How you view someone informs how you interact with them.
The Bible was written for us, but it was not written to us.
Freedom Foundations—
1) All life flows from its Creator
If God is your source, everything else is a resource.
Psalm 36:9 NLT
“For you are the fountain of life, the light by which we see.”
Acts 17:28 NLT
“For in Him we live and move and exist.”
“You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it rests in you.” —Augustine of Hippo
“God’s desire for us is that we should live in Him. He sends us the Way to himself.” —Dallas Willard
Psalm 87:7 NIV
All my fountains are in you.
Question For Reflection
What are the people or things in my life that contribute to my sense of purpose, identity, and fulfillment?
2) God Speaks with Creative Energy
Hebrews 11:3 NLT
By faith, we understand that the entire universe was formed at God’s command.
“Proverbs 18:21 says death and life are in the power of the tongue—of witnesses, according to the testimony they bear; of judges, according to the sentence they pass; of teachers, according to the doctrine they preach; of all men, who, by their well or ill speaking, bring death or life to themselves and others.” —John Gills
“Words in themselves are powerful; God’s words are the ultimate power.” —Tim Keller
The power of our words is a mere shadow of the power of God’s word.
The Voice of God is the most powerful force in nature, indeed the only force in nature, for all energy is here only because the power-filled Word is being spoken. —A.W. Tozer
3) A Communal Creator
Genesis 1:26a NLT
Let us make human beings…
Matthew 3:16-17 NIV
As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”
Matthew 28:18 NIV
All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
2 Corinthians 3:14 NIV
May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
God is one in substance, but three in function.
“The riddles of God are more satisfying than the solutions of man.” —G.K. Chesterton
“In God, there is no solitude, but a fellowship of infinite love.” —Karl Barth
The trinity exists in perfect relationship.
4) Humankind has an Inherent Design
Genesis 1:26 NLT
Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us.
“There are no ordinary people. You have never met a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations, these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat.” —C.S. Lewis
Gen 2:18 NLT
Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper for him.”
“Solitude is the place of purification. And yet, in community, we find completion.” —Henri Nouwen
5) Our purpose to receive and reflect Divine
“God loves you as you are, not as you should be.” —Brennan Manning
1 John 4:7-9 ESV
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him.
Question For Reflection:
How may I be limiting my view of God’s love towards me or others?
6) All of creation is intended for perfect harmony
Romans 8:21 ESV
That the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.
“Now, with God’s help, I shall become myself.”—Søren Kierkegaard,
Hosea 6:6
I want you to show love, not offer sacrifices. I want you to know me more than I want burnt offerings.