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Notes
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Music
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Pastor Valerie referred to the song "War Cry" by Micah Stampley during her message. You can purchase this song through the following links:
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Discussion Questions / Topics (based on the indicated scriptures)
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Philippians 1:27-30 (NLT); Philippians 2:25 (NTL); John 17:22-23 (NTL)
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Philippians 1:27-30 (NLT)
“But whatever happens to me, you must live in a manner worthy of the Good News about Christ, as citizens of heaven. Then, whether I come and see you again or only hear about you, I will know that you are standing side by side, fighting together for the Good News”.
Philippians 2:25 (NTL)
Meanwhile, I thought I should send Epaphroditus back to you. He is a true brother, co-worker, and fellow soldier.
John 17:22-23 (NTL)
“I have given them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one. I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me.”
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Discussion Questions
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Do you see your brothers and sisters as fellow workers and fellow soldiers in the Kingdom?
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What are some of the things taking place that hinder unity in the body?
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What are you committed to do or not do to promote unity in the body?
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Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.
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As Christians, we are to be actively engaged in the spiritual battle to defeat the work of the devil. In preparation, we are to put on the full armor of God so that we can overcome the attacks of the devil.
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Have you been diligently arming yourself against the enemy? How can your Life group help you in your battle against the enemy?
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Our defensive weapon is the shield of faith. Our offensive weapon is the sword of the spirit, which is the word of God. Explore how these particular weapons serve us in the battle to defeat the devil and to advance the Kingdom of Heaven.
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Pray that words will be given to each of us to fearlessly make known the mysteries of the gospel and that we may declare it fearlessly.
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Witnessing Activities
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Discuss with your life group and pray for the following people:
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Guests of yours who have already visited Life Church and how they felt about the experience.
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People you plan to invite to church.
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Scriptures For 06/28/2009 Life Church Sermon
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Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to win their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.
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God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground."
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Jesus said to them, "My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working."
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He who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work.
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We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one.
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From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it.
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Philippians 1:27-30 (NLT)
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“But whatever happens to me, you must live in a manner worthy of the Good News about Christ, as citizens of heaven. Then, whether I come and see you again or only hear about you, I will know that you are standing side by side, fighting together for the Good News”.
|
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Meanwhile, I thought I should send Epaphroditus back to you. He is a true brother, co-worker, and fellow soldier.
|
|
|
|
|
“I have given them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one. I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me.”
|
|
|
|
|
Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.
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Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION (NIV) Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers.
Here, for your convenience, are the Bible passages that we will be using in today's sermon at Life Church. We use the New International Version (NIV) of the Bible so that you can read it in modern English. You may have been accustomed to reading or hearing the King James Version of the Bible, which uses older English (with words like "thee" , "thou", "thine", "believeth", etc.). If so, don't be alarmed - the passages below are really from the Bible even though they are in modern English.
The Bible was originally written in three ancient languages: Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. None of the people in the Bible, and none of the people who God used to write it spoke English. In fact, English did not even exist as a language when the Bible was written. The King James Version, first published in 1611, was a translation of the Bible from it's original languages into the every day English that people used back then - almost 400 years ago! They didn't just speak that way in church - they spoke that way with everyone. English has certainly changed a lot since then! Since you probably don't speak Hebrew, Aramaic, or Greek, you're going to have to read the Bible in translated form. At Life Church we believe that since you're going to read an English translation of the Bible you might as well use an up to date one - written in the English you speak every day. God wants you to understand his Word so that you can put it into practice!
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Thank you for joining us! You can listen to our sermons and view our other resources at our web site:
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