We live out what we believe...

We are impacted by experiences both under or control and not. Those things not under our control are the many random events of life. The families we were born into, earthquakes, pandemics, illness, job layoffs, the death of loved ones, fires, and car accidents, to name a few. Each has an impact on us and establishes different reactions based upon the whole experience.

We need to take personal responsibility, however, to live the way that we live and interact with others. These are actions that are under our control, that we believe are correct and right within the context of living with others. The greatest threat to our beliefs today is the growing individualistic culture, one that says, “whatever I say is true, is truth” and I do not have to abide by or listen to anyone else. This culture tries to suggest that this is true freedom, that they are masters of their own destiny with little regard to others or how their actions impact others.

We are only truly free, however, when we live our lives for a purpose for which we have been created. Each of us is unique and given the talents, abilities, knowledge, and experiences we have for a certain purpose. Discovering this purpose is not always easy but the context of it is clear. We know what we love, what we believe in and cherish, by what we are willing to sacrifice. God is good and true freedom comes from living in Him, seeking to love one another as He first loved us.

How can we love one another? First, by getting to know them, what they believe and what drives their actions. All too often we do not have enough confidence in our own faith and understanding to engage with others that are not like us. We avoid the homeless, do not engage in difficult conversations, or share our faith because we are not fully confident in what we believe. This must change as we mature and develop into a greater faith.

We live mostly in the fullness of faith, therefore, and in an assurance of love.

2 Corinthians 5:7 puts it another way…” We live by what we believe, not by what we can see.” What we see are often obstructions. What we cannot see are faith and opportunities.

?Our world today is broken and divided. We seek answers, meaning, and purpose in our lives. We seek true and trusting relationships, faith, and goodness in the face of what we are experiencing. It is estimated that more than 80% of the kids going off to college today, no matter their backgrounds or families, will lose their faith. We are raising up generations who do not have faith. Religion, we are told, is dead.

God is not an abstract concept without substance or meaning. What is good in the world and what makes it good? The TRUTH is that He is accessible to each of us, and we can have a personal relationship with Him. All other friendships or relationships have been betrayed or proven false. God established a rescue plan, through Jesus, for man and the brokenness that began with Adam and Eve and continues today. In an act of humility and love, Jesus paid the price. He that knew no sin, experienced it on our behalf.

If we believe that there is good in the world we must also believe in evil. If we say no to Jesus, if we do not believe in him and his resurrection, then we will have to pay the price of sin ourselves. Jesus and the Holy Spirit is the personal solution to evil. Evil has a lot to do with our life’s perspective. But there is also more.

The facts of history and the Bible are the only true and complete explanation of what happened. The existence of a force in the universe, with whom we can have a personal relationship, explains everything. This is the understanding of what it means to be a Christian that everyone must conclude for themselves. It all hinges on the TRUTH of the resurrection. Six basic facts are presented:

1.????? Jesus lived, and his life and death were predicted through prophecy. He died by crucifixion.

2.????? He rose from the dead and was revealed to the disciples and many others after His death.

3.????? Those who experience the risen Christ had their lives transformed; they did not recant their experiences, and many suffered and died terrible deaths for what they said they saw.

4.????? The accounts of the death and resurrection date back to within a couple years of the life and crucifixion of Jesus; They were personal experiences by those who walked with Jesus.

5.????? There is clear and undisputable evidence of the empty tomb. One of the most compelling, based upon the Jewish culture, is that it was reported by women.

6.????? Some of the greatest skeptics of the time, and even someone who previously persecuted believers (James and Paul) were believers and strong testifiers of what happened.

Faith is knowledge coming from a world view. Conviction is a step of trust based on the way things actually are. We know that there is a problem in the world, and Christians have the solution.