Can you imagine how strange it would have been to be a Christian in the first couple of decades of the church's existence? No long tradition. No parents and grandparents telling you about Jesus and bringing you. No church buildings - anywhere. No catechisms, hymnals with the old favorites or contemporary and traditional books. In most cases, no pastors serving full time. If you were not telling the story, it would die.

BUT - the same Christ! The same Father. The same Holy Spirit. The same eternal life. The same passion for living life as God's recreated people. 1 Peter 4:1-11 talks about leaving one way of thinking and living for another. No more of living life by human passions, desires, in licentiousness, drunkenness, revels, carousing, lawless idolatry. It does not sound like they had a very successful past life. But people around noticed they were different. They were driven by a new passion: Praising, honoring, loving, serving CHRIST, the eternal God and Lord, the one who made them new.

Many put each human being in the center of any endeavor. Many say the church must address the needs of the people. Find out what they need and want, and give it to them. That results in never facing the reality of sinfulness and God's awesome grace in Christ, to die to self and rise to our God's mercy. Peter calls the Christians to be passionate about loving each other and serving each other with the strength of God himself. Christ drives our mission. His heart becomes our new heart. His death delivers us from putting ourselves in the center.

But we revolt, rebel, let others act, distance ourselves from challenges, all in the name of self preservation and control. The new passion is built in - from the heart of our God who died to give us eternity - into our hearts - and to the hearts of others. No mission - no passion - no church - no body of Christ. Gather with fellow Christians, get to know them better, care for them, be part of their lives and they are of yours - and share the mercy of Christ all around. We need the whole family and we take God at his promise that we can grow by grace through faith and have real peace and joy and desire for service.

In Christ our Lord and Savior,
Pastor Thomas Trapp