Posts tagged ‘culture’
Our identity is in Christ alone
Peter Kihyun ParkIdentity in Christ
When you’re building a bridge to other believers in Christ it’s absolutely important to recognize race, ethnicity, class, gender, etc. This is also important in figuring out how we can serve and work together. But when it comes to our identity…our identity is in Christ alone.
© 2012 – 2011, Peter Park. All rights reserved.
Can pain become a badge of honor?
What do I mean by today’s question? Sometimes we can hold onto pain that’s directed at us, at our ethnic group, church, etc. It can sometimes play an important role in allowing people in the church to have a common bond, but it can also become an idol.
For example, when I grew up I experienced two very hard church break ups. And many times when I would bring up those stories it was almost as if I was looking for sympathy or even attention.
In a lot of ways God has healed me from that hard time, but the story has in some ways become a thing where I think, “See! I’ve had a hard life too.“ To me…that just doesn’t seem like something Christ intended for us.
Now, many of us are familiar with Matthew 11:28 which says:
Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.
I believe Jesus can and will give us peace from our burdens and our pain. And when we take a look back at our history, which includes challenges/pain/trials, I believe we need to do so testifying of the faithfulness of God. I believe we need to ask: What did God want to teach me?
Otherwise, we move from being a Christ-centered Multicultural Church to one that’s a self-centered Church.
Blog post by Peter Kihyun Park
© 2011, Peter Park. All rights reserved.
John Piper: Bloodlines Documentary
© 2011, Peter Park. All rights reserved.