"…that God may open a door (Col. 4:3)"
Peter & John (Page 2)
Being sick for a prolonged period of time or losing your job. Is that suffering? Apparently not. Jesus and the apostles endured the most heinous of treatment, and counted it as a blessing: “They called the apostles in and had them flogged…” but they went away “REJOICING” (Acts 5:40 NIV). In this lesson, Mike explores how we view the concept of suffering and the ways it can change our perception of life.
What could you say as you talk to people about the hope you have in Jesus? Would you be able to share a “life-changing” message? Using the beauty of ancient cathedrals as an illustration, Pete asks if we have made room for that “life-changing” work in our own lives so that we can share it with others.
In this lesson, Jay breaks down 1 Peter 3 into three distinct parts – the challenge to submit (!), the opportunity to share one’s faith, and a reminder of the importance of Christian baptism.
God’s intent is that we be transformed! Peter said that once we were not “a people,” but now we are “the people of God,” a “royal priesthood” (1 Peter 2:10 NIV). But that doesn’t happen without transformation. We are not priests, we become priests. God, through his saving grace, transforms us from sinners to his Chosen People.
This sermon begins a series that will follow along with our Wednesday night Summer Series study on the books of 1-2 Peter and 1-3 John. Peter says the death of Jesus “ransomed” mankind from an “empty way of life” (1 Peter 1:18 NIV). That ransom was accomplished by the trading of one life for many,…