A Recap from Sunday’s Sermon

Preaching Text: John 3:1-16

This past Sunday, we looked at the account of Jesus meeting a Pharisee named Nicodemus.  In this account, Nicodemus comes to Jesus under cover of darkness to inquire about Jesus’ signs, which Nicodemus concludes can only be done in the power of God.  In other words, he sees that Jesus is sent from God, but he is skeptical about following.  We should consider if we are like Nicodemus in this way.  Jesus responds with a challenge for Nicodemus to enter a new kind of life of the Spirit.  He says that we must be “born again” and also “born of the Spirit” in order to enter the kingdom of heaven.

Main Point:
Jesus pierces the skeptic’s darkness by inviting us to a new kind of life now.

Nicodemus, and many churchgoers today, do not understand that the eternal kind of life offered by Jesus starts now.  The spiritual realities of the kingdom of heaven are available here and now for all who are born again (which means all true Christians).  But, Christians often struggle to bring their lives into alignment with God’s kingdom because it is not automatic.  Many simply resolve to wait for heaven some day in the future.  Still, if we continue living a basically secular life, we sense that there has to be more to life than this.  The Lord wants us to intentionally engage with his kingdom activity.  In doing so, we experience God’s presence.

Use the four central ministries of our church to evaluate all your words, thoughts, and deeds.  Align your life with God’s kingdom by engaging these four central ministries:

WORSHIP – expressing love for God
BELONGING – knowing and loving God’s people
MERCY – serving those in need
MISSION – telling God’s story To see the full vision diagram, [click here].