SHEPHERD’S NOTES
Year:
Year:
Date:
Series:
Message:
Scripture:
2015: The Year of Gospel Transformation
2015: The Year of Gospel Transformation
June 7, 2015
Getting Past Your Past
Putting Your Behind In Your Past
Philippians 3:7-16
Announcements
Next Week’s Message
The Lord’s Prayer: A Simple Way to Pray
Who are you talking to?
Join us next week as we introduce you to a simple way to pray. When someone calls
your phone and you don’t recognize the number do you answer? We are more likely
to answer if we know the person who is calling. The more we get to know God the
more likely we are to call on Him, and the better our conversations with Him will
be. Invite a friend to join you in worship as we learn a simple way to pray by getting
to know the One we are talking to better.
Luke 11:1-4
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Father’s Day
Sunday, June 21
3rd Annual Ultimate Man Showdown
60 minutes of heart clogging man food and heart stopping man fun. Don’t
miss it.
Bring your family and friends to celebrate dad at the Ultimate Man
Showdown.
Feast on Finger lick’n good bbq and then compete for giveaways and prizes.
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Small Group Habit of the Month
This month’s habit of the month is: Message Based Small Group Discussion.
Someone asked me this week why Good News uses Shepherds Notes and the small group homework each
week. That’s a great question.
We believe that aligning worship and the teaching of God’s Word on Sunday with small group and the
application of God’s Word together in Biblical community is the best way to seek transformation.
We design our small group homework to facilitate discussion that does 3 things:
1. Helps people get to know one another.
2. Helps people open the Bible and discover Biblical truth.
3. Helps people apply the message and invite others to help them.
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CAREFEST
Carefest is annual event in Saint Augustine that engages churches and organization in a city wide day of Christ
center service.
SAVE THE DATE
Saturday, September26
IF YOU WOULD BE INTERESTED IN SERVING ON A TEAM TO LEAD GOOD NEW’S INVOLVMENT IN
CAREFEST PLEASE EMAIL [email protected]. SHINE THE LIGHT, AND SHARE THIS
OPPORTUNITY WITH YOUR GROUP.
CONNECT: (30 Minutes)
Eat and fellowship with one another.
Small Group Plan
DISCUSS: (45 Minutes)
The goal of our small group meeting time is to apply the gospel to our lives by discussing the message. The
questions below look at “Me”, “The Bible”, and “Application”.
Good News: The best is yet to come!...
To get past our past we need to know that the best is yet to come. Why live the past when you
can live in the promise of a secured future?
Memory Verse: Philippians 3:13
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KIDS IN SMALL GROUP
Use this lesson to make the message meaningful for kids in your small group.
What you will need: Bible. This lesson is going to focus on the summer ahead. You can bring some things
that you might use during the summer: sunscreen, a beach chair, a bucket, goggles, etc.
Have all the kids sit down inside the circle.
Ask: What are you looking forward to the most this summer?
Share the things that you brought with you (sunscreen, etc.)
Read: 2 Peter 3:13
Teach:
Good News: The best is yet to come!...
Just like we are looking forward to this summer we can look forward to life with God forever.
What is the best thing about the future according this passage? God is a part of our present and our forever
future.
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Randy Alcorn author of Heaven writes this: Heaven inspires our faith. Does the thought of heaven fill your
family with excitement? Do you talk about it? I believe a biblically energized view of heaven can bring a new
spiritual passion to our lives and to our families.
When we fix our minds on heaven and see the present in light of eternity, even little choices become
significant. After death, we will never have another chance to share Christ with a friend, to give a cup of water
to the thirsty, to reach out to the lonely, to help the helpless. Remember that God desires the redemption of
everything — and everyone! Our goal should be to raise heavenly minded kids who see human beings and the
earth not simply as they are, but as God intends them to be.
Longing for the new earth, "where righteousness dwells," Peter says, "Since you are looking forward to this,
make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him" (2 Peter 3:14).
We can't live perfect lives, nor can we expect our children to. But knowing that our destiny is to live as
redeemed, righteous people on a redeemed, righteous earth with our righteous Redeemer should be a
powerful incentive to call upon His strength to live as righteously as we can today.
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Small Group Homework
These are the steps that everyone can take to
experience maximum life change by the power of
the Gospel. First, step in to Biblical community. It is so important to remind the folks in your
group of the significant decision they have made to step in and say way to go! Second, stay in.
We bug each other; get busy with life; life happens. It is important that we remind people in
your group that they are doing something great by being in a small group. Third, step up. When
we step up to lead our gospel transformation is accelerated. It is important to remind your small
group of the vision of raising up new leaders to make room for new people to experience life
change.
Getting-to-Know-Me-Questions
1. What plans do you have for the summer?
2. Any gospel transformation updates you would like to share with your small group?
Into-the-Bible-Questions
In the message this week, we learned that the best is yet to come. Let’s dig a little deeper into this great
truth!
Read: Zechariah 3:1-4
Background of Zechariah: The book is written to the Jews in Jerusalem who had returned from
their captivity in Babylon and it is written also to God’s people everywhere! The context of the
book is that the exiles had returned from Babylon to rebuild the temple but their work had been
stalled. The prophet Zechariah confronted the people with their task and encouraged them to
complete it.
Background about the passage: Joshua (sometimes translated Jeshua) was Israel’s high priest
when the people returned to Jerusalem. Joshua represented the nation of Israel. The
accusations were accurate – Joshua and Israel stood in “filthy” clothes (it was their sins). Even
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though they were in their sin, God gave them great mercy and forgiveness by removing their sin
and replacing it with the new clothes of Christ’s righteousness. We when trust in Jesus He does
the same for us.
3. What impresses you in this passage?
4. Joshua the high priest represents the nation of Israel. How does this courtroom-like scene illustrate what
Christ has done for us on the cross?
We all stand before the judge guilty of our sin. But then the courtroom hearing is interrupted by
Jesus. Jesus says “I will take all of their guilt and punishment. Punish me for what they have
done wrong (Romans 5:8). He then takes our punishment so we are not only innocent but then
declared heirs of the kingdom and given His righteousness.
5. What does the “filthy clothes” represent?
The filthy clothes represent all the ways that we fall short of God’s holiness. It is all of our sin.
6. What does the “rich garments” represent?
The rich garments represent the righteousness and holiness from Christ.
7.
Extra Credit: Find out more background information about this passage and share with the group.
Summary: Zachariah’s vision graphically portrays how we receive God’s mercy. We do nothing
ourselves. God removes our sin then gives us new clothes of Christ’s righteousness.
Application-Questions
Let’s take what you heard and begin to press it deep into your lives and then take this with you to small group
for maximum gospel transformation.
8. What impressed you in the message this week?
9.
Why is it so difficult for us to forgive ourselves even after God has forgiven us of all our sins?
This may be because we are still trying to do it on our own. We really don’t believe that our
failures are not fatal. We are still holding on to the guilt and the shame.
10. Describe a past failure that you have fully overcome. How did you successfully overcome it?
11. What does God’s grace and forgiveness mean to you? How has it changed you and helped you overcome
your failures?
12. How does the truth for believers of “Our death is not final” help you put your behind in your past?
Summary: In Christ, our failures are not fatal. In Christ, our lives are not futile. In Christ, our
death is not final! In Christ we can put our behind in our past because the best is yet to come.
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PRAY: (15 minutes)
It is important to break up into groups for prayer. Women praying with and for one another, and
men praying with and for one another.
Here are three parts of the DNA of small group prayer at Good News
1. Pray in groups women with women and men with men.
2. No one needs to feel pressured to pray, but God loves to hear us speak to Him.
3. We only confess our own sins in prayer, not the sins of others.
Thank you for going online and submitting your small group report, and marking attendance.
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