The I Am Second Sermons

I Am Second Sermon Series PackageFeaturing 3 sermons from the 6 week series

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Week 1 sermonI am Second Group Introduction

Week 2 sermonSecond: Struggles

Week 3 sermonSecond: Relationships

Sermon 1

I am Second Group Introduction

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Sermon 1

I am Second Group Introduction

At sometime during the service give the audience an introduction to the I am Second groups you will be launching as part of this initiative. Be sure to highlight:

•Purpose of these groups: be inspired to share your story as you discuss important life issues such as relationships, struggles, and success.

•Tools: guide your audience to know how they can get the small group discussion guides and books.

•Next Steps: provide clear next steps on how your audience can join or start an I am Second group for this initiative.

Use one or more of these Options to lead into sermon:

Option 1—show Stephen Baldwin film

Option 2—show Stephen Baldwin teaser film

Option 3—have someone from your congregation do Live Second Story monologue of the woman at the well (download suggested script at iamsecond.com/churchkit)

Option 4—have someone from your congregation share their own story of how God has changed their life

*Visit iamsecond.com/churchkit for additional resources and ideas for this six week church campaign.

Big Ideas Outline:Big Idea: You have a story that people need to hear.1. Stephen Baldwin or Woman at the Well monologue- God uses unexpected people to spread his message.

2. Get in the Game- We all need to get out of the stands and off the bench and into the game by sharing our story.

3. You have a story- What is your story? Are you ready to start sharing it?

4. Bible Story- God used an unexpected woman to impact her whole village with her story.

5. Game Plan- We will spend the next six weeks learning our story and preparing to share it with our world.

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The Power of StoryText: John 4:4-47- The Woman at the Well (15-20 minutes)

Introduction: Get in the GameRoutines and RutsWe all get in our ruts. Routines that start out healthy or helpful or normal but end up something else. Maybe your routine has made you feel lazy or bored. Or maybe you feel you no longer are accomplishing what you once did. Maybe you feel your relationship with God has grown stale. Maybe you feel that your training routine is just that, training. But you want to get out and actually play the game.

Our place in the GameWhen we go to a sporting event like basketball there are three groups of people:

First there are the Players in the game. That’s what God designed us to do. He designed you, yes you, to be a player in his game. We are all his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, that we should walk in them. I want to be a player. Doing what God wants me to do. But sometimes I am like . . . .

The guys on the bench. They are on the Jesus team, but not playing. Just watching. They’ve been to a lot of practices, but when it comes to the game, they are sitting on the bench. What happens when we sit on the bench too much? We become overly critical, lazy, or unproductive. We can forget that life is about getting in the game, not watching others play it.

A third group are the spectators in the stands. Not on the team. Just watching. I thank God I am no longer a spectator, because I have trusted Jesus as my Savior. I am on the team. So my challenge is to put the ball in play and get in the game.

Are you in the Game?How about you? Where do you see yourself in this picture?

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(insert your own story) Maybe you are wondering if you even are on the team. For 29 years I went to church dutifully, but I did not have a true relationship with Jesus Christ. I was only religious. Then one day God got through my pride. I knew he had died on the cross for my sins, but one day I put my trust in him paying for my sins. I went from busy spectator to being on the team. Maybe you are in that position today.

Maybe you have settled into your routines, and those routines have become ruts. Do you feel like you are sitting on the bench? That all the awesome God things are happening to others? That your Christian life has settled into a busy, but pretty mundane, routine?

Do you want to get more in the game? Are you eager to be all that God designed for you to be? If so, you’re going to love what God shows us in a story in John 4 about the woman at the well.

You Have a StoryOne of the biggest plays that we often forget to implement as members of God’s team is sharing our story. We sometimes forget that one of God’s favorite plays is to have his players share their story. Few people realize the power of their own story. We think our own story is too weak or too normal or we think that our past somehow disqualifies us from sharing with the world. Sometimes we become convinced that God can only use people that have it all together or who know all the answers. But the truth is nobody has it together and nobody but God has all the answers. Despite our deficiency, God wants to use each and every one of us. No matter our background, no matter the mess in our past, and no matter the history of our lives, God has a plan to make our story a testament to his greatness.

The question we must answer is not whether we have a story to tell, because we all have one, but will we tell that story? Will we follow the coaches play? Will we get in the game and make the play. Will we take the bold, scary, and sometimes dangerous step to share our story? Will we take the chance that some people will not believe us, some will not accept us, that not everyone will identify with or understand us? Will we take that chance because we know that God has someone who needs to hear our story, someone he has made ready to hear the story of a changed life, the story of God still moving and still acting in this world?

We don’t know much about the woman at the well, but we do know she understood the power of her story. She understood that Jesus wanted her in the game. That he wanted her to go to her friends and family and the strangers surrounding her and tell them all about her story. Her village knew who

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she was. They knew she was not a woman to be trusted or a woman to be admired. But when she met Jesus, she knew her village needed to meet him too. Telling her village was not up for debate, not a choice; meeting Jesus was not a story that could be contained. So despite the risk, despite the ridicule she knew could come, she ran to her village and told them the story about how she met the man who knew everything about her. Her village was never the same.

The Bible StoryThe MeetingLet’s take a look at her story in John 4:4-47.

Now he had to go through Samaria. So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about noon.

When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?” (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.)

The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.)

John 4:4-9

Jews Hated SamaritansIt was bad enough for a Jew to talk with a Samaritan but for a Jewish teacher, a rabbi like Jesus, to talk to a Samaritan was worse. And if that wasn’t bad enough, Jesus talked with a Samaritan woman and he talked with her alone. Even the woman was surprised by Jesus’ bold move to speak with her.

To say that Jews didn’t get along with Samaritans would be an understatement. They hated each other. They avoided each other whenever possible. The passage opens with a statement that Jesus had to go through Samaria. Jews didn’t go through Samaria. If they had to travel in this region they would literally add hours or even days to their journey to go around the land of Samaria in order to avoid contact with these people. Jesus didn’t have to go through Samaria because there was no way around; he had to go through there because God had a plan, because he had a lesson to teach his disciples.

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Jesus Loved SamaritansWhile none of us have to worry about travelling through Samaritan lands or running into Samaritan women that we aren’t supposed to talk with, many of us have people we avoid, groups we don’t understand or like. You may even feel like you are one of these people, someone that is ignored or disliked; but if this story tells us anything, it is that Jesus loves even the Samaritans of our world. God believes everyone is special, everyone is unique, everyone has a story God wants the world to hear. Rather than shirking opportunities to share our story, we should seek them. Rather than viewing our stories as too plain, or too embarrassing, or too controversial, we should be proud to share how God has changed us.

Her StoryThe woman at the well did not know much about Jesus, but she knew enough to tell her story. She still had an experience worth sharing.

Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.”

He told her, “Go, call your husband and come back.”

“I have no husband,” she replied.

John 4:13-18

Spiritual ConversationJesus used a mundane conversation about water to lead to profound spiritual truths. We don’t have to bring our friends and family to church to talk about God. Talking about faith and God can and should be a regular feature in our conversations. Notice that Jesus did not just live a good life and hope that someone would ask him why he was different. He didn’t try to live like a Christian and then hope that someone would ask him about God. He didn’t just invite people to synagogue and hope the local rabbi would take care of things. Jesus took the initiative. He started a conversation with a stranger and quickly turned the focus of that conversation to spiritual realities.

The conversation started off with Jesus being thirsty and needy. Sometimes we as believers give off the vibe that we have all the answers and do not have any struggles or needs. Going needy into situations, admitting weaknesses, being honest with doubts and struggles, or even just asking for people’s help are often some of the best ways to start spiritual conversations, a lesson we can learn from Jesus.

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Introducing spiritual conversations does not have to be an awkward or difficult thing. It can be as simple as asking someone if you can pray for them. You could start with the weather and end by asking if they think God makes the rain fall. You can wear an I am Second bracelet or T-shirt and watch as people begin asking what it means. Whatever the conversation, there is always a way to bring up spiritual topics to see if the person is interested in discussing God.

Telling Our StoriesThen, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?” They came out of the town and made their way toward him.

John 4:28-30

The woman had a very simple story. She met Jesus and he told her everything she ever did. That was her whole story in one sentence. Her town didn’t need her to preach a sermon on her life or write an autobiography about her encounters with God. They just needed a short story of someone’s life who had been affected by meeting Jesus. She could have spent weeks or even years trying to change her life so that people would notice the change and ask her about it, but the woman knew her town needed to hear her story not just see it. Telling her story didn’t need to be glamorous or long, just real.

We each have a story to tell. Some of our stories are flashy and dramatic. Some are about meeting God for the first time, others may be about a lifelong journey. Some may be about God in the hard times or the good. Some are about loss and pain, while others are about hope and joy. Some are about life lessons God taught through divorce, job loss, health problems, peer pressure or parenting. Whatever the story, it is your story. Your story God has given you to tell the world. Your story that stands as a testament of God’s work in your life. And it is these stories that God will use to move the hearts of our friends and family.

Maybe you feel like the woman at the well. Maybe you feel you have done terrible things. Sexual sins. Bad relationships. Things you’ve said. Bad habits you can’t kick. God still wants to use you. He wants you to get in the game, to work through you.

What is your circle of influence? If you had been at that well, and you had immediately left to go back to your circle of influence, your network, where would you have gone? Your family? Your school? The sport team you play on? Your neighborhood? What circles of influence has God put you into? Where has he planted you?

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The Power of StoryMany of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.” So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. And because of his words many more became believers.

They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.”

John 4:39-42

God used the simple story of a divorced relationally plagued woman to move the hearts of a whole town. One woman’s story became the catalyst that brought the whole town to Jesus, the tool that God used to bring his message to a lost world. What will God use your story for? Who will God touch using your story? It begins with you sharing that story. It begins with you taking the chance to start those spiritual conversations and share your story, your journey with God with a lost and dying world.

Game PlanOver the course of the next several weeks we are going to walk through a game plan to get all of us in the game. We are going to learn how to share our stories, the story of Jesus, and how to invite our circles of influence into spiritual conversations and hopefully even into I am Second groups where they can discover God’s plan for their life.

We will start here on the INSIDE. Together, we will walk through a six week discussion guide in our small groups to learn to share our story, to be inspired by others who have done the same. Here, in our services, you will hear the stories of many of your fellow church goers and you, too, will be invited to share your story with the church. All this so that we will each be equipped and inspired to get in the game and share our stories with the world.

We will start INSIDE but only to inspire us to go OUTSIDE. After we finish our six week journey, we will all be encouraged to take what we have learned and share it with our circles of influence. We will be each need to consider who we will share our story with and who we can invite to join us in an I am Second group using the same six week discussion guide we will go through together as a church. Maybe you will share your story with your neighbors or your schoolmates or your co-workers but let us each consider where God wants us to get in the game.

Sermon 2

Second: Struggles

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Sermon 2

Second: StrugglesBig Ideas Outline:

Big Idea: God heals and gives you strength through your struggles.1. Josh Hamilton or Possessed Man monologue- God can heal our struggles and give us strength in our battles.

2. Everyone Struggles- Big and small, we all have our struggles.

3. Bible Story of Struggle- God healed the demon possessed man and used his story to impact his world.

4. Start the Healing: Respond to God’s grace by committing to follow him and tell the story of his grace.

5. Tell Your Story- What story has God given you to share?

Use one or more of these Options to lead into sermon:Option 1—show Josh Hamilton film

Option 2—show Josh Hamilton teaser film

Option 3—have someone from your congregation do Live Second Story monologue of Possessed Man (download suggested script at iamsecond.com/churchkit)



SermonText: Mark 5:1-20- Second: Struggles (15-20 minutes)

Everyone StrugglesIntroduction: StrugglesEverybody has struggles, situations that stress, habits that we can’t kick, finances or relationships that seem impossible to fix. The story of Josh Hamilton may differ from yours and mine in the details but his struggles are not unusual. We all face the same struggles in varying degrees. While few of us have played professional baseball all of us have struggled with balancing our personal lives with our careers. While not all of us have faced debilitating

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addiction to the same degree as Josh Hamilton, we all struggle with habits and thought patterns that hurt our families and relationships.

My Own Struggles[Share an example of a struggle in your own life]

My own story of struggle is about...

God helped me through these struggles by...

I still battle these struggles but God makes the battle worth fighting...

Bible Story of StruggleThe Struggles of LifeThe story of another man, from the Bible, may also seem foreign to us, at first glance. The Bible describes this man as a homeless outcast, terrorized by evil spirits, not a position in which many of us find ourselves. But the practical results of this man’s life are much more familiar. His finances were a mess. His relationships broken. Addictions and unyielding habits surely riddled his life. Issues we all fear and deal with. Let’s read the story in Mark chapter five.

When Jesus got out of the boat, a man with an impure spirit came from the tombs to meet him. This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain. For he had often been chained hand and foot, but he tore the chains apart and broke the irons on his feet. No one was strong enough to subdue him. Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones.

Mark 5:2-5

Think about this man’s life. He wouldn’t have just woken up one day a homeless man living in a graveyard. We only get a snapshot of his life, a picture of him at the bottom, a broken and ruined person. But what must have started as a job loss, a health problem, a bad addiction, marital strife or family tragedy eventually resulted in the state we see him in this story.

He has no way to make a living in a society with no social net, no food programs, no government aid programs. He is a spiritual and moral mess. We don’t know what came first, the spiritual problems and evil spirits or the bad life choices, but like anything else in life it was likely a combination of the two. Relationally we see this man is completely alone. He is abandoned to the graveyard. No friends, no family, no hope. If he was married, the relationship would certainly be in ruin. Any friendships would certainly be stretched and broken beyond all repair. This man had all the struggles of life to the extreme. He was broken.

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We are like himThe point of this story is not to show how different this man is from everyone else but to show how similar he is. While few may share in the exact details of his life, we can all relate to parts of his mess. We may not all be homeless but many of us struggle with our finances. We may not all have the same addictions he probably had, we certainly all have our favorite bad habits. While not everyone will have the same level of relationship discord that surely riddled his life, we all have relationships that need healing. This man struggled with it all. And because of that, we can all relate to him at least in part. We all can share in his pain and learn from his story.

Only God can HealA large herd of pigs was feeding on the nearby hillside. The demons begged Jesus, “Send us among the pigs; allow us to go into them.” He gave them permission, and the impure spirits came out and went into the pigs. The herd, about two thousand in number, rushed down the steep bank into the lake and were drowned.

Those tending the pigs ran off and reported this in the town and countryside, and the people went out to see what had happened. When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. Those who had seen it told the people what had happened to the demon-possessed man—and told about the pigs as well. Then the people began to plead with Jesus to leave their region.

Mark 5:11-17

Spiritual Dimension of StrugglesJesus did what no one else could. He healed this crazed and demon possessed man. But the struggles that this man had ahead of him would still be many. He would still have old friends and old temptations waiting for him. He would have bitter and hurt family members who wouldn’t easily forget this man’s past life and past mistakes. He would have a lot of apologies to make, doubts to overcome, and a life to rebuild.

But Jesus teaches us one important thing. Life’s struggles can never be truly healed without Him. While a long journey still lay ahead for this man, Jesus was the first step. While many relationships would have to be rebuilt, Jesus was the first relationship that he needed. While many things would still need changing in his life, Jesus gave him the power to make those changes.

While it may seem cheesy or cliche to say, Jesus really is the answer. I don’t mean to say that things won’t still be complicated and difficult, that life’s

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struggles won’t still seem overwhelming, but Jesus is the only one who can make those struggles possible. To struggle means there is a fight, a back and forth, winning and losing. Without Jesus we don’t have struggles, we just have defeat, utter and hopeless defeat. Jesus gives us the power to fight. Jesus is the power that makes life’s struggles possible, and eventual victory in eternity sure.

Start the HealingSo what struggles do you face? Is your marriage in trouble? Is school or making friends a daily battle? Do you have a past mistake or experience that still haunts you? Do you have a secret that gnaws at your soul? Is it a habit or addiction that seems unbeatable? Whatever your struggle, whatever your issue, making Jesus first is the only path towards healing. Jesus is not interested in having more fans or more religious people. What he wants is you. He wants your career and your family. He wants your heart and your mind. He wants everything. He wants to be undeniably and unmistakably first in your life. Because it is only through him that your struggles can be faced, through him that your past is forgiven, your mistakes washed clean.

Making Jesus FirstSo what does it look like to make Jesus first in your life? Let’s take a look at what it looked like in this man’s life.

As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go with him. Jesus did not let him, but said, “Go home to your own people and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.” So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him.

Mark 5:18-20

ObedienceThis man was radically and dramatically healed by Jesus, and his instant response was to follow him. Making Jesus first is radical obedience. It is following Jesus to learn everything you can about him and obey everything you learn. The man didn’t just give Jesus a quick thank you and go about his business. He didn’t pretend God owed him this healing, this rescue from his struggles. He responded to God’s grace with complete surrender and complete obedience.

We often like to hide parts of our lives. Maybe its our money or our family life. Maybe we are one person on the weekend and another at church, school, or work. But Jesus doesn’t want part of our lives, he wants all of them. This

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once crazed and possessed man begged to follow Jesus. He begged Jesus for the opportunity to spend his life living for the One who healed him. How excited are we about giving Jesus everything? How enthusiastic are we when Jesus demands we open those secret closets and give up those deep hearted desires for something greater, someone greater? How often do we hold back on those things we hold so dear?

Telling Your StoryWhile this man wanted to follow Jesus by sitting at his feet and learning from his lips, Jesus had another mission for this man’s life, a mission we all share and in which all have been commissioned to participate:

“Go home to your own people and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.”

Mark 5:19

This man had a story to tell and Jesus wanted him to tell it. God had taught this man something profound, had done an amazing healing in his life. But that healing came with responsibility, a duty to tell the story. And while this man’s life would still need a lot of rebuilding, a lot of work, part of that work would be tell the story of God’s grace.

It is the story of God’s grace that we are bound to tell and retell. As much as our culture may teach the importance of lifting ourselves up by our bootstraps, God tells us we are lifted by his grace. It is his unearned, undeserved, unbuyable, unbribable grace that gives us hope, that saves us from ourselves, our sin, our mess, our total and complete lostness. Nothing but the grace of God as demonstrated through Jesus and his eventual death and resurrection gives us hope, offers us a way to healing and a path to freedom from our struggles.

God has a story for each of us. He has a message he has written into each of our lives. It may not be as dramatic or outlandish as the man in this story, but it is no less powerful and no less important. We are called to share the story of what God has done in our lives with the people around us.

And all the people were amazed.

Mark 5:20

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The man was commissioned to go to his friends and his family and tell his story. But he didn’t stop there. He went to the whole ten city region, all of Decapolis. His story became a beacon of hope for the hopeless, a message of grace to the lost people. The man did not know much about Jesus. He was not a trained theologian. But he knew that Jesus healed him, that God showed him grace, and that was the story he told. Are you telling that story? Are you letting the people in your life be amazed at what God has done in you? If you have yet to experience that story, then perhaps today is the day you allow God’s grace to change your life.

Sermon 3

Second: Relationships

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Sermon 3

Second: RelationshipsBig Ideas Outline:

Big Idea: God’s Forgiveness Restores Relationships.1. Shannon Culpepper or Prodigal Son monologue- Forgiveness is the foundation of every human relationship.

2. We all Need Forgiveness- We each need to learn both to confess our wrongs and to grant forgiveness for the wrongs of others.

3. Bible Story- The father teaches us the power of forgiveness and the other brother the destructiveness of unforgiveness.

4. Tell Your Story of Forgiveness- What areas of your life needs forgiveness? How can forgiveness in your life impact your world?

Use one or more of these Options to lead into sermon:Option 1—show Shannon Culpepper film

Option 2—show Shannon Culpepper teaser film

Option 3—have someone from your congregation do Live Second Story monologue of the Prodigal Son (download suggested script at iamsecond.com/churchkit)



SermonText: Luke 15:11-32- Second: Relationships (15-20 minutes)

We All Need ForgivenessIntroduction: RelationshipsRelationships make life worth living. Love gets each of us up every morning. It is love that drives us to succeed or sends men to war. Few things have ever been done in this world that haven’t been motivated by love and the relationships that embody that love. But in this world relationships are made from broken and imperfect people. And so every relationship needs one thing to survive: forgiveness.

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Forgiveness Affects EverythingIn a world stained by sin, by mistakes, by broken promises and failed expectations, forgiveness is the fuel that keeps love running. Shannon Culpepper’s story demonstrates how unforgiveness and brokenness in one relationship spills over into the rest of our lives, one relationship affects the others. But this simple truth also works in reverse. When God comes into the picture, when we get our relationship right between us and God, our other relationships change for the better. It brings healing into the rest of our lives. And as the story of the prodigal son demonstrates, forgiveness is the foundation not just for marriage relationships but for every relationship, for parents and children, for siblings and for friends.

My Own Story of Forgiveness[share a personal story about forgiveness]

I learned about the need for and power of forgiveness when...

God taught me to forgive/confess by...

I still need reminding to forgive...

Bible StoryFailuresLet’s take a closer look at the story that Jesus tells about forgiveness and the prodigal son.

There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.

Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.

Luke 15:11-16

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Wild Living and Rock BottomThe son in this story came from a good family. His father was a successful businessman and most likely a respected figure in his community. While even today our families can be either a badge of honor or a source of embarrassment, in that culture and in those days family honor took precedence over everything. Nothing else was more important. One lived or died for family honor.

Despite the value of his family’s honor, the son takes his family’s wealth and squandered it on wild living. He openly disregarded the name of his family and lived a wild and pleasure filled life. He wasted everything on alcohol, parties, women, and fancy clothes. And if wasting his father’s money wasn’t bad enough, he then bottomed out by feeding pigs and sharing in their muck and disgust. This son was a complete and utter embarrassment to his family, a complete failure by any measure.

Modern-day PigsMaybe you really identify with this son. Maybe you too feel like your mistakes have so embarrassed your family or so broken the relationships around you that there seems no way out. Maybe you’ve had an affair, found yourself locked in addiction, maybe your anger or your obsession with work has devastated your family. Maybe you are on the other end of the equation. Maybe you feel your indignation is righteous, that your anger is deserved. And you would probably be right.

But whether you have the speck of dust or the log in your eye, we all have something that has caused brokenness in the relationships around us. None of us deserves the forgiveness that we so desperately need. But that is the power of forgiveness. Forgiveness is never deserved, is never earned. By definition, forgiveness is the undeserved overlooking of error. We all have modern day pigs in our lives, mistakes we would rather not admit. And we must all decide whether we will grant and receive the undeserved forgiveness of those pigs or forever suffer the effects of ruined relationships.

ForgivenessThe son in this story realized his error and admitted his mistakes and vowed to return to his father to right what wrongs he could.

When he came to his senses, he said, “How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make

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me like one of your hired servants.” So he got up and went to his father.

But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. The son said to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.”

But the father said to his servants, “Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.” So they began to celebrate.

Luke 15:17-21

ConfessionForgiveness is a two sided operation, the one who forgives and the one who asks for forgiveness. Without both people fully engaging in the process, the relationship will never fully heal. When we are abused, hurt, or wronged in some way, we need to forgive regardless of whether the other person confesses any wrong. This is essential if we are to ever move on with life, to allow ourselves to heal from the damage that has been caused. But this type of one-sided forgiveness cannot restore broken relationships. It only lets those harmed move beyond and heal. But forgiveness that heals relationships starts with confession.

The son came back to his father knowing two things. First, that he did wrong. He had no excuses, no reasonings, no blaming, just honest and complete confession. Second, he came with no expectations. He knew that forgiveness was not something he could earn. He didn’t expect or demand that his father forgive him. He knew he did not deserve it. He hoped for it but did not demand it.

Telling the Story of ForgivenessLessons on ConfessionHow good are you at confession? Do you confess, but only when you are caught? Do you confess, but only with an excuse or reason? Do you confess, but only after blaming part of it on someone else? Do you confess, but then immediately demand complete forgiveness and absolution. These sorts of half-hearted confessions hinder the healing process.

ReunionThe father in this story understood the power of forgiveness. He knew his son had ruined his life and tarnished the family name. He knew that his son had caused more harm and more damage than could ever be repaid or repaired. The father knew that forgiveness was the only real option. He could stay bitter or angry but no amount of bitterness, no amount of anger could ever fix

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the relationship or the damage his son had caused. What is more, the father truly and deeply loved his son, and love always welcomes forgiveness. In our broken world, love cannot survive without it. Forgiveness and love are tied together, two sides of one coin, two halves of one equation.

Letting GoBut the father said to his servants, “Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.” So they began to celebrate.

Luke 15:23-24

When confession comes, we have a choice. We can choose to act as the father did and truly and completely forgive or we can live with bitterness. Forgiveness is a funny thing. It doesn’t even really need the other person to confess. Forgiveness is when you have been wronged or hurt but refuse to allow hatred and bitterness to engulf your mind. You let it go. Forgiveness doesn’t justify what the other person did. Forgiveness does not make evil turn to good, or badness somehow OK. Forgiveness is a letting go, a release of that emotional punishment we want to inflict on those who hurt us. Forgiveness lets the injured begin to heal.

But when confession and forgiveness merge, when both occur together, you have something even more beautiful. You don’t just have the injured begin to heal, or the injurer begin to forgive themselves and change their behavior, you have a restored relationship. The father and the son are able to actually leave behind the ugly pain of the past and start afresh with their relationship, and in many ways move forward even stronger and closer than before.

BitternessWithout forgiveness the injury becomes a disability, the hurt becomes a sickness and a disease. This is a lesson the brother never learned.

Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. “Your brother has come,” he replied, “and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.”

The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. But he answered his father, “Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. But

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when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!”

“My son,” the father said, “you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.”

Luke 15:25-32

The brother had a right to be angry. He had a right to feel hurt. His brother had truly and deeply hurt him and his family. But he allowed this wound to stay raw and this injury to forever cripple him. He never forgave his brother even with his brother’s heartfelt confession, he held to his anger and bitterness. The result is a man still tormented by a past injury and still relationally crippled. The relationship between him and his brother will not be allowed to heal. Unforgiveness never stays contains; it spoils life itself, it infects other relationships and other areas of life. The brother’s unforgiveness even begins wedging itself between him and his father. Unforgiveness festers and destroys the person holding onto it and erodes the relationships it touches.

That is the power of forgiveness. It can bring broken families together, damaged couples back together; but the lack of it can spoil not just one relationship but all of them. It poisons and spreads. So the question we must ask is not are we right to feel hurt or wronged, but will we allow this hurt to color and ruin our lives.

You and GodAnd the same is true regarding our relationship with God. He sent his Son, Jesus, to die for us, to extend his forgiveness to all of humanity. He sees our wrongs, our failures, the sins we’ve done and the ones we are yet to commit and he paid for them all. Forgiveness has been offered. But if we want the relationship restored, if we want the pain and injury we have caused ourselves and our relationship with God to be healed, we must confess. We must admit our failures and confess our complete and utter inability to earn our way back to God or to right all the wrongs we have done. We must ask for and accept his forgiveness. Like the father, God is waiting and looking for our return.

Help Your Community Discover thatNo One is Too Far From God to Find Him

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Show Your Church These Powerful Stories,Teach Them to Share Theirs

I am Second is meant to inspire people of all kinds to live for God and for others. Actors. Athletes. Musicians. Business leaders. Drug addicts. Your next-door neighbor. People like you. The authentic stories in the I am Second Church Kit and DVD Study provide insight into dealing with typical struggles of everyday living. These are stories that give hope to the lonely and the hurting, help from destructive lifestyles, and inspiration to the unfulfi lled. The people in your church will connect

to the stories of those who have tried to go it alone and failed.

This new six-week campaign features sermons from I am Second, video sermon illustrations, DVD-based small group curriculum, an evangelism tract, and invitation tools exclusively from Outreach!

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I am Second Topics Include:

Power of Story Struggles Relationships Success Who is First Share Your Story1 2 3 4 5 6

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Power of Story Struggles Relationships Success Who is First

Church KitUsing a combination of stories from notable people from today’s culture and Biblical stories of those who have had a radical, life changing encounter with Jesus. This series will show those in your church the redemptive power of the gospel and how sharing their personal story can change someone else’s life.

Kit includes:

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I am Second DVD-Based Study KitGreat for churches seeking a fresh approach to outreach. Every small group leader will need a DVD-based study kit to facilitate their group.

Kit features:

• 6 inspiring videos featuring stories of those living “Second”

• Study dealing with topics including: relationships, struggles, and success

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I am Second Conversation GuideSmall group members will encounter story after story of notable people throughout culture who have had a radical, life-changing encounter with Jesus Christ. Features include: Six Biblical lessons focused on Scripture passages and stories of those living “second”, topical studies everyone can relate to, small group discussion questions that will equip group members to put what they’ve learned into action. Every small group member will need a conversation guide. (Paperback 98 pages)

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Invite Your Community to Discover Who is First!

Real Stories. Changing Lives.I am Second is a movement meant to inspire people ofall kinds to live for God and for others. Actors. Athletes. Musicians. Business leaders. Drug addicts. Your neighbor. You.

Join us at Church Name and hear stories that are shocking in their honesty and inspiring in their courage. You will be encouraged and reminded that no one is too far fromGod to find him.

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Special Series Beginning Sunday, Jan. 6

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Real Stories. Changing Lives.I am Second is a movement meant to inspire people ofall kinds to live for God and for others. Actors. Athletes. Musicians. Business leaders. Drug addicts. Your neighbor. You.

Church Name and stories that are shocking

in their honesty and inspiring in their courage. You will be encouraged and reminded that no one is too far fromGod to find him.

Go Deeper and Join an

2230 Oak Ridge Way • Vista, CA 92081-8341

Joe Seeker123 AnystreetAnytown, USA

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I am Second

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Shown with sample reverse side



I am Second Outreach BookletThis simple, 8-page tract is a great take-away piece for visitors or give it to your members to share with their friends and family. The booklet gives a clear gospel message inviting the recipient to put Jesus � rst and become a “Second.”

EB1556819 $12.50/pack of 25

Outdoor BannersLike a mini-billboard outside your church, these eye-catching photo quality banners are custom designed with your church information! Choose from 5 sizes in vinyl or 4 in adhesive StickUp material. Starting at $129 each.Two-sided A-Frame Banner stand sold separately—makes displaying your banners even easier! Starting at $149.

Mailer PostcardsThese small 4.25" x 5.5" postcards are great as small group invitations, reminders or as a thank you note from the pastor. Mailers feature eye-catching graphics on the front and are blank on back so you can custom print an invitation with your laser printer or copier. Pack of 200 postcards—4 cards per 8.5" x 11" sheet with micro-perforations for easy separation. $14.99/pack of 200

InviteCardsThese small folded invitations � t easily in a wallet and are a great way to invite friends or family to church or small group. InviteCards feature eye-catching graphics on the front and are blank on 3 sides so you can custom print an invitation with your laser printer or copier. Pack of 200 InviteCards—4 cards per 8.5" x 11" sheet with micro-perforations for easy separation. $14.99/pack of 200


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Bulletin Shells Available in 3 sizes: 8.5 x 11, 8.5 x 14 and 11 x 17. Sold in packs of 100.Starting at only $6.99/pack of 100.

RollUp Banner + StandThis revolutionary 2’7” x 6’7” banner retracts into the stand making it portable and easy to put up and take down! Only $149 each! Customize with your church logo!

and 11 x 17. Sold in packs of 100.and 11 x 17. Sold in packs of 100.Starting at only $6.99/pack of 100./pack of 100.

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Indoor Banners featuringIndoor Banners featuring::



T-shirtsCreate a movement in your church by encouraging members to declare that they are Second with these black cotton unisex t-shirts—features IamSecond.com web address on back. Available in S-XL.

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Black Twill Hat100% Cotton, unstructured low pro� le hat. Matching adjustable strap with brass buckle and embroidered Logo.

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2’ x 5’9” Vinyl BannerThis Banner is great for hallways, walls or doors—comes with free EZ Hang clips or add an optional banner stand. Starting at $69 each

Bumper StickerGrab a pack of bumper stickers and help spread the movement. Give to friends, families and strangers.

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3 x 5 Vinyl BannerWider 3 x 5 banners make a big statement with bright images for your entryways, lobby or stage! Also available in fabric and stickup adhesive. Starting at only $99 each.

I Am Second New TestamentsNIV pocket sized New Testament are great for church visitors or new believers.

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Start a conversation about being Second with these resources your members will love!


The I Am Second Sermons

Documents

Transcript of The I Am Second Sermons