SPEAKER Rand Cho (Irvine Baptist)
Quick to Anger, Lacking in Love Jonah
Not the Jonah that We Know
- Jonah, contrary to misconceptions, did not repent (Chapter 2 is solely an acknowledgment of God’s sovereignty)
- Jonah was the only prophet who refused God’s commission; he labored in fleeing to Tarshish and getting on the boat. Why all this work to disobey God? Ninevah was the capital of Assyria, a nation that was merciless and harbored so much hatred toward Israel. Jonah had the secret desire to see the capital be obliterated.
- Ultimately, however, even the king of Nineveh took a lowly and humble position (“covered himself in sackcloth and sat on the ashes), and repented.
- This was the power of God in action: a pagan city submitted to His will despite the weakness of Jonah.
- This testifies to God’s great love for ALL things and to rebuke Israel who was hesitant to share God’s glory with Gentiles.
Then God said to Jonah, “Do you have good reason to be angry, even to death.” Then the Lord said, “You had compassion on the plant you did not cause to grow, which came up overnight and perished overnight. Should I not have compassion on Nineveh, the great city in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know the difference between their right and left hand, as well as many animals?”
How much more should we love our enemies that God has so much compassion for Nineveh? We need to understand how we treat our enemies through His example. It is amazing to think how deep our relationships would be if we could even slightly resemble His great love. So we have MUCH to pray for!
SPEAKER Steve Chang (Living Hope Community Church)
Friendship 1 Samuel 18
“Then Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself. Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was on him and gave it to David, with his armor, including his sword and his bow and his belt.”
Prince and Pauper
- Jonathan was the prince of Israel and heir to the throne
- David was unimpressive and the youngest child of his family
- Yet Jonathan quickly and willingly gave up his garments and sword (symbolizing his status) to David. Why?
- Jonathan knew that David was God’s anointed one and the true heir to Israel
Proverbs 17:17
“A friend loves at all times,
And a brother is born for adversity”
- Friends are a constant source of love
- They are closer than brothers for a brother may only help during times crisis
- True friends will rejoice in the other’s successes despite their own failures
Jonathan, Not David
- “And they kissed each other and wept together, but David wept the more (1 Samuel 20:41).”
- In this case, we strive to be like David and find a Jonathan; however we should BE Jonathan
Imagine it is your wedding day. Do you know who your 5 best men are?
Are they people who you have built sharpening friendships with?
SPEAKER Dave Jung (Nasung Artos Community Church)
God’s Love Letter John 13:31-35
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
Last Words
-Jesus is sharing his last words before he gets crucified, therefore there is desperation and added meaning/importance to those words!
-He calls us His children, implying our intimate relationship with God
Called to Love
- Agape love comes through unity in Christ
- Our love also comes from the divine, supernatural love given to us by God
- So let us smother the “wolves of dissention,” our apathy with God’s calling
- We need to be true shepherds of his word to this world
The Greatest Gift (1 Corinthians 13)
“Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”
Is that how your own love looks like?
SPEAKER Steve Jin (The Vine Church)
Refining in Christ Galatians 2:20
“I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Chris lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.”
The Cross
-Considered most shameful object, a sign of the cruelest punishment
-But to Christians, represents: beauty, closeness, redemption, healing, brokenness
-Where is the cross in your life?
We Have Been Crucified
-Being crucified means our old self died
-Our brokenness is good, but we still try to hide it with our fake selves!
-Yes, we are all broken; but the Cross empowers us to live how we want to live, THROUGH FAITH
-The unselfish thing is to crucify yourself every day & choosing Christ
- Choosing Christ is not easily done; It takes will and desire!
How Do We Choose Christ?
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” (Galatians 5:22-24)
-Fruit is singular, so all 9 traits must accompany it! Must bear all!
-We have to be involved in a community setting, where we get tested and refined; where those traits can develop
-We need each others’ jacked-up-ness!
SPEAKER Steve Chai (New Hope)
Why We Are Here Acts 2:42
“They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”
We are a community that sharpens each other FOR THE LORD.
Peter’s exhortation to the believers who were baptized during Pentecost: “For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself (39).”
After the blessing, the community knew they could not be stagnant, and continually devoted themselves to the Lord with a day-to-day new commitment.
4 Things to Devote Ourselves to:
1. Apostles’ Teaching: In a world of no Truth and hope, we find those elements in Scripture.
2. Fellowship: More than saying, “Hi.” Fellowship is the coming together of saints to build each other for Christ’s kingdom. We are meant to do this Christian life together.
3. Breaking of Bread: It is a reminder that Jesus is coming back, which serves as the power of the Gospel. Life in the church is fueled by that fact.
4. Prayer: Prayer is the best way to show love.
CCM understands what you’re going through, so we seek a portrait community as above.
Acts 2:43-47 describes how a church can grow through praising God and fellowship with gladness and sincerity at heart (by having a single focus on Jesus Christ)
