Bethlehem Baptist Church, NZ

Many new believers over the centuries have asked the same question, was the man called Jesus Christ just an egomaniac and misguided fool, or a simple teacher who was indeed the Son of God. In a world plagued by prosperity preachers and spiritual celebrities who can often offer a pseudo-Christianity that is more palatable, 1st John offers an alternative narrative, that stings and offends a modern conscience. Is Jesus God! Did he come to save sinners like me? Does God care about me? Come and See. "One generation believes something. The next assumes it. And the third will forget and deny it." (D.A. Carson)

The church in Corinth was in trouble. They were divided. They were immature. They were abusing the sacraments, spiritual gifts, and each other. The apostle Paul had founded this church earlier (Acts 18), and when he hears of the young church’s struggles, he writes them a letter. And it’s a bold one. He tackles the issues the church faces, reprimands them for their shortcomings, and encourages them in love. First Corinthians is not a step-by-step guide to solving church problems, however. Instead of telling the church precisely what to do, Paul proposes a new perspective: put God’s glory first. It’s the key to overcoming these struggles.

Many new believers over the centuries have asked the same question, was the man called Jesus Christ just an egomaniac and misguided fool, or a simple teacher who was indeed the Son of God.

In a world plagued by prosperity preachers and spiritual celebrities who can often offer a pseudo-Christianity that is more palatable, 1st John offers an alternative narrative, that stings and offends a modern conscience. Is Jesus God! Did he come to save sinners like me? Does God care about me?

Come and See.

"One generation believes something. The next assumes it. And the third will forget and deny it." (D.A. Carson)

The church in Corinth was in trouble. They were divided. They were immature. They were abusing the sacraments, spiritual gifts, and each other. The apostle Paul had founded this church earlier (Acts 18), and when he hears of the young church’s struggles, he writes them a letter. And it’s a bold one. He tackles the issues the church faces, reprimands them for their shortcomings, and encourages them in love. First Corinthians is not a step-by-step guide to solving church problems, however. Instead of telling the church precisely what to do, Paul proposes a new perspective: put God’s glory first. It’s the key to overcoming these struggles.

These days it’s easy to see life the way we want to. We can filter our images, pick the news we want to hear, and listen only to the viewpoints that agree with us. When we do that, we start to distort our view of the world. The same thing can happen to our view of God. We reshape our perception of Him into what we want to believe, or what we want to think about others. Jesus came to bring us the truth about God and His plan for us, and it doesn’t always sound like what you may think. This series cuts through the noise of the world’s perceptions of Jesus and what it means to follow Him, in ways that may be surprising to some people. It plays off the idea of memes as jokes, rhetorical devices, and sources of misinformation to debunk popular misconceptions and bring clear truth.

The church in Corinth was in trouble. They were divided. They were immature. They were abusing the sacraments, spiritual gifts, and each other. The apostle Paul had founded this church earlier (Acts 18), and when he hears of the young church’s struggles, he writes them a letter. And it’s a bold one. He tackles the issues the church faces, reprimands them for their shortcomings, and encourages them in love. First Corinthians is not a step-by-step guide to solving church problems, however. Instead of telling the church precisely what to do, Paul proposes a new perspective: put God’s glory first. It’s the key to overcoming these struggles.

These days it’s easy to see life the way we want to. We can filter our images, pick the news we want to hear, and listen only to the viewpoints that agree with us. When we do that, we start to distort our view of the world. The same thing can happen to our view of God. We reshape our perception of Him into what we want to believe, or what we want to think about others. Jesus came to bring us the truth about God and His plan for us, and it doesn’t always sound like what you may think. This series cuts through the noise of the world’s perceptions of Jesus and what it means to follow Him, in ways that may be surprising to some people. It plays off the idea of memes as jokes, rhetorical devices, and sources of misinformation to debunk popular misconceptions and bring clear truth.

The church in Corinth was in trouble. They were divided. They were immature. They were abusing the sacraments, spiritual gifts, and each other. The apostle Paul had founded this church earlier (Acts 18), and when he hears of the young church’s struggles, he writes them a letter. And it’s a bold one. He tackles the issues the church faces, reprimands them for their shortcomings, and encourages them in love. First Corinthians is not a step-by-step guide to solving church problems, however. Instead of telling the church precisely what to do, Paul proposes a new perspective: put God’s glory first. It’s the key to overcoming these struggles.

These days it’s easy to see life the way we want to. We can filter our images, pick the news we want to hear, and listen only to the viewpoints that agree with us. When we do that, we start to distort our view of the world. The same thing can happen to our view of God. We reshape our perception of Him into what we want to believe, or what we want to think about others. Jesus came to bring us the truth about God and His plan for us, and it doesn’t always sound like what you may think. This series cuts through the noise of the world’s perceptions of Jesus and what it means to follow Him, in ways that may be surprising to some people. It plays off the idea of memes as jokes, rhetorical devices, and sources of misinformation to debunk popular misconceptions and bring clear truth.

The church in Corinth was in trouble. They were divided. They were immature. They were abusing the sacraments, spiritual gifts, and each other. The apostle Paul had founded this church earlier (Acts 18), and when he hears of the young church’s struggles, he writes them a letter. And it’s a bold one. He tackles the issues the church faces, reprimands them for their shortcomings, and encourages them in love. First Corinthians is not a step-by-step guide to solving church problems, however. Instead of telling the church precisely what to do, Paul proposes a new perspective: put God’s glory first. It’s the key to overcoming these struggles.