Seeking Salvation : Christianity, Faith, Methodism

  Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,   gentleness and self-control. Against such things, there is no law. Have you ever thought about fruit? What is a fruit? According to Wikipedia (The source of all information, am I right?...No...)  "Fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants disseminate their seeds." (1) To make a fruit requires a flower and flower requires a plant and plants need roots.  The root of the fruit of the Spirit is Love. God is Love and God gives good gifts. God gives us all of Creation. God gives us Life and God gives us knowledge or Light to everyone. Jesus, God enfleshed in humanity was the plant. Through Jesus humanity was taught how to love the least, the marginalized, and the forgotten within society and sacrificed Himself so all have had the...

     This week I will be teaching Romans 5:12-21. To understand Sin within the church, discussing what sin is and isn’t is important. Sin is a spiritual state of separation from God. It’s a state that we flow through. Sometimes we are close to God, and sometimes there is a chasm between us and God. Anything that causes this chasm is a sin. Sin is unique to the individual. Each of us is impacted differently by sin and its individuality. Sin, though, is not: o          Based on the opinions of the media. o          What the politicians or activists tell you it is. o          Sin is not between you and other humans. It’s between your spirit and God.      When sin shows up in the plural, discount it because what is coming is human judgement. We are hard enough on ourselves! The Bible says that sin came into the world through Ada...

Sin can often hinder our spiritual growth and create separation from God in the faith journey. However, Christ’s sacrifice on the Cross transformative power, as Paul highlights in Romans 6.1–14, offers hope and redemption. This blog post delves into the significance of Sin, the role of communal and individual Sin, and how faith can help us overcome Sin and rediscover spiritual renewal. Sin is a spiritual separation from God, not societal or legal transgressions. It is unique to each individual and should be seen as a personal offense against God. Societal norms are not Sin. They may have consequences for breaking them, but God isn’t in them. Right now, the US is in the throes of communal Sin. It is tearing us apart. How can we differentiate communal Sin from individual Sin? When communities and countries collectively fail to protect marginalized individuals or seek justice for those wronged by society, they lose the collective soul of the country or community. Many popular political an...

  In Romans 6:1-14, the apostle Paul writes about abandoning sin and choosing faith. But what the heck is sin? We talk about it; we assign human traits and judgements, but what? Sin is a spiritual state in which we are separated from God. The core teaching of the church is this. God saw that we were spiritually distant from God because of our sin. God put on flesh and came to Earth as Jesus. Jesus simplified the various laws given in the 10 commandments. The commandments had two purposes: to ensure humanity loved God and their neighbors. Right? But society set many guidelines, rules, and institutions that God was not loved, and our fellow humans were hurt! The Roman authorities executed Jesus because he represented a threat to their order. Something happened during this execution because Christians believe that our sin was forgiven in dying. God sacrificed God’s self to may our relationship right with God. But people began to have encounters. They claimed to see and experience a ...

 This is the Blog for Pastor Eric Pone, Lead Pastor at Bloomington Hillcrest Church