"Married....Now What?‪"‬ Pastor Philip A. Jackson

The term "Christian" was first use to describe the followers of Jesus in Acts 11. The term initially meant "little Christs." The Bible says that as believers progress in their faith, they will naturally start emulating God's character (fruits of the Spirit in Galatians 5). In this lesson, Pastor Philip Jackson continues his series on living out practical theology in everyday life. This passage of 1 John 2 lays out the impact of a culture of obedience and the love that should be produced in the life of a child of God.



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When a person first comes to faith, learning about God seems daunting. Challenges arise as we compare our knowledge of scripture with others and measure our “success” by how well we answer difficult questions. Often, this leads to insecurities that can ultimately drive us away from the very things God meant to heal us. In this lesson, we will explore what the apostle John saw as the foundation of Godly life and how it contrasts with the lives of the lost.



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As the debates around Jesus continued, the political climate in Rome became more complicated when it fell to the Goths in 410. For the first time in 800 years, the “eternal city” was sacked. In response, the church had to bring order and the fractures between Rome and Constantinople began to grow. The first major sign of division happened about 100 years after Constantine embraced the faith (Council of Ephesus, 431). This council would debate the role of Mary and the humanity of Christ but would lose its credibility under the shadow of political intrigues.

After the condemnation of Arius at Nicaea in 325 the church continued to debate about who Jesus was. If Nicaea (325) decided “how it happened,” Constantinople (381) debated “what happened.” The big question to be answered regarded the work of the Holy Spirit in the incarnation of Christ. But, as Christianity became more popular in the empire political pressure began to grow on the church. The stakes were changing for how these questions would be answered as the weight of their answers would shape the rest of history.



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The importance of the deity of Jesus cannot be overstated. As believers spread the gospel around the world, many followed Paul’s example by using cultural similarities to convince people of the truth. They leaned on Greek culture and the worldview of some of the great philosophers who taught that a supreme being ruled the world. While this was an effective evangelistic tool at first, eventually some theologians began to drift away from orthodox teaching. This led to a great debate about who Jesus was and what the church believed. 



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When God finished creation, He said that it was, “very good” (Gen. 1:31). Since then, His enemies have tried to poison our view of the created world and undermine it. Healthy believers have learned to see these tactics for what they are, an attack on God’s redemptive work in the world. Even now, God is working in the lives of His people to show them how to live out their salvation. But as His redemption unfolds, His children must see the tactics of the enemy and combat it with the truth of His word.



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