Jesus, Friend of Sinners

 His opponents accused Jesus of being a "friend of sinners," as if that were a bad thing. As a sinner, it's good for me to have a friend in Jesus. As I follow him, should I be a friend of sinners too?

Repentance

 Jesus tells a story about two guys praying at the temple. One, the Pharisee, is sure of high own righteousness. He's a good guy. He avoids doing bad things and does the things we want our church people to do. The other guy, a tax collector, appears to have nothing going for him. He's a sinner and knows he's a sinner. But even knowing himself to be a sinner, he comes to God for mercy. Jesus commends the second guy, the sinner seeking mercy, not the guy whose life was centered on his own righteousness.

The Wesleyan Way: Life With God

 Using the metaphor of a map, we consider both the destination and journey of this thing we call "Christianity."

Whose Word Counts?

 Whose word counts in your life? The word of Jesus, crucified and risen?

The Wesleyan Way: How Far Do We Go?

 Jesus went all the way for us - all the way to the cross. How far should we go in response?

The Wesleyan Way: Spiritual Power

 From 2 Corinthians 4, we see that the way to spiritual power is through the weakness of the cross.

The Wesleyan Way: Turning Point

 John Wesley's life turned around when he was at a meeting at Aldersgate Street in 1738. We can encounter the same God in the same way and find the same life in Christ.

The Wesleyan Way: Purpose

 God us a purpose for us. How can we find and live into that purpose?

Imperfections of Faith

 In Mark 9 a father comes to Jesus, desperate to see his son healed. He has faith, but it's imperfect. He famously calls out to Jesus, "I believe - help my unbelief!"

Better Than Safety

 The disciples see Jesus walking on water. Peter has the crazy idea of getting out there with him. Amazingly, Jesus says, "Come on!"

How Many Lessons Does It Take?

 When Jesus challenges the disciples to feed 4000 (when they only have 7 loaves of bread), they have to learn to trust Jesus to do great things with the little they have to give him.

Back to the Beginning: Road Bumps

 In the story of Joseph and his brothers we see God taking the mess made by the family of Abraham and working redemption for them and through them. God wants to do the same thing with the mess his people make today.

Back to the Beginning: Covenant

God makes a covenant to bless Abraham and his family - and to make them a blessing to all the peoples of the world.