sacrificial followers

RIVERVIEW’S VISION IS TO:

MAKE sacrificial followers of christ WHO MAKE sacrificial followers of christ

WHO GO.

[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL FOLLOWER? ]

“Those who are dedicated get im-mensely more out of life than those who are not. The day he had described had been my life and that of most of my old comrades. It was a day in the life of a dedicated man, a normal day in the life of a hardcore Communist Party member.

[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL FOLLOWER? ]

It is not surprising that he looked back at that life from the waste-land of his present purposeless existence with considerable degree of nostalgia.”

DOUGLAS HYDE

[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL FOLLOWER? ]

[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL FOLLOWER? ]

Oh, how great are God’s riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his ways! For who can know the LORD’s thoughts? Who knows enough to give him advice? And who has given him so much that he needs to pay it back?

   For everything comes from him and exists by his power and is intended for his glory. All glory to him forever! Amen.

  And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Romans 11:33-12:1

[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL FOLLOWER? ]

For everything comes from him and exists by his power and is intended for his glory. All glory to him forever! Amen.

[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL FOLLOWER? ]

And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.

ROMANS 11:33-12:1

[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL FOLLOWER? ]

“What makes you think I want all your sacrifices?” says the LORD. “I am sick of your burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fattened cattle. I get no pleasure from the blood of bulls and lambs and goats. When you come to worship me, who asked you to parade through my courts with all your ceremony?

the incense of your offerings disgusts me! As for your celebrations of the new moon and the Sabbath and your special days for fasting— they are all sinful and false. I want no more of your pious meetings. I hate your new moon celebrations and your annual festivals. They are a burden to me. I cannot stand them! When you lift up your hands in prayer, I will not look. Though you offer many prayers, I will not listen, for your hands are covered with the blood of innocent victims. Wash yourselves and be clean! Get your sins out of my sight. Give up your evil ways. Learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed. Defend the cause of orphans. Fight for the rights of widows.

[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL FOLLOWER? ]

Stop bringing me your meaningless gifts; the incense of your offerings disgusts me! As for your celebrations of the new moon and the Sabbath and your special days for fasting— they are all sinful and false. I want no more of your pious meetings. I hate your new moon celebrations and your annual festivals. They are a burden to me. I cannot stand them! When you lift up your hands in prayer, I will not look. Though you offer many prayers, I will not listen, for your hands are covered with the blood of innocent victims. Wash yourselves and be clean! Get your sins out of my sight. Give up your evil ways. Learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed. Defend the cause of orphans. Fight for the rights of widows.

[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL FOLLOWER? ]

They are a burden to me. I cannot stand them! When you lift up your hands in prayer, I will not look. Though you offer many prayers, I will not listen, for your hands are covered with the blood of innocent victims.

[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL FOLLOWER? ]

Wash yourselves and be clean! Get your sins out of my sight. Give up your evil ways. Learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed. Defend the cause of orphans. Fight for the rights of widows.

ISAIAH 1:11-17

[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL FOLLOWER? ]

The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. [Jesus’] purpose is to give life in all its fullness.”

JOHN 10:10

[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL FOLLOWER? ]

Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

ROMANS 12:2

[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL FOLLOWER? ]

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.

JAMES 1:22

[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL FOLLOWER? ]

[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL FOLLOWER? ]

That very night the believers sent Paul and Silas to Berea. When they arrived there, they went to the Jewish synagogue. And the people of Berea were more open-minded than those in Thessalonica, and they listened eagerly to Paul's message. They searched the Scriptures day after day to see if Paul and Silas were teaching the truth.

[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL FOLLOWER? ]

As a result, many Jews believed, as did many of the prominent Greek women and men.

ACTS 17:10-12

Jesus came and told his disciples, "I have been given complete authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new dis-ciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this:

I am with you always, even to the end of the age."

JAMES 1:22[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL

FOLLOWER? ]

I am with you always, even to the end of the age.

MATTHEW 28:18-20

[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL FOLLOWER? ]

I will write down all these things as a testimony of what the LORD will do. I will entrust it to my disciples, who will pass it down to future generations.

ISAIAH 8:16

[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL FOLLOWER? ]

You have heard me teach things that have been confirmed by many reliable witnesses. Now teach these truths to other trustworthy people who will be able to pass them on to others.

2 TIMOTHY 2:2

[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL FOLLOWER? ]

Jesus traveled through all the cities and villages of that area, teaching in the synagogues and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom. And wherever he went, he healed people of every sort of disease and illness. He felt great pity for the crowds that came, because their problems were so great and they didn’t know where to go for help. They were like sheep without a shepherd. 37 He said to his disciples, "The harvest is so great, but the workers are so few. 38 So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send out more workers for his fields."

[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL FOLLOWER? ]

They were like sheep without a shepherd. He said to his disciples, “The harvest is so great, but the workers are so few. So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send out more workers for his fields.”

MATTHEW 9:35-38

[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL FOLLOWER? ]

They were like sheep without a shepherd. He said to his disciples, “The harvest is so great, but the workers are so few. So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send out more workers for his fields.”

MATTHEW 9:35-38

[ WHAT IS A SACRIFICIAL FOLLOWER? ]

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Then Jesus explained: “My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work. You know the saying, ‘Four months between planting and harvest.’ But I say, wake up and look around. The fields are already ripe for harvest.

JOHN 4:34-35

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“The Pharisees’ evangelism strategy sounds eerily familiar. Their approach to sharing God was, ‘Come and get it!’ In addition, they had contorted God’s message to moralism: ‘You people “out there” need to straighten up!” The Pharisees had developed a very insular culture. They did business as much as possible only with other Pharisees (lest they be contaminated by the unclean). When they traveled they stayed with other Pharisees. They lived inside the Pharisee bubble (they had little Pharisee insignias on their burro bumper and listened only to Pharisee radio stations). Their message to people outside the bubble was: ‘Become like us (translated: believe like us, dress like us, vote like us, act like us, like what we like, don’t like what we don’t like). If you become like us (jump through cultural hoops and adopt ours), we will consider you for club membership.’ Does any of this sound familiar yet?

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by the unclean). When they traveled they stayed with other Pharisees. They lived inside the Pharisee bubble (they had little Pharisee insignias on their burro bumper and listened only to Pharisee radio stations). Their message to people outside the bubble was: ‘Become like us (translated: believe like us, dress like us, vote like us, act like us, like what we like, don’t like what we don’t like). If you become like us (jump through cultural hoops and adopt ours), we will consider you for club membership.’ Does any of this sound familiar yet?

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don’t like). If you become like us (jump through cultural hoops and adopt ours), we will consider you for club membership.’ Does any of this sound familiar yet?”

REGGIE MCNEAL

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Tax collectors and other notorious sinners often came to listen to Jesus teach.

LUKE 15:1

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This made the Pharisees and teachers of religious law complain that he was associating with such despicable people – even eating with them!

LUKE 15:2

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While Paul and Barnabas were at Antioch of Syria, some men from Judea arrived and began to teach the Christians, “Unless you keep the ancient Jewish custom of cir-cumcision taught by Moses, you cannot be saved.”

ACTS 15:1

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