Tuesday, April 19, 2011

 

Core Belief: Jesus died for our sins ...

Paul describes the core belief this way: Jesus died for our sins according to the Scriptures, he was buried, and he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.

That is my doctrinal position. That is the core doctrine of Southern Hills. Jesus died for our sins, was buried, and came back to life.

When asked what we believe, it is that we are Jesus people. He died for our sins. Cross centered doctrine. Cross centered commitment. Cross centered living.

That's what we believe. That is who we are.

There is so much contained in that simple phrase. It is not about us, but Jesus. We are all sinners. We are all saved by the grace of the cross. We are forgiven.

We are Scripture people. His death and resurrection were foretold in the Old Testament Scriptures. That is the good news in the New Testament Scriptures.

He was buried. For three days. It is real.

He was raised. He came to life. We believe it. I believe it. Because he did... we will. I will.

That's it. That is what my core belief system is. Jesus died for my sins, he was buried, and he was raised. Cross and Resurrection.

That's who we are at Southern Hills.

Cross and Resurrection.

Comments:
Don't forget the "he was raised on the third day according to the scriptures, and he appeared" -- that means more than heaven in the future, it also means power and the Holy Spirit in the meantime. It means we are not alone to try to do this on our own -- when we read the story or tell the story of Jesus, he is Immanuel (Matt 1:23), and when we live in genuine community in fellowship and worship he is with us (Matt 18:20), and when we serve others -- especially our brothers and sisters in Christ -- we are serving him (Matt 18:40), and when we cross cultural barriers to help others become true followers of Jesus he is with us (28:20). Jesus died for us, but he is also alive for us and is with us now, and so he asks us to live for him. It IS all about Jesus!
 
Amen.
 
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