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Christian Hope and Courage In an Age of Unbelief

Christian Hope and Courage In an Age of Unbelief. The Choluteca Bridge, Honduras. The river has moved!. Things have changed, haven't they? The River Has Moved!. Things have changed, haven't they? The River Has Moved! Question: What has changed in your lifetime?. 2000-2010:.

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Christian Hope and Courage In an Age of Unbelief

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  1. Christian Hope and Courage In an Age of Unbelief

  2. The Choluteca Bridge, Honduras

  3. The river has moved!

  4. Things have changed, haven't they?The River Has Moved!

  5. Things have changed, haven't they?The River Has Moved!Question:What has changed in your lifetime?

  6. 2000-2010: *Nationally, 21% of U.S. Christians reported being are in worship during the week. The American Religious Identification Survey

  7. What about us? *From 1990 to 2010, the LCMS lost over 500,000 members nationally *The average age of the LCMS member (2010) was 66 years old The American Religious Identification Survey

  8. 2010 Religious Census Erie and Niagara Counties *1,135,509 people live in Erie and Niagara counties *514,314 people claim no religious affiliation at all The American Religious Identification Survey

  9. 2010 Religious Census Erie and Niagara Counties 2010 (change 2000-2010) Roman Catholic: 404,842 (-217,944, -35%) Non-denom: 22,972 (---) United Methodist: 22,738 (-3,557, -13.5%) Muslim: 18,483 (+13,078, +242%) ELCA: 18,476 (-5,495, -22.9%) LCMS: 16,964 (-4,379, -20.5%) The American Religious Identification Survey

  10. 2010 Religious Census Erie and Niagara Counties 2010 (change 2000-2010) Roman Catholic: 138 local churches (-46) Non-denom: 86 local churches (---) United Meth: 63 local churches (-6) Muslim: 14 congregations (+7) ELCA: 45 local churches (-7) LCMS: 39 local churches (-4) The American Religious Identification Survey

  11. Question: What does this mean?

  12. We’re not in Jerusalem anymore, we’re in Babylon. - Dr. Bob Newton Question: What does this mean?

  13. Unless you want to place your head in the sand and leave it there, there’s no denying the fact that fewer and fewer people are claiming to be Christians throughout the West, and that Christians are losing social status and favor more and more, almost by day...we’re seeing “Christian America” pass away right before our eyes. -Matt Chandler

  14. We are living in an age of unbelief. Question: What does this mean?

  15. Question: What does this mean? Don’t stop be-lee-ee-vinHold on to that fee-ee-ee-li-inStreetlight peopleOh-o-oh(cue Fred for killer electric guitar solo)

  16. Things have changed. And maybe… it’s a great time to be a Christian. A single event changed how those closest to Jesus answered the question: Who is Jesus? “Do not be surprised, my brothers, if the world hates you. We know that we have passed from death to life.” -John 3:13-14

  17. Things have changed. And maybe… it’s a great time to be a Christian. A single event changed how those closest to Jesus answered the question: Who is Jesus? “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." -John 16:33

  18. Christian Hope and Courage In an Age of Unbelief

  19. Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than one’s fear. - James Neil Hollingworth

  20. Real courage takes place when you are anxious, when you are worried, when you just don’t know how to push through—but then there’s something more valuable, something greater than that fear. So though you feel fear, your actions are not driven by that fear. They are directed by something else. You step out with courage because there is something else that drives you—something that is greater than what you’re afraid of...where do we find that kind of courage?...We need to know God. -Matt Chandler

  21. Question: What did it look like when you experienced someone modeling Christian hope and courage?

  22. When fear presses in, what’s inside you?

  23. When fear presses in, what’s inside you? A single event changed how those closest to Jesus answered this question.

  24. When fear presses in, what’s inside you? Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him… Therefore encourage each other with these words. (1 Thessalonians 4:13-14, 18)

  25. When fear presses in, what’s inside you? For what we preach is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake...But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. (2 Corinthians 4:5,7-12)

  26. When fear presses in, what’s inside you? We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body. (2 Corinthians. 4:5,7-12)

  27. We won’t experience the hope & courage that comes from God if we keep looking inward for strength. Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes. (Proverbs 3:5-6)

  28. We won’t experience the hope & courage that comes from God if we keep looking inward for strength. I lift up my eyes to the hills—where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth (Psalm 121:1-2).

  29. We won’t experience the hope & courage that comes from God if we keep looking inward for strength. The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? (Jeremiah 17:9)

  30. We won’t experience the hope & courage that comes from God if we keep looking inward for strength. God is always trying to give us good things, but our hands are always too full to receive them. -St. Augustine

  31. Are you looking upward, or inward? It’s okay to feel fear. That’s normal. That’s human. We’re weak and frail. But we must not stay in that place. We must move beyond it. We must learn to lean on something bigger; we must find something greater that transcends it—or rather, we must learn to lean on Someone greater. The courage we need only comes from getting our eyes off of ourselves, and onto the Lord. -Matt Chandler

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