Author: enCultivate

Encounter with the Disciples

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This is a lesson I prepared for a Sunday School class series on Encounters with Jesus in the Book of John during the Fall of 2025. The lessons are meant to be a mix of teaching and interactive discussion in the group. This is an outline of my presentation that guided the teaching and discussion.

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John 1:35-42

FOLLOW 1:35-37
John 1:35 / The next day AGAIN John was standing with two of his disciples, and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!”

  • These two disciples are Andrew and John.
  • They were both consistently around John the Baptist.
  • John the Baptist was consistently pointing people to Jesus.
    • 1:26-28 / One who stands among you
    • 1:29 / Behold, the Lamb of God
  • Thoughts
    • It intrigued me this week to think about Andrew and John being committed to the preaching and teaching of John the Baptist. Here is this Old Testament prophet coming on the scene after 400 years of silence and they are excited about the Word of God being given once again.
    • Now all of the sudden, the prophet is pointing out that the Messiah has not only come on the scene but is literally walking among us.
    • 1:37 / The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus.
    • Jesus was a unknown at this time. No crowds. No followers. Andrew and John decided to leave the comfortable and known for the uncomfortable and unknown.
    • They were the first to follow Jesus.
  • Questions
    • What are Andrew and John are thinking and feeling at this moment?
    • How difficult is it to make this move of allegiance?
    • Would anyone like to share their decision point when you started following Jesus?
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Grace of Affliction

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We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia, for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part.

2 Corinthians 8:1–2 (ESV)

Paul wants the Corinthian believers to know about the grace of God in a tangible way, so he gives testimony to the pouring out of God’s grace among the churches of Macedonia. He wants the church of Corinth to know about this grace of God by giving a tangible, real life example that they can readily identify and connect with on a personal level. There are a few shocking details in this example that caused me to stop and reflect about the work of God’s grace in my own life. First, there was a severe test of affliction. Second, there was both an abundance of joy and extreme poverty. This all led to the point that Paul wants the Corinthians church to grasp. In this test of affliction, their joy and poverty overflowed into a wealth of generosity. What I want to reflect on is the seeming inconsistency of this equation (God’s grace > Severe affliction > Abundance of joy in Extreme poverty > Wealth of generosity). It defies the logic of my 21st century mind.

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Effective Confirmation

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for a wide door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many adversaries.

1 Corinthians 16:9 (ESV)

What I find fascinating about the Apostle Paul is that his view of this life and the world around us is oftentimes counterintuitive to how I view life as I journey through my time in this world. In this verse from 1 Corinthians 16:9, Paul changes his established plans and commitments because the Lord had opened a door for effective ministry, and he was seeing the visible fruits increasing and multiplying. This time of ministry was so effective that he understood that he needed to drop all other plans to focus on where the Spirit was moving at the moment. This I understand. What is challenging to me is that the proof of the Spirit’s work and the effectiveness of the ministry were confirmed by the presence of adversaries. Paul was excited about the adversaries. The presence of those speaking out and working against this ministry work confirmed to Paul that the work of the Holy Spirit was truly being poured out, and he could not leave during this critical moment.

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Scum and Refuse

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We have become, and are still, like the scum of the world, the refuse of all things.

1 Corinthians 4:13 (ESV)

The heavenly mindset of Paul is always a helpful barometer to examine my heart and soul. Paul encourages me to not just focus on the surface level appearance of presentation but to dig deeper and examine the cracks and crevices that are open within my heart. This passage from 1 Corinthians 4 is a good example of this. Paul is challenging the thinking and mindset of the Corinthian believers to move away from their pride, arrogance, and sense of entitlement in which they had grown accustomed. Their hearts were puffed up and filled with boasting over the blessings from God that they had been freely given. Paul is calling them back to a mindset of weakness and humility. He is calling them to be counter-cultural in their thinking. They are wanting to be seen as rich and wise in the eyes of the world, when they should be as “the scum of the world, the refuse of all things.”

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Faith Proceeding

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But whoever has doubts is condemned if he eats, because the eating is not from faith. For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.

Romans 14:23 (ESV)

Honestly, I have mixed feelings about the book of Romans. On the one hand, I find it so incredibly helpful in understanding the truths of the gospel and how to integrate faith into life. Yet, there are some statements and ideas that trouble me. These statements trouble me because they are like a double-edged sword, piercing my very heart and soul. Romans 14:23 is one of these statements. In this long passage concerning his admonition that we should care for the faith of others by being mindful of our freedom in Christ being lived out before others. It is a section on humbling ourselves before others and using our freedom in Christ to encourage and lift others up and not lead them into temptation and sin. It is the last sentence in this section that troubles my heart. “For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.”

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Vain Satisfaction

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He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income; this also is vanity.

Ecclesiastes 5:10 (ESV)

Satisfaction and contentment are the cornerstone of our natural desires. We have an innate drivenness to seek out satisfaction and contentment. We all desire to satiate this inner drive and determination. Where we look for that satisfaction and the level of determination in that pursuit is different in each person, but make no mistake… we all seek satisfaction and contentment. The Preacher in Ecclesiastes is pointing to one object that we all struggle with in our pursuit. All of us will at some point struggle with the pursuit of wealth and a desire to find contentment by pursuing money. Money is not in itself a bad thing or something to be abhorred. What the Preacher is pointing out is that our love for money can lead to a craving that is never satisfied. If we are in love with money, the pursuit of money, or the prestige of money, we will never be content with the level of wealth that we attain. When our love of money is driving us, we will always want more and more. Satisfaction, true satisfaction, will never be found in money and wealth.

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Patient Beauty

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He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man’s heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.

Ecclesiastes 3:11 (ESV)

There are moments in life where everything seems to working against you. Moments where chaos, agony, suffering, hardship, and trials seem to be so overwhelming that it is difficult to see an end to the pain. These times of walking through the deep darkness of the valley where confusion, fear, and doubt are continually pressing in on you. It is in these moments of depression and fatigue that this passage speaks to me in a special way. I need to continually be reminded that this world around me, this life “under the sun” that the Preacher is talking about is not all there is or ever will be. That yearning in my heart is for eternity. A yearning for this life under the sun to give way to the future where all things are made beautiful in the light and glory of Jesus Christ. I yearn to leave this mortal world behind and find my rest in the Beautiful One of heaven who is preparing a room for me in his kingdom.

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Mind of a Fool

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Whoever trusts in his own mind is a fool, but he who walks in wisdom will be delivered.

Proverbs 28:26 (ESV)

What is it about our minds that we put complete faith and trust in them? I had never really thought about this before, but as I read through Proverb 28 this morning, it resonated with me. “Whoever trusts in his own mind is a fool.” That’s a difficult saying to digest and process. It’s difficult because that is not only exactly what I am continually doing, but something that is a source of pride. I find myself trusting my mind above all else. My intake of knowledge and ideas is mixed in and calculated with all the other data and information that is settled in my mind already. I am continually processing, updating, and solidifying what I know, believe, and understand about my life and the world around me. I find myself trusting in my own mind above all else. I am a fool.

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Lesson 1 -Be Strong and of Good Courage (Part 1)

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This is a lesson I prepared for a Small Group series on the book of Daniel in the Spring of 2025. The lessons are meant to be a mix of teaching and interactive discussion in the group. This is an outline of my presentation that guided the teaching and discussion. It was adapted from the Christ-centered Exposition Series – Exalting Jesus in Daniel by Daniel Akin and from Be Resolute (Daniel) by Warren Wiersbe.

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Daniel 1:1-7

Main Idea: Even in times of great trial and opposition, Christians must remain faithful to God and his gospel, imitating Christ’s own steadfastness as he endured persecution and death for our sakes.

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Teach Me

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Teach me to do your will, for you are my God! Let your good Spirit lead me on level ground!

Psalm 143:10 (ESV)

“Teach me to do your will.” This is a prayer request full of faith, trust, and humility. David is inviting the God of the universe to come and teach him obedience. For to do the will of the Lord is to be obedient to the Lord. In this prayer of David we see the heart of Jesus at work. Jesus learned obedience through suffering and David is setting the same example before us. David is acknowledging that his heart is not always aligned with the will of God. David’s heart wanders away from the Lord and is inclined toward sinful actions and decisions. David desires to be in alignment with the will of God, so he asks to be taught. He is inviting God to teach him through correction, suffering, and hardship. David knows that this is the path of holiness. How can he shake off his fear and make this request? David understands that he is not asking some distant, dispassionate god. No, he is asking his God. The God that loves and cares for him.

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