July | 2023 | The Augusta Church

Sunday Lesson Notes from July 16th

Read Ephesians 4: 1-6
- What is the “calling” that you have received?
  - To be a disciple of Jesus
  - To imitate the way Jesus lived
  - To make Jesus the Lord (ruler) of your life
  - This is essential to the core of the Christian Faith

Read 1 John and discuss some passages that describe this core of the Christian Faith, living like Jesus
- 1 John 2: 3-6 is a great example, if you claim to be a Christian, you must live like Jesus did.

Describe some ways you can tell if someone is living like Jesus, refer back to Ephesians 4: 1-6
- The person would be humble and gentle
- The person would be patient and bearing with others
- The person would be forgiving and turning to God for answers

Describe some ways you might act if you are not trying to live like Jesus, again refer back to Ephesians 4: 1-6
- The person would retaliate and become defensive in relationships
- The person would be quick to anger, judgmental and impatient
- The person would be unforgiving and turning to their own methods to solve problems
- They would damage the unity in relationships for the sake of winning or being right

What is so great about making every effort to “keep unity”? What is “unity”?
- When Paul told the readers to keep unity, this implied we are already unified with each other. Working to keep unity is the challenge, but it is encouraging that God has already given us the gift of unity in our relationships.
- Unity is working together with others to reach the same goal. It does not mean we have to have the same exact ideas, thoughts or feelings. It means adjusting our ideas, thoughts and feelings as necessary to reach a common goal. Our relationship with God and our relationship with each other is essential to maintaining unity.
- God has given us one Body, Spirit, Hope, Lord, Faith and Baptism. God has made us all-everyone.
- God has made us all and as disciples we belong to Jesus. Because we belong to Jesus, we can imitate his humility and keep peace in our relationships.

Sunday Lesson notes from July 9th, 2023

Read John 3: 22-30
- How does John view himself in relation to Jesus?
  - As a servant, lower in status
  - As a best man to the bridegroom
Read Ephesians 5: 22-32
- What is the profound mystery?
  - That the church is Jesus’s bride and he is the bridegroom
  - Jesus gave his life up for his bride, the church
  - Are human marriages like Jesus’s marriage to the church or is Jesus’s marriage to the church like human marriages?
- What can we learn from the example of Jesus’s marriage to the church?
  - Jesus gave up his life for the church
  - Jesus cares for the church like he cares for himself
  - There is no price Jesus was unwilling to pay to serve the church
  - Jesus called himself the head of the church, the church members are his body. There is a deep connection between Jesus and the church.
  - As a church we should strive to follow and be lead by our head, Jesus and not a human leader
  - We should respond to Jesus with humility and reverence
  - Jesus uses his words to take care of the church and to make it radiant

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