God-Centered Ministry: Instilling Deep Truths in Children

Devotional

Day 1: Bible Saturation as the Foundation of Ministry

Our mission in ministry must be deeply rooted in the infallible Christian scriptures. This foundation is essential for effective ministry and spiritual growth, ensuring that our teachings are grounded in biblical truth. By immersing ourselves in the Word, we not only strengthen our own faith but also provide a solid foundation for the spiritual formation of the next generation. This approach helps us to remain steadfast in our mission, allowing the scriptures to govern and saturate every aspect of our ministry. [01:22]

"For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart." (Hebrews 4:12, ESV)

Reflection: How can you incorporate more scripture into your daily routine to ensure your life and ministry are grounded in biblical truth?

Day 2: Creating New Concepts in Children's Ministry

Teaching children requires more than simply contextualizing biblical truths; it involves creating new concepts in their minds. This means introducing them to profound biblical truths, even those that challenge adults, to help them develop a robust understanding of God. By doing so, we build a framework in their minds that can hold these profound truths, guiding them toward a deeper relationship with God. This approach requires creativity and dedication, as we seek to instill these deep truths early on. [10:43]

"Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it." (Proverbs 22:6, ESV)

Reflection: What creative methods can you use to introduce complex biblical truths to the children in your life?

Day 3: Understanding God's God-Centeredness as Love

God's self-exaltation is often misunderstood as megalomania, but it is actually the ultimate act of love. By directing us to Himself, God offers us the greatest source of joy and satisfaction. Unlike human self-exaltation, which detracts from others' joy, God's self-exaltation invites us into the fullness of joy found in Him. This understanding should permeate our teaching, preaching, and living, as it aligns our joy with God's glory. [36:39]

"Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever." (Psalm 73:25-26, ESV)

Reflection: How can you shift your focus from self-centered desires to finding joy and satisfaction in God's self-exaltation?

Day 4: Embracing Christian Hedonism

Christian Hedonism teaches that God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him. This truth should shape our teaching and living, as it aligns our joy with God's glory, creating a powerful testimony of His love. By embracing this concept, we can experience the fullness of joy that comes from a deep relationship with God, allowing His glory to shine through us. [44:23]

"Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart." (Psalm 37:4, ESV)

Reflection: What steps can you take today to find greater satisfaction in God, allowing His glory to be reflected in your life?

Day 5: Instilling Deep Truths in Children

We must aim to instill deep, weighty truths about God in children early on. This requires creativity and dedication, as we seek to build a framework in their minds that can hold these profound truths. By guiding them toward a life that delights in God's self-exaltation, we rescue them from the natural man-centeredness with which we are all born. This approach helps children develop a strong foundation in their faith, allowing them to grow into spiritually mature adults. [49:45]

"And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise." (Deuteronomy 6:6-7, ESV)

Reflection: How can you intentionally incorporate teaching deep biblical truths into your interactions with the children in your life?

Sermon Summary

In our time together, we explored the profound concept of God-centeredness, particularly in the context of ministry to children. The essence of our mission is to be grounded in, governed by, and saturated with the infallible Christian scriptures. This foundation is crucial not only for our ministry but also for the spiritual formation of the next generation. We delved into the idea that children's ministry is not merely about contextualizing biblical truths to fit into their limited understanding but about creating new concepts in their minds. This involves teaching them profound truths about God that even adults find challenging, such as God's sovereignty over sin and human accountability, the dual nature of Christ, and the righteousness of God displayed in the cross.

We also discussed the importance of God's god-centeredness, which is often misunderstood as megalomania. However, God's self-exaltation is the ultimate act of love because it directs us to the greatest source of joy and satisfaction—Himself. Unlike human self-exaltation, which detracts from others' joy, God's self-exaltation invites us into the fullness of joy found in Him. This is the heart of Christian Hedonism: God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him. This truth should permeate our teaching, preaching, and living, especially as we minister to children.

In teaching children, we must aim to instill these deep truths early on, helping them grasp the weighty and glorious aspects of God. This requires creativity and dedication, as we seek to build a framework in their minds that can hold these profound truths. Our goal is to rescue them from the natural man-centeredness with which we are all born and guide them toward a life that delights in God's self-exaltation as the ultimate expression of His love.

Key Takeaways

1. Centeredness as Love:** God's self-exaltation is not megalomania but the ultimate act of love. By directing us to Himself, God offers us the greatest source of joy and satisfaction, unlike human self-exaltation, which detracts from others' joy. [36:39]
4. Christian Hedonism Explained: Christian Hedonism teaches that God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him. This truth should shape our teaching and living, as it aligns our joy with God's glory, creating a powerful testimony of His love.

5. Instilling Deep Truths in Children: We must aim to instill deep, weighty truths about God in children early on. This requires creativity and dedication, as we seek to build a framework in their minds that can hold these profound truths, guiding them toward a life that delights in God's self-exaltation.

** [36:39]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:13] - Opening Prayer
[00:50] - Mission Statement
[02:03] - Encouragement for Truth 78
[03:15] - Legacy of Bible Saturation
[06:31] - God-Centeredness in Ministry
[07:37] - Contextualization and Concept Creation
[11:16] - Spiritual Capacity and Concept Creation
[13:20] - Examples of Concept Creation
[19:27] - God-Centeredness Explained
[23:22] - God's God-Centeredness
[25:05] - Provocative Questions About God
[28:24] - Validation Through Scripture
[34:42] - Explaining God's God-Centeredness to Children
[43:30] - Awakening to Happiness in God
[45:33] - Illustration for Children
[48:32] - Conclusion and Prayer

Bible Study Guide

Bible Study Discussion Guide

Bible Reading:

1 Corinthians 2:14 - "The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned."
Acts 4:27-28 - "For truly in this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place."
John 17:24 - "Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world."

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Observation Questions:

What does 1 Corinthians 2:14 say about the natural person's ability to understand spiritual truths? How does this relate to the sermon’s emphasis on concept creation for children? [11:16]
In Acts 4:27-28, how is God's sovereignty over human actions, including sin, demonstrated? How was this concept explained in the sermon? [13:53]
According to John 17:24, what is Jesus' desire for those given to Him by the Father? How does this relate to the sermon’s discussion on God’s self-exaltation as an act of love? [40:28]
How does the sermon describe the challenge of teaching profound biblical truths to children? What methods are suggested to overcome these challenges? [10:43]

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Interpretation Questions:

How does the concept of God’s sovereignty over sin, as discussed in Acts 4:27-28, challenge or affirm your understanding of God’s nature? [13:53]
In what ways does the sermon suggest that God’s self-exaltation is an act of love rather than megalomania? How does this perspective change the way we view God’s actions? [36:39]
How does the sermon explain the relationship between God’s glory and our satisfaction in Him, as seen in John 17:24? What implications does this have for our daily lives? [40:28]
What are the limits of contextualization in teaching children about God, according to the sermon? How does concept creation address these limits? [10:43]

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Application Questions:

Reflect on a time when you struggled to understand a spiritual truth. How can the concept of "concept creation" help you or others in similar situations? [10:43]
How can you incorporate the idea of God’s sovereignty over all things, including sin, into your daily life and decision-making? [13:53]
In what ways can you actively seek to find satisfaction in God, as described in the sermon? What practical steps can you take this week to deepen your joy in Him? [44:23]
How can you help children or new believers grasp the profound truths about God’s nature and His love? What creative methods might you use to teach these concepts? [49:45]
Consider your current understanding of God’s self-exaltation. How does viewing it as an act of love change your relationship with Him? [36:39]
Identify one area in your life where you tend to be man-centered rather than God-centered. What changes can you make to align more closely with God’s god-centeredness? [23:57]
How can you support ministries or initiatives that focus on instilling deep biblical truths in the next generation? What role can you play in this mission? [49:45]

Sermon Clips

We exist to be that grounded in governed by and saturated with the infallible Christian scriptures. One of the reasons I said yes to this invitation is because I not only want to be that kind of ministry I want to encourage others to be that kind of ministry and Truth 78 is one of those Ministries. [00:01:35]

Doing Ministry to Children clarifies the limits of contextualization. You know that phrase contextualization It's usually used in regard to missions right when you do Mission work and you go to a culture that does not know the gospel you have to think now how in the world can I get these truths into their minds. [00:07:40]

You want to make plain things about God that are extremely difficult to understand even for adults and you want to do more than just contextualize you have to do more more than just contextualized because the way contextualization works is that you know the body of truth from the Bible that you would like to be in the minds hearts and lives of this target culture. [00:09:08]

I've got to so teach so pray so live as to create in their little Minds ways of viewing reality that have not yet even come into being or they won't have any idea what I'm talking about with regard to certain really important biblical spiritual truths and that's of course not just true of children that's true of Fallen human beings. [00:10:50]

The natural person does not accept the things of the spirit of God for they are foolishness to him he's not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned which means every Pastor every Sunday school teacher every parent has to deal not only with levels of mental maturity but levels of spiritual capacity. [00:11:42]

I want people to be zealous for passionate about God's God centeredness in everything church God centeredness in everything curriculum god- centeredness in everything marriage god- centeredness all the way down and here's what I have found I have found that as I commend that to people they don't stumble at that term. [00:20:34]

I have discovered that I need to have a strategy for blowing up some brains in order that what I mean by God centered now doesn't just fit into present man centered strategies but blows them away if if you believe in God centeredness because God is Man centered you are man centered self-centered. [00:22:14]

God's self-exaltation draws attention to what gives us the greatest and longest happiness, namely, himself while our self-exaltation draws people away from what will give them deepest and longest happiness. So if I stand here at the front and I say okay everybody look at John Piper I am the source of your joy. [00:36:39]

If God stands here and says come to me I am the greatest being in the universe drink from my Fountain live with me forever enjoy who I am that would not be Insanity it would be Called Love why very simple reason if you if you have a treasure like I got a treasure here's my treasure it's worth $10 million. [00:37:43]

Christian Hedonism says God is most glorified in you when you are most satisfied in him so if God's goal in history is to exalt himself as the alls satisfying treasure that's his goal a very god- centered God exalting himself so that his value and his alls satisfying Fountain of Joy. [00:44:23]

You don't glorify a fountain by hauling buckets up from the valley and pouring the dirty water in in the spring you glorify a fountain by getting down on your face and sucking the water and and saying oh that's satisfying that's wonderful I don't want to anywhere else this is it I'm home that's the discovery of Christian Hedonism. [00:45:33]

The need is very great for the Next Generation to be rescued as early as possible from the natural man centeredness with which we were all born. So, father I pray that you would take these four stations by which we try to arrive at some measure of concept creation of your God centeredness which is our salvation. [00:48:32]

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God-Centered Ministry: Instilling Deep Truths in Children

Devotional

Day 1: Bible Saturation as the Foundation of Ministry

Day 2: Creating New Concepts in Children's Ministry

Day 3: Understanding God's God-Centeredness as Love

Day 4: Embracing Christian Hedonism

Day 5: Instilling Deep Truths in Children

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

Chatbot

God-Centered Ministry: Instilling Deep Truths in Children

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