Where, o death, is your sting? Where, o grave, is your victory? Jesus Christ is risen from the dead, and his life emancipates us from fear, quarrels, condemnation and hatred.

Jesus is our hope, but he's not always the hope we think we need. When Jesus entered Jerusalem a final time, many believed he was about to fulfill all of their hopes and overthrow the Romans, restoring the throne of David. But then they encountered something different...

Hopelessness is not unlike being orphaned and not knowing what's coming next. But we have a secure future. And that secure reality has present day implications.

Hope is the foundation of what keeps us looking forward in spite of our often desperate circumstances. As Christians, our ultimate hope is rooted in the resurrection of Jesus, and the promise that we, too, will be resurrected.

We have discussed in the past God?s ultimate plan to transform the world. Our concluding sermon in this leg focuses on the God?s invitation to the ?transformed? to work on his behalf toward the goal of global transformation.

Continuing our journey with the theme of transformation, we take a brief look at the transforming process that took lace in a few characters in the Bible. Transformation does not guarantee the absence of struggle, but it empowers the transformed to deal with struggle.

Paul encourages us to place ourselves on an altar. This is the place where transformation begins. While we long to be in control of the transforming process, offering our bodies as living sacrifices surrenders control to God for transformation.