We all have questions. How were we created? Who exactly is God? What is my purpose? What is this church thing all about? We all have questions, and our goal this semester is to help provide parents and students with answers. We should never be afraid to ask questions, but we should also know that not every question we have will have a clear answer. That's where faith comes in. This semester our goal is to provide answers but also point us to the object of our faith, Jesus Christ the risen Lord!
So far this semester, we have already posed a couple of questions to students. Question #1: What does it take to follow Christ? For many the answer may be plain as day, but for others we may not be sure exactly what Christ calls us to do. Luke 9:23 provides the answer: "The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised." And he (Jesus) said to all, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me." (Luke 9:22-23 ESV)
So far this semester, we have already posed a couple of questions to students. Question #1: What does it take to follow Christ? For many the answer may be plain as day, but for others we may not be sure exactly what Christ calls us to do. Luke 9:23 provides the answer: "The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised." And he (Jesus) said to all, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me." (Luke 9:22-23 ESV)
If we desire to truly follow after Christ, the answer is sacrifice; a word our world does not wish to keep in their vocabulary. Christians throughout the ages have sacrificed their time, their possessions and their lives to follow after Christ and make his name known throughout the world. Tertullian, a third century Christian theologian said, "The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church" meaning that the sacrifice of those who came before us makes up the foundation on which we stand. Together as one body we are called to sacrifice in order that others may know his name and that we together may grow in holiness and humility.
Question #2: What do you need to do to receive more blessing from God? Answer: Nothing. There is not one thing you can do that will cause God to love you any more or any less. We do not worship a God who will bless or curse us according to what we do or don't do. Rather, we worship a God who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in Christ and who has removed the curse of sin because of his son (Eph. 1:3-6; Rom. 5:15-17). We live in freedom because of faith in Christ. No amount of bible study, prayer or good works will cause God to look upon you with more favor and cause things to go better for you. Spiritual disciplines and worship come from a heart that is obedient to God and a love for our Savior (Rom. 6:9-14; 1 John 2:2-6). There is no more blessing needed.
As we journey through different questions this semester, I invite you do follow up and talk more about these questions and answers. What experiences do you have in denying yourself to follow Christ? What are you convicted about in regards to Jesus's call to believers? What about your thoughts on receiving blessing from God? Do you do things out of of love and adoration, or to receive a special "blessing" in order that things may go well for you? These are questions we should all consider and weigh through the impact of the answers. I invite you to ask your own questions and lets see if we can get some answers to the questions of God, life and faith together. Take care and have a great week!
- Coleman
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