What Is The Gospel?
2 Corinthians 5:21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. God created us to glorify him and enjoy him forever. There’s only one problem with that. We don’t. We live for our selves, we live for our glory, we like what we want to like, we will do what we want to do, we will be our own lords and saviors. In other words, we are hopelessly mired in the quicksand of slavery to our desires and ourselves. And we ...
Why Is “Christian Community” Important?
We’ve been talking about a Christian community, and last time we asked “how can we be Christian community?” This time, I want to ask “why is Christian community sooooooo important?” And again, I am passing on a quote from Harbor Presbyterian Church. (Hey, if someone says it so well, why reinvent the wheel?) "Why Is “Christian Community” Important? We need community to be fully human. God said before the fall: “It is not good for man to be alone.” Adam was lonely not because he was imperfect; he was lonely because he was perfect. God has wired us in ...
How Can We Be A Christian Community?
When Jesus saves us, he does not just save individuals, but creates a new community (Romans 12:5, Ephesians 4:13-17). What this means for us is that the gospel (the good news of Jesus and what he has done for us) is such great news that when we believe it, it calls for a willing commitment not only to Jesus, but also to others who also believe. It means that the Bible commands us to active commitment in a local body of believers, not just attending, but stirring one another to love and good deeds, encouraging one another, serving, loving, using ...
How We Do Ministry (part1)
This is my first blog entry, and for the two of you out there reading it, I wanted to begin by talking about what has essentially become our way of doing ministry at New Hope. I do this in the hope that it might encourage you, stimulate your thinking, and help those who are interested know what we are trying to do at New Hope. We have found very helpful a statement from Harbor Presbyterian Church in San Diego. It reads, “In regard to the Word, we are gospel-centered. In regard to the church, we are gospel-renewal. In regard to the world, ...
