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Where are you on the GRID?
WHEN: October 13-15, 2006
WHERE: Ashford, CT
THEME: Jesus the King
WHAT: a chance to...
- Get connected with the vision and mission of CHC/AIA
- Connect with people.
- Connect with God.
- Have fun!!!
Seeing the King:
David and Mephibosheth
I. Introduction
A. Mephibosheth in need; destitute, crippled, hunted. What could salvage his life? Overcome the king, ignore/evade until caught or dies alone. He has no hope.
B. A picture of Israel, a picture of us. Illustration: obsession with the Presidency.
C. Two insecurities (rebellion against king, cut of from king’s goodness), two futile solutions (every man a king, a king like other nations)
II. Solution #1: Every Man a King
A. Intro to Israel’s situation in Judges
B. Promised King in Deuteronomy 17:14-20
1. What does “messiah” mean?
III. Solution #2: A King Like Other Nations
A. 1 Samuel 8
B. Wrong need
1. Wanting autonomy, do it my own way
2. Wanting a leader who will keep peace, bring prosperity
C. Wrong solution
1. New leader addresses only external problems
2. Internal problems remain: every man does what is right in his own eyes
D. The Wrong King Rules (all of our seeking goes wrong)
1. Defeated the enemies
2. Continued to rebel against God
3. Exploited the people
4. Cf. Nazi Germany, U.S. post 9/11
5. We want the wrong things in a leader, our desire is self-serving (still every man a king).
Ill. Social Contract
E. Luke 13:1-5 “Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”
IV. Real Solution: A King Who Loves
A. God raises up David
1. Intense respect for God, even when Saul falls into David’s hands.
2. God makes a covenant with him for his offspring.
3. David enjoys total supremacy.
B. Loyal love, the covenant with Jonathan. Personal, not general, love.
C. Read 2 Samuel 9
1. David seeks out and blesses Mephibosheth
2. Mephibosheth simply accepts.
3. Contrast with Ammonites in ch. 10.
V. Conclusion
A. Messiah-hunger: David ultimately fails (Bathsheba). The nation fails (exile). But he awakens the need, gives a glimpse of Messiah.
1. You need a king to rule you
2. You need a king to love you
B. Questions to Consider
1. How do I respond to the demands of Christ as king? Do I resent Him, want to depose Him? Do I try to find leverage to bargain with Him? Do I ignore Him until I am driven by need into a substitute?
Worshiping the King:
Suffering Service
I. Introduction
A. “Those haunted by their own solitude, distracted by their own sense of fragmentation, hurt by the absence of enduring friendships, of connections to place and family, their sense of being impotent to change so much that affects them, are often driven to the pursuit of affluence, in the hope that what is consumed might offer some solace for these wounds.” (Wells, 44-45)
B. Superman mythology; Smallville emphasizes fragmented lives, secrets kept, desire for intimacy, insecurity that drives ambition.
II. Relational Rot Shows the Need
A. One bad relationship deserves another
1. Fatherless girl, boy
2. Relational manipulation, isolation
B. Satisfaction by proxie (fount vs. cisterns). Sinful action reveals internal heart issues
III. Mephibosheth’s Insecurities (2 insecurities, one solution)
A. Wrath of the King
1. Relational issue (just a little adultery? She didn’t mean anything to me!) Not just the violation of a law, but personal offence, provokes anger. A husband doesn’t wife to court and say, “Here is how she broke the law,” –he’s angry! Strange if the man had no personal stake in his wife’s adultery? What kind of person is he?
2. Sinful actions, attitude, nature. (Paul & coveting, rich young ruler)
3. Size does not matter; small actions show great offense (30 pieces of silver vs. stealing a coke)
B. Goodness of the King
1. We are cut off from the goodness that comes from God. Rebellion destroys access to governmental benefits (Minority Report)
2. Jeremiah 2:13-14. Nature of sin, refusal of good linked to rebellion and offense.
C. Objections to Punishing Sin
1. Can’t God just forget about it? The nature of forgiveness requires that someone bear the cost
2. I hate an angry God! Without an angry God, there is neither justice nor mercy. All is just power play (Racist vs. anti-racist, just preference)
IV. The King’s Bounty
A. The Big Picture Story Bible teaches, “When it was time for Jesus to become king…”
1. Matthew 21 Triumphal entry of the king
2. Unusual conquest; he teaches, does not rule… yet
B. Kingship through Death
1. Romans 5: Peace with God, death for the ungodly
2. Isaiah 52:13-Isaiah 53. Willed by God, bearing sin, subsitutionary atonement
C. Saved through wrath; Mephibosheth spared from the Gibeonites in 2 Samuel 21
V. Questions
- To what extent do you feel insecure about whether God loves or likes you? Is Christ sufficient to deal with you and your sin? Do you still fear that God may “drop the hammer”?
- Is it hard for you to be totally real with people? How does relational insecurity reveal spiritual insecurity?
- Have you seen your sin as a behavioral problem? How is it a failure for you to submit to, trust, and delight in Christ?
Serving the King:
Joyful Obedience
I. Introduction
A. Ziba’s betrayal, then 2 Samuel 19:24-30.
B. David makes the difference, Mephibosheth is so satisfied in who David is that he can lose everything for his sake. Nature of faith (pistis).
C. Fruit and root (works follows from God’s grace in our lives- what blocks the natural result?). Constant turning to the Gospel.
Transition:
Obedience reveals our hearts.
Matt. 28 is one of the most difficult commands, and we’re Campus Crusade for Christ J
II. “I have to do it”
A. Misunderstand the commands; a flowing fount, not a hole for water. Are you satisfied in Christ?
B. OT prophets to our prophetic service. Privilege to serve the king now given to all who follow.
III. “They’ll never listen”
A. All authority on heaven and earth are given to Christ.
B. He is God, with us to the end.
IV. “It’s us versus them?!”
A. It’s not about you and your knowledge, pride has no place.
B. Represent Christ, not ourselves.
1. We’re no different in and of ourselves from our hearers, no superiority.
2. We can humbly adapt ourselves, but boldly represent Christ as He is.
C. We do not require the lives of others, but lay down our own lives
1. The authority is Christ’s
2. The early church grew through the persecutions.
V. Conclusion
A. Evangelism & love; Tim Keller on the church as an alternative city that serves the rest of the city.
B. Free to love & proclaim; if we are ultimately secure, He can ask anything of us, and we can give it.
References:
Deconstrating Defeater Beliefs
Centrality of the Gospel
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