Seeking to be an authentic community of disciples, becoming more like Jesus - walking in step with God, alongside each other and seeing lives transformed
At CBC our Vision helps us to understand where we are headed, and our seven Core Values shape everything that we do and say.
Last week we took a break from our series, but today we continue our more detailed look at our Core Values. If you have missed any of these posts then use the links to catch up - or use the labels at the bottom of the page.
Our Core Values: Loving, Welcoming, Missional, Servant-hearted, Biblical, Spirit-led and Prayerful.
Today we're going to think about what it means to be Spirit-led.
Isaiah 55:8-9 we read:
'For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,' declares the Lord. 'As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.'Later this year we're going to be looking at the book of Judges. There are some fairly horrific stories in Judges, the result of the people turning their backs on God and everyone doing 'as they saw fit'. But there are other stories in the Bible where we find people making what seem to be good decisions - but they do so without asking God - and it turns out they did the wrong thing - because God's ways are not our ways...
One of the things that came out of the Vision and Values process last year was a desire as a church to do what God wants. To listen to God's Spirit and to be led by the Spirit. Not to do the things that we think are good ideas, but to do what God wants. But how easy do we find it to separate out our good ideas from what God is really saying?
This is part of the reason why we come together as a church meeting to listen to God - as God speaks through each of us. It's why we spend time in prayer - not just speaking but also listening. It's why we read the Bible - getting to know God and what he is like.
I'm sure many of us will have known what we thought was the prompting of the Spirit to do or to say something (usually something we didn't want to do) which we have then not done. Listening to the Spirit is something that we can learn. The more obedient we are, the more we get to know what the prompting of the Spirit feels like. The more we ignore the Spirit the less likely we are to know what the Spirit sounds like.
So the next time that you think that the Spirit is asking you to do something don't ignore him. If you're not sure ask the advice of a trusted mature Christian friend. And then step out in obedience and faith and see what God does.
