What is your view of Heaven and how does it need to change? My notes from Fanning the Flame Wednesday Night with Karl Black

Sorry for these being late, but I'm sure that you have been processing through this one as well. I'm confident that this will be a very interesting post to revisit for me. I'm hugely moved by the idea that I have a picture of Heaven and it affects how I live now; on this earth. Anyway, here are my notes from Wednesday Night!

Karl Black: Fanning the Flame
We, the Church

"The Church is God's vehicle to changing the world"
THEREFORE
"YOU are God's plan to change the people"

Sometimes we prioritize the things that aren't a priority to God.

Luke 4:18- Jesus' business (change the world)

We, the Church are people who LOVE. (Matthew 22:34-40; 1 Corinthians 13:1-3, 13)
-Christians are supposed to be defined by Love.
-God doesn't value us more because we read the Bible a lot. That's important, but it doesn't change our place in God's eyes.

We, the Church can't afford to get this on WRONG
-We don't need to get this right so we feel better. We can't get this one wrong because people's eternal life is at stake.

How do we get this wrong?
-We don't do the things we aren't supposed to do.
-We start to think we deserve God's Grace.
-Who are the kids in school that we don't care if they come to know God.

We, the Church are people who need to REALIZE we are MESSED UP too. (Luke 7:39, Romans 2:1-5)
-God's gameplan is Kindness. Ours is bashing with the Bible

We, the Church are people who need to see with God's Heart. (Acts 9)
Tony Campolo's story about Roger
"I knew I wasn't a Christian, because if I was I would have been Roger's friend." - Tony Campolo
"You don't have to Legitamize someone's lifestyle to stand up for them, befriend them, speak up for them." -Tony Campolo

"God's love takes us into uncomfortable places."

What does our picture of Heaven look like?

We Categorize- God doesn't
We Label- God doesn't
He died for EVERY person and he doesn't give up on anyone!

There are consequences for mistakes, but we choose not to affect people by them.