No Contest | Learning Guide

May 14th, 2023

10:15am - Facebook Live

Title

No Contest​

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Exodus 8:18 (NET) “When the magicians attempted to bring forth gnats by their secret arts, they could not. So there were gnats on people and on animals.”

Introduction:​

As a kid, I hit a certain age where I spent all my limited allowance money on posters. I wanted to cover every inch of my bedroom walls with images of the icons and idols of my youth. I had Peter Fonda on his Harley from Easy Rider, Charles Bronson from Death Wish, Clint Eastwood from Dirty Harry and yes, I had the famous (infamous?) Farah poster. These images reflected my imagination about power and fame, about the kinds of stories I saw as real and enduring. And, of course, they were all fake, all made up, all illusions. As I grew older I the images and the stories behind them lost their hold to other images, idols and stories. As great and enduring and invincible as they seemed at the time, they all ultimately faded.

Just like the images plastered on the walls of my younger self’s room, the gods of the Egyptians were ultimately dethroned, albeit in a much more dramatic fashion. So what does all this say about us? Let’s dig in this week and find out.

Grace and peace y’all,

John Ray and the teaching team

Big Idea: God is always offering revelation through the consequences of our choices.

Take Away:

Our choices demonstrate what it is we truly believe, what it is we truly love, who it is we are learning from, and where our ultimate allegiance lies.

How does this fit in with Belong, Become, Believe?

At Grace we practice radical hospitality, the invitation and opportunity to deeply belong as way of demonstrating what it is we believe about God, ourselves and others. This practice also forms us more and more into who we are called to become. This is guided by what we say we believe as well as informs and refines our statements of faith.

What's Next?

Exodus 10:1-2 (NET)