Serving Love and Sexuality (Part 1)

Dennis McCallum

1 Corinthians 6:16-20

Jesus confronts the Pharisees about the issue of divorce. God's design for human sexuality is within the confines of a heterosexual monogamous relationship between man and woman. When the focus of sexuality is servant love, we understand that sex is highly intimate and thus can be highly damaging, so we want to listen to God's perspective on what will be the most fulfilling. The key to success in sexual relationships is that it is centered around God. When centered on God, sexuality is able to be freeing and highly unifying as both parties are secure in their position in Christ and can look to serve one another out from God's love, rather than needlessly taking from one another. This teaching also surveys people's thoughts about living together before marriage.

Spiritually Divided Marriage

Jim Leffel

1 Corinthians 7:12-16

The Bible says husbands and wives are united in one purpose and should nurture one another spiritually. What does the Bible have to say about a marriage when one spouse is a Christian and the other is not? Paul gives three principles for a spouse in this situation: 1) have influence over the other person by bringing God into the marriage and home; 2) bring peace into the relationship because God calls on us to be peacemakers; and 3) show your spouse who God is and the relationship He wants with them.\r\n

Single and Divorced: Honest Talk about Sensitive Issues

Jim Leffel

Matthew 19:3-9

What does God have to say about sex as it relates to being single, married or divorced? Is it better to stay single or get married? There are unique tensions in living a single life such as: 1) sex and your identity; 2) finding the right person or becoming the right person; 3) disappointment; and 4) legalism. Difficulties resulting from a broken marriage are discussed: 1) what does God say about divorce; 2) are there legitimate reasons to end a marriage; and 3) what's after divorce? A testimony from Paco, who teaches a class called "How not to fall for a jerk" is included.

Sex and Marriage

Jim Leffel

1 Corinthians 7:1-5

Following an overview of how sexuality and spirituality intersect, this teaching covers the dynamics of a sexual relationship in marriage. The proper place of sex in marriage avoids the extremes that the people in the Corinthian church were drawn to: namely seeking sexual gratification outside the marriage on the one hand, and denying sexual desire altogether on the other. The Bible advocates sexuality as both an expression of marital oneness and an act of self-giving love.

Teaching Kids to Love the Word

Kathy Steinman

Luke 6:39-40

There are several key principles to consider in teaching kids to love the Word. First of all, this is a supernatural work that is brought about by the Holy Spirit. We need to believe that children have legitimate capacity to learn spiritual truths and understand that children often have hearts and minds that are soft to God. We must ourselves love the Word and fight against letting children be bored with the Bible. Through prayer and training we can make ground in this area. At the end of this presentation, there is a panel of volunteers and workers in the children's ministry who participate in Q&A.

Leading Our Kids to Love God

Joe Botti

2 Timothy 3:14-15

In our culture today, kids are leaving their Christian lives behind in huge numbers as they grow up into adulthood. And it is certainly no easy task to help our children develop a love for the Lord! This workshop first discusses our role in this area and the correlation between our relationship and influence with our kids. Our own modeling of sincere faith and time spent relationally investing in our children are imperative. Next, the class addresses the need to withstand cultural pressures and provides some age specific ideas for how to engage our kids spiritually and relationally. \r\n

Husbands and Wives

Tom Dixon

Colossians 3:18-19

Paul gives instructions to wives and husbands on how to be successful in a marriage centered around God. As Christians understand what Jesus did for them, they will be able to respond more within marriage. For wives, that means learning what it means to submit to their husband, which means learning to be: supportive, agreeable, encouraging and helpful as the husband leads the marriage towards God. For husbands, they are to extend grace towards their wives and seek ways to sacrificially serve them like Christ. Love and forgiveness from Jesus is the key component for navigating marriage difficulties.

Teaching Kids How to Pray

Kathy Steinman

Colossians 3:18-19

Jesus loved children and valued their faith immensely. We should, therefore, be proactive about teaching kids to pray to the Lord, despite several of our culture's common misconceptions about kids. First, children's spiritual capacity is not as limited as we are tempted to think, for which there are both Biblical and extra-Biblical examples. Second, it is incorrect to say that only adults do the real spiritual work, because many children posses a natural eagerness for the Lord that draws them to follow Him. Teaching kids how to pray starts with us, how we react to our children's questions about God, how we exemplify our own growing relationship with God, and how we live our lives. We must also remember amidst teaching prayer that God has a role that is active and unique apart from our role.

Implications of the Gospel for Marriage

Jim Leffel

Mark 10:1-12

When religious leaders ask Jesus about divorce, Jesus interprets marriage through the lens of the gospel as rooted in promise, in intimacy, and as a work of God. Jesus does not say that there are never legitimate grounds for divorce, but he does teach that there is a difference between what the law permits and what morality requires. Grace changes every aspect of our lives, and gives a new basis for a good marriage.