"Our City needs us, our country needs us, our world needs us, because we have something that should radically transform how we respond to this. It can't radically fix the virus, but it can transform how they see it and how they respond to that."

 

Pastor David Baxley continues our series, Chosen To Be Set Apart, taking us through the book of 1 Peter. This week, we focused on Chapter 4, verses 7-11, which deals with love, serving one another, with what God has given us, and true hospitality.

"The beauty and sacredness of marriage means that as we give ourselves more to that person, as the two become one flesh, when that oneness is violated, when that oneness is robbed, when that oneness is hurt, that hurts us like nothing else does. God wants us to recognize that in light of the hurt, we can get this painfully wrong."

 

Pastor David Baxley continues us through our series "Chosen to be Set Apart" going through the book of 1 Peter. This week, we started going through 1 Peter 3:1-7 by giving important context to the verses, and we continue next week by diving in deeper with that context in mind.

"God wants us to see that not only did he pay the ransom for us, but that before we were ever created, God knew we would rebel, he knew we would run away from our Father, he knew we would resist the calling he has on our lives. Before he ever created us, he said 'Jesus, I choose you to be the one that's going to eventually pay the ransom, in your blood, so they can be restored to relationship with me.' And Jesus willingly submitted to the plan of the Father."

 

Pastor David Baxley preaches to us from Gods Word on what it means to be set apart to obey God.

"We are blessed by God to bless others. As we get to see that, we begin to realize this truth that everything we have God gave to us for a reason that's bigger than ourselves. It's much bigger than who we are. Much bigger than the blessing it is for us or the comfort it provides for us. It's something that's about his kingdom. Something about his glory. Something about what he wants to accomplish"

 

Pastor David Baxley preaches to us from God's word on what it looks like to have radical generosity in every part of our lives.

"Fear actually makes us begin to live like fools. We begin to indulge ourselves and what we want instead of the life that God has for us. It deceives us into missing what Jesus is sitting there offering us. Remember: He gave us exactly what we needed, exactly for what He created us for, and to do. None of us are lacking what God gave us to do what he's asking of us, and what He created us for, and any belief of that is just a lie of Satan to rob us of the life that we're meant to have to the fullest."

 

Pastor David Baxley shows us what God says about our purpose and giftings, and what the rewards or consequences are of how we live according to them.

"As we see God, know God more, and love God more, we have an awe for him; A fear of knowing holiness of God and his call for us. A call to live up to that standard, the work he started in us to honor him, and to live for him with our lives that he died and paid for with his blood. But also there is a reasonable fear that comes in knowing that God has given us the call to holiness because the power of sin is destructive. Even as believers, when we hold on to sin the consequences of it are painful. God knows that the great calling he has for us is to run from sin and toward him. So, part of fearing God is seeing the true destructive power of sin if we choose to stay away from God’s call to live in Awe of him."