Overview
Jesus isn't a product—so how can the church present the gospel to a consumer culture? The assumptions of consumer culture—that we are what we buy, that we can never have enough, that there is no absolute standard, that it is a good thing to surround ourselves with people who look and talk and think like us—run counter to the life to which Christ calls his church. If we want to keep people from seeing Jesus as just another consumer option, we need to focus on rooting our lives in a community that seeks to know and follow Christ rather than things.
Table of Contents
SCRIPTURE: 2 Corinthians 5:14-17, Philippians 4:11-13, Colossians 1:15-23, John 17:20-24
LEADER'S GUIDE
• Identify the Current Issue
• Discover the Eternal Principles
—Teaching point one: Fundamental to consumer culture is the assumption that we are what we buy, but Christ defines us.
—Teaching point two: Commercials and ads ask us to envision the life we want—which is always unattainable, thanks to airbrushing, Photoshop, and constraints such as time and money—rather than the life we have. It is Christ who sustains us.
—Teaching point three: We become captured by the image of a particular brand, but it is Christ who reigns over us.
—Teaching point four: In our digital age, there truly is something for everyone, but it is Christ who unites us.
• Apply Your Findings
• Recommended Resources
ARTICLE FROM CHRISTIANITY TODAY
• "Jesus Is Not a Brand" by Tyler Wigg-Stevenson
Total number of pages—13
