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We are called to love as Jesus loves us, but how do we live that out? How do we truly show love to our neighbors, to one another, and even to our enemies? Jesus demonstrated His love by giving everything—laying down His very life so we could find life in Him. That’s the heart of love: sacrificial, selfless, and life-giving.
Believers are known by many beautiful names: the Body of Christ, Friends of God, His Workmanship—all expressions of God’s purpose and love for us. Yet, there’s one word that captures the heart of our community: The Church. It’s a sanctuary for those seeking healing and a place to gather in life’s joy, sharing in celebration with one another.
We continue in our series on Eyes of Faith: Viewing Life BIblically and focus on the sanctity of life. God wants us to choose life and right before us, we have seen the effects of war on innocent lives lost. May God restore peace and remind us that all lives are valued in His sight.
We all have a message to tell. It’s what we’ve been calling “Our Story.” You have a different story that will capture the attention of some people while another person has their story that will intrigue others. Yet in each one of our stories is the certain fact that Jesus Christ came into our lives to transform us into His character. Who has heard your story? Who has yet to hear it? God calls us to go tell it from the mountains that Jesus Christ has come to seek and save that which was lost.
The Bible calls us to be transformed into being overcomers through becoming more like Christ. If you think back on your life before Christ, before knowing Him and being united to Him, there may have been times you were addicted to something— and it doesn’t have to be drugs or alcohol— it could have been your career, money, fame, influence. But when Christ came, He changed everything. There is power in our testimonies. We become the light of the world when we share about the blood of the Lamb and our testimony. By sharing with others they too can become overcomers.
The first church knew that love meant sacrifice. They used their time, talents, and treasures to make sure that everyone’s needs were met in their congregation. They shared what they had, and because of their love, no one among them was needy. They relied on godliness to make them content. The generosity of the church in meeting all the needs among them allowed the apostles to preach with great power. The actions of the church, their willingness to give of themselves bore witness to the change that Jesus could bring to a life.
There’s something about serving and being served that inspires humility in a person. Learning to engage in good deeds brings us closer to understanding Jesus’ character. He emphasized the importance of serving by kneeling at the feet of his disciples and washing them as a slave would for his master. Loving our church is intertwined with serving each other. When Jesus commanded us to love one another, he expected us to show that love by serving each other the way he served people.
We must meet together with other Christians. The church helps each of us to grow up into a mature Christian. Together we grow in works of service, encouragement, unity of faith, and love. Encouraging each other and taking down the fences between us helps us survive through love and good deeds that light up in a dark and desperate world.
Join us as we begin a new 5-week Sermon and Study series entitled, “I Love My Church.” Jesus’ command to us as Christians is that all of our interactions must be bathed in love. How do our actions project love to one another in our church, and how will the love we have for those in our church affect the way we interact with our world? Let us step into this series with an introduction on Jesus’ words to His followers to be the light and love in the world.
Jesus defines who is our neighbor. He told the parable of the Good Samaritan to show us that love extends beyond wealth, religious titles, the color of our skin, and education level. Our neighborhood is as wide as the love of God. Being a neighbor, loving our neighbor means acting on behalf of others regardless of who they are or where they are from. Join us this weekend for worship as we once again discover who is our neighbor?
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