You want to know what???

Each year I like to take a few weeks and talk about dating and relationships with my youth group. It has become a favorite topic in youth group. Maybe it’s because teens are all hopped up on hormones and want permission to date. Maybe it’s because they think they are going to get the secret clue to winning that special persons heart. However, I think it’s because we talk about how the Gospel and life collide in a very real and tangible way.

You see, the average teen is asking, “how far can I go without sinning?” Have you ever heard that question? Have you asked that question? In that question you are revealing something about yourself. You show your true desire and are catering to the sinful nature inside. It is that sinful nature we need to put to death. Instead, we teach that you have to ask a new question, a better question. “How pure can I be for Jesus?” or “How can I reflect Jesus in my relationships?” Those are the questions we should be concerned with.

God demands of us to “be holy as I am holy!” That is simply something we cannot do on our own. So He provided a way for us through Jesus Christ. The Gospel is the beautiful story of how God sacrificed His Son for us so that we might live. We have been bought and paid for by Jesus! Now He wants us to love Him. He says in John 14:15 that the evidence of our love for Him is obeying His commandments. He has given us a lot to think about when it comes to relationships.

It begins with this, “who do you say that I (Jesus) am?”  Depending on your answer will determine your direction in relationships. If you say you are a follower of Jesus, that He is your Lord, then you have no choice but to obey His commands. The joy is this, that obeying His commands brings life (John 10:10). Why then do we fight it. Trust Jesus, obey His commands and watch as He begins to make all things new, including your relationships!