Matthew

Both God and Money

With over a decade of Real Estate experience, Alex began as an investor and at the market's peak in 2006 owned 11 properties including his personal residence. The bubble burst and hit his family hard, but they regrouped and carried on with a No Debt Philosophy thanks to discovering the teachings of Dave Ramsey. Alex and his wife, Stacie, began teaching Dave's course, Financial Peace University and to date have helped hundreds of people to pay off over a million dollars in debt. Alex and Stacie are members of Harvest Bible Chapel with their two college-age boys, Christian and Samuel.

Guest Speaker - Alex Giannetti alexgiannetti.com

Guest Speaker - Alex Giannetti
alexgiannetti.com

Introduction:

Matthew 6:24 - "No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money."

  1. God wants you to be a Giver .

    See: Proverbs 11:23-24

    Malachi 3:8-10 - "Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the Lord Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it."

  1. Be Content . (1 Timothy 6:9-10)

    Live the life that God is calling you to live and be grateful for that which he has given you.

    See: Proverbs 12:9

  2. There is no such thing as Good Debt.

    Proverbs 22:7 - "The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is slave to the lender."

    See: James 4:3-4 | Proverbs 21:20

Sermon Notes (PDF): BLANK
Hint:
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Small Group Discussion
Read Matthew 6:24

  1. What was your big “take-away” from this passage / message?

  2. Have‌ ‌you‌ ‌ever‌ ‌experienced‌ ‌first‌ ‌hand‌ ‌that‌ ‌the‌ ‌borrower‌ ‌is‌ ‌slave‌ ‌to‌ ‌the‌ ‌lender?‌ ‌(Proverbs‌ ‌22:7)

  3. When‌ ‌was‌ ‌the‌ ‌last‌ ‌time‌ ‌that‌ ‌you‌ ‌wanted‌ ‌to‌ ‌give‌ ‌but‌ ‌didn’t?‌ ‌How‌ ‌did‌ ‌that‌ ‌make‌ ‌you‌ ‌feel?

  4. Do‌ ‌you‌ ‌feel‌ ‌pressure‌ ‌to‌ ‌”keep‌ ‌up‌ ‌with‌ ‌the‌ ‌Jones’?”‌ ‌Do‌ ‌you‌ ‌cave‌ ‌in?‌ ‌If‌ ‌not,‌ ‌how‌ ‌do‌ ‌you‌ ‌fight‌ ‌the‌ ‌urge?‌

  5. Is‌ ‌it‌ ‌ok‌ ‌for‌ ‌a‌ ‌follower‌ ‌of‌ ‌Christ‌ ‌to‌ ‌have‌ ‌abundant‌ ‌wealth?‌

  6. Tell‌ ‌us‌ ‌about‌ ‌a‌ ‌time‌ ‌when‌ ‌you‌ ‌received‌ ‌a‌ ‌perfectly‌ ‌timed‌ ‌blessing‌ ‌that‌ ‌could‌ ‌only‌ ‌have‌ ‌come‌ ‌from‌ ‌God.‌

Breakout
Pray for one another.

Who Will You Choose?

Introduction:

We Choose Barabbas Because (Matthew 27:15-23):

  1. We are too Self-centered (Matt 27:17-18).
  2. We are too willing to Listen to others (Matt 27:19-20).
  3. We are too eager to Worship idols .

    John 19:15 - "They cried out, Away with him, away with him, crucify him! Pilate said to them, Shall I crucify your King? The chief priests answered, We have no king but Caesar."

How Do We Stop Choosing Barabbas?

Jeremiah 29:13 - "You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart."

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Sermon Notes (PDF): BLANK
Hint:
Highlight blanks above for answers!

Small Group Discussion
Read Matthew 27:15-23

  1. What was your big takeaway from this week’s sermon?

  2. As Christians we know that God's plan is better for us and we will be fully blessed if we follow his path. Why do we continue to follow our own self ambitions and try to solve “bad” situations ourselves?

  3. Read Matthew 26:59-66. We see that Jesus did not crumble under the most severe form of peer pressure, why is it so important that we know God's Word and stand for what is right in our current culture? How can we use God's Word to resist peer pressure?

  4. Typically we think of idols as addictions or greed, but an idol is anything in your life that takes Jesus from being your first priority? How can you recognize an idol in your life? What is something you have allowed to take priority over your walk with Christ? How can you remove or realign those priorities?

Breakout
Pray for each other to work on their relationship with Jesus. Be honest about your walk. Share the areas you’re good and share your areas of weakness.

When You Pray… (Matthew 6:5-15)

Intro / Review:

When You Pray… (Matthew 6:5-15)

Four Marks of Real Prayer.

PRIVATE (Mat 6:5-6)

PERSONAL (Mat 6:7-8)

PROPORTIONED (Mat 6:9-13)

PRACTICAL (Mat 6:14-15)

Sermon Notes (PDF): BLANK
Hint:
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Small Group Discussion
Read Matthew 6:5-15

GROUP

1. What was your big “take-away” from this passage / message?

2. “Your secret prayer life is your real prayer life” (v5-6). Do you agree or disagree? Why?

3. How balanced are your prayers (Praise, Purpose, Provision)?

4. What do you think motivates people to pray in a way to be noticed / applauded by others (v5)?

BREAKOUT

According to Jesus’ instructions (the 4 P’s in the sermon - Private, Personal, Proportioned, Practical), rate your prayer life so far in 2019 on a scale of 1-10. What do you need to do to give yourself a better score?

Pray for one another - to grow as prayers in these areas.

When You Give...

Intro:

The Secret to Giving is Giving in Secret.

  1. When You Make Giving KNOWN, People Reward You. (Matt 6:2)

    ACTION

    AMOUNT

    ATTITUDE

  2. When You Make Giving SECRET, God Rewards You. (Matt 6:3-4)

    SPIRITUAL

    MATERIAL

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Small Group Discussion
Read Matthew 6:1-4

GROUP

  1. Be an armchair psychologist: Why do you think people naturally want others’ attention when they give? Be honest - have you ever given, hoping that someone would know?

  2. Do you think “giving to get a reward” (Matt 6:4) is a wrong motivation? Defend your answer.

  3. What are the rewards God gives “secret” givers? Be specific.

BREAKOUT

Pray for one another to give as Christ commanded - secretly.

Don't Myth Christmas - Part 2

Christmas POP QUIZ:

  1. The "Wise Men" were at the manger scene when Jesus was born. T   |   F
  2. The Bible says there were three Wise Men. T   |   F
  3. The Bible says the Wise Men rode on camels. T   |   F
  4. The Wise Men were kings. T   |   F
  5. The Wise Men were Oriental and Ethiopian. T   |   F

Intro:

  • WISE MEN:
  • CHIEF PRIESTS:
  • HEROD:

Which Character Are You? (Matt 2:1-16)

  1. Herod: I'm King of my Life, not Jesus.
  2. Chief Priests: The King is born? Meh .
  3. Wise Men: I will Worship the king.

3 Things to Worship Like the Wise Men:

  1. Pursue Him
  2. Humble yourself before Him
  3. Give to Him

Sermon Notes (PDF): BLANK
Hint:
Highlight blanks above for answers!

Small Group Discussion
Read Matthew 2:1-16

GROUP

  1. What surprised you the most about the story of the Wise Men and Herod? What myths have you believed about this account (e.g., there were three of them, they were there right when Jesus was born, etc)?

  2. What is the significance of the gifts given in Matt 2:11? Why is giving a part of worship?

BREAKOUT

Pray for one another!