The Upside Of Uncertainty

 

Sermon Notes

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.
- Phillipians 4:8

The Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend.
- Exodus 33:11

And the Lord said to Moses, “I will do the very thing you have asked, because I am pleased with you and I know you by name.”
- Exodus 33:17

Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory.
- Exodus 33:18

And the Lord said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the Lord, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.”
- Exodus 33:19-20

When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.
- Genesis 3:6-7

Then the Lord said, “There is a place near me where you may stand on a rock. When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will remove my hand and you will see my back; but my face must not be seen.”
- Exodus 33:21-23

It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; to search out a matter is the glory of kings.
- Proverbs 25:2

I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Guess what, because of Jesus, we are invited to know the masters business! Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. This is my command: Love each other.
- John 15:15-17

Table Group Resources

Mixer

What are you most excited about in this Fall season of Table Groups?

‘Neighborly’ - Daily Devotional

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  1. In the 9/13/22 entry, As Yourself!, Pastor Harry challenges us with the premise: The face we show to ourselves is the face we show to the world. Is it possible to love others well if we don’t love ourselves? Could you be faking it? If you were to build yourself up and love yourself more, what would your outward face look like? And what one relationship could you think of that would improve if you did the introspective build up first?

  2. In the 9/17/22 entry, Brothers and Sisters, Pam reminds us that we can have the mindset of Christ. And there are two other points to making this possible: letting Jesus continue the good work in us, and, working it out. What is the good work that Jesus is doing in you? Reflect on this and make a list. Then, consider that not only do we surrender to this good work, but we also have a participatory role: working it out. How will you get the two concepts to work together this week?

Sermon Questions

Scriptures: Philippians 4:8; Exodus 33:11, 20, 22; Gen 3:6-7; Proverbs 25:2; John 15:15-17

  1. What impacted or challenged you in today’s message?

  2. Share a time when you had desperately asked God for answers and He didn’t give them. How did that impact your relationship with God? Are you trusting in a God that does what you want, or a God that desires for you to seek out the mysteries of Him?

  3. What are you doing now to seek out the mysteries of God while sitting in the uncertainty of your day-to-day asks of Him?

  4. Josh gave us two ways to interact with God in uncertain times: Remember His goodness and remember who He has been in the past for you. How do you implement this individually, and as a family?

  5. Read Philippians 4:8. Josh said that the key to dealing with uncertainty is to reframe your situation. The Apostle Paul gives us a list to help our thinking and return our focus to God. For each of these words, craft a statement of how these words could reframe your situation:

    True - (ex: God has not left me. He is up to something.) Honorable -
    Right -
    Pure -
    Lovely - Admirable -

  6. If Josh hadn’t gone to Boardroom, he would have missed out on what God was doing in that room. What mysteries are you not discovering because uncertainty keeps you from seeking Him out?

Pray

Pray Philippians 4:8 over yourself and your family this week:

And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing.
Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable.
Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.

Philippians 4:8