What does my soul long for?
Who am I?
From where did I come?
Why am I here?
What is my core identity?
What should I do with my life?
Does my life have meaning?
Do I have a soul?
Am I special or valuable?
What is my biggest problem, really?
Why does living hurt so badly?
Is this all there is?
Why do I hurt others?
What am I seeking?
What am I running from?
Why do I want so much more?
Why do I feel guilty?
How can I really connect with God?
What are my deepest desires?
What do I do with my losses?
Ethically, how should I conduct my life?
HOW can I escape the justice of God?
When will I die? Then what?
How can I experience true love?
How can I truly love God and others?
These and other questions are discussed in the New Testament.
MORE Questions
Are the laws of logic and science trustworthy?
Is that which conforms to reality true and knowable?
Is the opposite of true, false?
Did the universe have a beginning?
Are there patterns in nature and the planets?
Are living things complex and purposeful in their functions?
Are some things right or wrong in every culture?
If there is evidence that God exists, is he personal?
Could God interrupt normal events to communicate with us?
Does evidence demonstrate that the New Testament is reliable?
Does Jesus indicate that he is more than human?
Does Jesus fulfill Jewish predictions about the Messiah?
Is Jesus a good teacher?
Has Jesus predicted and accomplished his own return from death?
Is Jesus who he says he is?
Is what Jesus teaches true?
Might Jesus have something to say to me?
Renaissance answers each of the above questions in the affirmative. We think that life is about finding CONNECTION with God, ourselves and others. We discover MEANING as we serve others and as we interact with the Jesus story.
COMPLEX Questions
Why is it that in our own personal lives and in our culture that we are seeing an increased tolerance for and even an admiration of barbarism? Is guilt ever a positive thing? Why? Does the increased secularization of our culture lead to a loss of shame?
If we accept all theories as valid and valuable, how then can we think clearly about reality? Is it even possible to distinguish between what hurts us and what is helpful to us? What role does logic have in how I think about society and my life? Could our emphasis on pluralism ever lead to a loss of reason?
Some of us feel a lack of belonging to a family, friends or to our gender. We’re lonely. Others of us aren’t connected to our community, a faith community, our ethnicity or to our nation. We don’t have peace about who we are, where we come from, why we are here or what we are to do while on this planet. Since we are not sure how to evaluate our increasingly privatized lives, how do we discover meaning for our existence?
Given the complexities of secularization, pluralization and our quest for meaning, what do we end up believing?
JesusPDX thinks that God existence is demonstrable, that He has spoken and that life has meaning. We think that connection with God, ourselves and others is possible. We know that serving others and talking about the person of Jesus brings meaning to and enriches life. We are confident that the principles of Scripture are applicable to our day to day lives. God can put His love in our hearts and give us a life of spiritual significance, joyful service and loving security.