What We Believe We Value (2)

There is no way we can know everything about God, Jesus Christ or the Holy Spirit. But in the essentials, we believe and value, they are paramount to our life as a Christian.  Everyday of our life is a journey where we choose to deepen our relationship with the Lord, or choose to draw ourselves away from Him.  If we want to know God, then we need to spend time with Him.

Genesis 1:1-2 tells us, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.”

God is the Creator and ruler of the universe.  He holds everything together.  When we say that God is the Creator, we mean that He is truly creative, in a category all by Himself, because He started with nothing. 

Colossians 1:16 says …For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him…  He is not limited by our understanding, nor by time, space, or matter.  When God created the heavens and the earth, He did so by speaking it into existence.

When He created the things that filled the earth and the sky, He spoke them into being (Genesis 1:11–16). But when He created human beings, He did something different. He took some clay that He had already made and formed a man. Then He breathed His own life into that man, and “man became a living soul” (Genesis 2:7). When He created the first woman, Eve, He also used that which He had already made. He caused Adam to fall into a deep sleep and took a rib from his side and formed a woman (Genesis 2:21).

Definition of Inspire: (1) fill (someone) with the urge or ability to do or feel something, especially to do something creative. (2) Breathe In; inhale.

Definition of Expire: (1) exhale (air) from the lung; (2) pass away/on, decease, perish, depart this life, be no more, breathe one's last; essentially they do not inhale or draw in a breath!

God is the Designer and Craftsman of everything in the universe, and He created human beings a step above all the rest. By breathing His own life into that man, He created the man and woman “in His own image” (Genesis 1:27). That means that human beings are more like God than any other created thing. We have an eternal spirit, just as God has. We can reason, choose good or evil, and love. We have emotions, intellect, and the power and desire to create things ourselves. God desires to have fellowship with us (Genesis 3:8–9; Jeremiah 29:12). He does not seek fellowship with dogs, dolphins, or trees. They have life, but not God’s life. And when He came to earth to save us, He came in the form of a man (Philippians 2:5–8; Luke 1:35).   (Some material is Referenced from: https://www.gotquestions.org/Creator-God.html)

Matthew 6

·        Give to the poor and needy

·        Don’t give in order to be acknowledged or higher social status (how good I am)

·        Don’t ramble when you pray.  God already knows what you need, He knows your issues.

·        Are you entering into worship to get God to do something for you?

·        Or are you entering into worship to give praise God for what He has ready done?

·        Do we really want to see God’s kingdom here on earth?  Here?  Now?

·        Do we really trust Him to provide for us (our daily needs)?

·        Are we really willing to forgive others, regardless?

·        Whom do we serve?  God?  Ourselves?

·        Worry (Philippians 4:4-6)

We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, the maker of heaven and earth, of things visible and invisible…  And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the begotten of God the Father, the Only-begotten that is of the essence of the Father...  We believe in the Holy Spirit, in the uncreated and the perfect; Who spoke through the Law, prophets, and Gospels; Who came down upon the Jordan, preached through the apostles, and lives in the saints… (TCC Creed)

·        The nations will be blessed through Abraham's lineage

Prophecy:

"I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse;

and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you" (Genesis 12:3).

Fulfillment:

"And you are heirs of the prophets and of the covenant God made with your fathers. He said to Abraham, ‘Through your offspring all peoples on earth will be blessed.’ When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways” (Acts 3:25–26).

·        David’s offspring will have an eternal kingdom

Prophecy:

"When your days are over and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever" (2 Samuel 7:12–13).

Fulfillment:  "This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham" (Matthew 1:1)

·        The Christ will be born in Bethlehem

Prophecy:  "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,   though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times." (Micah 5:2).

Fulfillment:  "When he had called together all the people's chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born. 'In Bethlehem in Judea,' they replied, 'for this is what the prophet has written:  "'But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.'" (Matthew 2:4–6).

·        Jesus will have a sinless, blemish-free life and ministry

Prophecy:  "The animals you choose must be year-old males without defect, and you may take them from the sheep or the goats" (Exodus 12:5).

Fulfillment:   "How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!" (Hebrews 9:14)

·        The Messiah’s blood will be spilled for atonement

Prophecy:  "For the life of a creature is in the blood, and I have given it to you to make atonement for yourselves on the altar; it is the blood that makes atonement for one's life" (Leviticus 17h:11).

Fulfillment:  "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins" (Matthew 26:28).

·        The Messiah will conquer death

Prophecy:  "On this mountain he will destroy the shroud that enfolds all peoples, the sheet that covers all nations; e will swallow up death forever.

The Sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from all faces; he will remove his people’s disgrace from all the earth. The Lord has spoken" (Isaiah 25:7–8).

Fulfillment:  "When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: 'Death has been swallowed up in victory'" (1 Corinthians 15:54).

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.  Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. John 1:1-5

Firstly, we believe that the Lord Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He is Co-equal with the Father. Jesus was born of a virgin; he lived a sinless human life and willingly offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for the sins of all people by dying on a cross.

Matthew 1:22-23 tell us that he was born of a virgin, “…All this happened to make clear the full meaning of what the Lord said through the prophet: “The virgin will be pregnant and will give birth to a son. They will name him Immanuel.” (Immanuel means “God with us.”)

Romans 1:3-4 tells us Jesus is a descendant of David: “…regarding his Son, who as to his earthly life was a descendant of David, and who through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord.”

Jesus is our Great High Priest:  Hebrews 1:14-15 says, “…Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin…”

John 14: 6-7 tell us the way back to God is through Jesus Christ.  “…Jesus answered, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. The only way to the Father is through me.  If you really knew me, you would know my Father too. But now you know the Father. You have seen him.”

He rose from the dead after three days to demonstrate His power over sin and death. He ascended to Heaven's glory and will return some day to earth to reign as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. 

In Isaiah 53:4-9 the Bible tells us, “…Yet it was our weaknesses he carried; it was our sorrows that weighed him down.  And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God, a punishment for his own sins!  But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins.  He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed.   All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own. Yet the Lord laid on him the sins of us all. He was oppressed and treated harshly, yet he never said a word. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter.  And as a sheep is silent before the shearers, he did not open his mouth. Unjustly condemned, he was led away. No one cared that he died without descendants, that his life was cut short in midstream. But he was struck down for the rebellion of my people. He had done no wrong and had never deceived anyone.  But he was buried like a criminal; he was put in a rich man’s grave…”

Did you know that Jesus Christ willingly laid his life down?  He laid it down and took it up again?  Jesus willingly allowed people to nail him to the cross.  He chose to obey the Father.  John 10:18, “No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father."

John 15:12-14, “This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are My friends if you do what I command you.…”

John 17:21 says, “that all of them may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I am in You. May they also be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.”

Acts 1:9-11 tells us that Jesus was taken up to heaven and he is coming back again. “After saying this, he was taken up to heaven as they watched him, and a cloud hid him from their sight.  They still had their eyes fixed on the sky as he went away, when two men dressed in white suddenly stood beside them and said, “Galileans, why are you standing there looking up at the sky? This Jesus, who was taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way that you saw him go to heaven.”

We wait in hope - Titus 2:13-14, “…as we wait for the blessed Day we hope for, when the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ will appear.  He gave himself for us, to rescue us from all wickedness and to make us a pure people who belong to him alone and are eager to do good…”

Bible References: Matthew 1:22-23; Isaiah 9:6; John 1:1-5; John 14:6-30; Hebrews 4:1-15; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4; Romans 1:3-4; Acts 1:9-11; 1 Timothy 6:1-16; Titus 2:13-14; 2 Corinthians 5:20-21

The Holy Spirit is Co-equal with the Father and the Son of God. He is present in the world to make men aware of their need for Jesus Christ. He also lives in every Christian from the moment of salvation. He provides the Christian with power for living, understanding of spiritual truth and guidance in doing what is right. As Christians, we seek to live under his control daily. The Holy Spirit provides each Christian with the necessary gifts to serve God and others.

In John 14:6 Jesus tells us, “…But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you…”

The Holy Spirit lives in each Christian.  1 Corinthians 3:16 says, “Don’t you yourselves know that you are God’s temple and that the Spirit of God lives in you?”

How we live matters.  We are to be filled with the Holy Spirit.  “Don’t be drunk with wine, which will ruin your life, but be filled with the Spirit.” Ephesians 5:18

We can know freedom. 2 Corinthians 3:17, “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.”

We don’t receive the spirit of the world.  We receive God’s Holy Spirit who teaches us about the things of God.  2 Corinthians 2:10-13 says, “The Spirit, not content to flit around on the surface, dives into the depths of God, and brings out what God planned all along. Whoever knows what you’re thinking and planning except you yourself? The same with God—except that he not only knows what he’s thinking, but he lets us in on it. God offers a full report on the gifts of life and salvation that he is giving us. We don’t have to rely on the world’s guesses and opinions. We didn’t learn this by reading books or going to school; we learned it from God, who taught us person-to-person through Jesus, and we’re passing it on to you in the same firsthand, personal way.” (The Message)

 Bible References: 2 Corinthians 3:17; John 16:7-13; John 14:16-17; Acts 1:8; 1 Corinthians 2:12; 1 Corinthians 3:16; Ephesians 1:13-14; Galatians 5:25; Ephesians 5:18; John 14: 26; 1Timothy 4:14; Ephesians 4:11-14; 1Corinthians chapters 12 and 14.

What we’ve looked at about God, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit is only a brief snap shot.  Even if we were to spend weeks going through the Bible, we’d only just touch the surface in learning about what we call “The Trinity”.

What We believe We value.  If we believe that God is the Father Almighty, Creator, sustainer, the maker of heaven and earth, of things visible and invisible, then our world-view will be remarkably different from those who don’t know him personally.

We believe in the Lord Jesus Christ who is the Son of God; divine yet human.  The perfect sacrifice – he died on a cruel cross.  He made a way for humans to be brought back into fellow ship with their Creator. His claim to be God was the very reason that the leaders of the day crucified Him. Yet all this was foretold about him through the Old Testament.

We acknowledge and find great comfort in the Holy Spirit who dwells in each person who receives the gift of salvation given to us by the death of Jesus Christ.  The Holy Spirit who comforts, guides, counsels, corrects and teaches us as we grow up and mature in our Christian life.

Acts 2:42, “They committed themselves to the teaching of the apostles, the life together, the common meal, and the prayers.” (The Message)

Acts 2:42, “They spent their time in learning from the apostles, taking part in the fellowship, and sharing in the fellowship meals and the prayers.” (GNT)