Today’s Key Verses:

Luke 7:50

50Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

Five simple words that define the message of Christianity – your faith has saved you.

As we learned yesterday, faith is the one thing that makes a relationship with God possible. Faith, as it means here, is putting all of your hopes, dreams, aspirations, future, dependency – your everything – in the hands of God. It means depending on Him completely for, above all else, the forgiveness of the sin in your life that separates you from Him. It is the recognition that you can do nothing to get to God on your own.

It is much like the analogy I used yesterday of getting on an airplane. At that very moment you are putting all of your faith in the hands of a pilot. You are 100 percent dependent on him for your well being. Where he goes, you do to. When he lands, you land. When he takes off, you take off.

When you examine your life, who has control? Who are you depending on to get you where you need to be? Is it all up to you? Is it money? Is it your children? A job? Is it doing good things and hoping they outweigh the bad things?

Or is it Christ? Faith in Him alone is what will save you from the separation from God that we all deal with as a result of our sin.

Today’s Prayer:
Thank God for giving you an opportunity to have relationship with Him through Jesus. Ask Him to show you areas of your life where you are trying to hang on to control rather than having complete faith in Him. Ask God to forgive you of any sin that may separate you from Him so that you can live a life that makes a difference as you live for Him.

Thanks for an awesome day yesterday. I love what God is doing through you and us at OneLife!

Rodney Arnold
OneLife Church

Wow. That’s all I can say. The momentum that God has sent to OneLife is like riding a tidal wave. You know it’s coming and there’s nothing you can do but hold on for dear life and see where it takes you. Every week is an adventure and this week was no different!

• The worship we experience each week and give to God is phenomenal. It just keeps getting better. If I weren’t baptist I would say it’s like a fine wine
• This week’s was especially cool because Dillan was gone and we had an all-OneLife lineup in the band filling in for him. A guy named Zane Ellis did most of the leading with a little help from Justin Haun.
• Let’s just say they knocked it out of the park. There was a time or two I thought the roof was going to come off!
• The stories that we are hearing from OneLifers are just incredible. I got a call today from a OneLifer who has someone coming that we have been praying for since the summer and we think this person is REALLY close to making the next step toward relationship with Christ. That pumps me up and stories like that are starting to flood in!
• Speaking of that, 3 people started relationships with Jesus yesterday! WOW!!!
• Attendance was good, too. You always wonder what the drop off will be after a big day like last week because of our baby dedications. The drop wasn’t much with 223 people there.
• Is it all about numbers? Heck no! But each one of those numbers is a story, a life that God can change, or a family that can be kept together or restored. So do we want more of that happening? Heck yeah!
• Speaking of numbers, the number of people we have volunteering and making it happen each week baffles me. This week there were over 60 volunteers greeting, teaching kids, running tech, writing notes to guests, preparing kidz curriculums, and the list goes on. So proud of you, OneLife!
• This week I got to straight-up preach the Gospel message and I felt like it was the simplest I’ve ever made it. I pray that God uses it to help OneLifers share their faith and to help those who are trying to figure it all out come to the right conclusions.
• Next week kind of wraps up New Thru 30 because we talk about the last week of reading.
• But February 7 REALLY wraps it up in a HUGE way! Can’t wait to tell you what it is….
• Get ready, OneLife. Invite a friend and come Sunday ready to wear it out!

Today’s Key Verses:

Romans 8:1-4

1Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. 3For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man, 4in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit.

Today’s key verses utilize a pretty harsh image to make a hopeful point. The author says that in Christ, there is no condemnation. The same Greek word used here for condemnation also means to judge. So in Christ, we are no longer judged.

Imagine being on trial for the most awful crime. Murder. Rape. Abuse. No one wants to imagine that, but put yourself in that situation and imagine that you know you are guilty. And just as the judge’s gavel is about to fall, sentencing you to death, he stops. With love and compassion in his eyes, he looks at you and says, “Wait a second. I think you deserve a second chance. It doesn’t make sense and no one but I will understand. And not only do you deserve a second chance, I want to set you up for a life of success and hope. Not only am I not going to give you what you deserve, I am going to give you the opposite of what you deserve.”

Then the cuffs come off and you are set free.

This is the image of Christ that we read about today. That of a judge telling us that we are no longer judged. We have been set free. The righteousness that we could not attain on our own – no matter how hard we tried – is now freely given. Our slate is wiped clean and we finally have a second chance!

This is a reason to celebrate! It is reason to walk in victory and leave our pasts behind. As we head into this weekend, let’s do so thankfully and in awe of the second chance we have been given in Christ.

Today’s Prayer:
Focus your prayer today simply around thanks. Be in awe that no matter what your past may be, God has decided that you will not be judged. Instead, you will be given a second chance. Praise Him and thank Him for that gift, a gift you could not earn on your own no matter what. Thank Him for Jesus paying the price for you and taking the penalty that you should have paid.

Have a great weekend! Can’t wait to see you Sunday.

Today’s Key Verses:

2 Corinthians 8:10-12

10And here is my advice about what is best for you in this matter: Last year you were the first not only to give but also to have the desire to do so. 11Now finish the work, so that your eager willingness to do it may be matched by your completion of it, according to your means. 12For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what he does not have.

People hate to hear churches talk about money. And I can’t say that I blame them. Too many times churches have abused the generosity of others or given the impression that money is what’s most important.

The problem is magnified when we see how much the Bible talks about money. It means that churches should talk about money but yet walk the fine line of doing so in a way that points people closer to God rather than farther away.

Today’s key verses give us a great example to follow. Paul (the author of this letter) is writing to a church in the city of Corinth. This church had become key financial contributors to ministry and in this specific example they were collecting offerings to be distributed to the poor in Jerusalem.

We learn several great things from this passage. First, the people of this church were the first to have a desire to give. We can read between the lines to imagine that they were so passionate about their faith that they had a passion to align all areas of their lives with Christ – including their finances.

Second, Paul tells them to not just have the desire, but to finish the work. In other words, take the desire to do what is right financially and actually do it! Finally, he reminds them (and us!) that the amount doesn’t matter. Some can give a little and some can give a lot – what matters is giving in relation to what God has provided. These church members were familiar with the principle of tithing, which means giving the first ten percent. Paul is teaching that God only cares that we are being obedient with that and that He isn’t impressed with our amount. It would be better for a poor person to give a tenth of $1 than for a rich person to give less than a tenth but more money.

Being a giver is a reflection of what we truly believe about our heavenly Father because he was the ultimate giver in giving his son. When you examine all areas of your life, do you see the alignment in your finances? Are you giving back to God the first tenth of what he gives to you first? Remember: Generosity is not something God wants from you. It’s something he wants for you.

Today’s Prayer:
Start by thanking God for all that he has given you. Recognize that everything you have – car, house, money, etc. – is truly a gift from him. As such, ask him to give you the desire to give back a portion to him like the church in Corinth had the desire to give financially. Commit to him that you are going to do so starting now or continue doing so. Ask Him to give you the faith that he will take care of you and bless you according to your obedience and faith in this area.

I hope you have a great Friday tomorrow! Be praying about our services this Sunday and who you can invite to come with you.

Today’s Key Verses:

1 Corinthians 8:9
9Be careful, however, that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak.

One of the biggest things that ticked people off about Jesus during his day was that he offered such freedom to those who followed him. Jews were so used to being held down and defeated by religion and religious people that when Jesus offered them a way to God that also offered them freedom, they followed in droves.

You may have experienced that same freedom. At some point you were held down by rules or were scared away from God by religious people and their set of expectations that seemed impossible to live up to. But now those expectations are gone and that is a very good thing! Jesus came so that we would have an attainable way of having relationship with God.

However, sometimes our freedom can be a hurdle to others who don’t yet believe. They look at us through the eyes of religion and don’t understand. As such, Paul (the writer of this passage) is reminding us that we have a high standard to uphold so that others will one day be led to a faith in Jesus Christ.

As you look at your life, is there anything that would be a “stumbling block” to someone coming to know Christ as their Savior? Would those who are closest to you be pointed to God or away from Him when they look at your life?

Today’s Prayer:
Self-evaluation is tough. Ask God to show you what is in your life that may be a stumbling block to others. Ask Him to help you live in a way that points people closer to Christ. Commit to making the changes that may be necessary so that others will see Christ in you.

I hope you are having a great week. I’m already looking forward to Sunday!

Rodney Arnold
OneLife Church