“What do people really get for all their hard work? I have seen the burden God has placed on us all. Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.” – Ecclesiastes 3:9-11.

Nihilism is a philosophical belief that rejects the existence of objective truth, morality, or meaning. The father of Nihilism, Friedrich Nietzsche, believed that life can appear “futile” or meaningless because there is no inherent, external purpose or cosmic design to existence. Nihilism is the belief that all values are baseless and that nothing can be known or communicated. It is often associated with extreme pessimism and a radical skepticism that condemns existence. A true nihilist would believe in nothing, have no loyalties, and have no purpose other than basking in the futility of it all.

Regardless of our faith background or life circumstances, we all live for something. Our lives are driven by a vision of what we consider to be the good life. Whether consciously or unconsciously, this foundational belief shapes our pursuits, choices, and actions. It holds sway over our thoughts and attitudes, dictating how we perceive ourselves and the world around us.

As followers of Jesus, we are called to examine what truly controls our lives and surrender ourselves to the Lord. Jesus invites us to place Him at the center of our lives, embracing His teachings, values, and love, and allowing them to mold us to be more like Him. Jesus’ promise of abundant life is a remarkable invitation to experience a full life.

The story of Stephen in the book of Acts provides us with a front-row seat to the good life God desires for us. In Stephen’s story, we witness a man who, despite the challenges and opposition he faced, exemplified the abundant life that Jesus promised. Stephen’s life was marked by a deep and intimate relationship with God, characterized by his being “full of” the Holy Spirit, wisdom, faith, grace, and power. “But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed steadily into heaven and saw the glory of God, and he saw Jesus standing in the place of honor at God’s right hand” (Acts 7:55).

Stephen’s fullness of life also stemmed from his unwavering faith. This steadfast faith gave him the confidence to endure persecution and ultimately face death with grace and forgiveness.

Life has meaning when serving Jesus because by following Jesus’ teachings and dedicating one’s life to serving others in his name, individuals find a deeper purpose and fulfillment that transcends worldly pursuits, aligning their actions with God’s will and experiencing a more abundant life as described in the Bible.

“Your potential is the sum of all the possibilities God has for your life.” – Charles Stanley.

Discussion Questions:

1. How does Jesus’ teaching on “abundant life” differ from worldly perspectives on fulfillment?
2. What steps can you take this week to move closer to experiencing the fullness of life in Christ?

“As Jesus and the disciples continued on their way to Jerusalem, they came to a certain village where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to what he taught. But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, “Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.” – Luke 10:38-40.

Have you ever stopped to think how much hurry gets in the way of your daily fellowship and relationship with God? In a world that constantly pushes us to rush, the invitation to “slow down” is a powerful reminder to pause, breathe, and truly connect with God and the present moment. When we race through life, we often miss the beauty and blessings surrounding us, including the whispers of God’s guidance.

In Luke 10 we read the story of Mary and Martha,  sisters who hosted Jesus in their home and demonstrated different approaches to following Him. Martha busily prepared a meal, while Mary sat at Jesus’ feet and listened to Him. Martha was full of inward turmoil and outward agitation. As a result, she was distracted and drawn about in different directions. She was stretched to the limit, and so she turned on Jesus. ““Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.”” (Luke 10:40). Jesus answered “…“My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.”

Most believers want to be like Mary, but all too often, we find ourselves more like Martha, so busy trying to serve God that we don’t take the time to be with Him. We are running on empty and praying as part of multitasking. We have good intentions but are too busy to spend quality time with Him. So, how do we become a little less like Martha?

First, slow down and spend time in scripture. When we are in a hurry, our time alone with God in contemplative reading of Scripture is limited and sporadic. Slowing down and spending time in scripture encourages a mindful and deliberate approach to reading the Bible, reflecting on its meaning, and truly connecting with God’s word rather than rushing through it quickly. God is not calling us only to a devotional time but rather to experience a devotional life.

Second, deepen your prayer life. Many prayers are simply a “shopping list” itemized list of my wants. We need a more whole-life approach to prayer. If we think more broadly about prayer, it becomes more fulfilling and natural. God wants us to live our whole day in His presence.    

It is time to stop praying on the run and running on empty. Jesus invites us to slow down, sit at His feet, and learn from Him to be more like Him.

Discussion Questions:

1. How does the pressure to rush affect your spiritual life? What areas of your life do you need to slow down in intentionally?
2. How can you create space in your schedule to truly connect with God and others?

Summary: Christian transformation refers to a profound inner change in a person’s life, where they move away from a life of sin and towards a life reflecting the character of Jesus Christ. This is achieved through accepting Jesus as their Savior and allowing the Holy Spirit to work within them. This leads to a gradual process of becoming more like Christ in thoughts, actions, and attitudes—essentially, a “new creation” as described in the Bible. This often happens through practice and partnership.

“Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ.” – Ephesians 4:11-13.

Transformation takes practice and spiritual practices. Becoming more like Jesus does not happen by osmosis. Becoming more like Jesus is a process; it takes practice and intentional practices. Professional athletes don’t become successful without a lot of practice because it takes practice to become what you are trying to become. Pursuing spiritual transformation is to pair the target of what we do and how we do it with what Jesus did and how He did it. We’re looking at what practices will help us move into the presence of Jesus, some practices that move us towards wholeness, and some practices that move us into renewal, as we do as Jesus did, and then to intentionally practice those practices. The Message paraphrase of 1 Corinthians 9:24 says, “You’ve all been to the stadium and seen the athletes race. Everyone runs; one wins. Run to win. All good athletes train hard. They do it for a gold medal that tarnishes and fades. You’re after one that’s gold eternally.” All good athletes train hard, so we must engage in practices that train us to be more like Jesus.  Sometimes, that feels like a slog, but it leads to being transformed.

Transformation also requires partnership. Transformation doesn’t happen solo. It involves a partnership of some kind to make it happen.  For Christians, that partnership is with the Holy Spirit. A partnership with the Holy Spirit is a relationship of faith and obedience in which a person allows the Holy Spirit to teach, guide, and empower them. Partnering with the Spirit is about engaging with what God is doing in your life. The Holy Spirit is the one doing the heavy lifting here. Sure, we can engage in practices that grow us, but the spark, the fuel, the power is the transformative power of the Spirit of God.  It doesn’t come by making vows or through the strength of your will. It comes by trusting in Him, depending on Him, listening to Him, and following His leading in your life.

The church plays a vital role in transforming believers by providing a community of support, teaching biblical principles, and offering opportunities for spiritual growth through fellowship, worship, and service. Through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, individuals are molded into the image of Christ. Transformation doesn’t happen solo.

Discussion Questions:

1. What practices can lead to spiritual transformation?
2. What is the primary role of the Holy Spirit in a believer’s life? How would you describe the Holy Spirit’s practical work in your life?

Summary: We serve a God of powerful transformations. Throughout Scripture, God takes those whom the world deemed the lowest, the hopeless, and the helpless and uses them to change the world. God longs to break off that which inhibits you from experiencing the fullness of life. He longs to heal you, deliver you, and set you free. May your life be forever changed as we spend time discovering God’s heart for transformation.

“And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.” – 2 Corinthians 3:18 (ESV).

Growing as a Christian can feel daunting. We want to become more like Jesus, but we know we’ve got a long way to go, and we can often feel like we’re going backward. So, how can we grow? The answer is given in 2 Corinthians 3:18. This passage of scripture encourages us to look to Jesus while reminding us we are being transformed.

By truly seeing Jesus, we are transformed to become like Him, all through the enabling of the Holy Spirit. In other words, the more we look to Jesus, the more we will look like Him. God, by His Spirit, has opened our eyes to the glory of the eternal, omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent, and immutable Jesus.

The more we see and admire Jesus’s glory, beauty, and holiness, the more we become like Him. Jesus lived a perfect life: He lived to please His heavenly Father and sacrificed His life for us.

But transformation, becoming more like Him, is not found in making up all sorts of strict rules about what we can or can’t do. Nor does it mean avoiding certain behaviors.  To become more like Jesus, you can study His life, love others, and pray. It stands to reason that we cannot grow to be like someone we don’t know. The deeper our knowledge of Christ, the deeper our understanding of Him, and the more like Him we become.

If we want transformation, we have to be willing to work for it. The Christian life is 100 percent God’s work. The resurrection of Christ runs through our veins. But it is hard work from beginning to end. Transformation takes our mental powers, our willpower, and our muscle power.

Jesus changes people. Often, critics of the church say we are hypocrites, judgmental, and harsh. As fallen human beings, we certainly will not be perfect. However, we are people who have been saved by grace and transformed by the love of Jesus. How, then, could we condemn? Instead, we are to live transformed lives, take responsibility for making things right when we sin, take the time to see others and believe the best about them, and invite them to meet Jesus.

Discussion Questions:

1. What is the barrier to understanding Jesus’ actions, identifying core principles of His ministry like love, compassion, and service, and then reflecting on how to practically apply those principles in your own life?

Note: The nature of God is beyond our figuring out.  We need help if we are going to begin to understand who God is and how we can relate to Him.  It takes God to know God.  This is why He gives us His many names that describe who He is.  We need these many names to get a true picture of the nature of God. Over the next few Fridays, we will look at the different names of God in the scriptures. This week, we look at Jehovah-Jireh (the Lord will provide).

“And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.” – Philippians 4:19.

“Provision” is not something that most Americans think much about.  We don’t think about it because it doesn’t impact our daily lives for most of us. We use the word euphemistically when we stock up on “provisions” for a road trip, meaning some soda, chips, and Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. In a spiritual context, we use the word to describe unexpected upgrades in life: when God provided for needs in apparent ways like a check in the mail to cover rent or the generosity of a friend to pay for a hospital bill. We recognize these as God’s provision, but we don’t go through life depending on provision.

The name “Jehovah Jireh” is first seen in Genesis 22:14: “Abraham named the place Yahweh-Yireh (which means “the LORD will provide”). To this day, people still use that name as a proverb: “On the mountain of the LORD it will be provided.”

In Genesis 22:2, we read, “Take your son, your only son—yes, Isaac, whom you love so much—and go to the land of Moriah. Go and sacrifice him as a burnt offering on one of the mountains, which I will show you.” Without hesitation, Abraham took steps towards obeying God. He intended to do the unthinkable because God asked him to. He trusted God to make a way to provide for the promise He had made. Even when Isaac asked his father where the sacrificial lamb was, Abraham exhibited great faith with his words: the Lord will provide. He then laid his son on the altar.

Pause for a second and consider this scene in your mind. Abraham stands over his son, distraught in anguish, as sweat pours from his brow. For a moment, he turns away to gain composure, then clinches his teeth and lifts the knife high into the air, pausing just long enough to secure control of the blade in his quivering hand. Suddenly, he hears a voice say, “Don’t lay a hand on the boy!”  God had provided a sacrifice.

God did the same for us. God wasn’t providing a physical need for Abraham. Jehovah Jireh gave the gift of life. He saved Isaac’s life by providing an alternate sacrifice in his place. He kept His promise to Abraham by sparing his only son’s life so he could go on to become a great nation. We often think of God as a genie who grants wishes based on our faithfulness. We credit Him for providing us with homes, families, jobs, and riches. But God’s provision does not stop there. God is Jehovah Jireh because He sent us Jesus. In John 10:10, Jesus states, “The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.” You see, Jesus was the ultimate sacrifice. God perfected His provision for us by offering up His Son, Jesus. In doing so, He gave us everything we could ever need to be fulfilled, and He did it freely.  When you think of God as Jehovah Jireh, the great Provider,  you must stop and think about all the ways God provides for your needs.

Discussion Questions:

1. What does the name “Jehovah Jireh” (The Lord Will Provide) mean to you in your personal faith journey?
2. Have you ever been in a situation where you had to trust God despite it not making sense at the time? How did you navigate that situation?
3. In what ways can we see God’s provision in our daily lives, even when we don’t understand His plans?

“All of you together are Christ’s body, and each of you is a part of it.” – 1 Corinthians 12:27.

If you have attended Northstar for any amount of time, you know that we believe the church is not a place, a building, or a program. The church is people. We are the church. And as the body of Christ, we all have an important role to play in God’s plan. We are called to be the light in the darkness and the salt of the earth, love our neighbor, proclaim the gospel and serve others: in other words to be Christlike.   

Pretty big task, so big that sometimes we get comfortable sitting on the sidelines instead of jumping into action and show others that being a Christian is better than not being a Christian and that a life lived for Jesus is a better life.

Think of it this way. You work for a Fortune 500 company that has values, policies, and practices that must be adhered to because you are a reflection of that company. People will judge the company’s values and reputation on what they see in you. The company image could be tarnished if you are a customer facing and a poor representative for the company.

When you become a Christian, you are of Christ, part of the body of Christ, and now part of the kingdom of God. When you are out and about in this world, you need to be a good representation of that. Fortunately, we have an example. He started it all. If we follow Jesus, we must do what He did. How do we know what He did? Fortunately, everything you need to know is found in the Bible. “When a person becomes a Christian, he doesn’t just join a local church because it’s a good habit for growing in spiritual maturity. He joins a local church because it’s the expression of what Christ has made him—a member of the body of Christ” (Mark Devers).

We are all in this together. We need to care for and love one another, put others above ourselves, value others, and remember to have our eyes fixed on the prize. We need to live with God in mind and remember that as members of the body of Christ, we all have a role to play no matter how big or how small that role may be. Each person in the body is essential. We all have to work together to support one another, helping each other out, and making sure that we are all part of the church. We are all leading as an example.

When someone asks, “Why are you so different? “Why does your life always seem to be put together? Why are you always so happy? Why do you always have a smile on your face? “I feel like my life is falling apart. You say, “Hey, the answer is simple, Jesus.”   

Remember, that you are part of the church of the body of Christ. You need to be a good representation of that church. Remember that the church is not a place; the church is people.

Discussion Questions:

1. How does the image of a body help us understand the relationship between individual Christians and the church?
   
2. How does the diversity of parts in a human body reflect the diversity of gifts and roles within the church?     

“The gospel of Jesus Christ transforms our character and builds Christlikeness into it—a Christlikeness that cannot be hidden and makes its own impression on others. For becoming ‘worthy of the gospel of Christ’ is, in simple terms, becoming more like the Lord Jesus.” – Sinclair Ferguson.

We, as Christians, often believe that the gospel is only for unbelievers. The Gospel is seen as the entryway into a relationship with God, but once it has served its purpose, it should be set aside for “more advanced theology.” Yes, we might pull the Gospel from the shelf now and again as a means to an end when we feel the need for forgiveness, but its primary role is in our initial conversion. That thought process couldn’t be further from the truth. The Gospel is not merely a push start for the Christian life; The gospel is the foundation, the formation, and the primary motivation for the Christian life. It is how everything is renewed and transformed by Christ—whether a heart, a relationship, a church, or a community.

Demonstrating the gospel means showing, not just telling. When reading a book, readers need to see ideas illustrated in practical action rather than just being told one thing after another. The same principle applies when we want to communicate to anyone the life-changing reality of knowing Jesus. In other words, does your life reflect what you believe? People need to see changed lives, not just hear explanations of what we believe and why. That is not to say we should avoid verbally explaining the gospel to people. But the words won’t mean much if our behavior and actions don’t match our words. Showing what you believe is often more effective than a meticulously researched argument for belief in God.

After all, most of us are not trained in apologetics. But we do have various relationships with believers and non-believers. In these relationships, we will have the opportunity to demonstrate what we believe daily. Living a life that reflects Jesus means putting his teachings into action in your daily life. This includes being kind, compassionate, and merciful and treating others with respect.

Think about that for a moment.  If someone doesn’t know Jesus, they can see our reflection of Christ in how we treat them, love them, and be His hands and feet on earth. God must live inside of us, wanting to radiate from our words (thoughts), attitudes, and actions, and how we love others as He loves us.

Living out our faith is a daily commitment. It’s about allowing the Holy Spirit to work through us, guiding our actions, words, and attitudes to reflect Christ. We must intentionally demonstrate our faith through our actions and the gospel’s transformative power by how we live our lives.

Discussion Questions:

1. What were the primary ways Jesus demonstrated His love for others? (e.g., healing the sick, feeding the hungry, teaching the marginalized)?
2. What are some of the things that we can do today?  

“Apprenticeship to Jesus is about turning your body into a temple, a place of overlap between heaven and earth—an advance sign of what one day Jesus will do for the entire cosmos, when heaven and earth are at long last reunited as one. This is the single most extraordinary opportunity in the entire universe: to let your body become God’s home. And it’s set before you every single day.” ― John Mark Comer, Practicing the Way: Be with Jesus. Become like Him. Do as He did.

Jesus said lots of things that aren’t immediately easy to understand. Fully grasping what He said requires careful scripture study with some help from the Holy Spirit. In the gospel of John, Jesus makes a puzzling statement that is not so hard to understand as much as it is hard to believe: “I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father” (John 14:12). So how do we “do the same works.”

Scripture tells us that Jesus was a carpenter. “Then they scoffed, “He’s just a carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon. And his sisters live right here among us…” (Mark 6:3). It’s likely that He learned the trade from His father, Joseph, but we know Jesus was more than just a carpenter, and His work as a carpenter doesn’t define His identity as the Son of God.

But imagine if you were an apprentice carpenter learning from Jesus in Biblical times. It would be safe to say you would be a sponge, soaking up the knowledge He shared and following Him around to watch His techniques, His choice of wood and tools, and the process in which He creates His work. We would ask questions and avail ourselves of every opportunity to soak up all the information we could to not only how to do things but do things His way. After all, He  He is the master craftsman, and we are the apprentices.   

Over time, we’d go from being in the way to practicing the Jesus method of carpentry. One day, we may have apprentices of our own to pass along what we learned from Jesus.

You probably see the connection to today. Jesus has a way of doing things, and we are supposed to do the things He does the way He says to do them. Jesus’ life emphasized acts of compassion, love, service, and actively sharing the Gospel, encouraging believers to emulate these actions in their daily lives, mirroring Jesus’ ministry by reaching out to the marginalized, demonstrating forgiveness, and prioritizing the needs of others, all while guided by the Holy Spirit.  We need to do as He did.

“The joyful news that He is Risen does not change the contemporary world. Still before us lie work, discipline, sacrifice” (St Augustine).

Discussion Questions:

1. What is the barrier to understanding Jesus’ actions, identifying core principles of His ministry like love, compassion, and service, and then reflecting on how to practically apply those principles in your own life?

Note: The nature of God is beyond our figuring out.  We need help if we are going to begin to understand who God is and how we can relate to Him.  It takes God to know God.  This is why He gives us His many names that describe who He is.  We need these many names to get a true picture of the nature of God. Over the next few Fridays, we will look at the different names of God in the scriptures. The first name we will talk about is El Shaddai, God Almighty.

“When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am El-Shaddai—‘God Almighty.’ Serve me faithfully and live a blameless life. I will make a covenant with you, by which I will guarantee to give you countless descendants.” – Genesis 17:1-2 (ESV).

Names are a big deal to us today, but back in biblical times, they were even more critical. Names meant something; they sent a message about identity. There are many different names for God in Scripture because God can’t be summarized or captured with one name. One of them is El Shaddai, typically translated into English as “God Almighty.”

The first mention of EL Shaddai in Scripture occurs in Genesis 17:1. “When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am El-Shaddai—‘God Almighty.’ Serve me faithfully and live a blameless life.” Abram needed to know that God was El Shaddai. He needed to know nothing was impossible for Him because His promise seemed impossible. It had been twenty-four years since God’s call to Abraham. He had promised to make him into a great nation, but after more than two decades, when Abraham was a year shy of living a century, he still had no son from Sarah’s womb.

What Abraham could not see was how El Shaddai would faithfully uphold His covenantal promises to the generations that flowed from his bloodline. Isaac blessed Jacob with the same blessing and promise God spoke to Jacob’s grandfather, Abraham. Jacob would be the next generation carrying the blessing, and he would experience that promise a few years later in Genesis 35. “Then God said, I am God Almighty; be fruitful and increase in number. A nation and a community of nations will come from you, and kings will be among your descendants” (Genesis 35:11).

The message of this story is simple: Nothing is impossible for El Shaddai, “God Almighty.” As we continue to read the Bible’s story, we see that from Abram comes Isaac, then Jacob, then the people of Israel, then Jesus the Savior, and from Abraham’s spiritual descendants through Jesus comes the church (Romans 4-5), which today spans the globe. Nothing is impossible for El Shaddai.

God is still El Shaddai today. He’s still mighty. He can provide, make good on His promises, and keep His covenant.

Discussion Questions:

1. How have you seen God be almighty in your life?
2. In what areas of your life are you tempted to believe that God is not El Shaddai? In other words, where are you taking things into your own hands rather than trusting God?