How Do You Define the Christian Faith?

We live in a very confusing world that continues to deny Jesus Christ. That confusion even extends to our faith. Christianity can be defined in many ways, but today we will examine what the Bible teaches is the real meaning of the Christian faith.


Scripture: John 12:20-36
Now there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the Feast. They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. “Sir,” they said, “we would like to see Jesus.” Philip went to tell Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told him.

Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it does, it produces many seeds. The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.

“Now my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!”

Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.” The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to him.

Jesus said, “This voice was for your benefit, not mine. Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out. But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself.” He said this to show the kind of death he was going to die.

The crowd spoke up, “We have heard from the Law that the Christ will remain forever, so how can you say, ‘The Son of Man must be lifted up?’ Who is this ‘Son of Man’?”

Then Jesus told them, “You are going to have light just a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you. The man who walks in the dark does not know where he is going. Put your trust in the light while you have it, so that you may become sons of light.” When he had finished speaking, Jesus left and hid himself from them.


Renewing Reflections:
It is our prayer that Renewing Reflections will be a blessing in your life this coming week. This quote is taken from the sermon How Great Is Your Commitment? delivered on Christian Crusaders January 24, 2010 by Rev. Larsen:

We must ask ourselves how serious our commitment to Jesus is as he presents himself as our only Savior and God. He never would have been sent to the cross if he had only claimed to be a great teacher and a fine moral example. Many people, even some in our churches who sit in the pew or stand in the pulpit, deny his divinity. Jesus is a great religious leader, is as far as they will go. The rest is irrational. How great is our commitment? We all would like to admit that much growth is needed in our commitment to him, but as we examine our lives, we can say with Paul that God is at work in our lives. We have not arrived where we want to be, but we press on. We are not satisfied with our commitment to our Savior, but neither are we discouraged, for we feel his presence.


Prayer Warriors
Do you know someone who will be unable to attend church on Easter? It might be a member of your church who is homebound, or a relative who will be traveling that day. If so, consider telling them about Christian Crusaders, so they won’t miss hearing the important message of Easter and sharing in the joy of the Resurrection.


On the Light Side
Words that Don’t Exist, but Should

Aquadextrous (ak wa deks'trus) adj. Possessing the ability to turn the bathtub tap on and off with your toes.

Carperpetuation (kar'pur pet u a shun) n. The act, when vacuuming, of running over a string or a piece of lint at least a dozen times, reaching over and picking it up, examining it, then putting it back down to give the vacuum one more chance.

Disconfect (dis kon fekt') v. To sterilize the piece of confection (lollipop) you dropped on the floor by blowing on it, assuming this will somehow 'remove' all the germs.

Elbonics (el bon'iks) n. The actions of two people maneuvering for one armrest in a movie theater.

Frust (frust) n. The small line of debris that refuses to be swept onto the dust pan and keeps backing a person across the room until he finally decides to give up and sweep it under the rug.

Lactomangulation (lak' to man gyu lay' shun) n. Manhandling the "open here" spout on a milk container so badly that one has to resort to the 'illegal' side.

Phonesia (fo nee' zhuh) n. The affliction of dialing a phone number and forgetting whom you were calling just as they answer. Pupkus (pup'kus) n. The moist residue left on a window after a dog presses its nose to it.