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Prioritizing Fellowship

Hi, I’m John Sorensen, President of Evangelism Explosion International, and you’re listening to Share Life Today.
Charles Spurgeon said, "Some Christians try to go to heaven alone, in solitude. But, you know, believers are not compared to bears or lions or other animals that wander alone. Those who belong to Christ are sheep in this respect, that they love to get together. Sheep go in flocks, and so do God's people." We will not be able to grow in fellowship until we first develop our minds and spirits to be committed to fellowship. In Philippians 2:3, Paul tells us, "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourself." And this is exactly how we should think concerning other believers. We need to cultivate thoughts of valuing them. And we need to prioritize edifying and encouraging them. And Jesus is our prime example of this—He met and associated with all kinds of people, and loved and grew them through meeting together. For more on fellowship, visit sharelife.today.

The Local Church

Hi, I’m John Sorensen, President of Evangelism Explosion International, and you’re listening to Share Life Today.
Corrie Ten Boom said, "When a Christian shuns fellowship with other Christians, the devil smiles." Meeting together with your local church—which is an extension of the church worldwide—is so very important. Each local church is unique in that it’s both the process and product of the experience of Christian fellowship. That is, the local church is both the place where fellowship is developed and expressed and an example of our Christian fellowship to the world. And there are many ways our fellowship in Christ can be nurtured through the local church. In Acts chapter two, we see an example of believers meeting together to break "bread in their homes," and they "ate together with glad and sincere hearts." What a picture to their community of how Jesus brings us, His children, together in unity. And through that example, they told others about Jesus; and Acts two records that there were people coming to Jesus every day. For more on fellowship, visit sharelife.today.

Giving What We’re Given

Hi, I’m John Sorensen, President of Evangelism Explosion International, and you’re listening to Share Life Today.
The Bible teaches us that everything we possess has come to us because God gave it to us. 1 Corinthians 4:7 says, “What do you have that you did not receive?  And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?” Our responsibility with our possessions is to use them as God’s stewards — using them, that is, as He would Himself. In Acts chapter two, we see a picture of the early church selling their property and possessions to make sure that any need was met. They had open hands and hearts with all that they owned. This is an expression of Christian fellowship in the church: sharing what we possess. And as we do, we receive opportunities to point others to the One who gave us everything in the first place—our Savior, Jesus Christ. What are some ways you can give what God has given you? For more on growing in your walk with God, visit our website at sharelife.today. That’s sharelife.today.

The Body of Christ

Hi, I’m John Sorensen, President of Evangelism Explosion International, and you’re listening to Share Life Today.
In first Corinthians, Paul uses the imagery of a body to paint the picture of what the church should look like. If the entire body of Christ was made up of just ears, what could we do? Well, we would be really, really good at listening, but not much else. We couldn't reach out with a hand to help or go anywhere with our legs. And if we didn't have ankles and wrists and shoulders, it wouldn't much matter that we had feet and arms…! And anyone who has ever broken their big toe knows it's almost impossible to walk...just by missing one toe! Now, it may seem like I'm being silly, but there are important truths to this. You see, we need each other. And we need the church to serve together. And every believer is important to the work Jesus has given us. With this in mind, let's spur each other on to work together so the world will know that we have a Savior in Jesus! For more, visit our website at sharelife.today. That’s sharelife.today.

Unity in Christ

Hi, I’m John Sorensen, President of Evangelism Explosion International, and you’re listening to Share Life Today.
Charles Spurgeon said, "Satan always hates Christian fellowship; it is his policy to keep Christians apart. Anything which can divide saints from one another he delights in.” You know, our fellowship together results from our belonging individually to God through faith in Jesus Christ alone. His Spirit has come to live in us, and He provides for us a strong unity with one another. Ephesians 4:3 says, "Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace." Let's not buy into the lie that meeting together as believers is not important. Instead, let's prioritize coming together and edifying one another in the works that God has given us to do as the church. That’s accountability! And fellowship will grow us individually and collectively. And as we spur each other on, we’ll be faithful to tell others about our wonderful Savior. For more, visit sharelife.today.

In Spirit and Truth

Hi, I’m John Sorensen, President of Evangelism Explosion International, and you’re listening to Share Life Today.
When it comes to worshipping God, our heart matters. Our worship in a community of believers will only be as beneficial as our attitudes are sincere. Scripture gives us numerous "attitude checkpoints" by which we can examine our hearts to make certain that we are ready for worship. John wrote in John 4 that "a time [...]has now come when true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks." And if the Spirit is in us, He will convict us and grow us as we worship God through Him. Our humble cry should be, "Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me." Our humble, joyful, attentive attitudes in worship matter to God. So as we meet together with our church this weekend, let's come with the right attitude and worship our amazing Lord in Spirit and truth. For more on growing, visit our website at sharelife.today.

Hear the Word

Hi, I’m John Sorensen, President of Evangelism Explosion International, and you’re listening to Share Life Today.
Central to every worship service should be the reading and proclaiming of the Word of God. This part of worship is non-negotiable—we need to be filling ourselves up with more of the Bible. When we hear Scripture as part of our community worship, we hear what God would say through His servant to comfort, encourage, warn, and rebuke us. And this truly demands our solemn attention. In Nehemiah chapter eight, we see an example of the Word of God being preached in a worship service. Ezra, the priest, read the Law of God from daybreak until noon, and the people of God listened attentively. It says that at the end of Ezra's reading, "[he] praised the Lord, the great God; and all the people lifted their hands and responded, 'Amen! Amen!' They then bowed down and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground." Let us also be a people who value God's Word and worship Him when we hear it. For more on how you can grow, visit sharelife.today.

Sing to the King

Hi, I’m John Sorensen, President of Evangelism Explosion International, and you’re listening to Share Life Today.
Do you like to sing praises to God? Now, I know some of us aren't professional singers, but singing is an important part of Christian worship. Paul said that when we’re filled with the Holy Spirit, singing will come naturally as an expression of our joy. In Ephesians 15:19, Paul writes, "be filled with the Spirit [...] singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart." You know, King David is a perfect example of the Holy Spirit causing us to worship through song. And as a leader, he was very concerned about the people of God singing in their worship services. Our hymns of worship should have a singular purpose to them: and that is to thank and praise the Lord for all He has done. He truly is worthy of all our praise! So what are we waiting for? Regardless of our abilities, let's create time today to sing to our King! For more on how you can grow through worship, visit our website at sharelife.today. That’s sharelife.today.

A Taste of Heaven

Hi, I’m John Sorensen, President of Evangelism Explosion International, and you’re listening to Share Life Today.
The auditorium was packed. As I stopped and looked around, I heard dozens of languages being spoken at the same time. We all settled into our seats as our time together was called to order. This was Evangelism Explosion's third Congress of Nations, and eighty-three different countries were represented. During that morning, we sang "How Great is Our God" (which is a powerful song in and of itself), but this time the worship leader asked for everyone to sing in their own language. Words cannot describe the beauty of that moment—where Arabic was sung alongside Czech and Fijian. And you know, this is exactly what heaven is going to be like—because every tongue, every tribe, and every nation will be there. As we join in worship here on earth, let us invite people to be a part of this eternal worship group by sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ! For more on worship and sharing your faith, visit our website at sharelife.today.

Worship the Creator

Hi, I’m John Sorensen, President of Evangelism Explosion International, and you’re listening to Share Life Today.
As we look this week at how we can grow spiritually through worship, we should consider how many of the Psalms were originally written for Jewish worship services. In Psalm 95, we read that we worship God because He is the "great King." "In His hands are the depths of the earth, and the mountain peaks belong to Him. The seas are His, for He made it, and His hands formed the dry land." And because God made this world and everything in it, the psalmist instructs us that we should bow down in worship and "kneel before the Lord our Maker." And it always leaves me in awe when I think about how our Creator has also created a way to redeem us from our sins—that the Creator Himself became a man to live a perfect life, to die on the cross for our sins. So today, let us worship Him—our Creator and Lord! For more on growing in your faith, visit our website at sharelife.today. That’s sharelife.today.