A Humanizing and God-Glorifying Community + Young Professionals Tonight!
Good morning, Immanuel. The grace of Christ creates a community that restores our worship of God (vertical) and beautifies our relationships with others
"When Peter entered, Cornelius met him and fell down at his feet and worshiped him. But Peter lifted him up, saying, “Stand up; I too am a man” (Acts 10:25-26).
The type of community the grace of Christ creates is both humanizing and deeply committed to God's glory. The gospel message humbles us all and reminds us that we belong in the family of God by grace alone, and not by anything we have brought to the table. A community built on gospel grace is both humanizing and committed to God's glory.
We see this in Peter's encounter with Cornelius. The gospel broke down the walls of hostility between Jews and Gentiles, and so God sent Peter to the house of Cornelius, a Gentile military officer. When Cornelius fell down to worship Peter, Peter refused to accept it, so as to say, "I am not God. Only God is worthy of worship." The grace of Christ creates a posture in our hearts that rejoices in God's glory alone. This same grace also creates a posture of heart that seeks to dignify our fellow image-bearing neighbors. Notice how Peter lifted Cornelius up with a gentle response, "Stand up; I too am a man." Peter is basically saying, "You are not less than me. I am no greater than you. We are equals." The grace of Christ evens the playing field, reminding us that we are all made in the image of God and both in need of grace. And through the blood of Christ, we both have the same access to God. We are both on the inside!
The grace of Christ creates a community that restores our worship of God (vertical) and beautifies our relationships with others (horizontal). May we continue to embrace both of these realities.
YOUNG PROFESSIONALS GATHERING
Join us tonight for our monthly Young Professionals gathering at 6:30 PM. We will meet at Immanuel for dinner, fellowship, and a time of encouragement. This month we will kick off a series of conversations with some of our own Immanuel folks from different professional fields to hear how their faith in Jesus intersects with their work.