In this series, we’re trying to wrestle with how significantly Jesus changes a life. Jesus himself described it as someone starting over, being born again.
One of the first Christian leaders, Paul, said it this way in 2 Corinthians 5:17 (ESV): “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”
This might make it sound like a one time thing, but it’s actually just the beginning of constant transformation. Here’s how Paul put it in Romans 12:1-2 (ESV): “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.“
Like when a baby is born, all kinds of development suddenly kickstarts – breathing air, feeding by mouth, seeing unfiltered light, and more. No longer in the womb, a baby’s mind and body start transforming to adapt to a new world.
In coming to earth as Jesus, then dying and rising again to destroy death’s power over humanity, God has reset the world. We can be born afresh into a new world – the kingdom of God.
If you’ve never accepted his offer to reset your life, to make you a new creation, then it’s quite simple. Tell Jesus, then tell someone else.
Start by telling Jesus. Simply pray, and ask him to let you start over. Apologize for all the things you’ve said, done and thought to turn away from him, and tell Jesus you want to turn back to him.
Then tell others. First, let me know, and another Christian in your life who can support you. Then, tell the world, by being baptized. We are about to celebrate Redeemer Church / Redeem the Commute’s first baptism on February 8th, and we’d love for you to be next. This is the way to show on the outside what God is already doing on the inside.
Then follow this series to learn how Jesus intends to transform each area of our lives. How we adapt to the kingdom of God, even in the midst of a world where others haven’t. We’ll look at these key areas of life:
We are beginning a new series on “Becoming Like Family” as our online community begin to share the daily challenges with friends, and we begin to gather our larger community together.
Why would we bother? One survey found that 59% of 18-29 year old Americans with a Christian background dropped out of church. Four-in-ten American young adults with a Christian background (43%) believe going to church and having Christian friends is optional.
Source: https://barna-barnagroup.netdna-ssl.com/images/stories/bu-050713-spirtually-homeless_slice_2_f2.jpg
It’s clear that not everyone feels it’s essential, and with our use of technology to form a new church, you might think we mean to simply form an “online” church where no one ever meets in person. But we believe it’s essential. We believe church is essential, but to be clear, we are talking about a community of people.
We’re not saying going to a building is essential
We’re not saying attending a particular kind of worship service with particular kinds of music is essential
Those might be good things. But they are things that churches do, not what makes them a church in the first place.
We want to ensure our church community will have five main characteristics. The first was learning common things about discipleship, and we explored that last week. The second, this week’s focus, is to be spending time in community together.
Some churches do this at bake sales, ham suppers, and such. For us, it will happen in groups that meet regularly to discuss how they’re growing as followers of Jesus. We’ll grow and learn together. Yes, we’ll be learning focused, but we’re also supposed to be a functioning community, a fellowship, in both small groups, and as a large group.
Perhaps you’ve heard the saying, “It takes a village to raise a child.” Well, it takes a church to raise a follower of Jesus.
Question: Why do you think people might avoid joining a church today? Have you been part of a church before? Why or why not?
Reminder: The Following Jesus course in Whitby starts tomorrow – visit https://www.redeemthecommute.com/events/following-jesus-course-whitby-2013-11-05/
Reminder: Last week we saw the importance of reading the Bible together in sync, so our new daily bible readings start today in our mobile app and web site.
This series looks at becoming “like family” with others learning to follow Jesus. We're exploring how the church is not a building, institution or event, but a community of people. It's important that explore what church means as we prepare to launch a new church in Ajax in 2014.
