crazy love
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Crazy Love. Chapter 1. The Awe Factor. Psalm 19:1-4 - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Chapter 1
Crazy Love
Psalm 19:1-4The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands. 2 Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they reveal knowledge. 3 They have no speech, they use no words;
no sound is heard from them.4 Yet their voice[b] goes out into all the
earth,their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.
The Awe Factor
Why is loving God so hard?Do we have Spiritual amnesia?Are we programmed to think about what we do not have instead of thinking about what we have?
How do we learn to know him?What are the attributes of God?
God is Holy – He already has an identity“I Am who I am” (Ex. 3:14) He is perfect but set
apart.We cannot exaggerate how awesome is our God.
God is EternalGod exist outside of time.God will not be limited by our standards. “God is so
much bigger, so far beyond our time-encased, air/food/sleep-dependent lives.” (F. Chan Pg. 32)
“We forget that we already have everything we need in Him” (F. Chan)
“But you, O LORD, sit enthroned forever; Your renown endures through all generations… But you remain the same and your years will never end.”
Psalm 102:12,27
GODWhat are the attributes of God?
God is all-knowingGod knows who we are and what we are about.Psalm 139:7-10
Where can I go from your Spirit?Where can I flee from your presence?8 If I go up to the heavens, you are
there;if I make my bed in the depths, you are
there.9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,if I settle on the far side of the sea,10 even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.
GODWhat are the attributes of God?
God is fair and Just
His standard for justice is set by him.When you get your own universe you get to make
the rules.Pride… we make excuses but God hates pride.
Chapter 2
Crazy Love
http://www.crazylovebook.com/videos.html
“on the average day, we live caught up in
ourselves.” (Chan)
“Its crazy that we think today is just a normal day to do whatever we want
with.”
Do you feel invincible?
Phil 4:4Rejoice in the
Lord Always and again I say
rejoice!
Vs. 6Do not be
anxious about anything
“When I am consumed by my problems-stressed out about my life, my family,
and my job- I actually convey the belief that I think the circumstances are more important than
God’s command to always rejoice.”
What does Worry do to people?• “It implies that we don’t quite trust that
God is big enough , powerful enough, or loving enough to take care of what’s happening in our lives”
• “Stress says that the things we are involved in are important enough to merit our impatience, our lack of grace towards others, or our tight grip of control”
1. God Creates the World (were you alive then?)2. People rebel against God3. God Floods the World4. God singles out a 99 year old man named
Abram (did you have anything to do with this?)5. Next God uses ordinary men to accomplish his
will (Joseph and Moses…) 6. God sends Judges and prophets7. God sends his Son8. Son returns to God9. Lastly God sits on the Throne in Heaven with
His people
Is the Story of the Bible about us?
Why do we live as though it is about us?
Our scene is brief.
1 Cor 10:31So whether you eat or drink or what ever you do, do it all for the glory of
God.
So what will you do with your brief two-fifths of a
second?
1. Get over yourself2. Point to God3. Give up control4. Prepare yourself5. Realize the truth of your life.6. Trust God Completely7. Be Thankful
Chapter 3
Crazy Love
http://www.crazylovebook.com/videos.html
“Most of us to some degree, have a difficult
time understanding, believing, or even
accepting God’s absolute and unlimited love for us.”
“I had no aspiration of being wanted by God; I was just happy not to be hated or hurt by him.”
• What is wrong with his view of God?
• What changed his view?
Describe the greeting he receives from his children
everyday.
“…I came to understand that my desire for my children is only a faint echo of God’s great love for me and for every person He made”(P. 55).
Matt 7:11
If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give
good gifts to those who ask him!
Isaiah 40: 22-24He sits enthroned above the circle
of the earth,and its people are like
grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a
canopy, and spreads them out like a tent to
live in. 23 He brings princes to naught
and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing.
Isaiah 40: 22-2424 No sooner are they planted,
no sooner are they sown,no sooner do they take root in the
ground,than he blows on them and they
wither, and a whirlwind sweeps them away
like chaff. • Should people be afraid of God?
“Over time I realized that when we love God, we naturally run to Him –
frequently and zealously”
“But for a long time, I narrowly focused on his fearsomeness to the
exclusion of His great and abounding love.”
“God knew who he was creating and He designed
me for a specific work”
Jeremiah 1:6-106 “Alas, Sovereign LORD,” I said, “I do not know how
to speak; I am too young.” 7 But the LORD said to me,
“Do not say, ‘I am too young.’ You must go to
everyone I send you to and say whatever I command
you. 8 Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,” declares the LORD.
9 Then the LORD reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said to me, “I have put my words in
your mouth. 10 See, today I appoint you over nations
and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build
and to plant.”
How would you respond to this moment of God touching your mouth?
What expectations should we rely on from God?
• God will ensure my success in accordance with His plan, not mine.• God’s mercy is free, yet a costly
gift. It cannot be earned.• God doesn’t need me or you. Yet
he wants us, chooses us, even considers us His inheritance.
“… God is truly the greatest good on this earth, would He be loving us if He didn’t draw us toward what is best for us(even if that happens to be Himself)? Doesn’t His courting, luring, pushing, calling, and even "threatening” demonstrate His love?”(P. 62)
Chapter 4
Crazy Love
http://www.crazylovebook.com/videos.html
Matt 13:44The kingdom of heaven is like
treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it he hid it again,
and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.
“This kind of enthusiastic response to God’s love is entirely appropriate. Yet what a contrast to our typical response at discovering the same treasure!” (p.66)
If you were in charge of planning a church event, how would people decide whether it was a success?
How do people measure success?
A. NumbersB. ResponsesC. New Contacts
Large crowds… Parables… So That…
Luke 8
HE WASN’T INTERESTED IN THOSE WHO FAKE IT.
Which one are we?
The Parable of the Sower
“Do not assume you are the good soil” (p.67)
“When we want God and a bunch of other stuff, then that means we have thorns in our soil. A relationship with God simply cannot grow when money, sins, activities, favorite sports teams, addictions, or commitments are piled on top of it.” (p.67)
Most Americans are…
Has your relationship with God actually changed the way you live?
Are you satisfied being godly enough to get yourself to heaven, or to look good in comparison to others?
Are you choking it out slowly by spending too time, energy, money, and thought on
the things of this world?
Do you feel comfortable saying, “I want to know Christ and the power of …?”
Do you see evidence of God’s Kingdom in your
life?
Would you describe yourself as totally in love with Christ?
Or
Do the words half-hearted, lukewarm, and partially
committed fit better?
“Taking the words of Christ literally and seriously is rarely considered. That’s for the “radicals” who are “unbalanced” and who go “overboard.” Most of us want a balanced life that we can control, that is safe, and that does not involve suffering.” (p.68)
Look at your Life Honestly:1. Do lukewarm people attend
church fairly regularly? Why?• Isa. 29:13
2. Do lukewarm people give to charity? Until what?• 1 Chron. 21:24• Luke 21:1-4
Look at your Life Honestly:3. Do lukewarm people tend to
choose what is popular over what is right when they are in conflict?
4. Do they try to fit in with the church and the world?
5. Do they care more about what people think than what God thinks?• Luke 6:26, Rev. 3:1, Matt.
23:5-7
Look at your Life Honestly:6. Lukewarm people don’t really
want to be saved from their sin; they just don’t want to face the punishment. They don’t really believe that the new life that Jesus offers is better than the old sinful one.• John 10:10• Rom 6:1-2
Look at your Life Honestly:7. Lukewarm people are moved
by stories about people who do radical things for Christ, yet they do not act.
8. They call “radical” what Jesus expected of all his followers.• James 1:22• James 4:17• Matt. 21:28-31
Look at your Life Honestly:9. Lukewarm people rarely share
their faith with their neighbors, coworkers, or friends. They worry about two things…• Matt 10:32-33
Look at your Life Honestly:10.Lukewarm people compare
themselves to others• Luke 18:11-12
11. Lukewarm people love Jesus partially.
• “Let me first go bury…”• “say goodbye first…”
“No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”
Have you ever thought about joining the Marines?
Would they change the rules for me if I join? I don’t want to run or train.
Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is fit neither for
the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown out.
Luke 14:34-35
Chapter 5
Crazy Love
http://www.crazylovebook.com/videos.html
Revelation 3:15-1815 I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you
were either one or the other! 16 So, because you are lukewarm—
neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. 17 You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired
wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and
naked.
18 I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire,
so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you
can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put
on your eyes, so you can see.
When you read this passage, do you naturally conclude that to be “spit” out of Jesus’
mouth means you’re a part of His kingdom?
Is he describing saints: wretched, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked?
When He counsels them to “buy white clothes to wear” in order to cover their
“shameful nakedness,” does it sound like advice for those already saved?
Jesus’ call to commitment is clear: He wants all or nothing. The
thought of a person calling himself a “Christian” without being a
devoted follower of Christ is absurd.
(p. 85)
Is a person saved who has no roots?
John 14:15“If you love me you will obey what I
command”
John 2:19 “You believe there is one God.
Good! Even the demons believe that -- and shudder.”
Matt. 16:24-25“If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his
cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever
loses his life for me will find it”
Luke 14:33 “Any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my
disciple.”
Can we be Christians with out becoming a disciple?
I do not want true believers to doubt their salvation as they read this book. In the midst of our failed attempts at
loving Jesus, His grace covers us.
Do we give God our best or just what’s left over?
Does anyone enjoy token praise?
How do we “exchange our wealth for His Gold refined in Fire?” (Rev. 3)
If life is a river, then pursuing Christ requires swimming upstream
Chapter 6
Crazy Love
http://www.crazylovebook.com/videos.html
Are you truly in with God?“If you could have heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or any natural disasters, could you be satisfied with heaven, if Christ was not there?” (p.100)
Gal 5:13-14 You, my brothers and sisters, were
called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather,
serve one another humbly in love. 14 For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love
your neighbor as yourself.”
Does this passage say that when we love, we’re free? If so why?
If you are constantly loving in a godly way, is it easier or harder to sin?
Why?
Do you feel free in your Christian life? Isn’t that what God wants? Why?
Gal. 5:6The only thing that counts is faith
expressing itself through love.
There is a BIG difference in how we feel about faith and how we are
meant to feel about faith.
Why do so few people genuinely find joy and pleasure in their relationship with God?
Do you ever feel like you owe God and must pay him back in the way that you live? Should you?
Lukewarm living and claiming Christ’s name simultaneously is
utterly disgusting to God.
Try Harder?
SO WHAT DO WE DO?
It does no good to muster up more love for God, to will yourself to love Him more. When loving him becomes an obligation, one of many things we have to do, we end up focusing even more on ourselves. (P.103)
How many of you would stay in a relationship with someone who is very selfish, manipulative, apathetic, doesn’t pay attention to you, and at the same time - demanding?
Can you honestly say with all certainty that you truly love God?
God Wants to Change Us.He died so that we could change. How?• Let him change you!
Rev. 3:20Here I am! I stand at the door and
knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.
Good plan?In the same way you have to stop loving and pursuing Christ in order to sin.
Running and eating Twinkies. You have to stop to eat them…
Be Real with God.Tell Him how you feel and ask Him to Change you