The Christian Challenge (Week 6)

Paul is constantly challenging his churches to live more like Christ. One exhortation stands out from the others; Romans 12:14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 

It is so easy to lash out after you have been hurt or offended, and being strong enough to rise above our anger and feelings of revenge. Even if we retaliate with simple words to bring someone down, our hearts are motivated with anger. When our judgement is clouded with emotions, we don't see how are actions will affect others around us. 

Remembering that Christ has died for all, including the people who wronged us, is the first step in blessing our persecutors. Also knowing that the only true justice belongs to God.

We must strive to be more like Christ and turn the other cheek, removing the viscous circle of anger and broken friendships. 

week #5

The Gospel truth

As Christians, it is our mission to share the gospel to all people. Paul writes of the gospel message, the gospel being the creation, the fall of man, and man’s redemption through Jesus Christ.

Different parts of the gospel are harder to understand than others, for example, I believe that the idea of denying yourself (as a slave of God) to be free is one of the most difficult concepts to grasp. How can one be freed from slavery by going into slavery? Well as we can only serve one master, doesn't it make sense to serve the master that desires good for you?

The easiest concept of the gospel would have to be that there is meaning behind our existence, that all the random things in our lives our connected in a grand plan.

God's not dead

We are all human, and together, we are all flawed, tainted with sin. “Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord” Romans 6:11 Because we are all headed toward the same fate, we should all work to share the love of Jesus. Only through Jesus will we be given eternal life, and when Christ returns, those who believe in him will be resurrected with him.

The concept of resurrection is strange to some people, as our culture has divided between resurrection either being a medical accident or a viral zombie disease, but it is nothing like that, it the act of Jesus making all things new. Those we have lost will be returned to us with new bodies free of pain and suffering.

Week #3

I'm not a smart man, but I know what love is

“Mawwage is what bwings us togevah today”, or more specifically what Paul writes about it in 1 Corinthians. Paul tells the people of Corinth that marriage is a holy commitment, which cannot simply be dissolved without consequences “A wife is not to depart from her husband.¹¹ But even if she does depart, let her remain unmarried or be reconciled to her husband. And a husband is not to divorce his wife.”

Paul also speaks of the benefits of being single. Because a man is not “bound to a wife”, he has time to focus on God and his own spirituality. I believe that we grow the most in our single life, and that the time I spend learning more about who I am in God, will make me a better husband to my future wife

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American culture, on the other hand urges us to find our identities and worth in other people. So many search for a relationship that will make them good, or go into a relationship thinking “how much can I get out of this person?”  Mat 7:6 “Do not give that which belongs to God to dogs. Do not throw your pearls in front of pigs. They will break them under their feet. Then they will turn and tear you to pieces.” I encourage all young people to wait for someone who value them and seek to glorify God.

High school dating is not evil, I think it can be helpful to find qualities you either want or don’t want in a spouse, but it can bring you closer to temptation. Our culture tells us to find someone you find attractive and spend every waking second with that person, but Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. So we should be looking for a partner not for their looks (although it does help), but for their character.