April 7, 2024
Included | Romans 11:25-36
Israel And Us
All along, we’ve been saying that God’s heart is to see us INCLUDED. That’s why Jesus came, and that’s the subject of Paul’s letter to the Romans. At times, Christians forget God’s radical inclusion of them and go back to the old patterns of competing and comparing. Sadly, that was happening in the Roman Church. Paul has one powerful dose for that sickness.
Songs for this week: Spotify
- When did you last encounter a division within a social group, workplace, school, or even at church? How did you navigate the situation?
- Through Jesus, God brought together Jews and Gentiles in a partnership that no one could have imagined. Have you ever witnessed or experienced an ‘impossible’ reconciliation? Tell that story.
- Conceit causes division. Describe the ways that conceit raises its head on both the offending and offended side of a division.
- Use words and even stories to define God’s mercy. What does God’s mercy look like in your life? Do your best to avoid churchy language when telling your story.
- Paul marvels that mercy, not meanness or might, is at the core of God’s wisdom and knowledge. End your time as a group in prayer grateful for God’s mercy to all - especially those who call on his name.
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Recent Sermons
Exodus 33:12-23 - The book of Exodus unfolds the growing friendship between God and Moses, one conversation at a time. Moses’ honest exchange with God is a picture of how we can talk with God, too.
Exodus 19:3-8 -God is seeking a community to join Him in His mission to bless and save the world. Israel was out of Egypt, where their purpose had been clear: make bricks! What was their purpose now? At the foot of Mount Sinai, before they take another step, God has a proposal.
Exodus 16:2-16 - The story of our roots continues. As the drama fades into daily routine, the real questions begin—Can we trust God for what we need each day? How much control do we really have?
Exodus 14:5-13 -The story of God’s rescue is not without drama! God’s people left Egypt only to come against a new opponent, the Red Sea! They were trapped between an angry Pharaoh and, at least as bad, an angry Sea. They cried out, expressed their terror, and God made a way. Of course, it did involve them moving their
Exodus 12:1-14 - The story of Exodus is the story of Jesus. The God we get to know in Exodus is the God who comes to us in the person of Jesus: a God who judges, who saves, and who renews.
Exodus 3:1-14 - The rescue begins. God looks for a person to lead the way—not someone perfect, but someone willing. In Exodus, God calls Moses through a burning bush and rekindles a relationship that had been years in the making.
