Harris Creek Baptist Church

Have you ever felt stuck in a relationship because of conflict? As we continue our series, Conflicted, JP teaches through Matthew 18:15-17, showing us how to overlook a small offense, clearly express our hurt, and widen the circle. KEY TAKEAWAYS- Whether you realize it or not, conflict affects every single relationship you have, and because God loves you, He has given you everything you need to get through it.- A healthier Harris Creek will have more conflict, not less.- Did you know that Jesus prayed for you? He prayed that you would live in unity with other Christians the same way He and the Father are unified.- As a summary of the first message in our series, Conflicted: See conflict as an opportunity; own your part; and, conflict is pressing...there is an urgency to it.- Overlook a small offense.- Are you more prone to peace-faking or peace-breaking? If faking, you probably need to pursue offenses more. If breaking, you probably need to overlook offenses more.- If you can’t overlook something, you should go address it with the person.- God in His kindness gave us three really clear steps for how to deal with conflict.- Clearly express your hurt.- When someone hurts you go and tell them: “You hurt me by _______”.- Three helpful questions to help you assess what’s going on in your heart are: How do I feel? What did the offense cost me? What am I asking for from them?- A crystal clear application of the first part of this Scripture is to go and talk to someone, just between the two of you.- The 24-hour rule: If someone talks to you about someone behind their back, give that person 24-hours to go tell the person they talked about, and if they don’t, go with them to talk to the person together.- God is in the business of putting things back together through His Son so that the world would see His Son.- Widen the circle.- Stay in the ring and don’t get out of the ring...only bring in others who are part of the problem or part of the solution.- Church discipline is helping people see their blind spots, protecting the flock from wolves, and helping members see their clear path to redemption.- Church discipline is not publicly shaming someone. It’s all about restoration and unity so that Christ may be more known.- Conflict is hard, yes. However, the cross was hard, and God loved us enough to go through with it so that we could be in a relationship with Him again. MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES- Suggested Scripture study: Matthew 18:15-17; Ephesians 4:1-3; John 17:20-23; Proverbs 19:11- Conflict Field Guide- Conflicted week 1

Have you ever been angry with someone before? Had someone who was angry with you? As we start our new series, Conflicted, JP teaches through Matthew 5:21-26, teaching us to change our perspective, own our part, and understand that conflict is pressing. KEY TAKEAWAYS- The way we deal with anger and conflict is what we learned from our home. Are you open to learning a better way?- The first step to deal with conflict is to change your perspective- Conflict is an opportunity to glorify God, be sanctified, and deepen relationships. Avoiding it will not go well with you.- Those who belong to God are peace makers. Not peace fakers or breakers, but peace makers.- All healthy relationships are marked by conflict. Someone who says they never have conflict in relationships does not have real relationships.- When there is conflict in your life you should be marked by urgency to address it.- The second step to deal with conflict is to own your part.- If you are part of the conflict, you have a part in the conflict.- Don’t talk to someone about a problem if they aren’t part of the problem. Go talk to the person(s) that is part of the problem.- The worst part about blind spots is you can’t see them, and when you get angry, they get worse.- When seeking forgiveness, don’t simply apologize (“I’m sorry”) or command forgiveness (“Forgive me”), humble yourself and ASK for forgiveness: “Will you please forgive me for _________?”- Make no mistake, conflict is work. However, as ambassadors of reconciliation for Christ, it’s one of the most important things we do.- The third step to deal with conflict is to understand that conflict is pressing.- We cannot measure obedience by the outcome. We measure obedience by understanding what God says to do and then doing it.- Satan hates you, and one of his main agendas is to make you hate and be in conflict with other Christians. MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES- Suggested Scripture study: Matthew 5:21-26; Matthew 7:3-5; Ephesians 4:2; Ephesians 4:26; Romans 12:18- Conflict field guide

Have you ever felt like life is unfair? Like you didn’t get something that you thought you deserved? As we continue our series, Summer of Stories, Nate Hilgenkamp teaches through the parable of the workers in the vineyard in Matthew 20:1-16. KEY TAKEAWAYS:Like many of His other parables, Jesus starts this one the same way: “The kingdom of heaven is like…”We don’t work to get saved into heaven, but once we are saved, we get to work for the Lord.“Can we be casual in the work of God—casual when the house is on fire, and people are in danger of being burned?” -Duncan CampbellIf you are bored with Jesus it’s not because He’s gotten boring.Life in a fallen world doesn’t seem fair, and because we don’t fully understand God and His ways, He doesn’t appear fair either.The true wages of our efforts in life—our sin—is death.The landowner was trying to be as generous as He possibly could…exactly what God does for us.We don’t work in order to receive a reward, we work because we’ve already received our reward.Don’t miss God’s generosity because you are too busy comparing yourself to others.When you realize what God has done for you will be marked by gratitude and generosity. MENTIONED OR RECOMMENDED RESOURCES:Suggested Scripture study: Matthew 20:1-16; Ephesians 2:8-10; James 4:8; Romans 6:23; Psalm 103:8-12; Romans 5:6-8Sermon: Life Leveraged for TreasureBlog: Is God Fair?