The North Church Women

Psalm 40, A Song for the Waiting. Pam Larson, February 24, 2021

Psalm 40 … A Song for the Waiting

Because God’s faithfulness and steadfast love is rock solid, remember His past grace, praise Him and point others to trust in Him, and prayerfully wait with confident hope for more grace in the future.

1. Past grace 

• Waited: God’s merciful rescue (1-3) (5 consecutive past actions)

2. Our responses (some present tense, some past)

• Praising: A New Song (3)
  
• Trusting: God’s multiplied blessings (4-5) 
• Obeying: Our response to God (6-10)
• Proclaiming and declaring: (9-10)

    3. Present plea/prayer (11-17)

• Preserving: His appeal to God’s character. (11)
  
• Admitting: His failure (12)
  
• Pleading: His cries for God’s help (13-15)

The rock bottom foundation of our forgiveness and our fearlessness and our joy is the commitment that God has to his own great name. First, he is committed to act for his own name’s sake. And then, for that reason, he is committed to act for his people. (John Piper)

4. Future waiting with confident hope (16-17)

“God’s grace is ever cascading over the waterfall of the present from the inexhaustible river of grace coming to us from the future into the ever-increasing reservoir of grace in the past. In the next five minutes, you will receive sustaining grace flowing to you from the future, and you will accumulate another five minutes’ worth of grace in the reservoir of the past.” (John Piper)

Psalm 22, A Song for the Suffering. Charisse Compton, February 17, 2021

Psalm 22 A Song for the Suffering

1. Context

2. Content

   a. Cries and Complaints (1-11)

   b. Depictions of Suffering (12-18)

   c. The Turn (21)

   d. The Vow (22)

   e. Fulfilling the Vow (23-26)

   f. Foretelling (27-31)

3. Three Story Structure

   a. Israel/David

   b. Jesus

   c. You

4. 8 Reflections

Psalm 8, A Song of Praise. Pam Larson, February 10, 2021

Psalm 8 is a song of praise that points us to Jesus. 

• He is the Lord with the majestic name above all names that should be praised. 
• He is the Baby, the Incarnate Son of God, the offspring of the woman who was promised back in Genesis 3.
• He was praised by children, and those songs fueled the rage that ultimately led to the cross where he defeated God’s enemy, Satan. 
• He used the foolishness and weakness of the cross to confound the wisdom of the wise and the strength of the strong.
• He is the Second Adam that came and put everything under his feet.
• One day all will be restored and His majestic name, the name above all names, will truly be honored and praised in ALL the earth!

Psalms 1 and 2, A Song For the Blessed. Charisse Compton, Feb 2, 2021

Charisse introduces our study of selected Psalms, "A Song For Every Season," by teaching through Psalm 1 and 2. Her title, "Your Blessed Life Now" is a parody of Joel Osteen's book titled, "Your Best Life Now."

Colossians 1:1-14, Week 2, Abigail Dodds

Gospel Gratitude

Galatians 6:11-18 A Grace-filled, Cross-Centered Gospel Goodbye, Pam Larson (4-24-2020)

A Grace-filled, Cross-Centered Gospel Goodbye

CONTEXT: 

Paul’s grace-filled greeting (Gal 1:1-5) introduced us to the gospel that is from God and for God’s glory.

• Paul defended his authority and the one true gospel in chapters 1-2.
• He explained the gospel of grace and the glorious freedom it brings in chapters 3-4.
• And in chapters 5-6, he applied the gospel by commanding us to love and serve one another in everyday life.

Paul ends this letter (Gal 6:18) with “ … the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers.” 

STRUCTURE:

The cross is the center of this passage, and it has been a central theme in Galatians. 

• V12-13 The cross and circumcision (notice circumcision 3x in v12-13)
• V14 The cross- our only boast
• V15 A new creation not circumcision (notice circumcision 2x in v15)

OUTLINE:

1- The Cross Exposes Our Motives

• The Motives of the Judaizers (6:12-13) SELF-boasting
  • Their pride
  • Their persecution-avoiding
  • Their Pharisaical actions
• The Motives of Paul (6:14-17) CROSS-boasting
  • The power of the cross 
  • The purpose of the cross
  • The Person of the cross 

2- The Cross Defines Our New Life

Galatians 6:1-10 Burden-bearing, Pam Larson (4-10-2020)

Galatians 6:1-10

Burden-bearing: our spiritual life as a believer, under grace not law, is evidenced by loving one another and persevering in doing good.

A. The Dangers/warnings are stark.
Temptation v1
Deception v3
Pride v3-4
Boasting v4
not sowing to the Spirit v8
weariness v9

B. The Commands are many:
1-Watchfully and gently restore v1
2-Lovingly and humbly bear one another’s burdens v2
3-Test your own work v4
4-Share all good things with your teachers v6
5-Sow to the Spirit v8
6-Do not grow weary; do not give up v9
7-Do good to everyone v10

C. The Stakes are huge according to verse 8:
We reap what we sow!

Galatians tells us what Jesus purchased for us on the cross. It is because of Jesus we have:
DELIVERANCE
FREEDOM
JUSTIFICATION
REDEMPTION
ADOPTION
THE SPIRIT!
IDENTITY: IN Christ

How specifically are we to be like Jesus in this passage?
GENTLY-RESTORING: Because Jesus has restored us
WATCH-KEEPING: (temptation): Because Jesus suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.
BURDEN-BEARING: Because Jesus bore our burden at the cross and has given us the Spirit, we can care for one another, by bearing others’ burdens and doing good to all.
HUMILITY: Phil 2
SHARING & GIVING: Because Jesus gave His very life, we are to share with one another. Sacrificial giving, like Jesus gave.
DOING GOOD: Because Jesus is good, always good, we will seek every opportunity to do good.
NOT GROWING WEARY: Because Jesus never grows weary, we can turn to Him for more grace when we feel like giving up; Heb 12; 2 Cor 12:9

Benediction from Heb 13:20-21
Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.

North MOMS: How to Teach the Gospel During a Pandemic, Barbara Reaoch (4-7-2020)

Barbara's original title was "Teaching the Gospel to Children." Sadly, many of us are not clear about the difference between moralistic behaviorism and gospel-centered teaching. We would never teach an adult that God’s acceptance of us is based on our behavior. But we often apply the Bible to children in this way. How easily we twist the beauty of the gospel of grace into the subtle deception of moralism. Come hear how to keep the gospel central as you talk with, discipline, and teach the children in your life.

As the corona virus pandemic swept the globe, Barbara adjusted her message slightly, "How to Teach the Gospel During a Pandemic!" 

Galatians 5:13-26, Our Freedom, Our Fight, Our Flesh and God’s Fruit in Our Lives, Pam Larson, 3.27.2020

Our Freedom, Our Fight, Our Flesh and God’s Fruit in Our Lives

Galatians 5:13-26 | Pam Larson | 3.27.2020

1-Our Freedom (13-15)

• Free FROM… 
• Freedom TO...

2-Our Fight (16-18) 

• HOPE for the fight … 3 reasons ...
  • 1-Because of A promise! the Spirit’s help! (16)
  • 2-Because the battle is real and is hard!- but we have the Spirit (17)
  • 3-Because if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. (18)

1. So we have the Spirit living in us, we WALK in the Spirit, we are led by the Spirit and we plead for the Spirit’s help in fighting the battle.
2. We also need the Word, God’s promises, to fight this battle against the flesh.

3-Our Flesh (19-21) (Paul contrasts our flesh with the fruit of the Spirit in our lives.)

• The works and a warning 
  • our past
  • our present

4- God’s Fruit (22-23)

• Love, joy and peace all are “gospel overflows” of the saving grace of Christ in our lives
• Those lead to the sweet ways we then interact with others around us...with patience, kindness and goodness
• As the fruit of the Spirit ripens, our radical transformation manifests in faithfulness, gentleness and self-control...becoming more and more like Jesus.

Our Ongoing Fight (24-26) 

• An imperative- walk by the Spirit/keep in step with the Spirit
• An indicative-  Because you are crucified with Christ, and have crucified the flesh, keep crucifying those fleshly desires, walking by the Spirit, living by the Spirit, keeping in step with the Spirit

 

We are free from sin and death, free to love, fighting our flesh in the power of the Spirit and walking, living, being led by the Spirit. This means we are continually directed by and influenced by the Spirit, and His fruit.

North MOMS: The False Gospel of Feminism, Adrien Segal (3-17-2020)

The False Gospel of Feminism (ADRIEN SEGAL)

How does our having our identity rooted in Jesus give us the tools to discern and confront the subtle worldly influences that surround us? Adrien will share how she has grown in understanding the Bible’s high calling for women and the joys promised to us.