Advancing the Gospel together - that's going to be our theme for this year and the next.
At first look it seems we are talking about sharing the gospel and evangelism. Well, yes, but it is much more.
The Gospel of Jesus is what defines our faith and our relationship with God. It also provides us a big picture understanding of the world and how we are to live, love, and labour. Therefore, you could say, the Gospel is really a good place to start, like Do-Re-Me!
But don't forget the 'together' part.
Our God who is the triune God - Father,Son and Holy Spirit - exists in eternal fellowship and unity. It is not surprising then that everything that comes from God to his people has a basis in community, in relationships.
For instance, we cannot talk about love, when there is no one to love. Now think about loving someone who is difficult and hostile! That would be like Jesus giving his life for his 'enemies' as Paul reminded us! And this is real love in action.
So, getting the start point right will also help us in our outreach and evangelism obviously. There's so much to do and only this much we can do. More importantly, we need to figure out what God wants us to do, and why. This is why Hope EFC is going back to basics!
