Big Idea: When Jesus saved You he gave gifts, privileges, and responsibilities to You in his Church.
Because Jesus is a good chooser, any and all kinds of people are forgiven and welcomed into new life, even You.
Mercy and life come through death; Jesus takes your life, and gives up his For You.
[21] From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. [22] And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” [23] But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”
[24] Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. [25] For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. [26] For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? [27] For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done. (Matthew 16:21–27)
No matter how you have sinned. No matter how you have been sinned against. Whether you have neglected the gifts and life given to you by God or you have served yourself only, Jesus Saves. He saves you by taking the judgement for your sin. He saves your from your sin and selfishness. He either rescues you out of your circumstances or redeems your circumstances around you and shows His Goodness and Greatness through them.
Big Idea: Here is some of the wisdom you have asked for, now strengthen your hearts because Jesus who redeemed you is coming again.
[9] The Lord is not slow to fulfil his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. (2 Peter 3:9 )
Big Idea: Turn Back from Your Sin and Yourself. Turn to Jesus. Your sinful desires to not need to enslave you and cause disunity and bitterness with those around you. In Christ, you are forgiven.
Jesus looks at you and me and says, “your best thinking got you into this situation of envy and fighting and selfishness and needing to sacrifice brother and sisters to work toward justifying and saving yourself. Your best thinking got you here and I am going to get you out of it.”
This is a quick look at the Governmental, Societal, and Theological considerations while making this decision.
A Couple Source Documents:
Big Idea: Jesus is the Wisdom of God and has called you to Wisdom, to love God and neighbour with your tongue.
[9] With the tongue we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in God’s likeness. [10] Blessing and cursing come out of the same mouth. My brothers and sisters, these things should not be this way. (James 3.9-10)
James 1:18–27
[18] Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.
[19] Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; [20] for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. [21] Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.
[22] But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. [23] For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. [24] For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. [25] But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.
[26] If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person's religion is worthless. [27] Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.
We know who that Word is, we know who the Way, the Truth, and the Life is. We know who is the first fruits of the Resurrection. We know that in the midst of all kinds of trials there is only one person we can turn to. That person is our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ in whom we know that we will one day experience the fullness and completeness of our maturity and steadfastness, lacking in nothing.
What Salvation are we asking for? Are we asking to be saved from the circumstances of this life? Are we asking to be taken out of a lowly position and placed in a high one. Are we asking to be saved from a future that is unknown and asking to be placed in a past when things were, if not good then at least certain?
Jesus raises each of us out of the deadness of our sin. And gives us life in him. A life that cannot be taken away. A life that will be spent forever with him. And a life that though we die now…yet we live more fully and forever in the presence of our good and great God who because of his great mercy loves us.
