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Are you a Crown group leader? Then bookmark this page! You'll want to make this a regular stop and stay on top of your role as a group leader. Important Dates - Click on calendar in column on the left ASAP Please collect all of your students Personal Information sheets and mail them to the local Crown office at 2419 "L" Street, Bakersfield, CA 93301 Questions? Call Lucy at 334-0500. Thanks! (See Calendar for all current events) Nugget of the Week (Feel free to copy and paste Nuggets to Word for printing out) (See Following Weeks' Below) Week 1 - Introduction Your group has just begun a journey through 12 weeks of studying God's
word. This will be a precious time for many reasons, two of which
you may make mention of to your group. First, you are going to look into God's Word. Think about the
awesome goodness of God that He would provide us with a way that we
would not only know what we should do to serve Him and please Him, but
that through His Word, we can know Him in ever increasing intimacy.
Think about the blood that has been shed so we may have this book called
the Bible. Above all, there is the most precious blood or our Lord
that secured the truth for us. But also there is the blood of many
of our brothers and sisters who we will meet one day in heaven - the
apostles, the martyrs through the early church years, and even the
founders of these United States who fought for the privilege of
religious freedom in this land. Many have died so we may have
access to the truth that we are about to examine. Second, if we have the Bible but do not examine it carefully, we are
certainly foolish. Acts 17:11 says that the Bereans were more noble
minded because they, "received the word with all eagerness,
examining the scriptures daily to see if these things were so."
They are commended for their eagerness. The Greek word for this eagerness means zeal, inclination, and readiness
of mind. In a nutshell, they were excited and looking forward to
what God had to say. The other key word that described the Bereans'
activity was that they examined the Word. The Greek here denotes an
investigation, scrutinizing and studying the Word carefully.
Encourage your group to be Bereans.
Week 2 -God's Part/Our Part Why is God's part God's part? As we learn
this week about the great statements that God makes in the Bible about
"His part" let's be careful not to reduce God in any way to
having a "part" in our lives or any part of creation. He is not like a "great watchmaker in the
sky", creating the watch, winding it up and then letting it run,
waiting to see when it needs to be repaired. Nor is he in a
contract with us where there are rules for us and rules for Him to live
by. No, this would not be a real God, certainly not the God of the
Bible. Look again at Proverbs 21:1, Isaiah 40:21-24, and Acts
17:26. Our God is in absolute control of all our hearts, people,
and things. Not even one molecule is out of His control. But why is God's part His part? Because He said so. God, and only God, has determined that He will make promises to us because He is good, patient, and full of loving kindness. The result of these promises is certainly for our good but only as a byproduct of His overall purpose-to bring glory to Himself. Look back at this week's memory verse in your Bible if someone has another translation for 1 Chronicles 29:11. The NKJV says, "yours, O Lord, is the greatness, the power and the glory". God is most concerned with His glory because there is none other who is deserving of all praise and glory. Isaiah 42:8 says, "I am the LORD, that is my name; my glory I give to no other". Isaiah 43:7 says, "every one who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made." Isaiah 48:11 says, "For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it, for how should my name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another." His promises are for our good and His glory. Praise Him! Our Part: Can
we get God to do things for us? As you look at some of the verses
this seek, it seems that we may be able to extract from God certain
wishes that we may have by doing "our part". Is it true?
If we look at 1 Corinthians 3:14, it seems clear that rewards are
promised for doing good work in God's kingdom. If that is the
case, it should lead us to stand on that promise and claim it in our
lives. However, think carefully as you claim it. First, what is your heart motive for doing good works?
God sees our hearts and He knows if we are doing the work to please
people (sin), or for His glory (reward). Second, rewards and riches promised in the Bible are
not necessarily the rewards and riches of the world. In fact,
God's perspective is that the greatest rewards and riches are found in a
closer, more intimate walk with Christ. Scripture tells us that we
get closer to Christ as He molds and shapes us, most often through pain
and suffering. So true riches may come through the doorway of
suffering? Yes. Third, if you look up to the tenth verse in this
passage you will see that Paul says that the building that he has done
has been as a result of the grace that God has given him. In other
words, Paul realizes that he must give all the credit and glory to God
for what Paul has done. In Phillippians 2:13, Paul writes "it
is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good
pleasure." That is precisely why we read in Revelation 4:10
that the elders cast their crowns down before the lamb because He alone
is worthy to receive glory, power and honor. So, when you look at the rewards that God promises in
the Bible, remember that His ways are higher than ours, His thoughts,
higher than ours, and He calls us to serve Him, to run the race, or to
build the building, with pure hearts. Hearts that are not giving to get
back, but are giving so the name of Jesus Christ will be exalted.
And out of those works that are built through Jesus, on Jesus, and for
Jesus, He will greatly reward us in ways that are perfectly good for us. Week 3 - Debt Is there an exception to not cosigning when it comes to our children?
Surely you will hear this in your group this week. Scripture
clearly teaches that you should not cosign and the language is very
strong as it describes a situation that is dangerous, threatening, and
one that you should urgently get away from if we are already ensnared. But is that true with our children? Several points that you may
want to share with your group: 1) The language says not to cosign for a friend. Biblically
speaking, a friend is someone who you have a relationship with that is
more than an acquaintance. The Hebrew word used here can mean
friend, neighbor, brother or husband! Therefore, children may
apply here. 2) Someone in your group may say that they feel this is how they
help their children, or how they show their love for their children.
Quite to the contrary, they may be doing their children and themselves
great harm. These are great teachable moments for parents and
their children. Is this not a time where the parents can teach
about contentment? What about waiting on God to provide the money
for that car through savings over time? Does God not know that the
child needs a car? Of course He does. Will He provide it in
His way and timing? Yes. Cosigning teaches the child that if
he doesn't have the money to get what he wants in life, it's okay to go
into debt and get another to cosign for him. If you want to help
the child, consider giving him the money. 3) Someone may say that it's okay to cosign if you want to help
someone and you go into the agreement expecting that you will wind up
paying the debt, and that you have the money right now to pay it.
In addition to missing the opportunity to teach a person about God's
ways as explained above, there are two problems with this justification
for cosigning. First, cosigning with with the understanding that
you are going to pay the debt is no different than you going into debt.
It's wrong. Second, there is an assumption here that you will have
the money to pay the debt when the person defaults in the future because
you have the money today. No one knows if they will have anything
that they have today 3 years from now, much less know if they will even
be alive. Can you imagine a spouse having to deal with a cosigning
situation gone bad after a death? Our lives are but a vapor (James
4:14) and that's exactly why Proverbs 22:27 says that your bed may be
taken away from you if you (or a surviving spouse) have nothing to pay
with. There may be exceptions but they would have to be carefully held up to
God's Word and prayer. Counsel- maybe the most underused gift that Christians
have from God. Why? Several reasons that you may want to
consider with your group. 1) Christians don't fully understand the value of
wisdom. God commends Solomon in 2 Chronicles 1:11 "Because
this was in your heart, and you have not asked possessions, wealth,
honor, or the life of those who hate you, and have not even asked long
life, but have asked wisdom and knowledge for yourself that you may rule
my people over whom I have made you king"). Why is wisdom
valuable? Because when God's people are wise they lead lives that
are pleasing to Him, enjoy His blessings, and bring Him glory.
Proverbs is loaded with passages that tell us how precious wisdom is
(Proverbs 4:5-9 speaks of wisdom as a woman). 2) Christians don't fully understand God's plan
for the body of Christ to be working together. 1 Cor. 12:27 says,
"Now your are the body of Christ and individually members of
it." In God's incredible plan for the 3) Christians don't trust other Christians with
personal information. It is painfully true that many Christians
have proven to be untrustworthy and have gossiped behind the backs of
others. Please encourage your group to think how gossip has
damaged the plan of God for His people to share their hearts with one
another and receive counsel. 4) Christians don't want to hear the truth when
it may go against what they have already decided to do. Deep down
inside we may avoid counsel if it's going to ruin "our plans"
(as opposed to finding out God's plan). Also, we must avoid
playing the game of doing things God's way by getting counsel only to
reject the counsel we get. 5) Pride. Some call this the mother of all sins. Pride tells us that we don't need anyone else's counsel. Just asking for it acknowledges the fact that we are not totally self-sufficient. Ask your group members if they feel self-sufficient Week 5 - Honesty To husbands and wives: Have you been honest with your spouse about
money in your household" Let this one passage sink in:
Genesis 2:24 says, "Therefore a man leaves his father and his
mother and cleaves to his wife, and they become one flesh."
One flesh - living and loving as one, ministering to others as one,
raising children as one, and yes, being good stewards of God's money as
one. There is nothing financial that should be kept from one
another and there is no reason in God's eyes for separate accounts.
If a couple needs to have anything separate of hidden from each other,
there are problems that need to be addressed in the hearts of the
couple. The answer is not separating "stuff". God says that you are "one" so be one. Be honest with
each other and yourselves. Confess your past dishonesty to God and
one another, and get "together" financially. God will
give you the strength to work through it. To singles and couples: What was that loan for anyway? Does
it matter? We have already learned that that debt is bondage and
something that we should avoid. However there may be some loans
that are "investments"such as a loan for an education or a
mortgage on a home. When the money is made available,
how important is it that you use it for the lender's intended purpose? Examples: A college student gets a student loan and uses some of
it for books and some of it for a car. Is that dishonest?
Who will know and what does it matter? God knows - there is nothing hidden from His sight. Furthermore,
the lender has agreed to lend you the money based in part on a decision
that you would use it for the stated, intended purpose and you signed
documents attesting to that fact when your signed the loan papers. Ask the group if they need to get right with any creditors where
they have used the loan for things other than what the lender intended
the money for. Week 6 - Giving Before class begins, tell the students that you have a wonderful giving
opportunity that you would like to tell them about. Then without
sharing the opportunity, ask them what their first thoughts were when
they heard what you said. Their first thoughts may reveal to themselves where their heart is for
giving. Were they looking forward to what you were going to share
or were they shrinking back thinking what this opportunity might cost
them? God graciously involves us in the process of working out His kingdom
plan. The opportunity to take part in redistributing God's assets
by giving is a great privilege. Think of how God shares the
gospel. God could write t on the sky for all to see but instead
uses us to share the good news and blesses us tremendously as we do it.
So it is with God's assets - and we are blessed as we bless others by
giving. This week's scripture passages also promise us joy as we
give and even identifies Jesus Himself with the ones that we give to
(Matt 25:35-45). So then, with all of that truth set before us,
who in the group is scrutinizing their lifestyle and their budget so
they will be in a position to give more? Week 7 - Work Work, food and sleep are blessings from God. However, each one of
them we can turn into curses in our lives - harming our bodies our
families, and our relationship with God. Usually this comes by
overindulgence or subtle idolatry as we seek to find happiness,
temporary pleasure, or escape in these things. You may want to ask your group about what their job means to them in
their lives. How many hours are they spending at the job?
How much work are they bringing home? How often are they thinking
about the job when they are away from the it? Do they have trouble
getting to sleep at night because they are thinking about the job?
Do they have patience and love for their spouse and kids when they get
home or are they on empty? The answers to these questions may reveal an unhealthy balance regarding
work. It may also be the surface of a deeper problem. Do
they feel important on the job? Do they get their
"strokes" on the job? Is that where they "get paid
attention to?". If so, they are finding their fulfillment in
the wrong place - it should be in Jesus Christ. In addition, if so
much of their energy and emotion are devoted to the workplace, marriage
and children will ultimately suffer. Encourage your group to pray about where their hearts are at in relation
to their work - a gift but not an idol from God. Week 8 - Investing We Christians, still a work in progress, can take very clear Biblical
principles and twist them to fit our own desires. Case in
point is gambling and lotteries of any kind. Some Christians will
try to justify gambling by telling themselves that they will give money
to God's kingdom if they win. Please see that gambling and
lotteries are some of the most destructive things in our culture.
Flee from them. What follows is the January 1999 letter from Focus
on the Family. Click on the link below. You are free to
reprint it in it's entirety. http://www.family.org/docstudy/newsletters/a0004166.html The American Dream: two homes (vacation and regular), two cars,
two kids, too skinny bodies, two mutual funds (one current and one for
retirement), two sports hobbies (him and her) and two good local
restaurants. It used to be a little simpler. But what does
God have to say about all this? No, God does not speak against pleasure as long as He has our hearts.
But there are two (yes two) words that jump out at us from this week's
lesson: need and contentment. We may be coming to a point in
our society where we have lost the true meaning of the word
"need". Do we "need" a newer car? Do we really
"need" the size house we are living in: Do we
"need" that expensive watch? All that jewelry? All
of those clothes? We may have become a nation of experts at justifying our
"need" to have more. Sure the car that is just out of
warranty may break down and we don't want that expense of having of fix
it. Yes, that large home is "needed" for when we
have people come and stay with us, we may even need it for Bible
studies! Of course we "need" that watch, jewelry and
clothes because we have to look professional. Besides, I tithe and
even give extra in the offering plate so it's ok if I have more. Ask your group to prayerfully consider if they think that they need
more, have enough, or even have too much. Are they content where
God has them materially? It is no coincidence that the greatest draw to the American heart is
larger homes and more expensive cars - the very things that bring the
greatest debt and have the greatest effect on your freedom to serve
Christ and the church. "Why is God so unfair?" This is a thought that the
non-believer uses as a reason not to come to Christ. He says,
"God cannot be good if He lets innocent people die or if He doesn't
do something to stop horrible criminals." This is a thought
that the Christian should never cross his mind but it does. Even
Jeremiah questions God's fairness and justice when he asked why the
wicked prosper
(Jer. 12:1-2). Is God unfair? Absolutely not! The problem is not with God being unfair, it's with us either being
ignorant of what the Bible says or knowing it intellectually and not
believing it. Boil it all down for the believer or the
non-believer and it's unbelief. God clearly states over and over
in His Bible passages like Psalm 73:16, "But when I thought how to
understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task, until I went into the
sanctuary of God; then I perceived their end. Truly thou dost set
them in slippery places; thou dost make them fall to ruin. How
they are destroyed in a moment, swept away utterly by terrors!" God has promised to take vengeance but in His timing, not ours.
His timing is perfect. Also, we should rejoice that He does not
give us what we deserve. Don't forget, all of us who name the name
of Christ were plucked from the destination of eternal fire not because
we deserved it, but because of His grace- His unmerited, undeserved
favor shown to us. Ephesians 2:1-9 says, "And you he made alive, when you were dead
through the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the
course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the
spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience. Among
these we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, following the
desires of body and mind, and so we were by nature children of wrath,
like the rest of mankind. But God, who is rich in mercy, out of
the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead through
our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have
been saved), and raised us up with him, and made us sit with him in the
heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the coming ages he might show
the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ
Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is
not your own doing, it is the gift of God- not because of works, lest
any man should boast." When you find yourself questioning God's fairness towards the wicked, allowing them to prosper while your are not, remember their eternal destination. Remember that it was once your destination too, and praise God that only He knows when to show mercy and when to show wrath, and that He showed you mercy and Jesus the wrath that you and I deserved. Hallelujah!
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