Walking In, With, and Toward Wonder!

 The Church, the fellowship of those who follow Jesus, is so much more than just another human organization. It is formed by God through the living Word, Jesus Christ, and the written Word, the Bible, to bring reconciliation and restoration to people in their individual lives and in their life together! All who name the Name of Jesus are on a journey together. This is a journey of becoming what God has designed us to be from before the creation of the world. We are blessed and gifted through Jesus to display the awesome power of God in a group of humble people who receive God's grace, live by God's grace, share God's grace, and offer God's grace!

Evidence In The Text

 The resurrection of Jesus from the dead is the foundation for believing in Jesus as Savior and Lord. Of course, the question is how can we trust that this event really happened? However, a look at the scriptures with an open mind and open eyes reveals that believing Christ is risen from the dead is a very reasonable conclusion. Of course, proof is not in the reasoned consideration of the evidence, but in the openness to encountering the risen Lord here and now where we are. Jesus is not simply a logical end to a curious inquiry, no matter how interesting and fascinating such a quest may be. He is the one who brings us into an experience of God that transforms our lives and through us transforms the world.

Either/Or

 Jesus doesn't speak or act in a way that doesn't call for response on our part. His claims to be the fulfillment of all history and the embodiment of the Presence of God demand that we either accept them as true and then commit ourselves to his rule and ways in our lives, or we reject his claims and dismiss him as a delusional but at best a well-intentioned charlatan. There is no room to admire him as a just a wise religious teacher. So, either we can escort him to the periphery of our lives and consider him an interesting curiosity -- or we must make our lives entirely about him and seek to follow him as our Lord and Savior.

More Than A Myth

 The story of the Israelites in Egypt and their deliverance by God from slavery is the foundational narrative for both Judaism and Christianity. The Exodus account gives us our understanding of who God is and God's work of redemption. Jesus uses it as the framework for his teaching, his identity as God's Son, and it informs us in how we are to understand his sacrifice for us on the Cross. As the apostle Paul declares, "For Christ, our Passover lamb. has been sacrificed." Therefore, it is important for our faith that this story be based in actual historical events. Many scholars (and misinformed followers of these scholars) dispute there being any historical basis at all. It is my contention, along with many others of impeccable credibility, that there is solid archeological evidence for the biblical narrative. It is a terrific truth and not a tall tale!

Honoring The Emperor --- God's Way

Christians always have had to consider how best to relate to the authorities in their society. Regardless of whether the government is democratic or dictatorial, ruled by a king or by popular consensus, there has been the question of how much a follower of Jesus should be supportive or subversive and when to be which. This precisely is the issue being addressed by the apostle Paul in his letter to the Romans. In the heart of a great but oppressive empire, the new believers in Rome were figuring out what it means to be a follower of Jesus being ruled by pagan (and at times even anti-Christian) governmental officials. Paul urges the believers to trust that even pagan rulers were part of God's "gift" of government, to be the best of all citizens, and to apply the power of God's love to their involvement in the institutions of society.

Designed For Destiny

Creation is one of the greatest affirmations of our value and worth as individuals. God's purpose in creating all things is to give us life that shows his nature of love. In the light of the stars and the wonder of our world we can see the signs of God's providence and care for each and every individual human being who has ever lived and will live. So we are not simply random accidents in the chance happenings of an aimless universe. Rather we are intended by God to exist and to live our lives in the purpose God designed for us in God's mind even before the beginning of the world.

All Existence Is Relative --- To The Triune God!

God is dynamic and relational because God is within himself a community of three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Yet God is not three beings. modes, partners, or expressions, God is one being and each of the three persons is fully God. This understanding of God tends to bend our minds a bit. That is because it is not an idea thought up by some religious philosophers, but rather it is a reality we discover because of Jesus. God the Son comes to us in the man Jesus, and through our relationship with him we come to know the Father and the Spirit. This is why Christianity is relational before it is religious, because our understanding of God is all "relative" to our experience of Jesus as completely divine as the Son of God and as completely human as Jesus of Nazareth.