THE PURSUIT OF GOD
Stand at the crossroads, ask for the ancient paths.
OUR GOD || Week 9
November 27, 2022 • Bruce Stefanik • 1 John 3:1, Colossians 1:19–23, 2 Corinthians 7:15–16, Ephesians 5:1–2, Ephesians 4:31–32
It’s holiday movie time. Remember “ It’s a Wonderful Life?” George Bailey felt he was trapped in a life of futility...He wanted to chase fortune and fame so that he could one day be somebody. It took a heard death experience, his family and an angelic visitation to show him that he was rich then he could imagine. It’s a familiar plot line isn’t it? For the last ten weeks we have been talking about the pursuit of God, but in that pursuit we have to work from the starting point or it can be exhausting and discouraging. The message of the cross is that God the Father sent his Son to die so that we could know him as our Father. His intent was for that ongoing relationship with him to shape our true identity, to heal our earth and family wounds, to redeem our past, empower our present and assure our future. That should change everything! That’s it. That is the central message of the Gospel. Change is possible because of God in us, the hope of glory. We are incredibly wealthy but we may not realize it.
PRACTICING PERSEVERANCE || Week 8
November 20, 2022 • Bruce Stefanik, Jason Treadwell
We need to always remember that the words we read today were written by followers of Jesus living in the real world. Theirs was a world of struggle between the oppressors and the oppressed, and of gross injustices between the wealthy and the poor. It was a world of sensual indulgences and of multiple deities all competing for their heart's allegiance. And above all it was a world that was resistant and even hostile to the Christian faith. Yet they endured, they persevered, they even prospered and most importantly, they stayed true to their Lord and Savior Jesus, the Christ. Their words speak to us today with as much power and relevance as they did when spoken to that early church. Don't quit!
OF FAITH AND FRIENDSHIP || Week 6
October 30, 2022 • Bruce Stefanik • Hebrews 11:1–6, Hebrews 4:14–16, John 15:13–15
Last week we talked about what a contradiction we humans are with such incredible potential for good or for evil. This week we see that even the best “heroes of the faith” Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, Job, David and others were oftentimes very conflicted people as well. Yet in spite of their ups and downs their friendship with God remained constant and strong enough to weather the storms that blew around them. Were they some kind of special, unique people or were they able to tap into something below the surface that empowered them to remain stable in spite of their circumstances? “When I am cast into the cellars of affliction, it is then I remember that the great King always keeps his finest wine.” Samuel Rutherford
OUR SIN, OUR SAVIOR || Week 5
October 23, 2022 • Bruce Stefanik, Jason Treadwell • 1 Timothy 1:18–19, 2 Timothy 1:15–17, Hebrews 3:12–14, Genesis 3:1–13
Stop with me for a moment and try to imagine what our world would be like if Adam’s fall had never happened. What would a world with no injustice, no violence, no fear, no selfishness, no perversion, and no confusion be like to live in? And what would my own life look like? A life without anger, or resentment, or shame or strife? No battling with unhealthy compulsions, no deep secrest, no fear or gender confusion? Just a deep sense of peace, wonder and contentment in fully knowing who I am and the daily enjoyment of being a close friend of God. But the first family rejected God’s offer of partnership and now we are all infected with some form of that original sin. It has made the world a dark and difficult place and left us all lost and in need of a savior. And that longing you sometimes feel in your soul is the mark of heaven upon you.
A TIME TO LAY ASIDE ll Week 4
October 16, 2022 • Bruce Stefanik
If we were going to pursue hiking the PCT or climbing Mt Hood we would ask ourselves two important questions. First, what will I need for my journey? Conditioning, specialized equipment, maps, food and water? Second, what don’t I need for this journey? Things like extra weight, foolish gadgets, or anything that will keep me for reaching my goal need to be left behind. They are the competition and in order to do one thing I need to say no to the others.
A GOD WHO SPEAKS || Week 3
October 9, 2022 • Bruce Stefanik, Jason Treadwell • Genesis 1:1–3, Exodus 19:3–6, Psalm 19:1–4, John 12:27–32
In our modern world we do not lack for words and opinions. You could spend countless hours listening to the news, to podcasts and commentaries on an endless variety of subjects. Life, love, finances, sports, politics, celebrities. We are literally surrounded with voices and noise. But what about the voice of God? He is not hiding from us. Imagine the same God that by his spoken word, created the heavens and the earth and who holds all things together by the word of his power, desires to speak to those who will listen. Our job is to position ourselves to hear him and then have a heart willing to respond to his words. How would that transform our lives?
IS HE WORTHY? || Week 2
October 2, 2022 • Bruce Stefanik, Jason Treadwell • Psalm 42:1–3, 2 Timothy 4:8
Every great endeavor begins with a vision of worth. Unless our hearts begin to capture the beauty and majesty of the object of our pursuit we will be slow to pay the price to persevere in our quest to know God. Because we are creatures who are created in His image, we find a hunger and thirst for something eternal bubbling upon up from deep within our beings. Those are sacred longings put in our hearts by God to direct us to the fountain of life…But those longings must be cultivated and nurtured. Otherwise we are prone to settle for an artificial existence of living off the stories of others, or the counterfeit comforts of the world, the flesh and the devil can slowly steal our days away. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. - 1 Timothy 4:8
