Loving one another
This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down His life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. 1John 3:16
In the last segment I wrote about the need we have to love those within the body of Christ. Jesus Himself commanded that we love one another. I believe it is easier to be a Christian and NOT be in a church. (But, it is not better!!) Why? Because then you don’t have to love the person next to you! You can have these lofty ideas of Christianity, and even rail against the organized church. They’re hypocrites! That’s not real Christianity. God didn’t make the church! The lists of complaints go on and on. There is one slight problem. The Church (those who are committed to Christ and attend some type of organized church) still exists, and has done so for centuries, in spite of the naysayers, who think they’re on the “cutting edge” by saying The Church is in the last days. That also has been said for centuries, yet The Church still marches on.
So if The Church still exists, we then need to examine what God intends for it. Here is one of the points I had in the last sermon: if you are a committed follower of Jesus Christ, you are called to a church, a committed group of believers. There are no lone rangers. Jesus said this is how the world will know you are my disciples, if you love one another. In other words, love the others that are also committed to the cause of Christ, especially those in your church! Why do we need to be part of the Community? Because the Community is a reflection of the image of God, and only within the Community can we become what we were made for. ALL OF THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT IS PERFECTED IN COMMUNITY, AND WILL NOT FULLY MANIFEST IN ANYTHING OTHER THAN THAT. YOU AND I WILL NEVER KNOW THE FULL POWER OF GOD APART FROM COMMUNITY.
I am a pastor tired of people leaving because they don’t like what someone said, how leadership is leading or even what the pastor did. If you have left a church due to some kind of issue, go and make it right. Make it right with the pastor, leadership or the other person. It’s not only Scriptural; you will miss out on a blessing that comes from obedience and faithfulness, and doing that will be a whole lot healthier for you! Be The Church, truly love one another. The world will be changed, your neighborhood will be changed, your family will be changed, and you will be changed. There really isn’t another option.
In the last segment I wrote about the need we have to love those within the body of Christ. Jesus Himself commanded that we love one another. I believe it is easier to be a Christian and NOT be in a church. (But, it is not better!!) Why? Because then you don’t have to love the person next to you! You can have these lofty ideas of Christianity, and even rail against the organized church. They’re hypocrites! That’s not real Christianity. God didn’t make the church! The lists of complaints go on and on. There is one slight problem. The Church (those who are committed to Christ and attend some type of organized church) still exists, and has done so for centuries, in spite of the naysayers, who think they’re on the “cutting edge” by saying The Church is in the last days. That also has been said for centuries, yet The Church still marches on.
So if The Church still exists, we then need to examine what God intends for it. Here is one of the points I had in the last sermon: if you are a committed follower of Jesus Christ, you are called to a church, a committed group of believers. There are no lone rangers. Jesus said this is how the world will know you are my disciples, if you love one another. In other words, love the others that are also committed to the cause of Christ, especially those in your church! Why do we need to be part of the Community? Because the Community is a reflection of the image of God, and only within the Community can we become what we were made for. ALL OF THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT IS PERFECTED IN COMMUNITY, AND WILL NOT FULLY MANIFEST IN ANYTHING OTHER THAN THAT. YOU AND I WILL NEVER KNOW THE FULL POWER OF GOD APART FROM COMMUNITY.
I am a pastor tired of people leaving because they don’t like what someone said, how leadership is leading or even what the pastor did. If you have left a church due to some kind of issue, go and make it right. Make it right with the pastor, leadership or the other person. It’s not only Scriptural; you will miss out on a blessing that comes from obedience and faithfulness, and doing that will be a whole lot healthier for you! Be The Church, truly love one another. The world will be changed, your neighborhood will be changed, your family will be changed, and you will be changed. There really isn’t another option.
posted by kansasscott @ 3:19 PM
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