Evangelical churches today do a very good job of offering the gift of salvation to sinners. But is your personal salvation why Jesus went to the cross? Certainly, we are saved as individuals, by personally putting our trust in Christ’s death and resurrection. But Ephesians 5 says that Jesus died for the church.So, what about the church? Is God’s plan for the church that all of His people would fight their children every Sunday morning, while they are putting on clothes that they would never dream of wearing any other time of the week, so that they can go to a building, watch an hour-long show, and then bug out as quickly as possible in order to beat the crowd to the buffet? Session 3 of UG looks at the church and how we are expected to connect, grow, and serve.
BTW, this is the entire reason for the CONNECT ministry of Grace Church. Our commission from the Lord is not to “make converts of all peoples” but to “make disciples of all peoples.” The mission of CONNECT is to connect people closer to God, to His people in order to create the church, and to His mission in the world. If you attend Grace Church, CONNECT is where you learn and practice faithfulness.
OK, enough of the cheap, shameless plug. Come back tomorrow for a preview of Session 4, Saved For.
Posts
This session has really convicted me as it clearly noted that it is NOT about me, but ALL about HIM. Thank you for making this a part of our discussion, as coming to grips with this while in our small group truly provided the support this Christ follower needed! If left to my own devices, I would have surely twisted it to be about me.....being in our CONNECT group holds me accountable to follow God's truths.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comment, Teresa. These are principles that are fundamental to the gospel and define our faith. We all need to revisit these foundational truths so we don't veer off course. Our sin nature wants to make everything about "me" - engaging the Word in community is God's plan for keeping us on the straight and narrow. Thanks, again.
ReplyDelete