FLOURISH: Abiding in Christ with Josh Liem

We’re starting a new sermon series, FLOURISH!   Over the next couple months, we’ll be exploring John 15-17 and how it relates to our vision of seeing our neighbours flourish.  This Sunday, we’ll ask what it means to flourish in a world filled with competing visions of fruitfulness.  How does abiding in Christ lead to true joy and fruitful living?  Join us this week as we dive into John 15:1-11! -- Home Church Watch The Bible Project’s overview on the Gospel of John: https://bibleproject.com/explore/video/john-1-12/  https://bibleproject.com/explore/video/john-13-21/  What stood out to you in the videos? What do you love or appreciate about Jesus? What do you love or appreciate about John’s style? Read John 15:1-11.  How does this text fit in the overall narrative? Discuss Mark Sayer’s 7 key belief statements of our age (below).  How do they help us relate or bridge the gap between Scripture and our modern context?  How do they affect the way we might evangelize or convey the Gospel? The highest good is individual freedom, happiness, self-definition, and self-expression. Traditions, religions, received wisdom, regulations, and social ties that restrict individual freedom, happiness, self-definition, and self-expression must be reshaped, deconstructed, or destroyed. The world will inevitably improve as the scope of individual freedom grows. Technology —in particular the internet—will motor this progression toward utopia. The primary social ethic is tolerance of everyone’s self-defined quest for individual freedom and self-expression. Any deviation from this ethic of tolerance is dangerous and must not be tolerated. Therefore social justice is less about economic or class inequality, and more about issues of equality relating to individual identity, self-expression, and personal autonomy. Humans are inherently good. Large-scale structures and institutions are suspicious at best and evil at worst. Forms of external authority are rejected and personal authenticity is lauded. Discuss the concept of discerning fruits in your life and in the broader culture. What are some indicators of true spiritual growth? How can we maintain unity and focus on Christ as the center of our church community, especially during times of change and uncertainty? Share about a time when God's pruning in your life led to greater spiritual fruitfulness. What did you learn from that experience? As a church, how can we better embody Christ's love and joy to those outside our community?