There Are No Ordinary People

In one paragraph

This sermon was the second part of a two-week series on the great commandment. Pastor Brad worked through what it means to love your neighbor as yourself, using the parable of the good Samaritan as the central text. He moved from who qualifies as a neighbor, to what love actually costs, to what that looks like both outside and inside the church. The starting point was Ephesians 2:8-10. We are...

Read together

1. Psalm 92 opening song lyric drawn from it about giving thanks and proclaiming God's unfailing love
2. Ephesians 2:8-10 framing the idea that we are saved by grace as a gift and created for good works
3. Luke 10:25-37 the parable of the Good Samaritan, answering who our neighbor is
4. Matthew 5:14-16 Christians called to let their light shine so others see their good works
5. Luke 6 agape love surveyed across two chapters, including loving enemies and doing good
6. Luke 7 agape love surveyed across two chapters, including the woman forgiven much who loved much
7. Luke 16 parable of the shrewd manager, using material things to gain people for the kingdom
8. James 4:14 life described as a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes
9. Proverbs 14:4 where there are no oxen the manger is clean but abundant crops come by the strength of the ox
10. Romans 8:28 God works all things for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose
11. 2 Corinthians 12 God telling Paul His grace is sufficient and His power is made perfect in weakness
12. Matthew 16:24 whoever would be a disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow Jesus

Talk about it

1. Brad described agape love as 'a sacrificial, active outpouring of an inward desire to want the highest good for someone.' Where in your daily life do you find it hardest to love people that way, and what gets in the way?
2. Brad said your neighbor is simply anyone you are in contact with, and that a friend of his prays every morning, 'God, help me to love the people that you have put in my path today.' What would change about your week if you prayed that prayer every day before leaving the house?
3. Brad pointed to the Nielsen data about seven hours a day on screens and said that for many of us, Satan has already made us ineffective through distraction rather than pulling us toward obvious sin. Do you think that is true in your own life, and what would you actually have to give up to change it?
4. Brad used the CS Lewis quote from The Weight of Glory about there being no ordinary people, only immortal souls heading toward glory or horror. How does thinking about the people around you in those terms change how you feel about sharing the gospel with them?
5. Brad shared that his health struggles have drawn him closer to God and to his brothers and sisters in Christ in ways he had not experienced before, and connected that to the one anothers of scripture. Is there something you are carrying right now that you have not let your community into, and what is stopping you?