Sermon Notes

Back to School

 “A PORTRAIT OF MERCY”

LESSON #1

Everyone is wrong. 

Everyone is loved. 

Everyone must be saved.

LESSON #2

Everyone is building their life on something. When the storms of life come, the only secure and stable foundation is God’s Word.

LESSON #3

Everyone needs to know the freedom of identity. When we know who we are in Christ we are free from people pleasing.

And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” Luke 10:25-27

And he said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.”But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Luke 10:28-29

Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. Luke 10:30-31

So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. Luke 10:32-34

And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back. Luke 10:35

SUMMARY

• Dude is beaten up and robbed.


• Two separate religious dudes pass by and ignore him.


• One unexpected dude helps him.

THE TENSION

How can we become more merciful neighbors?

MY BURDEN

Being an uninterested neighbor comes so naturally to me.

MY BURDEN

As stress inside of our homes becomes more of a reality, mercy for those outside of our homes becomes less of a priority.

MY BURDEN

In the Church there is a natural drift to care most for those we see, and, by default, neglect caring for those we don’t see.

Message outline

* The Wrong Question

* The Right Question

* The Best Answer

* The Greatest Samaritan

“The question implied that he had no objective way to determine whom he should be loving. His assumption was that some people didn’t qualify to be his neighbor and were therefore undeserving of his love, so he wanted to know how Jesus would define a neighbor.” Tony Evans

“His response itself was deeply telling. He obviously had been thinking about the breadth that is implicit in the demand to love others as oneself. Certainly it must be restricted to Israel, and even further to those who are of character. We can’t love everyone! Where do you draw the line?”  Kent Hughes

THE WRONG QUESTION?

The question, “Who is my neighbor?” revealed the lawyer’s spiritual immaturity evidenced by his minimum mentality.  

THE RIGHT QUESTION?

Instead of asking, “Who is my neighbor?” we should be asking, “Do I embody the characteristics of a merciful neighbor?”  

1. SACRIFICE EMOTIONALLY

But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. (v.33)

2. SACRIFICE PHYSICALLY

He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. (v.34)

3. SACRIFICE FINANCIALLY

And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ (v.34)

LESSON #4

Everyone, through emotional, physical, and financial sacrifice can be a merciful neighbor.

APPLICATION

* Repent for our self-centeredness.

* Honor our Hope Hub Family!

* Participate sacrificially w/ The Hub

* Love your next door neighbor.

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JESUS SACRIFICED EMOTIONALLY

When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 

Matthew 9:36

JESUS SACRIFICED PHYSICALLY

So they took Jesus, and he went out, bearing his own cross, to the place called The Place of a Skull, which in Aramaic is called Golgotha. There they crucified him, and with him two others, one on either side, and Jesus between them.

John 19:16-18

JESUS SACRIFICED FINANCIALLY

For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.

2 Corinthians 8:9