Jesus isn’t looking for godly people. He isn’t looking for able people. He isn’t looking for friendly people. Jesus died for helpless sinful enemies and guess what – that’s what we all were before He changed us and made us power-filled, righteous friends. Romans 5:6–116 For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. 8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. The giving of a perfect life for the life of a helpless, sinful enemy goes way beyond the rational. It has to be love from another realm. It is the supreme expression of selfless, unconditional love.

We were once alienated from God, we were His enemy. But Christ has brought peace between us and the Father. He wants us to know that we currently live in grace with full access to a relational God that gives us the victory. He wants us to live for a coming glory that will come one day for all who know the justification of Jesus Christ in their lives. The point is that the follower of Christ lives an incredible life. It is a life that is pointed all at God. Only He makes sense of what happens in the world around. Only He can supply what is needed to enforce the victory won by grace at the cross by Jesus. And one day we will have the ultimate redemption of this life as we live in the beauty of His glory.

Living by faith is not just for the great spiritual giants. In fact, it is the normal Christian life. Living by Faith Alone is the Normal Christian Life.When you get up each morning willing to hear from God and place all faith in how He leads in your life, there will be purpose, intimacy with Him and this grand adventure. People today are frustrated, angry, depressed, fatalistic, negative, selfish, greedy, powerless and it’s all because they have put their faith in man instead of the supernatural God. How do we get back to believing in God with all of our being?Faith Believes God Does the ImpossibleFaith Believes God Is Always AbleFaith is the Essence of a Relationship with God

The lives of the giants of the old Testament, Abraham and David are the best examples of how Righteousness has always been dispensed by God through people believing in Him. They are justified by their faith not their works, and were declared righteous in the eyes of God. Righteousness is Not the Result of Doing Good Things.Righteousness is Always the Result of Faith Alone.Righteousness is God’s Gift for Everyone Who Believes.

When Christ is living through you, people will matter to you. Courage wells up inside of you. There is a holy determination to love, to care, to be available to see how God might use you to bring the light of Christ into your sphere of influence. The more Jesus lives His life in us, the more people are going to matter to us. When Jesus is in control, we will not size people up for who they’ve been or how they’ve lived. We will see the possibilities of what God can do in their life. Jesus did that everywhere He went.

The vision; the dream for this series is that God’s people all over this area would simply become aware of their neighbors and care enough to meet them; get acquainted and see how God may work in that relationship. It’s not so much an evangelism effort as it is a love effort. How does the story of busy Mary and loving Martha fit in to the great command of loving our neighbors as ourselves?

Scripture teaches that we are either righteous or unrighteous and so we have a problem. Because if we are one or the other, we know we’re unrighteous because of sin. Scripture is telling us that the law or the assessment of your life based on how well you follow the rules is not where God’s righteousness is found. In fact, this is what the Old Testament law and all the prophets have been looking forward to all these centuries before. One day, the Messiah will come and He will give us what we can’t get ourselves, the righteousness of God.

The apostle Paul has created this completely hopeless situation that indicts all humanity in God’s eyes. We are helpless headed for God’s wrath. The scripture wants us to see our need so that God’s answer can be provided. In the following verses and chapters, Paul details the gospel, God’s answer. He says this in chapter 5.Romans 5:6–8 For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. 8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

When we rely on our outward behavior to let God know why He should accept us, we have become moralists.Tim Keller, a pastor and author wrote - "How do we know if we have lapsed into “Christian” moralism as the source of our righteousness? Whenever we brag about something we have done— when we rely on our own action, profession or identity— we are living as functional moralists.”

Associate Pastor Chris Graves used Hebrews 13:2 to teach about hospitality, Christ way. Is hospitality the same as entertaining? As Christians, we are not in the business of entertaining, rather we are in the business of building relationships by letting people in our lives, in our homes and pouring into them.