Let's be honest: The biggest obstacle between God and people trying to find him has often been Christians. It’s unfortunate, but it’s rare that a drunkard, drug addict, or prostitute would think of going to church because he or she just needed to feel loved and accepted.These people may turn to bars, fellow addicts, drug dealers, or pimps to find refuge and acceptance, but they would not think of going to a church. Perhaps it's because many Christians are better known for what they are against than what they are for. Our message this weekend reminds us that the distinctive mark of the reign of God in a person's life is how they love and do good to people they agree with and disagree with, to people who treat them well and to those who mistreat them.Hatred does not win the day. Liking someone is not the answer. Love makes the difference.
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What does it mean to glorify God? The first part of our 3G mission statement challenges us to be a church that Glorifies God. That means individually and as a church, our words and deeds should honor God. We exist to make his name famous. Sometimes the best way to honor God is by refraining to do what comes naturally. Self-control is a way to glorify God. At other times, God is glorified when we act with bold faith, doing what might be unnatural for us. Either way, our overriding purpose as Christ-followers and as a Christ-centered church is to live in such a way as to bring credit to God. If you were to ask yourself the following question, how would it change your life? Here it is: Does what I'm about to say or do bring glory to God?
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When was the last time you decided to go for a run without any thought of where you would go? "That day, for no particular reason, I decided to go for a little run. So I ran to the end of the road. And when I got there, I thought maybe I'd run to the end of the town. And when I got there, I thought maybe I'd just run across Greenbow County. And I figured, since run this far, maybe I'd just run across the great state of Alabama. And that's what I did. I ran clear across Alabama. For no particular reason I just kept on goin'. I ran clear to the ocean. And when I got there, I figured, since I'd gone this far, I might as well turn around, just keep on goin'. When I got to another ocean, I figured, since I'd gone this far,…
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The Bible uses two significant words to describe those of us who follow Jesus: aliens and ambassadors. On the one hand, we are to live as aliens in a world that rebels against God. Our values are not to be determined by opinion polls or who wins the Oscars, but are to be taken from Jesus himself. Morally and ethically, we are to live as foreignors in a land that doesn't follow Jesus. On the other hand, we are called to be ambassadors -- to represent our King to those we live among. The apostle Paul puts it this way: "We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us." We live in an age when the fastest-growing religious affiliation is "none." As aliens in a foreign land, we have an obligation to be different. As ambassadors, we have a responsibility to build bridges. Sound easy?
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I had never heard the term "social drinking" until my childhood church split over whether a potential elder could have an occasional glass of wine. As I recall, no one accused him of being an alcoholic or spending three days in the gutter. While the Bible certainly condemns drunkenness (one-time or chronic), it doesn't condemn the occasional glass of wine. So, what was the problem? The problem was a misuse of Scripture. 1 Corinthians 8 (our text for this weekend) was invoked as a passage that prohibited mature believers from participating in certain activities. The topic addressed in 1 Corinthians 8 was whether a Christian could eat meat that was sacrificed to an idol. However, the real issue had nothing to do with BBQ. It had everything to do with loving one another.
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