From the PASTOR
The person and work of Jesus Christ – Christianity
Grace and peace be to you in the name of Jesus Christ. Let’s get into it... You can have a political Jesus; a multicultural Jesus; you can have a prosperity Jesus; a comforter Jesus, you can have almost any kind of Jesus to suit your everyday need. If you want to know what I mean by all of that, please ask me. But for now I’ll say this: what I’m talking about is making Jesus up in our own image; what we think of Jesus, who we think he is, what we think he can do, and how we think he should act. Note what I said here – in our OWN image.
The Person and Work of Jesus Christ is central to Christianity. First of all, let’s take a look at the word Christianity. Obviously, the word “Christianity”, like the word, “Christmas”, all begins with Christ! The most crucial question in life for every person is the one that Jesus asked his disciples – “but who do you say I am?, and Simon Peter answered him, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the Living God” (Matt 16:15). And another disciple, Thomas, answered Jesus, “My Lord and my God!”. Directly after, Jesus said to Thomas, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe” (John 28:29).
Now either Jesus Christ is who he claims to be, or he is a disillusioned fraud. Christians believe, how this question is answered determines not only how we live in this life, but WHERE WE SPEND ETERNITY! – Yes, the person and work of Jesus Christ is so critical, so crucial and so central to Christianity it matters that much! This ought to permeate right thru the life of the one holy Christian and Apostolic church and in the life and work of the congregation here at Good Shepherd. The outcome of the person and work of Jesus Christ is that we not only hear the stories of Jesus, there is also prayer that through the work of the Holy Spirit, we will meet and be met by Jesus Christ and we will grow in our already existing relationship with him.
To believe in Jesus Christ means more than just acknowledging that what the Bible says about Jesus is true. It means trusting Jesus as our only hope of being rescued from our guilty condition and from the punishment we deserved. And more than that, it means living and dying with the confidence that because of Jesus, God is always for us and nothing can separate us from God’s love” (Romans 8:31-39) just as we heard loud and clear in last week’s sermon. Jesus Christ is unique, he is the one and only saviour for all people, whether or not they have faith in him.
Grace and peace be to you in the name of Jesus Christ. Let’s get into it... You can have a political Jesus; a multicultural Jesus; you can have a prosperity Jesus; a comforter Jesus, you can have almost any kind of Jesus to suit your everyday need. If you want to know what I mean by all of that, please ask me. But for now I’ll say this: what I’m talking about is making Jesus up in our own image; what we think of Jesus, who we think he is, what we think he can do, and how we think he should act. Note what I said here – in our OWN image.
The Person and Work of Jesus Christ is central to Christianity. First of all, let’s take a look at the word Christianity. Obviously, the word “Christianity”, like the word, “Christmas”, all begins with Christ! The most crucial question in life for every person is the one that Jesus asked his disciples – “but who do you say I am?, and Simon Peter answered him, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the Living God” (Matt 16:15). And another disciple, Thomas, answered Jesus, “My Lord and my God!”. Directly after, Jesus said to Thomas, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe” (John 28:29).
Now either Jesus Christ is who he claims to be, or he is a disillusioned fraud. Christians believe, how this question is answered determines not only how we live in this life, but WHERE WE SPEND ETERNITY! – Yes, the person and work of Jesus Christ is so critical, so crucial and so central to Christianity it matters that much! This ought to permeate right thru the life of the one holy Christian and Apostolic church and in the life and work of the congregation here at Good Shepherd. The outcome of the person and work of Jesus Christ is that we not only hear the stories of Jesus, there is also prayer that through the work of the Holy Spirit, we will meet and be met by Jesus Christ and we will grow in our already existing relationship with him.
To believe in Jesus Christ means more than just acknowledging that what the Bible says about Jesus is true. It means trusting Jesus as our only hope of being rescued from our guilty condition and from the punishment we deserved. And more than that, it means living and dying with the confidence that because of Jesus, God is always for us and nothing can separate us from God’s love” (Romans 8:31-39) just as we heard loud and clear in last week’s sermon. Jesus Christ is unique, he is the one and only saviour for all people, whether or not they have faith in him.