23 Mar ‘Nehemiah Part 9’ | ‘Confession is Good for the Soul’ – All Locations
CHANGE, PLEASE NOTE: NO FIRST TUESDAY IN APRIL. THE NEXT FIRST TUESDAY WILL BE ON MAY 13!
Check the Events Page for What is Happening (not everything is listed here) (waterschurch.org/events)
REGISTRATION NOW OPEN FOR OUR NA EASTER EXTRAVAGANZA!
We will need lots of help that day, so please pass this along to your group members and serve teams! Use the link below to register!
EASTER EXTRAVAGANZA: PRESENTED BY WATERS KIDS
NEW**
LIFE GROUP LEADER MEETING – ALL LOCATIONS – MONDAY, APRIL 28. THE REGISTRATIONS FOR ALL LOCATIONS ARE BELOW AND YOU WILL BE RECEIVING AN EMAIL.
THE PURPOUS OF THIS MEETING IS TO INVITE NOT ONLY YOUR APPRENTICES, BUT ALSO THOSE YOU BELIEVE SHOULD BE LEADING A GROUP THAT HAVE NOT YET AGREED TO APPRENTICE.
Links below:
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LIFE GROUP LEADER TRAINING – MONDAY APRIL 14 USING GOOGLE MEETS. PLEASE SHARE LINK BELOW WITH YOUR APPRENTICES READY TO LEAD A GROUP!
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ALL NEW ENGLAND LOCATIONS – MEALS FOR ALPHA CLASS
Reminders:
✳ Please regularly check your Planning Center profiles for requests to join your life groups, remove members from the list that no longer attend, or add members not listed. Please ensure that you have added no-reply@churchcenter.com to your email contacts so that you do not miss an email from Planning Center and encourage your members to do so as well. This will ensure you do not miss a member request or any emails that come from the Planning Center site. Thank you!
Waters Class Schedule:
- 1st Sunday: Discover Waters – after 1st service
- 2nd Sunday: NO CLASSES
- 3rd Sunday: Connect Class – after 1st service
- 4th Sunday: Baptism Class – after 1st service
Waters Help: Need marriage and family care or have a group member in need of marriage and family care? Click here: help resources page or visit waterschurch.org/help
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| North Attleboro | Text “subscribe” to 508 695-1300 | |
| Norwood | Text “subscribe” to 781 762-3357 | |
| Apollo Beach | Text “subscribe” to 813 642-6979 | |
| Woonsocket | Text “subscribe” to 833 241-4837 | |
| Southcoast | Text “subscribe” to 508 809-3490 | |
CHANGE, PLEASE NOTE: NO FIRST TUESDAY IN APRIL. THE NEXT FIRST TUESDAY WILL BE ON MAY 13!
Ice Breaker Question:
What’s something you were afraid to admit when you were younger but can laugh about now?
Opening Prayer:
As we gather today, Heavenly Father, open our hearts to the truths You reveal through Your Word. Guide us in understanding the importance of confession in our walk with You so we might grow closer to You and one another. Amen.
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Chapter 9 of Nehemiah is a national corporate confession by the Levites on behalf of the people of Israel, recounting God’s faithfulness and Israel’s tendency to rebel.
We are called to confess and repent.
We must admit we are wrong and forgive when others wrong us.
God is GOOD. We are BAD. He can HELP.
- CONFESSION takes TIME and INTENTION.
Nehemiah 9:1-3 ESV
At this time, the required feast of booths had long ended, and the people were still there.
They wanted more of God. They fasted and spent half the day in the temple, one-quarter hearing God’s Word and one-quarter confessing and worshipping Him.
We need to get away from outsiders and get with God’s people.
1 John 1:8–9 ESV
CONFESSION IS AGREEING WITH GOD ABOUT SIN.
Some of us never get over sin because we have not seen it the way God sees it.
God sees gossip as an attack on the image of God on someone. He sees greed as a lack of trust in His provision and lust as an offense against the person your are married to or the person you are not married to.
Psalm 139:23–24 ESV
Q: How does regularly dedicating time for confession and fellowship among believers, away from outside influences, enhance our spiritual lives and relationship with God?
Practical Application:
This week, dedicate a specific time each day to reflecting on and confessing sins to God. Focus on the truth and depth of your actions and thoughts and seek God’s forgiveness and guidance.
2. CONFESSION reminds us of God’s GOODNESS.
Nehemiah 9:5 ESV
The leaders led the way in worship. Worship is a powerful reminder of how powerful and glorious God is.
Nehemiah 9:6-ESV
God makes it; God preserves it. God made you, and God preserves you.
Nehemiah 9:7-15 (ESV)
The Israelites are who they are because of God.
Nehemiah 9:16 (ESV)
From this moment on, the Israelites are up and down, swinging from rebellion to repentance, disgrace to deliverance.
God doesn’t QUIT even when WE DO or WANT TO.
Nehemiah 9:18-22 ESV
God put up with their grumbling and complaining for forty years—but God did not just ‘put up’ with them—He blessed them!
Q: Considering God’s steadfast faithfulness to the Israelites despite their repeated cycles of rebellion and repentance, how does recalling these historical examples influence our perspective on God’s goodness?
Practical Application:
What areas in which you might have overlooked God’s goodness? Spend time this week acknowledging these instances and expressing gratitude in your prayers.
3. CONFESSION is God’s path to a COMEBACK.
The leaders continue praying, recounting Israel’s cyclical relationship with the Lord.
Nehemiah 9:26-28 ESV
This cycle plays out with Israel throughout the Old Testament. They are up and down, they are in with God and out with God.
The spiritual life isn’t a straight climb; it’s more like a stock chart.
Imagine if you zoomed in to one decade (10 to 20 years with God) and see that it did not go so well but then zoom out and see the next decade until you hit thirty years with God.
Zoom in and see your failures, zoom out and see God’s faithfulness.
In our times of CONFESSION, God says” “You come CLEAN, I’ll come CLOSE.”
A heathty community, relationship, marriage, or partnership is made up of two great confessers.
James 4:8 ESV
Psalm 103:14 ESV
God can HEAL what I REVEAL – but not what I HIDE in PRIDE.
Q: How does the promise that “God can heal what I reveal” encourage us to approach confession not as a source of shame but as a hopeful path to spiritual renewal and closeness with God?
Practical Application:
Approach a situation or relationship where you have erred, confess your part in humility, and take actionable steps towards making amends this week.
4. CONFESSION strengthens our DEPENDENCE on GOD.
Nehemiah 9:32 – 38 (ESV)
The Israelites made a ‘firm covenant.’ They are more dependent on God than ever.
Covenants are sacred agreements. God made them all over the place to reveal His commitment to His people.
Jesus said BLESSED are the poor in spirit!
Q. How does the act of making a ‘firm covenant’ with God, as the Israelites did, deepen our sense of reliance on Him, and what role does confession play in renewing and maintaining such a commitment?
Practical Application:
This week, reflect on your commitments to God. Consider writing down areas where your dependence on Him can be strengthened. Commit to a specific action or prayer each day that renews this covenant, using confession to clear away any barriers that might hinder your relationship with God.
Key Takeaways:
What are three key takeaways you received from this message?
Closing Prayer:
Lord, thank You for the power of Your forgiveness and the chance to come clean before You. As we leave here today, help us carry the lessons of confession into our daily lives, drawing ever closer to You through our sincerity and openness. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
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