With any cultural debate, we need only to bring it back to the garden to gain clarity and understanding as to what our approach should be to that issue. What do I mean by “bring it back to the garden?” As followers of Christ, we believe that God is the source of all truth and is the standard for what is right and wrong. We do not live by our own opinion, nor do we live our lives based on the opinions of the government, media or current cultural norms. In the beginning, God defined all things; Man, Women, Purpose, Identity, Marriage, Sexuality and even Gender. This means that God, not man, has created the boundaries for what is right and wrong, for what is and what is not and also what we should do and what we should not do in each of these areas. The bible is consistent in laying out the boundaries or lines that we are called to live within. These boundaries are for our protection and have been shown over and over throughout history to lead to a more joyful and blessed life. But God has also given us freewill and allows us to choose to live within these boundaries and definitions or not. Essentially, we get to choose if we draw inside the lines, or outside the lines. We are not, however, free from the consequences of what we decide. Any current cultural debate on any of these subjects is always potentially dangerous because often people are encouraged by the forces around them to live their lives outside of the boundaries God has laid out for them. Any time this happens, when people sleep with someone who is not their spouse, or seek out purpose and pleasure in life in things that will not provide fulfillment, there is a danger to that person, both physically, emotionally, mentally and even spiritually. This is also true when it comes to the current debate over gender and men claiming to be women and whether or not to allow children to make choices in an area they are not mentally capable of making. There is a great danger here because people are being encouraged to live a life that is outside of Gods intended design. This is not only dangerous, it is evil. The devil loves to take the definitions or boundaries of God and twist and pervert them to become something else. He is always questioning or leading people to question God. He did it when he whispered, “Did God really say…?” into the ear of Eve and he whispers similar things into our ear today: “Why can’t a man become a woman if they want to?” or “Why can’t you sleep with whoever you want to?”. There is great danger in living life by how we feel and elevating that above the truth of God. We either choose to live by the truth of God or we choose to live by a man-made lie. When we live a lie, one thing will always eventually happen. That lie will always lead to bondage, suffering, death and greater separation from God….both in this life, and for all of eternity. I always like to inject hope into these types of conversations. God is always willing to forgive and help us to get our lives back inside the lines. Ultimately, nothing is truly a threat to God or to His Word. We know that God wins and He is sovereign over all. The threat lies in not the war itself, but in the casualties of that war, which we as christian are fighting to save and we introduce people to the truth and saving grace of Jesus.

So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. Genesis 1:27

A focus on service, humility, and leadership using the lives of Moses, Nehemiah and others to depict what strong Christian character looks like. Special attention will be given to the outworking of Christian character in society as Christians take a stand on ethical issues.

A biblical study of the institution of marriage with a focus on marriage roles. Special attention will be given to understanding family dynamics and applying authority and responsibility in parenting. Special emphasis will be put on the importance of our words in fostering healthy relationships.

Abort Abortion
Mark Driscoll