Lessons from the Titanic
Cruise Ship Or Lifeboat?
April 22, 2012 • Chris Edmondson • Mark 2:14–17
One hundred years ago, the RMS Titanic sank, taking with it 1,517 lives. And though they’re weren’t enough lifeboats for the 2,223 passengers, those 706 people who found their way into a life boat chose not to go back and rescue those freezing to death and drowning in the water. That event begs the question about who we are as a church. Who is the church for? Is the church supposed to be more like an comfortable cruise ship, or should it be more like a life boat? What’s the REAL purpose of the church? Should the church be for churched people—those who are spiritually well—or should the church be for unchurched people—those who are sick? In today’s study, that’s the question we’re asking. And the answer may surprise you.
When Character Sinks
April 15, 2012 • Chris Edmondson • Genesis 4:7, Galatians 6:1–3, Proverbs 16:5–18, James 4:6, 1 Corinthians 10:12–13
One hundred years ago today, the RMS Titanic sank. In April, 1912, the largest and most luxurious vessel ever built set forth on it’s maiden voyage. The opulent, 900-foot British cruise Titanic was over four city blocks long and had a double-bottomed hull, divided into sixteen watertight compartments. Because as many of four of these could be completely flooded without dangering the ship’s bouancy, the Titanic was considered unsinkable. Yet on the fateful night of April 14th, 1912, shortly before midnight, the great liner steamed full ahead through the foggy North Atlantic when it collided with an enormous iceberg. A series of small gashes was ripped in the ship’s right side, rupturing five of its watertight compartments. No one planned on losing their life that night. But a series of misjudgments caused the Titanic to sink into the icy depths of the North Atlantic in the early hours of April 15, 1912, taking with it 1,523 lives.