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Paul Fuller

Connections Director (Manayunk)

Paul is originally from Foxborough, MA and graduated from Nyack College with a bachelors in Youth Ministry. He married his wife, Shanell, in 2005 and they moved to Philadelphia in 2013 so Paul could pursue his Master of Divinity from Westminster Theological Seminary. Paul and Shanell together lead the Mt. Airy citygroup. He’s an avid Boston sports fan, enjoys playing music, hiking and biking. Paul serves Citylight as a pastoral resident with a focus on associate pastoral ministry.

Content

Our very own Pastor Paul delivers this week’s BIG IDEA of Hebrews 12:1-3: RUN WITH ENDURANCE TO THE FINISH
1. Listen to the witnesses (12:1a)
2. Lay aside weights and sins (12:1b)
3. Look to Jesus (12:2-3)

Resources:

ESV Study Bible
Hebrews 9-13 (William Lane, Word Biblical Commentary)
The Epistle to the Hebrews (Paul Ellingworth, New International Greek Testament Commentary)
The Epistle to the Hebrews (FF Bruce, New International Commentary on the New Testament)
“Sorrowful Love Springs from Serious Joy” (John Piper)

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This week, as a rarely enjoyed treasure, we get to hear from Pastor Paul on how one of the most difficult commands in all the Bible (Judge not, that you be not judged. Matthew 7:1) is actually far BETTER THAN WE THINK.

Citylight Manayunk | July 2, 2023 from Citylight Church on Vimeo.

Resources:

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This morning we have the esteemed privilege of hearing from our very own Pastor Paul as we close out our journey through the book of Isaiah. Our big idea is simply this: The Holy One is Inviting You. Greater than any invitation you’ve ever received, the Holy One – God Himself – is inviting you to join him. In our passage,

the Holy One is inviting you to…
1. Come, and be satisfied (55:1-5)
2. Return, and be forgiven and transformed (55:6-13)

Resources:

ESV Study Bible
New Bible Commentary
Alec Motyer, Isaiah by the Day: A New Devotional Translation
Ray Ortlund, Isaiah: God Saves Sinners
John Oswalt, Isaiah

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 our tendency to forget who we really are. There’s a gravitational pull back to our former identity as slaves and orphans, and away from our true identity as children of God, and our freedom from legalistic religion. At the core of our passage this morning is the sufficiency of Jesus. So our big idea this morning is, Trust that Jesus is Enough. And the 2 exhortations to that end in this passage are: 

  1. Don’t Return to Slavery (4:8-11)
  2. Entrust Yourself to Faithful People (4:12-20)

Resources:

ESV Study Bible
Thomas Schreiner, Galatians
Timothy Keller, Galatians for You

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Patiently face persecution (Why?)
1. Jesus told us to expect it
2. It shows we belong to Jesus
3. The Spirit bears witness with us

Citylight Manayunk | July 10 from Citylight Church on Vimeo.

Resources:

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This week, Pastor Paul teaches us how to Hope in the Glory that Awaits You. 

How?

1. Groan longingly in suffering

2. Wait expectantly for glory

Citylight Manayunk | December 26, 2021 from Citylight Church on Vimeo.

Resources:

  • The Message of Romans, John Stott 
  • Epistle to the Romans, John Murray 
  • “The Christian Life: Suffering Unto Glory,” Lane Tipton 
  • “The Glory of the Groan,” Robert Smith, Jr. 
  • “The Freedom of the Glory of the Children of God (8:18-21),” John Piper
  • “The Redemption of Our Bodies (8:22-25),” John Piper

This week, Pastor Paul uses the Parable of the Prodigal Son to reveal how God’s family has a gracious Father by beckoning both older and younger sons to “come home.”

Citylight Manayunk -September 5 2021 from Citylight Church on Vimeo.

Resources:

The Prodigal God by Timothy Keller

ESV Study Bible

The Capital of the World by Ernest Hemingway (1936)

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Resources:

Dear Downhearted, 

How do we continue to hope in the midst of uncertainty? This is a lesson the Lord has continued to teach me the past several years as my wife and I have pursued adoption. Perhaps most poignantly, it was a little over a year ago that we found ourselves once again asking, “Will it ever happen?,” as we walked out of the hospital with an empty car seat. The baby we thought we’d be adopting wasn’t coming home with us. From the moment we heard this little girl was born, and the 33 hours that passed until we walked out of the hospital empty-handed, I couldn’t tell you how many times the tide shifted from things looking good, to things looking not good. Uncertainty plagued us, and the outcome we’d feared had come to pass. This, after years of uncertainty in our desire to become parents. Will it ever happen? 

What uncertainties are you facing right now? How do you remain hopeful? By God’s grace, as we faced the heartbreak of our failed adoption last year, we were able to cling to what is certain. We did not grieve as those who had no hope, but instead we were able to rejoice in the hope of the glory of God, knowing that in Jesus we have peace with God and that God is so much bigger than any circumstance we find ourselves in. We knew that this hope would not put us to shame because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit. In the midst of heartbreak, this hope was a sure and steadfast anchor for our souls as we grieved. In the midst of all of this, we had hope because we knew that God is still good and God is still God (1 Thess. 4:13; Rom. 5:1-5; Heb. 6:19-20). 

Amid all the uncertainties of this life, the promises of God find their “yes” and “amen” in Jesus (2 Cor. 1:20). Even if what you fear comes to pass, in Jesus there is certainty, and in that certainty you can find hope. Cling to what you know to be true in Christ as you wade the waters of uncertainty in this life, “for this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison” (2 Cor. 4:17). Whatever happens in this brief life, eternity with Jesus awaits you, and that hope will not disappoint. Friend, entrust yourself and your future to the Lord because he is God and he is good, no matter what. 

In Christ, 

Paul

PS: By God’s grace, our adoption story has a happy ending. Five months after the failed adoption mentioned above, the Lord saw fit to bless us with beautiful twin girls whom we have welcomed into our home as our daughters. Yet even this comes with new uncertainties – desires for our daughters that may or may not come to pass – and we know that whatever happens in this life, Jesus is sufficient for us and hope in him does not disappoint. I pray you find that same hope in Jesus!

Big Idea: Courageously Follow God’s Lead
How do we do that?
1. Rely on Godly Wisdom
2. Trust in God’s Providence

Citylight Manayunk | Online – August 9, 2020 from Citylight Church on Vimeo.

Resources:

Acts 22:30-23:35

  • https://www.thegoodbook.com/blog/podcast/2020/07/31/on-the-podcast-with-kathleen-nielson-wisdom-is-app/
  • Term from Derek Kidner, referenced by Kathleen Nielson in podcast without source
  • https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/school-decision-trust-god/
  • https://www.desiringgod.org/interviews/are-gods-providence-and-gods-sovereignty-the-same
  • ESV Study Bible
  • Tony Merida, Exalting Jesus in Acts
  • Darrell Bock, Acts

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Jesus is the one you need because Jesus heals and Jesus blesses.

Resources:

Acts 3

Resources:

  • ESV Study Bible
  • Bruce, The Book of Acts
  • Merida, Exalting Jesus in Acts
  • Fernando, Acts
  • Mohler, Acts 1-12 For You
  • Keener, Acts

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Seek wisdom in adversity, trust God more than wisdom, and look to the Righteous One

Resources:

Ecclesiastes 7:1-8:1

Philip Ryken

Ecclesiastes

Sidney Greidanus

Preaching Christ from Ecclesiastes

Iain Provan

Ecclesiastes and Song of Songs

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In Hebrews 12:1-2, we are exhorted to run with endurance after Jesus, laying aside anything that would hold us back, knowing that Jesus has not only run the race before us, but finished it on our behalf.

Resources:

Resources:
Hebrews 12:1-2
Hebrews, William Lane
The Epistle to the Hebrews, Paul Ellingworth
The Epistle to the Hebrews, FF Bruce
“Running With the Witnesses,” John Piper

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