Four Oaks East Podcast

Text Exodus 5
Speaker: Pastor Joshua Hughes
 
Big idea - The covenant God is coming for his people, so we can trust in his keeping and turn to his care when deliverance is delayed and hope is hard.
1. See and hear the heart of the cruel oppressor
2. See what his slavery does
- it leads to madness
- it leads to mutiny
3. See and hear the heart of the covenant God
Two invitations:
1. Decide who will have your allegiance
2. Decide who will be your refuge

Text: Exodus 4Speaker: Pastor Joshua Hughes 
Big idea: Disobedience is disastrous, so we must rejoice in God’s patience, relying on God’s provision. 
Objection 1 - "They won’t listen" (4-9)
Ex. 14:31
2 Cor. 4:7
Objection 2 - "I’m not equipped" (10-12)
Objection 3 - "There has to be someone else" (13)
Objection 4 - The quiet refusal to obey (24-26)
"(This) is a shocking reminder how strange the Old Testament can be.”  “Biblical scholars love this passage because it is totally incomprehensible” “What?!”
Application:
1. Let us obey, rejoicing in God's patience
Rom. 2:4
2. Let us obey, relying on God's provision

Speaker: Pastor Joshua Hughes Text: Exodus 3
Big Idea - Since our covenant God has made his person and purpose known, we can press on to know him.
I. The "How" of Divine Disclosure
- God interrupts (1-2a)
- God ignites (2b-5)
Exodus 15:11
II. The "Who" of Divine Disclosure
- He's the Promise Keeper (6)
- He's the Prayer Hearer (7)
- He's the People Rescuer (8-9, 18-22)
- He's the Fearful's Accompanier (10-12)
- He's the Covenant Maker (13-16)

Speaker: Pastor Funmi OjetayoText: Exodus 2Big Idea: The God who hears preserves a deliverer in the reeds, purges a prince in the wilderness, and prepares redemption for a groaning people.  
I. God Preserves the Deliverer in the Reeds(vv. 1-10)+ Faith fears God more than Pharaoh+ God is at work in hidden providence
II. God Purges the Prince in the Wilderness(vv. 11–22)+ God breaks the man He will use+ Midian is not a detour, but preparation
III. God Prepares the Rescue for a Groaning People(vv. 23–25)+ God heard+ God remembered+ God saw+ God knew+ Jesus Is the Greater Moses

Speaker: Pastor Joshua HughesText: Exodus 1Big idea - We can live as confident people in exile because we belong to a faithful God who reveals himself through Exodus.
 
1. What is Exile? 
- Exile is Marked by Domination (1:11-14)
- Exile is Marked by Death (1:15-22)
2. What is God doing in Our Exile? 
- He is keeping his promises
- He is blessing amid brokenness
- He is welcoming outsiders in
- He is delivering through a deliverer

Pastor Joshua HughesLuke 24:23-35  Big Idea: Encountering the resurrected Jesus reinterprets reality and makes broken hearts burn.

Speaker: Pastor Funmi Ojetayo TEXT: James 5:13–20BIG IDEA: 
A worked-out faith is a praying faith, that is personal in pain, pastoral in weakness, mutual in confession, and mighty in its reach.
I. Personal PrayerPray in every circumstance
 (v. 13)+ Suffering should drive us to prayer.
+ Cheerfulness should drive us to praise.
II. Pastoral PrayerPursue healing in community
 (vv. 14–15)
+ When suffering lays us low, the church comes near.
+ The elders pray, anoint, and entrust the sick to the Lord.
III. Mutual PrayerPursue honesty with one another
 (v. 16)
+ Confess your sins to one another.
+ Pray for one another.
IV. Mighty PrayerPray with fervency and faith
 (vv. 17–18)
+ Elijah was a man with a nature like ours.
+ God works powerfully through the prayers of ordinary, dependent people.
V. The Pursuing SaviorGo after the wandering
 (vv. 19–20)
+ A praying church is also a pursuing church.
+ We go after the wandering because Christ came after us.

Speaker: Pastor Ian ThomasText: James 5:7-13Big Idea: A worked out faith patiently endures suffering with our hearts established on the return ofChrist. In the face of suffering, we are invited to endure patiently, live purely, and pray persistently.I. Endure PatientlyJames gives two exhortations:1. “Be Patient” (5:7a, 8a): in the face of injustice (cf. 5:1-6), suffering, and trials, James invites usto pursue the virtue of “long-suffering” (cf. Ps. 130:5)2. “Establish Your Hearts” (5:8a): rather than growing fainthearted in our suffering, James invites us to be determined and anchored in our hearts, with our faith set on Christ.
James provides three examples of enduring patiently:1. Farming (5:7b)2. 3. The Prophets (5:10-11a; cf. Rom. 8:16-17)Job (5:11b ; cf. Job 42:1-6)
II. Live PurelyWe should be aware of the increased temptation toward sin when we face suffering. James warns of twoparticular temptations and the dangers of the sins of the tongue:1. Grumbling against one another (5:9; cf. Phil. 2:14-15)2. Rash speech and vows (5:12; cf. Mt. 5:33-37)
III. Pray Persistently

Speaker: Pastor Joshua HughesText: James 5:1-6
Big Idea: A worked-out faith turns from the misery of trusting riches and embraces the joy of generosity because of Christ’s generosity.
Misery 1: Stockpiled Stuff that Corrodes and Convicts
- Matthew 6:19-21
Misery 2: Dishonest Dealings that God Hears of and Hates
Misery 3: Gluttonous Gratification that Desensitizes and Destroys
Application:1: Fast and Feast2: See and Be Transformed by the Generosity of Jesus
- 2 Cor. 8:9
- Phil 2:5-11

Speaker: Pastor Joshua HughesText: James 4:13-17
Big idea: A worked out faith is a humbly surrendered faith that recognizes how mighty God is and how momentary we are. 
I. Make plans in pencil and in prayer 
II. Live aware of your misty mortality 
III. Surrender to God’s plan because it’s better than yours
IV. Walk in the light you’re given