Friday, September 17, 2010

Saved for What?

Last week those who were in worship at Cedar Hills were "introduced to the elephant." You'll have to listen to the sermon if you want to know exactly what that means (listen to it here).  It's been a funny week of conversations, following that sermon.  Comments have been all over the spectrum from, "That was good.  We needed to hear that" to, "The same thing is happening at my brother/sister/cousin's church, so I guess we're not the only ones."  Some have cautiously asked, "So, what have people been saying about that sermon?"  Even in my own family we've had some interesting and spirited conversations.  As if to punctuate the week, I had a long, sad talk with a friend of mine, also a pastor, who is going through difficulties in his church and isn't sure what to do next.

So what this sermon series, Becoming An Outpost for the Kingdom, aims to do is help us rebuild our understanding of what the Church, and our church, is all about.  We've had such an emphasis in Christianity for many decades on being "saved" that we don't really know (or haven't considered) what we're saved for. What's the point?  It's like all we're taught to do is wait.  Wait for the afterlife - in other words we're just hanging out until we die, and then finally something really significant or good will happen.  What kind of a God would do that -- desposit us here for 70 or 80 years like we're prisoners on death row, waiting to see who gets pardoned and released into heavenly bliss?  That's not what the bible teaches at all, but it's what a lot of people believe.

What the bible does teach is what we started to look at last week:  We're here to partner with God in building a new kingdom - or rather restoring the world to the way God intended it to be.  We don't accomplish that on our own, but with God's help and with the complete restoration ultimately in God's hands.  This week we'll begin to study 7 Objectives that God has, and each are ways that he invites us to partner with him.  These 7 objectives begin in our own hearts and lives, and from there they can change our community, our work, our schools - our church - and our world.  See you then...
- Curtis