Thank you for joining us for worship this holiday weekend.
Today, we continue our message series titled THE LIFE as we work our way through the book of Genesis. This brings us today to an account of Joseph testing his brothers' character. This narrative forces us to think about the ways that we experience testing in our lives as we ask: "Would God give us more than we can handle?"
I pray that your time with us in today's worship helps you move closer to Jesus and reveals more of his plan for your life.
8:30 am
Live @Raum Chapel
9:30 am
Live @Wesley Chapel
Live on our Worship Line: (443) 252-2878
11:00 am
Live @Rock Hall Church
Live online @https://yourrockhall.online.church
On-Demand
This week's announcements:
Today's Order of Worship
Welcome
Morning Prayer
Opening Songs
Pastoral Prayer
Message
Holy Communion
Closing Worship
Benediction
Message Notes:
Genesis #41: Cancelling Unforgiveness
Forgiving the Unforgettable
Genesis 45:1–18
Luke 6:37
What Biblical Forgiveness is NOT:
Merely excusing the excusable
Self-imposed amnesia - pretending it didn’t happen
Immediate elimination of all the consequences
Complete reconciliation
Letting someone hurt you over and over again
What Biblical Forgiveness is:
Mark 11:25 It’s also required:
How to cancel UNforgiveness:
Start with a look in the mirror
Colossians 3:13
Understand biblical forgiveness
Matthew 6:12 1 Peter 2:20–23
Turn the situation over to God
Romans 12:19
Give your feelings time to catch up
1 Timothy 1:20
This week's prayer focus:
Sunday - Our Mission: God, let Your church be a light in our community and world. Matthew 5:16
Monday - Our Church: God, bring unity to the Body of Christ. John 17:20-23
Tuesday - Our Leadership: God, help our worship leaders and musicians lead us before Your throne in a spirit of worship. Psalm 33:3
Wednesday - Families: God, help our families faithfully follow Your commands. John 14:15
Thursday - Our Community: God, soften the hearts of the lost in our community, show them your light. John 3:16-18
Friday - Children/Youth: God, change the world through our young people rather than letting the world change them. Romans 12:2
Saturday - Adults: God, enable our adults to live lives of faithfulness to You and perseverance to the end. Hebrews 12:1-3
Merger Prayer Focus: Working through Difficulties
Whenever people come together for a shared purpose, they should acknowledge potential difficulties. Each person has ways of communicating, expectations, or baggage from the past. These might be traditions, or unspoken ways of handling problems. They might be differing communication methods, or past hurts that people have buried. What are the difficulties that might be facing the new church?
Pray for an awareness of the potential difficulties that may hinder the church. John 13:35
Pray for an openness to new traditions. Gal 1:14
Pray for conflict and hard feelings to be forgiven. Matt 6:14
Pray for ineffective systems to be set aside. Mark 2:22
Pray for clear communication of expectations. Jer. 29:11
Pray that turf issues will be minimal. 1 Cor 1:10
Pray for a healthy grief process. Matt 5:4
Take it Home:
As much as we want to confess our sins to God, it can be confusing to know what true confession really looks like. Read through Psalm 51 and then answer the following questions.
What positive attributes of God are mentioned in Psalm 51 that affirm his desire to forgive us?
Are there any parts of Psalm 51 that fit how you confess to God?
Any parts that don’t fit, but you’d like to implement?
2. One of the hardest parts of forgiving is getting past the hurt we feel for what has taken place especially when the other person doesn’t apologize or try to make the situation right. How could the following verses help someone who is holding onto bitterness or feeling that certain people don’t deserve to be forgiven?
Ecclesiastes 7:20
Romans 3:23
1 John 4:19-21
3. Forgiveness does not necessarily mean we forget an offense or trust the offending person again. How could the following verses help someone to be more discerning about who to trust and who not to trust in the future?
Colossians 2:6-8
1 Timothy 6:3-5
Matthew 7:18-20
Bible Reading Plan:
Join us for our 5x5x5 New Testament Reading Plan. 5 minutes a day, 5 days a week, & 5 questions to go deeper.