Giving It Up
Lent 2018 Midweek Series Themes
Giving Up Control
Genesis 2:15-17, 3:1-7; Matthew 4:1-11
Adam and Eve disobeyed God, thinking that they knew better than God, with disastrous consequences. While being tempted in the wilderness, Jesus denied his own impulses and followed God's will. In the modern world, where we are used to having control over so many things, we often fail to seek God's will for our lives and try to call all the shots ourselves. Does God call us to deny ourselves and give God the final say when we are charting out the course of our lives?
Giving Up Expectations
Genesis 12:1-4a; John 3:1-17
Abraham followed God's call to leave his homeland and travel to the place God promised his descendants, even though he didn't know how it would all work out. When Nicodemus is talking to Jesus, he has a hard time understanding what God's grace is really about because he is used to thinking in terms of religious structure. Sometimes we just can’t know what’s going on or what’s coming next. God doesn't guarantee any future circumstances or uninterrupted prosperity, but we can trust that God will be with us through whatever circumstances we face and that God will work with us to make the best result out of even the most hopeless of places.
Giving Up Superiority
John 4:5-42
Jesus broke all kinds of social conventions by speaking to a woman in public, a Samaritan no less, whose own life was such a mess that it could have really messed up Jesus' reputation as a holy man. But Jesus brought his message of grace and freedom to the woman, knowing that in her humility, she would actually hear and respond, while the religious people were too busy and self-important to hear. God doesn't care about any of the artificial lines we draw to make ourselves feel superior to others. If we let go of our status symbols and judgmental attitudes, we too can hear Jesus’ call more clearly and respond more faithfully.
Giving Up Enemies
Luke 19:37-44
Loving our enemies can sometimes feel like as idealistic a notion as instantaneous world peace, but Jesus showed us that caring even for those who persecute you is a real, actionable mandate that we can carry out by following Jesus’ example. Peace isn’t just a far-off fantasy. Jesus wept over Jerusalem because the people following him misunderstood his message to be about peace in Heaven instead of on Earth. We call Jesus the Prince of Peace, but do we really believe and live like peace is possible in our world today?
Giving Up Our Lives
Ezekiel 37:1-14; John 11:1-45
God creates life from death, nothingness, and hopelessness. The Bible is full of such paradoxes, as Jesus tells us that those who try to keep their lives will die, but those who give up their lives for others will live. We are used to thinking of life in terms of fixed beginnings and ends, but the story of Jesus calls us to throw away our old categories and embrace God's larger vision of eternal life that begins here and now.
Genesis 2:15-17, 3:1-7; Matthew 4:1-11
Adam and Eve disobeyed God, thinking that they knew better than God, with disastrous consequences. While being tempted in the wilderness, Jesus denied his own impulses and followed God's will. In the modern world, where we are used to having control over so many things, we often fail to seek God's will for our lives and try to call all the shots ourselves. Does God call us to deny ourselves and give God the final say when we are charting out the course of our lives?
Giving Up Expectations
Genesis 12:1-4a; John 3:1-17
Abraham followed God's call to leave his homeland and travel to the place God promised his descendants, even though he didn't know how it would all work out. When Nicodemus is talking to Jesus, he has a hard time understanding what God's grace is really about because he is used to thinking in terms of religious structure. Sometimes we just can’t know what’s going on or what’s coming next. God doesn't guarantee any future circumstances or uninterrupted prosperity, but we can trust that God will be with us through whatever circumstances we face and that God will work with us to make the best result out of even the most hopeless of places.
Giving Up Superiority
John 4:5-42
Jesus broke all kinds of social conventions by speaking to a woman in public, a Samaritan no less, whose own life was such a mess that it could have really messed up Jesus' reputation as a holy man. But Jesus brought his message of grace and freedom to the woman, knowing that in her humility, she would actually hear and respond, while the religious people were too busy and self-important to hear. God doesn't care about any of the artificial lines we draw to make ourselves feel superior to others. If we let go of our status symbols and judgmental attitudes, we too can hear Jesus’ call more clearly and respond more faithfully.
Giving Up Enemies
Luke 19:37-44
Loving our enemies can sometimes feel like as idealistic a notion as instantaneous world peace, but Jesus showed us that caring even for those who persecute you is a real, actionable mandate that we can carry out by following Jesus’ example. Peace isn’t just a far-off fantasy. Jesus wept over Jerusalem because the people following him misunderstood his message to be about peace in Heaven instead of on Earth. We call Jesus the Prince of Peace, but do we really believe and live like peace is possible in our world today?
Giving Up Our Lives
Ezekiel 37:1-14; John 11:1-45
God creates life from death, nothingness, and hopelessness. The Bible is full of such paradoxes, as Jesus tells us that those who try to keep their lives will die, but those who give up their lives for others will live. We are used to thinking of life in terms of fixed beginnings and ends, but the story of Jesus calls us to throw away our old categories and embrace God's larger vision of eternal life that begins here and now.