Besides Me There is No Savior
(ISAIAH 43:1-13)
 
Life-Sharing

1. What has God been teaching you through last week’s “Press On” Revival Lock-In? Read the selected texts once more and discern what the holy Spirit desires to say through it.

 

 
1 But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.
2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;
when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.
3 For I am the Lord your God,
    the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.
I give Egypt as your ransom,
    Cush and Seba in exchange for you.
4 Because you are precious in my eyes,
    and honored, and I love you,
I give men in return for you,
    peoples in exchange for your life.

1. [v.1-4] *The biblical principle – We are saved by how precious we are to God, sustaining us to walk through the fires of life without being consumed by them. We are saved when His presence is more precious than even our pains. What fires of life has God sustained you through by showing how precious you are to Him? To God, you are precious in His eyes, enough to exchange anything – even His one and only Son – to have you. But what about you – is the LORD as precious to your eyes too? Or is there something else more precious? When something is precious to us, we long to have it at all costs. What is that for you today?  

 

 
5 Fear not, for I am with you; I will bring your offspring from the east, and from the west I will gather you.
6 I will say to the north, Give up, and to the south, Do not withhold; bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the end of the earth, 7 everyone who is called by my name,
    whom I created for my glory,
    whom I formed and made.”

1. [v.5-7] *The biblical principle – God saved us from making ourselves our own savior, so that we can live for something far better – His glory. We are saved to bring His glory to all the children of God from the east to the west, from the north to the south. In today’s world, we have too many “saviors” to lean on that makes the Savior Jesus just another option among many others who can deliver us from our problems. One “savior” we most often turn to is ourselves. Yet how can saving ourselves be the ruin of ourselves? Why is it selfish to pursue our own glory, while it is loving (unto us) for God to pursue His own glory? What is the glorious mission that the LORD has left for us that will bring us the fullest joy and meaning in our lives?

 

 
 
8 Bring out the people who are blind, yet have eyes, who are deaf, yet have ears!
9 All the nations gather together, and the peoples assemble. Who among them can declare this, and show us the former things? Let them bring their witnesses to prove them right, and let them hear and say, It is true.
10 “You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord, “and my servant whom I have chosen, that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor shall there be any after me.
11 I, I am the Lord,
    and besides me there is no savior.
12 I declared and saved and proclaimed, when there was no strange god among you; and you are my witnesses,” declares the Lord, “and I am God.
13 Also henceforth I am he; there is none who can deliver from my hand;
    I work, and who can turn it back?”

1. [v.8-13] *The biblical principle – We are saved to be witnesses that God is always proven right while we are in the wrong. Only the LORD God can save us from our unrighteousness to see and hear that there is no one like Him. How has God always proven to be right in your life? Although there is no one like Him, how do we fall into chasing fake imitations of Him? Like a fireman pleading with us to take his hand and go out of the burning home through its only one-way exit, how have we rejected the pleas of Jesus Christ, thinking there are alternative backdoors to be tried first, or refused to let Him carry us out?

 
 

 
The central truths of this word was twofold –
 
CENTRAL TRUTH #1 –
There is no idol who sees you as precious and remains with you through the fires of life. It will use you, abuse you, and eventually forsake you. Only the Savior Jesus Christ proves Himself as the one who loved you, gave Himself for you, and remains with you to the end. He did this to fulfill the purpose for which He created you – to gather His children back to Him from every corner of the earth.
 
CENTRAL TRUTH #2 –
Life is not about finding and choosing the familiar and similar things, but trusting and obeying the one thing that is like no other. Many ways just cloud the one way that God has purposed in your life. Trying many ways will not make you any happier. Stick to go one way – one direction, one spouse, one church, one covenant, one purpose - just as God in Jesus Christ came one way
 
– *How has the LORD spoken to you today through this?
 

 
Holy Spirit Moment
Take a moment to invite the Holy Spirit to fill you, and pray.
 
Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. (1 THESSALONIANS 5:16-18)
 
…do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (PHILIPPIANS 4:6-7)
 

​*8/4/2023* Young Adult Life Group guide

 
Treasure in a Jar
(2 CORINTHIANS 4:7-10)
*Special Guest Preacher: Rev. Jim-Bob Park (Compassion Korea)
 
Pause & Reflect
 

1. What has God been teaching you through last week’s message? Read the texts once more and discern what the holy Spirit is desiring to say through it.

 
7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. 
8 We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair;
9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; 
10 always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.
 

1. Why are we so focused on managing our self-image? (*Hint: Beginning with original sin [Garden of Eden])
2. What is the most important thing God sees in a worshiper's attitude? (*Hint: See the inner person, the center. The purpose of worship is transformation, not information. Let's change beginning with me, just as I am yet not staying as I am. As worshippers, we have many different jobs and titles in the Lord’s ministry, yet they are for functional purposes to edify the body, not positional purposes for self-promotion. Let's not be mistaken.)
3. Does the material of the jar matter? Or is the content inside the jar a more critical matter? (*Hint: Clay jars harden when heated. This is like our hearts – the heart hardens to become a hardened-heart when the heat of our pride gets to us. Our pride is not the external jar, but the contents inside it. If there is filth or trash in a golden jar, it is a trashcan/trash jar – not a golden jar. The gold outside loses its value by filthy trash inside of it. But if Jesus is contained even inside a jar for trash, it is a treasure – a life full of His power. A Christian should be in a relational life, not a religious life – Jesus and I should become one in relationship. **What comes out when the jar is broken is what the person contains. We need to examine the content of our jar because one day, like Job, our jar will shatter by the storms of life. We need to be ready. Yet even when our jar shatters, we can say with Job – “The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord. [JOB 1:21]” Even though our jar shatters, our Treasure never will. In fact, our Treasure inside will piece back our jar in ways more beautiful, magnificent, glorious, and amazing that we could have never had without it shattering in the first place.)
4. What kind of jar does God use? (*Hint: He uses all kinds of bowls, except one – a dirty bowl. We need to get in the dishwasher. The dishwasher is the story of our life. The blood of Jesus washes away the scum, so that we can come out new and clean. This requires us to repent daily with a humble and thankful heart for the life of Jesus that has made us clean jars forevermore.)
5. Why is the world getting darker? (*Hint: The world is doing its job properly – spreading its darkness. The problem is not with the darkness but with the light. The world looks darker because the light is not doing its job properly. Even the smallest light – as small as a mustard seed – can repel any darkness. Let's play our role as the light of Christ properly! Let's keep the dishes clean! The story of the plate in the dishwasher is the story of our lives. The story of the jar is only my life before God! There is no need to look at others, compare and evaluate how dirtier or less dirty you are. Any dirt makes a dirty dish. Instead, look at what’s inside your jar, and when the trials of life shatter your jar, remember who is piecing it back together more beautifully than before – Christ in you.)

 

 
Holy Spirit Moment
Take a moment to invite the Holy Spirit to fill you, and pray.
 
Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. (1 THESSALONIANS 5:16-18)
 
…do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (PHILIPPIANS 4:6-7)