Church in the Wild

Attention Funnel: The Five Dangerous Places to Travel in the World

• Death Valley, California – You can only survive 14 Hours here without water!
• Mount Washington, New Hampshire – Although the mountain is only 6,288 ft high – massive winds (up to 230 mph), freezing temperatures, and fickle weather make this the most dangerous mountain in the U.S. – Over 100 people have died on Mount Washington
• Lake Natron, Tanzania – The akali salt crust on the lake will kill any living creature that comes into contact with it.
• Bikini Atoll, Marshall Islands – This beautiful Island was home to nuclear testing during WWII, and still today there remains high levels of radiation that keep inhabitants away.
• lha da Queimada Grande (Snake Island), Brazil – This 110 acre island is home to up to 4,000 of the most poisonous snakes in the world – The Golden Lancehead. It’s estimated that there may be one snake every 6 yards. No wonder travel to this Island has been banned!

Introduction:

• Solomon tells us the world is a wild place
• In this wild place, there are lots of things that compete for our attention. Lots of things that hold out the promise to say, “I’m what life is all about. Chase after me and you will find satisfaction and meaning.” But these things end up being empty, hollow, and destructive.
• Also in this broken place, there is lots of evil that happens. Bad things often happen to wise and good people. Injustice can seem overwhelming at times. Suffering and death eventually come for everyone.
• Solomon tells us this world is a wild place. And in a wild place, we need somewhere we can run to.
  • Show Lizard Video

Big Idea: We need a place we can run to for healing and hope.

Passage: Ecclesiastes 4:7-12; 5:1-7

Main Points:

• We need a place where people have our back.
• We need a place that reorients us around God.
• We need a place where we don’t have to pretend.

Dating In a Netflix and Chill Culture

Attention Funnel: Odd Dating Websites; 1980s Video Dating

Big Idea: Dating should always be pointed towards marriage.

• Dating is a cultural thing… If I would’ve asked someone 100 years ago if they were dating anyone they probably would’ve looked at me like I was talking a foreign language.
  • It’s like giving a diamond ring to signify an engagement… it’s a cultural thing that could shift and change. One of my friend’s Dad gave his future wife a sowing machine to seal their engagement J.
• Dating, at it’s best, is our culture’s way of moving from friends into marriage. I realize that this is not always the case… that now dating has come to mean many things… but when I refer to dating I mean the way that we move from being friends into marriage.
• Other ways include courtship and arrange marriages.

Passages: 1 Corinthians 7:8-9; Proverbs 11:22; 31:10-30; 2 Corinthians 6:14; Song of Solomon 1:3; 1 Timothy 5:1-2; 1 Thessalonians 4:3-5 

Main Points:

• Date to find a spouse, not a good time.
• Move beyond attraction quickly.
• How you treat the people that you date MATTERS.
• Hope: Jesus heals broken people.

Social Identity

 

Attention Funnel: Best Instagram Posts Video/ Girl who left Instagram Video

 Introduction:

• Whenever we talk about identity we should be drawn back to a specific question… “Who am I?”
• Am I athletic? Am I smart? Am I musically talented? Am I funny? Am I an extrovert and outgoing? Am I an introvert and more reserved? Am I attractive? Am I interesting? Am I courageous? Am I successful? Where do I fit in? Who am I?
• Social media can be a place we go to in order to answer these questions.
• Social media can be a place where we present an identity (true or false) in order to gain value and acceptance.
  • True or false does not just mean a true or false statement… it also means taking 30 pictures until you find just the right one to post up. It means editing for a half an hour before posting. It means rewriting your caption and hashtag 10 times before finally hitting post. This is false because this isn’t how real life works… and you would never want people to know how much effort you put into a post because that would make you seem pitiful rather than like worthy.
• I put something out there (true or false) and wait to see how many likes, favorites, comments, etc pile up and I base my worth wholely or more likely partially in that.
• Rather than looking to social media to build an identity and assess our value, we should look to God and what he says about our identity in Christ.

 Big Idea: We find our value in what God says about us instead of what others say about us on social media.

 Passage: Romans 3:21-28

Main Points:

• We boast to secure an identity.
• We use an identity to find value.
• God gives us an unchanging identity in Christ.

Social Transformation

Attention Funnel: Weirdest Contests/World’s Ugliest Dog Videos

• 5) Baby Crying Contest – Held in Japan – babies are assigned to Sumo Wrestlers and each wrestler tries to make the baby cry by making weird faces and noises… if the baby does not cry within a certain time limit the referee enters the ring to make loud noises… The crying is believed to benefit the health of the baby
• 4) Cell Phone Throwing Contest – Held in Finland – People are judged based on distance and technique. There are four categories to participate in – Original, Freestyle, Team, and Junior
• 3) World Sauna Championships – Also held in Finland – Competitors try to be the last person in a 110 degree sauna which has half a liter of water added every 30 seconds
• 2) The Redneck Games – Held in Georgia – These games include Mudpit Bellyflopping, Toilet Seat Throwing, Bobbing for Pig’s feet, and dumpster diving.
• 1) World’s Ugliest Dog Contest – Held in California – Goal is to win by having the ugliest dog – the winning dog owners receive $1500 and a makeover on Jimmy Kimmel

Big Idea: The gospel transforms how we relate to one another.

Passage: Romans 12:1-21

 Introduction:

• In the first 11 Chapters of Romans, Paul has laid out a breathtaking view of the gospel.
• He has described God’s great mercy in saving sinners in Christ.
• He has laid out how we can become a loved son and daughter of God through faith in Christ.
• After 11 amazing chapters… Paul begins now to specifically lay out how we live in response to this good news. He begins to show how the gospel transforms how we live in this world.
• To disconnect the specifics or how we should live from what God has done for us in the gospel is to stunt our growth.
• It’s only as we grasp the good news of all that God has done for us that we will desire to live the life he commands out of gratitude.

Main Points:

• The gospel transforms the way we view ourselves and other people.
• The gospel transforms the way we treat other people.
• The gospel leads to radical relationships.

Social Creatures: Social Chaos

Attention Funnel: Two Videos

 Introduction:

• In a way this is a two-part lesson. Part one is tonight and part two is next week.
• Tonight may seem very negative… pointing out all the ways social media and relationships in general can be harmful and hurtful.
• I want to close with a glimpse of hope and encourage you to come back next week for the full picture of hope.
• Last week we looked at how God designed us for relationships, this week we are going to look at how sin makes a mess of human relationships.
• We’re going to do this by taking a look at several passages in Genesis 3-4.

Big Idea: Human relationships are deeply affected by sin.

Passages: Genesis 3:8-12; Genesis 4:2-8; Genesis 4:23-24: Genesis 4:25

Main Points:

• Sin leads to division. (Genesis 3:8-13)
• Sin leads us to see other people as objects. (Genesis 4:1-8)
• Sin opens to door to unchecked revenge. (Genesis 4:23-24)
• Hope: Jesus came to free us from the penalty and effects of sin. (Genesis 4:25)

Social Creatures

 

 Attention Funnel:

• Social Media Timeline Competition

 Introduction:

• Have you ever stopped to ask yourself why you are living?
• Have you ever wondered why you have life and are breathing, eating, moving, and functioning today?
• Have you ever stopped to ask what the purpose of life is? Why did God create Adam, Eve, me, you, and everyone else?
• New City Catechism
  • “How and why did God create us?”
  • “God created us male and female in his own image to know him, love him, live with him, and glorify him. And it is right that we who were created by God should live to his glory.”
• Romans 11:36 “For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.”
• 1 Corinthians 10:31 “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”
• There are many ways that we glorify God- but I want highlight two… we reflect his image and we obey him.
• If I told you to draw a picture of yourself and then post it on the wall so that everyone can look at it… your picture, if it was done well would bring glory to you. People would look at it and be impressed, they would be impressed by your drawing skills, by the detail you can put on it, etc.
  • People would look at my picture of myself and think that I was trying to draw Frankenstein… I’m a terrible artist.
  • The better that image reflects you, the more people would be impressed by you and praise you.
• The better we reflect God, the more he is honored and praised. God has given us commandments in part so that we would know how to reflect his image well – what he is like… his character… his personality.
• God commands us to love other people because he loves humans.
• God commands us to tell the truth because he always tells the truth and never lies.
• This evening I want to look at how God has created us to be in relationships with other people. And I want to connect how Social Media can fit into this larger picture

 Big Idea: God designed us to be in relationships with other people.

Passage: Genesis 1:26-27; Genesis 2:18-20; 2 John 12

Main Points:

• God is a relational being.
• We reflect God’s image as relational people.
• God has designed relationships.
• Relationships require more than a screen.