Questions, Doubts, & Born Again

Sunday, September 15, 2024

Scriptures: Jn 2:23-3:1, Jn 3:2-19, 7:50-51, Jn 19:39-40

• Summary

  In our first series of Season 11, we want to talk about some of the very real struggles that the teaching team have had in holding onto our Faith over the years: the significance of our doubts and questions, our friendships and faith, spirituality and worship, participation and belonging in community, and generosity and our post-christian relationship to wealth. This week, Jeremy talked about the story of Nicodemus

  • Faith and Theology: Jeremy looked at the inference between the two and how it played out in his life, namely how his faith is grounded  in the love of God most clearly visible in Christ and how that grounding allows his theology to grow and change and allows for questions and doubts to be part of life.

  • Forward without Fear: a phrase Jeremy often repeats to himself - Look forward with home and look back with compassion.

  • Born From Above: Jeremy looked at the phrase “born again” and it’s more correct translation “born from above.” Jesus was not speaking in abstract when he said that phrase, it was addressed to a particular individual, Nicodemus, and his particular story.

  • Beginning Again: To be born again is something that we experience over and over again in our lives. It is not the end, it is a start, when you can deconstruct and put your faith back together again, and look forward with hope and back with compassion.

• Discussion

  Community is shaped by the conversations we share. These questions and reflections are a tool to help you meaningfully engage with the themes of this week's teaching.

  Connect: How does the name for this series “ How I Hold on to Faith” resonate with you? Is this a question that you ever ask yourself or others? What do you think is behind it?
  

  Share: Jeremy made a point that our faith is not static, that it evolves over time. How has your faith changed or evolved in recent years? What events or experiences have influenced that evolution?

  Reflect on faith and theology. Jeremy made a distinction between faith (trust in God, and in particular God’s unchanging love for us as we see it in Jesus) and theology (how we talk about God).

  What do you think about this differentiation?

  How do you see the relationship between faith and theology in your own life? Is it easy or hard for you to differentiate between your personal trust in God and the theological ideas you have been taught?

  Engage with Nicodemus’ story and the concept of being “born from above.” Choose one set of questions or go with both!
  

  1. How does Nicodemus’ evolving understanding of Jesus resonate with your own experiences of learning and growth in faith?
     
     What has been your understanding of this idea of being “born again”?
     How does hearing this sermon (especially the fact that the phrase was specifically addressed to a specific person in a specific situation, and that it is better translated as “born from above, or from God”) change your perception of this phrase?
     
     How does the idea of being "born from above" as "beginning again" resonate with you in your current spiritual journey or your life in general?
     

  2. Reflecting on Nicodemus’ story and his own life journey, Jeremy made a point that questions and doubts are not enemies of faith, but invitations to grow.
     
     How have your own doubts or questions helped deepen your faith rather than weaken it?
     Or maybe they have set you on a path of deconstruction. How did this process impact you and your relationship with your faith, with God?

  Take away: In the section, “Forward Without Fear,” Jeremy used the phrase "Don't look forward with fear, don't look back with disdain" or “Look forward with hope and look back with compassion.” How do you want to practice looking forward with hope in this new season?

  And where do you need to cultivate compassion for your past self? How can you do that?

• Prayer

  Prayer from the sermon:

  God of new beginnings,

  Who makes every day new,

  Who fills every season with potential,

  Who invests every breath with possibility,

  Might you help us to see what you see for us in this new season:

  Pain to overcome, and loss to bear,

  but also joy to celebrate, and hope to discover.

  In all of this, might we come to know you as trusted guide

  who not only offers us wisdom, but who walks with us

  Gently and confidently,

  Ready for us to lean on you whenever we struggle to stand.

  And in that light,

  Might we enter this new season

  Brave and courageous and hopeful for what you will bring.

  For those of us tired and weary and discouraged and fearful

  May today bring new joy.

  For those of us eager and ready and excited for possibility

  May today bring new opportunity.

  And for those of us today open for what may come

  May today reassure of your presence near us

  And kindness extended to us.

  In the strong name of the risen Christ we pray,

  Amen.

• Liturgy

  CALL TO WORSHIP Psalm 71

  MUSIC Curated by Kevin Borst
  Bethel Music - I Believe
  Brooke Ligertwood - Ancient Gates
  Bethel Music - If The Lord
  Hillsong Worship - O Praise The Name

  EUCHARIST INVITATION
  Written by Bobbi Salkeld

  [INTRO]

  In the ritual of the Eucharist, we are shaped into the image of Jesus. We welcome how these elements of the meal invite us – 

  To offer a feast of belonging to everyone seeking God. 

  To be unafraid of the depths of life’s struggles and small delights. 

  To share peace, work for justice, and grow in love. 

  And so as we are shaped like Jesus, God gathers us in. 

  Those full of faith and those doubting.

  Those whose hearts know love and those who feel alone.

  Those aware of strength and those tired and aching. 

  [STORY]

  Listen to the story of Jesus’ meal with friends. 

  On the night Jesus was betrayed, 

  He took bread, blessed it, broke it, and said,

  This is my body – a body given for your healing and wholeness. 

  Eat to remember. 

  In the same way, 

  Jesus took the cup, blessed it, poured it out, and said,

  This cup is filled with my life – and it is poured out for you. 

  Drink to reconcile.

  [PRAYER] 

  As Jesus prayed before the meal, let us also pray.  

  
  Creator God, present at this meal, 

  the bread that we break and the cup that we share 

  are places where our Saviour meets us. 

  Broken, we are being made whole.

  Poured out, we are filled with joy once again. 

  Holy Spirit, bless these elements of community. 

  Amen. 
  
  SERIES BUMPER
  How I Hold on to Faith
  
  SEASON 11 PREVIEW
  Season 11 Series Preview