We're about to start a Sunday series called "Lost in Translation."
We've all used words while being a little uncertain of the actual meaning. But when it comes to words like "belief", "righteousness" and "salvation," our understanding makes a huge difference in how we live our Christian faith and how we view God. So we're going to take a look at these commonly used words and figure out not only what they mean today but what they meant to the writers of the Bible thousands of years ago. And, in doing so, our aim is to let these new definitions teach us more about all God has for us and wants for us. In other words, over three weeks we are going to take what may have been lost in translation and recapture and rethink it in a way that could transform us in ways we never imagined. Here's what topics we're going to cover during the next three weeks. We're praying for God to reveal incredible things during this series. You don't want to miss it!
Week One: Refining the Relationships
Belief is a word that we use often in the Christian faith. We talk about believing in Jesus. We talk about believing in the Bible. We talk about believing in God's church. But what if we are just scratching the surface when it comes to our understanding of belief? What if instead of simply believing in Jesus, we started to believe Jesus? Believe who He says He is and believe what we read about Him in the Bible. WHat if we saw the word "belief" as having more to do with a person and less to do with a set of statements or ideas? In this session, we look at the word "belief" in light of who Jesus says He is. We turn the tables on a belief that resonates with facts and instead resonates with the person of Jesus Christ.
Week Two: What Matters Most
We all believe in righteousness. For some, righteousness is a lot like fairness. For others, it is the definition of how to live without messing up. Whatever our definition of righteousness, if we haven't made it about the state of our own hearts, we've missed it altogether. While God has provided us with His Word to help us understand how He wants us to live, His purpose isn't for us to work at being better Christians on the outside alone. He wants our lives in line with Him on the inside. When we get our hearts right with God, our actions follow and we have the power to impact the world around us. We get to be a part of God's bigger story of restoration, in our own lives and in other's. True righteousness begins when we line our hearts up with God's heart.
Week Three: Save Me
What do most of us think of when we hear the word "salvation"? Maybe for some it's heaven. For others, it may be the fear of hell. And for others it may be Jesus' face on a get-out-of-jail-free card. But what if there was more to it than just guaranteeing a future destination we don't know that much about? It could be salvation is more about healing and help, not just once our lives are over, but in the here and now. Salvation is God's plan to bring us to a place of restoration so that He can lavish His love on us as we walk through the difficulty, joy and pain of everyday life. Salvation is available to us in the middle of our parent's divorce, as we are struggling through our relationships, when our hearts are broken and even when life seems to be going great. Salvation is about letting God take us where He has planned for us to go, not just when life is over, but right now, in this very moment. Salvation isn't just about being saved for the future, but being saved for the present.
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