The Augusta Church

Sunday Lesson Notes from 9-14-2025

Is it possible to think you know someone and not really know them?

• READ Leviticus Chapter 23:33-36 and 39-44
  • The Israelites were instructed to celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles or Booths in remembrance of when God brought them out of Egypt, where they were living in slavery. God brought them out of Egypt and into the desert, where they lived in tents. God took care of all their needs while they were living in the desert. God wanted them to remember this time and created a yearly Festival for them to celebrate. 

• They were instructed to celebrate this Festival every year and pass the knowledge of what happened to them to their offspring so they would not forget God was their true God and would always take care of their needs. 

• READ John Chapter 7: 1-13
  • Jesus’s brothers were on their way to Judea to celebrate the Festival of Tabernacales but Jesus did not go at that time with them to Judea because the religious leaders were plotting to kill him and he knew it was not his time to die. 

• In John Chapter 5: 16-18, the religious leaders of the Jews were more concerned about their rules than about God’s law. Here Jesus was healing and showing compassion to a disabled person, yet the religious leaders were not concerned about someone being healed. They were also concerned that Jesus was calling God his father and not their father. Perhaps, they should have wondered why he was not considering God as their father too?

• The Israelites were known to not want a close and personal relationship with God as their Father. In Exodus, God wanted them to come to the mountain to talk with them and they refused. They sent Moses by himself to talk on their behalf. 

• Jesus reminded his brothers that the world did not hate them because they were not speaking out against the evil of the world and therefore representing God’s true character. This gentle rebuke pays off dividends in the future. In the future we see James and Jude writing letters to the believers and encouraging them, and now we can read these two books in the bible written by Jesus’s brothers.

• Jesus spoke of his right time, what was he referring to?
  • Jesus lived and acted in accordance to the will of God, his Father. He lived according to God’s timing for everything in his life.
  • Jesus was not trying to become a famous public figure. He knew his mission was to become the sacrificial lamb for the whole world to be saved. 
  • Jesus went to the Festival in secret and did no miracles but did end up teaching about who he is and who his Father is. 
  • Jesus’s brothers missed the whole meaning behind the Festival- they did not realize God was still providing for them by sending Jesus because they denied who Jesus really was, the son of God.
  • Some of the crowd said Jesus was good and others said he was a deceiver.

• Who do you say Jesus is? Do You Know Jesus? Do you follow your own timing for events in your life or do you seek out God’s timing? Do you live to seek glory for yourself or to bring Honor to God’s name?

Midweek Lesson notes from August 13, 2025

Acts Chapters 6,7,8

• Getting organized
  • The beleivers choose seven men filled with faith and the Holy Spirit to overlook taking care of the needs of the widows.
  • The Apostles were devoted to prayer and the ministry of the word.
  • All the disciples were involved with choosing the seven men who would oversee the food service to the widows.
  • The seven men, although chosen to oversee the widows, continued to preach the words of Jesus as well.

• Using Jesus’s Words
  • Stephen, one of the seven chosen to oversee the widows, was also using Jesus’s words to teach the Sanhedrin, who was accusing him of wrong doing.
  • At one point Stephen was even glowing like Jesus  when Jesus was transfigured at the mountain with Peter, James and John and Moses and Elijah showed up.
  • Stephen told the Sanhedrin at the very moment he was speaking to them that he saw heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God, also Jesus’s words. They did not believe him and gave him the same response--they killed Stephen.
  • What was the good news, the Gospel, that he talked about? That God sent Jesus, the Messiah into the world. His life was sacrificed for all humanity, he was crucified, died and rose from the dead three days later. He now lives in heaven at the right hand of God. 
  • Those who believe this message will change their lives to live in accordance with Jesus’s teachings and get baptized and tell others of this message. Several examples of this are in the book of Acts.

• Spread the Words of Jesus to the World
  • After killing Stephen, the church in Jerusalem was heavily persecuted and the disciples there had to leave town, while the twelve apostles remained in Jerusalem. 
  • Philip, one of the seven original men chosen to overlook the widows also went to spread the word in Samaria. The Samaritans were known as outcast Jews that mixed with other religions, yet they were becoming Christians.
  • Philip also met an Ethiopian who he taught from the book of Isaiah, about Jesus. The Ethiopian became a believer in Jesus as the Messiah and got baptized on the way home. 

• Here is an encouragement for you:
  • Learn how to teach about Jesus from Isaiah 52-53.
  • Try to learn how to teach about Jesus from anywhere in the Bible

Sunday Lesson Notes, July 13, 2025

Here I am, send me!

Read Isaiah Chapter 1: 1-4

• What was the nation of Israel guilty of?
  • Forgot God
  • Rebelled against God
  • Refused to Know or Understand God
  • Given to corruption
  • Spurned the holy one of Israel
  • Turned their backs on God and the prophets

Read Isaiah Chapter 6: 8-13

• What message did God want Isaiah to deliver to Israel?
  • Isaiah was sent to warn the people that they were guilty of always hearing God’s word but refused to understand. They saw God’s presence but refused to acknowledge and perceive it was God who was sustaining them all along.
  • This resulted in hardening their hearts toward God
  • Isaiah was supposed to deliver this message to the Israelites until the cities lay in ruin and they were all sent away from the land except for a remnant holy seed, a stump in the land.

Read Isaiah Chapter 42: 1-9

• Who is the servant of the Lord and what was the mission of the servant?
  • The servant was supposed to be the Nation of Israel, they were supposed to have God’ s Spirit in them and were charged with the purpose to bring His light and justice to all the other nations. 
  • However, the Nation of Israel failed to carry out their mission and eventually Jesus came to fulfill the mission. 
  • Isaiah prophecies that eventually a future servant,  Jesus would come and fulfill

 the mission of becoming a Light to the Gentiles, Opening the eyes of the blind and freeing captives from dungeons.

Read Isaiah Chapter 42: 13-20

• How did God feel about Israel’s refusal to listen to him and break their covenant with him?
  • He was utterly upset and his heart was full of pain although he had been showing restraint and withholding their punishment for years
  • He was like a woman in childbirth gasping in pain
  • Although Israel was guilty of turning their backs on God, God was merciful and left a remnant in the land to be restored. God also decided to turn darkness to light after doling out the punishment and decided not to forsake them although they forsake him.

Read Matthew 13: 1-7

• What is this parable about? Why did Jesus speak to the people in parables?
  • The parable is a reminder of how God’s word can fall on different paths and produce different results. 
  • When we hear God’s word, if our heart is receptive to what God says, we will produce a spiritual crop in our lives 100 times over
  • Speaking in parables was a way for Jesus to sort out whose hearts were ready to receive God’s message in their lives. Those with “good soil” in their hearts produced good fruit. Those without good soil that was rocky or hard or filled with weeds, would not produce fruit in their lives
• How do you know if you are blind or deaf to God’s word in your life?
  • You will turn to yourself or other things instead of listening to conversations with Jesus. The words of Jesus will just be nice stories and you will miss seeing and hearing Who Jesus really is.
  • A sign that you are listening and obeying God would produce a life that is full of faith, good relationships with people, an ability to appreciate and live life even if circumstances are difficult in your life. You will be able to stand up under the pressures of the world and your life will be an example for others to follow. Your life will be like a life giving stream in a harsh desert!

From June 11, 2025

Helpful Tips for Resolving Conflicts in our Family Relationships

• Read Ephesians 6:1-8
  • Discusses role of children to obey parents
  • Discusses role of Father’s to lead their family spiritually
  • Serve others like we are serving the Lord
• Read Ephesians 5:1-33
  • We are to love and respect each other
  • Follow God’ s Spirit and watch the way we are living
• Read Ephesians 4:1-32
  • Be humble and gentle and patient with each other
  • Be kind to each other, but speak the truth in Love
  • We were created to be like minded with God and should therefore practice righteousness

• Read James 1
  • Take the time to listen to each other before speaking
  • Be patient with trials; we’re just going through a test
• Read Acts 20: 32-35
  • We need to be like Jesus in our relationships, he was generous and outward focused
  • It is more blessed to give than to receive

• Other ideas
  • Get help from trusted Christian relationships for input
  • Take personal responsibility for your relationship with God so that you can give and receive kindness from your relationships
  • Focus on the needs of others, not just your own needs

Sunday Lesson Notes

Read Luke 24: 13-35

• Why did these disciples not recognize Jesus as they were walking away from Jerusalem? Why did Jesus ask them what they were talking about on their walk?
  • Perhaps they did not recognize Jesus because the events of his life did not turn out the way they thought it should.
  • Maybe their faith was low and they were discouraged.
  • Jesus often asked his followers questions to get them to think about events on a deeper level or to test their faith in what he was telling them.
  • Jesus frequently was able to get his disciples to pause and think about things in a way they otherwise would not have been thinking. He always wanted to know if his disciples were truly understanding what was happening.
• What was the mood of the disciples and why?
  • They were downcast and sad because they thought Jesus was going to be the one to save their nation/Israel but he was crucified. 
  • They did not realize that Jesus not only saved Israel but the whole world from sin when he was crucified.
  • Their minds were closed to the big picture of God’s plan to save the world through Jesus’s sacrifice. They were focused on their own plan that Jesus was going to come and get rid of the Roman oppression and make Israel a free nation.

• How did Jesus help them to come to recognize who he was?
  • Jesus reminded them of the scriptures starting with Moses and the prophets. Jesus gave them a stern warning that they were being fools by not remembering the scriptures and being slow in heart.
  • When they invited Jesus to stay with them at the house for the night, Jesus served them bread. Jesus took the opportunity to make this a teachable moment so they could recognize him again.
  • They were able to recognize Jesus by exposure to the scriptures and exposure to a familiar event from Jesus’s life - ie, the last supper where he broke bread, gave thanks and gave it to the disciples.These disciples’ hearts were opened to talking more with Jesus so they asked him to spend more time with them, and he obliged.
  • Jesus really cared about these two disciples who left Jerusalem after his death and were discouraged. He took the time to come back and remind them of the promises of God. When they realized who he was, their faith grew and they returned to Jerusalem to tell the others and praise God. They were no longer downcast and hopeless after their encounter with Jesus. 
• What keeps you from recognizing Jesus in your life today?
  • Are you too busy to stop and notice his presence?
  • Are you reading the scriptures and obeying them and spending time learning about who Jesus really is?
  • Do you ask for help to learn more about Jesus’s life?
• Do you walk around disappointed by your life circumstances or do you walk around full of hope and faith in the life to come with a risen Jesus?

Sunday Lesson Notes

April 20, 2025

READ ROMANS 8:5-8

• What does it mean to live by the Flesh?
  • Living in a way to please our physical needs, urges and desires
  • Usually living unrestrained and without intention and unwilling to seek out God’s desires
• What does it mean to live by the Spirit?
  • We are living based on the direction we receive from God’s Holy Spirit that lives inside of us 
  • We receive the Gift of God’s Holy Spirit at Baptism and when we set our minds to follow the direction of the Holy Spirit we are able to make decisions based on how God wants us to live
  • Living by the Spirit takes work, perseverance and a community that will help encourage us to keep our minds on God’s Spirit. 
  • When we set our minds on following God’s Spirit, we live a life of peace; but when our minds are set on meeting the desires of our flesh, this leads to death and an inability to submit to God’s laws. Those who live by the flesh cannot please God and cannot have peace.

READ ROMANS 8: 9-12

• How are we able to live in the realm of the Holy Spirit?
  • We are able to live in the realm of the Holy Spirit because He lives inside of us since our baptism. We are no longer under the rules of the evil spirits of the world, but under the rules of God’s Spirit
  • People that aren’t Christians are unable to live like Christ because they do not have the Holy Spirit. We belong to Christ because he placed his Holy Spirit in us. 
  • We need to understand that if someone does not claim to be a Chrisitian, we cannot hold them to the standard of living a Holy Spirit- led life in Christ. 
  • Also, someone can be a disciple- a learner or student of Christianity, but not a baptized Chrisitian, who has the Holy Spirit living in them.
  • Sin leads to death. Our physical bodies will eventually die, but our spiritual, renewed bodies will be resurrected upon Christ’s return.
  • Our obligation as Christians is to live by the Holy Spirit and to put to death the misdeeds of the flesh.

READ ROMANS 8:14-17

• As Christians we do not have to live in fear because we know God’s ways in our lives
• We will share in Jesus’s sufferings if we live a Christian life but we will also share in his glory in the end. We gain wisdom from suffering and going through trials. Jesus spent 30 years learning scriptures and working as a carpenter before he started his ministry and was therefore prepared to live the life God wanted him to live while on earth.
• What is this glory we are waiting to participate in?
  • Creation will be restored
  • Renewed Humans, A New Heaven and A New Earth will be revealed
  • The Day to Day struggles to set our minds on things above and to fight against the flesh leads to being with God in Glory at the end of time. 

Midweek Lesson Notes

Read 1 Timothy Chapter 2

1. What do you like about meeting with the church? Does your church follow the instructions in this passage? What are the instructions that Paul gave for the church to follow?

• Pray, Intercede and give thanksgiving for all people-including kings and leaders ( for example- our modern day leaders, even if we don’t personally agree with their views).
• Why should we pray for all people? So that we may live in peace and please God with the way we are living our life and will allow others to have a chance to be saved. 
• Women should dress modestly with decency and have good deeds to go along with it.

• In the Hebrew language, Wives and Women are the same word, so learning in submission and quietness could be related to how women/wives should interact with their husbands and/or male leadership. There should be an order to things in the church and yielding to leadership allows for orderly worship. 
• This mostly refers to husband/wife relationships and order. However, God has given men the authority to lead spiritually in the church and we would do well to yield to God’s leadership. Women also have a role in teaching younger women to follow the Bible, so just being quiet is not an option!

Read Titus Chapter 1: 1-16

1. Who wrote this letter and why?
   1. Paul wrote this letter to Titus in order to encourage him in his spiritual work
   2. Paul encouraged Titus to appointment and to take care of the members of the church in Crete by calling them to obey God and give up their worldly ways
   3. The people in Crete, followed a greek god named Zeus who was well known for his worldly living
   4. Paul reminded the Christians in the church that he was an apostle, sent by God and Jesus to teach them about following God and obeying Jesus’s teachings.
   5. Paul also gave specific instructions on how to appoint elders in the church and the qualities they were to possess in order to be appointed as an elder. 

1. Who does this remind you of?
   1. Jesus was sent by God to teach us how to obey God
   2. Jesus then sent out his disciples, his followers, to teach other followers about obeying God
   3. When we do not live a right life before God, we deny who God is and who God made us to be
2. What are some ways we can deny God in our daily lives? What are some ways we can acknowledge God in our daily lives?
   1. We can deny God when we do not live according to his word in our relationships, in our work performance, in our home lives- when we fight, or quarrel, or lie or don’t forgive or are impatient with others
   2. We acknowledge God when we practice God’s ways in our daily lives- by forgiving others, being generous and kind, being patient and humble, serving others, saying encouraging words 

Read Luke 2: 21-24

• Jesus as a baby was brought by his parents to the temple in Jerusalem to be circumcised by the priest on the 8th day after his birth
• His parents were so poor they could not offer the customary lamb so they offered the two doves or two  pigeons (How Ironic because Jesus himself becomes the sacrificial lamb for all mankind)
• Simeon was a devout man and righteous waiting for this moment in history to occur: the consolation of Israel, the coming of the Lord’s Christ.
• What is consolation? The comfort or encouragement of Israel when all of God’s promises come to fruition.
• Read Isaiah about God’s promise to comfort and restore Israel to Himself.

Read Isaiah 40:1-11

• God promised comfort for his people in Jerusalem despite all they were suffering under the military attacks, exile, and rule of the unbelieving nations
• He promised that the sins of the people would be paid for and they would be redeemed to God himself.
• God promised that He was coming to restore his people and all mankind would see it
• God’s words would stand forever, God is a promise keeper
• God was going to provide comfort, shepherding and leadership in their future, through the birth of Jesus
• In Luke Chapter  3- John the Baptist referred to this passage as he was preparing the way for Jesus. In the past, when a king would visit a town, the people would go ahead on the roads and clear a path for the king to pass. As John the Baptist was ushering in Jesus as the Messiah,  he warned the listeners to prepare a path for Jesus--prepare the path with repentance.(Luke 3:4-6).

Read Luke 2:25-35

• Simeon was lead by the Holy Spirit to go meet baby Jesus and his family at the temple and to let his parents know that Jesus was the one Israel had been waiting for
• Simeon trusted what God had revealed to him: that he would see the Christ. He proclaimed it to Jesus’ parents. 
• Simeon’s name means- One who hears and one who listens. Simeon listened to the Holy Spirit and acted on it.
• Simeon delivered the message from the Holy Spirit that Jesus would unify mankind-Jews and Gentiles and everyone would see God do this
• Simeon may have been seen as an insignificant character in his day to day life, but he had such a huge impact on others because he took the time to be right with God and devoted to God. And when the time came he was able to listen to the Holy Spirit and obey and proclaim who Jesus was. What role are you playing in your life right now in order to be used by God and the Holy Spirit to proclaim that Jesus is the Messiah from God who has come to send all comfort to mankind?

December Midweek Lesson 

READ Isaiah Chapter 9:1-7:

• How will the Messiah come to humanity and what will he bring?
  • He will come by way of Galilee and will be a great light for those in the darkness
  • He will increase the nations and bring them peace and joy with no more war
  • His kingdom will be here and everlasting. God and Jesus are in charge, so there will be peace

READ Isaiah Chapter 11:1-9:

• What does the Messiah’s peace look like?
  • Everyone will be in unity with God and Jesus
  • Everyone will be filled with the knowledge of God
  • Even animals and the universe will be at peace and unity with each other
  • The world will return to the peace of the Garden of Eden

READ Luke 2:8-20:

• How did Jesus come to earth? What was his purpose?
  • Jesus was born on earth in humble circumstances, born in a barn with animals, yet God’s angels showed up to praise him
  • Jesus’s purpose was to teach humanity about who his Father is so that we can be in relationship with God and Jesus. This brings us total peace, being in unity with our Father in heaven.
  • Only Jesus can deliver this eternal peace, not things, not money, not status, not other people, etc

READ Matthew 11:25-30:

• Who can receive this peace on earth?
  • Jesus invites us to come to him and to be at peace
  • Anyone that is weary and burdened can go to Jesus for rest
  • We have to be willing to give up our control and let God and Jesus take care of our lives

READ Revelation 21:1-4:

• What does the final peace look like?
  • Heaven--all things will be made new
  • We can take hope that in the future we will be with God and Jesus in a new place, but the peace that Jesus brings is available to us right now in our hearts and minds if we yield our lives to God