Apprenticeships
available- Apply within.
Coming
home over the Woodhead pass the other day I saw one of those signs I generally
ignore. On the verge of a pristine road with clean white lining was the warning
‘No Road Markings’. 200 yards further down the redundant warning was repeated
at a clearly delineated junction. I caught myself wondering whether the faith
we profess as Christians (our ‘sign’ if you will) is borne out by the reality
of our life as others see it. Is the truth we profess with our lips borne
out by our behaviour? After all, it’s one thing to say ‘I believe…’ and another
to act as if it is true.
Jesus
addressed this issue directly, as one might expect. He knew that the key to
following him was to get the heart right, to ‘wash the inside of the cup’
as he put it. He knew that there is a huge difference between saying words
of faith and actually living them out. So many people have yet to make the
move from profession (saying the words) to practice (actually following Jesus’
teaching).
Jesus
instructed his followers to ‘go and make disciples… teaching them to obey
everything I have told you’. He didn’t say ‘go and make converts’. The word
‘disciple’ means ‘student’ or perhaps ‘apprentice’. A convert is someone who
has accepted Jesus is Lord- a disciple is one who is continuing day by day
to follow Him.
This
autumn, we’re focussing as a church on how to make Jesus’s teaching a reality
in our day-to-day lives at home, in the office, at school. In our series ‘Apprenticed
to Jesus’, we take some of Jesus’ core teaching in Matthew’s Gospel and apply
it to everyday living. On Sunday mornings and in our Small Groups the emphasis
will be on looking at what a difference this teaching will make if we apply
it to our own lives.
If we
are to be a people who make a difference in the wider world it is not enough
for us to simply say the words: Jesus has to make a difference in our heart
and our habits.
Apprenticeship
is for everyone. Apply for details now.
Every
blessing,
Mark
Bennett
Chief
Recruiting Officer
