Sermon On The Mount
How To Live In The Kingdom Of God
Saying No to a Superficial Faith
July 25, 2021 • Pastor Cory Anderson
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Be Careful Who You Listen To
July 11, 2021 • Cory Anderson
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The Road Less Travelled
July 4, 2021 • Pastor Cory Anderson
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Expect the Best, Be the Best
June 27, 2021 • Adrian Martin
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Should Christians Judge Others?
June 13, 2021 • Pastor Cory Anderson
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The Cure for Anxiety
June 6, 2021 • Cory Anderson
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Treasuring Christ Above All Else
May 30, 2021 • Cory Anderson
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Hungry for God
May 16, 2021 • Cory Anderson
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The Lord's Prayer - Part Two
May 2, 2021 • Cory Anderson
COMMUNITY GROUP QUESTIONS 1. How have these two messages on the Lord’s Prayer helped you in your prayer life? 2. Do you have a prayer list you use in your prayer time? Do you have a structure to your prayer time? What is it like? If you do not have a structure, will you make the structure of the Lord’s Prayer (Praying through the 6 Principles) your practice this week? Jesus’ model or outline for prayer consists of 6 Principles: Personal – Our relationship to the Father. Praise – Hallowed be your name. Priorities – Surrender to the Fathers… Provision – Give us today our daily bread Pardon – Forgive us our debts… Protection – Deliver us from the Evil One. 3. Talk about the statement: ‘Give us today our daily bread’ (Mt. 6:11). What did Jesus mean by this prayer? How do the following passages relate to praying for our needs (Mt. 6:25-35; 7:7-9; Lk. 11:5-13; 18:1-8; Phil. 4:6-8)? What needs to do have that need to be prayed for? 4. Talk about the statement: ‘Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors’ (Mt. 6:12). How does Matthew 6:14-15 tie in with this prayer? Will we not be forgiven if we do not forgive? 5. Are you easily ‘offended’? How do the following passages in Proverbs relate to this issue of ‘offense’ and ‘forgiveness’ (Prov. 10:12; 12:16; 17:9; 19:11)? At what point do you just decide to overlook an offense and when do you address it? 6. Talk about the statement: ‘And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one’ (Mt. 6:13). How does this prayer relate to Mt. 4:1-11 and James 1:2-15? A HINT: As you seek to answer this question, think about the difference between ‘testing’ (trials) and ‘temptation’ and what comes first. Also note that the word for testing and temptation are the same in Greek.
The Lord's Prayer - Part One
April 25, 2021 • Cory Anderson
COMMUNITY GROUP QUESTIONS 1. Take some time to reflect on Sunday’s message. What did you learn about prayer? What will you seek to implement into your life as a result of the message? 2. Was Jesus opposed to praying in public according to Matthew 6:5-6? What was he opposed to? Are your public prayers focused on what others think, or do you focus on the Lord? 3. What do you think Jesus meant when he said we should not ‘keep on babbling’ in prayer? (See Matthew 6:7-8). Have you ever felt yourself praying, but not focusing on what you were saying? Could this be what Jesus had in mind? 4. Did you learn the Lord’s Prayer when you were younger? Was it something that you repeated? What do you think of the teaching Pastor Cory gave that the Lord’s Prayer is a ‘model’ for prayer? 5. Why is it important for us to have a healthy and Biblical understanding of God the Father when we pray? How does this relate to Matthew 6:9? 6. How much of your prayer time do you spend in ‘praise’? How much do you spend in asking God for stuff? 7. How much of your prayer time is devoted to praying for the kingdom of God to come and His will to be done? Why is it important to pray about the coming of God’s kingdom?
No More Masks
April 18, 2021 • Cory Anderson
Community Group Questions 1. What did you learn from the message on Sunday? 2. What was your initial reaction when Pastor Cory said, ‘We should not be wearing masks as Christians’? What sort of mask was he referring to in light of Matthew 6:1-18? 3. What were the Pharisee’s doing that Jesus tells us we should not be doing? (See vv. 2, 5, 16). 4. What are some of the subtle ways that we seek the applause of others? Why do we have this insidious desire to be seen and praised by others? 5. How does Jesus want his disciples to give, pray, fast and do any spiritual practice? (See vv.3-4, 6, 17-18). 6. Jesus tells his disciples that they should give, pray and fast ‘in secret’. Does this mean we should not give, pray or fast at all in the open where others could see us? For example, are we not supposed to pray in front of others in a group? What is the intention of Jesus’ teaching about doing things in secret?
Love Without Limits
March 28, 2021 • Cory Anderson
Community Group Questions 1. In his commentary on Matthew 5, David L. Turner said: “The message of the kingdom dynamically transforms the disciple’s conduct.” Take some time to discuss the big picture of Matthew 5 and Turner’s comments. In particular, note that Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 5:21-48 touches on various relationships and how the kingdom of God impacts those relationships. 2. How does Matthew 5:43-48 relate to Matthew 5:38-42? 3. As you prepare for Good Friday take some time as a group to reflect on Jesus’ arrest, trial, crucifixion and death in Matthew 26:47-27:66. How do events surrounding Good Friday influence how we think of and apply Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 5:38-48? 4. How does Luke 10:25-37 relate to Matthew 5:43-48? 5. Which is easier, to love your enemies (Mt. 5:43-48) or to love your brothers and sisters in Christ (Jn. 13:34-35)? Why are both absolutely vital to our witness for Christ? 6. Who do you find difficult to love? For the Jews it was the Gentiles. In our day who is it difficult to love?
Payback and the Kingdom of God
March 21, 2021 • Cory Anderson
Community Group Questions 1. What stood out to you from Sunday’s message? What new insights did you glean? What challenged you? What confused you? What needs to change inside of you? 2. Living as Jesus described in Matthew 5:38-42 seems almost impossible at times. Pastor Cory mentioned the need for three realities to be true of our lives in order for us to live as Jesus wants us to. What are these three realities? Take some time to talk about how these realities really make a difference. 3. George Muller was asked ‘What is the secret of your service for God?’ Muller replied: ‘There was a day when I died, utterly http://died...died to George Muller, his opinions, preferences, tastes and will - died to the world, its approval or censure - died to the approval or blame of even my brethren and friends - and since then I have studied to show myself approved only unto God.” Roger Steer, George Muller: Delighted in God, 227. How does Muller’s remarks apply to what Jesus said in Matthew 5:38-42? What does Paul teach about this subject (Gal. 2:20)? What does Jesus teach (Lk 9:23)? 4. What did Jesus mean when he said, ‘Do not resist the one who is evil?’ What didn’t he mean (Rom. 13:1-6; Jam. 4:7; Ex. 22:2-3)? 5. As Good Friday approaches we are reminded of how Jesus suffered and died in such a way that he did not resist him who is evil and how ‘he went the extra mile’. Take some time to compare what Jesus did in Matthew 26:57-68; 27:27-50 with what he asks us to do in Matthew 5:38-42.
How Good is Your Word?
March 14, 2021 • Cory Anderson
Community Group Questions 1. What does the Old Testament teach about making oaths (See Lev. 19:12; Deut. 23:21-23; Num. 30:2)? If an oath was made, what was expected? 2. How does Exodus 20:7 relate to the making and keeping of an oath? 3. What were the Pharisee’s doing wrong when it came to making oaths (Mt. 5:34-36; 23:16-22)? 4. What does Jesus say we should do about oaths (Mt. 5:34, 37)? What does Jesus mean in v.37? 5. What are some practical ways that we are to keep our word? 6. What are some negative outcomes of not keeping our word? 7. Does Jesus’ teaching negate the need for written contracts and agreements? How about taking an oath in court? 8. What common thread(s) can you find in the four examples Jesus has given of the law and his interpretation of it in Matthew 5:21-37? A Look Ahead As you look ahead to next Sunday’s message on Matthew 5:38-42 consider the following question: Does Jesus teach an absolute pacifism?
Till Death Do Us Part
March 7, 2021 • Cory Anderson
Community Group Questions 1. How can the church hold firm to Biblical convictions regarding marriage and also minister to those inside and outside the church that are divorced? 2. How can the church hold firm to the Biblical and traditional view that marriage is only between a man and a woman when our culture has redefined marriage? What challenges might we face in the future as we hold firm to our convictions? 3. What advice would you give to a couple contemplating marriage? 4. How would you counsel a friend who is having marital problems? 5. Is there a connection between Matthew 5:27-30 and Matthew 5:31-32? If so, what is it? 6. What does Paul say about marriage in 1 Corinthians 7:8-16? What is his advice to the unmarried and widowed (vv.8-9)? What is his advice to the married (vv.10-11)? What is his advice to the believer married to an unbeliever (vv.12-16)?