Citywide Baptist Church
What is our future and what does it mean for now?
The future is incredible... and it changes everything about how we live now.
Locations & Times
Citywide Baptist Church (Mornington)
400 Cambridge Rd, Mornington TAS 7018, Australia
Sunday 10:00 AM
Communicate with us directly
https://citywide.churchcenter.com/people/forms/154251?Join our mailing list
http://eepurl.com/g4HtJrGive your tithe online
https://www.citywidehobart.org.au/payment-or-gift-to-citywide/We were created in the image of God
Initially, we were created to live in a free relationship with God and receive our understanding of truth from him
God wanted to continue to live with people and revealed his glory, his personality, to Moses
The Old Testament shows that we are unable to live up to God's glory in our own strength. The New Testament reveals that Jesus arrives as God's glory in person.
Jesus dying on the cross brings together God's grace and his truth, his Justice and his mercy, and we are invited into a whole new way of life.
As a result of Jesus' death, the church now has a job to do
Jesus is the firstfruits of a New Heaven and New Earth Reality.
We, too, because of Jesus, are meant to be the first fruit of this new reality.
There will be a day when everything will be renewed
The future we look forward to changes how we live today.
What matters now is New Creation...
As part of the New Creation, we are ambassadors of a different Kingdom.
Jesus' main focus was the Kingdom of God
The Kingdom of God is where God's will is done
God's kingdom is also meant to be our main focus.
God's Kingdom often gets mixed up with other stuff
God's kingdom often feels small and almost invisible
The Kingdom of God though, influences everything
Not everyone will find their way into the Kingdom of God
Our primary identity is as citizens of a different country, which says we have different priorities.
What framework sets the values you live by?
Are you building with wood, hay, and straw or gold, silver and precious stones?
Are you building with wood, hay, and straw or gold, silver and precious stones?
Questions:
1. Paul says Jesus is the firstfruits of those who have died (1 Corinthians 15:20). What does that image of “firstfruits” tell us about our own future and the hope we live with now?
2. Romans 8:23–25 talks about “groaning inwardly” as we wait for the redemption of our bodies. Where do you feel that groaning most in your life or in the world, and how does hope in Christ speak into it?
3. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says “if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come.” What are some ways you’ve seen “new creation” already breaking into everyday life?
4. Revelation 21 gives a vision of a renewed heaven and earth where God wipes away every tear. How does holding on to that future change the way we handle pain, loss, or disappointment today?
5. 1 Corinthians 15:58 reminds us that “your labour in the Lord is not in vain.” How does believing in the resurrection shape the way you think about what really matters in your work, relationships, or service?
6. Paul says in Philippians 1:27 that we must live as citizens of heaven. What does it mean for you to live as a citizen of God’s Kingdom here and now, especially when the world around us has different values?
Pray for each other.
1. Paul says Jesus is the firstfruits of those who have died (1 Corinthians 15:20). What does that image of “firstfruits” tell us about our own future and the hope we live with now?
2. Romans 8:23–25 talks about “groaning inwardly” as we wait for the redemption of our bodies. Where do you feel that groaning most in your life or in the world, and how does hope in Christ speak into it?
3. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says “if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come.” What are some ways you’ve seen “new creation” already breaking into everyday life?
4. Revelation 21 gives a vision of a renewed heaven and earth where God wipes away every tear. How does holding on to that future change the way we handle pain, loss, or disappointment today?
5. 1 Corinthians 15:58 reminds us that “your labour in the Lord is not in vain.” How does believing in the resurrection shape the way you think about what really matters in your work, relationships, or service?
6. Paul says in Philippians 1:27 that we must live as citizens of heaven. What does it mean for you to live as a citizen of God’s Kingdom here and now, especially when the world around us has different values?
Pray for each other.