Week 1 - Having Faith in Jesus

Being a Christian means having faith in Jesus

WHAT WE DISCUSSED ON SUNDAY IN REDEMPTION YOUTH

Sunday we kicked off our Fall term in Redemption Youth by discussing the first facet of what it means to be a Christian: having faith in Jesus. To help us understand what it means to have faith in Jesus we looked at Romans 5:1-11, recited New City Catechism questions and answers 30 and 31, and then examined four questions related to faith. The following is a summary of the four questions we looked at and answers to those questions.

1. What is faith?
   Hebrews 11:1 tells us that, “faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” In other words, we can understand faith as a conviction or deep belief within our gut that something we cannot see is true.

2. What does it mean to have faith in Jesus? (What about him are we to have faith in?)
   First, for us to have faith in Jesus means to believe everything the Bible tells us about Jesus, even though we have not seen him with our own eyes.
   Second, having faith in Jesus means that our identity changes. Romans 5 tells us that since we have faith in Jesus, “we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” What is described here is a change of status and identity. Though before we had faith in Jesus we were under the condemnation and shame of sin, now that we have faith in Jesus we are united with God and receive the freedom that brings.

3. People often say they have faith in the good news of Jesus. What is the good news (or gospel) of Jesus?
   Last year in Youth we learned about God’s Grand Story—that God promises to redeem and restore all of creation, and he invites his people to participate in that redemptive work with him. In other words, the good news of Jesus is that he has conquered sin and death by bringing peace to all of creation through his life, death, and resurrection, that he invites us now to be his peacemakers where sin still exists, and that he will return to once and for all restore creation to its intended beauty.

4. Should having faith in Jesus change the way a person lives?
   If we have faith in Jesus, then our lives should look like Jesus. Just as a child who feels their parents do not love them will act in light of that by fearing their parents’ presence, and feeling anxiety when around them; so too a child who knows their parents do love them will act in light of that love by enjoying their parents presence, and doing things that make their parents happy. In the same way, when we have faith in Jesus, we will live in light of his love for us by emptying ourselves for others in the same way Jesus emptied himself for us.

HOW TO CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION AT HOME

The question we asked the students on Sunday, was how might Jesus be inviting them to look more like him this week. Find time this week to ask that question of your family. How might Jesus be inviting your family to look more like him this week? As people who have faith in Jesus, how can you look more like Jesus at work, school, and home?

This coming Sunday we will be talking about baptism. If your child(ren) has not yet been baptized, think about how you might begin to bring up the topic with them. Let your kids know that we will be talking about baptism on Sunday and that I want to hear whatever questions they might have about it. Also, invite your kids to read Colossians 2:8-14 and come up with one question about the passage, since we will be discussing it this Sunday.