Our 5 Passions
What drives us? We are passionate for five things that burn in Jesus’ heart:
“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest...”
Jesus takes the initiative, inviting us to come to him, to follow him, to get to know him. He doesn’t force himself on us. He knocks at the door of our hearts, inviting us to respond. His invitation respects our dignity and freedom but also reveals his love for us: he invites us only because he loves us so much. It is a love that pursues us and seeks us out.
“‘Teacher, where are you staying?’ Jesus said to them, ‘Come, and you will see.’”
At St. John, we want to imitate Jesus in his passion for lovingly inviting others to come to him and get to know him. Like Jesus, we want to reach out to others in love, to take the initiative in reaching out to the forgotten, the overlooked, and the least among us.
“If any one thirst, let him come to me and drink.”
“They were all amazed and glorified God, saying, ‘We never saw anything like this!’”
As we respond to Jesus’ invitation, he reveals himself to us in moments of encounter that show us his great love, mercy, and strength. Over and over again in the Gospels, we hear reactions like: “Never have we seen things like this before…” Jesus is passionate for these moments of encounter with us because they can break through our hardened hearts and convince us of his great love for us.
“Never before has anyone spoken like this man.”
We want to create an environment at St. John that fosters and welcomes these encounters with Jesus in everything we do. Our times of worship, prayer, fellowship, and service should all be moments when we can encounter Jesus in a powerful, life-changing way.
“The men were amazed and said, ‘What sort of man is this, whom even the winds and the sea obey?’”
“Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God: ‘This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel’”
Conversion is our response to the powerful moments of encounter we have with Jesus. The Greek word is metanoia and it means a change of mind (thinking) that leads to a change of life. A powerful encounter with Jesus and his love, mercy, healing, teaching, etc., causes us to look at the world differently, we re-evaluate everything we thought was true. And from this change of mind, this new way of thinking, comes a new way of living. All of this is a response to the love we first encounter in Jesus.
Jesus is passionate for our conversion. He isn’t afraid to call us to a new way of living.
“When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners. Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people.” So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.”
With Jesus, we are passionate for conversion. We want to encourage those who have encountered Jesus to respond to his love, to make a commitment of their life to him. We never do this only once, but like a marriage, it must be renewed over and over again.
“Peter proclaimed, ‘Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins…’”
“It is enough for the disciple that he become like his teacher, for the slave that he become like his master.”
Jesus is passionate for his disciples to become like him, the Teacher and Master. Jesus constantly taught his followers how they should live, based on his own life. Discipleship is the daily process of growing more and more into the image of Jesus in our thinking, acting, loving, serving, forgiving, etc. God doesn’t just want you to know about Jesus, he wants you to become like Jesus.
“As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another. ”
We want to help others know they are created and called to become more and more like Christ. We want to help others live out the life of a disciple so that they experience the power of the Holy Spirit who changes us so that we think, act, speak, love, and serve the way Jesus did. We want to see Jesus’ promise fulfilled: “Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes in me will do the works that I do, and will do greater ones than these.” (John 14:12)
“For those he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son.”
“Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.”
Knowing that these are the last recorded words of Jesus lend even more weight to their power. With urgency, we lean in to listen closely as Jesus is very clear in his expectations. His first word "Go” commands that action is required and directs us outward on mission. Jesus defines our mission territory as “all nations” which may, unto itself, seem like a daunting task - but we begin right here in Severna Park and Anne Arundel County. What is the mission? To share Christ and his Gospel in the power of the Holy Spirit so that our neighbors and friends may find in Jesus, and in his Church, forgiveness, peace, and the path to authentic joy and fulfillment.
“Jesus said, ‘You will receive power when the holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’”
Here at St. John we want to build up a culture of mission. We want to make it an ordinary and normal thing to joyfully share Christ with others. Not in an awkward or off-putting way, but in the same way that first drew us in: through a loving invitation to ‘come and see.’ This mission isn’t an add-on to an already busy life. It happens right in the midst of all the normal things we are already doing: dropping kids off at sports, grocery shopping, having dinner with friends, grabbing coffee on the way in to work… All of us are given powerful gifts from the Holy Spirit to live daily life “on mission.”
“There are different kinds of spiritual gifts but the same Spirit; there are different forms of service but the same Lord; there are different workings but the same God who produces all of them in everyone. To each individual the manifestation of the Spirit is given for some benefit.”
