Dallas, Baton Rouge and Minneapolis - What Would Jesus Say?

Dallas, Baton Rouge and Minneapolis

What Would Jesus Say?

Friday, July 8, 2016

Jeff Lampl

“though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does.
The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary,
they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and

we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”

2 Corinthians 10:3-5 (NIV2011)

Sunday’s Message on Joseph will be postponed so that we can instead address the shootings in Minneapolis, Baton Rouge and Dallas.  

The main thing that the first believers proclaimed to anyone who would listen was that Jesus had come back from the dead and is now Lord.  That meant that Jesus was/is now the King, CEO and COO of the world.   And because of this new reality everyone should now live in this new reality.  They then taught that Jesus is a very different kind of King from the kind of Kings they had been used to. 

Sunday’s message will address what kind of a King Jesus is and how each of us, as followers of this King, should think, talk, and act regarding the events of Thursday night and their relationship to race relations in America.  (read more)

As preparation for Sunday’s message I suggest that you read Romans chapters 1, 2 and 3 slowly and thoughtfully, asking yourself which category of person you tend to fall into. 

1.       Leave me alone, I just want to be happy and do my own thing.  Live and let live.  
     (Ro 1:21-32, note especially vs. 32)

2.       I may be bad, but at least I’m not as bad as those guys.  (Romans 2:1-11)

3.       The law abiding legalist.    (Romans 2:17-29)

4.       The overwhelmed by Grace Jesus followers who promiscuously offers that Grace to others. Romans 3:1-31, 5:1)

How do these passages challenge your thinking about Thursday night’s events and the state of race relations in America?