Men’s Small Group // February 6, 2023
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This is a lesson I prepared for a men’s small group and is based on the book “True Community” by Jerry Bridges (Chapter 3)
Psalm 27:4
One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.
Bridges – “It is the believer’s union with Christ, the sharing of His life, that makes possible his communion with Him.”
This is the subject of our time together today. Now that we have this objective truth of being united to Christ. The truth that we, the branches, are truly and permanently a part of the true vine – Jesus. This leads us to the freedom of focusing on being branches. Bearing fruit as we draw nourishment and strength from the vine at all times.
When David says he wants “to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and seek him in his temple”, what he is talking about is abiding in Christ – our communion with God.
All Day Affair
- Bridges – “Our communion should be more than just having a quiet time in the morning; it should be an all-day affair.”
- We have this tendency in our life to separate our time into the spiritual and the secular. Our time with God and our time in the world. We often work hard to keep these two spheres mutually exclusive.
- We may think of our life as a bookcase with each shelf representing a different part of life (marriage, school, work, kids, friends, leisure, sports).
- We will want to prioritize the Jesus book that may or may not be on each shelf. Giving Jesus first priority in each area of life.
- What we need to understand is that in our union with God, Jesus is the bookshelf. All of our life is framed by Jesus. He is not just a book on each shelf. He is the frame and the shelf it all rests upon.
- Jesus has given us each book on every shelf and holds them all together.
- Through our union with God, we can and should have communion with God in every aspect of our life.
The Morning Quiet Time
- Bridges – “The morning quiet time is the foundation of our communion with God.”
- The morning quiet time sets the tone for the day and as such, we should prioritize this time.
- Spending our time in communion with Jesus first thing, should be our first thing.
- Reading, meditating, praying, journaling. These are just some of the ways we can commune with Christ and draw in nourishment from the vine that will feed us throughout the day.
Communion Throughout the Day
- Learning to hope in Jesus
- Psalm 25:5 Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long. (ESV)
- Waiting can also be translated as hope.
- We need to develop this practice of hoping and waiting on God in our life.
- Are you anxious? Are you worried? Remind yourself of the truths in God’s word. Meditate on them throughout the day and develop a mindset of hope and waiting on God.
- Bridges “To hope in God, or to wait on Him, is an expression of expectant dependence on Him.”
- Remember John 15:5
I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. (ESV)
- Learning to walk in Jesus
- Psalm 37:1-7
- Take this Psalm and let it seep into your soul.
- Trust, delight, commit your way, be still.
- How?
- Meditating on God’s Word throughout the day.
- Bridges quotes.
- “This means every time we can choose what we will think about, we choose to think about the Word of God.”
- “What do I think about when I have discretionary time?”
- In order to do this, we must be memorizing Scripture. We need to take the word of God and plant it deep in our hearts so that we can draw upon it throughout the day. We must be cultivators of the word in our hearts and minds.
Sharing with God
- “Is communion with Christ a one-way street?”
- How do we give?
- Worship and thanksgiving
- Express our love through obedience
- Confess our sin
- As we share and give –> Jesus shares and gives to us –> His giving precedes ours
- Grace upon grace upon grace
- Examples showing how God prizes communion.
- God walking in the garden with Adam.
- God spoke to Moses face-to-face as a friend.
- Revelation 3:20
As we move into the next chapters talking about our community among each other, I will leave you with this quote.
- Bridges – “A community relationship among believers presupposes a living relationship with God and is, in fact, dependent on it.”
- How we understand our union with God and how we engage in our communion with Christ, greatly influences our community among each other.
Questions
- How do you see communion with Christ being an all-day affair in your life?
- How do you see the spiritual disciplines stirring your heart to engage with Jesus?
- Reading, praying, meditating, memorizing, studying, journaling, fasting
- Share your thoughts on these two quotes from Bridges
- “This means every time we can choose what we will think about, we choose to think about the Word of God.”
- “What do I think about when I have discretionary time?”