Citizens Weekly

From the series, "Acts". In Luke’s idyllic picture of the nascent church in Acts 2:42-47, we see a church devoted to four simple things. The most radical of the four? Fellowship. This isn’t a potluck dinner, but something much more controversial. “Koinonia”, or the sharing of everything means that we give all of our possessions and privilege to those that are without. What can Christian postmodernity learn from the simple beginnings of the early church? In a word, everything.  

From the series, “Acts”. What is keeping us from being aware of what Jesus is doing right now? In Acts 2:14-41, Peter preaches the gospel to the diaspora Jews. Those that didn’t recognize Jesus as Messiah, while he walked among them, hear Peter’s message and respond with conviction, confession, repentance, and baptism.

From the series, “Acts”. When the early church was filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in tongues in Acts 2:1-13, the crowds responded in astonishment and ridicule. Does the church today have enough new life in the Spirit to make onlookers make any comment at all?

From the series “Acts”. Disciples of Jesus are devoted to knowing, loving, and living the scriptures. Acts 1:15-26 shows us how to submit to God’s will and make decisions that please God in the context of community and through the direction of God’s word.

From the series, “Acts”. Disciples of Jesus live in community and are devoted to prayer. The early church in Acts 1:12-14 provides a model for praying during times of fear and uncertainty. 

When Jesus died and then again after his ascension, his earliest followers faced the confusion and doubts that naturally follow the loss of "normal" and the death of expectations, yet those difficulties gave way to joy and the birth of the Church. How? And what do we need to move through our current disorientation and disappointment and into the active hope that God's purposes for our lives and for His Church aren't interrupted by challenging circumstances or the death of our expectations? Acts 1:1-8

Presenting the Church to ourselves as Christ presents it to Himself is an act of Spiritual Warfare. We must see, behold, and love the Church as Christ loves her. 

God’s desire for his sons and daughters is to live fully awake, seeing clearly, and fully alive in relationship with him, even in the fog and confusion of our world today. 

In Luke 10:25-37, an expert in the Torah asks Jesus for his definition of a neighbor. Jesus responds in a parable, describing a neighbor as someone we become. 

With his unique sense of humor, Jesus teaches us that our vision is impaired and that we are misguided when we judge others before honest self reflection and confession. Luke 6:37-42