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Come Home to Christ

A Church Building With Stained Glass Window and the Altar Centered Beneath It - Often Symbolic of Our Christian Faith. Yet it is Our Personal Relationship With Jesus Christ that Truly Defines Each of Us as Christians

"Come home to Christ" is an invitation to return to or begin a relationship with Jesus, signifying a desire for spiritual reconciliation, rest, and acceptance by God. This concept often involves accepting Jesus's teachings, repenting from sin, and trusting in Him for salvation, a theme illustrated in biblical parables like the Prodigal Son. It's about finding true safety, peace, and a living connection with God, just as you are.

What it means to "come home":

Accepting God's invitation: Recognizing and responding to Jesus's call to come to Him for rest and peace.

Trusting in Jesus: Believing in Jesus as the Son of God, the way, truth, and life, and His death and resurrection as defeat of sin and death.

Developing a relationship: Fostering a deep, personal, and ongoing connection with God/Jesus.

Finding rest: Experiencing spiritual peace and comfort, especially when feeling weary or burdened.

Being accepted: Knowing God welcomes you, just as you are, with forgiveness and love.

Restoration: A process of being made new and reconciled with God, even after a period of falling away.

Biblical illustrations:

The Prodigal Son: The parable of the lost son beautifully illustrates God's joy and eagerness when someone returns to Him.

Jesus's invitation: Matthew 11:28, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest," is a central text for this idea.

How to "come home":

Acknowledge your need: Realize your desire for God and spiritual fulfillment.

Pray and invite: Speak to Jesus, thanking Him for the invitation and asking to make your home in Him.

Repent: Turn away from behaviors or thoughts that distance you from God.

Receive Christ: Open your heart to Him through faith.

Live in His presence: Cultivate a relationship with God by reading His word and trusting the Holy Spirit to guide you.

What does it mean to come home to God?

So when God calls Moses to come to him and take his shoes off, he is telling Moses that he can be himself with him. He called Moses and not anybody else. God knows Moses stutters yet he called him (and not Aaron or anybody else). Coming home to God means also we can be ourselves with him.

How do I come home to God?

Romans 10:9 “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. ” seeking forgiveness and reconciliation with God, often through repentance and turning away from sin Build a relationship with Jesus! Of this, the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32) is a wonderful example.

No son or daughter is too ‘lost’ or too ‘far gone’ for God to rescue. His grace is enough. He is greater than both you and I. God is the God of the impossible. So to those that believe that they have fallen so far that God would never save them, know this… God can and will save anyone who comes to Him by faith.

When Jesus said, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” in John 3:16, the ‘whoever’ that he references is an invitation to every person — including you.

We are all sinners that have fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23) and the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). So no matter how much time and energy we devote to ‘good works’, none of it is enough to wipe our slate clean and make us right with our Creator. But Jesus is enough. His perfect sacrifice on the cross is enough. And although we do not deserve His goodness and we certainly do not deserve His mercy, His all-consuming love and grace offers us salvation… a free gift that none of us can ever earn, but can receive by grace through faith alone.

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. — Ephesians 2:8-9

The moment we come back to Christ after we fall away from God, we no longer belong to the world. (John 15:19)

Such confidence we have through Christ before God. Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. — 2 Corinthians 3:4-5

Do not continue to be distracted by the things, the pleasures of the world.

Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them.For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever. — 1 John 2:15-17

Come Home to Christ - Join or Rejoin a Christian Community/Church

Our St. Brigit's Community Catholic Church Logo

As humans and as Christians we do better in like minded communities.

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up. Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken. — Ecclesiastes 4: 9-12

Not only can you find encouragement from community, but when you live alongside other believers, as Proverbs 27:17 puts it, “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.”

From 1 Ephesians we learn much about how Christians are called to live as a community, indeed the main message of Ephesians is the unity of believers in Christ, who are called to live out this new identity through holy, unified, and transformed lives.

The book emphasizes that God has united people from all backgrounds into one church, and this truth should be reflected in their conduct, relationships, and perseverance against spiritual conflict. It blends spiritual doctrine in the first half with practical application in the second, explaining how the gospel should change a person's actions in the home, church, and world.

Key themes and messages

Unity in Christ: God's plan is to reconcile all people to himself and to each other, forming a new, unified, multi-ethnic family of God through Jesus.

Spiritual truth: The first half of the book focuses on the foundational truths of the faith, including the riches of God's grace and the unity of the church, as described in the first three chapters.

Practical application: The second half of the book, starting in chapter 4:1-6, transitions from theory to practice, providing instructions on how believers should live out their faith daily.

As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. 1 Ephesians 4:1-6

Holy living: Believers are called to put off their old sinful practices and put on new attitudes of kindness, forgiveness, and love, as a reflection of their new identity in Christ.

Spiritual warfare: The book encourages believers to stand against spiritual evil and to mature in their faith by equipping themselves with the "whole armor of God".

Love and peace: A major focus is on maintaining the unity and peace of the church through love, humility, and forgiveness, bearing with one another as Christ has forgiven them.

St. Brigit’s Community Catholic Church extends to all our invitations to “Come Home to Christ”. Reconnect with your church of origin or another church which you may now find more suited to you and your family today. If you are disinclined to rejoin your church of origin and are unsure of which other church community might better suit you, consider becoming part of or at least joining worship, study or prayer with those of us at St. Brigit’s Community Catholic Church where people of all denominations are welcome at the altar in the open, loving community, not of specific denominations or religions, simply the community of Christ and His followers, Christians All!

Come Home to Christ

Come Home to Christ - Join or Rejoin a Christian Community/Church

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