My Truth, Part 1

–

2 Corinthians 5:17
“If anyone is in Christ, he or she is a new creation.”

–

Galatians 2:20
“I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ lives in me, and the live I now live I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave His life for me.”

–

Idols
1. Consumerism or Materialism
2. Radical or Expressive Individualism
3. Sexuality
4. Politics or Partisan Identities

–

Ephesians 2:1-5
And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved.

–

Preston Sprinkle
“Sometimes how you believe is just as important as what you believe.”

–

The Lie
Image is more important than identity.

–

John Mark Comer
“Amazon is the new temple. The visa statement is the new alter. Double clicking is the new liturgy. Lifestyle bloggers are the new priests. Money is the new god.”

–

Marshall Goldsmith
“We think we are in sync with our environment, but actually it is at war with us. We think we control our environment but in fact it controls us. We think our external environment is conspiring in our favor…when actually it is taxing and draining us. It is not interested in what it can give us. It is only interested in what it can take from us.”

–

Luke 12:13-34
“Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” But he said to him, “Man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?” And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” and he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”’ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.” And he said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest? Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them. Instead, seek His kingdom, and these things will be added to you them. Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

–

Richard Foster
“The clear witness of Scripture is that something beyond our good intentions and willpower is needed to transform our egocentric greed-captivated personalities…”

–

Going Against Consumerism
1. Live a life of simplicity.

–

GK Chesterton
“There are two ways to get enough: accumulate more and more, or desire less and less.”

–

Reorder your life to where God is central and your whole life is arranged around Him.

–

Practical Steps
1. Drop something from your calendar.
2. Pick a possession you have that you have some attachment to, that consumes you thoughts and time and get rid of it or give it to someone.

–

Going Against Consumerism
2. Live a life of generosity.