Concluding our series, we look at the final bad thing: division. Two divisions that have touched every part of our existence is the divide between God and humans and the divide between people. In Jesus, these divides come crashing down as one new humanity is created, a humanity that is one with God and others through the Spirit. So when we choose to follow where the Spirit flows, we live heavenly lives that are no longer marked by division. Let's choose the Spirit, division leaves us feeling afraid and alone.
The Antidote to Hate
The Antidote to Self-Serving Power
What is the church for? An antidote to self serving power. As Christians we have access to the most powerful force in the universe. But the gospel is power unlike the world has ever seen. It is selfless power, power for the other, power to be given away. Let’s us be powerful people- empowered by the spirit - for the sake not of ourselves but everyone else.
Grace over Greed
Carrying on our series on what we can learn from the brand new church in Acts, we’re looking at the antidote to greed today. For many of us, greed is that icky thing we've picked up as means to survive. It tells us the more we possess, the safer we will be but ironically, it leaves us feeling more empty and it almost always hurts others. None of this is new, and if we want to be who Jesus has made us to be, we'll need to look inward ourselves and be oriented towards grace just like the church in Acts did . When we trust the Spirit and lunge into community, we rob greed of its power and become open handed people engaged in kingdom activity.
What's So Bad About Individualism?
Our own personal identity in Jesus. It’s what some of us spend our youth chasing after. And there’s nothing wrong with wanting to be clear on who he made you, what he’s calling you to, and we will NEVER stop talking about how much He loves you. But we’re pretty clear that there is a real imbalance in Western christianity right now. That our culturally indoctrinated lens of individuality has invaded our church spaces, to very damaging degrees, and that we need to talk about what we’re called to. When we receive what Jesus has for us, it changes how we think about self, and other, and power, and peace and ever needing to win again.