Jesus Fights for Our Healing Pt. 3

Jesus Fights For Our Healing - Part III

(from 10/02/16 sermon)

I. OPEN - See if there is anyone who wants to share a short testimony, or if there are there specific praise updates to begin CG.

Pray

Q - Sermon takeaways from those who were in attendance?

*READ ALOUD MATTHEW 8:1-4

II. REFLECT

Notice v. 3…” and Jesus stretched out His hand and T OUCHED HIM.” Do you see the implications of these 9 little words? The God of all creation, who humbled Himself and as incarnate man...the God Man, fully God and fully man, established His Kingdom by TOUCHING one of his creations...and a leper at that. Think of Timothy touching His hands and his side. Or read the words of John in 1 John 1:1 “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands , concerning the word of life the life was made manifest …”

For further reflection: Read Phil 2:68

Q - In light of these verses, why is of such significance that Christ would touch and/or be touched by mortal man? What are the spiritual implications of such?

*Please make note of this important distinction for within it lies the Gospel itself. Religion attempts to exalt a man into God’s presence or to make himself have good standing with his god. But only in Christianity does God Himself INCARNATE Himself and come to us.

A leper coming to Christ was astonishing indeed. People were not allowed to be within 6 ft of a leper (or 50 ft if the wind was blowing)...and he had to declare “unclean, unclean!” wherever he went and could not live in the community of the Israelites.

Q - What can we learn about true faith by looking at this leper? Think about his actions and his words throughout this story, and be sure to consider the setting and his audience. Discuss. The description of a leper that was given Sunday was, “Leprosy g enerally begins with pain in certain areas of the body. Numbness follows. Soon the skin in such spots loses its original color. It gets to be thick, glossy,and scaly...As the sickness progresses, the thickened spots become dirty sores and ulcers due to poor blood supply. The skin, especially around the eyes and ears, begins to bunch, with deep furrows between the swellings, so that the face of the afflicted individual begins to resemble that of a lion. Fingers drop  off...toes are affected similarly. Eyebrows and eyelashes drop out...The leper emits a very unpleasant odor...the voice acquires a grating quality. His throat becomes hoarse, and you can now not only see, feel, and smell the leper, but you can hear his rasping voice.”

Q - How sin a lot like leprosy? ( Sin Infects the whole person...ugly, loathsome, corrupting, contaminating, alienating, and incurable by man.)

Q - Spiritually, apart from Christ and the Gospel, why is it critical that we first see ourselves as leprous? Consider Matt 9:1213.

III. APPLICATION

Remember, as disciples of Christ we are to love the things that Christ loved, and we see over and over that he loved the downtrodden and outcast...he loved the lepers of society. Missionally, when is the last time you have touched a leper? Who do you need to get closer than 6 ft. with this week?

IV. CLOSE

Final thoughts

V. BE ON-MISSION

Q - What 1-2 things did you receive from this passage or discussion that you can implement and/or give away this week? Specifically, how do you plan to do so?

Announcements

/Reminders

● New Faces - Go over new hires (per earlier e-mail): 1) Daniel McIntosh executive pastor. Will probably start in Nov. Wife = Michelle, w/3 kids. 2) Sam Adams stepping down from Children’s Ministry Director due to seminary, job, and new baby. Debbie DuPre hired and begins this week! 3) Seth Hise working part-time hours to help with communications (weekly, bulletin, social media, etc.)

● Women’s Retreat - Oct 21-23 in Pigeon Forge. Encourage ladies to attend. E-mail Karen Trigg at RuthsHope@gmail.com for more info or to sign up.

● Women’s Gathering - This Tuesday @ 7:00. 5 Strawberry Place, J.C.

● Prayer Service - There will be a designated evening of prayer for healing and deliverance on Tuesday, Nov 1. More details to come later. Be praying now.

● Starting Point - Gathering for those new to RS who simply want to know more about the church. After church on Sun, Oct 30. More details to come later.

● Church membership - For those who want to make RS their church home, there will be a membership meeting on Sunday, Nov 13. More details to come later.

Prayer Requests ● (Cover within various groups)