CrossWay Community Church | Bristol, WI

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br>(None for September 4)<br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. Surveying the entire Bible, both the Old and New Testaments, in what ways do you see God's desire to dwell with His people appear? What do these reveal about the character of God?<br><br>2. Do you find it easier to see God as a God of grace or as a God of righteousness? Why is it dangerous when one side nullifies the other? How would daily meditation on the cross of Christ help keep both God's grace and God's righteousness in proper perspective?<br><br>3. Jesus longs for you to be with Him where He is. How does this truth stir your own love and longing for Jesus? Why is it important for us to long to be with Jesus? What are some influences in your life that pull you away from longing for Jesus, and what are some influences that increase your desire for Him? What are practical things you can do to minimize the bad influences and maximize the good influences?<br><br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. As you reflect on how God brought you to faith in Christ, did your observation of relationships among Christians play any part in you perceiving the reality of Christianity?<br><br>2. As you think about your relationships with other Christians, especially at CrossWay, do they bear the marks modeled by the unity among God the Father, Son, and Spirit (shared truth, mutual love, common aim)? Is there one of those marks you could take a step to strengthen in your relationships?<br><br>3. What place does the unity of God’s people have in your prayers? How can you make this a greater priority?<br><br>4. Is there a relationship with another Christian where you think you need to take a step to bring greater unity to the church? What step do you think you need to take?<br><br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. How would you define a disciple of Jesus Christ? Do the ideas of distinct and deployed appear in your definition? How should these realities of what it means to be a disciple show up in your prayers, in your priorities, and in your weekly rhythms?<br><br>2. How do you typically pray when you are in a difficult circumstance? In what ways could God use a challenging circumstance you are in right now to advance the gospel?<br><br>3. Author and Professor, Dr. Carl Trueman states “One of the temptations at a time of tremendous flux and change is to fixate upon the immediate challenges to the Christian faith… Yet there’s a danger here: we can become so preoccupied with specific threats that we neglect the important fact that Christian truth is not a set of isolated and unconnected claims, but rather stands as a coherent whole… If, as I contend, modern sexual and identity politics are functions of deeper notions of selfhood, then we need first to know what the Christian view of the self is in order to address them. And as the Bible teaches that the human self is made in the image of God, we need a good grasp of the doctrine of God. In short, we stand strong at this cultural moment and address the specific challenges we face only if our foundations in God’s truth are broad and deep.”<br><br>How are you regularly reading and meditating upon God’s Word to keep your foundations in God’s truth broad and deep?<br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. If you are a Christian, what effect does it have on you to reflect on the reality that God chose you for eternal life and gave you to Jesus (v. 2)?<br><br>2. In what ways are you tempted to make eternal life a result of your own works, rather than a free gift? What are you tempted to feel like you must do in order to be confident you have eternal life? How are you helped by being reminded that Jesus purchased it for you through his death?<br><br>3. When you think about eternal life, is what you most treasure and anticipate knowing God (v. 3)? Why or why not? Since for Christians eternal life has already begun, how can you seek to know God better now?<br><br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. Reread Matthew 7:13-29. Which of these illustrations that Jesus uses at the end of the Sermon on the Mount is most sobering to you? Why is that?<br> <br>2. If you are already a committed follower of Christ, what effect do you think Jesus intends these illustrations to have on you?<br> <br>3. What has been the overall effect of the Sermon on the Mount on you? Has it made you feel more like you gotta do better? Or has it strengthened your gratitude and joy for the way that Christ is at work in you and for his promise to continue to bring that work all the way to completion?<br><br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. How might you go about assessing whether you’ve got the “log” of self-righteous judgment in your “eye”? If you detect it, what steps might you take to remove it?<br> <br>2. Should you ever be concerned about the “speck” in your brother’s eye? What does v. 5 suggest? Have you ever experienced the good of someone helping you with some “speck” in your life?<br> <br>3. How strong would you say the impulse is in your heart to “ask”, “seek” and “knock”? Is that a pretty much constant impulse or is it something that shows up only occasionally? What might you to do cultivate a more consistent posture of active dependence on God?<br> <br>Bonus Question – How consciously and consistently grateful are you for all the “good things” you have received from God in Christ? What good things are you most regularly grateful for?<br><br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. What things in this world tend to draw your heart away from full devotion to God? This is a simple and straightforward question but honesty and clarity here is a critical first step in helping you respond to and benefit from Christ’s words in Matthew 6.<br> <br>2. What things do you tend to be anxious about? Again, be honest and specific here. Bringing the small “t” truth of personal honesty alongside the big “T” truth of God’s word will produce good results.<br> <br>3. “Our anxiety about things reveals that we’re focusing too much on the things of this world.” Do you think that statement is true? If it is true, where does it point for a solution?<br><br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. Are there any ways that you are tempted to "heap up empty phrases" in your prayer?<br><br>2. What are some ways that you pray for God's name, kingdom, and will?<br><br>3. Are you more comfortable praying about God's name, kingdom, and <a href="http://will...or" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">will...or</a> your own needs? Why?<br><br>4. If God knows your needs, and can give you what you need, how should that affect the nature and frequency of your prayer?<br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. Think of various “acts of righteousness” you engage in. Where do you most persistently or strongly experience the temptation to “be seen”? What does that look like? Is there a particular person or group you want to “be seen” by?<br> <br>2. Describe what goes on in your heart when you do receive the praise of men? How rewarding is that?<br> <br>3. Are there some adjustments, along the lines of Jesus’ instruction, that you need to make to purposefully protect against the temptation to seek the praise of men and to help direct your heart exclusively to God?<br> <br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. Is there a past hurt in your life regarding which you are finding it difficult to forgive and desire good for the person responsible? Do you find help in considering how Jesus endured difficulty by entrusting judgment to God (1 Peter 3:23)? <br><br>2. When Jesus calls us to love our enemies (v. 44), is there someone who comes to mind for you? Is there someone who has sought or continues to seek to harm you, whether by keeping you at a distance, slandering you, or in some way persecuting you? What could you do to love that person according to Jesus’ teaching?<br><br>3. Is there someone for whom you think you ought to begin consistently praying, whether for God to change your heart towards them, for God to do them good in a particular way, for God to grant them repentance and forgiveness or for all of the above? How will you remember to pray for them?<br><br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. What is on your list of “sacred things”, things that you would want to guard and protect at virtually any cost? Is your own trustworthiness on that list?<br> <br>2. If you are married, think back to the time you spoke your vows. Do you still feel the weight and “sacredness” of those vows? Do you experience joy in honoring and protecting them?<br> <br>3. Has there been a recent time that you’ve been tempted to evade or shade the simple truth in your speech? What might you need to put in place to protect your trustworthiness?<br><br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. Are you ever tempted to think, “Well, as long as I don’t commit such and such an act I’m all right”? In other words, do you see things going on in your heart and mind as real sin that needs to be stopped?<br><br>2. What temptations to sin are most painful to you, things that you wrestle with and wish you could be done with?<br><br>3. Where does God want you to go in your struggle with sin? Look at and carefully consider Hebrews 4:15-5:3. Pay particular attention to both the logic and the language used, e.g. words like “weaknesses”, “need”, and “wayward”. Pay especially close attention to v. 16.<br><br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. What is your first instinctive reaction when you read Matthew 5:20? How does understanding v. 17 help you rightly understand v. 20?<br> <br>2. Why do you think Jesus stresses the truth found in these verses before we get to the things he’s about to talk about in the remainder of chapter 5?<br> <br>3. Are you ever tempted to revert back to a “scribes and pharisees” kind of righteousness? What things in life tempt you that way? What should you do when you face that temptation?<br><br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. If Jesus says Christians are salt of the earth and light of the world, he's indirectly saying the world is decaying, bland, and dark. Does this capture the world as you experience it? Why or why not? <br><br>2. For salt to be effective, it must not be compromised. What are ways you are tempted to compromise Christian beliefs? Or, another way to put it, are there claims/goals/aspirations in the world that you feel really drawn to but would be a compromise biblically?<br><br>3. For light to be effective, it has to be displayed. What are ways you are tempted to hide your Christian beliefs? Or, another way to put it, are there things about being a Christian or the Bible that you have a hard time being public with?<br><br>4. What is your natural tendency: to be salt (distinct life, good living) or being a light (displayed, speaking God's truth)? How can you grow in both?<br><br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. How recently have you experienced some persecution/opposition specifically because of your Christian faith?<br> <br>2. Where do you feel like you most regularly experience opposition to your Christian faith?<br> <br>3. Where does the threat of opposition most tempt you to hide your Christianity?<br> <br>Bonus Question (requires extra humility) – Have you ever been tempted to call persecution what might actually have been the result of some failure of your own doing?<br> <br>Super Bonus question – How often do you think of heaven? <br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. What does it mean in Matt 5:9 to be a son of God? <br> <br>2. What are some components of peacemaking? <br> <br>3. Why might peacemaking be complicated or challenging? <br> <br>4. Why are some reasons peacemaking important for Christians? <br> <br>5. What makes peacemaking rewarding for Christians? What reason does the text give? <br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. Read Ezekiel 36:25-27 and James 4:8. There is a paradox (not contradiction!) in the Bible’s teaching about the heart. On the one hand, only God can give a new heart. On the other hand, we are called to purify our hearts. How do these truths work together in the Christian life?<br><br><br>2. Is there an area of your life where you are tolerating sin or allowing something to compete with God as your first priority? What first step can you take (with God’s help) to turn from that? What trusted Christian friend can you confess to and ask to pray for you?<br><br><br>3. What do you think it will be like to see God’s face? How does knowing that Christians can confidently hope that they will see God affect your day-to-day life until Jesus returns? How does this hope relate to your pursuit of purity of heart?<br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. When you read through the character traits listed in the Beatitudes (Matt. 5:3-10) do you find them attractive or off-putting? Take a moment to consider what might be underneath your reaction.<br> <br>2. Along the lines of which of the character traits in these verses do you see the greatest change when you became a Christian? Along the lines of which do you most desire more change?<br> <br>3. Of the specific blessings named at the end of each of these verses, which do you have the greatest longing for? What about your life experience makes that so?<br> <br>Bonus Question – How strong is the temptation you feel to do or be these things on your own? What from this passage helps you to know God has already begun a work in you and has promised to bring it to completion?<br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>The writings of C.S. Lewis have influenced countless Christians over the course of many decades, offering readers intellectually satisfying answers to life’s biggest questions and challenging them to walk in faith and obedience. <br><br>Bethlehem College & Seminary President Dr. Joe Rigney will mine popular titles such as Mere Christianity, The Screwtape Letters, and others, showing us the relevance of Lewis’ insights to our lives with God today.</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. What comes to your mind when you think of the Sermon on the Mount? What is your general impression of this extended teaching of Jesus?<br><br>2. Read Matthew 5:3, 5:10, 5:19-20, 6:10, 6:33, and 7:21. What theme do you see regularly occurring through these verses? How might knowing that these chapters set forth the way of life in the kingdom of God help you in doing what Jesus says?<br><br>3. As you look through the headings in Matthew 5-7 in your Bible do you sense that the most significant areas of your life are addressed? Is there anything you wish might have been included? What part do you feel speaks to you most directly or poignantly?<br><br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br>There are no application questions this Sunday.<br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. Jesus wants us to see that he is the humble king. Which part of that do you find it harder to live in light of—that he’s the king who deserves our total submission, or that he’s humble and gentle and tender with us in our weakness?<br><br>2. Jesus died to clear the barriers between us and God so that we can be reconciled to him through faith. Do you think you’re growing in your confidence that God wants you to come to him in prayer? Does anything make it hard for you to trust that?<br><br>3. What are some ways you and/or your Gospel Community can celebrate this week what Jesus has done and what he will do when he comes again?<br><br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. In which of the four stages that were laid out at the end of the sermon do you find yourself? What has been your experience of that stage? Do you believe you are experiencing the full benefits that God intends for you in the stage you’re in?<br> <br>2. Do you feel that you are steadily progressing into greater commitment to and ownership of your local church family? Is there some step of greater commitment or ownership you feel God is calling you to take?<br> <br>3. Are you absolutely convinced that God has good for you in the local church? What might be keeping you from believing that?<br><br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. Looking at the passage again, how would you put in your own words the mission Jesus gave the church? What facet of that mission do you find most intimidating? Why?<br><br>2. There are at least three common challenges to Christians being actively engaged in sharing the gospel with their non-Christian friends, neighbors, and co-workers: desire, equipping (being taught what to do), and opportunity. Which of these do you think is the greatest challenge for you? What will you do to make that less of a barrier?<br><br>3. What are some practical ways your Gospel Community, or you together with other friends at CrossWay, can partner together by involving one another in your outreach to non-Christians and praying for one another in this area of your lives?<br><br>4. Prior to this, have you thought about the things you do to help other Christians grow spiritually as being part of the Great Commission? Does thinking this way motivate you to take a new step or see something you’re already doing in a new way?<br><br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

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<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. How does the idea of “glad celebration” being a part of our life together as a church sit with you? Do you feel like we do that well? Do you feel like you do that well?<br> <br>2. How important are our church gatherings to you? Do you feel like you’ve missed something special if you were not able to be with the church gathering on a Sunday?<br> <br>3. How do you feel about singing? Regardless of the quality of your voice, do you feel an impulse to lift your voice? What, if anything, might inhibit you from doing this?<br> <br>4. Have you, in the past, come to the Lord’s Supper or to our Baptism services with a posture of eager celebration? If not, what needs to change in your thinking for that to happen?<br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

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<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. What is your initial gut-reaction when you read Hebrews 13:17?<br><br> 2. What has your experience of leadership in the local church been like?<br><br> 3. Is there anything in your attitude about or posture toward leaders that may be inhibiting your experience of the good God intends for you through leadership in the local church?<br><br>4. Do you pray for your leaders? If not, would you?<br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. Early in the message there were three challenges to truth presented: denial of truth, fuzziness, and alternative “truths”. Which of those do you encounter most often? Do you detect any of those in your own thinking?<br> <br>2. How conscious are you of your need for truth? Do you sense that truth is playing a sufficiently active role in your life when you face hard things? What about when everything is going smoothly?<br> <br>3. How active are you in your pursuit of truth? Are you connecting the dots between your need and God’s provision when you gather with your church family on Sunday mornings? How might you strengthen your purposefulness in benefitting from this gift of truth God gives?<br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Audio only this week.</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. The church is a distinct people. How has your experience at CrossWay been different than other groups or communities you have/are a part of?<br><br>2. In the church, as one author put it, our acceptance is "received, not achieved." How does this impact our relationships with one another? With the world around us?<br><br>3. What is it like to live as a Christian at school, work, and life in general? <br> a. Easy<br> b. Hard<br> c. Something in between<br>Why did you answer the way you did?<br><br>4. How can being a distinct people help you faithfully follow Jesus in a disapproving society?<br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. Here’s the million-dollar question: What has your experience of the local church been like? Does it fit, though imperfectly, with what you now understand God intends it to be?<br> <br>2. And here’s the two-million-dollar question: How are you contributing to your local church being a place where others experience the good of being loved?<br> <br>3. Which of the three lines laid out in the sermon do you feel you most need to attend to? Caring for/about others? Encouraging others? Serving others?<br> <br>4. Along which of those lines have you most experienced being loved?<br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. When you think about membership in a church do you think more about formal membership or about being part of a family?<br> <br>2. How do you feel about formal membership? Are you thinking about it in light of the spiritual reality it represents or merely as some organizational formality?<br> <br>3. How does this idea of “belonging” strike you? How important is it to you? Are you experiencing belonging to a local church family as a good gift from God to you?<br><br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. What was one thing you found helpful from this week’s sermon?<br>2. What are some strategies the world promotes for finding peace? How does God’s word give an alternate path?<br>3. What is one area of your life that you need to grow in entrusting to God? How can you do that this week?<br>4. Which of the 5 instructions would you like to grow in over the next few weeks and why?<br><br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. Do you find it natural or challenging to believe that God loves you and wants to do good to you? If it’s challenging, why? What truth(s) from Psalm 86 help you to trust his love and goodness?<br>2. How would you describe in your own words “the fear of the Lord”? How would your life be changed if your heart were more characterized by the fear of God? How can you grow in fearing God?<br>3. How does Jesus’ death and resurrection reveal to us the goodness, greatness, and faithfulness of God? How can we remind ourselves of these things when we pray?<br><br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. Of the three requests Jesus instructs us to make in Matthew 6:11-13 which is the most challenging for you? Why is that?<br> <br>2. What might keep you from bringing any one of these requests to God? <br> <br>3. When you bring requests like this to God do you feel like the emphasis is more on whether you’ll get what you asked for or on engaging in meaningful interaction with God about important things? What is the likely spiritual outcome of focusing on specific answers to prayer? What is the likely spiritual outcome of focusing on communion with God? <br><br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. How would you describe your prayer life? Vibrant? Sporadic? Plodding, with occasional moments of sweet communion with God? Non-existent?<br> <br>2. Do you feel you have fully grasped the reality of God as your Father? What associations are stirred up in you by the word “father”? What does Jesus (and the rest of Scripture) want to be stirred up in you by the word “father”? (You may want to read passages like Psalm 103:1-14; Matthew 7:7-11; Ephesians 3:14-21 to help you.) Do you ever feel a danger in over-emphasizing God as father and under-emphasizing his sovereignty and holiness?<br> <br>3. What is the most challenging area of your life for you to pray, “your will be done”? Think of how Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane. How might that help you to pray that prayer in the difficult circumstances of your life?<br><br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>

<p>Sermon Application Questions:<br><br>1. Where are you encountering trouble in your life that you can’t solve on your own? Is uncertainty about some aspect of the future tempting you to worry?<br><br><br>2. What truth about God from this passage (his unlimited power, unceasing watchfulness, and unfailing protection) do you find most helpful as you seek to entrust your trouble and uncertainty to him?<br><br><br>3. Do you find mainly comforting or unsettling the truth that God doesn’t promise to protect us from all suffering but rather to use our suffering for our good and not our harm? Why?<br><br>_____________________________<br>Music and Lyrics Used by Permission CCLI# 1595532</p>