Freak Show!

"Join the freak show!" was Pastor Dusty's call to you guys this past weekend. You can join the freak show by "offer[ing] your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God" (Romans 12:1). You give your body as a living sacrifices by what you say, what you touch, what you look at, where you go, and how and who you serve. So we simply offer our bodies through our actions. Actions that God has called us to do. And by doing this, we can join the freak show! Now that might seem like a bad thing. You might be thinking, "I don't want to be a freak!" But this is the kind of freak that you do want to be. A freak that is not following the norms of this world. A freak that stands up for their Christian beliefs. A freak that sacrifices their body as a living sacrifice for God. That is the kind of freak that all of us should be striving for.

Below is the music video for the ever so popular dc Talk song, Jesus Freak. Its an awesome song! It never gets old. And you got to love the 90's outfits they are wearing. Those were the good ol' days. =)

Phil Gabba Gabba!

Yo! Gabba Gabba!

This past week Tim (myself) preached! He went over Romans Chapter 5 which talks about three basic promises. If we are justified through our faith then we are given the promise of Heaven, the promise of peace, and the promise of joy through suffering. But his main point was that none of these promises will happen, since we are justified through faith, if we do not have faith. Faith is not just believing in God or Jesus. James 2:26 says, "For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead." If our actions do not match our claim to Christianity then we really don't have faith. We claim to be a Christian but we aren't living it out. If you are not living it out then you do not have faith and your promise of Heaven, peace, and joy are gone. We as Christian need to live our lives with actions that show our faith in God. You claim it! Now live it!

This past week Pastor Dusty dived into Chapter 3 of Romans. This chapter provides the first sign of hope in Romans. Chapters 1 and 2 show how we are all sinners and worthy of death. Then finally in chapter 3 we are shown that there is hope for righteousness. And "this righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe" (Romans 3:22).
So then what is the point? Why point out for two full chapters of how there is no hope and then be like, "Just kidding! There actually is hope!" The point is, just as Pastor Dusty put it: Sin Separates...Faith Connects. Every time we sin we are puting more and more distance between ourselves and God. Buts its through faith that we can close this gap.