What’s the last great movie or TV show you’ve watched? After viewing it, what did you do about it? Did you tell someone about it?
Of course, we all do that right? When we enjoy something, we want to bring others into our joy. Joy is never complete until it is shared.
Two seasons ago, Matt Vargo and I went to see the Browns play the Jets. It was the game that Tyrod Tayler got hurt and Baker Mayfield entered the game. The place was electric. It felt like a playoff atmosphere, everyone was curious to see what would happen. As the half began, Baker was slinging the ball and making plays to bring them to a victory! Even catching a pass for a 2-PT conversion!
As a Browns fan, it was a great moment! It’s a moment that brought strangers together. We high fived or hugged everyone in our section (pre-covid of course). It was big Browns family party.
Why is that exciting to talk about? We saw the beginning of a QBs career, we saw our team come from behind and win, and we loved every minute of it.
The amazing thing about Christmas, is that it is the event that proclaimed to the world that God wanted to bring us into His joy! He sent messengers, angels, to the lowly shepherds in the field with the message, “Come and See the new born King”!
Could you imagine being one of those shepherds on a dark and lonely hillside. It was a night like any other night. Watching the sheep, talking with fellow shepherds. Maybe a night where you would be complaining about the mundane nature of your job, when all of sudden the sky burst forth in song, a host of angels singing and a message of “Fear Not!” (Check last weeks blog for more on this)
Right! Like that wouldn’t freak anyone out. But it would grab your attention. “Hey guys, you need to go check out the event in human history that will alter everything. The son of God was born this night in the stable. God wants you to come and see his Son!”
The divine birth announcement came to those shepherds and they went running to see if it was true. Sure enough, they found the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes as they were told. What a sight to behold!
Have you ever held a new born baby? It’s something else, isn’t it! What a precious experience and something to marvel at when a new life is born. I’ve had the privilege of holding all 9 of my nieces and nephews as newborns, and so many other precious children from church. The marvel never goes away.
To take something so basic, so human and so beautiful as holding a new born babe, but then be told that the babe you are holding is the Creator of the Universe? Now that would be something! And it was for the shepherds!
That invitation, Come and See, is the invitation of Christmas. God called the shepherds and God is calling you. As an adult, Jesus said it this way:
Matthew 11:28–30
"Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
Or the Psalmist said it this way:
Psalm 34:8
Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good!
Come and see the goodness of God, take the risk and try, what do you have to lose? Lay your burdens down, recognize that God is inviting you into his rest, his joy, his family.
Look to the manger of Christmas and see the Savior who was willing to bear your sins on the cross. Pause and see with your heart and soul, the goodness and the kindness of God presented in the Christ child.
John 3:16–17
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him."
Wow, now that is exciting! This is what the shepherds saw that night. What did they do about it? They went and told everyone they could about the birth of the Savior!
That’s the natural response when we see or experience something special. We have a desire to share it. This Christmas, come and see Jesus for the first time, or be refreshed by the beauty of the scene. Look deeply and find the joy, the hope and the excitement of the moment, then go and tell others like the shepherds did.
Christmas is about receiving and about giving. It is about God sending His Son to be the Savior of the world, and it is about telling the world about that gift. Don’t lose the opportunity to proclaim His name to the world this year.
Come and see the new born King, go and tell of the risen Lord!
What are you afraid of? What fears plague your thoughts?
All of us are dealing with our first pandemic Christmas and everyone is processing it differently. Fear of the unknown, fear of partial or incomplete knowledge, fear of making the wrong choice and so many more fears just pop up along the way.
In preparation for our family Christmas, we had a zoom call to discuss how COVID will affect our Christmas gatherings. Sure there is some fear of getting COVID, but the bigger fear is passing COVID on to the more vulnerable members of our family. COVID is a virus we still know very little about, while most who get it will recover fully, we have to acknowledge there is a small percent who won’t. We don’t want our Christmas celebration to compromise anyone.
I know many of you are asking the same questions and have similar fears. Should we cancel? Should we gather? Thankfully we have a place that is large enough to gather, and though it will be a little different, we will still be together.
Perhaps more than any other year, we need the message that was proclaimed leading up to the birth of Christ that first Christmas, “Do not be afraid!”
We are continuing on in our Advent series and looking at Christmas through a different lens. Two weeks ago we reflected on how Jesus is the God-Man (John 1:1-5, 14). Jesus being the “only begotten of the Father,” the unique Son of God who is 100% God and 100% man, truly one worth celebrating!
Last week we looked at Mary and Martha and were reminded that Immanuel means “God with us,” shouldn’t we strive to be like Mary during Christmas and spend time with Jesus, the God-Man?
Today, I want us to consider four encounters that happened in preparation for the first Christmas, that declare “Do not be afraid!”
Read Luke 1:5-19 – Zechariah
Zechariah was a faithful man. He was faithful to his wife, Elizabeth, of many years. He was faithful to his God, and was selected to be the priest to go in an offer incense before the Lord. Zechariah and Elizabeth were in their advance years, and they were childless because Elizabeth could not conceive. What fears do you think they had?
As Zechariah went about his priestly duties, an angel appeared to him with a message from God! “Do not be afraid, Zechariah! Your prayer has been heard and you and Elizabeth will have a son, and you shall call him John!”
Try to imagine what it would have been like to be Zechariah going into the Temple to offer incense, and encountering an angel of the Lord. What would that have been like?
Today, Cindy was loading her car to take the gifts the ladies of our church put together for Lydia’s Home. I saw she went out to load them in the trunk, so I thought I’d help. I grabbed one of the gifts and headed outside. Well, Cindy wasn’t expecting the help and as she turned to enter the church she encountered me exiting the church and I startled her. I apologized for the start, but have to admit that something like this happened on a few occasions. I am no angel, but I guess I should start saying “don’t be afraid Cindy”.
Surely Zechariah would have been frightened by the angel, and so an appropriate message. But raising a child in his advance years, watching his wife go through a pregnancy, trying to explain to everyone what was happening, there was a lot to fear. But this was God’s plan, and the angel said “do not fear.”
Luke 1:26-38 – Mary
Unlike her cousin’s husband who was old, Mary was very young, probably 13-17 years old. She was just making plans for her life. She met a boy she loved and they were engaged. They had plans for their life, dreams to fulfill. But that was all about to change.
Gabriel, an angel of the Lord, visited Mary and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” But that startled Mary and she was troubled by that.
Gabe continued, “Do not be afraid, for you have found favor of the Lord and you will conceive and bear a son, and you shall call him Jesus.”
If it was strange for Zechariah to hear his message, though old, he was married. Mary on the other hand was young, not married and had never been with a man. You can appreciate her surprise. She was to be the mother of the Son of God. God had a plan, and he wanted Mary to know that nothing was impossible with Him, so he gave her a sign that her cousin, Elizabeth, was already pregnant.
Mary had a lot to be afraid of with this news. What would Joseph think? What would her parents think? What would the community think? Would she have a husband to help her? Would she be cast out? Yet, she was willing to be the servant of the Lord!
Matthew 1:18-25 – Joseph
Joseph was a just and righteous man. He was a working man. He had his pride and his dreams. He was engaged to the woman he loved and was preparing to take her as his bride. Then he received word from Mary that she was pregnant. Talk about a lot to be afraid of!
He was preparing to break off the engagement quietly, because he loved her, when Gabriel paid him a visit. What did Gabe say? You guessed it, “Do not be afraid!”
“Joseph, don’t be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for God has a plan and the baby Mary is carrying is the Son of God,” Gabe said.
If Joseph had a lot to be afraid of before, it was only more magnified. You will take care of the Son of God, don’t mess up! Yet he received the word of the Lord and obeyed. He took Mary to be his wife, but didn’t consummate the marriage until after the birth of Jesus.
Luke 2:8-14 – Shepherds
Have you ever been on the outside looking in? You have responsibilities that are keeping you from what you really want to be doing? I think of the shepherds that way. Sitting off on a distant hillside overlooking the city. They can see the lights, and maybe even hear the hustle and bustle going on. However, they can’t join in because they have to tend the sheep.
A thankless job, but one that must be done. What do shepherds have to fear?
Of all the groups of people, it was this group that God chose to send His angels to with the announcement of the birth of His Son. This appearing was quite the spectacle and the shepherds were afraid. The message came, “Do not be afraid, for I bring you good news of great joy! Jesus is born!”
Do not be afraid because God has a plan and He is working that plan out! This message is weaved throughout the Bible, Do not be afraid, for God is at work, He is with you, He has not forgotten you, and He will keep His promises!
What are you afraid of this Christmas? Remember the original greetings of the season, “Don’t be afraid!”
Isaiah 41:10
Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
What’s the point of Christmas? Decorations? Gifts? Parties? Shopping? Lights? Trees? The birth of Christ?
The prophet Isaiah gave us the answer hundreds of years before the first Christmas.
Isaiah 7:14
Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
The Messiah will come, born of a virgin and His name will literally mean “God with us” for Jesus came in the flesh.
Yes, of course the point of Christmas is to celebrate the birth of our Savior, but how much of our season is filled with greeting the Savior?
How much time do we spend with Jesus during Christmas? Only you can answer that for yourself, but I want to look at a story of two sisters who both loved Jesus and were friends of Jesus, but one missed the whole point and the other chose the better option.
In the Gospel of Luke, we encounter this story of two sisters who invited Jesus to their house. You may have heard of these two sisters, Mary and Martha. They had a brother Lazarus, the same Lazarus that Jesus raised from the dead, but that’s another story.
A little context for our story, Jesus has been in his public ministry for a couple of years and is beginning his final journey into Jerusalem. Jesus knew that his time was limited and that he must go to Jerusalem to die for the sins of the world. On his way, he continued to teach, heal and perform other miracles.
As he crossed through Bethany, he stopped in at the house of his friends, Mary and Martha. At first, this seems pretty straight forward, until you are the one inviting people over. Now inviting Jesus over was not just inviting one single guy to dinner, he came with a crowd. At minimum there were the 12 disciples and possibly other followers.
If I host anything at my house, I want to clean the house from top to bottom before my guests arrive. So it’s an all-day affair to have people over for dinner. There’s cleaning and prepping to do, then hosting, and more cleaning.
Consider all that as you read Luke 10:38-42.
[38] Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. [39] And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. [40] But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” [41] But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, [42] but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.” (ESV)
Martha gets a bad rap, but she was just trying to be a good host. A crowd shows up at your door, what are you going to do? I got to get more chairs, I have to get more plates out, I need more… you name it. It’s party time and you enter in full host mode.
But then you look over and see your sister just relaxing with your guest of honor. She’s just sitting there listening. She doing what you want to do, but you are too busy to do it. What’s the point of having a guest over if you can’t enjoy his company? But how can you enjoy the company when there is so much to do?
Tasks become so important and can prevent us from the relationship.
A few years ago, I took the youth group on a Spring Retreat. I started a practice on our retreats to actually encourage the students to “retreat,” by taking an hour of quiet and solitude to spend time with Jesus. I would prepare a Psalm and a few guided questions for those who needed it, but encouraged them to go off alone for an hour, with their Bible and just enjoy the presence of Jesus, whatever that might look like fore each student.
At the end, we would all come back and share what we learned or experienced in our time. Students talked about how fast an hour went and how precious their time with Jesus was. They shared creative prayers, new insights in Scripture, and appreciation of God’s creation.
One young lady was so stressed and frustrated. So after our gathering, I pulled her aside and asked her what was wrong. She was so upset that everyone had a good time and she didn’t even get through all the questions. (Do you hear a Martha here?) She said she was so tired that she couldn’t concentrate and was troubled that she didn’t finish the task.
I responded to her, “Did you ever consider that you could just admit to Jesus your weakness and that you were tired and needed a nap, and just enjoyed sleeping in his presence? The questions were not the assignment. Enjoying the presence of Jesus was the assignment, the questions were an aid, but not the assignment.”
Not that I want all the students to sleep in that hour, but learning the exercise of resting in Jesus is huge. Jesus wasn’t disappointed in her not completing the paper, He was sad that she missed time with him because of her task driven mentality.
What is the point of Christmas? Spending time with Jesus, “God with us.”
Then why do we get so task driven with decorating, baking, shopping, gift giving and the such?
Mary, now she got it. She recognized that time with Jesus was precious and she enjoyed every moment she had with the Rabbi. The fact that Jesus recognize Mary and Martha and invited them into his community was huge in their culture. Women rarely were given the opportunity to learn from the Rabbis, and here the Rabbi came to their house and taught them. Jesus saw the value of women and elevated women throughout his ministry.
Perhaps Mary thought of Psalm 46:10 “Be still, and know that I am God.” She sat with the other disciples, at the feet of Jesus, and listened to him. Listening is key to discipleship. Hearing his voice and following his lead is the most basic form of discipleship. Mary understood this and joyfully learned from the Master.
Martha got caught up with service, Mary with worship. Service is important and there are times to serve, and there are times to just be with God.
I came to this understanding a few years ago as I reflected on this passage. I too easily fall into the Martha model. I realized that I find it easy and comforting to identify as a servant of God. With this outlook, it is easy to get busy doing good things, and not realize when doing things for God became a distraction from being with God.
I had to recognize that in Christ, I am not just a servant of God, but a son of God (John 1:12). How does my relationship with God change when I perceive it through the lens of sonship? As a servant, I just need to focus on how I serve. As son, I have to deal with my insecurities, shame and feelings of underserving of this position and accept the love and forgiveness of our Heavenly Father.
The place of a son or daughter is to be with the Father. Mary chose this good portion, the necessary thing, to be with the Savior. God’s plan of redemption was set in place to give us the opportunity of experiencing his presence in Immanuel, God with us. The highest form or worship, the best present we can offer him is to seek his presence.
C.S. Lewis claims, “I find an experience fully God-centered, asking of God no gift more urgently than His presence, the gift of Himself, joyous to the highest degree, and unmistakably real.”
I don’t want to get down on Martha, things do need to get done. We just have to check our priorities and make sure we put spending time with Jesus at the top of our list. In our decorating, our baking, our shopping, our festivities and gift giving, we need to carve out space to stop, sit and listen to our Savior, to be with Immanuel.
How can you spend more time with Jesus this week?
This week, I want to challenge you to take a few minutes with Jesus each day and read from the Sermon on the Mount, the longest recorded sermon we have that Jesus gave. To be clear, I believe the whole Bible is the Word of God and that we are spending time with Jesus whenever we read from it, but in the spirit that Mary displayed, I thought we could sit and listen to the teachings of Jesus this week.
Thursday 12/10 – Matthew 5:1-16
Friday 12/11 – Matthew 5:17-30
Saturday 12/13 – Matthew 5:31-48
Sunday 12/14 – Matthew 6:1-15
Monday 12/15 – Matthew 6:16-34
Tuesday 12/16 – Matthew 7:1-14
Wednesday 12/17 – Matthew 7:15-29
I look forward to hearing how your time with Jesus goes this week!
Jesus is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high…
I love the Christmas season! However, I do like to celebrate Thanksgiving first and then focus on Christmas. As we enter this Advent Season, I have been thinking about the meaning and purpose of Christmas. It is so easy to lose focus on the true meaning and get caught up with trivial things.
Consider our Thanksgiving practice, set aside a day to be thankful for what you have, followed by Black Friday and Cyber Monday that try to get you to buy everything you don’t have. How did we get two of the most materialistic days of the year to follow the one day we set aside to be content and grateful?
Similarly, Christmas has become a materialistic holiday for many, but for the Christian it is to be a time where we remember the first coming of our Savior. Over the next few weeks, I want to pause and consider the importance of the first coming of our Lord.
What are your thoughts about Jesus? What concepts do you have about him?
We don’t often pause to consider our thoughts about Jesus and the implications of those thoughts. Do you believe Jesus is God? Do you believe that Jesus is human? What does that look like? Is He 50% God and 50% man? Why is that important anyway?
There have been many misunderstandings and misrepresentations of Jesus over the years. Some have taught that Jesus was God but not man. Some have taught that Jesus was a man but not God. Others have taught that Jesus was a mystic phantom and neither God nor man. But what does the Bible say?
Jesus is 100% Man 100% God, or fully God and fully man.
This is the theological teaching called the Hypostatic Union. How Jesus can be both fully God and fully man and yet be one person. It is a mystery for sure, something that can only be fully understood by God. You and I are only one nature and one person. Jesus is one person with two complete natures.
Read John 1:1-5, 14; Hebrews 2:14-18; Hebrews 4:14-16 for a few passages that refer to his humanity. Jesus is fully human like us, in every respect – human body, heart and mind – except for sin.
Read John 1:1-5, 14; Colossians 1:15-20; Hebrews 1:1-4 for a few passages that refer to his divinity. Because Jesus is also fully God, He is the perfect sacrifice for sin and is able to save us.
Why does Jesus have to be 100% God and 100% man with no division? So he can fulfill all that is necessary to provide forgiveness of sin and reconciliation with the Father. If he was not fully God and fully man, he would not have been able to fulfill all that was required of him.
Watch this brief video to remember what Jesus, the God-Man accomplished for us.
Hard to believe it is November already! This month, leading up to Thanksgiving I want to spend the time dwelling on gratitude. What does it mean to be thankful? Why should we be thankful? How can we be thankful?
We will be focusing on the fact that thankfulness is an action. Most of the time, I say things like, “develop the attitude of gratitude” and focus on the way we feel about something. However, thankfulness isn’t complete until it’s demonstrated.
Consider what the Apostle Paul said in Philippians 4:4–9:
[4] Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. [5] Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; [6] do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. [7] And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
[8] Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. [9] What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.
Let’s zero in on the “with thanksgiving” part. If thanksgiving isn’t complete until it’s demonstrated, how do we see the demonstration of thankfulness in this passage?
It starts with “rejoice in the Lord,” which is to appreciate and enjoy our God. How can we rejoice in the Lord if we are not thankful for Him? Rejoicing, or praising God, is an action of a grateful heart.
Choosing not to worry about anything is an act of thankfulness. Recognizing God is there, that He is in control and He has your back so you don’t have to worry is the action of a grateful heart.
The way we approach God with our requests is to be thankful that we can approach His throne of grace (Heb 4:16). It is a privilege to have an audience with the One true God, and we can only approach Him because of the finished work of Jesus Christ.
A grateful heart that demonstrates thankfulness through praise, not worrying and taking our requests before Him will lead us to the peace of God in Christ Jesus. Learning to be thankful and acting/speaking out in that gratitude results in harmony with God and peace in our circumstances. This peace of God defies human reasoning and draws us in to a closer walk with Him.
An act of thankfulness is to train our minds and our desires to focus on the things that reproduce joy and gratitude in our lives. These are the things that are “true, honorable, just, pure, lovely…” and the such. It doesn’t come naturally, it is something we have to work on.
What are you thankful for today? How have you expressed that thankfulness? Remember, thankfulness isn’t complete until you share it.
It was quiet, really quiet. As I opened my eyes from my nap, something just seemed off. I couldn’t tell what was off, but the quiet was unnerving. I called out, but no one responded. Slowly, I removed the covers and dangled my feet over the edge of the bed, and called out again. Still nothing.
What would your response be?
Fear took over in the unfamiliar air. Why wasn’t anyone responding? Where was everyone? What could have happened that would take the people I love and trusted away from me?
I ran through the house searching room by room and found no one. Tears and fears began filling my eyes and mind. I continued to call out, but to no avail. The only explanation my 8 year old mind could arrive at was that the rapture happened and I was left behind.
Earlier that week, my parents hosted a Bible study on the book of Revelation. I had listened carefully and gathered some understanding, at least enough to realize you didn’t want to be left behind.
By this point I had made it to the back of the house and was crying in the breezeway when my mom entered through the back door. She asked me why I was crying and I told her I thought the rapture happened and I was left behind. She explained that they were outside doing yard work while I was napping.
Naps are great! Bible studies are great! Incomplete information, not so much. Waking up a little disoriented, not seeing or hearing the familiar, and scary stories led my mind to fear.
Fear is a monster inside of us that we cannot allow to rule our lives. Fear is an emotional response that can protect us or destroy us. We do live in a scary world and there is a lot to be afraid of if we dwell on it. However, we serve a big God who has given us promises to overcome.
Whether we experience fear, which is the emotional response to a real threat, or anxiety, which is dwelling on potential danger, we all have things we are afraid of. What are some of the things you are afraid of?
When we are afraid or anxious, we will typically respond in one of three ways: fight, flight or freeze.
If our response is to fight, we might get angry or upset, we might use harsh words or even get physical, which doesn’t solve anything and could make it worse. If we respond in flight, we may just try to run away from our fears but never deal with it. If we freeze, like a deer in a headlight, the dangerous may happen to us and leave us feeling helpless and vulnerable.
Fear and anxiety rob us of the peace of God that He promises to us. This monster inside of us is so pernicious that God wants us to fight against it. So much so that the Bible contains over 300 sentiments to not being afraid, to not fear. God says it so much because it is something we need reminded of continually.
So how do we overcome fears and anxiety?
(Before I answer that, I do feel the need to address mental health issues. Sometimes fears, worries and anxiety can grip us and become affect us on deeper levels. It’s important to recognize mental illness, just like physical illness, and seek help. There is no shame in identifying a need to seek help for mental struggles. If you are struggling with these issues, please talk to me or someone who can guide you through it to God.)
Two Steps to Overcome Fear
1.Understand the root of your fear
2.Understand who Jesus is
We live in a scary world, and there are a lot of uncertainties out there. But the monster inside of us is the type of fear that consumes us. We want to look at the source, what’s creating that little monster?
Root Fears:
•Fear of our past: past mistakes and past wounds often hold us back from moving forward or taking risks.
•Fear of failure: what if something goes wrong? The potential of disappointment hinders you from trying new things or growing, and the fear keeps consuming more.
•Fear of others: rejection and isolation are two areas that plague our minds. What if they find this out about me, would they exclude me? If I open up they might make fun of me? We all want to be accepted and part of a community, nobody wants to be an outcast or be alone.
•Fear of the future: this one is tough because it’s a fear based on potential. What school am I going to go to? What career path should I choose? Who should I date/marry? What if I make the wrong decision? These unknowns become so big that they can overwhelm us.
When these fears control us, they prevent us from moving forward and experiencing the abundant life Jesus has promised us (John 10:10). When you understand the root of your fears or anxieties, you can begin to bring those fears to Jesus.
Which brings us to the second step of overcoming our fears: Understanding who Jesus is.
John 14:1
“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.”
Let me rephrase that, “rather than being afraid, fearful or anxious, trust me.” In order to trust in Jesus, you need to know who He is, what He has done and what He promises to you.
Let’s look at a case study with Jesus and His disciples in Mark 4:35-41.
How many of you like thunderstorms? I love them, when I am in a safe place and can admire them from a shelter. But being in a small boat on the open sea in the middle of a storm seems terrifying. Some of the disciples were career fishermen, accustomed to being on the sea in all kinds of situations, and they were fearful for their lives too.
In the midst of the storm, they thought they were going to die, and Jesus was sleeping on a cushion. How could He be sleeping when we are in trouble?
It’s similar to our fears when we think God is absent. Why are you listening to our prayers? Notice Jesus wasn’t absent, He was in the boat with them. When they woke Him, He ordered the storm to “Be Still!” and it was, just like that!
“Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” Jesus asked His disciples. It’s as if He were saying to them, “don’t you know who I am? Haven’t you seen what I can do? Why don’t you trust me?”
That’s when the disciples ask a key question, “who is this man that even the wind and the sea obey Him?”
This is a key question to answer. Who is Jesus to you? Do you believe in the Jesus of the Bible? The Son of God? Do you believe that He loves you and paid for your sin on the cross? Do you believe He died and rose again, conquering sin and death?
Answering these questions gives us the foundation for gaining a proper perspective of our fears.
We can read this story and say “those disciples were silly being so afraid since Jesus was right there with them.” However, all throughout the Bible Jesus says He is with us as well.
Let’s look at a brief sampling:
Joshua 1:8–9
8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”
According to this passage, confidence comes from knowing God’s Word, spending time in it, obeying it and believing it that God is with you where you go. Don’t miss that point though, you need to be in God’s Word and obedient to it if you want to experience the peace and confidence of God.
Hebrews 13:5–6
5 Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” 6 So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?”
Notice the connection of obedience and confidence. I wanted you to see this link of letting go of the love of money and confidence in Jesus. Money can be used as a crutch or a cheap imitation of confidence in this life, but it can and will enslave us. Rather than trusting in worldly riches, we are to find confidence in the presence of Jesus.
Isaiah 41:10, 13
I have chosen you…10 fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
13 For I, the LORD your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, “Fear not, I am the one who helps you.”
Here we are promised to be wrapped in the love of God. Jesus is with us, over us (I am your God), in us (strengthen), beside us (hold your hand), and under us (uphold). If you are a believer in Jesus Christ, you have no need to fear because He’s got you!
You see, when you understand the basis for your fears, and you understand who Jesus really is, your fears don’t stand a chance!
Fear of the past? Jesus died on the cross knowing all the horrible things you have thought, said or did. On your darkest day, Jesus saw you, loved you and died for you.
Fear of failure? Jesus doesn’t look at success the way this world does. He calls you to be faithful to Him and promises to do the work in and through you (Phil 1:6; Eph 2:10).
Fear of others? Jesus welcomes you just as you are. He is “the friend that sticks closer than a brother” (Prov 18:24).
Fear of isolation? Jesus will never leave you (Heb 13:5-6).
Fear of the future? Jesus has a plan and purpose for your life, nothing surprises Him (Jer 29:10; Ps 139:16).
True Understanding of Jesus Conquers Fear
Jesus, the Son of God, is our Savior and our Redeemer. It is because of who He is that we can overcome our fears.
Romans 8:37–39
37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Living as “more than a conqueror” means that we do not allow fears and anxiety to stop us, but instead we surrender them to Jesus daily.
Philippians 4:6–7
6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
And the promise that follows is that the peace of God will guard our hearts. Can you imagine replacing fear with peace? Anxieties with the calmness that comes from God?
Can you imagine sleeping peacefully knowing God’s got this? Jesus slept peacefully on the boat in the middle of the storm because He had confidence in the Father. That’s the type of confidence we can have in Jesus.
Isaiah 26:3
You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.
When I was little, I was afraid that my parents left me in the rapture and that I was all alone. I didn’t have all the information and I rushed to a conclusion based on my fears. But with knowledge came confidence and hope.
Knowledge of Jesus gives us confidence and hope in life.
I’m pretty good with navigation. If I’ve ever driven somewhere, there’s a pretty good chance I can get back there by memory. If I mess up once, I typically learn my lesson and will remember the next time.
There is one place, that always seemed to mess me up, the Capper’s old house in Firestone Park. Every year, Deb and Travis would host the youth group for the OSU v _ichigan game and for a Christmas party. Every time I drive over, I felt like I knew where I was going, but would turn the wrong way Firestone Blvd every time. Each time I would feel good about my decision, only to be wrong.
The lesson in this story is that just because we feel like we are going the right way, doesn’t mean we are going the right way. You may feel like you’ve got it under control, but reality might be different.
What We Feel Isn’t Always Real
I felt like I was making the correct turn, but I wasn’t. About a block away from the intersection I would realize it, turn around and head the rest of the way to the party. No big deal when I was alone, but often I had people in the car with me and had to laugh off my mistake.
In life, we may feel good about a decision or an emotion only to find out that our perception wasn’t real. No big deal on a wrong turn, but basing decisions on wrong feelings in other areas can really cause problems.
The Monster Inside of us we are talking about this week is a Monster in HD, or in our Heart’s Desire. Our heart’s desires can be good and the can be bad. Since we are talking about monsters, we are focusing on the wrong, or inappropriate desires.
Ever since the Fall in Genesis 3, humanity has had a monster rising up from deep within that desires to see and experience the forbidden. This heart’s desire gives birth to envy and selfish ambition, which seeks to promote self and feelings above all else. This is deep within all over our hearts and it shapes the decisions that we make.
Caution: Proverbs 16:25
There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.
What we feel, isn’t always real is a way to remind ourselves that we can feel like we are heading the right way, but it is a way to destruction. Nobody ever starts with, “I want to head down the way to death.” No, it starts with self-delusion that the way we feel about something is good and it makes us happy.
It’s the pursuit of being happy that often leads, us one step at a time, down the path of destruction. We begin to trust our feelings and continue to pursue it, when the Proverbs is telling us to be cautious about the way that we think is right.
It’s really hard to battle this Monster in HD, because so much of this world is calling out to it. We feed this monster so much. We listen to advice from others that encourages us to give in to this monster.
Have you ever heard this advice: “just follow your heart”?
Here are a few quotes, read them and decide if you agree/disagree? Why or why not? Good advice? Bad advice?
“Don't follow in my footsteps; follow your heart.” Mawra Hocane, actress
“Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition.” Steve Jobs
“The trick is to follow your heart and do what feels right.” Mat Kearney
“So let your heart be your compass when you’re lost.” Anonymous
“There are no rules. Just follow your heart.” Robin Williams
“Your own heart never lies. Ask, what is the right action for this moment? Follow your deepest truth.” Brandon Bays
When we say “follow our heart”, what we’re really saying is let our feelings guide our decisions.
If you’ve ever been given that advice, just follow your heart, you should know that it’s the same truth as what we just described, that what we feel isn’t always what is real. Just because you feel like something is the best choice or best course of action, doesn’t mean it really is.
The problem with letting our feelings guide our decisions is that “feelings are fickle,” by which I mean they change quickly and are often off base. The monster in HD is tricky, it’s persuasive and seems innocent, but is really deadly. Several of these quotes sound good, but lead us away from the truth.
Truth - Lean not on your own understanding
Proverbs 3:5–6
Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.
The Biblical command to “lean not on your own understanding” is in direct opposition to the world’s mantra of “follow your heart.” Why? The heart is the seat of emotions and desires. It was created good and pure, but sin entered the world and broke it. Rather than being a pure source of direction, it is corrupted and sick.
Jeremiah 17:9
The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?
The Monster in HD is a slippery one. Deceit is a form of lies. Satan is called the “father of lies.” There is a part of our heart that desires the lies and doubts the goodness of God. The Monster in HD is that voice that is beckoning you to do things your way, fulfill your desires no matter the cost, and believe that God won’t fulfill His promises.
The Bible is warning you that you cannot trust your heart, but you can trust in God. Proverbs 3:5 says “trust in the Lord with all your heart…” Don’t trust your heart, trust in God. To trust with all of our heart is to trust Him with our desires.
Application - you can’t trust your heart
“I deserve this” or “it’s not hurting anyone” or “if it makes you happy, do it” or “it doesn’t matter,” “God wants you to be happy,” are the lines the Monster in HD speaks to you.
Yes, God does want you to be happy, but not the way your heart will take you. God is far more concerned about your holiness than your happiness. You see, pursing holiness will remove all the things from your life that truly make you unhappy and will lead you into a joyful life. How do we do this?
Don’t follow your heart, lead your heart to Jesus.
Your heart is more than the monster in HD. It desires so much because it was wired for the eternal (Ecclesiastes 3:11). St Augustine said we have a “God shaped hole inside of us.” His point is that our hearts will never truly be content with anything other than Jesus Christ.
God created you to be in a relationship with Him. That’s your purpose, that’s where you will find true meaning and value. Everything else in this life will fall short. Sin disrupted that relationship. God sent Jesus Christ to provide a way to reconcile by living a perfect life and being the perfect sacrifice for our sins on the cross. His resurrection made it possible for us to find forgiveness, freedom and harmony with our Creator.
Jesus calls us to come to Him, to trust Him and to love Him above all else (Matt 11:28-30; John 14:1; Matthew 22:37-40). We are to “love Him with all of our heart.” This means training our heart to long for and desire Jesus above all else. Everything the Monster in HD is tempting us with is a cheap imitation of the good things we can have in Jesus.
Colossians 3:1–3
If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
If you are a believer in Jesus Christ, you need to seek Him above all else. You need to take time to read the Bible, to pray, to spend time with other Christians, and continually look for ways to keep the Monster in HD at bay by loving Jesus more and more.
The amazing thing about Jesus, is even when we listen to the Monster in HD, all we need to do is do what I did on my way to the Cappers. After making a wrong turn, I turned around and went the right way. That’s called repentance.
If you’ve been following the Monster in HD down the deadly path, would you stop tonight? Would you tell Jesus you know you are wrong and headed the wrong way? Would you turn to Him and tell Him you want to follow Him instead? He is waiting for you and He will forgive you (1 John 1:9).
“Emotions make excellent servants, but tyrannical masters.” – John Seymour
I recently heard this quote and thought it made terrific sense. When we are in control of our emotions we have freedom, but when we are slave to our emotional responses, we are out of control, and then we have little monsters inside of us.
We are talking about The Monsters Inside of Me in our current series. Last week we talked about the monster of “self-delusion,” the monster that gets us to suppress our struggles and pretend that everything is ok.
The beautiful thing about the Gospel, is that it is ok for us to admit that we are not okay, but Jesus loves us too much to let us stay that way. That’s why we need this series, to see the monsters for what they are and acknowledge them so we can find healing from them.
This week we are going to look at the monster of “anger.”
How has anger affected your life?
If I pause for a moment, I can think of several stories where my anger was demonstrated in an inappropriate way.
Proverbs 14:29
Whoever is slow to anger has great understanding, but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly.
Wisdom has a higher goal than getting even, and unfortunately, far too often in our anger, we seek to get even.
There was the time, in 6th grade, that I felt an injustice was done to me by a kid cutting the line in front of me for tether ball. My anger flared up, I spoke in anger, followed by physical force shoving him to the ground. It happened to be a muddy day and he slipped and landed hard on his arm. He cried and went to the teacher. I spent some time in the principal’s office for my failure to control my anger.
There was the time on the playground where someone tried to take my basketball. My anger flared. I punched him. Immediately I felt guilty, so I said “God loves you!” then I grabbed my ball and ran home. Instead of telling my parents that I lost my cool and hit someone, I told them that I got the chance to tell someone about God’s love.
I could keep going, but I won’t bore you with more of my humiliating moments. The simple truth was that I was an enslaved to my anger. I actually thought it was cool and powerful to be angry. I remember my stone cold stare that I would get when I was mad, sometimes riding home in dead silence. I wanted to be tough and powerful.
But I didn’t realize that I was allowing an emotional response to become my master. Rather than learning to control my anger, I was giving in to emotional outbreaks which would later cause divisions with friends and create embarrassment to me.
Anger is a normal human emotional response. It’s not always bad and it’s not always good. It’s an emotion that we need to bring into subjection to the Gospel and not allow it to control us. God’s word is not silent about anger.
James 1:19–21
Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.
I was not slow to anger in these stories. In my youth, I was quick to get angry, but God’s Word says that we should be slow to anger. Why?
Why do we get angry? We feel an injustice of some kind, something doesn’t go our way, or someone disappoints us. We think we want righteousness, but what we really want is our own way. It is our selfishness and pride that causes us to be quick to anger.
God says “man’s anger does not produce the righteousness of God.” Therefore we should be suspect of our own anger. Don’t trust your angry response, rather we are to receive the teachings of God’s word in meekness.
I had a pattern of angry outburst from an early age into college. Thank the Lord I had the privilege of going to Word of Life Bible Institute where I was immersed in the Word of God and surrounded by godly friends. Even in this bubble, I had a foolish response where I lost my cool on the volleyball court.
Leaving the field house, I felt like an idiot and was filled with shame by my response. I began to pray and ask God to change my heart. I decided to take a break from my normal routine and spend time in prayer and studying God’s Word on anger and peace. I was so convicted that I needed to change that I was willing to give up the sport I loved.
Today, I praise God for I know that He has transformed my heart and has given me wisdom through His Word and His Spirit to overcome this monster inside of me. Not that I am perfect, but I am not what I was.
Having found victory in this area, I desire others to know how to control and overcome their anger as well. However, each person is different and their emotional responses are rooted in their life experiences.
Some of us hold onto a deeper level of anger that only pops up in rare moments.
Some of us have valid reasons for being angry.
It’s ok to not be ok, but God loves you too much to let you stay that way - just as true with anger. Some of us in here have been dealt bad hands in our life, and your anger is fully understandable. But God has more for you than to just live in anger. Even in the worst of circumstances, God’s grace can bring healing and victory to you.
Anger doesn’t have to control us, we choose to let it. When we allow anger to reign in our life we affect others around us. Anger separates friendships and relationships. People don’t want to be around an angry person. Anger causes you to hold on to offenses and desire to get even, but blinds you to the big picture.
But God offers a different way!
Ephesians 4:26–27
Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil.
God calls us to no sin in our anger, lest we give a foothold in our lives to the devil. When we respond in unchecked anger and allow our emotions to get the best of us, we sin. We act like the devil. We don’t deal with our anger in a godly way.
Anger itself is not a sin, for God Himself is angry at sin and has provided a way for you to find forgiveness and healing from your anger.
“You can’t understand God’s love if you don’t understand his anger.” David Powlison, JBC Vol. 14, 1 (Fall 1995), 41.
Understanding God’s anger inevitably leads us to the cross where God’s justice and mercy meet in perfect, soul-wrenching, Christ-crushing, sin-forgiving, life-giving harmony. The anger of God against our sinful anger was mercifully diverted from us onto His beloved Son. As a result, God preserved and promoted both His justice and humanity’s forgiveness through the cross. – (Jonathan Dodson, Anger: The Image of Satan)
In the cross, God has offered us His forgiveness and demonstrated the remedy for anger – forgiveness. God chooses not to be angry with us because of what Jesus did for us.
You too can learn to conquer anger through forgiveness. Forgiveness is letting go and surrendering the issue to God. It is seeing that God has already paid for the injustice at the cross and you do not need to hold on to your wrath.
Some issues are simple. When that boy cut in front of me for tether ball, I should have let go of “my right” to be the next person and forgave him for the injustice. He wouldn’t have had a sprained arm and I wouldn’t of had to go to the principal’s office.
Some issues are much more difficult and will take time, prayer and surrender to the Word of God. Good News, you don’t have to figure it out alone, the Holy Spirit will empower you if you sincerely want to change. You can have victory over the anger monster inside of you!
If I were to show up at your house, unannounced, to do an inspection on how clean is your bedroom, would you be embarrassed with how messy it is or content with how clean it is? How often do you clean your room? Are you the thorough cleaner or the stuffer?
I hated cleaning my room when I was a kid…who am I fooling, I still hating cleaning my room. I can remember a Saturday morning where I didn’t want to clean my room, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to go outside and play until it was done. I devised a great plan, lets shove everything in the closet and shut the door. Everything will look clean super quickly.
This is my song:
Well, when mom came in to inspect she was impressed, until she opened the closet doors and everything fell out. Did I clean my room? No, I just suppressed the mess in the closet.
My planned backfired. I bought into my self-delusion that my room was clean. The remedy was pointed out by my mom and not only did my room get cleaned, my closet did too.
Anyone here like that when it comes to cleaning your room? You just hide stuff and have to find new hiding places?
Tonight, we’re starting a new series for the month of October called “The Monsters Inside of Me,” and the reality that we can ignore, that oftentimes we are our own worst enemy. There are emotions and attitudes that we can harbor internally that, if we don’t tame them, they can destroy us. Things like anger, fear, worry, these things can consume our thoughts, dictate our decisions, and prevent us from walking in the way that God wants us to walk.
It may be easy to pretend you have a clean room when everything is just shoved in the closet, but it is dangerous to pretend life is good when you have these things shoved into a dark corner of your soul. This leads us to the Monster we will talk about tonight, self-delusion.
Self-delusion is choosing to believe a lie rather than reality. I believed my room was clean, but reality was the filth was just pushed aside. I deluded myself by suppressing the truth and presenting a lie as true.
We are prone to do this with our life. We put on a smile and say we are “fine,” but in reality we have a whole lot of junk that we are hiding inside. Some of us hide doubt. Some of us hide faith. Some of us hide hurts, some hide wounds. Some hide rage, some hide mistakes. Some hide shortcomings or weaknesses. Some hide pain.
We believe the lie that people will reject us if they know the truth. We believe God will condemn us if we admit the truth. We believe the self-delusion that God doesn’t already know and that we can handle this junk on our own.
Part of our problem is the secular worldview that is permeates our culture from classrooms, counselors, and media. It’s the teaching that you should “live your truth.” This teaching actually is encouraging you to believe and live out your self-delusion.
Here is a typical encouragement of the day by author and entrepreneur Kamal Ravikant, “It begins by looking inside ourselves, because when it rises from within, we have no choice but to express it, to live it. That is when magic happens: fulfillment, happiness, relationships and success.”
How hopeless is that? “Look inside ourselves” to find what? Fulfillment? Happiness? Relationships? Success? From inside ourselves?
God’s word says this: Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?
If I look within myself, I will be looking at the Monsters Inside of Me and trying to find answers from them. What is true is that those hidden monsters will lie to me, deceive me and cause me to look for happiness and joy in things that will only leave me empty and full of shame.
This is a pattern God’s Word warns us about: Romans 1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.
It is the unrighteous tendency to suppress the truth (self-delusion) to live their own way, or “live out their truth.” But God wants us to “live in the truth.”
Let’s turn to Psalm 139 to be reminded of the truth of God, take a few moments to read it.
This Psalm opens with the statement that God has already “searched me and known me!” Can I put it this way, “God you have already opened the closet doors of my room and found my mess. You have seen my futile attempts and you know my self-delusions!”
Verses 1-6 plainly put that God knows our thoughts, our patterns and our words before we say them. Verses 7-12 tell us that we cannot run from God or hide from God. We cannot conceal our monsters from Him, so why do we try? Verses 13-16 tell us how God views us, that we were made by Him. He was intimately involved in the formation of our body, souls and spirit. He knows us better than we know ourselves, and He knows the number of our days. Verses 17-22 show how David’s reflection on God resulted in worship and a desire to purge the world of anything that is against the purity of God. Verses 23-24 concludes with a prayer for God to continue to search him and reveal anything that might disrupt his relationship with God.
In this brief summary, I want you to see that you don’t have to hide these monsters from God. He already knows it. Praying this prayer is not an invitation for judgment, but an invitation for freedom.
Skit Guys on Psalm 139:
Muck, Guck and Yuck (from the video) can be easily cleaned out of our bedroom closet, but we cannot clean it out of our hearts on our own. That’s what Jesus came to do for us, to provide a way for our sins and shame to be paid for and cleaned out of our life. Don’t allow the sin of self-delusion to prevent you from the life God has created you for. If you stop hiding the monsters and confess them, God will forgive you and cleanse you from them (1 John 1:9).
In Christ, there is no reason to feel condemned because Jesus took care of the problem (Romans 8:1). The enemy wants you to believe God will give up on you, but nothing can separate you from God’s love (Romans 8:38-39).
This first monster of self-delusion is what leads us to shoving the rest of the monsters we will talk about in the closet of our hearts. It is time to open those closet doors and let the light of Christ shine in and bring healing to your heart.
Don’t look inside for fulfillment, happiness, relationships and success, look to Jesus for the remedy. What you find will be the fulfillment your soul is craving, a reason to not only be happy but joyful, a relationship that will never let you down and a the path for a truly successful life in God’s eyes.
My shortcut in cleaning my room led to more work in the end. Don’t allow the lies of the enemy to lead you into self-delusion that suppresses the truth and pushes those monsters deeper into your heart’s closet. Open the doors, learn to confess and talk about those monsters with someone who can show you what God’s Word says and the hope we have in Jesus.
The best part of last night’s debate is the memes that are being posted today. I think the memes are the best part because I think it is good that some can still have a sense of humor after watching the debate. One of my friends posted that it reminded her of what it’s like being an elementary school teacher with kids interrupting other kids all the time.
Alas, it was not an elementary class but a presidential debate. I think most people, on all sides, can agree that it wasn’t the easiest thing to watch. There were many frustrating parts to it and gave little to excited about. One tweet said, “are these two really the best we have to offer?”
I am not writing this post to promote one candidate over the other, or persuade you in any way from your chosen candidate. I am just pointing out that, objectively speaking, these candidates leave much to be desired. One is the product of decades in the political system. The other is the product of celebrity culture. Both are the products of an American culture steeped in a secular worldview that increasingly distances itself from biblical standards.
Not only that, but we are also in a stressful season caused by a pandemic. There is a lot of confusion about the facts, what is true and what’s not true. Families, churches, and communities are dividing over the disease or our governments approach to battle said disease.
When I look at these scenarios on their own merit, there is not much that gives me hope. Actually, there is a lot of negative emotions and anxieties, if each of these had to stand on their own merit.
But that is not the case. It’s mornings like today that I like to stop and look back at what the Word of God says when there is turmoil and/or uncertainty. Guess what it says?
God is in control. God’s got this.
Here are encouraging verses to me:
Daniel 2:20–21
20 “Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, to whom belong wisdom and might. 21 He changes times and seasons; he removes kings and sets up kings; he gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding;”
Daniel 4:17
… the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will and sets over it the lowliest of men.
Psalm 75:7
… but it is God who executes judgment, putting down one and lifting up another.
Romans 13:1
… For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.
I could go on, but I think you get the point. The God of the Bible, the one true God, is the one who sets up leaders and removes leaders. He changes the times and the seasons. He grants power to governments and uses them for His purposes.
We don’t have to worry about the election or the viruses, for our God reigns and has all things in control. Not only is God in control, but He has a plan of redemption that He has been cultivating since the beginning of time, and this is through His Son, Jesus Christ.
Colossians 1:13–20
13 He (God the Father) has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. 15 He (Jesus) is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.
On a day after a debate, a Cleveland Indians loss, and during a pandemic, we can rejoice because we believe in a risen Lord. We believe that Jesus Christ is King! He came into our space, lived a perfect life and became the perfect sacrifice for our sin debt. He has provided a way for us to be free from the domain of darkness and to become members of His kingdom!
Look around you, in this beautiful fall season, and remember that Jesus created that beauty. Jesus sustains all of creation. He holds all things together. And He is ever reconciling us to the Father.
His kingdom is an already-not-yet kingdom. He has conquered the domain of darkness, He has defeated death, and He has provided a way for us to be reconciled to the Father. So, yes, we can live today knowing that He does reign and we can experience His kingdom today.
We are also called to be citizens and agents for His kingdom. We do this by telling others about who He is and what He has done. It is through proclaiming His Name and sharing the Good News with others that we will see true and lasting (eternal) impact on other’s lives.
We are also called to be obedient to all He command us to do. This means we need to be regular students of the Word of God and know His commands. Reading His Word and putting it into practice will point others to Jesus. Baptism is also a step of obedience that all believers should walk in. Regular attendance at church and joining a community of believers is a step of obedience all Christians must do in order to be faithful.
His kingdom is also “not yet”, meaning that we still live in a broken world. Jesus came the first time to redeem us and set in motion the church to share His Good News with the world. Jesus will come back a second time to make all things new and right.
One day He will return and put an end to sin, death and disease. One day He will come and set up His kingdom on earth. No more corrupt politicians. We will be governed by the perfect Son of God. That is our hope, Jesus is King!
No matter your political persuasion or your view on the pandemic, seek to surrender yourself to the King of kings and the Lord of lords. Don’t trust in earthly politics or man-made answers, look to the one who created all things and sustains all things, look to Jesus.
When we look to Jesus as King, we can be hopeful and joyful in all of life’s circumstances.
