December 20, 2020 • Jonathan Pokluda, Nate Hilgenkamp • Philippians 4:14–23
Do you ever look back on financial decisions with regret? Made a choice that you thought would be good but turned out poorly? How did it affect your ability to be generous? As we finish studying the book of Philippians, Nate Hilgenkamp teaches us about generosity and its relationship to the gospel.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
-Being generous isn’t about the amount of money you have or don’t have, give or don’t give.
-“Yet” is never going to come on this side of Christ’s return.
-Generosity is at the heart of the gospel.
-The most generous moment in human history was 2,000 years ago when Christ went to the cross.
-We often think, “How much do I have to give?” whereas God thinks, “What’s the most I can give?”
-Generosity pleases God.
-God doesn’t want our money, He wants our heart. (It’s not our money http://anyways...it’s His!)
-Money makes a terrible master.
-Generous people are happier people.
-Our God is generous.
-God delights in being generous toward us. It can look different at different times (physical, material, spiritual, etc.), but He loves to be generous toward us!
-Most of us have more excess than we want to admit.
MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES
-Suggested Scripture Study: Philippians 4:14-23; Ephesians 5:1-2; Matthew 7:9-11
-Sermon: Finding Contentment
-Sermon: The Peace that Follows Belief
Finding Contentment
December 13, 2020 • Jonathan Pokluda • Philippians 4:10–13
Do you struggle with discontentment? Or better asked, where do you struggle with discontentment? Where in life are you most often discontent? As we continue studying the book of Philippians, JP teaches us the secret of contentment found in Philippians 4:10-13.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
-What we need for contentment is available for us at all times.
-Contentment is not found in others.
-We don’t use people and love stuff, we use stuff and love people.
-When you give someone the control of your emotions you have made them your god.
-People will let you down consistently until Jesus returns.
-Who controls your contentment? What should you do about it?
-Contentment is not found in circumstances.
-When you make circumstances your god you will be let down time and time again.
-God rarely changes our circumstances, rather, He changes us in our circumstances.
-What is God teaching you in the midst of circumstances you want to change?
-Christians are called to bloom where they are planted (regardless of the circumstances).
-Contentment is not found in stuff.
-Every Black Friday, most of us search the ads looking for something to need. Not something that we need, but something to need. Don’t buy that lie!
-The rich are infinitely better off than the poor because while the poor think more money will make them happier the rich know better.
-Philippians 4:13 doesn’t teach you can hit a home run because of Jesus, it teaches that you can endure any and all suffering because of Jesus.
-Contentment is found in Christ alone.
-When you find yourself really wanting something, pray to God that you’d want Him more.
-You belong to God and God is enough.
-If you dig deeply wherever God has you you will find whatever it is He wants you to find.
-The gospel is not simply fire insurance to avoid hell someday when you die, it affects everything about every thought, decision, and action of your life right http://now...today!
MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES
-Suggested Scripture Study: Philippians 4:10-13; Galatians 1:10; Hebrews 13:5: 1 Timothy 6:6-8
-Sermon: The Peace That Follows Belief
-Sermon: Distractions on the Journey Home
The Peace That Follows Belief
December 6, 2020 • Jonathan Pokluda • Philippians 4:4–9
Do you get stressed easily? 2020 has likely caused most of us to get stressed more than normal. What causes stress in your life? As we continue studying the book of Philippians, JP teaches through Philippians 4:4-9, showing us a 2,000 year old answer to today’s problems and stress.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
-Pay attention to what you pay attention to.
-This world is not our home and we are not home yet. Our citizenship is in heaven!
-The behavior (rejoicing and being gentle) that follows belief (the Lord is near).
-Joy is an emotion (noun), but rejoicing is a choice (verb). You can choose to rejoice at any point in time.
-We typically believe the answer to worry and anxiety is control. Gentleness admits that you aren’t in control and that God is in control.
-What do you want to be doing when Jesus comes back? Regardless of what you are actually doing when He does come, you want to be found believing and trusting that He is in fact coming back.
-The Bible—written 2,000 years ago—teaches what science is now discovering to be true about the human body and mind.
-Do not be anxious without prayer. In a matter of two verses, Paul instructs us to pray four times!
-The peace that follows prayer.
-It takes the same amount of energy to pray as it does to be worried.
-Christians have the supernatural ability to turn worry into prayer. Add “God, help us with ______” to the front of anything you are worried about.
-Prayer changes everything.
-Some of the most popular apps in 2020 (meditation apps) are simply encouraging us to do the very thing Paul instructs us to do 2,000 years ago while in a Roman jail cell.
-Fix your mind on who you are and on Whose you are.
-The peace that follows practice.
-The teaching from this passage is not a one and done application. It’s something you practice day in and day out.
-Practice is the ability to apply what you’ve learned. A doctor—medical practice—practices what they learn and gets better as they hone their craft.
-Anxiety is contagious. Be careful of whose practice you are following.
-People today are spending billions of dollars to create an angst in you to buy their product (which won’t actually solve that angst).
-Your mind is a storage container. Think of it like a filing cabinet. What kind of thoughts (files) are you filling your mind with?
-Who is your role model? One of the most impactful things in life is who you spend your time with.
-Our behavior follows our belief. Peace follows prayer. Peace follows practice.
MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES
-Suggested Scripture Study: Philippians 4:4-9; 2 Peter 3:8-9; Philippians 2:20; Joshua 1:8; Psalm 119:15; Galatians 3:26-28; 2 Corinthians 11:16-29
-Sermon: Peace From Heaven
-Sermon: Distractions on the Journey
Distractions on the Journey Home
November 29, 2020 • Jonathan Pokluda • Philippians 3:15–21, Philippians 4:1–3
Have you ever been distracted before? We all have! Where and when are you most prone to be distracted? As we continue studying the book of Philippians, JP teaches us about the dangers of being distracted in our relationship with Christ and our journey toward heaven.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
-If you have put your faith in Christ you are on your way home.
-The mature in faith model the way.
-Don’t take advantage of your salvation. You were made for a http://purpose...don’t simply coast once you’ve accepted Christ as your Savior.
-The Christian life is like a marathon. In a marathon, if you want to grow and get faster you surround yourself with fast people. The same is true in the Christian life.
-Life is hard. Don’t make the mistake of trying to do it http://alone...that will only make it harder.
-Where in life are you most prone to do whatever you want? To follow your stomach and appetite rather than the ways of Christ and Scripture?
-The distracted are destined for destruction.
-Are you ever entertained by the things that put Christ on the cross?
-The Scriptures are clear: you have desires for things that will kill you! You are called to wage war against those desires.
-What are you denying yourself right now? What are you denying yourself so that you can pursue holiness?
-The mantra of the satanic bible is to do whatever you want.
-The reason the cross is offensive to people is that it’s the greatest act of selflessness in the history of the world.
-Selflessness is a bad PR campaign, but how much better would your parenting, marriage, friendships, and work be if you were selfless?
-The very thing we strive after and collect on earth with be asphalt in heaven.
-Get along in the gospel to the finish.
-When we have the same mind as Christ we should learn to agree with one another.
-Disunity in the church is almost always an example of immaturity.
-Don’t wait until you are ready to deal with http://conflict...you will never be ready, you must move toward it!
-Most of the time the church splits it is satanic. We put our preferences in place of our pursuit of paradise.
-Time doesn't heal all wounds. Surgery does, and there are usually scars.
-We are not home yet and we won’t be until we are fully in the presence of Jesus. Don’t be distracted by the temporary things on this earth.
MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES
-Suggested Scripture Study: Philippians 3:15-4:3; 1 Corinthians 11:1; 1 Peter 2:11; 1 John 2:15; 1 Corinthians 9:27; Hebrews 13:14
-Sermon: Joy in Knowing Jesus
-Sermon: Ordinary Obedience
Joy in Knowing Jesus
November 22, 2020 • Bryan Carter • Philippians 3:1–14
When you hear the word religion, what comes to mind? What about the word relationship? What do the two of them have to do with Christianity and the Bible? As we continue studying the book of Philippians, Dr. Bryan Carter teaches through Philippians 3:1-14, teaching us what we can learn about religion and a relationship with God through the life of the Apostle Paul.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
-Beware of people who say Christianity is Jesus + something else.
-We will never be able to earn our way to God. Doing good, religious things is not what God wants from us or for us.
-Religion always leads to pride, self-righteousness, and cruelty.
-Unfortunately, some of the meanest people can be found in the church! This should not be; it is not what God is about nor what the Bible teaches.
-Followers of Jesus change from the inside out, not the outside in.
-Religion makes a whole lot of noise, but it’s empty. It doesn’t really do anything. It’s like a vacuum that powers on and sounds like it’s working but doesn’t suck anything up.
-It’s the Spirit of God that changes us and fuels us to live for Him, not our works or efforts.
-When you follow Jesus, you grow and learn to no longer put confidence in yourself or your actions.
-Anything and everything this world has to offer—money, sex, power, status, fame—is all for loss compared to knowing Christ.
-Do you focus more on external things that happen in your life or the internal things of your heart?
-What is the joy and focus of your life?
-As Christians, in suffering, we get to know and become closer with Jesus.
-2020 has been quite the http://year...do you know Jesus and love Him more as the end of the year is drawing near?
-Religion creates a facade and a complacency making you think you’ve arrived and that you can coast. Christians aren’t “there yet” or done until we die or Christ returns. We are all a work in progress.
-In order to know and press toward Christ, you need to learn to forget what lies behind you.
-Christianity is both an “already” (Christ came and died and rose to life) and a “not yet” (Christ will come again!) faith.
-What are you pressing toward? What is the aim and goal of your life?
MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES
-Suggested Scripture Study: Philippians 3:1-14
-Book: The Grace Awakening by Charles Swindoll
-Sermon: Ordinary Obedience
-Sermon: Working Out to Finish Strong
Ordinary Obedience
November 15, 2020 • Nate Hilgenkamp • Philippians 2:19–30
SUMMARY
When you think of heroes of the Christian faith, who comes to mind? As we continue studying the book of Philippians, Nate Hilgenkamp teaches through Philippians 2:19-30, showing us that God uses ordinary obedience from ordinary people to accomplish extraordinary things.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
-Genuine care is rare.
-It’s easy to care for people in the moment, but it’s challenging to care for people on an on-going basis, day after day, week after week.
-If all your prayers from this last week were answered “yes,” how many lives would be impacted?
-An inward focused life will never be a Christ-exalting life.
-The more you love Jesus the more you will love the things Jesus loves.
-The more you love yourself the more stressed and depressed and anxious you will be. However, a life focused on others is a life of impact.
-Willingness is worship.
-Are you willing to serve others? To go out of your way and your agenda to serve someone else?
-Is there anything you aren’t willing to do to worship Jesus?
-Your willingness will determine how much you are used by God.
-Ordinary obedience from ordinary people produces extraordinary results.
-Don’t buy the lie that you don’t have what it takes to be used by God.
-Are you in the game or sitting on the sideline?
MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES
Suggested Scripture study: Philippians 2:19-30; 2 Timothy 3:1-2
Sermon: Working Out to Finish Strong
Sermon: The Humility of Jesus
Working Out to Finish Strong
November 8, 2020 • Jonathan Pokluda • Philippians 2:12–18
Do you know anyone who is in good physical shape? They don’t simply stay that way…there is no cruise control; there is maintenance and they work at it. As we continue studying the book of Philippians, JP teaches us how our faith is similar. We are saved by grace in faith through Jesus, and through that grace we are told to exercise our salvation.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- People do not drift toward Holiness. Apart from grace-driven effort, people do not gravitate toward godliness, prayer, obedience to Scripture, faith, and delight in the Lord. We drift toward compromise and call it tolerance; we drift toward disobedience and call it freedom; we drift toward superstition and call it faith. We cherish the indiscipline of lost self-control and call it relaxation; we slouch toward prayerlessness and delude ourselves into thinking we have escaped legalism; we slide toward godlessness and convince ourselves we have been liberated. -D.A. Carson
- Work out your salvation trusting that God is at work in you.
- If you go to the gym and do the exact same work out every single time you will not grow. Your faith is no different. You need to work out your salvation past the point of your comfort.
- Jesus did the heavy lifting of your salvation and He will do the heavy lifting of your sanctification.
- What would it look like for you to stretch your faith so that it grows?
- Do you have a “Do I have to?” faith or a “Do I get to?” faith? “Do I get to” is a better way of life.
- Work on serving the word of life, not words of death.
- The Spirit of God inside of you is bigger than your reputation…He can change anyone!
- The complainer is not healthy. There’s almost always something else going on.
- Don’t put a lid on your faith.
- Pour out your life in service with joy to the finish.
- An important aspect of growth as a Christian is service.
- Christianity is a team sport. We are not made or meant to do life alone.
- 2020 has been a difficult year so far, but as Christians, we are going to heaven! And we can represent that reality today as we live out our faith here and now.
MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES
- Suggested Scripture study: Philippians 2:12-18; 1 Timothy 4:7-8; Colossians 1:29
- Sermon: The Humility of Jesus
- Sermon: Unified in Opposition
The Humility of Jesus
November 1, 2020 • Jonathan Pokluda • Philippians 2:3–11
There is a deep desire in all of us to be great...something in each of us that wants to be part of something bigger than ourselves. What makes someone or something great? The greatest person of all time used His greatness to serve others. As we continue studying the book of Philippians, JP teaches through Philippians 2:3-11, teaching us about Jesus’ greatness and His humility.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- The secret to being great in any situation is to be humble. The secret to happiness is humility.
- If we define greatness as anything other than humble service we’ve made the same - mistake as the devil.
- God’s exhortation of humility (exhortation simply means a strong call or urge to do something).
- Biblical humility is thinking of others more and thinking more of others.
- How do you do at giving others the benefit of the doubt?
- “Do not imagine that if you meet a really humble man he will be what most people call 'humble' nowadays: he will not be a sort of greasy, smarmy person, who is always telling you that, of course, he is nobody. Probably all you will think about him is that he seemed a cheerful, intelligent chap who took a real interest in what you said to him. If you do dislike him it will be because you feel a little envious of anyone who seems to enjoy life so easily. He will not be thinking about humility: he will not be thinking about himself at all.” -C.S. Lewis in Mere Christianity
- There will be no sustainable joy in your life without humility.
- This passage in Philippians addresses the hypostatic union—which is a way to talk about both the divine and human nature in the same person of Jesus Christ.
- Christ’s example of humility.
- If we only benefit ourselves with what we’ve been given we are fooling ourselves and missing the point of Christianity.
- The idea of humble service is how Christianity explodes, not simply giving God ten percent of our lives.
- Humility looks good on everyone.
- The exaltation from humility.
- Christ is the greatest of all time, and through His humility, we can become His co-heirs with Him in heaven forever and ever and ever.
- “There is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry, Mine!” -Abraham Kuyper
- The most common question the disciples asked Jesus was “Who is the greatest among us?” Jesus answered their question: I tell you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John (who used his entire life to point others to Jesus); yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he (Luke 7:28).
MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES
- Suggested Scripture study: Philippians 2:3-11; Genesis 3:5; Luke 12:48; 1 Peter 5:5; Isaiah 52:13, 45:23-24; Colossians 1:15-20; Luke 7:28
- Sermon: Unified in Opposition
- Sermon: Courage From and for the Gospel
Unified in Opposition
October 25, 2020 • Jonathan Pokluda • Philippians 1:27–30, Philippians 2:1–2
Do you remember the events of September 11, 2001? As our nation was under attack, we rallied together to fight against our enemies. As we continue studying the book of Philippians, JP teaches us that as Christians, we must have unity in opposition.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- It’s imperative to understand that we have one enemy: Satan. He hates what’s happening at Harris Creek, and he doesn’t want it to go well for you.
- Keep firm in the faith by being unified in conduct.
- As Christians, our teammates are other Christians. Not people who share a team, political party, or zip code, but simply and only people who share a faith in Jesus Christ.
- Keep firm in the faith by being unified in courage.
- No one should be more courageous than Christians. We are immortal and we will live forever. We won’t die one second before God is done with us.
- Keep firm in the faith by being unified against comfort.
- The courage we need is the courage to suffer. Suffering is central to being a Christian.
- "If your Christianity is comfortable, you should question your Christianity." -Costi Hinn
- The greater your ability to be comfortable the more difficult it is to choose suffering.
- The power to live out this unity comes from Jesus as we press closer and closer into Him.
- America has had four Great Awakenings and based on the timeline of when they happened we are posed for a fifth. Are you ready?
MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES
- Suggested Scripture study: Philippians 1:27-30; Acts 16:37-38; Romans 5:3-4; Philippians 2:1-2; 2 Timothy 1:7
- Sermon: Courage From and for the Gospel
- Sermon: Growing a Love for People
Courage From and for the Gospel
October 18, 2020 • Jonathan Pokluda • Philippians 1:12–26
Have you ever met someone who had courage? What are you most courageous about in life? As we continue studying the book of Philippians, JP teaches us about the courage we can have through Christ.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Encourage simply means to put courage in someone. As Christians, our courage should be in the gospel—the good news of Jesus.
- We have become inoculated to Christianity. Meaning, we have received a little bit of it time and time again to where we are numb to what it really is and means for our lives.
- Does talking about Jesus mark you? Do you view every opportunity as an opportunity to talk about Him?
- Paul’s courage is contagious.
- Harris Creek makes disciples. We are a factory, and we make missionaries to go serve in businesses, schools, coffee shops, and countries all over the world.
- You can share the gospel with 100% confidence because one day every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord.
- Paul’s courage is confident in opposition.
- Sadly, the church is often marked by disunity. People start to make Christianity about knowledge at the expense of love. What about you: Are you marked by knowledge, cynicism, and elitism, or love, joy, peace, and unity?
- If these three things happened, which would excite you the most: Your team wins the national championship, your favorite restaurant/store comes to town, or someone comes to know Christ?
- Paul’s courage comes from Christ.
- The main reason we don’t share the gospel is that we lack faith.
- We talk about what we care about. What do you care about?
- “I would rather fail in a cause that would ultimately succeed than succeed in a cause that would ultimately fail.” -Woodrow Wilson
MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES
- Suggested Scripture study: Philippians 1:12-26
- Sermon: Growing a Love for People
Growing a Love for People
October 11, 2020 • Jonathan Pokluda • Philippians 1:1–11
Do you ever look back on life to a season when you had a close group of friends? When you always had someone with you no matter what life threw your way? Do you want to have that today and in the days ahead? As we start our study on the book of Philippians, JP shows us how to grow our affections for others as he teaches through Philippians 1:1-11.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- The first thing you are going to see out of the gate when reading Philippians is how much Paul loved the church at Philippi.
- The gospel is more powerful than the sin of materialism and the power of demonic forces…it cannot be stopped.
- One of the most common features—behind the gospel itself—of successful life groups is they embrace the fact that community is forged and not found. They understand that to have successful community you must learn to love one another.
- Grow love for people by partnering with them in the gospel.
- As a Christian, every relationship can be summed up in one of two groups: You are either partnered with them in making God known or you are partnered with God in helping them know Him.
- If you want to grow affection for someone, be careful with your thoughts. What you think about them will shape how you feel toward them.
- The memories you feed determine the emotions you feel.
- Grow love for others by seeing them in a process.
- You doubting that someone would respond to the gospel is not doubting them, it is doubting God.
- Being frustrated with someone’s sanctification process—the process of them becoming more like Jesus—is like assuming their journey is already over. That God is already done with them.
- If you are going to be naive about anything, be naive because you are so full of faith that God can change anyone.
- When we come to know Jesus, sometimes God takes sin and struggles away immediately, and other times it it takes time and a journey to continue to become more like Jesus.
- God is not naive to our sin, He’s just paid for it.
- It’s one thing to tell someone you are praying for them, but it’s completely different to tell them what you are praying for them.
- One of the most common reasons for conflict is simply a misunderstanding.
- We are as divided as we are as a country because everyone is listening to their own feedback loop and simply trying to win arguments with people who have differing beliefs, rather than listening and seeking to understand why someone believes what they do.
- Sharing the gospel with everyone you come in contact with is normative for a Christian. Compartmentalizing your faith to a time slot on Sunday is never what God had in mind.
- Grow love for others by praying for them.
- Your church are the people you gather with week in and week out as a life group, not a room full of people you don’t know when you gather corporately once a week.
- How can you better partner with your life group to advance the gospel this week?
MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES
- Suggested Scripture study: Philippians 1:1-11; Acts 16:11-40; Romans 8:30; 2 Corinthians 5:17
- Sermon: Community-Centered
- Sermon: Missional
