Element Christian Church of Santa Maria

Jesus always compelled those around him to be something MORE than they were. People knew Jesus’ love, grace, and righteousness by simply being around Him. They didn’t feel condemned, they felt called to something GREATER.

Through His death upon the cross Jesus has, once and for all, tasted the abandonment from God that we deserve. Though we will know times of dryness and depression with God seeming absent from us, He abandoned His Son so He never leaves or forsake us.

The Old Testament never shifts from the conviction that relationship with God is the ultimate ground of hope. It is God himself who is the hope of Israel. It is only by focusing our gaze on Him that we find a source of confidence and patience.

In its most basic sense, “hope” is a relational term. It is a great affirmation of trust in God, not because the believer knows what is ahead, but because God is known as wholly trustworthy.

• Psalm 119:49-50 “Remember your word to your servant, in which you have made me hope. This is my comfort in my affliction, that your promise gives me life.”

• Psalm 130:7 “O Israel, hope in the Lord! For with the Lord there is steadfast love, and with him is plentiful redemption.”

The scriptures seldom use “hope” in a doubt-filled way. Instead, hope focuses its attention on God and fills us with eager expectation. No one who learns to hope in a biblical way will ever be overcome by disappointment but will be filled with patience, encouragement, and enthusiasm.

Singleness is a gift, just like marriage is a gift. Instead of viewing singleness as something that we are stuck with, we should view it as a blessing, a period in life where we can fully devote ourselves to God and His work. 1 Corinthians 7:33,34. IF you are single, do you believe any of the lies that the world tells about singleness and dating? IF you are married, are you encouraging these lies or speaking truth?

In bringing to a close the Song of Solomon, there is a final thought we would like to leave with you concerning all we have talked about. Nothing involving sex exists independent of, and disconnected from everything around it. How we act determines the kind of world God calls us to steward.

God’s Love is personal (He Loves You), protective (steps between you and the enemy), powerful (redeems us from sin), possessive (calls you His child), passionate (God pursues His children with great love), it perseveres (He holds us when we fall), and it is priceless (our salvation is secured through Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection). Our love for each other is to echo God’s love for His people.

Worship for a Christian was never supposed to stop at the church doors; it was to be an integral part of every aspect of their lives. For a believer, worship is everything that they do, as everything is to be done in a way that honors God.

God intends that husbands and wives experience true sexual freedom in marriage.