He is... We are

My prayer for us as a church this week is to discover the vast richness of the character of God.  He is far more than some distant entity.  He is intimate and longs to be known to each one of us.  When we take the time to discover Him further, we begin to realize the impact that has on our daily lives.  We start to trust who He is in every situation we encounter.  We start trusting our identity in Him and begin living in a way that is so very different to the world we find ourselves in.This Week’s Bulletin:https://thechapelingreen.cdn.prismic.io/thechapelingreen/Z63-hZbqstJ9-lA1_02.16.25AllWeNeed.pdf

In our culture of cherished personal freedoms, and most especially when there seems to be no harm done to others, the institution of marriage has been both diminished and re-defined.  What or who defines marriage?  What are the cultural norms for sexual intimacy outside of marriage?  What does God have to say about such things, in light of who He is and who He made us to be?  Marriage was designed, introduced, and defined by God for His Image Bearers with purpose and intent.  When we fulfill His design in our marriages, we also learn about who He is; the God who creates an intimate covenant with His people.  How do we live and love as those who think, believe, and act different than the culture around us?  And how do we respond in/with humility, in an area where there is so much failure among those who are His?This Week’s Bulletin:https://thechapelingreen.cdn.prismic.io/thechapelingreen/Z6TuxpbqstJ9-UTD_02.09.25HisCovenant.pdf

While some key cultural topics are relatively new, this one is as ancient as mankind itself. Heightened again by personal rights in a wonderfully diverse culture, the world reduces the concept of achieving life after death (that is, salvation) to be secured as a matter of personal preference. Faith becomes an end in-and-of itself. All ways are said to lead to eternal life, where no one way is better than another. Scripture teaches that redemption offered to God is necessary for life eternal, otherwise eternal death will remain. God Himself came to reveal His unique divine love, offering His unique redemption in the Person of Jesus. How do we love and respect people in our culture who faithfully believe differently? What role does humility play in this eternal life-saving message of grace that we have in the Gospel? What is at stake if we let go of this Truth? This Week’s Bulletin:https://thechapelingreen.cdn.prismic.io/thechapelingreen/Z5zX75bqstJ9-F9F_02.02.25HisRedemption.pdf

The topic of ‘gender plasticity’ is generally new to the world, but it seems to be passionately engaged by our culture. This is the idea that a person’s gender is fluid and determined by an individual’s subjective conditions and preferences, rather than objectively determined according to a person’s genetics and corresponding genitalia at birth. Scripture teaches that God’s design for gender is not subjective and fluid, but rather objective and binary as either male or female with purpose. Do we understand God’s design for man and woman that is not subject to personal preferences or predispositions? How do we hold to this understanding as we engage and love people who strongly disagree? This Week’s Bulletin:https://thechapelingreen.cdn.prismic.io/thechapelingreen/Z5K2-5bqstJ99zax_01.26.25HisDesignOutline1.pdf

We live in a culture that is obsessed with personal freedoms and personal rights.  And in this mindset of personal autonomy, linked to the abandonment of special creation by a divine Creator, we have devalued the sacredness of human life. The idea that mankind bears the Image of God seems nearly lost.  We believe that God created mankind in His Image, so as a result, the lives of all mankind are sacred, whether in the womb, or nearing physical death.  How does this truth change the way we handle our personal rights, and how do we communicate this truth with love and humility to others who strongly disagree?  How do we best love people around us amid this challenging issue? This Week’s Bulletin:https://thechapelingreen.cdn.prismic.io/thechapelingreen/Z4gso5bqstJ99gk6_01.19.25HisImage.pdf

Many of the loudest voices in our culture profess that all things came about by time and chance with no purpose or design.  The world often declares that the origin of the universe, the origin of life and the origin of humanity is something other than what the Scriptures teach.  We understand that God spoke the universe into existence and created life, with the climactic formation of humanity, His Image Bearers. How should we and do we hold onto the teaching of ‘Special Creation’ when the world around us differs so greatly, especially the academic sectors of higher education?  How do we love best the world in a spirit of truth with humility? What is at stake? This Week’s Bulletin:https://thechapelingreen.cdn.prismic.io/thechapelingreen/Z3_6QJbqstJ99RIl_01.12.25HisCreation.pdf

We acknowledge that much of what we know about who God is and who we are comes from the Word of God. In His Word and through His Word we know, believe, and live a life worthy of the God who made us. Scripture is a Lamp to our feet and a Light to our path. We believe that in Scripture we have the very Words of God. By His Word, the power of the Gospel of life is made known. So we seek to communicate this Truth, His Truth, with love and humility, expecting that the world around us will tend to reject the reality of Truth. How do we respond in/with humility? How do we love best the world around us? What is at stake? This Week’s Bulletin:https://thechapelingreen.cdn.prismic.io/thechapelingreen/Z3gLwJbqstJ99Bqw_01.05.25HisWords.pdf