Summary: In the biblical bookends, Genesis 1-2 and Revelation 21-22, we find a vision for God’s creation – how it began and where it finishes - one that we’re invited into through Christ.
Reflection Questions:
1. What are some of your deepest longings? How do they get expressed in your life? Do you find that they point to God’s perfect shalom (“25 beautiful things”)?
2. Are you living to escape this world or to renew this world? What’s the difference and how would you assess that?
3. Does the activity of your life correspond to God’s grand purposes for your life?
In Acts, the story follows the gospel expansion from city to city as Paul and his coworkers obey the Spirit’s call. As they proclaim the gospel, the word of the Lord spreads throughout Gentile lands and many become disciples. And something more. God establishes His church among various people and places. The churches are local, diverse, communal, and caught up in God’s saving mission.
We see the gospel on the move – moving into cities, neighborhoods, lives. Settling in and turning the world upside down. The same God has the same good news. Through this series, we’ll look at the church now & then, here & there. What can we learn from its different receptions and different responses? In our time and place, what changes and what remains the same?
