Relationship Status: It's Complicated

Genesis 2:7-9, 15-25; 3:1-21

7 Then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.

8 Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. 9 The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; 17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”

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1 Peter 4:1-19 – Identity Theft

1 Peter 4:1-19

Introduction: The Real Identity Thief

It’s the last Sunday of summer, and we’ve not quite wrapped up 1 Peter.  By now, though, hopefully Peter’s big goal in writing his letter is clear: He wants to make sure we know who we are. 

Peter wants us to be confident in our Christian identity. To know we are God’s “elect.”  We are the chosen ones. (Sorry, Trump, it’s not just you who’s been chosen by God.) We are God’s precious— far more precious than Gollum’s powerful ring.   We are God’s very “special, beloved, possession.”  

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