Sunday, June 2nd, 2024 - 11am Service - From Comfort to Commitment: Living as True Disciples

In one paragraph

Pastor Michael preached on Graduation Sunday from Colossians 3, with Ray McDaniels away in North Carolina for his daughter Pascal's graduation. Drawing on his work with high schoolers, he walked the congregation through what it looks like to fix your eyes on eternal things rather than spending your life going all in on the temporary. Michael opened by painting a picture of high school as a...

Read together

1. John 15 Jesus calling his disciples friends and sharing everything the Father taught him
2. Colossians 3:1-4 setting hearts and minds on things above where Christ is seated, not on earthly things
3. Colossians 2:17-23 warning against false humility, rules-based religion, and losing connection with Christ the head
4. 1 John 1:8-10 confessing sins rather than claiming to be without sin, God forgiving and purifying from all unrighteousness
5. Psalm 51:10 God promising a new heart and a new spirit
6. 1 John 2:15-17 do not love the world or its desires; whoever does the will of God abides forever
7. Romans 12:1-2 offering bodies as living sacrifices and being transformed by the renewing of the mind rather than conforming to the world

Talk about it

1. Michael talked about how high schoolers can go 'all in' on something temporary without realizing it will not last. Where in your own life, right now, do you think you might be investing heavily in something that is more temporary than you realize?
2. Michael drew a distinction between white-knuckling a set of religious rules and staying genuinely connected to the Father. What does that connection actually look like in your day-to-day life, and how do you know when you have lost it?
3. Michael said he believes God is more concerned with our direction than our perfection, and that we should tell God honestly where we are rather than cleaning ourselves up first. How easy or hard is that kind of honesty with God for you, and what gets in the way of it?
4. Michael suggested that comfort can become an idol that quietly replaces God at the center of our lives, even when there is no gold statue in the house. Where does comfort show up as a competing priority in your own life, and what has it cost you or those around you?
5. Michael closed by asking whether there is a difference between a believer and a disciple, and which one Christ calls us to. How would you answer that question, and what would change in your week if you took the answer seriously?