I used to think that being a believer meant regular church attendance, remembering and reciting Bible verses, and obedience to the Law. I tried my best to do all of those things, and indeed I felt “religious”, I felt like I was part of “the club”, but inside I was still just as empty, just as hurting and just as dead as I was before… only now there was a layer of religiosity covering the vacuum on the inside of me like a bandage.
Since then, there has been a Christian slogan going around that has become rather popular: Christianity is not a religion, it is a relationship. You may have heard that slogan before – it is catchy, and it is absolutely true; no question about it. But do we really understand it? I know that I didn't when I first heard it. Sure, I acknowledged that Christianity was a relationship; it was a clever thing to say, but deep down nothing really changed – I was still completely dominated by traditions, still bound by rules and religion and letting those be a poor substitute for a genuine relationship with God… and I was still just as empty, just as hurt and just as dead as before.
A common belief among the church is we should exhort each-other to holy living, which we commonly believe to be to stop committing sinful acts. This has actually caused a lot of confusion, resentment, bitterness and condemnation with many in the church due to the fact that it takes the center focus away from Christ and puts the focus back onto ourselves and our own works. It may surprise you to learn then that God has a completely different diagnosis and prescription for living a strong life in Christ (your holiness is actually already taken care of, as we have studied previously); but as for living a strong and solid life built on the foundation of Jesus Christ, the typical way in which the church body handles this is not only detrimental, but actually opposite to what scripture says!
That's why, today in this study we will be examining from scripture what God says about living a strong life in Christ. How it happens, what can hinder it, and how we should react if we see someone else struggling (or ourselves!) and hint: it is not by pointing out their faults! If you have been wondering what the real Biblical solution is to strength for living, this study will reveal the “secret”.
If I were to ask you what God thinks of you, what kind of answer would you give? Most believers would probably say that “Oh, He loves me!” and that is certainly a true statement, but it has become almost cliché in our current culture to say “God loves you” or that “Jesus loves me”. We say the words, but do we really understand what they mean? The world today has a distorted, corrupted idea of what love is, and that is purely from a human standpoint, much more so then is the love of God misunderstood.
In this study today, we will look deeply into how the scriptures show the love of God in all of its glory. So that you can truly know the way that God thinks of you with love, and have a real revelation of what that means. The love of God will no longer be an empty statement without meaning.
It's been known as a greeting and a goodbye... “Peace” The Hebrew language even uses the word shalom, which literally translates to “peace” for the same purpose as a greeting and farewell. However the Bible has a much more grand view of peace, specifically the divine peace of Jesus.
Today I want to share with you this peace of God, what it is, how we receive it and how it benefits us. These things are spelled-out in the scriptures purposefully because God wants us to know them and have them. Jesus paid for us to have His peace because He loves us and wants us to receive freely from Him.