Christianity does not open by telling us how we must live. Instead, it begins by telling us what Jesus did for us in history. He humbled Himself and became a man, who lived a perfect life and died on the cross for the sins of all who repent and believe. However, He did not remain in the tomb! Three days later, He arose, victorious over death! As the Apostle Paul wrote, "...if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain...But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead..." (1 Corinthians 15:14, 20) The resurrection changes everything. In this series we'll consider the truths of Christ's sacrifice and resurrection, and how these truths transform us to live to the glory of God!

How important is it for Christians to live in harmony with one another? Francis Schaeffer said it well, "We cannot expect the world to believe that the Father sent the Son, that Jesus's claims are true, and that Christianity is true unless the world see some reality of the oneness of true Christians." So how important is it? Extremely important! But how is this achieved, and what does it look like? We'll explore this today.

Main Text: Colossians 3:16An important role of church leaders is teaching and admonishing (cf. Ephesians 4:11-12; 1 Timothy 3:2; 2 Timothy 2:24-25). But did you know that Paul also expected all Christians to teach and admonish one another? For example, Colossians 3:16a says, "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom …" (cf. Romans 15:14). The work of teaching and admonishing is not confined to church leaders; it is a work all believers are commanded to perform. But how is this supposed to work? Today, we’ll see the answer from God’sWord!

Let's welcome our guest speaker, Craig Apel as he preaches on 2 Corinthians 12:1-10. We need to develop a biblical theology of suffering; believing that God has a purpose for our pain and having faith in him to use it for his glory and our good.

Here at Lighthouse we have the firm conviction that God is sovereign. Not sovereign in the sense of generally orchestrating the major actors in the world, but sovereign in a meticulous way. So much so that we can affirm with the Westminster Confession of Faith, "God from all eternity did, by the most wise and holy counsel of His own will, freely and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass …" In other words, nothing happens unless God has ordained it. That is meticulous sovereignty. Yet this raises a number of important questions, one of which has to do with prayer: if God is sovereign, can prayer really change anything? If we don’t think prayer changes anything, then we’ll probably find it difficult to carry out this crucial command to pray for one another.

Can you think of a time when a friend or loved one encouraged you? Can you think of a time you intentionally sought to encourage another? Someone has said, "More people fail for lack of encouragement than for any other reason." Whether that is true or not, our Lord knows that we need encouragement; you can only go so long without it! So it should be no surprise that we are commanded to encourage one another. A one another church will be a community marked by encouragement. Let’s explore this command with a heart to obey!

Every person has burdens in life. A burden can be a duty or responsibility that we carry, or it can be a trial, like a health problem, a financial struggle, a loss, or a relationship difficulty. Sometimes the burdens of life are too heavy to carry by ourselves; we need brothers and sisters in Christ to come alongside and help shoulder the weight. This is what we typically think about when we read Paul’s command in Galatians 6:2, "Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ." While it is true that we should seek ways to help one another in health problems, financial struggles, etc., the context indicates that Paul had something else in mind when he commanded believers to bear one another’s burdens. Today, we’ll learn what this means and how we can live it out to the glory of God!

Acceptance is something every person longs for, and according to the Apostle Paul, Christians should find it and offer it in their local community of Jesus followers. But acceptance is often lacking in the body of Christ. As fallen sinners we tend to accept only people who are like us: people who share our views, or our economic status, or our level of education. This becomes a problem because of the inherent diversity in local churches, as God often calls people who have different views on various matters, rich and poor, educated and uneducated. So if we do not practice the command of accepting one another, we will most surely be divided. May the Holy Spirit illumine us and empower us to accept one another for the glory of God.

📖 This Week’s Message: Is Abortion Morally Wrong?According to Pew Research Center, 63% of Americans believe abortion should be legal in all or most states. A member of the Planned Parenthood Clergy Advisory Board, Reverend Mark Bigelow, said, “Even as a minister I am careful what I presume Jesus would do if he were alive today, but one thing I know from the Bible is that Jesus was not against women having a choice in continuing a pregnancy. He never said a word about abortion (nor did anyone else in the Bible) even though abortion was available and in use in his time.” It is true that Jesus never spoke about abortion. So what are we to make of this? Should we be silent on the issue? Should we let each person decide for themselves and then affirm wherever they end up? Today, we’llcarefully examine what God’s Word has to say.

As we continue looking at the “one another” commands of the New Testament, the next one can be exceptionally difficult. In Ephesians 4:32 and Colossians 3:13 we are commanded to forgive one another. As people who claim to have been forgiven by God, we ought to be forgiving of one another. Once our eyes have been opened to see the depth of our sins against God, the sins committed against us appear microscopic. How then could we withhold forgiveness We cannot. We must forgive, just as God in Christ has forgiven us.