Starting Points

In Acts 15, the Pharisees are very upset because the Gentiles aren’t obeying the law of Moses, as related to circumcision (ouch!).  Peter stands up for the Gentiles by basically telling the religious leaders to get over it.  He also helped them to realize that they were trying to place something on the people that God didn’t require.  He tries to help them to understand that they were saved by grace, not by the law of Moses.

As I read this, I couldn’t help but think about how churches operate.  Often, we often condemn people for showing up to our worship services dressed the ‘wrong way’ or for not knowing the right words to say.  In our minds, we expect people to be fully devoted followers of Christ by the 2nd visit!

One of the things that is refreshing to me about Freedom Church is that we realize that the starting point for everyone is different.  We have to take people where they are.  They have no choice but to be there. There is no condemnation for people who didn’t wear the right thing or said a word that you probably wouldn’t normally say at church.  We realize that it is a process and no one changes overnight.

Our goal is to help them to take the next step in their journey with Christ.  For some, that will mean they need to just admit there is a God.  For some, it may be to accept Christ.  For others, it may be to begin praying or reading the Bible.

My prayer is that we continue to view people as God does.  In doing so, we have the opportunity to help people far from God to experience life in Christ!