March 25th, 2018
Pastor Rene M. Charest
SERIES TEXT:
“Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.” —1 Peter 4:10
1.
“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth…And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good.” —Genesis 1:1, 31a (ESV)
• There is only one God. He is good and glorious, loving and holy.
• God made us in his image, to worship him, be in relationship with him and reflect his character.
• God made the world perfect, a paradise where we could enjoy God and his gifts.
2.
“Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned —” —Romans 5:12 (ESV)
• Adam, the first man, disobeyed God’s command. He wanted to choose good and evil for himself. He disregarded God’s authority and rejected his love. As a result, Adam and Eve were expelled from paradise.
• The world is cursed because of Adam’s sin. Things aren’t the way they are supposed to be. The world is now full of suffering, pain and evil.
• We sin everyday in thought, word and deed by disobeying God’s commands. We worship our jobs, our money and our comfort more than God. We love people and things more than we love the God who made us.
3.
“And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, ‘Son, your sins are forgiven.’ Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, ‘Why does this man speak like that? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?’” —Mark 2:5-7 (ESV)
• Jesus is fully human. He had a real body, desires and emotions.
• Jesus is fully God. He was more than a prophet and moral teacher. He demonstrated his divine status and authority by forgiving sins and exercising power over nature, the Devil, disease and death.
• Jesus is the Christ, the long-awaited Messiah. He is the Son of God and one with God the Father. Jesus is worthy of our worship, trust and affection.
4.
“For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,” —1 Corinthians 15:3-4 (ESV)
• Jesus died on the cross to take upon himself the wrath of God so that we might be reconciled to God. God forgives us, not because of our good works, but because of the sacrifice of his Son on the cross.
• Jesus was a kind of second Adam, fulfilling what the first Adam did not. He obeyed God in place of our disobedience and died the death we deserved as our substitute.
• By his death and resurrection, Jesus demonstrated his Lordship over all things. In coming back to life, Jesus showed that even death itself had been conquered.
5.
“And he who was seated on the throne said, ‘Behold, I am making all things new.’” —Revelation 21:5a (ESV)
• God makes us new creations in Christ so that we die to our sinful ways and can learn to love God and our neighbor.
• Through Jesus, God has already begun to exercise his reign right here on earth. Those who follow Jesus are to be agents of change, hope and renewal.
• At the end of history, God will finish this work of re-creation. Those who have not received Christ will be eternally punished for their sins. Those who belong to Christ will live forever in a new paradise where we will be free from suffering and enjoy God forever.
6.
“Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Brothers, what shall we do?’ And Peter said to them, ‘Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.’” —Acts 2:37-38 (ESV)
• God’s forgiveness is entirely an act of grace. We cannot earn it. We receive God’s mercy through faith solely because of Christ’s work on our behalf.
• Being a Christian means we renounce our old ways of thinking and living; we trust Christ alone as our Savior, obey him as Lord and love him as our greatest treasure.
• Following Jesus means living for him, obeying his commands and believing his promises. God gives us power through the Holy Spirit and teaches us by his Word (the Bible) so we can live in this new way.