“‘Teacher, which commandment is the law is the greatest?’ Jesus said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.'” (Matthew 22:36-39)
If your theology doesn’t change your behavior, what you know about God doesn’t matter.
Fred Craddock says, “It’s possible to get an “A” in bible and still flunk Christianity.” And, he’s absolutely right.
Growing in the knowledge of God changes us to resemble God in our actions and how we treat God’s children.
The point of the teachings of Jesus was never to make us smarter sinners. The point of the teachings of Jesus is to change us, to make us more like him.
Whenever God reveals Godself through his scriptures, it is always for the purpose of transformation. When you love God, you love what God loves. When you love God, you love the people for whom Christ died for. These are inseparable.
This past Sunday Katie Davis and Jo Ethel Smith preached a fantastic sermon on the Christian response to the racial division that is wreaking havoc in our world. When it comes to pursuing racial reconciliation, the church and her saints ought to lead the way in bringing about peace and shalom to our communities.
As many of you know, I have had multiple surgeries on my heart and have needed blood transfusions. Not once did I ever wonder about the color of the person who donated the blood that kept me alive. I was only grateful that someone went out of their way to donate their blood so that I might live.
I thank God that we have a church who sees all of God’s people for who they are: we are all sinners in need of forgiveness that only Christ offers. We are all God’s children in need of a Savior.
Church, let us lead the way in bringing peace to God’s world.
Praxis: Faith in Action 