Luke 1, ESV

²⁶ In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, ²⁷ to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary. ²⁸ And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” ²⁹ But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. ³⁰ And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. ³¹ And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.

I. God uses us in his plan to rescue people.

³² He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, ³³ and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

II. Jesus is a good, permanent .

“Moreover, the LORD declares to you that the LORD will make you a house. When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.” (2 Samuel 7:11-13)

• Jesus is a different of king.

³⁴ And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” ³⁵ And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. ³⁶ And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. ³⁷ For nothing will be impossible with God.” ³⁸ And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

III. We are of God.

• Our service should be marked by .

⁴⁶ And Mary said,
“My soul magnifies the Lord,
⁴⁷     and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
⁴⁸ for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.
For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
⁴⁹ for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
⁵⁰ And his mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
⁵¹ He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;
⁵² he has brought down the mighty from their thrones
and exalted those of humble estate;
⁵³ he has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.
⁵⁴ He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
⁵⁵ as he spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his offspring forever.”

Colossians 4, ESV
⁷ Tychicus will tell you all about my activities. He is a beloved brother and faithful minister and fellow servant in the Lord. ⁸ I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may know how we are and that he may encourage your hearts…

• Tychicus: A companion

⁹ and with him Onesimus, our faithful and beloved brother, who is one of you. They will tell you of everything that has taken place here.

• Onesimus: A companion

¹⁰ Aristarchus my fellow prisoner greets you, and Mark the cousin of Barnabas (concerning whom you have received instructions—if he comes to you, welcome him), ¹¹ and Jesus who is called Justus. These are the only men of the circumcision among my fellow workers for the kingdom of God, and they have been a comfort to me.

• Mark: A companion

¹² Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ Jesus, greets you, always struggling on your behalf in his prayers, that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of God. ¹³ For I bear him witness that he has worked hard for you and for those in Laodicea and in Hierapolis.

• Epaphras: A companion

¹⁴ Luke the beloved physician greets you, as does Demas.

• Demas: A companion

¹⁰ For Demas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica. (2 Timothy 4:10)

¹⁵ Give my greetings to the brothers at Laodicea, and to Nympha and the church in her house. ¹⁶ And when this letter has been read among you, have it also read in the church of the Laodiceans; and see that you also read the letter from Laodicea. ¹⁷ And say to Archippus, “See that you fulfill the ministry that you have received in the Lord.”

• Archippus: A companion
  • What is ministry?

¹⁸ I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand. Remember my chains. Grace be with you.

 

Colossians 4, ESV
² Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. ³ At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— ⁴ that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.

1. For the sake of the gospel…Persist in .

⁵ Walk in wisdom toward outsiders…

2. For the sake of the gospel…Walk in .

⁵ If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. (James 1:5)

…making the best use of the time.

3. For the sake of the gospel…Maximize the .

¹⁶ Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.” (Psalm 139:16)

¹² Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom. (Psalm 90:12)

⁶ Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.

4. For the sake of the gospel…Season your .

 

Isaiah 49, ESV
¹ Listen to me, O coastlands,
    and give attention, you peoples from afar.
The Lord called me from the womb,
    from the body of my mother he named my name.

² He made my mouth like a sharp sword;
    in the shadow of his hand he hid me;
he made me a polished arrow;
    in his quiver he hid me away.

• Jesus’ words have …So share the gospel.
  ¹² For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12)

³ And he said to me, “You are my servant,
    Israel, in whom I will be glorified.”
⁴ But I said, “I have labored in vain;
    I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity;
yet surely my right is with the Lord,
    and my recompense with my God.”

• Jesus felt …You may too.

⁵ And now the Lord says,    he who formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob back to him; and that Israel might be gathered to him—for I am honored in the eyes of the Lord, and my God has become my strength—⁶ he says:
“It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob  and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations,  that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”

• Jesus’ mission is …So ours is too!
  “⁸ But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)

⁷ Thus says the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One, to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nation, the servant of rulers: “Kings shall see and arise; princes, and they shall prostrate themselves; because of the Lord, who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”

• Jesus’ mission will …Be part of it!
  ⁹ After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, ¹⁰ and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” (Revelation 7:9-10)

Colossians 3, ESV
¹⁸ Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. ¹⁹ Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them.

¹⁸ Then the Lord God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.” (Genesis 2:18)

“Your desire shall be contrary to your husband, but he shall rule over you.” (Genesis 3:16)

• Wives, to your husbands.
  • Submission is not .
    
  • Submission is not .
  • Biblical submission is a joyful to the leadership of your husband.
    

• Husbands, your wives.

²⁵ Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her… (Ephesians 5:25)

Resources for Couples

• Sacred Marriage, by Gary Thomas
• The Meaning of Marriage, by Tim Keller
• 5 Love Languages, by Gary Chapman
• The Marriage You’ve Always Wanted, by Gary Chapman
• From You & Me to We, by Johnny and Carla Morton

²⁰ Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. ²¹ Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged.

Caring Solutions

friendsofcaringsolutions.com
478.755.1343

Covenant Care Adoptions

adoptgeorgia.com
866.813.8655 (24-hours)

• Children, your parents.

¹ Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. ² “Honor your father and mother” (this is the first commandment with a promise), ³ “that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.” (Ephesians 6:1-3)

• Fathers, do not your children.

Resources for Parents

• Shepherding a Child’s Heart, by Tedd Tripp
• Parenting, Paul Tripp
• “Resources for Parents” (ingleside.org)

Colossians 3, ESV
¹² Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved…

• Know your : chosen, holy, and loved.

…compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, ¹³bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. ¹⁴And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.

• Put on…
  

A.

B.

C.

D.

E.

F.

G.

¹⁵ And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. ¹⁶ Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. ¹⁷ And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus,

• !
  • Singing is…Connected to .
  • Singing is….
    
  • Singing is…An encouragement to .
  • Singing is…Part of a of worship.

…giving thanks to God the Father through him.

• Give .

Colossians 3, ESV
⁵ Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. ⁶ On account of these the wrath of God is coming. ⁷ In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. ⁸ But now you must put them all away:

1. Put off sexual .

Matthew 19:3-6: ³ And Pharisees came up to him and tested him by asking, “Is it lawful to divorce one’s wife for any cause?” ⁴ He answered, “Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, ⁵ and said, ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? ⁶ So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.”

• What does the say?

• What is the pattern?

Creation Pattern

Genesis 1:27-28: ²⁷ So God created man in his own image,
    in the image of God he created him;
    male and female he created them.
²⁸ And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

Genesis 2:24-25: ²⁴ Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. ²⁵ And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.

What About the Rest of the Bible?

• Exodus 20:14 – Don’t commit adultery
• Leviticus 18 – Forbids incest, adultery, homosexuality, etc.
• 2 Samuel 11-12 – Adultery portrayed as negative
• Proverbs 5-7 – Warnings about sexual sin
• Amos 2:7-8 – Forbids incest and ritual prostitution
• Jesus – ⁵ [Jesus] said, ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? (Matthew 19:5)
• Romans 1:26-27: For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; ²⁷ and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another.
• 1 Corinthians 6:9-11: ⁹ Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality…¹¹ And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
• Ephesians 5:22-32: ²² Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord…²⁵ Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her…
• 1 Timothy 1:10: ¹⁰ the sexually immoral, men who practice homosexuality, enslavers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine…

According to the creation pattern and biblical teaching, sexual intimacy is a good gift from God meant to be enjoyed in the context of a marriage between a husband and wife.

Resource for Parents: God’s Design for Sex, Stan and Brenna Jones

…anger, wrath, malice,

2. Put off sinful .

Anger: an appropriate response to

• Sometimes it is best to lovingly the person.
  “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone.” (Matthew 18:15)

• Sometimes it is best to the offense.
  “Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.” (1 Peter 4:8)

• Sometimes you can take actions to address the injustice.

Anger: an inappropriate response to a injustice

When I am angry, I should:

• Practice .
  “A fool gives full vent to his spirit, but a wise man quietly holds it back” (Proverbs 29:11)
  “Be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger.” (James 1:19)

• .
  

• Identify why I am angry.

• Determine the response.

…slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. ⁹ Do not lie to one another, 

3. Put off sinful .

²⁹ Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. (Ephesians 4:29)

…seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices ¹⁰ and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. ¹¹ Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all.

• Become in who you already are in .

 

⁴³ After the two days he departed for Galilee. ⁴⁴ (For Jesus himself had testified that a prophet has no honor in his own hometown.) ⁴⁵ So when he came to Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, having seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast. For they too had gone to the feast. ⁴⁶ So he came again to Cana in Galilee, where he had made the water wine. And at Capernaum there was an official whose son was ill. ⁴⁷ When this man heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went to him and asked him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. John 4:43-47 (ESV)

I. Genuine faith acknowledges our .

⁴⁸ So Jesus said to him, “Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe.” ⁴⁹ The official said to him, “Sir, come down before my child dies.” ⁵⁰ Jesus said to him, “Go; your son will live.” The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and went on his way. John 4:48-50 (ESV)

II. Genuine faith trusts in and his .

⁵¹ As he was going down, his servants met him and told him that his son was recovering. ⁵² So he asked them the hour when he began to get better, and they said to him, “Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him.” ⁵³ The father knew that was the hour when Jesus had said to him, “Your son will live.” And he himself believed, and all his household. ⁵⁴ This was now the second sign that Jesus did when he had come from Judea to Galilee. John 4:51-54 (ESV)

III. Genuine faith is and .

 

Colossians 3, ESV

¹If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.

• Live like a citizen of .

² Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. 

• Live with your set on the things above.
• When deciding how to live, do I look or look ?

³ For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

• Live like your is in Christ.

⁴ When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

• Live like is coming.

Colossians 2, ESV

¹⁶ Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. ¹⁷ These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.

• Trust in Jesus, not Old Testament .

¹⁸ Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind, ¹⁹ and not holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God.

• Trust in Jesus, not .
  

²⁰ If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations – ²¹ “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” ²² (referring to things that all perish as they are used) — according to human precepts and teachings? ²³ These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.

• Trust Jesus, not .
  

“It is certain that man must utterly despair of his own ability before he is prepared to receive the grace of Christ.” -Martin Luther