Message Title: Putting Down Roots
Series: Week 1
Scripture: Isaiah 37:31
Bottom Line: Make roots downward, then you can bear fruit upward.
Other Scripture References:
Group Check in:
How is it with your soul?
Prayer Request? Praises?
Ice Breaker:
Do you garden? If so, what do you grow in your garden?
Who is a influential person in your life?
Overview:
Our roots are those beliefs and experiences that give us life.
In Isaiah 37:31, God speaks a word of hope and purpose to Judah even as Assyria is preparing to lay siege to Jerusalem. God tells them to continue through the hardships because good days of growth and purpose are coming.
The metaphor of root and fruit is fitting to us as Christians and as the Church. Shallow christians and churches will wither, just like roots that don't take hold. However, if we take root downward and bear our fruit upward, we have the opportunity for growth and a promising life that God has planned for us.
To take root, means we must be rooted in Jesus. Our roots can be strengthened by our daily relationship with God. We must immerse ourselves in God’s Word. Reading, reflecting, studying, and responding positively to God’s Word on a daily basis.
In Acts 8, the disciples sent Phillip, a food distribution expert (Acts 6:2-4) to Sameria. He's what we would call the "B team" to Sameria. Why send the B team? Because the Samerians were believed to be too sin-ruined to be saved (Ahab/Jezebel, Herod, Simon the Sorcerer). The disciples sent Phillip knowing that Sameria was most likely a lost cause. However, Phillip got there and the people gathered and listened. Through God, Phillip was able to reach the people of Sameria. Because of that, John and Peter came to verify what happened and then the Holy Spirit came upon the people in Sameria. A 2nd Pentecost took place.
The core conviction that makes up the substance of the root system, that keeps us alive, is that God loves us and wants us.
Not one person is too sin ruined for God's Love! Acts 8 proves this. God will put people in your life to reveal and remind you of God's love. No one is too far gone to be saved. There is no person nor any group of people that we can write off as beyond hope.
Discussion Questions:
Looking back over your life so far, what has the Lord brought you through? How has the Lord held you up and carried you through it?
What good is a plant that isn’t well rooted?
Is there a significant person(s) in your life that helped plant your roots? Someone who introduced you to your faith journey?
What is the substance of your root system? What are those core beliefs or experiences that are life giving to you, life sustaining, even in the midst of the storm or droughts that we tend to face?
What is it that you believe? What has been revealed to you about who God is, and who you are, and how we are called to live?
What keeps you from believing God is chasing after you? Do you have an internal monologue that plays on repeat in your head that keeps you from believing you are worthy of His Love?