01-05-2020
Dr. E. Dale Locke, Rev. Trevor Johnston, Pastor Efrain Silva
Sermon Series: Best Year Yet
Week 1: Precious
English PDF file for printing: here
Para imprimir el archivo PDF en Español: here
1. Begin learning our memory verse for this sermon series - 2 Peter 1:3: “His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.”
2. Why do you think so many people have a desire to start new, better habits when the calendar flips to a new year?
3. What New Year’s resolutions have you planned, if any?
4. Read Ephesians 2:10: “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” The word “handiwork” means “masterpiece” and this verse communicates that we aren’t our own project, we are God’s project. What difference does it make to know that God is working on you like a great artist works on his masterpiece?
5. Read 2 Peter 1:1-11:
“Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours: 2 Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.
3 His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4 Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7 and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.
10 Therefore, my brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble, 11 and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”
6. What questions or comments come to your mind as you read this passage?
7. Peter is one of the most relatable people in the Bible, because sometimes he did well, but often he messed up, just like we do. He is writing this letter near the end of his life (see 2 Peter 1:14) after years of learning how to grow in his faith. If you’ve been a believer for a while, share some wisdom that you’ve learned over the years about how to do your faith better.
In this opening sermon of the series, we will focus on verses 3-4 of 2 Peter 1 and what specific things God wants to say to each of us at the start of this new year so that this will be our “Best Year Yet”.
God’s Promises are Complete:
8. Note that Peter uses the word “precious” twice here. The faith God gives us is “precious” and God’s promises are “precious.” That word indicates something is very valuable – like precious china dishes. We tend to put precious things (like special china) on a shelf where no one can use it or even touch it. But this isn’t what Peter had in mind. What did Peter want us to understand, when he used the word “precious” here?
9. Peter says that God has given us everything we need to live the Christian life well. List some of the things that God has provided you to help you on your faith journey.
Our Faith is Incomplete:
10. This passage can be confusing at first, because Peter says that God has done everything we need, but he also says that we need to “add” some things to our faith, and “make every effort” (see verses 5 & 10). We know from the rest of Scripture that Peter is not talking about earning our way to heaven through our own goodness. So what what does Peter mean, when he says to “make every effort”?
11. Søren Kierkegaard said, “Now with God’s help, I shall become myself.” What did he mean by that?
12. Your intentional effort makes a huge difference in whether or not you grow spiritually. This is why we are asking the 1,800 people in our small groups to do what we’re calling a “Spiritual Growth Survey” so we can all make an intentional plan to grow in one area in 2020. If you aren’t in a group, but you want to do the Spiritual Growth Survey on your own, you can find the video and a 2-page handout to guide you at communityofhope.church/sgs
13. Read 2 Corinthians 1:20: “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are ‘Yes’ in Christ. And so through him the ‘Amen’ is spoken by us to the glory of God.” The biblical word “Amen” means “I agree!” or “So be it!” or “May it happen just like you said!” Given that fact, what is Paul saying about God’s promises in this verse?