Notes from Mark Driscoll’s talk on Jeremiah

1. What has God revealed to you ? (Nehemiah 1:1-11a)
2. What must you walk away from to pursue God’s calling? (Nehemiah 1:11b)
3. How will you communicate your vision to others? (Nehemiah 2:1-3)
4. Who must you ask for what resources? (Nehemiah 2:4-10)
5. Count the cost (Nehemiah 2:11-16)
6. Recruit strategic leaders first (Nehemiah 2:17 – 20)
7. What do we do first? Do it well (Nehemiah 3:1-32)
8. Where are the gates? Letting in those who want the Gospel, keeping out the wolves (Nehemiah 3:1-32)
   • Theological
   • Physical safety
9. How will you respond to critics? (Nehemiah 4:1-23)
   • Proximity of critic is painful
   • Have selective hearing
   • Turn critics into coaches
   • Don’t meet with critics in group
10. How to them show the gospel with mercy? (Nehemiah 5-1-19)
    • Criticism follows success
11. How to handle escalation opposition & threats (Nehemiah 6:1-14)
    • Sword and Trowel
12. What generational legacy are you building for? (Nehemiah 7:4-73)
13. How will you connect ground war (small groups, congregational care) and your air war (preaching and teaching) (Nehemiah 8:1-18)
14. Will you courageously call your people to repentance? (Nehemiah 9:1-38)
15. What are your terms for covenant membership? (Nehemiah 10:38-11:36)
    • Participation in small groups, tithing, attendance, etc
16. How will you track who God is bringing and assimilate them? (Nehemiah 11:1-36)
17. Who are your trustworthy priests who can work in the mission while you work on the mission? (Nehemiah 12:1-26)
18. How will you celebrate your wins? (Nehemiah 12:27-47)
    • Conversions
    • Babies
    • Baptisms
    • Building campaigns
19. How much will you demand of your men? (Nehemiah 13:1-22)
20. What closed-hand, practical life issues will you go to war for? (Nehemiah 13:23-31)

Romans
————
1:10 p

From Mark Driscoll, writing at TheResurgence.com

Fasting

Fasting is the voluntary act of abstaining from something for the purpose of growing in self-discipline, which is the essence of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ. Perhaps the most common form of fasting is from food. This is because, as Paul says, for some people their stomach is their god. By fasting from food, they are learning to enjoy food as a gift from God without allowing it to become an idolatrous functional god that controls them.

Good Things Become Idols

However, there are seemingly innumerable other things that, though they are good, can become bad when they rule over us in a way that only God should. Modern examples include fasting from the internet, email, or cell phone for a period of time if you find yourself compulsively spending too much of your time and energy checking websites, emails, phone calls, and voicemails.

This point was painfully illustrated to me at a recent dinner out with my children. My wife, Grace, was teaching at a women’s event, and so I took the kids to a restaurant. Sitting around us were many other families like us, with one exception. Every single father was either talking on the phone or responding to emails on his BlackBerry throughout the meal, not connecting with his children in any way. Sadly, rather than visiting with their kids and having some fun, these daddies allowed their technological gods to rule over them. Their gods required the sacrificing of their own children, not unlike Molech in the Old Testament.

When You Fast

Jesus Himself exemplified the discipline of fasting for us in His own earthly life. One of the most well-known examples is Jesus’ forty days of fasting in Matthew 4:1–11. When Jesus spoke to His disciples about fasting, He said, “when you fast,” as if it was simply expected to be done (Matthew 6:16–17). As an aside, anyone wanting to practice an extended period of fasting would be wise to first speak with their doctor about how to do so safely.

Other Scriptures also include reports of fasting. In Nehemiah 9:1, we are told that the entire nation of Israel fasted. Esther 4:16 likewise records a national three-day fast. In the New Testament, Acts 13:2 reports that a leadership decision regarding who should be sent out from the church at Antioch to plant another church was made after a period of seeking the Lord through fasting and worship. Acts 14:23 reveals that upon appointing new elders for some churches, Paul and Barnabas commissioned the new pastors with prayer and fasting.

Acts
——
13:2 f
13:3 f
14:23 f

John
——
11:42 p
16:23 p

Luke
——-
18:12 f
20:47 p
21:36 p

Luke
——-
2:29-32 p
2:37 p f
2:2 f
5:16 p
5:33-35 f
6:12-13 p
9:18 p
11:1-4 p

Mark
——
9:29 p
10:24 p
14:35 p
14:38 p
14:39 p

Matthew
———–
26:36 p
26:39 p
26:41 p
26:42 p
26:44 p

Mark
——
1:35 p
2:28-20 f
6:31 p
6:46 p
8:7 p

Matthew
21:13