Micah 6:8
• The group at Benchley has changed greatly over the years, but we are called to walk humbly with God. How do we do this with a more heterogeneous group?
• When we have different interpretations of scripture, differing unstandings of God’s will, the baseline is always the scripture.

The unity God wants among His children

• I Peter 3:8-12
• Philippians 1:27; 2:2-4
• Ephesians 4:1-6
• John 14, 15, 17
  • Our unity and disunity tells the world something about God and Christ.
  • John 17:11, 22-23
  • We cannot sacrifice truth for the sake of unity.

Handling conflicting convictions

Acts 15

• Conflicting convictions
  • Must keep Law of Moses; must be circumcised vs. No need for these under the new covenant in Christ
• What did they do?
  • Acts 15:2 - Paul and Barnabas have “great dissension and debate” with them.
  • Acts 15:6 - In Jerusalem, apostles and elders coome together to look into the matter.
  • Acts 15:7-11 - Paul presents evidence and arguments.
  • Acts 15:12 - Barnabas and Paul speak of what God had done through them.
  • Acts 15:13-21 - James reasons from scripture.
  • Acts 15:19 - James: “Therefore it is my judgment that …”
  • Acts 15:22 - “Then it seemed good to the apostles and the elders, with the whole church to …”

Romans 14:1-15:7

• Romans 14:3-4 - Don’t be focused on making distinctions about who belongs to God.
• Romans 14:10-13 - Ultimately, God is the judge. Focus on your own accountability.
• Romans 14:13, 19; 15:1-2 - Focus on promoting peace and building others up in following Christ.
• Romans 14:16-21 - Be willing to sacrifice your liberty (right) for the good of others
• Romans 14:5, 22-23 - Operate within your understanding of God’s will and your conscience
• Romans 14:22; 15:5-7 - Humbly walk with God

I Corinthians 8-10

• I Corinthians 8:1-2; 9:19-23; 10:23-24 - Focus on the good of others. Do what is best for them.
• I Corinthians 8:9-10; 10:28-33 - Pay attention to the influence your practice of your faith has on others.
• I Corinthians 8:13; 9:15, 18 - Be willing to sacrifice your liberty (right) for the good of others
• I Corinthians 9:24-27 - Act with the end in mind: receiving God’s reward TOGETHER

Apollos, Aquila, and Priscilla (Acts 18:24-28)

• Aquila and Priscilla - take Apollos aside privately to teach him.
• Apollos - Open to teaching from others

Conclusion

• When we have differing interpretations of scritpure, differing understandings of God’s will
  • We never surrender the pursuit of truth, the pursuit of God’s will.
  • We conduct that pursuit with humility.
  • Recognizing that our understanding is imperfect, that God is gracious and patient and we must be also, and God expects His children to be unified as they walk with Him.

I Samuel 8 - Israel demands a king

I Samuel 8:1-5

• Samuel’s sons become judges
• But their corruption leads to the people rejecting them
• The people demand a king
• Judges 2:16 - God raises up the judges
• Deuteronomy 16:18-20 - appointment of judges
  • They shall …
    • use just judgment
    • shall not pervert justice
    • shall not take a bribe

I Samuel 8:4-7

• Elders of Israel come to Samuel - give us a king
• Samuel feels insulted, like they are rejecting his leadership
• God tells him, they are rejecting me and not you
• I Samuel 4:5-8
• I Samuel 6:5-6 - The Philistines knew God ruled over Israel and they feared Him.
• Was this part of God’s plan all along?
  • Deuteronomy 17:14-20 - written about 400 years before I Samuel 8.
    • Principles governing kings of Israel:
      • God will choose
      • He shall not do business with Egypt
      • He shall not take multiple wives
      • He shall not be greedy
      • Write his own copy of the law, and he shall read it
      • He shall not think of himself as better than the people

I Samuel 9 - Saul chosen to be king

Who is Saul?

• Tribe of Benjamin
  • Genesis 49:27 - ravenous wolf
  • Judges 19-21 - civil war
  • Paul also came out of the tribe of Benjamin
• Young, handsome, taller than everyone

Humility of Saul

• I Samuel 9:6-7
• I Samuel 9:19-21
• I Samuel 10:20-22 - Saul hid when it was time for him to be anointed.

I Samuel 10 - Saul anointed as king

• I Samuel 10:25-27 - Some rebels were not happy with God’s choice of king.
  • Even with God making the best possible decision, some people will be unhappy.

Introduction

• Ephesians 5:15-17

Be a good evaluator.

• Proverbs 14:16
• Proverbs 6:18
• Proverbs 14:12-13
• Proverbs 22:3
• Acts 17:11 - The Bereans were good evaluators! Don’t believe everything you hear from preachers or anyone else.
• Colossians 2:8

Build the strongest faith you’ve ever had.

• Timothy: II Timothy 1:5; 3:14
  • Timothy was raised knowing God and the scriptures.
• Josiah: II Chronicles 33:1-2, 21-24; 34:1-3
  • Josiah’s father and grandfather did evil in God’s eyes, but Josiah built his own faith.
• It is up to you to develop your own faith, regardless of your upbringing.

Develop joy in Christ!

• Galatians 5:22
• Philippians 1:3, 18, 25; 2:2, 17-18, 28; 3:1; 4:1, 4, 10 - Paul wrote about joy while he was sitting in prison!
• Christians should have joy and a lasting contentment.
• Be a good identifier in recognizing your blessings!
• John 15:11
• Don’t aim to make college the four happiest years of your life. Aim to make it the time when you discover true joy in Christ.

When do you have a local church action? (continued)

Church action occurs when the members purpose to act together in Christ. (continued)

• Acts 4:32-5:4

• John 12:6 - “Can you pilfer your own money? No. It belonged to the group.
• Matthew 18:15-17

• Philippians 2:25, 30; 4:14-18
  • John 4:1-2 - Jesus was “baptizing” (v1), but it was actually His disciples who were doing the baptizing.
• I Corinthians 11:17
• Philippians 1:27 - Great summary of what a local church ought to be.

Local churches are authorized to provide for the preaching of the gospel.

• Overview of New Testament passages
  • Acts 11:21-23 - “they sent Barnabas”
  • Acts 13:1-3 - “teachers … they sent them”
  • Acts 14:26-28 - “commended … they began to report”
  • Acts 15:1-3 - “sent on their way by the church”
  • I Corinthians 9:1-18 - “get their living from the gospel”
    • See Acts 18:1-5; Nehemiah 13:10-14
  • I Corinthians 14 - “for edification”
  • II Corinthians 11:7-9 - “I robbed other churches”
  • Philippians 1:3-5; 4:14-18 - “participation in the gospel”
  • I Thessalonians 1:6-10 - “sounded forth from you”

Introduction

• Psalms 119:1-12

The heart

• Ancient civilizations believed the human heart was the repository of thoughts, consciousness, and the soul.
• There are two words in Hebrew that are translated heart:
  • Lev
  • Levav
• The Greek word translated as heart:
  • Kardia
• Heart is used around 1,000 times in the Bible.

The Bible uses a similar pattern of language when talking about the heart.

• The heart:
  • Thinks - Hebrews 4:12
  • Believes - Romans 10:8-10
  • Disbelieves - Hebrews 3:12
  • Purposes - Daniel 1:8
  • Obeys - Romans 6:17
  • Loves - Deuteronomy 6:5

Dr. Alkhouli:

“The good news is that what’s good for your mind is often good for your heart, and vice versa.”

• That includes:
  • Managing stress
  • Staying socially connected
  • Practicing mindfulness or prayer

Managing stress

• Proverbs 17:22
• Matthew 11:28-30
• Psalms 119:2
• Proverbs 3:1-2

Social interaction

• Colossians 3:7
• Hebrews 10:24-25

Prayer/mindfulness

• Philippians 4:4

Admonition and hope

• II Timothy 2:2
• Acts 8:21-22
• Matthew 15:8
• Deuteronomy 30:17-18
• Psalms 119:9-10
• Psalms 51:10
• I Peter 5:6-8