SUNDAY SNAPSHOT (CHRISTIAN…? – 1)
CHRISTIAN…? (1)
CELEBRATORS…
CHRISTIAN…? If you were to ask 100 People WHAT it means… You’d probably get 100 Different Answers! We’re starting a Brand New Series this week at COC – which we will attempt to tackle the tough IDEA of WHAT IT REALLY MEANS TO BE A CHRISTIAN!? I’d strongly encourage you to do whatever it takes to NOT MISS A WEEK! It’s gonna be EPIC!
Below is a sneak-peak of each week…
1 – Brand Recognition… "CHRISTIAN" is a brand that can be Good - Bad - Attractive or Repelling! It's a loaded label no matter whom you ask! But where did the WORD come from? And did it come with INSTRUCTIONS? In this first week… we’re gonna look at the ONE THING that Jesus wanted His Followers to be KNOWN FOR… It may surprise you if you've been HURT by the CHURCH or by a CHRISTIAN!
2- Quitters…The words used to describe CHRISITIANS today often bear no resemblance to the ONE WORD Jesus wanted His Followers to be KNOWN FOR! I wonder… What would it look like… if for one day… we got it right? What if WE… as CHRISTIANS… embodied this ONE WORD? What if our behavior was so consistent with this WORD that people all around us were drawn to US… and to GOD…? In this second week… You’re gonna be challenged again to change the NAME and REPUTATION of CHRISITIANITY - by becoming a group of FOLLOWERS characterized by this ONE THING!
3 – Insiders/Outsiders… Without intending to… CHRISTIANITY won the West! It toppled the Roman Empire - and it did so without raising a sword! But… What was the SECRET of the early church's INFLUENCE? And where have we gone WRONG today? In this third week… We’re gonna reveal the SECRET and a LESSON for US about JUDGING OTHERS! This may be exactly where the CHURCH has gone WRONG today…
4 – Salt and Light… The early CHRISTIANS in Rome did not have it easy! They were persecuted and blamed for crimes they didn't commit! Yet Jesus painted an encouraging picture of their circumstances -- He said they were to be "the SALT of the earth" and "the LIGHT of the world!" Jesus told each of them that they had been STRATEGICALLY PLACED by God – right where they were! Could this IDEA possibly be true of your LIFE and your CIRCUMSTANCES today too? In this fourth week… we’re gonna explain to you the INFLUENCE you may not even know you have!
5 – Loopholes… Looking for LOOPHOLES seem to come so natural to us! Whether it's eating all of our vegetables or being home by curfew… no one has to teach us that there is a difference between the LETTER OF LAW and the SPIRIT OF THE LAW! In a Jewish culture where RULES trumped REASON… Jesus had a New Perspective on RULES and LOOPHOLES! In this fifth week… we’re gonna give you a QUESTION to always ask yourself… when you’d rather look for the LOOPHOLES than LIVE AS GOD INTENDS!
6 – Working It Out… Whether you want to believe it or not… The person YOU ARE has been shaped by THOSE WHO HAVE LOVED YOU and THOSE WHO HAVE HURT YOU! Maybe it was your mom… or your dad… or a coach… or a teacher…? The truth is… Others' behaviors toward YOU have a lasting impact! And Jesus understood this so well that His MOST URGENT COMMAND to His Disciples was about HOW they should TREAT EACH OTHER! Yet it seems Jesus' concern with HOW WE BEHAVE has been distorted over time into a debate about WHAT WE BELIEVE! In this last week of the Series… we’re gonna return the focus to what Jesus called His "GREATEST COMMAND"… (That was…) ‘By THIS… EVERYONE will KNOW… that WE are HIS DISCIPLES!’
See You Sunday Celebrators… (9a / 10:45a)
RunTheRace! (Heb 12:1-2)
Pastor Josh