The Mid-Week Update!!!

Lesson Preview

     Last week we saw the best of Israel as they agreed to receive and follow God's commandments.  This Sunday, November 6, we will see Israel at her worst as she disobeys God.

     Hey, play along with the following.  Think back to when you were a teen.  What was a pretty big "no-no" you did?  How long afterwards did it take for you to feel remorse?  Did you find it easy to confess and ask forgiveness?
 
     Sometimes Christians who have been believers for a long time forget they are still sinners who need to confess their sins and receive forgiveness.  Unbelievers sometimes do not recognize they are sinners or sometimes think God could never forgive them for their thoughts and deeds.  Truth is, we all continue to be in need of God's grace and forgiveness.  This week's study comes out of Exodus 32 - 34.

See You Sunday,
Don

Last Weeks Lesson

EXODUS-25:1-31:18

Worthy of Worship 25:8-9, 17-22, 29:38-46

Summary of Background Material:

25:1-27:21 God instructed Moses to gather an offering from the Israelites for the purpose of building a place of worship.  Since the materials to be used included precious metals, fabric, animal skins, wood, oil, spices, and gemstones, everyone could provide something required.  Go gave detailed instructions regarding the construction of the ark of the covenant, the table, the lamp stand, the tabernacle, the sacrificial alter, and the courtyard.

28:1-29:46 God also provided instructions for the creation of the priestly garments, particularly the robes, ephod, and breastpiece worn by the high priest.  Once the tabernacle had been constructed and furnished and the priestly garments had been created, everything needed to be dedicated and consecrated for worship.  God gave specific instructions for the consecration service, emphasizing the responsibility of the priests and the need to consecrate them.

30:1-38 God designed worship to engage all the senses.  He directed the Israelites to offer incense made from a select mixture of fragrant spices.  He also commanded them to create a bronze basin that could be filled with water and used by the priests for washing.  God directed the men to contribute half a shekel to the tabernacle to be used to support the worship center and to remind them that they belonged to God.

31:1-11 God gifted two men with the ability to work with metals, gemstones, and wood.  Then He appointed them to design, craft, and supervise  that aspect of the sacred project.

31:12-18  God's final instruction was to remind the Israelites not to work on the Sabbath.  Even as the people constructed the worship place, they needed to worship God regularly.  After giving Moses instructions for building the sanctuary, God gave him the two stone tablets on which He had written the Ten Commandments.

Affirming the Lord's Presence 25:8-9

See 40:34-38 to see what made the tabernacle holy.  Some churches today meet in schools, storefronts, traditional settings, etc.  They are made holy by the presence of the Lord. The tabernacle affirmed God's presence for Israel.  How do we acknowledge/affirm God's presence in our worship at Concord?

Hearing the Lord's Message 25:17-22

The mercy seat is the main topic of these verses.  The mercy seat was a cover of solid gold covering the top of the ark, described in vv 10-16.  Mercy seat comes from the Hebrew verb "to cover".   This mercy seat symbolized the covering of sin and reconciliation that could only be found in God.   God's words to Moses were extremely valuable. How can we treat what we hear from God as extremely valuable?  How has God spoken to you in a worship service?

Giving the Lord Offerings 29:38-42

2 lambs per day at 362 days a year for 40 years = 29,200 lambs.  This is a group of over 1 million people wandering in a barren region constntly grumbling about a lack of food.  Do you think these people considered these offerings as sacrificial?  Do you think they were ever tempted to withhold some of the lambs for more practical use?  What are some things we can offer God instead of money?  Why would regularly giving to God our best lead to more meaningful worship and a deeper relationship?

Acknowledging the Lord's Greatness 29:43-36

God declared He would consecrate the tent of meetings, the altar, and those who served as priests.  He also stated that He would make Himself available to the people and would provide guidance and blessing.  The sanctuary and sacrifices would remind the people of God's presence and blessing in the past and the present.  Their obedience would demonstrate their commitment to Him in worship and daily life.  How does worship with other believers remind you of who God is and what He has done?

Conclusion: By worshiping regularly as a community of faith, God's people please Him and deepens our relationship with Him.  The following action is suggested as a result of this study.  Endeavor to participate regularly and meaningfully in congregational worship.

Spooknik Is Over

Even though the fire had difficulty starting, and there was a stiff, cool breeze...there was a lot of good fellowship and food.  Plan on joing us when we have our spring version of the class picnic!

Concord Need

Concord has a need for people to volunteer to serve for 4 one hour slots during the year.  This will be four different one hour time slots of your choice during a worship service over the whole year.  You will serve in one of the Child Care classes with an experienced teacher to assist the teacher who will be in the classroom, and who knows each of the children.  You will be giving parents the opportunity to worship the Lord freely without worrying about their small children.  Please accept this responsibility so no one else has to do your share.  There is a sign up sheet in the SPOT folder for the next few weeks. 

Snacks

• 11/6 Grable
• 11/13 Phillips

Prayer Requests

• From Ed Stanfield...pray for Robert, a teenager who tried to commit suicide.  His family is poor.  The father killed himself in front of Robert.  Need wisdom to seek out family and help them

  

   

Ooops!

Had a bit of a computer glitch here, so a day late...but Happy Birthday to Janice Meinhardt!!!



Also...the latest CSM newsletter from Ben can be found here.

The Mid-Week Update!!!

Lesson Preview

     There are some things in our society everyone has an opinion about.  A short list includes: music, politics, sports, and worship.  Worship.  That's a lot like saying love.  Is it a verb or noun?  Is it something one experiences (passive) or does (active)?
     Why do you worship?  What are your personal views regarding worship?  Now, what is God's view regarding worship?  You might imagine worship is the topic for this week's Bible study.  The background reading is quite lengthy but interesting.  It is Exodus 25:1-31:18.  Our study will come from chapters 25:8-9, 17-22: & 29:38-46. 
     Between now and Sunday morning, consider discussing the following with yor teen(s): 
What aspect of worhsip means most to you?
If you could help plan worship what idea would you suggest?
What do you do to prepare yourself for worship?

Hope to see you Sunday,
Don

Lesson Recap

EXODUS -19:1-24-18

Defining the Relationship 20:1-17 

The week before last we observed God displaying his divine power in order to build a relationship with Israel.  He wanted to prove to them He cared for their well being. When they had no food He provided for their need with the one time event of quail, and then manna on a daily basis.  God knew if he could bring them to understand He cared for them then they would likely have confidence in Him.  When we have confidence in a person it is much more likely we will trust them.

    Last week we saw God setting the boundaries for the relationship. He does it by providing a binding document.  We call it the 10 Commandments.  Here is how it came about.  Two months after leaving Egypt, the Israelites arrived  at Mt. Sinai.  God spoke to Moses, telling him that if the Israelites would remember what He had done and would obey Him, they would show they were his treasured possession.  When Moses reported God's words to the elders and the people, they agreed to obey.  God instructed Moses to prepare the people to receive His commands.  On the third day, smoke enveloped Mt. Sinai, and God spoke in thunder.  See 19:9 and 16-19.

See if you can, without aid of a Bible, to list the 10 commandments.

They are:

1. No Gods but me
2. No idols
3. Do not misuse God's name
4. Keep the Sabbath Holy
5. Honor Dad and Mom
6. Do not murder
7. Stay true to your spouse
8. Do not steal
9. Do not lie
10. Do not covet.

We will see that the first four commands deal with man's relationship with God.  The last six deal with man's relationship with man.

Consider the tool known as a level.  It is used to make sure that everything is straight and aligned.  Spiritual implications can be drawn from the level.  It can measure straightness either vertically or horizontally. Vertical straightness represents our relationship with God.  Relationships with our fellow man are measured horizontally.

Worship the Lord Only 1-6
The people were to show  their allegiance to God in the first two commands; exclusive worship and no idols.  Also note here that God's jealousy is different than that of man.  His jealousy is rooted in His holiness.  Ours is based on selfishness and pride.   As God, He is worthy of worship and will not surrender that to another person or object.

Show Respect For the Lord 7-11
We are  instructed to respect Go in commands 3 & 4; His name and His day.  What does it mean to misuse Go's name?  See Exodus 3:13-15.  His name not only revealed His character, but also His personal relationship with His people.  In ancient times, dissing a persons name was the same as dissing the person.  We also see what God traced the need for a Sabbath back to.  While God did not need a day of rest to recuperate from His work, He did it to reflect on His creation.  We are called to do the same-take a break to focus on who God is and what He has done.

Treat Others Right 12-17
The 5th command is to honor your parents. This command serves as a bridge between honoring God and honoring others.  A person cannot truly submit to God's authority, and respect others , until he is able to respect and submit to parental authority.  God promises long lif in this command.  This can work in two ways:

1. those who honor parents might be less likely to find themselves in dangerous situations.
2. the command includes the responsibility of caring for parents when they are older and unable to care for themselves.  By helping to extend the quality and quantity of life for parents, we are setting an example that our children can follow when we are older.   

The 6th command deals with murder.  God was the only one who determined when killing was appropriate-and He still is.  This is the basis for all decisions in taking of life.  In the 7th command, purity in marriage is essential because it represents the foundation of society.  The relationship in marriage between husband and wife is so important that Paul in the New Testament illustrates the relationship between husband and wife with that of God and His believers.  In the 8th command we see that stealing represents the honesty in our actions, where in the 9th command we see how we must have honest in our words.  The last commandment is different from the others  as it is rooted in the heart, not our actions.  Failure to keep this command can lead to violation of one of the previous commands.

Conclusion:  Experienced and inexperienced cooks use recipes. The purpose of a recipe is to insure the dish comes out right.  A recipe is a rigid set of rules..  It is important to adhere to the recipe to insure the proper outcome every time.  Many see the Ten Commandments as a rigid set of rules.  But really, the Commandments make up God's recipe for relationships with Him and others.  It is important that both experienced and inexperienced stick to the recipe.

Class Picnic

..has been dubbed the Spooknik, and it occurs this Sunday after class at Fenton City Park Shelter #2.  (Time subject to change if this is the day for the parade for the Saint Louis Cardinals World Series win!) As noted before the cost is $5 per person, with a max of $10 per family, to cover the cost of shelter and meat...then just bring a side dish to share and whatever you want to drink!  If you haven't made reservations yet, it is requested that you do so by Friday night.  You can do that with an email to thespotspot@charter.net. Come join us for fun, food and fellowship!  The forecast calls for sunny and a high around 61.  Perfect!

Upcoming Events

Zenobia has graciously offered her home up for the class Christmas party on December 10th (full details as the date gets closer!).  We are still looking for someone to host a board game night (maybe in January.) and the annual Super Bowl party in February.

Snacks

• 10/30 LaRowe
• 11/6 Grable
• 11/13 Phillips

Prayer Requests

•  Ongoing prayer for the new music/fine arts ministry and the new youth program. 
• Continued prayer for safe travels of kid coming home from college over break.

   

Lesson Preview!!!

Teens do what teens do.  One of the things they do is date.  This boy - girl thing has been going on for quite some time and I see no end in sight.  I often referred to one of my child's relationships as the "flavor of the week".  But sooner or later one of these relationships takes hold and lasts.  When a relationship starts getting pretty serious there comes the time for a "defining the relationship" talk.  Some times this "DFR" talk occurs by design and other times it just happens.

God has a defining the relationship conversation with Israel in this week's study.  One more thing, this conversation did not just happen - it was by divine design.  The background passage for this week is Exodus 19:1 - 24:18.  Our study will come from chapter 20 verses 1-17.

Just for fun, can you recall your "DFR" talk?  What was the setting?  Was it by design or did it just happen?  Who took the initiative?  After you and your mate agree on the answers - you may look for an opportunity to share this piece of history with your teen(s). 

Hope to see you Sunday,
Don

The Mid-Week Update!!!

Lesson Recap

EXODUS-15:22-18:27

Growing Pain 16:2-34

15:22-27

No one knows for sure, but it is possible that God's law and decree here are the same that is given later on Mt. Sinai.  This fits human learning and development-hear something first, then have it written for long term memory.

God gives them a "if-then' agreement in v26.  If they would listen and obey then He would not treat them like He did the Egyptians, but would heal them.  Heal can mean to literally make you well, but it can also refer to God's forgiveness and restoration of His favor. Whatever the law and decree was, it is clear God's purpose was to prove or test Israel.  This begs the question-is it fair for God to test us?  Look at Jas 1:12, Heb 11:17.'

In what areas of life do you find it most easy to complain or grumble?  It is human nature to complain when things do not go as planned.   In this weeks lesson we saw that the Israelites were no exception.

Growing In Loyalty 2-4

The main complaint lodged by the Israelites in this situation was a lack of food.  This was indeed a valid concern, but was not a valid complaint.  After all...they had seen God's divine power in Egypt, at the Red Sea, and at the waters of Marah.   God did not condemn them BUT promised to meet their need.  He chose to provide for the need in the manner in which He did to draw the people's attention to Him and prove His faithfulness.

What is something you know will happen this week?

What do you base this certainty on?

We will see that God was trying to build that kind of confidence into the lives of His people.

Growing in Confidence 11-15, 18

God provided for the Israelites with both meat and bread.  Though the meat was a one time event, the bread was an ongoing provision/blessing.  His goal in meeting their need was the same as His previous miracles, such as the rescue from Egypt, crossing the Red Sea, ans His guidance of cloud by day and fire by night.  He wanted them to see His glory and experience Him so they would be willing to trust Him more freely.  God met their needs completely, and this is important because He wanted to build the Israelites confidence in Him.  Care=Confidence When we understand God's care for us it becomes much easier for us to have confidence in Him-even when life doesn't make sense.  How can we apply this principle to our relationship with our teens?

Growing In Testimony 32-34

Here the Israelites put some of the manna in container.  This is important as it allowed them to share God's activity with future generations.  Think about these questions:

• How much do my teens know about my spiritual journey?
• How much do my teens see me developing my walk with the Lord? 
• What significant thing has God done in my life that I need to share with my teen?

Care=Confidence=Confession
Knowing God cares gives us confidence in His faithfulness and leads us to confess Him to others.

SpookNik

...is coming up on Oct. 30th after class (noon thirthy-ish) at Fenton Park shelter number 2 (same as last year).  Time will be altered should the parade for the World Series Champion Cardinals interfere!  Maps will be available in the SPOT folder this week!

Snacks

• 10/23 PERRY
• 10/30 LAROWE

 

Prayer Requests

 

• Brian Mulder, our new worship pastor!!
• Kayla Ellege, former Concord intern in China 
• One of Susan's co-worker's lost a child week.  Pray for Mark and his family.
• Jeanette has joined the ranks of the unemployed.
• Travel as college students return from fall break.
• Kevin's MRI shows no major damage, just a lot of swelling.  He will see the orthopedic doctor on Friday.

 

 

Lesson Preview!!!

Last Sunday we saw God's divine deliverance for His people.  This week we will discuss the topic of growing pain.

I'm gonna guess no one reading this has ever tested their lover's devotion with a "test".  Well, I grew up with sisters and I saw them put their boyfriends through heck more than once just to test the level of devotion.  Sounds pretty silly but it seems to be a well established human behavior.  Yes - guys are guilty too! 

Do you think God tests the level of devotion of His people?  We'll answer the question in class this Sunday.  If you have time to do some prior preps, look at Exodus chapter 16. 

See You Sunday,
Don

Happy Birthday!!!

Happy Birthday today to Don Robbins!!  God's blessings on your special day!!!

The Mid-Week Update!!!

Lesson Recap

EXODUS-13:17-15:21

Persevering Faith 13:17-18, 14:9-18,31

Does every student that enrolls in college graduate?  Does every person that starts a marathon finish?  Perseverance makes the difference.  This week's lesson was about persevering in our faith.

Father Knows Best 13:17-18

How often do your teens ask you why they can't do this or that, and you tell them because they are not old enough or because they are not ready?  Why didn't God take the Israelites on a direct journey to Canaan?

1. They were not ready to fight and defend themselves.
2. They had no sense of community or nationality.
3. Their faith was not developed enough to trust Him to provide.

Why should we persevere in following God's word even when His Ways don't seem to make sense to us?


Faith Your Fears 14:9-14
The Israelites reacted to their current challenge just as they did.  They Got into the predicament because of God.  Look at v14 from different translations.  Basically, it says to be still and watch, and know that I am God.  If god brings you into a frightening situation, you can be confident He will bring you out.  Just stand firm.

Trust And Obey 14:15-18
God was going to deliver the Israelites through the same path He Delivered His people.  Why is persevering faith required to obey God and experience His deliverence.

Seeing Is Believing? 14:31

What did the people see God Do?  Why do you think this would cause them to believe in God and His use of Moses?  What are some great acts of God people see today from time to time?  Why do some believers fail to believe even when they see?  How does remembering God's work in your life encourage you?  How does voicing what God has done in your life help others grow in their faith?

Conclusion: You may not be facing the Red Sea and hearing the chariots of your enemies behind you BUT you may be facing difficult challenges.  What did we discuss here that will help you persevere in your faith?

The SPOT Class Picnic

..this year has official been renamed the SpookNic!!  It will be on Sunday, October 30th right after class at Fenton Parks Shelter #2 (the same as last year!).  Join us for fun, fellowship, and BBQ.  Cost is $5 per person, with a maximum of $10 per family to cover the meat and the cost of the shelter.  Bring a side dish to share, and whatever drinks you want!  The Sign up envelop will be in the SPOT folder starting this week!

Upcoming Events

This year we will be holding our usual Christmas party (Nov.- Dec.), as well as a game board night (Jan?), and Super Bowl Party (Feb.)  If you would be willing to open your home to host one of these event, that would be great!

Class Service Ministry

We are still looking for a year-round service/ministry project that we can help with as a class.  We can donate the proceeds from our root beer float booth and other project (TBD) throughout the year.  Email in any ideas!

Snacks

• 10/16 MEINHARDT
• 10/23 PERRY
• 10/30LAROWE

Prayer Requests

• Rusty's co-worker watching mom's health deteriorate quickly.  very close to mom, and very draining on her.  Name of co-worker is Shelley Lavender.  Pray for understanding.
• Billie Jean, Ed's daughter friend who comes to church with her.  Pray for her salvation.
• Rusty's friend Steve Gusman trying to understand (or make sense of) why his friends son OD'd.  Pray Rusty and Steve can talk about it when the time is right.
• Prayer request and warning for South County residents.  Hannah Martin got her license this week.
• Marty and Amber and struggles with their daughter Andrea.
• Kevin, and word from his doctors on his knee injury.