As we approach the new year of 2010, I thought it would be great to reflect on the Core Values of the CMA. It would be good to see how God has allowing us to live out these core values in the past year and how we can be challenged to focus and live them out more in the new year.
CORE VALUE # 1 - Lost people matter to God. He wants them found.
Read and reread Luke 19:10
Luke 19
Zacchaeus the Tax Collector
1Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. 2A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. 3He wanted to see who Jesus was, but being a short man he could not, because of the crowd. 4So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way.
5When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, "Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today." 6So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly.
7All the people saw this and began to mutter, "He has gone to be the guest of a 'sinner.' "
8But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, "Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount."
9Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. 10For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost."
When you read a passage like this you realize how much God loves people. Not just the people that know God because they have been taught before or
do things that look good". God loves all include sinners. A tax collector was not very well received amongst the people at that time. A tax collector was looked at as a crook, a criminal, a traitor to all the people. He would often take money from his people and give it to the Romans and many times take money for themselves. But Jesus took a tax collector and held him in honor and said he will have a meal with him. Jesus sought out the sinner and showed them that he loved them and wanted to be with them. Do we have the same thoughts about the sinners around us?
In this past year, have we done a good job recognizing that God loves the lost. Have we been a light in shining to unbelievers?
In this upcoming year, think about ways God wants you to reach out to the lost. Who are the people God is putting on your heart?
Pray for Boldness and Pray for Wisdom on how to do this
and
Prayer Calendar
Monday: Pray for your relationship with God
You are an amazing, beautiful creation! Thank God for making you his child.
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This is a really encouraging post. I just watched the movie Crash the other day. And throught the entire thing I could only where God came in through the ugliness of racial wars. I kept thinking (while gushing h2o from eye sockets) that all these people needed Jesus. How would I be able to help them?
ReplyDeleteNow I realize that my perspectives was off. jesus is definitly in control, only he can save people. This isn't saying that we should all sit around and nwait for Jesus to save people, we should go and make disciples of the nations understanding that God is the one in control.
-Ariel
sorry for crazy grammar errors. :)