Category: Commitment

No Room for Shame

“‘If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.’” Luke 9:26 (NIV) Do you conceal your Christianity? Can you be accused of being a closet Christian? Do those in your sphere of influence know that you are a follower of Jesus Christ? There’s nothing to be ashamed of. In Christ, you have been adopted into God’s family and sealed by the Holy Spirit (Eph. 1:5,13). You have been rescued from darkness and placed in the kingdom of light (Col. 1:5). God has placed you in the display window of life to portray His grace to a dark and decaying world (1 Tim. 1:16). Embrace the attitude of Paul who affirmed, “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile”(Romans 1:16 NIV). The gospel that brought you hope and eternal life is the same gospel that you represent in this life. Don’t be ashamed of the Good News that transformed your life. Don’t withhold the cure to the cancer of sin that will set others free just as you have been set free. Jesus was not ashamed to identify with the lost by becoming flesh (John 1:14). For a person to be ashamed of Christ and His words is to deny the One who gave His all to provide for the forgiveness of sin. There’s no room for shame when it comes to identifying with Christ. To align with Christ is an honor to behold. Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor

Commitment Love Relationships

True Love

How would you define love? Is love a verbal expression, an act of kindness, or a gift extended to another? Is love being willing to do what you do not enjoy in order to benefit someone else? Is love a natural flow from a heart that is full? “‘A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.’” John 13:34 (NIV) “‘By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.’” John 13:35 (NIV) “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8 (NIV) “Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.” 1 John 4:8 (NIV) “This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.” 1 John 4:10 (NIV) “We love because he first loved us.” 1 John 4:19 (NIV) Jesus is the model to follow. Jesus defined love by His willingness to die for the church and to rise again for the church. He gave His life so that we could live with Him eternally and love others intentionally. Jesus is the ultimate portrait of unconditional love. How are your primary relationships? Do those closest to you feel loved the most by you? Think about the adjustments that you need to make in order to better communicate love to them. Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor

Boldness Commitment Proclamation Soul Consciousness Soulwinning Spiritual Story

Proclamation

“Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying: ‘Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all people, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.’” Luke 2:27-32 (NIV) Have you seen the Lord’s salvation? Have you had a personal encounter with Christ that radically transformed your life? Simeon had positioned his life to encounter Christ. Once he encountered the Messiah, Simeon proclaimed that Jesus was a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to His people Israel. This proclamation was made in front of Joseph and Mary who were simply obeying the requirements of the custom of the Law. Once Jesus comes into your life and transforms you, it is negligent to be silent. You have been graciously given the cure to the cancer of sin through the shed blood of Christ. Proclaim that reality! You have been rescued from the flames of hell and positioned in Christ for eternity. Proclaim that reality! You were sinking deep in sin, but Christ paid the penalty for your sin and purchased your salvation. Proclaim that reality! What if you became contagious in your Christianity? What would happen if you seized the next opportunity God gives you to share your salvation story? Share the wonderful life-changing message of Jesus and help populate the Kingdom of Heaven. Souls are worth saving! One way to get a pulse on someone’s spiritual destiny is to simply transition your conversation to life after death. Be willing to ask people where they plan to spend eternity. Ask them to share their spiritual story with you. If they have one, they will be quick to share it with you. If they don’t have a spiritual story, then you can help them establish one by sharing with them how they can know Jesus personally. Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor

Commitment

You become what you are committed to. Who is the object of your loyalty, passion, and energy? What are you giving your life to? How are you allocating your time? What are you committed to? “Then Jesus said to his disciples, ‘If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.’” Matt 16:24 (NIV) To become a fully devoted follower of Christ, your commitment must be to Christ and His agenda. Your disposition is to be that of instant obedience. Wherever He wants you to go, whatever He wants you to do, and whatever He wants you to say, your answer is to be a resounding “yes.” Are you committed to deny yourself daily? Jesus must have first place and top priority in your life. Are you committed to take up His cross daily? Bearing the cross of Christ is to embrace the way of suffering and being misunderstood for your faith. Are you committed to follow Him daily? Following Christ is a moment by moment submission to His authority and His plan. Jesus is Lord! “Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Phil 2:9-11 (NIV) Does your daily commitment to Christ give evidence to His Lordship in your life? What adjustments do you need to make? Have you substituted anyone or anything else in the place of Christ? Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Pastor of Leadership and Pastoral Care