The issue in our lives is the person we become. The goal of the Christian life is to become like Jesus. So, how do we cultivate greater generosity in our lives and witness the amazing benefits of a generous lifestyle?

We know that we can only give what God has given to us. What God looks at is the condition of our hearts. Many people in our affluent society today struggle with the two major ingredients of life: money and time. We often abuse both. We spend more than we have and use our time unwisely. How we spend these gifts from God is a great indicator of where we are in our relationship with Him. Have we learned to really trust God in our lives? Do we believe that God will provide for us? Is our focus primarily on ourselves, or have we matured to a point where we are deeply interested in the well-being of others? The very nature of biblical Christianity is giving. So, how do we become more generous with our lives? How do we develop into being more generous people?

Paul gives us two reasons in the first 15 verses of 2 Corinthians 8 for becoming generous.

Consider the cross, an ancient tool of punishment, torture, and death. The cross slowly and painfully ended the lives of its victims. In the process, they were shamefully abused, rejected and despised, humiliated before all passersby. And yet, in an astoundingly ironic reversal, the cross became the greatest symbol of Christianity, speaking of glory and victory!

So, what brought about this astonishing recognition? It was the death of Jesus and what it accomplished for humanity. Jesus’ sacrificial death brought victory over sin, death, and judgment. This amazing act of Jesus, laying down his life, transformed the cross into a symbol of hope and deliverance. So the cross—an instrument of death—became the means by which God gave life!

John provides some details in the conclusion of chapter 19, but the writer of Hebrews broadens our perspective. He writes about Jesus: “…For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Heb. 12:2). The result of Jesus’ death on the cross was his exaltation in glory.

When we consider the great sacrifice Jesus made on our behalf, what effect should that have on our lives, besides our undying gratitude?

Hope sustains you in the welter of struggles that scurry through the heart and mind like tadpoles in a pond. It draws you into the new day and carries you through the many days that follow.

…We think of the prophets as writing about the future, and they do. But their interests rest less with helping us chart events in a nice, neat way than with assisting us through the minefields of life to live for God.  They assure us that God is sufficient for what we are going through now and for what is likely to smack us later. They persist in saying that the one we cling to deserves our trust, and that hope in God is legitimate and beneficial. ...With their wonderful dreams and tales of better times, they offer a vision of life far different from current experience. Prophets see what is not as though it were and invite others to adopt their perspective despite contrary evidence. They offer hope, but they do so by way of a challenge: believe that a power as awesome and far-reaching as Assyria’s will one day soon be little more than rubble, and you are likely to believe anything.”

That’s it, the things that are, will one day no longer be! Whatever your challenge, whatever seems beyond your ability, and worse, is still not big enough or bad enough to overcome what God ultimately intends for each of us. Our problem is that our expectations are often shattered by something greater and better than what we anticipate. That’s the story of Easter week. 

The Jewish people were hoping that Roman rule was coming to an end as they worshiped their king, but the reality was that His throne was a cross that would deliver them and us from something far greater than earthly oppression. Sin and death were about to deliver a crushing blow. Jesus was about to provide us with eternal life.

As we celebrate these days, the significance of Easter week, I want to look at the prophetic picture and the background of the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. Today is the day we know as Palm Sunday.  What was transpiring in that moment of time? What were the aspirations of the people? What was significant about this moment? How does that impact us? What should this day mean to us?   

To really gain insight into this moment in the life of Jesus, we need to go back in time to the prophet Zechariah, who prophesied about the coming King. In that context, I want to look at Psalm Sunday today. In Zechariah 9:9-17, we find the fulfillment of prophecy as quoted by Matthew when Jesus came into Jerusalem that day, two thousand years ago, to establish his kingdom, through his conquest over sin and death.

But what was happening when Zechariah first communicated this message of hope to God’s people, and how did that message get lost in translation so that so many missed the message? How is it that we can still miss the significance of this message today? Zechariah was preaching after the exile. Many had returned, but many remained in the land of exile. 

Robert shares that, by attending Bob Jones University, he developed a bad attitude toward the school's rules and dropped out. Arriving home, his father listened and was supportive, but when they tried to find another avenue for further education, all the doors were closed. His father then sat down with Robert and stated that he ought to consider returning to Bob Jones University. “Son, you need to learn that life is not easy and that, whatever you do in life, you will be working with people who don’t agree with you. Go back to Bob Jones and learn how to function in a context that is difficult for you.”

I was thinking about what he said and how much sense it made when he added, “Besides, you quit. You ran away from a difficult situation. If you run away completely, you will set a pattern that will be hard to break. You may end up being a quitter all your life. I knew he was right and that returning to Bob Jones was exactly what I should do. I felt almost instant peace about my decision. Returning wasn’t easy, but it was right. In the next six months, God began to work in my heart in many ways, one of which was to lay total claim on my life for ministry.

Since then, over nearly four decades of training and ministry, there have been many difficult times when I have wanted to throw in the towel and give up. Every time, though, the words of my father have come back to me, and in my heart and with my lips I reaffirm, “You are not a quitter.” Life is difficult, but it is also an adventure—and an exciting one at that. I’m persuaded in my own life that God’s calling demands steady, unmoved perseverance. This lesson—a lesson that lies at the heart of Christian discipleship—is one that I learned from a father whose wisdom in dealing with a rebellious son opened my heart to hear the call of God, “Come, follow me.”

One of the great challenges in this present generation is that we do not want to be corrected. However, positive correction can be a source of amazing encouragement, growth, and a future resource to help us face greater challenges that often lie ahead in our lives. So, how do we handle correction in our lives, and how and why should we correct those whom God entrusts into our lives? What we will discover is the possibility for some incredible outcomes. 

There is no question that the people we associate with can affect us, but what we come to believe will affect the decisions we make and determine not only our earthly future but also our eternal future.

What we are about to discover is that Paul is not suggesting that we stop relating to unbelievers. Rather, the people he is warning us against are those who profess Christianity but are deviating from biblical truth, which leads people away from a biblical lifestyle.

Have you experienced those difficult and devastating moments of life? The temptation is to become angry and bitter. Some people even grow to hate and blame God. Why is God allowing this to happen to me?  Why does God lead us into the wilderness experiences of life? Why the wilderness? Asking why usually doesn’t satisfy. It is far better to consider what we can learn and how to respond in ways that will help us grow on our journey through life.

Have you ever noticed that difficulties come in packages—often overwhelming? What we need to remember is that even Jesus felt overwhelmed with sorrow in the garden of Gethsemane. What wilderness experiences quickly remind us of is our humanity, our weakness, and our frailty.

God has always led His people into the wilderness experiences of life. All his servants have had moments in the wilderness: Moses, Elijah, John the Baptist, and Jesus Himself. Wilderness experiences have a design. If you look at the first three gospels, God, by His Spirit, led Jesus into the wilderness to be tested by the devil. It was God who initiated the confrontation between Jesus and the devil, which is a mirror and a different and victorious outcome to the wilderness wandering of the Israelites between slavery and the promised land.  

We find in Deuteronomy a fascinating explanation of why God allows wilderness experiences in our lives. Moses, in the second reading of the Law, is coming to the end of his ministry. He describes the value of the wilderness experiences to the Israelites so they will never forget God.

John 15:13 - "Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends."

We know the ultimate expression of love was given by God. Christ gave his life for us to reconcile us to God. There are three things expressed in 2 Corinthians 6:1-13 that will reveal to us this authentic love and how that love is expressed.

How do we hit the reset button on our lives? What does it take to see a new beginning and transformation happen in our lives? We must stop evaluating life through the lens of our world. We need to accept the gift God offers us in Christ. We can be reconciled to God simply by accepting the gift of Jesus’ sacrifice on our behalf, an admission that we have sinned against God and are prepared to turn our backs on the life we once knew. When we experience God’s grace, it gives our lives a new purpose. We now have a message of reconciliation to share with those around us.

1 Corinthians 15:42-44, 50-54

So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; it is sown in dishonour, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.

I declare to you, brothers and sisters, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed—in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.”

At first, the early church assumed that Jesus would return soon, but then days turned into weeks, months and years, and believers were dying. The question arose, so what happens to those who die before Jesus comes back?

Paul answers that question in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

“Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore, encourage one another with these words.”

Yet this triggered another question: So, what happens to those believers who physically die before Jesus’ return? This was a deep concern in the lives of first-century Christians and has created much confusion that persists to this day. Theologians call this the intermediate state.

There is a growing fascination with the afterlife. Let me begin by mentioning three false ideas, then move to our text today, and give us the biblical picture of the intermediate state.

What we are about to discover is how to not only survive but also thrive in difficult times and situations. We need to discover how to have joy in life’s most challenging moments, as James explains in his letter.

            James 1:2-4

            Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds,

            Because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.

            Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

We are going to continue our series on 2 Corinthians, where Paul is under great pressure, scrutiny, and criticism, and he now explains the very nature of Christian life and ministry. It is a life in which, despite hardships, our character may transform as we look to Jesus for wisdom and strength to persevere. Here is where we see God’s manifested glory most evidently in our lives. There are three elements to God’s work of glory, revealing itself through a transforming life and ministry.

Scott Hafemann echoes that same sentiment: “Indeed, the call of Moses demonstrates that these very obstacles are an essential part of the call itself, illustrating clearly that God’s grace, not the prophet’s strength, is the source of his sufficiency.”

Paul is able to balance his negative declaration, “Not that we are sufficient in ourselves,” with the positive counterpoint, “but our sufficiency is from God” (v. 5). And Paul goes on to explain that his sufficiency comes from two things: 1) the sufficiency of the new covenant and 2) the sufficiency of the Spirit.” What we discover is that God’s transforming glory is expressed through human weakness so that people will come to understand that it is the power of God’s grace working through our lives that brings about God’s power and virtues.

Scott Hafemann explains the amazing grace of God’s covenant with us and our need to move from our self-sufficiency to total dependency on God. “The contemporary significance of our passage revolves around one central, all-determining point: God is the source and supply of our lives, as demonstrated by his calling and equipping his people for service in a covenant relationship with him. The call of God takes place in Christ; the service takes place by means of the Spirit. This is true whether one is an apostle called to be a minister of the new covenant in the first century or a believer called to be faithful in service to others in the twenty-first. Though inherently offensive to the self-reliance and self-glorification that are so much a part of modern culture (and every culture since the Fall), Paul’s stark reminder is that we cannot claim anything as coming from ourselves (cf. Rom. 11:36; Eph. 2:8–10). All things come from God (cf. 1 Cor. 8:6; 2 Cor. 1:21). Nothing we have is earned; everything is a gift (1 Cor. 4:7).

However, even in the sinless paradise that man found himself in, there came a temptation— the temptation was simply that God, our Creator, was withholding from the created. God’s goodness was challenged, and as a result, the first human couple rebelled from an amazing, transparent and sinless life to one now tainted and ultimately corrupted by evil. The result was that the image of God was marred in us as humans, and now sin works at dehumanizing us. What I mean by that statement is that in creating us as human we are to reflect the nature and goodness of our Creator.

Now, with the birth of sin in the human family, sickness, alienation, and death were the outcomes for all generations. But God in His great mercy and love had designed a plan to reclaim us all from this terrible state through the substitutionary sacrifice of the Son of God.

Beginnings are often very fragile times and open to blatant temptations or subtle spiritual attacks. We see that in the early life of Jesus, as Herod tried to murder him. Instead, Herod killed all the little boys two and under in the little town of Bethlehem because of the visit by the Magi. The enemy is always threatened when God is implementing His plans through the lives of His children.

This Christmas Season, how are you preparing the way for the Lord? In our homes? In our workplaces? In our relationships? In our own hearts?

In addressing the criticisms levelled at his apostolic ministry, particularly his boldness in correcting the Corinthians, Paul explains the nature of true Christian ministry. When I speak of ministry, I’m not just speaking of Christian leadership or ministry; I also include the idea that each of us, who are followers of Jesus, communicates God’s message to others. This includes our communication with those we lead, parent, coach, and mentor. It is also the communication we share with one another, discipling and encouraging people in their relationship with God. At times, it means not only affirming and encouraging, but also correcting those we love, as we see sinful behaviour that is destructive not only to the individual but also before God and its effects on others. One of the most difficult things to bear is the criticisms from those we love, particularly when we are being misjudged when trying to speak into their lives.

Emotional suffering and anguish can be the emotional toil of having a meaningful relationship when we are being criticized for addressing issues. It certainly was true in the life of Paul, as we see from his letter to the Corinthians. What we also discover in 2 Corinthians 2 is the conflicted emotions between two significant elements in Paul’s ministry. We see Paul’s deep desire to know what is happening in the life of the church in Corinth in response to his latest letter correcting their sinful behaviour. He is also conflicted about what to do with the amazing opportunity in Troas, as the gospel is transforming people’s lives. Obviously, one situation was far more fulfilling and joyous, while the other left him in deep anguish and concern.

We may have experienced conflicting emotions when torn between two concerns. Some of you may be bearing the weight of caring for elderly parents, while at the same time navigating through your child or children’s teen years. Paul, in defence of his absence in coming to Corinthian, explains why he addressed them from a distance and the heart behind such a strong, direct, and confronting letter, in which he called for their repentance. Paul agonized over causing them pain, but then rejoiced over their proper, godly response to correction, renewing their expression of love for him.   

One address that Lewis broadcast was the Christian idea of forgiveness.

“Everyone says forgiveness is a lovely idea, until they have something to forgive, as we had during the war. And then, to mention the subject at all is to be greeted with howls of anger. …And half of you already want to ask me, ‘I wonder how you’d feel about forgiving the Gestapo if you were a Pole or a Jew? So do I. I wonder very much, just as when Christianity tells me that I must not deny my religion even to save myself from death and torture. I wonder very much what I should do at that point. I am not trying to tell you in this book what I could do—I can do precious little—I am telling you what Christianity is. I did not invent it. And there, right in the middle of it, I find ‘Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.’ There is no slightest suggestion that we are offered forgiveness on any other terms. It is made clear that if we do not forgive, we shall not be forgiven.

…we might try to understand precisely what it means to love your neighbour as yourself. I have to love him as I love myself. Well, how exactly do I love myself?

…my self-love makes me think myself nice, but thinking myself nice is not why I love myself. …In my most clear-sighted moments, not only do I not think myself a nice man, but I know that I am a very nasty one. I can look at some of the things I have done with horror and loathing. So, apparently, I am allowed to loathe and hate some of the things my enemies do. Now come to think of it, I remember Christian teachers telling me long ago that I must hate a bad man’s actions, but not hate the bad man, or, as they would say, hate the sin but not the sinner. For a long time, I used to think this was a silly, straw-splitting distinction: how could you hate what a man did and not hate the man? But years later, it occurred to me that there was one man to whom I had been doing this all my life-- myself.

However much I might dislike my own cowardice, conceit, or greed, I went on loving myself. There had never been the slightest difficulty about it.  In fact, the very reason why I hated those things was that I loved the man. Just because I loved myself, I was sorry to find that I was the sort of man who did those things.

Consequently, Christianity does not want us to reduce by one atom the hatred we feel for cruelty and treachery. We ought to hate them. Not one word of what we have said about them needs to be unsaid. But it does want us to hate them [sin] in the same way in which we hate things in ourselves: being sorry that the man should have done such things, and hoping, if it is anyway possible, that somehow, sometime, somewhere, he can be cured and made human again.”

If we could hate sin in us and in our world, yet still love people and ourselves, we would begin to understand the heart of God. That is the way of compassion toward others.

When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard about this, they were very much disturbed that someone had come to promote the welfare of the Israelites. One of the strategies of the opponents of God’s work is to discredit the leader. When I talk about leadership, I mean anyone God is using to direct and influence people in the right direction.

So, how do people try to discredit people? They often come to intimidate through false accusations. I realized that God had not sent him, but that he had prophesied against me because Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him. He had been hired to i

ntimidate me so that I would sin by doing this, and then they would give me a bad name to discredit me. What was true of Nehemiah was also true of Paul. We find an attack upon Paul, his character, his ministry, and his message. The issue is not whether people will attack those who serve others, but how we respond to the attack. We will discover in 2 Corinthians Paul’s response to the attack he experienced. We can also learn from that response so that when we feel misunderstood, or even worse, when others are discrediting us, we can biblically address the issue.

As we begin our journey through the most autobiographical sketch of Paul's life, we discover something of the nature of the gospel, the challenges, the sorrow, and the ultimate hope that God’s gracious message brings into our lives.

In the introduction to this letter, Paul writes that he experienced his greatest pastoral challenge at Corinth. Linda Belleville, in her commentary on 2 Corinthians, explains that itinerant ministers were challenging Paul’s credentials and his authority.

“Paul’s focus on visions, revelations, and the miraculous suggests that the issue was what constituted an appropriate witness to the gospel. A mistaken emphasis on the miraculous by these so-called super-apostles resulted in a misconstrued view of Jesus as a wonderworker rather than a suffering servant, and a misrepresentation of the Spirit as a miracle empowerer rather than a guarantor of the gospel message. In so doing, they effectively put forward “a different gospel” (11:4). For Paul, the role of the miraculous was to validate, not displace, the gospel. This is clear from the recurring thought in his letters that his preaching was one of word accompanied by power, conviction and the Spirit (1 Thess 1:5; see also Rom 15:19; 1 Cor 2:4; Gal 3:5).”

In Paul’s greetings to this congregation, he appeals to three essential concepts regarding the nature of the gospel. This gospel of Jesus has the power to comfort us in the hours of darkness, where suffering and pain can at times overwhelm us.

Yet we also see that when God’s people begin praying, they start experiencing spiritual growth, healing, reconciliation, and restoration. Here, in the conclusion of his letter, James gives us direction in addressing two significant areas of our lives: physical and spiritual health.

…my own mother was mugged at the age of 72. As a result, she fell and hit her head on the curb. Her family noticed mental deterioration and personality change within weeks; she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and went through all the predictable stages of that wretched disease. She died nine years later.

…And all these things represent the suffering that takes place in relatively stable societies. Add war, racism, genocide, grinding poverty, starvation.”

 We can say that when sin entered the world, so did suffering, evil, and death, but this remains a set of beliefs until suffering strikes us personally. Carson pushes us to see beyond the mental aspect of truth to apply the truths we know that are consistent with a good and compassionate God.

“…in addition to holding that Christian beliefs are true and consistent, the Christian, to find comfort in them, must learn how to use them. Christian beliefs are not to be stacked in the warehouse of the mind; they are to be handled and applied to the challenges of life and discipleship. Otherwise, they are incapable of bringing comfort and stability, godliness and courage, humility and joy, holiness and faith.”

James, rather than shying away from the reality of suffering in our world, speaks to the issue.

James 1:2-4  - “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.“

What James is saying is that God uses the worst things in our lives to cultivate spiritual maturity. Yet, we find that suffering can be overwhelming. In this letter, he is speaking to believers who have been exploited by those who use their wealth and power to devastate their lives. How should we respond to evil? How are we doing to find the endurance and hope necessary in times of suffering in our lives? James calls for restraint and patience in addressing these issues. He gives several reasons for those who are suffering to be patient and to entrust their situations to God.   

If financial planning is part of our eternal plan, perhaps we need to evaluate what we are or are not doing in this area of our lives. Are we living the kind of life that God has called us to be ready for eternity? Being generous with our time and money does affect eternal outcomes.

Charles Dickens' Christmas classic, ‘A Christmas Carol,’ is a cautionary tale about how we prioritize this world’s riches over people's needs. James challenges us regarding our priorities with finances, both in how we attain and invest them, often taking advantage of others or simply living a self-gratifying life.

James 5:1-6

Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming on you.

Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes.

Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days.

Look! The wages you failed to pay the workers who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty.

You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter.

You have condemned and murdered the innocent one, who was not opposing you.

Is this simply a warning against ungodly people? Or is this a warning against the misuse of God’s resources that He has given us? Obviously, it serves as a warning against those who oppress others, but it is also a word of encouragement to those who suffer as a result of financial inequality.

James is using a literary device known as “apostrophe’—speaking to people who are not present, for the benefit of those who are. This way, James’ listeners will know the certainty of the coming demise of their oppressors.”

James is about to call for patient endurance under repressive economic conditions, where some are benefiting at the expense of others. The analogy James makes in Chapter Five is that of a ripening harvest.  Jesus’ return to judge is often spoken of metaphorically as a harvest of people. The harvest is divided between that which is of value, the righteous and those who will be judged for their sinful actions, the unrighteous.

James 5:1-6 deals with this economic oppression and serves as a warning to affluent Christians to invest in the lives of others, particularly those who are unable to care for themselves. 

David Platt explains: “You might wonder why, in a book addressed to Christians, James would spend time using such harsh language toward unbelievers. The answer is that he is reminding the Christians that the justice of God is coming. This reality should enable them to be patient. With that said, it doesn’t mean these verses have no other application to Christians. James has already rebuked Christian brothers and sisters who favoured the rich over the poor, so 5:1–6 serves as both a direct rebuke to rich nonbelievers who were oppressing the poor and a subtle, indirect warning to rich believers (Christians) who were ignoring the poor. Notice that James is not necessarily condemning wealth here; instead, he focuses on the sinful use of wealth. At the same time, for those of us who are part of a culture that is extremely wealthy compared to the rest of the world, we need to examine whether we are engaged in a sinful use of the resources God has given us.” 

Two days later, he began a hymn upon his conversion, [in which he wrote]

Where shall my wandering soul begin?

How shall I all to heaven aspire?

A slave redeemed from death and sin,

A brand plucked from eternal fire,

How shall I equal triumphs raise,

And sing my great Deliverer’s praise!”

Charles Wesley continued to praise his Lord and Saviour for the next fifty years. “According to Frank Baker [Charles Wesley] averaged ten poetic lines a day for fifty years and wrote 8,989 hymns, …who produced “Hark! The Hearld Angels Sing, “And Can It Be,” “O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing,” “Love Divine, all Loves Excelling,” “Jesus, Lover of My Soul,” “Christ the Lord is Risen Today,” “Soldiers of Christ, Arise,” and Rejoice! The Lord is King!”

The nature of worship, spoken or sung, is to express our deepest gratitude toward God for who He is and all that He has done for us. When set to music, it can move us emotionally, but the message is critical. It transforms the worshiper, but it is heightened when gathered with others. God’s presence is often deeply manifested in speaking into our hearts as His word is ministered to us.

As we celebrate this Thanksgiving season, may our hearts and expressions of gratitude to God ascend to God, bringing praise to Him, but also impacting and transforming our attitudes and actions. As we examine the Old Testament songbook, the Psalms, we find numerous expressions, one of which is a great hymn of praise.

Tremper Longman writes regarding the nature of a hymn. “Hymns are easily recognized by their exuberant praise of the Lord. The psalmist pulls out all the stops in his rejoicing in God’s goodness. His praise is exuberant because the psalmist is very conscious of God’s presence.

Though there are many different types of hymns, almost all of them share a similar basic structure.

1. Hymns begin with a call to worship.
2. They continue by expanding on the reasons why God should be praised.
3. Hymns often include, and sometimes conclude with, further calls to praise.”

We gain insight into the setting of Psalm 147, which is one of the later ones not only in the canon but in its historical context. It is written to celebrate the return of the exiles from captivity and the restoration of Jerusalem. God has faithfully fulfilled his promises to his people, particularly the words of Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel.

We are expected to be prepared by living in a state of readiness for Christ’s return.

If we are simply a cosmic accident, then life is reduced to surviving and trying to make the most out of our lives. But what if we were designed by a loving God who had a plan that would not only shape who we would become, but also live a life of significance and purpose?

Once we embrace that God designed us, life takes on a new purpose and direction. The question then becomes, if God created me, what does He have in mind for me? What we are about to hear from James is that God will shape the course of our lives. When we discover Him and then walk in obedience to His will, we embark on a journey of faith that is both challenging and rewarding, in a way we could never have imagined. 

Last week, I focused on addressing the issue of pride in developing and maintaining healthy relationships. This arrogance, however, finds its way into our work world, in which we lose sight of the transitory nature of life itself. We often act as if we have all the time in the world when we do not know what tomorrow holds for us. It is the difference between a self-directed life and one that is lived with eternity before us, marked by a deep dependency on God and learning to embrace God’s designed task for our lives. The issue for all our lives is simply to do God’s will. However, we often struggle with what that really means. What happens when I ignore it or simply disobey it? What are the outcomes then? What happens when I exert my own sinful desires as the catalyst for living my life? I believe that in these few verses in James, we will discover something of the critical nature of embracing God’s will for our lives. 

Finally, it was decided that they would put a stick in the bill of each duck, and then the frog would hang onto the stick with his mouth, and they would fly him to another pond. And so, they did. As they were flying, a farmer out in his field looked up and saw them and said, “Well, isn’t that a clever idea! I wonder who thought of it!”

The frog said, “I did …”

We can chuckle at this humorous little antidote, but it simply illustrates a profound truth, as expressed in the wisdom literature of the Bible. In Proverbs 16:18, it states: Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.

One of the most subtle temptations is the insidious nature of pride. It can easily rear its ugly head and capture those who have so much going for them. In the book of Daniel, we have a contrast between Daniel, a captive slave, and the king, who asks for an interpretation of a troubling dream he has had. King Nebuchadnezzar became the most powerful man alive in his time. He was a world conqueror. He amassed incredible wealth and power. One expression of that wealth was that he had built two of the wonders of the ancient world: the walls of the city and the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. This was a magnificent garden for his wife, as she missed the vegetation of her homeland.

One day, while strolling on his palace roof, musing over his own personal greatness, he was struck down by God, the Almighty. He lost his sanity and spent ‘seven times’ (a season of his life), groping about like an animal, without the capacity to understand and reason. The biblical text describes how his restoration occurred.

Daniel 4:34

At the end of that time, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven, and my sanity was restored. Then I praised the Most High; I honoured and glorified him who lives forever.

God restored to him what his pride had stripped him of, which was the sanity needed to lead his people. He later confessed.

Daniel 4:37b

And those who walk in pride, he is able to humble.

What is pride? It is living as if God does not exist. It is believed that we can be self-sufficient. It is trusting in anything or anyone other than God. The only remedy is a deep sense of reverence toward God. 

What makes the works of William Shakespeare such great literature? It speaks to the transcendent nature of human relationships. All the struggles, joys, and tragedies of life are addressed, which speaks to the human condition. This is why the Bible is so relevant. Even more importantly, the Bible reveals something we would never know apart from its revelation: the very nature of God and His love towards us. While Shakespeare often leaves us looking at the pain and tragedy of life, the Bible moves us to the hope found in God. Ernest Marshall Howse, in his book, ‘Spiritual Values in Shakespeare, states, “In his last will and testament, Shakespeare wrote: 'I commend my soul into the hands of God my Creator, hoping and assuredly believing, through the only merits of Jesus Christ my Saviour to be made partaker of life everlasting.”

So, what is the underlying reason for the great tragedies of life? What causes unrest, bad feelings, hostile and destructive relationships? What is at the root of these things? In James 3, we find the origins of why relationships deteriorate. Jealousy and envy lead to the desire to destroy another. That is why the religious leaders crucified Jesus. They were jealous and envious of Jesus.

Matthew 27:18

For he [Pilate] knew that it was out of envy that they [religious leaders] had delivered him [Jesus] up.

From the very beginning, we have the issue of jealousy and envy bringing about the destruction of a relationship, and even of life itself. Cain was envious of his brother Abel, and he killed him.

Therefore, the condition of the human heart is crucial for maintaining healthy human relationships. As we examine the landscape of our community, with so many relationships in jeopardy, what does that reveal about the condition of our hearts? 

But what is even more important, what can be done about it? How can our self-centred and sinful nature be subdued? It takes a power greater than us. It is only as we yield to God’s Spirit in our hearts that we can have healthy relationships. One of the results of a Spirit-controlled life is that we live a life of submission, first and foremost, to God. It is only then that His purposes for our lives can be known and lived out. It is through this submission to God that we learn to value others and can learn to submit to them. Submission, then, is a key ingredient in healthy relationships. 

What does the Bible mean when it speaks about submission? Often, we confuse submission with subjugation. Submission speaks of yielding to another.  Submission can either be forced or willingly given. People who are forced to submit or who are being subjugated live in resentment, bitterness, and anger. There has been far too much exploitation and humiliation of people in our world.  The result is nothing but resentment and rebellion. The biblical idea is willful submission. It is something we willingly give to another.

I love the distinction that Warren Wiersbe makes between submission and subjugation.  “Subjugation turns a person into a thing, destroys individuality, and removes all liberty. Submission enables a person to become more of what God wants them to be; it brings out their individuality, giving them the freedom to accomplish all that God has planned for their life and ministry. Subjugation is weakness; it is the refuge of those who are afraid of maturity. Submission is strength; it is the first step toward true maturity and ministry.”

How many realize that insecure people demand to have their way? People who are secure in their relationship with God are not putting their trust in their own abilities or their ability to control life’s situations. They are confident that God is in control and that God will have His way.

One of the significant challenges in our current culture is the struggle in our most meaningful and intimate relationships. Families are disintegrating all around us today.  Why? One of the primary reasons is that we are not living a life controlled by God, the Holy Spirit. 

In the book of James, he probes like a doctor exploring the anatomy of conflict. He shows how one thing leads to the next and that we need to address the issues before they get out of control, and the result is the end of what were once loving relationships.

James provides us with insight into the real source of relational conflict. It is always a battle within our own hearts and minds. It is a battle of the will. Who will get their way? What makes James so compelling is that he doesn’t just give us insight into the problem; he shows us how we can address the issue to bring about relational harmony. 

In contrast to this political and military uprising, Church historian Philip Schaff (January 1, 1819 – October 20, 1893) relates the impact that Jesus and his message had over human history in his book, The Person of Christ. He writes: “And yet this Jesus of Nazareth, without money and arms, conquered more millions than Alexander, Caesar, Mohammed, and Napoleon; without science and learning, he shed more light on things human and divine than all philosophers and scholars combined; without the eloquence of schools, he spoke such words of life as were never spoken before or since, and produced effects which lie beyond the reach of any orator or poet; without writing a single line, he set more pens in motion, and furnished themes for more sermons, orations, discussions, learned volumes, works of art, and sweet songs of praise, than the whole army of great men of ancient and modern times.”

What an amazing contrast between the human approach to life’s problems and God’s approach in addressing the great injustices of life. While the zealots in Jesus’ day murdered and revolted against Rome, ultimately destroying themselves in the process, Jesus’ message of love and forgiveness prevailed over that very Empire. The kingdom that Jesus ushered into our world still captures the human heart today.

In James 3, we discover the difference between a wisdom that originates from God and a wisdom that defies God, whose origin is demonic and destructive. It is a wisdom that alienates human relationships, while Jesus’ message transforms them. James concludes chapter 3, which began with a challenge regarding our words, now focuses on the core issue of their origin, within the human heart. What is the condition of our heart? The state of our soul is affected by either wisdom that comes from above or wisdom that originates from below as we evaluate the nature of the two sources of wisdom that shape our hearts and affect our speech, which in turn brings either peace and harmony or conflict and strife. We are going to examine how wisdom affects the condition of our hearts.

Hebrews 11:1

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.

If we continued to read Hebrews 11, we would discover that faith produced specific outcomes, and it is to this reality about faith that James is addressing in the first two chapters.

There was a social tension that invaded even the church world in the 1^st Century that James addresses. When we consider that slaves made up between 10-20 percent of the population in the Roman Empire, many of whom came to faith in Christ, there was economic disparity or inequality in that society. We see from James 1 and the beginning of James 2 that there is a tension between the rich and poor in the church. It is within this context that we need to read how genuine believers act when they find fellow believers in need. James now attaches this issue to 2:14-26 with the nature of faith.   

So, how does biblical faith express itself in life? Biblical or genuine faith that is more than simply a mere confession of belief, but a faith that transforms the behaviour of the person who possesses it. James begins by raising the question: Can a faith that has no outward evidence in life be a biblical, saving faith? James now gives us his answer and describes three things that are understood as faith, but only one of them is genuine. The tragedy is that the other two expressions leave a person living in a state of self-deception and have eternal consequences. 

In James 2, James is deeply concerned about the believer’s actions as they reveal what a person believes. For James, the way we treat people reveals the true condition of the heart and the work of grace or lack within it. How do we see and treat people? The greater question is how God treat people. When we view the life of Christ, we know the pattern or the model for how we should treat others. Jesus reached out to the marginalized and social and racial outcasts and brought them into his kingdom. What needs to happen in our lives for us to treat others like Jesus?

James was not only impacted by the example of Jesus but also knew the Old Testament texts in considering the nature of God’s dealings with people, particularly the vulnerable.

Leviticus 19:15

‘Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favouritism to the great but judge your neighbour fairly.

T. scholar, Douglas Moo, explains what James is challenging us with. “In his typically practical manner, James, in this paragraph, gives voice to an important Christian value: the equal worth of all people in the sight of God. Worldly culture is marked by distinctions: between one ethnic group and another, men and women, rich and poor, and so on. These distinctions are not erased in the church, but they are relativized in light of the revelation of God’s radical grace to all humans in Christ. ‘There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus’ (Gal. 3:28).” There is an equality of personhood we discover from Scripture. Every human being is created in God’s image and should be treated with respect. Here in James 2, we find three aspects of this issue of favouritism or discrimination. He begins with an exhortation, gives an example, and then explains the ramifications. 

What does it mean to be a ‘follower of Jesus Christ? What does spiritual maturity look like?  Interestingly, James uses the term ‘religious,’ as it is only used five times in the entire New Testament, and James uses it twice, both of which are found here in chapter one. Religion is best understood as the outward expression of our faith. How does the inward transformation of grace work itself out into our daily lives? Are we doing God’s will or our own will? Jesus warns us that there will be people who think that they are saved but are not.

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and, in your name, perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ (Matthew 7:21-23)

Paul challenges us to examine ourselves to determine if we are truly in the faith. “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless you fail the test?”  2 Corinthians 13:5

Warren Wiersbe points out: “There are true believers who are fooling themselves concerning their Christian walk. They think they are spiritual when they are not. It is a mark of maturity when a person faces himself honestly, knows himself, and admits his needs.”

James gives us three criteria to measure the reality of our faith. He asks: Do we have pure religion, or are we living a life of self-deception?

Jesus experienced suffering, just as we will encounter suffering as we follow Him. Like Him, we need to surrender continually to the will of the Father. But Jesus’ deepest agony was not physical—it was the looming loss of the Father’s presence on the cross. That’s what tore at Him most. Do we cling to God like that? Is His presence our greatest treasure, even in the garden moments of our own lives?

Through His suffering, we gain insight into our own journey with God—a journey that includes both joy and sorrow, peace and struggle. Jesus didn’t hide His emotions; He embraced them, teaching us that our feelings—good or bad—can be places of connection with God rather than barriers. We serve a God who made us emotional beings on purpose.

Jesus also shows us we’re not meant to walk through pain alone. Even in His darkest hour, He brought friends close, seeking their nearness, even when they couldn’t fully understand. In our hardest moments, who are we bringing with us? Sometimes we don’t need answers—we need presence.

ASK YOURSELF ONE OR ALL OF THESE QUESTIONS, AND SHARE YOUR ANSWER WITH SOMEONE IN YOUR CIRCLE:

Are you willing to walk in the garden, suffer, and surrender to God as Jesus did?

Are there emotions you need to accept and address instead of controlling, coping, or concealing? Can you list these emotions?

In your times of trial, do you have others that you bring close to bear your burdens with you? Are you needing to be the presence to someone else in their time of need?

“Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord promised to those who love him.” (James 1:12)

Each of us is fighting an incredible battle to destroy our souls. The difference between trials and temptation is simply what is happening within us.

George Stulac explains the challenge during a trial. How are we handling it? Does testing lead to surrendering to temptation to sin? “The Bible says the trial is not the most serious life-threatening factor. The greatest danger to me is not the wrong being done to me, but the wrong that may be done by me. The real threat is that when wrong is done to me, I may be tempted to fall into sin myself.”

Dan McCartney relates how subtle the difference is. “English translations of James 1:12-13 compound the difficulty because English uses different word roots for external pressure to evil (testing) and internal pressure to evil (temptation), whereas the Greek uses only one (peirazo; its noun form is peirasmos). In 1:13, we see a shift from the external “push” to sin to the internal “pull,” and this requires a shift of words in English (“when being tested…’ I am being tempted’”), which obscures the wordplay in Greek. Temptation is, of course, a form of testing…”

The issue of temptation is something we either battle against or give in to. C. S. Lewis, in his book ‘Mere Christianity,’ explains: “No man knows how bad he is till he has tried very hard to be good. A silly idea is that good people do not know what temptation means. This is an obvious lie. Only those who try to resist temptation know how strong it is. …We never find out the strength of the evil impulse inside us until we try and fight it: Christ, because He was the only man who never yielded to temptation, is also the only man who knows to the full what temptation means—the only complete realist.”

Lewis points out the eternal significance of this daily battle. “People often think of Christian morality as a kind of bargain in which God says, ‘If you keep a lot of rules, I’ll reward you, and if you don’t, I’ll do the other thing.’ I do not think that is the best way of looking at it. I would much rather say that every time you make a choice, you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different from what it was before. And taking your life as a whole, with all your innumerable choices, all your life long you are slowing turning this central thing either into a heavenly creature or into a hellish creature: either into a creature that is in harmony with God, and with other creatures, and with itself, or else into one that is in a state of war and hatred with God, and with its fellow creatures, and with itself. To be one kind of creature is heaven: that is, it is joy, peace, knowledge, and power. To be the other means madness, horror, idiocy, rage, impotence, and eternal loneliness. Each of us at each moment is progressing to one state or the other.”

What is at stake? Earlier in the book, Lewis relates: “Christianity asserts that every individual human being is going to live forever, and this must be either true or false. Now there are a good many things which would not be worth bothering about if I were going to live only seventy years, but which I had better bother about very seriously if I am going to live forever. Perhaps my bad temper or my jealousy are gradually getting worse, so gradually, the increase in seventy years will not be very noticeable. But it might be absolutely hell in a million years: in fact, if Christianity is true, Hell is the precisely correct technical term for what it would be.”

Dan McCartney raises the issue that James sets before us. “If God uses testing for the perfecting of his people, does that mean that God is at the root of our temptations and sin? James answers this in two ways: negatively, by showing that for God to tempt someone to sin would be contrary to his very character, and positively, by showing where sin really comes from, the heart of the sinner. Thus, although testing has a positive effect when endured faithfully, there is an unfaithful response to testing that turns it from an opportunity for endurance to an occasion for sin.”

How do we deal with temptations, those inner battles of the soul? James reminds us of a number of things we need to understand to overcome temptation in our lives.

Many people feel trapped by their current situation in life. I am not speaking of being literally trapped or imprisoned, but of being trapped by life’s situations, commitments, and responsibilities. Others are trapped in unhealthy bodies suffering from a debilitating disease, like Job, who was not only trapped in a body enduring extreme suffering but was also surrounded by friends who were falsely judging him. They were telling him that his sickness was because he had sinned against God, which was untrue. So, what do we do when we feel trapped, when our circumstances seem to have us hemmed in, and we cannot see a way out?

The issue in our lives is the person we become. The goal of the Christian life is to become like Jesus. How many realize that Jesus is the most generous person we will ever meet? So, how do we develop into becoming more generous and witness the amazing benefits of living a generous lifestyle?

We know that we can only give what God has given to us. What God looks at is the condition of our hearts. Many people today living in our affluent society struggle with the two major ingredients of life: money and time. We often abuse both. We spend more than we have and use our time unwisely. How we spend these gifts from God is a great indicator of where we are in our relationship with Him.

Have we learned to trust God in our lives? Do we believe that God will provide for us? Is our focus primarily on ourselves, or have we matured to a point where we are deeply interested in the well-being of others?  The very nature of biblical Christianity is giving. So, how do we become more generous with our lives? How do we develop into being more generous people? Linda Belleville writes, "Paul is quick to point out that generous giving is an act of divine grace (8:1). It is only as God blesses and enables that we can give in the first place.”

Paul, in writing to the Corinthian believers, reminds them of their original desire to help fellow believers who were struggling financially in Judea but became distracted during a time of divisiveness. After addressing those issues, Paul reminds them of what they originally intended to do on behalf of those struggling financially. Paul challenges them to express generosity to inspire them to become more concerned about others than themselves. Paul uses a number of examples to motivate them to become responsible and generous to those in need.

We are now at the final chapter of Jeremiah. The conclusion begins on a distressing note but concludes with a ray of hope. This chapter brings us back to the days leading up to the fall of Jerusalem. It is obvious that Jeremiah is not the author, but the chapter is placed here to show that the prophecies of Jeremiah had been fulfilled. The destruction of the city was because of God’s anger at the continued idolatry and sin of the people.

Jeremiah 52:1-2

Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. His mother’s name was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah; she was from Libnah.

He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, just as Jehoiakim had done. It was because of the Lord’s anger that all this happened to Jerusalem and Judah, and in the end, he thrust them from his presence.

While this chapter in many ways is a repeated version of what is found in 2 Kings 24:18 - 25:30, with minor variations, the editor's purpose in summarizing the book of Jeremiah was to make a theological point. This is more than simply a historical narrative, as Walter Brueggemann relates: “The concluding line of Jer. 52:3a renders an unqualified theological verdict with the verb 'cast out.” The Exile is Yahweh’s work, evoked by anger, not just with the king but with the city and the nation. At last, Yahweh does what the book of Jeremiah has long anticipated.”

Tremper Longman explains the purpose of this appendix to the book of Jeremiah. “This final chapter serves two important purposes. First, it makes it clear that Jeremiah’s message of judgment on Judah for its sin came to fulfillment. Second, it anticipates that Jeremiah’s message of hope after judgment (chapters 30-33) will be realized.”

So, what lessons from the book of Jeremiah is this chapter relaying to us? We are witnessing the cycle of sin being played out in a nation and the hope of restoration. When we rebel against God, the only option is for God to discipline us. Then, when we come to our senses, in our brokenness and loss, we find the ray of hope to move toward a season of recovery. Here, we see the description of God addressing His exiled people.

Matthew 24:4, 6, 9-10, 12-13

Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. You will hear of wars and rumours of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me.

At that time, many will turn away from the faith and betray and hate each other.  Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, But the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.”

We have the warning of Jesus, but we also have the example of other times in history that were chaotic and distressing. What did God have to say to His people in times such as these? We find the period just prior to exile and the conclusion of the Jewish exile was one such time. Jeremiah’s message to his nation was not just one of impending judgment but also a word of hope. Here in the last message of Jeremiah, we discover the impending judgment about to come upon Babylon, but it was a word designed to bring hope to God’s people. Babylon would fall, but it was the key for Judah’s exile to end. Yet, they were required to flee from Babylon.      

Phillip Ryken explains the significance of this time. “Jeremiah 51 is not simply a history lesson from the past but also a warning for the present. Babylon is not just a historic city. It stands for everything hateful and odious to God. Babylon is every culture that is proud, arrogant, wasteful, violent, and destructive. It represents every city that sets itself against the kingdom of God. Robert Linthicum thus calls it “a city which has no redeeming value, a city given over to the wholehearted worship and pursuit of evil.” Or, as urban missiologist Ray Bakke observes, “Throughout the Bible, Babylon is a symbol of the city which is anti-God. …Augustine wrote about Babylon in his great book The City of God. He viewed the history of the world as a conflict between two great cities—the City of Man and the City of God. As Augustine studied the Bible, he discovered that Babylon represented the City of Man standing against the City of God. Then, as he examined his own culture, he realized that Rome had become the capital City of Man.”

So, what can we learn from this moment in the life of the nation of exiles that applies to the time in which we live? 

1 Corinthians 15:1-11

Galatians 3:6-14

Ultimately, humanity’s angry rebellion moves God to act so that He allows the ultimate consequences of such folly. We see throughout history the story of human rebellion and the suppression of others. So, what is the answer to where human freedoms are being diminished? So, where is our only hope for true freedom? In discussing impending disaster, Jesus tells the disciples that when they see ‘people are in anguish, perplexity, terror, and apprehension, the believer's response should be different. Jesus, in talking about the ultimate consequences of human rebellion against God and the disasters it creates, should cause a pause in our hearts as believers. Jesus told his disciples that they needed to lift their heads because their redemption was drawing near (cf. Luke 21:28). We are living in a moment where we see much that could dismay our hearts, but as we embrace a divine perspective, may we respond with hope for the future and not despair. May we realize that what is happening to our world has not taken God unaware. Even when we feel powerless in our current situations, we may embrace the hope that God is working out his ultimate plan.   What we think may not be what God intends. We often get the narrative wrong in our lives. In the moment, what we feel may only be fully understood in hindsight. Often, our disappointments that lead to disillusionment can occur because we have the wrong perspective and understanding of what God is doing in our lives at a precise moment.

The darkness within us does not come from God. It weighs us down, damages our relationships, and hinders our connection with Him. But when we confess and bring our sins and struggles into the open, the light of Christ transforms us. His truth sets us free, making us beacons of hope to a lost and broken world.

Confession isn’t about shame—it’s about freedom. True healing begins when we stop hiding and start surrendering—first to ourselves, then to God, and finally to one another. Psalm 51 lays out this journey: define our sin honestly, appeal to God for forgiveness and transformation, and rejoice in the freedom He gives. Don’t let hidden sin weigh you down—step into the light and experience the joy of true healing and restoration.

One of the most difficult aspects for some people to accept within God’s character is that he will judge sin. Judgment is a part of justice, an expression of Divine love. Wait, are you saying that judgment is an expression of love? Absolutely; how can a loving God ultimately leave wickedness and injustice to continue without retribution or punishment? How can God allow people to continue to be exploited? For others, what amazes them is God’s patience and longsuffering in not quickly judging those who commit terrible atrocities. What we discover is that all of God’s characteristics are tied together. God is patient.

In writing about God’s character, Stephen Charnock states, " The reason God is patient is to show his power.” In what way? He is Lord over Himself and reveals his tremendous degree of self-restraint. It is through this amazing self-restraint that God reveals to us His goodness. Charnock continues: “He waits that he may be gracious. Goodness sets God upon the exercise of patience, and patience sets many a sinner on running into the arms of mercy. That mercy, which makes God ready to embrace returning sinners, makes him willing to bear with them in their sins and wait for their return. ...The object of patience is, primarily man...” “...for patience is properly a temporary sparing a person, with a waiting of his relenting, and a change of his injurious demeanor.” Charnock is saying that God doesn’t act rashly or harshly with us; he allows time for us to realize that we are wrong and need God’s forgiveness, mercy, and grace.

Having expressed this concept of God’s kindness to us, we also need to understand that God will “not acquit the wicked,” i.e. he will not acquit obstinate sinners. He has patience for the wicked and mercifully for the penitent. The wicked are the subjects of his long-suffering, but not of his acquitting grace; he does not presently punish their sins because he is slow to anger; but without their repentance, he will not blot out their sins because he is righteous in judgment: if God should acquit them without repentance for their crimes, he must himself repent of his own law and righteous sanction of it.”

Charnock is simply arguing that God, after showing great patience, will address all evil in a just manner because of his nature. In these final chapters of Jeremiah, we have the prophecies that God gave to the prophet regarding the nations affecting Israel and the outcomes of their lifestyles.

Psalm 23 was written by King David, who, in his youth, cared for his father’s sheep. Now, in a time of danger and difficulty with enemies before him, he is confident that the Lord is his shepherd.  The God who created the universe and delivered his people from slavery through a mighty hand and then sustained a nation of slaves through forty years in the wilderness was also his Shepherd. David’s confidence in life was based upon his understanding of the nature of God and his personal relationship with God. Last week, we focused on the first picture of God’s amazing care by sharing the metaphor of a shepherd caring for his flock.

Let me finish where we left off last week, beginning in Psalm 23:4

Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

Decisions are constantly before us at every stage of life. We are all making decisions that affect our future. Some are trying to secure a job that will be meaningful to them; for others, it is relationship decisions, who to marry, how to work through difficulties in marriage, or how to be content as a single person. For those who are struggling with ageing and health issues, these bring their own sense of anxiety. We are also living in a time of incredible change. Everything in life seems to be coming at us with a quicker tempo. There are external pressures, and then internal pressures we put upon ourselves. Our own expectations. There are also pressures from within our souls, from insecurities to disappointments. Believers also address the spiritual component of dealing with spiritual attacks and how they impact our lives. So, how can we find peace in an anxiety-filled world?

"But if you fail to do this, you will be sinning against the LORD; and you may be sure that your sin will find you out.” – Numbers 32:23

In other words, to neglect or violate an oath or break God’s word means that sin will overtake the perpetrator, and punishment will be the end result. This is not only true for God’s covenant people, but for all people. There are people groups who are no longer with us as their cultures deteriorated to such a degree that they either became enfolded into another people group or completely ended. One such group was the Philistines, who were constantly in conflict with the nation of Israel. Here, in one of Jeremiah’s messages to the nations, we have a brief word directed toward the remnant of the Philistines, who had for centuries enslaved other people groups. So, what can we learn to avoid this kind of judgment upon our lives and nation?

Interestingly, Joshua, Moses’ successor, struggled with the issue of fear when leading the people of God into the promised land. In Joshua 1, God spoke to Joshua that He would be with him even as God had been with Moses. God’s challenge was simple.

Joshua 1:9

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.                       

But what happens when we give in to fear? Once again, we find in the book of Jeremiah God’s message for the people to follow a course of action which they were afraid to take. What will they do? How will they respond? The more pressing question is what will we do and how will we respond to the fears that keep us from fulfilling God’s will and purposes for our lives? There are some things we need to do to overcome letting fear shape our lives.

“And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from the evil one.” (Matthew 6:13). Here, we see that evil is revealed in a person. Peter also warns us in his first letter that Satan, or the devil, is seeking to destroy our lives. “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy, the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” (1 Peter 5:8)

One of his greatest tools in doing this is to deceive people. In warning the Corinthians about the nature of being deceived by Satan, Paul writes: “But I am afraid that just as the serpent’s cunning deceived Eve, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ. For if someone comes to you and preaches a Jesus other than the Jesus we preached, or if you receive a different spirit from the Spirit you received, or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it easily enough.” (2 Corinthians 11:3-4)

The battlefield in the Christian life is being waged in our minds. That is why Paul explains the nature of spiritual warfare. “For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does.”  (2 Corinthians 10:3-4)

The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have the divine power to demolish strongholds. So, what are those strongholds, and what weapons do we fight with? “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:5)

The ability to control our thoughts is an expression of spiritual maturity. The displacement principle helps with this: We focus on what is true, pure, and right rather than sinful thoughts, which are the ‘fiery arrows of the evil one’ (Eph. 616).

Jeremiah 41 is a material example of this profound spiritual reality. We see how evil embodied in a person can deceive and then bring about great destruction and disaster that will have terrible and tragic consequences for unsuspecting people. So, what can we do, or as Peter states, how can we be alert and sober-minded so that we are not caught unaware and thereby duped and experience tremendous losses in our lives?

In his introduction in what transpires following the devastation of the nation, Robert Davidson states: “Chapters 40-44 describe a series of incidents, set in the days, the months, and perhaps the years, immediately after the destruction of Jerusalem. For Jeremiah and the people, the period should have marked a watershed in their lives. The city was in ruins, and the countryside was ravaged. But if the external circumstances had changed, much else, including the people’s attitude to God and the prophet’s uphill ministry, remained unchanged.” In other words, they still have not learned from their rebellion, and it will lead to even greater tragedies in their lives. So, if we don’t learn from life’s experiences, we live in a vicious cycle. So, how should we handle major changes or devastating moments? How can we avoid going from one tragedy to the next?

Jesus warns us in the Sermon on the Mount against avoiding this place of judgment. He speaks of the danger of the fire of hell (Mt. 5:22) and warns against the danger of sinning to the point of saying, “If our right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell (Mt. 5:30).” It is obvious that Jesus not only believed in hell but came to die in order for us not to end up there.

As I was reflecting on our text, it impacted me how much judgment is a fundamental theme of the Bible, but we rarely talk about it. Yet, it should motivate us to avoid it and encourage us to share with others so that they, too, can avoid or escape the consequences of a broken world.

This Sunday, we will turn to the book of Jeremiah, which we left off in chapter 38, 18 months ago, in my series on this book of the Bible and begin to examine the rest of the story.

It was certainly true in Israel as Jesus burst on the scene. Roman occupation was now nearly a century old when Jesus’ ministry began. The people's state of mind was mixed, with some accommodating, others resisting, and the majority just trying to get by. Taxes were high, freedom was limited, and hope for a better future was fading. The Scriptures promised something better, and now was just on the horizon when Jesus came, healing the sick and setting people free from pain, torment, and hopelessness. Jesus brought a life of freedom and healing to the poor and afflicted in the land. 

Early in Jesus’ ministry, he came to his hometown, where he read from the prophet Isaiah and told his neighbours and friends that this was the day Isaiah prophesied or spoke about. Jesus was the One sent by God, the Father, to bring good news to the poor, freedom to the captives, release to the prisoners and a proclamation of God’s year of favour, or as many theologians believe, a year of Jubilee.

Warren Wiersbe explains what happened during the year of Jubilee and its significance. “The background of this passage is the “Year of Jubilee” described in Leviticus 25:7ff. Every seven years, the Jews were to observe a “sabbatical year” and allow the land to rest. After seven sabbaticals or forty-nine years, they were to celebrate the fiftieth year as the “Year of Jubilee.” During that year, all debts were cancelled, all land was returned to the original owners, the slaves were freed, and everybody was given a fresh new beginning. This was the Lord’s way of balancing the economy and keeping the rich from exploiting the poor.”4

When we speak of the Lord’s favour, we speak of a year of rest, blessing, and the experience of freedom and healing. How many would love to experience ‘the year of the Lord’s favour?’

Today, we will look at the text that Jesus fulfilled in his coming and at the context in which Isaiah is explaining the amazing transformation that happens when Jesus comes on the scene, not only historically but into each of our lives. There are three realities that can help us understand what was about to transpire and has now been fulfilled in the person of Jesus, and these can help us experience a life of freedom and healing.

How to live a life with no regret.

What was it about Mary and Joseph that brought attention to them in the little town of Bethlehem during that first Christmas season?  Absolutely nothing. They were just a poor couple looking for a place to stay, struggling with a baby about to be born. It is amazing and sometimes hard to believe that Jesus was born in such poverty, struggle, and obscurity. Would we question God’s grace, love and wisdom if we were seemingly forsaken and forgotten? How do you view your present circumstance? Do you wonder where God is in the equation? Had God forsaken this little family? Of course not! How often do we read the wrong message in our outward circumstances of life? When things are not going as we would like them, we are tempted to question God’s love, goodness, and possibly His faithfulness to us.    

We see from the Scripture that there was no family to support this couple as they were alone in Bethlehem.  Even the people from town didn’t do anything to assist them in this most important event in their lives. The birth of Jesus, the Messiah, would have gone unnoticed by humanity if it had not been for Divine intervention. For the most part, the community would have never known that the most important person to have ever lived was being born in their town. They would not have hazard a guess that one of the prophecies of Scripture was fulfilled at this very moment.

Micah 5:2

But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.

God intervened and revealed to a group of people who this child was. In our text, we learn that God is always at work revealing Himself to people. Here, we see the nature and the purpose of this child, but it can only be understood when God reveals it to people. God is showing us the way of salvation and true and lasting peace in our lives.

How often the one time of year when we are reminded of heaven’s invasion in gentleness is filled with stress, growing pressures, and the possibilities for real disappointments. Expectations abound. Yet, looking back to that first Christmas, we see people facing pressures in which they discovered a joy that sustained and strengthened them. Christmas is the story of God coming into our world, living among people under stressful conditions but finding joy in their troubles. This season, God wants us to experience that same joy regardless of our circumstances.

Christmas can bring out the best and worst in people. That is why Scrooge and the Grinch are such popular characters. It is a season of mixed emotions, bringing out the greatest hopes while reminding others of their greatest losses. In the first Christmas season, we discover moments of anxiety and difficulty intermingled with moments of great joy. Why does sorrow often come before joy? W. E. Vine relates, “Experiences of sorrow prepare for and enlarge the capacity for joy.”

In 1 John 4:8, 16, John states that God is love. In other words, God is the one that defines for us what love is. He is the source and greatest model of what love is. The greatest longing in the human heart is to experience a love that embraces us unconditionally. Nicky Gumbel stated it so succinctly in a devotional reading. “When you really know God’s love for you, your life is transformed.”

The first commandment that God gives us is that we love Him, which empowers us to love others. These two commandments reflect the essence of our purpose on earth. When we love, we are most like God. Divine love can only be expressed to others upon experiencing it personally ourselves. To experience God’s love then shapes our lives.  

Nicky Gumbel shared a question by Alex Buchanan, a fellow pastor, that was directed to him but is a question that we need to consider. “Do you and I believe that God approves of us?” Nicky’s response is probably similar to what most of us would say. “Actually, I really struggle with that because I know things about myself that I find difficult to believe that God approves of me.’ Buchanan’s response is what each of us needs to hear. ‘We all struggle with things about ourselves, but God wants us to know that he approves of us, as his followers. He wants us to know he loves us ‘unconditionally,’ ‘wholeheartedly,’ and ‘continually.’”    In 1 John 4:7-21, John explains the nature of a love that will transform our lives.

One man decided to confront God, and God gave him some rather interesting answers. The man was struggling with the problem of injustice. Seven centuries before Christ's birth, a prophet by the name of Habakkuk was struggling with what was happening in his world. Evil prevailed. Sin was rampant. Violence was unchecked. The righteous were suffering at the hands of the wicked. As we look into the times that Habakkuk was speaking into, we find some incredible parallels to our own day.  When it seems that doing right does not matter, how can we find hope in those moments of despair?

An overly self-confident Peter boasted that though all might fail Jesus in the Lord’s darkest hours, Peter would not. Unfortunately, Peter denied knowing Jesus not once but three times and was ultimately shattered by that failure. How could God ever entrust Peter the responsibility of being a key leader in the early church? The question we can ask ourselves is, ‘How can we move forward after a time of failure in our own lives?’

In John 21, we will see both the restoration of Peter and the disciples as Jesus manifests Himself to them in a powerful reminder of their initial calling and discover that God has a plan for them to implement as they address their past failures to move forward in their lives, based upon their unique gifts and temperament.  Two movements in this chapter brought home this message to these early followers of Jesus, but it is equally true of our lives as well.

Consider the irony that the greatest symbol of Christianity is the cross, which speaks of glory and victory. Yet, the cross was a tool of punishment and extreme torture and death at the time of Jesus’ crucifixion. The cross represented the most shameful and despised symbol of rejection and suffering. So, what brought about that change? The death of Jesus and what it accomplished on behalf of humanity to bring about victory over sin, death, and judgment. This amazing self-giving by Jesus has transformed the cross into one of hope and deliverance. In the conclusion of John 19, we discover how, for the joy set before him, Jesus endured the cross, scorning its shame, and the result is his exaltation. Even as Jesus carried the cross, we must also ‘take up our cross.’

Mark 8:34

Then he called the crowd along with his disciples and said: ‘Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.              

What does it mean to take up our cross? We see that Jesus took up ‘his cross,’ and the result was the greatest provision in the universe, both for creation and the human family. Jesus explains that we also need to follow him in this area of our lives, and he continues by describing what it means.

Mark 8:35

For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it.

Even as Jesus willingly gave up his life for us, we must also be willing to give up our lives by serving Jesus’ will and agenda. In the crucifixion, death and burial of Jesus, we discover the pattern that produces life for ourselves and others.

The earliest form of a confessional statement of faith was in the second century, known as ‘the Apostles Creed.’ In describing the person and work of Jesus Christ, the Apostle’s Creed states it this way:

I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord,
 who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
 born of the Virgin Mary,
 suffered under Pontius Pilate,
 was crucified, died, and was buried;
 he descended to the dead.
 On the third day, he rose again;
 he ascended into heaven,
 he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
 and he will come to judge the living and the dead.

In John 19, we see exactly how Jesus suffered under Pontius Pilate. Pilate had evaluated Jesus and found that there was no basis for the charge against Jesus and presented an option to the Jewish religious leaders and the crowd that had gathered to release a prisoner. The crowd shouted back that they wanted Barabbas, the known insurrectionist, to be freed and Jesus crucified. In this exchange of dialogue between Pilate and the religious leaders, including a Judean crowd sympathetic to their antichrist viewpoint, there is pressure exerted to subvert or undermine justice. Four times in Pilate’s engagement with Jesus, he concludes that there was no basis for the charge against Jesus. Still, rather than letting him go, this examination became a source of attack upon Pilate’s leadership. If he lets Jesus go, he will lose control of the crowd and possibly his political standing before Caesar. We all face times in our lives when we experience pressure to make an uncomfortable and even a wrong decision that will affect not only ourselves but innocent people. How can we overcome the pressure of making wrong decisions? What we need to understand are some of the underlying factors that contribute to these kinds of decisions.

The contention that Hitler built his views on Darwinian principles raises one of the most important truths a mind can comprehend: Ideas have consequences.” White goes on to share that the great challenge to the Christian faith today is not atheism but secularism, which is a faith system. “The heart of the secular religion is moral relativism, functional atheism, if you will, which holds that what is moral is dictated by a particular situation in light of a particular culture or social location. With moral relativism, moral values become a matter of personal opinion or private judgment rather than something grounded in objective truth.” In other words, where do I get my basis for making decisions in my life? Is it defined and determined by the continual shift in cultural and social mores and values? Or do I make decisions from the framework of biblical truth as found in the person of truth, namely Jesus Christ?  

Even someone who knew our Lord Jesus Christ as well as the apostle Paul, struggled with knowing exactly what to do at times. That may seem strange to us, but it is true. Paul was trying to bring the good news about Jesus to people in present-day Turkey, but he found that he was being prevented from moving forward. God finally directs them, but then they experience incredible hardships.

I wonder how many believers are upset, disappointed, or questioning God when they do the right thing and bad things happen to them. How do we handle life when circumstances seem to turn against us? How would we respond to being misunderstood, beaten, and imprisoned? Would you feel betrayed? God, I was only trying to do Your will, and now I’m suffering. Did they feel abandoned? How many question God’s direction when things don’t turn out as you think they should? I know God called me here, but things are not turning out the way I think they should.  This happens in marriages, in jobs, and in ministries. How did Paul and Silas handle this incredible reversal? How did they handle this pain and disappointment?

HOW TO ADDRESS CONFRONTATION IN A POSITIVE MANNER

The most challenging aspect of life, particularly in a leadership capacity, is addressing confrontation positively. I can think of no better model of dealing with adversarial issues than seeing Jesus deal with the most challenging situation in his earthly life. Throughout the gospel of John, there is tension between what Jesus is teaching and doing among the religious leadership of that hour. We are about to come to the culmination of that conflict and how Jesus addressed it. In shifting in the book of John from the upper room teachings of Jesus and his intercessory prayer to his arrest and the denial of Peter, John’s account is very different in his emphasis than the other gospel writers. John does not bring out the agonizing prayer of Jesus in the garden, the sleeping disciples, or the betrayer’s kiss. Yet, John brings out the profound sense of Jesus’ willingness to give up his life for the disciples' sake. This action is the cornerstone of the Christian life. Jesus’ obedience in laying down his life will bring about the most important event in human history and the incredible implications for the human condition.

John 18:1

When he had finished praying, Jesus left with his disciples and crossed the Kidron Valley. On the other side, was a garden, and he and his disciples went into it.

In this encounter with his enemies, Jesus teaches us some powerful truths in how we could go about confronting evil and injustice in a positive manner that will bring about the possibility of good outcomes.

Nicolaus Zinzendorf grew up in a devout Pietist Lutheran home in Germany in the 1700's. He came to know Jesus at six years of age, and during a trip through Western Europe, he went to an art museum where he experienced a powerful moment with God, the Holy Spirit, while viewing Domencia Feti's portrait of Christ crucified, entitled ‘Behold the Man.’ Zinzendorf was convicted noting, I have loved Him for a long time, but I have never actually done anything for Him. From now on, I will do whatever he leads me to do.

Zinzendorf opened his estate to persecuted Moravian believers, and a plot of ground was set aside for them, calling it Hermhut, meaning, ‘The Lord’s Watch.’ The population grew to three hundred people from various Christian backgrounds, but divisions arose among them. Zinzendorf, concerned about their spiritual wellbeing, broke them up into small bands of two or three people to begin to share and pray with each other. Then, differences began to heal on August 13, 1727, at a service during the communion time, the congregation was gripped with such emotion that weeping began, with confession of sin and reconciliation. Shortly afterwards, an around-the-clock prayer ministry began that lasted for one hundred years. This continuous intercession initiated the sending of missionaries, which, was not happening in the Protestant realm. The gospel was now carried to many parts of the world, so that at the time of Zinzendorf’s death thirty-three years later, Hermhut had sent out 226 missionaries.”

When we experience God’s presence, which affects our relationships with those around us, amazing things begin to happen. This incredible account is one of many answers to Jesus’ prayer found in John 17.

Last week, I began a message on ‘How to experience God’s design for healthy relationships, where we look at the impact of having a right relationship with our heavenly Father. Today, we are going to continue that message as we examine Jesus’ prayer and how it relates to his disciples and to those who would believe as a result of their message. When we get our relationship right with God, like they did at Hermhut, we also will begin to see greater transformation in our relationships.

What does this mean for us? It means that many relationships are in a state of crisis. People do not relate in a healthy way. If we can’t make it in our most significant relationship, then we often struggle with others, and it begins with our relationship with God.

Many people are choosing to live isolated lives. People today try to insulate themselves from the pain that comes from broken relationships by having superficial relationships. People often stay at arm’s length for fear of being hurt.

But what did God have in mind when He made us in His image? What is God’s design for human relationships? I’m not just speaking of marriage, but of all kinds of relationships, from family, work, school, and personal.  How should we relate to family, friends and even foes? One thing the bible reveals over and over again is that we were designed to relate to others.

What is fascinating is that just before Jesus was about to be crucified, He prayed an incredible prayer for Himself, His closest followers, and us who came to believe because of their message. The prayer I’m referring to is found in John 17. Here, we gain an understanding of God’s design for healthy relationships. The mission of Christ, the mission of the church, can only be achieved when we have a proper relationship with God and one another as His followers.

Without healthy relationships, marriages crumble, families disintegrate, workplaces lose productivity and often struggle financially, churches lose impact, and people become embittered and lonely. Then, to compensate for the loss, people often search for meaning in superficial relationships, temporal gains, or all-consuming addictions. We try to fill our emptiness with something other than what God intends. What people end up finding out is that false substitutes are not satisfying. 

Here in John 16:16-33, we find a number of elements that will turn our sorrow into joy.

One of the most painful experiences in life is the loss of someone we love and trust, and we have come to depend upon. A child loses their parents or a young person loses a key mentor in their life, it can create disorientation, fear, and apprehension about what tomorrow holds. The emotional pain is one thing, but the deeper question is how to survive moving forward in their absence. In this context, we need to look at the words of Jesus, here in John 15 and 16. Jesus has been telling the disciples that he is about to leave. The confusion over their messianic expectations was part of the apprehension in their situation. Why would Jesus be leaving? If Jesus left, what would happen to them? How would the work happen or continue? Human effort alone would not be able to accomplish such a great task. The spiritual opposition to the work of God would now be faced alone with Jesus’ absence. Jesus had been their advocate. He had protected these early followers from the antagonism that had been primarily directed at him, but in certain moments, it was aimed at Jesus’ followers, but Jesus had defended them.

Jesus now explains how that work would be empowered and effective. Jesus would not leave them to manage on their own, but the Holy Spirit would come and enable his followers to testify about Jesus. What was true then is equally true today. So, what is the role of the Holy Spirit in the believer's life according to Jesus here in His upper room discourse?

A Place to be Shaped in God's Image

Exodus 15:1-2

Jesus now speaks words of reassurance in their crisis, which was necessary to move their lives forward. This was not just an answer to those handful of followers over two thousand years ago, but Jesus is also addressing the ultimate challenges that we all face, the issues of future uncertainties, and death itself. How can we find the right response to life’s most troubling events? How can we overcome the most dire, intimidating, and overwhelming experiences in our lives? Here in John 14, we will discover the hope and comfort that we find in having a relationship with God.

Warren Wiersbe shares this insight regarding Judas' moral responsibility in light of the amazing exposure that he had with Jesus. “Judas was exposed to the same spiritual privileges as the other disciples, yet they did him no good. The same sun that melts the ice only hardens the clay. Despite all that our Lord said about money and all of His warnings about covetousness, Judas continued to be a thief and steal from the treasury. Despite all our Lord’s warnings about unbelief, Judas persisted in his rejection. Jesus even washed Judas’ feet! Yet his hard heart did not yield. Jesus had spoken before about a traitor (John 6:70), but the disciples did not take it to heart.

Not only had Judas not taken to heart all the warnings from Jesus and responded in repentance, but it is also apparent that the disciples were not paying much attention to Jesus’ warnings about a traitor in their midst.

As they approach the last Passover, which Jesus will celebrate with his disciples, we find a dark undercurrent flowing. Jesus is carrying the weight of what he is about to experience but also addressing two very painful relational experiences that we may encounter at some point in our lives. How will we handle them? How did Jesus handle it?  How do we handle betrayal and rejection?

In this introduction, we see how Jesus models how we ought to love and serve one another. Yet, there is a need to define a term that we think we understand, but is often abused and loses its fundamental meaning, which is the word love. If we look at the biblical definition of God’s kind of love, we will discover that it is a self-giving action. But love is not a wimpy idea of letting people do whatever they want, as if that is the loving thing to do. Paul describes love as a church that tolerated sin and thought that meant they were loving. Listen to how he describes the nature of love.

Love is patient; love is kind. It does not envy; it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonour others; it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, and it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. (1 Corinthians 13:4-6)

Jesus, in this chapter of John, is going to address some of the unloving issues that the disciples were struggling with, pride, self-seeking behavior; that needed to be exposed and addressed for them to mature into the kind of leaders that the early church would desperately need.

So why did Jesus go to Jerusalem knowing this would lead to His death? What is the real significance of Jesus's entrance into Jerusalem on what we now call Palm Sunday? I see three things that will help us find hope in times of crisis.

Shattered dreams are difficult to handle. Tragedy and losses come in many faces: it can be an overwhelming health issue or a relational one. It can be huge financial reversals or the loss of a loved one to death. When tragedy strikes, life can quickly lose its luster and meaning. We can struggle with the desire to move forward because life, as we know it, will never be the same. One of the great sermons of all time was preached by a Scottish minister named Arthur Gossip, who, the Sunday following the sudden and unexpected death of his beloved wife, entitled his message, ‘When Life Tumbles In, what then? We all need to answer this question in our hour of trial and tragedy. I want us to look at an event that triggered what was about to happen to Jesus, his death and ultimately, his resurrection. An hour of great victory would trigger one of the most tragic moments, the cross. John tells us that the resurrection of Lazarus was ‘the straw that broke the camel’s back.’ it triggered the course of events, which we call the passion week, or the suffering of Jesus. This incident is found only in John’s gospel, and we discover something disturbing and delightful about this story. This incident raises both painful questions and gives comforting answers. The story shatters dreams but ultimately restores hope in life’s most devastating moments.

In management courses, a concept often raised is an awareness of something called, ‘cognitive bias.’ This is dealing with how we think about and perceive issues. This is true for the work environment and maybe even more critical in understanding how it affects personal relationships. So, what is cognitive bias? “While we believe that we receive information objectively, our brains unconsciously filter data, distorting our perception of reality. Because bias can distort our critical thinking, we become prone to irrational decisions and inaccurate judgments about others.” What makes this even more critical is we think we are right. Cognitive bias causes us only to receive information that agrees with our thinking. This is known as ‘confirmation bias,’ which means we are unwilling to hear the opposing point of view and are looking for those who agree with our point of view. The ancient wisdom literature spoke of this very danger in the book of Proverbs of not carefully considering the other side of the story.

“The heart of the discerning acquires knowledge, for the ears of the wise seek it out.” (Proverbs 18:16). In other words, wisdom allows us to hear another point of view.

"In a lawsuit, the first to speak seems right until someone comes forward and cross-examines.” (Proverbs 18:17)

The Living Bible, a paraphrase, states this text like this: “Any story sounds true until someone tells the other side and sets the record straight.”

One of the great tragedies of Jesus's interaction with some of the religious leaders in his hour was that they were unwilling to consider what Jesus was saying and doing. Therefore, their blind prejudices kept them from responding positively. This is true not only regarding our relationship with God but also with others. Are we trying to understand and love others for who they are or want them to be?

We often assume that the fullness of life that Jesus promised is without trials, tribulations, hostility, and opposition. However, we see that Jesus, who lived life to the fullest, experienced all these things but triumphed. How can we, like Jesus, overcome opposition and live an abundant life?

Disappointment in God, Stress

How do we know that we are 'born of God? Jesus becomes first in our lives. We now are concerned about pleasing Him. We have a desire for the things of God.

It is a beautiful gift to grow up in a godly home where Christ is revealed through the life of a godly parent or parents. However, godly people do not always produce godly children. Each person must embrace the Christian faith.

In John 8:31-59, we find Jesus challenging his disciples and the Jewish people at the Temple regarding putting our faith in the wrong things. The Jewish people felt that because of their racial lineage and heritage, they were God's children based upon their lineage. Jesus is now explaining to them that they must have a spiritual lineage, where they need to trust Jesus as the Messiah to become a part of God's spiritual family. What was true for them is equally true for us. In exposing their false hope, Jesus explains who He is. What they do is what that information defines their lives, just as it does for us today. 

What an incredible moment for Jesus to announce who He is. In our text, Jesus makes a profound statement about His nature. Here, we have one of the great 'I am' statements in John's gospel that deals with the significant questions of life. The most crucial element in coming to the answers to the right questions is the basis or authority upon which they rest. In a world that denies absolutes and often despises authority, we need to build upon an enduring foundation for our lives. Let me qualify that authority is different from authoritarianism. Authoritarianism is absolute obedience at the expense of all personal freedoms, where healthy authority facilitates freedoms by establishing healthy boundaries. Today's text will look at two key elements that will give us confidence in life based upon the authority and basis of Jesus' testimony.  

On February 27^th, 1991, Ruth Dillow was at her home in Kansas when the phone rang. It was terrible news from the Pentagon. Her son, Private First-Class Clayton Carpenter, had stepped on a landmine in the Persian Gulf War and was dead.

It was an awful, sickening reality to learn that her son would never come home again. Three days later, Ruth received another phone call. The voice on the other end said, ‘Mom, I’m alive!’

Ruth said that at first, she could not believe it was the voice of her twenty-three-year-old son, over whom she had mourned for nearly three days. She said, ‘I jumped up and down. I was overjoyed! You just don’t know how much.’

Imagine the joy! The thrill of having gone from the depths of despair to overwhelming elation, from grief and loss to news of great joy! That’s the scene we find in the Scriptures. The early followers of Jesus had witnessed His betrayal, the hastily assembled verdict that was a sham to justice, and watched as He was crucified. During the next two days, they grieved, struggling with shame for not standing with Him in His last hours. Their dreams and hopes were crushed. But like Ruth Dillow, the moment came when they heard incredible, seemingly unbelievable news. Women from their company came breathlessly into the upper room, declaring He was alive! Jesus is alive! Jesus continued to appear to them for forty days until they finally watched as He ascended into heaven.

That’s the message of Easter! It is a message of hope in a world of despair. It is the message that our society desperately needs. It was the message that the first disciples preached. It was the message that Peter preached to a crowd of people in Jerusalem fifty days after the death of Jesus.

It was during the feast of Pentecost that the Holy Spirit, true to His nature, empowered the disciples to be witnesses to the person and work of Jesus Christ.  After explaining the miracle of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit from the book of Joel, Peter begins to explain the essence of Christianity. It is the message of the resurrection. The resurrection is the most significant event of the church. Today, we celebrate the reason why death is defeated for those who put their trust in Christ. Sin no longer has authority and dominion over our lives. Easter Sunday is our declaration of freedom.  Jesus is alive, currently interceding for us, and lives in us. Peter, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, states four life-changing truths: when we embrace them, an ever-diminishing life transforms into an eternal one.

God created the church to shine like stars in the world. What does that mean, why and how are we to do it? Looking at chapter two of Philippians, we glean insights and learn that our attitude and ideas about the church will significantly enhance or impede our ability to shine like stars. God created us to shine, not just as individuals but at a corporate level, as a community. We must understand and embrace the idea that we are all in this together. The Apostle Paul impresses the need for us to have a rich and experiential walk with Jesus daily and that our relationship with Him should overflow into how we treat others within the church and those beyond. God created the church; it was His perfect plan for the spread of the Gospel, and when it is characterized by humility, like-mindedness, and care for others, it will blaze through the night for all the world to see.

Nobody likes to be disciplined. When it is done right, it brings about a healthy outcome. Disciplining your children is one of the most difficult challenges of being a parent. Everything is great when kids obey, but if they say or do something that needs to be addressed, then it causes tension. Discipline often creates pressure on the relationship. That is one reason why people avoid doing it. Some parents are afraid to discipline their children because they think their kids will interpret their actions as unloving. But the reality is that if we don’t discipline our children when they do what is wrong, it ultimately is the unloving thing to do. If we don’t correct in love, we allow that person to eventually learn behaviours and patterns that will be self-destructive and cause pain. Healthy discipline is an expression of love, one reason God disciplines us as His children.

And have you completely forgotten this word of encouragement that addresses you as a father addresses his son: ‘My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son. (Hebrews 12:5-6)

God has an aim and a goal for each of us.  He wants us to grow up as godly, loving people.  Another way to express this is that we will become like Him. 

And we know that in all things, God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those, God foreknew he also predestinated to be conformed to the image of his Son... (Romans 8:28-29a)

God is shaping us through life’s journey to become Christ-like. God helps us be filled with humility, compassion, gentleness, patience, and forgiveness and to be able to face life’s difficulties and injustices, just like He did when He lived on earth as a man. Why? So that our lives will be lighthouses guiding those living in the dangerous storms of life. So, how do we handle sin? Usually, in our own lives, we act far more mercifully than we do with others. It is amazing how blind we are to our faults. Generally, the things we despise in others are usually those we struggle with ourselves.  That is why Jesus warns us against judging others. 

Is there a right road to take when dealing with sin issues in a social context? How are we to treat people who have made terrible decisions?   

Here, in this incident in the life of Jesus, we learn of three attitudes in our approach to dealing with others involved in sin. As I’ve already stated, Two of these attitudes are ungodly and unhealthy in restoring a person to a right relationship with God. Jesus addressed both of these attitudes and then showed us a model of how to address the issue of sin in the lives of others. 

Survival experts talk about the rule of three. You can live without air for about 3 minutes, without water for three days, and without food for about three weeks. There are exceptions, but that is generally the limits of human existence. Interestingly, Jesus describes the relationship with God in terms we can understand. In Jesus’ wilderness experience under significant testing by the devil, Jesus responds to the temptation of turning stones into bread to satisfy his hunger.

Jesus answered, ‘It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’   Matthew 4:4

We need to consume God’s word to sustain spiritual life, even as food sustains our physical life.

In John 6:35, Jesus said that He was the bread of life. Eternal life can only be found in Him.

 In John 7, Jesus focuses on the human longing and desire that drives our lives. There is a thirst in every heart. Just like water is essential for human existence, the absence of water is a crisis. In a land like Canada, where we have abundant water, we take it for granted, but living in a desert where water is scarce; its value is more deeply appreciated. In Israel, there are only a few sources of fresh water, one of which is the level of precipitation, the small Jordan River flowing from the mountains of Lebanon and now some desalination plants in the Mediterranean. Water is critical to her existence, and the people there understand that. So, when the Scriptures speak of water, they speak of what sustains life.

In the Old Testament, we find prophetic utterances that speak of having thirst quenched by what God provides. One example is found in Isaiah 55:1a, 3.

'Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; give ear and come to me; listen, that you may live. I will make an everlasting covenant with you, my faithful love promised to David.’

Therefore, water was thought of in ancient times as a provision from God. Donald Bowes relates: “Divine blessing is spoken of in terms of water ...and the desire for spiritual life described in terms of thirst for water.

John 7:14-36

One of the most challenging things is shattering people’s biases and prejudices. People today speak of tolerance and openness regarding ideas, values, and lifestyles. Still, the reality is that our world is filled with self-righteousness, intolerance, and blindness in relationship to what is healthy, virtuous, and loving. This can be true both in a religious and a non-religious context.

Yet, what may be more stunning to us is that this has always been the way of human beings. We see this in our text today, as Jesus goes up to the Festival of Tabernacles and begins to expose the ignorance and prejudices of the people. What is tragic is that these people see themselves one way, but when exposed, they are actually the very opposite of who they think they are. One of the reasons why God tests us is to reveal our true condition.

Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way, I will test them to see whether they will follow my instructions. (Exodus 16:4)

If God knows everything, why the need to test us to see what we will do? The test is to show us the true condition of our hearts. Will we obey or disobey? Will we trust God, or will we not? What is tragic is when the reality of the true state of our soul is different than what we thought. At that moment, the opportunity for the most significant growth and change can occur.

In Jesus’ teaching in the Temple, He exposes the actual state of the people’s hearts and understanding. They are living in a state of self-deception, and Jesus reveals it. Jesus is shattering a false sense of self, or the self that the fallen, sinful nature has marred.

It is a painful experience to have someone you love accuse you of something you are not guilty of, and the truth is the opposite. To be misunderstood is difficult to swallow, especially when you don’t see it coming. It is even more painful when it comes from people you love.

John is now about to change the geographical location of Jesus’ ministry from Galilee to Judea, even though it places Jesus in extreme danger. In John 7, we read that Jesus is cautiously travelling around Galilee. The Festival of Tabernacles is drawing near in Jerusalem. Jesus knows that the time of his crucifixion is now only months away. The tension surrounding Jesus’ ministry is escalating. People are polarizing regarding His ministry. While earlier in Jesus’ ministry, attitudes were forming positively and negatively toward him, now, in this ministry segment, they are becoming fixed. There is hostility by the majority of religious leaders that creates fear for the people to support Jesus openly. Even Jesus’ half-brothers are in a state of unbelief. Jesus is having a conversation with some of his family members. What we are about to discover is their attitude toward Jesus. How do we handle being misunderstood by others, even our own family? How did Jesus respond to the unbelief coming from his half-brothers about who He is?

What is the main objective or priority in our life? Where are we expending our energy and giving our time? What we consider the most important is what we desire and pursue. What we are chasing often does not allow us to experience the most out of life.

What we are about to discover is what enriches and empowers our lives determines what we will get out of life. So, how do we experience the most out of life.

Jesus, in feeding the 5,000, creates a sign to reveal to the multitude who He is and the significance of what will happen if they ultimately receive what he is offering them. The problem is that they have totally misunderstood this miracle's nature and purpose for their lives. Jesus is about to make them an offer that will help them experience the most out of life, and it is the same offer that he makes to us today.

HOW TO EXPERIENCE A NEW DIMENSION OF LIVING

What brings true fulfilment in life? Once the basic needs of life are met, then what? For many, it is simply acquiring more things, experiences, adventures, and novelties. Some people are looking to discover something new as the old becomes boring. There is a restlessness in the human experience, and it can be only filled with something eternal and not temporal. The wisdom writer in the book of Ecclesiastes easily summarizes it.

I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. (Ecclesiastes 2:10a)

D.A. Carson relates: “Choosing to live in a purely naturalist world, ‘the Teacher (NIV) plunged himself into immense projects, sex, work, pleasure, learning, reflection, unrelenting self-gratification. His conclusion could be the epitaph of secular humanism: ‘Meaningless! Meaningless! ...Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless!” (Eccl. 1:2). There is, finally, only one way out of the Teacher’s despair: a return to the theistic universe in which he was reared. ‘Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come and the years approach when you will say, ‘I find no pleasure in them.” (Eccl. 12:1).”

The purpose of God coming to our world in the person of Jesus was to give us life to its fullness. So, why do so few experience this dimension of living? It begins when we encounter Jesus and surrender to his amazing love and purpose for our lives. It starts with knowing that we are loved and, out of that, living for a purpose greater than ourselves.

John’s purpose in selecting specific incidents and their message is to enable us to come to an important discovery regarding Jesus’ identity and what the proper response to Him should be. When that happens in our lives, it will bring about the kind of future that is worth living.

What we are going to discover in John chapter six is not just the nature of Jesus’ identity,

but beyond meeting our needs as human beings, understanding the necessity of coming to Jesus on His terms and not just based on what we desire.

What Jesus demonstrates is the power he has to meet every need, even with limited resources. We can all identify with having limited resources, particularly when we need to meet a need beyond what we thought was possible. The fact that Jesus more than met the needs, is designed to teach us that our focus must move beyond our materialistic world, or the world we see, which is all temporal. We need to move beyond simply trying to survive in life and experience what God intends for us. 

We can easily misunderstand the nature of eternal life as something futuristic in heaven. Still, the reality is that eternal life is a quality of life we can enjoy now. So, how can we experience this new dimension of living?

In our broken world, painful things happen to people. What is tragic is the aftermath. How to handle those painful emotions. How do you handle hurt, frustration, infatuation, and anger, to name a few emotions?

One thing we forget is that God not only created us with emotions, He has them. How does God handle His emotions, and what can we learn from Him? How does God handle His disappointments, hurts and frustrations with us? Just because God loves us does not mean we do not hurt or disappoint Him. Those we love the most are the most capable of stirring various emotions in us. They are often the ones that can cause the greatest pain. Knowing how we often fail God, how does He handle His emotions?

Considering what Jesus was saying to the religious leaders in his day, they chose to 'persecute' and finally 'crucify him,' in the face of all the evidence pointing to the fact that Jesus is actually who he claimed to be. In light of Jesus's claims about himself, he found earlier in John 5 that He was God. Jesus supports His claim that the miracles he was doing were the Father's authentication of him. Last week, I also pointed out that life was inherent in Jesus and that the Father had given him the responsibility of all judgment.

Craig Keener explains why Jesus is about to cite witnesses to his claims. "Confronted by accusations that he is guilty of blasphemy, a capital offence (5:18) [making himself equal to God], Jesus responds by citing witnesses in his defense. He accommodates the biblical rule that requires at least two witnesses to validate testimony in a capital case (Num 35:30; Deut. 17:6; 19:15)."

Jesus now closes his defense by appealing to certain witnesses. John's gospel concerns the idea of bearing witness to the person of Jesus. Answering the question of the identity of Jesus is critical for people to understand that eternal life is experienced based on acceptance of Jesus.

So, because Jesus was doing these things on the Sabbath, the Jewish leaders began to persecute him. In his defence, Jesus said to them, 'My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working.' (John 5:16-17)

John has used this context to show the true nature of Jesus. These incidents in John's gospel are more than just some powerful theological lessons; they are practical examples that we can learn in answering Jesus' critics. How can we overcome the critics in our lives? When we understand who we are and our purpose, we can continue to do what needs to be done despite the critics and challenges in our lives.

In this miracle and the following discussion, we discover that Jesus reveals who he is and how he brought glory to the Father. Jesus was revealing the nature of the Father to every generation. In John 5:17-30, we discover three things that show Jesus' identity actions.

One of the key reasons for the hostility that Jesus experienced by his opponents was their fixation on the ‘tradition of the elders,’ which was their interpretation of the law, in which they, as F. F. Bruce points out, “distinguished thirty-nine categories of work which might not be undertaken on the Sabbath; the thirty-ninth of these was the carrying of a load from one dwelling to another. By this standard, the man’s action in carrying his pallet home was a violation of the sabbath law.

What Jesus embarked on was a challenge to the unhealthy religious patterns that had developed over time. The nature of a healthy spiritual life is one of continued renewal and growth in our relationship with God.

There is nothing like life-and-death situations that cause us to rethink life. A crisis is one of the most fundamental means that helps us realize that we are weak and needy. Ultimately, it can bring us to faith in Christ, leading to lasting transformation in our lives.

Randy Alcorn points out in his book, ‘If God is Good,’ death draws our attention to what really matters- the state of our souls and the God and people who will outlast this life. Death is a wake-up call, a reminder that our time here is fleeting and everyone’s going to die.”

Ecclesiastes 7:2

It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of everyone; the living should take this to heart.

Yet, in our culture, we do everything we can to avoid the reality of death. Yet, this unwanted intruder eventually shatters all our worlds. The Bible takes a different view. Death is the final enemy that Christ came to defeat. Death can be a compass to recalibrate our bearings in this life.   Often, we avoid the issue and don’t consider it. We become engaged as if this life is the only life. The seduction of our society’s prosperity dulls us from the ultimate reality. God spoke through his prophets to warn against becoming indifferent towards Him because of the good life.

Hosea 13:6

When I fed them, they were satisfied; when they were satisfied, they became proud and forgot me.

The temptation to forget God when life is good is always before us. So, when trials come, and struggles challenge us, we need to mature to the point where we see them not as enemies but as allies to help grow our faith in God. Too many people question God when bad things happen to them. They wonder if God is punishing them, has disappeared, or worse yet if God cares. The Bible paints a different picture of trials. Rather than being seen as a negative, they are seen positively. 

James 1:2-4

Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

What is James telling us? Trials, difficulties, challenges, and crises are God’s tools to strengthen our faith, mature it, and complete it so that we don’t lack anything.

Randy Alcorn reminds us: “To hate suffering is easy; to hate sin is not.”3 The natural man draws back from suffering and embraces sin, whereas as we grow in our faith life, we begin to see the value of the struggles that cause us to see this life as it is. The spiritual man sees the nature of sin as it is, to see past sin’s seductions and realize the depths of despair that it produces.  

Suffering, when embraced with the right attitude, can have amazing results.

In our text today, we find a man coming to Jesus because his family was in crisis. How many can relate to that? How many can say it was a personal crisis that brought me to Jesus? I can say that for myself. My brokenness and sin brought me to Jesus for forgiveness, healing, and a purpose beyond myself. 

The primary purpose of John’s gospel is to bring us face to face with Jesus and what happens when we encounter him in the various circumstances of life to realize who He is and what He has come to bring us: a new life.

What may be shocking to some is the people that Jesus connected with and those he did not, as reflected in the first four books of the New Testament. Jesus reached out and cared for people struggling with sin issues in their lives. Jesus said that even the prostitutes were coming into the kingdom of God ahead of the moral people because they were responding to the message of repentance.

"Jesus said to them, 'Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you.

For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him." Matthew 21:31b-32

In John 4, we find the story of a woman who was an outcast in her community and how a meeting with Jesus changed her life and her entire community. She was the least likely to have the most significant impact of all the people in town, yet her witness about Jesus caused people to meet him.

We pick up the story in John, chapter four, where we find Jesus talking to a woman struggling to find love and acceptance. There was a lot of pain and disappointment in her relationships. What appeared to be a serendipitous meeting turned into a life-changing moment. Jesus has a way of challenging the status quo and breaking into the places of pain in our lives. Regardless of the type of sin that entraps us, Jesus is ready to free us. We must ask ourselves, 'Are we willing to get involved?' Are we willing to be set free and become God's instruments in our broken, sin-filled world? The former president of Gordon-Conwell Seminary, Haddon Robinson, speaks directly about this issue. "There is a kind of math that originated in hell's counting rooms. This kind of math is always interested in reaching the masses but never gets down to a man or a woman. This kind of math always talks about winning the world for God but doesn't think much about winning a neighbourhood. That math makes it heroic to cross oceans and never cross streets."

The needs of the masses often keep us overwhelmed and uninvolved. We need to re-discover that when we focus on the needs of the individual, God can direct us to a person we need to reach. They may even be the instrument God uses to impact a community.

What causes people to strive and labour in life? What is the compelling motivation that fuels so many people’s lives? Apart from God in our lives shaping our attitudes and desires, our sinful human nature is such that we are often driven by envy. How can we so categorically say that? The Scriptures teach us that. In the book of Ecclesiastes, we find that envy is the motivating factor of life when God is absent.

“I saw that all labour and all achievement spring from man’s envy of another. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.” (Ecclesiastes 4:4)

Here in our text today, we have the testimony of John the Baptist regarding Christ. We discover delight and joy in the success of Jesus’ ministry. John aimed to point others to Jesus, and John succeeded. The point of our text is not about the issue raised, which dealt with the fact that Jesus had more people coming to be baptized than John, but rather the issue that John, the gospel writer, is showing us the superiority of Jesus. What God had promised was now being fulfilled or realized in Jesus Christ. In the conclusion of John 3, we discover John the Baptist’s final confession regarding Jesus. In John’s confession, we learn three vital things about how we can experience life’s greatest satisfaction.

As we turn to John 3:16, we find the real motivation for why God died for us, but before we get there, I want to focus our thoughts briefly on why God had to die. Why doesn't God forgive us regardless of our response to him?

Soren Kierkegaard, the noted Danish Theologian, once said: “God creates out of nothing.  You may say, that’s wonderful. But He does what is still more wonderful: He makes saints out of sinners.”

No person ever became a Christian apart from the work of the Holy Spirit. The reason is that the natural mind is hostile to God, but when God’s Spirit begins to work in the hearts and minds of people, something spiritual and supernatural happens within people.

Here is how the apostle Paul describes it in Romans 8:5-9:

“Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires, but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so [This explains rebellion in the heart of man. The sinful mind is hostile to God and will not submit to God’s word.]

Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God. You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.”

One expression we use to explain the spiritual transformation is conversion. Too often, we focus on the human side of conversion, the person responding to the call of God. But conversion begins as a work of God. This is what the apostle Paul pointed out in Romans. Our natural state is hostile to God, and it takes the Holy Spirit influencing, challenging, and guiding our lives.

Briefly, I want to explain how we enter the kingdom of God. One of the great stories from the New Testament that explains the work of the Holy Spirit in conversion is found in John’s gospel. A religious leader came to Jesus by night to gain a private audience with him. In Nicodemus’ encounter with Christ, we find three elements in an encounter with God that explains how we enter God’s kingdom.

Michael Green shares the following illustration: “If your car started once every three tries, is it reliable? If your refrigerator stops working for a day or two now and then, do you say, ‘Oh, well, it works most of the time? Is it dependable if your hot water heater provides a cold shower every now and again? If you miss a couple of loan payments every year, does the bank say ten out of twelve isn’t bad? Are you a dependable employee if you fail to show up for work once or twice a month? If you fail to show up to church once or twice a month, would you be considered a true worshiper?” 

Interestingly, we expect faithfulness and reliability from things and other people, but what about ourselves? What does God expect of us? The problem is that when it comes to the things of God, we might see ourselves as volunteers rather than slaves of Christ. Almost anything seems acceptable for a volunteer, but for a slave, complete devotion is expected.

John is the only gospel writer who tells us about the wedding celebration at Cana. Jesus and his disciples were invited to a wedding where an amazing miracle took place. It is a significant story because it is the first miraculous sign that Jesus performed. This miracle came not just as a result of a great need but was the opportunity for Jesus to reveal a powerful truth and the nature of who He is to His disciples.

Jesus' miracles, as told in John's gospel, point to something significant about Jesus.

In John 2:1-11, we find the first miracle or sign of which there are seven found in the gospel of John. It is the miracle of turning water into wine.  While God used Moses to turn water into blood, Jesus is seen here performing a sign to bring joy into people's hearts, as wine symbolizes joy.

From this promise of seeing God work more extraordinary things, John begins this story about the wedding at Cana. It is a sign of a better time coming; though many rejected God's kingdom, others embraced it, and their lives were filled with joy. So, what are some things we can learn from Jesus performing signs, particularly this sign of turning the water into wine?

One of the most striking, shocking, and enlightening texts of Scripture that should cause us pause is found in Romans 1:21. It speaks of the heart turning away from God. 

Although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor thanked him, but their thinking became futile, and their foolish hearts were darkened.

Those are haunting words, '...they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to Him.' The sin of ingratitude is a deadly trap that the enemy of our souls uses to destroy us.

Ingratitude is a monstrous sin that leads toward a downward path. It affects the soul like a growing, deadly cancer spreading and infecting and affecting not only the patient but the lives of others.  How often we become angry and embittered toward God for life's difficulties, yet in that Shakespearean play so true to life, we discover that the good is growing better through suffering and all the bad is worsening through success. Ernest Howse states: "In King Lear, Shakespeare turned the admiration upon those characters who through trial and tribulation developed inner integrity, humility of mind, compassion for the poor." 11   

The great issue is the condition of our heart: Is it filled with gratitude and thanksgiving, or has it grown hard and callous so that we resist God's word and workings in our lives? Is our heart tender or tough? We can determine this by our attitude toward God.

This weekend, we celebrate a day called Thanksgiving. It is a day to express our appreciation for all God has done for us this past year. It is a day to declare the faithfulness of God to us as a people. So, how should we respond to God when He comes to us? In Psalm 96, we discover three responses to God when He reveals Himself and comes to us, allowing us to live life to its fullest. It is amazing what happens to a person when we move from a self-centred and earthly vantage point to a God-centered, heavenly perspective. We immediately see things differently.  Our attitude swiftly shifts from frustration, despair, doubt, and discouragement to hope, delight and joyful expectation. We can cultivate a deeper appreciation for what God has truly done for us and how we should express that. 

What is it that each of us genuinely longs for? So, often, what we think we desire has been culturally conditioned. We want to be rich or have financial security; some want to be famous or have meaningful relationships, but people want to be happy. We need to be loved, heard, understood, and accepted. This need is ultimately found in a person, and that person is Jesus. For most people living in the daily grind of life, with its ups and downs, there is a part that desires life to be more than it so often is. Here in John's gospel, we have the introduction of the first followers of Jesus, how they came into contact with Him, and how that changed who they were and what they became. These people discovered the ultimate reason for life, which changed their lives' trajectory. Early in the chapter, John the Baptist discovers that Jesus is God's promised Messiah. This happened at the moment of Jesus' baptism when he saw God's Spirit descend like a dove upon Jesus.

John 1:32-34

Then John gave this testimony: 'I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him.

And I myself did not know him, but he one who sent me to baptize with water told, 'The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Hold Spirit.

I have seen, and I testify that this is God's Chosen One.

So, how do we come to know Jesus? How does God reach us and those we care about? How do we find the ultimate reason for life? We see that this generally happens through the testimony of others. So, how do we become effective witnesses so others find the ultimate reason for life? Where do we begin? How did Jesus do it? Did Jesus have a method or a strategy? There is no argument as to what Jesus' purpose was.

            Luke gives us the reason for His coming in Luke 19:10.

            For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.

Jesus is here for people. How did Jesus bring His kingdom to our world nearly two thousand years ago, and what does that mean for us today? We are about to discover that God's kingdom comes through people like you and me. It occurs through people whose lives have been changed and are changing. It is people reaching out to other people.  John Maxwell explains, "The only thing God will ever rescue from this planet is people. Therefore, if you want a ministry of permanence, you must build it in the lives of others." Ministry is caring for others, building them up, praying for them, and communicating grace and truth. As we go back in time and see how Jesus went about His ministry, we will learn what makes life worth living by following Jesus' approach toward others. In John's gospel, we see how people came to Jesus. There are four insights that reveal the ultimate reason for life. 

In a world of contradiction, deception, and destruction, we may wonder how to communicate to others what we consider vitally important and critical to the well-being of ourselves and others. In a world of relativity and cynicism regarding even the idea that truth can be known, we realize that embracing lies leads to self-deception, false assurances, damaging relationships, and even life itself. Jesus assured us that living in falsehood was slavery to the lie. Only truth could bring freedom.

            John 8:34-36

            Jesus replied, ‘Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.

            A slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever.

            So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. 

            The Bible teaches us that truth is found not in propositions or ideas alone, but it is ultimately found in a person. Truth is not divorced from love, grace, and understanding. For all these qualities are found in God Himself. God is love. He is full of grace and truth. Jesus said in regards to himself in John 14:6 in answer to finding the right path or way.

            Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

            To prepare the people of Israel, who had high expectations of the coming Messiah, God sent a prophet to speak to the nation and prepare their hearts. Many had unrealistic and false expectations that would lead them astray if left unchecked. We are introduced in the early part of John’s gospel to a man called John, who was baptizing people as an expression of their repentance and preparation for the arrival of the Messiah. Here, we see in John’s gospel the role and heart of a witness. We will discover that John is simply a voice speaking God’s message. What can we learn from John’s life and ministry to help us best represent the truth in an age of deception, confusion and lies?

How can a person maintain a right and godly attitude and find hope in seemingly hopeless situations? 

Many people feel trapped by their current situation in life. I am not speaking of being trapped or imprisoned but of being trapped by life’s situations, commitments, and responsibilities. Others are trapped in unhealthy bodies suffering from a debilitating disease, like Job, who was trapped in a body enduring extreme suffering and surrounded by friends who falsely judged him. They told him his sickness was because he had sinned against God, which was untrue. 

Over the years, I wonder how many people have told Joni Erickson Tada that God would heal her body while she lived with quadriplegia. I wonder how many have told her or thought it would happen if she only had enough faith. Joni is living out an incredible story of God’s grace despite less-than-desirable circumstances and knows that, ultimately, God will give her a new body. For all the people who have experienced God’s healing in their bodies, others have continued to suffer, who have prayed and prayed for God to answer their cry, but what they have received instead is God’s grace to sustain them. Questions can arise in their minds: Does God care?      

For others, they are struggling with financial, psychological, and other life-related limitations.  Then, some feel trapped in difficult marriages, families, and jobs. The single mom cannot seem to scrape enough time and resources to keep body and soul together, with the demands of trying to be both parents and provide a meaningful life for themselves and their children. Most forget about themselves or, in the worst-case scenario, forget about their kid’s welfare. Some struggle with the bit of time they have for themselves, with little affirmation and encouragement from others. The cries of the hearts of those in distressing times are reflected by the Psalmist who prayed.

            Psalm 55:6-8

            I said, ‘Oh, that I had the wings of a dove! I would fly away and be at rest-

            I would flee far away and stay in the desert;

            I would hurry to my place of shelter, far from the tempest and storm.      

So, what do we do when we feel trapped, when our circumstances seem to have us hemmed in, and we cannot see a way out? We are being tested. Paul had a moment when he cried out to God for deliverance from what he describes as a thorn in his flesh.

            2 Corinthians 12:7-9a

            because of these surpassingly great revelations. Therefore, to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me.

            I pleaded with the Lord three times to take it away from me.

            But he said, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’

God’s answer was grace greater than the pressure and challenges he was experiencing. The half-brother of Jesus wrote a pastoral letter directed toward Jewish believers scattered throughout the Mediterranean undergoing incredible difficulty and persecution. In that letter we know as the book of James, he shares some marvellous words of encouragement and direction for the difficulties they were facing, which will help us in our distressing moments.

There is something inside each man and woman that wants to please and be accepted by their father. It's something that God builds into each of our lives. Some struggle with this issue. Maybe they don't feel they can ever do enough to please their father and become exasperated trying. Sometimes the start of rebellion in children's hearts is an expression of a child trying to get the father's attention. 

Right now, I must add this caution; not all rebellious kids result from a neglectful or thoughtless father. Remember, Adam and Eve in the garden had everything going for them, with the perfect parent and failure and sin occurred. Yet, there remains in the heart of every child a desire to be loved, accepted, and affirmed by their father just for who they are. This longing and desire does not end when the child grows up. Some middle-aged people here today are still seeking that affirmation from their fathers. There are elderly people here today who have longed to hear their fathers affirm them. This ache in the heart doesn't go away. Many people have driven themselves in various fields of life desperately trying to receive this affirmation that never came.

Today, I want to return to the very beginnings of Jesus' ministry. Just before Jesus faced some of the greatest tests of his early ministry: the temptation in the wilderness and the rejection of his ministry by his friends, family, and associates in his hometown, something powerful happened that gave Jesus precisely what he needed to face those situations. Too often, we have assumed that it's all about us, but you may not know that something deep within us needs affirmation and approval by a significant person in our lives.

Here, we come to understand the value of the Father's affirmation, how it empowered Jesus through his first great testing in the wilderness, and the following challenge in Nazareth.  We will be able to respond to the Father's blessing and affirmation. So let us look at three events in Jesus' life in chronological order and discover the secret of Jesus' ability to overcome temptation and discouragement.

In Luke’s retelling of the greatest sermon ever preached, known as the Sermon on the Mount from Matthew’s gospel, Luke’s rendition, known as the Sermon on the Plain, gives us an insight into the value of the message. Luke slips in a simple statement not found in Matthew’s gospel but gives us something of the nature of the end product of a disciple of Jesus.

A student is not above his teacher, but everyone fully trained will be like his teacher. (Luke 6:40)

What is Luke telling us? He is giving us a picture of what discipleship is about. A disciple is someone who is becoming like Christ. In other words, to be a true follower of Jesus, we must be in the process of becoming like Him. The idea is that if the student or learner is fully trained or completed his training, they will be like their teacher. That is what this life is all about. We are being trained in the school of Christ. God, the Father, uses our life experiences to fashion us into Christlikeness. The apostle Paul describes the process this way in Romans 8:28-29: And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.

The obvious question then is, what is Jesus Christ like? What about Jesus is God fashioning us into? Our Father in Heaven is fashioning the character of Christ within us. But what about Christ’s character is the Father working in us? In Luke 6:37-48, we get three quick snapshots of the heart of Christ. If we imitate or pursue these elements of Jesus’ heart, we will be well on our way toward becoming fully trained disciples.

Martin Luther King Jr. had a dream. He worked towards seeing that dream become a reality and was killed in pursuing that dream. What dream do you have today? Maybe your dream is buried beneath the heartache and heartbreak of life.  Perhaps the barriers and obstacles to your God-given dream have robbed you of the joy of seeing it become a reality. Your strength may be waning. Oh, for an infusion of joy to sustain you on the journey. May you reclaim the joy from the confidence that God has given the dream and see it become a reality. How will we handle the challenges we face on the road to God’s dream? It is a road filled with impediments and obstacles, which are the very things that God uses to make us into the right kind of people who can fully appreciate what the dream is all about. It is an appreciation that realizes God’s dream comes only through His grace.

The Bible tells the story of a young person with a dream from God who walked that road from promise to fulfillment. It is a road less travelled because it is not an easy road. It is a road filled with twists and turns that would baffle the heart of the wisest and cause even the stoutest heart to wane and faint. The young person was a seventeen-year-old by the name of Joseph. Joseph had a God-given dream. In the book of Genesis, we find the road to the dream’s fulfillment hidden from the eyes of youthful enthusiasm. Joseph had no idea how God would fulfill the dream. He had no idea how difficult the journey to the dream would be. The more glorious the dream, the greater the obstacles and difficulties we can expect. In Joseph’s case, three scenes depict the challenges or obstacles on the road to God’s dream for us being fulfilled. We will examine three challenges on the road to fulfilling a God-given dream. 

In Jeremiah 37, we find that a relief force of Egyptians has drawn away the Babylonian from their siege around the city of Jerusalem. In this moment of respite, we see two fascinating incidents that reveal the nation's folly and the prophet Jeremiah's faithfulness. How do we respond in a crisis? Do we act with integrity and courage? Or are we overwhelmed, vacillating, and ultimately disobedient to what God reveals to us in His word? What may be more telling about our lives is our response after a crisis. How do we move forward? Do we go back to our lives before the crisis? Or do we make significant adjustments and grow as a result of the situation in our lives? Do we respond by renewed obedience toward God and His word? What is the outcome of an indifferent or aDecpathetic life toward God? Our actions reveal the actual condition of our souls. Here in Jeremiah 37, we find a contrast between the beleaguered prophet and the indecisive king, who allowed political expediency to determine his course of action to the detriment of him and the nation. What can we learn from the poor decisions of others to make better choices for our lives?

In a sinful, broken world, there is a great need for love to be demonstrated. One of the most moving stories in the Bible is the story of two ordinary women struggling with significant losses. Both of these women had lost their husbands. For Naomi, the mother-in-law of Ruth, the future looked bleak. All she could see was poverty and uncertainty ahead. She had no hope of a future home and family and became embittered by what God had allowed to occur in her life. She felt God had dealt harshly with her. In an alien culture and land, she decided to return to the home of her youth. She remembered with fondness the times of God’s abundance, the love of a husband, and the delightful squeals of her children, but these carefree memories also reminded her of her losses. Death has claimed both her boys and her husband. She had left her home with her family, full of hopes and dreams. Now she returns mourning their loss. She had left full, and now she returns empty. That is the setting for the story of Ruth and Naomi.

But God doesn’t leave these two women to fend for themselves. All through the book of Ruth, we see that chance happenings are the hand of God’s gracious provision. It is the story of going from emptiness to fullness, brokenness to wholeness. What fascinates me is that though great losses happen to people, even God’s people, God is working out His purposes. Many times, we cannot discern what He is doing. What seems like a disaster is one of the instruments in God’s hand, shaping our lives and destiny.

We find in the drama the moving story of the love and devotion of a daughter-in-law. It is this devotion that is an expression of God’s provision. This relationship is the beginning of God’s restorative process. This relationship reveals that God is gracious and loving. What Naomi does not see in her losses is one of God’s greatest gifts—the gift of relationship.

One of the issues in human development is the question we ultimately ask ourselves, ‘What difference is my life making in this world.’ It is the question of significance and how psychologists explain the journey of the ‘mid-life’ crisis. If we live simply for ourselves and this world that is constantly changing, we may find that our lives have been built so that when the storms come, our lives are shattered.

However, Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount said that if we build our lives in obedience to His word, then when those storms come, including the ‘mid-life’ crisis and the questions regarding the meaning of our personal life and its significance, we will be able to realize that we have been living with eternal values and have a life of eternal significance. Using a play on words, Jesus challenged four fishermen: Peter, Andrew, James and John, with a new purpose for living that would give them eternal significance. It is a challenge that each believer also faces. We read the account as recorded by Matthew 4:18-22.

What difference does one day make? It all depends on the day. Today we are celebrating the day that made all the difference in how our world has gone and, hopefully, most of us. It is the day that changed our lives forever. I am speaking of the resurrection of Jesus Christ almost two thousand years ago. The key to experiencing the resurrection power is that it must be applied in our lives. What is it about Jesus Christ that has such a transforming impact on the lives of people? How can a man who lived twenty centuries ago still impact people’s lives today? The resurrection is the reason. Jesus is alive. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the single most crucial facet of His story. Apart from the resurrection, Christianity would be like any other religion, with a moral leader and good ethical teachings. What makes Christianity unique is the resurrection message. Matthew, in writing his gospel, retells the story in such a way as to refute the rumoured story that the resurrection was a hoax, a fabricated story to deceive people. Matthew helps people overcome barriers to faith in Christ. What were some of the barriers of faith that the early disciples had to overcome that first Easter morning, barriers that people today struggle with?

There has never been more information poured into our lives than now. But what is actual reality and truth, and what is fiction? What do you believe? And why do you believe it? What we think shapes our decisions, ultimately affecting what we do and how we do it. Jesus, in talking to his disciples after they had witnessed many miracles and listened to Jesus explain many things, asked the most critical question, ‘Who do you say that I am?’ The answer to that question shapes a person’s life. Yet, that question needs to be understood in light of His authority and our response to that authority. If we believe Jesus is who He has revealed Himself to be, it will affect who we are, who we will become, and ultimately where we will spend eternity.

It’s interesting reading the gospel writers explaining the various moments in the life of Jesus. One of the more moving accounts is in the final days of Jesus’ life as He enters Jerusalem, which the church celebrates as Palm Sunday because of the Palm branches placed before Jesus as He rode into the city. Matthew described the event this way in Matthew 21:10: “When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, ‘Who is this?’”

Luke also reported that the city was stirred, and the term used there is where we get our term “seismic.” There is a sense from both of these writers of the amazing excitement and anticipation that Jesus was about to do something significant.

The great need in every time and place has been the same: love; for love acts beyond what any expects. It gives what is needed and more. Without it, all the noblest acts have a hollowness and shallowness. All the knowledge in the world cannot replace love as the most profound need of our lives. As we evaluate the world in which we live, we may state that the church needs to exhibit the supernatural to get our fallen society's attention. Indeed, this will undoubtedly get some of their attention. But the question is, will it make an eternal difference in their lives? For some, it will, but for others, even miracles won't affect change in their hearts. Even the resurrection of Lazarus was not enough to open the hardened hearts of some. There is something that each of us can be involved in that may not attract the attention of the crowds but will certainly impact the lives of individuals we encounter day by day. It allows God's love to flow through our lives. The kind of love that each of us needs can only come from the hand of God. Only He can love us enough. The best that each of us can give to one another falls far short of what each of us needs. We need something that we don't deserve. The problem is that we need it over and over again. God never tires of us in our need.

The apostle Paul wrote a letter to the Corinthian church, a gifted church with much going for it. Despite this, something lacking was undermining their effectiveness of ministry to each other and the world around them. All the giftedness in the world cannot compensate for the lack of this one essential ingredient. In addressing their problems and challenges, Paul zeroes in on the issue's heart. What is motivating their lives? What compels them to do what they are doing? Without the love of God as the compelling force in their lives, the church would continue to struggle and be ineffective. What is true for them is equally true for us. Jonathan Smith, the author of Gulliver's Travels, writes: 'Often we have just enough religion to make us hate, but not enough to make us love one another.'

The issue is not whether we will ever experience times of conflict but how we will respond to them. There is a naive sense of what biblical unity is all about. We tend to go from two extremes, where conflict becomes a way of life, or to a state of denial when issues arise. As I was reflecting on a passage of Scripture regarding a story of a domestic dispute, it made me realize that not all outcomes are easy, but God can help us navigate through the troubled waters of family conflict. Even in moments of discomfort, God is at work in a very real way if we care to see Him. Even when outcomes are not what we anticipated or desired, we discover that God is present and can help us embrace His promises while providing a way to move forward.

There are three movements in the story that I want us to notice today that will eventually lead our hearts to a place of reassurance and genuine hope regardless of how difficult our situation or circumstance may be in our lives. We must remind ourselves that ‘God will never leave us or forsake us,’ though others might. When it comes to marital conflict, we feel overwhelmed and uncertain. How can God work in what seems like an impossible situation? Or why does God allow relationships to disintegrate? When the Scriptures teach that ‘all things work together for good to those who love God, it may not mean that it works out the way we want it to or think it should. God does not overrule human freedom to make choices even when it causes pain in lives.

In real life, we don’t always ‘live happily ever after, at least not in this life.’ For God’s children, we grow from life’s most challenging moments and ultimately find our footing again. Right from the beginning of the human experience, we see all the sinful attitudes and actions exploding on the scene within the first four chapters of the Bible. Once sin enters the human family, we immediately see a withdrawal from God, blaming others for our sin, being envious of those who seem to have things going their way, and even the attitude that leads to the first murder. Then we come to our spiritual father in the faith, Abraham. One of the great patriarchs of the Bible, we discover the struggles that he faces, even in his family life. In Genesis 21:1-21, we find the explosive moment between Sarah and Hagar’s relationship that ends in the rejection of Hagar and Ishmael from Abraham’s household.

Is marriage becoming obsolete or is it one of the most critical foundations of human existence? Author Gary Thomas shares something of the domestic side of Abraham Lincoln in his book, Sacred Marriage. “...Mary Todd was hardly the type of woman with whom one could enjoy a quiet evening. She was, in fact a woman of intense impulses and tremendous temper, though this, ironically enough, was some of her attraction for the future president.

[Later] when a salesman called on the White House and was treated to Mary’s fervid verbal assault, he marched right up to the Oval Office ... and proceeded to complain to President Lincoln about how the first lady had treated him. Lincoln listened calmly, then stood and gently said, ‘You can endure for fifteen minutes what I have endured for fifteen years.” Gary Thomas points out: He shone brightest when his personal life was darkest. The connection one can make between Lincoln’s marriage and his mission is not difficult. It is easy to see how a man who might quit on a difficult marriage would not have the character to hold together a crumbling nation.”

Timothy Keller in his book, ‘The Meaning of Marriage,’ points out that historically marriage was deemed as both good and desirable. Studies continue to support this premise, but surveys of High School Students show a negative attitude toward marriage. He raises the question, “‘So where did this pessimism come from and why is it too out of touch with reality? Paradoxically, it may be that the pessimism comes from a new kind of unrealistic idealism about marriage, born of a significant shift in our culture’s understanding of the purpose of marriage. Legal scholar John Witte Jr. says that the earlier ‘ideal of marriage as a permanent contractual union designed for the sake of mutual love, procreation and protection is slowly giving way to a new reality of marriage as a ‘terminal sexual contract’ designed for the gratification of the individual parties. Witte goes on to say, that ‘[formerly] it was a solemn bond, designed to help each party subordinate individual impulses and interests in favor of the relationship... given by God not merely to Christians but to benefit the entirety of humanity. Marriage created character by bringing male and female into a binding partnership. In particular, lifelong marriage was seen as creating the only kind of social stability in which children could grow and thrive.

Jesus’ response to the challenging question the Pharisee’s and later his own disciples queried, gives us clarity as it relates to God’s purpose and challenges pertaining to both marriage and the single life.

How tragic that in many human relationships, neither party will submit nor back down, resulting in fragmentation. Some marriages are like that. A constant source of conflict and contention. Both parties are striving to have their way. Healthy families are where all the members learn to submit to one another. This attitude of mutual submission is a work of the Holy Spirit. It comes as we yield to the Holy Spirit. One of the fruit or results of a Spirit-controlled life is a life of submission, first to God and then to others. How many realize that insecure people have to have their way? People who are secure in their relationship with God are not trusting in their own abilities or ability to control life’s situations. They are confident that God is in control and will have His way. One of the great challenges in our present culture is our struggle in our most meaningful and intimate relationships. Families today are disintegrating all around us. Why?

One of the primary reasons is that we are not living a life controlled by God, the Holy Spirit, which is reflected in willful submission to God. As we turn to the book of Ephesians today, I want us to take a brief overview of what a Christian family should look like and how we can become live like that. In the last two chapters of Ephesians, we find a marriage and a home controlled by a power greater than the sinful nature producing an incredible environment. This environment becomes a place where love can blossom. How can this kind of family develop?

“Do not get drunk with wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.” (Ephesians 5:18). In this context of being filled with the Spirit, we find the most sublime reference to marriage in the entire Scriptures. Ephesians 5 goes on to describe the Spirit-controlled family. The greatest metaphor to explain our covenant with God is marriage. For God’s part, we see this amazing expression of submission and yielding of rights to bring redemption on behalf of the church. Jesus’ selfless surrender for the sake of you and me. You cannot fully understand a Christian marriage and family apart from Calvary’s love: God’s redeeming, restoring, reconciling method and message. One word best summarizes a Christian marriage and family, and that word is submission. When we understand the nature of biblical submission and begin to yield to the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, our homes will be transformed.

At the time of Jesus' birth, the people of Judea looked down with contempt upon those who lived in Galilee. Even though they were all Jews, they felt that the Galileans were 'not kosher,' meaning they were considered unclean. They felt this way because of their proximity and intermingling with the Gentiles in their area. Many cities in Galilee were predominately Gentile in makeup. Not only did the Jews from Judea look down upon the Galileans, but one community was considered especially undesirable, namely Nazareth. Yet, in this insignificant and despised place, God chose a young maiden to be the mother of the Son of God. Mingled into the impossible challenge and the incredible miracle is the potential for great misunderstanding, criticism, and possibly great danger.

What would you do? This doesn't just happen to a few of God's people; rather, this is a general plan for our lives. God has a plan for each of us. Incredible challenges happen to those that God chooses to use. God's appointments to serve generally go to obscure and unknown people like you and me. God works through ordinary people. How have you responded to God's call on your life? Maybe, more importantly, how will we respond to God's call today? Today, I want us to examine a very familiar story but see the story not from hindsight but rather as a present challenge to each of us. God is calling us! God wants to utilize our lives for His purposes. How will we respond? There are generally three elements to God's calling in our lives.

We generally approach the Christmas season focusing on all we have to get done. We know it's about Jesus, and even then, we think of Christmas from its human predicament, of an unplanned pregnancy, a confused groom to be, a hasty trip to Bethlehem, shepherds coming to worship the child and later magi, bringing gifts; it seems so challenging and at times overwhelming. We also discover the plot against the Christ child. These are all things being played out in the natural arena of life. Yet, what we see happening is only the tip of the iceberg. That's true in our lives as well. We generally only see the natural world but don't see what is shaping this world. The spiritual world around us is just as real and determines what is and what will happen. What we need to realize or often fail to remember is that there is a great spiritual battle happening. That is precisely what was happening in Jesus's first advent or coming. There was a powerful spiritual battle described in the book of Revelation.

God's people are the real champion of the resistance to the Dragon, which is the source and perpetrator of all evil. God'sdeals with the cosmic war and its ramifications on earth and in heaven. So, what is actually happening? Chapter 12 leaves us with two keys to living a victorious life.

Every person who comes to know Jesus personally has a story. When God wanted to communicate who He is, He came to earth and what He left behind is an amazing story that has changed people’s lives through the centuries. In John’s gospel, we have two incredible encounter stories that I believe give us the extent to which God works in reaching out to us as human beings. These two people and their story is a study in contrast. The first is the story of a Jewish religious leader, a man who came to Jesus at night. The second is the story of a Samaritan woman who meets Jesus at high noon in a place that most Jewish people in Jesus’ day avoided. In her case, she was an outcast, even within her own community. When we come to the end of their encounter with Jesus, they finally find what had been missing in their lives. I believe these two lives represent two groups of people, those who are moral and struggle to see themselves in need of a Savior and those who live immoral lives and believe that they are beyond the scope of God’s forgiveness.

One of the problems of church life in North America is a misunderstanding of what the bible reveals as true community. We often judge others far more severely and expect others to meet our needs rather than understanding that part of being in community is what we contribute to others. It's all part of the consumerism of our age. I've also been struck by an interesting parallel between our spiritual condition and the growing problem of physical conditioning. Many medical people are concerned about the lack of physical exercise many children receive. With so much to entertain us, we are becoming physically unhealthy. Overweight people are increasing in our culture. But it's not just being physically out of shape. As a culture, we are struggling with being emotionally, relationally, and even spiritually out of shape. There are things we know and don't practice, or we should know but think that these exercises are optional. To be spiritually fit, you must discipline yourself. As a matter of fact, the apostle Paul tells Timothy that we must train to be godly.

"...rather, train yourself to be godly." (1 Timothy 4:8b). Another translation uses the word, discipline yourself to be godly. What will it take to get in good spiritual shape? What kind of exercises should we practice for us to be spiritually fit?

In Hebrews 10, we discover three things that will help us stay or get spiritually fit. These three things are at the core of our faith and have eternal qualities. "...and now these three remain: faith, hope and love. And the greatest of these is love." (1 Cor. 13:13)

How do these qualities develop in our lives? In the tenth chapter of the book of Hebrews, we find how they can be applied to our daily lives to remain spiritually fit.

The measure of a person’s life is not determined by what he acquires in life but by what he gives to it. What we gain from God and pass on to others is the real test of a godly life. In Jesus’ well-known address, known as the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus focuses on the issue of genuine discipleship. There is both a cost and a commitment to following Jesus Christ. In contrast to the hypocritical approach toward righteous living in his day by the Pharisees, Jesus challenges his followers in every generation with other subtle spiritual battles for our hearts. In these texts from Matthew 6:19-24, Jesus addresses the issue of worldliness and idolatry. Worldliness is an attitude reflected by our warped affections for this world’s values in place of God’s. Idolatry is simply putting something or someone ahead of God in our lives.

The Bible reveals three areas where the spiritual battle is being waged against the believer: the world, the flesh, and the devil. Here Jesus is focusing on the world. Jesus gives three pictures or metaphors of the conflict that is waged against our souls to help us understand the nature of the battle. Jesus calls us to undivided loyalty to his kingdom and the values of his kingdom, which is ultimately to live a life worth living.

For those struggling and worried about the everyday things of life, the intensity of life continues to additional pressures that only make life more difficult, from the threat of wider-scale diseases, military conflicts, and the escalating costs of living.

Yet, as we read the words of Jesus, he promises us as believers a way of life that brings peace and joy, even in the most trying and difficult seasons of life. God wants us to rise above one of the great thieves of our lives: worry, which can lead to anxiety. So, what is the difference because they are interrelated? The Henry Ford Health staff posted five key differences between the two.

1. Worry tends to reside in our minds, while anxiety affects our minds and bodies.

2. Worry is specific, where a person is fixated on a particular concern, whereas anxiety is vague, and you cannot pinpoint what is troubling you.

3. Worry is grounded in a measure of reality and can motivate a proper response, whereas anxiety causes catastrophic thinking that is not realistic. The fear becomes obsessive.

4. Worry is usually short term whereas anxiety persists and causes a person to stop functioning in a healthy manner.

5. Worry doesn’t impair function, whereas anxiety goes.

We are living in an age of incredible anxiety. One of the most fundamental areas that creates struggle is meeting our financial obligations. Money is often the source of conflict in marriage relationships. What does Jesus have to say regarding this fundamental issue of worry concerning our everyday needs?

Far too many of God’s children feel alone, hurt and wonder where our Father is. Is there a feeling of unrest in your soul and the temptation to give up? We may wonder why God has not seen our plight and rescued us from our prison of pain. The only problem with surrendering to our emotions is that it will not bring the hope and comfort we passionately long for. We often fail to remember that our soul is the object of a great battle. We are under attack from unseen spiritual forces endeavouring to bring discouragement to us. God promises to meet the cry of our hearts.

We’re not talking here about the more superficial needs that are closer to the surface in each of our lives, but rather the inner longing for love that is unconditional, a sense of security, a confidence in the future, and a measure of worth, dignity and value as an individual. God hears that cry and can meet that need, giving each of us a sense of wholeness. Augustine was right when he penned those immortal words in the fourth century, ‘Our hearts find no rest until they find their rest in You.” The problem is that many are not resting in the love and grace of our Lord. Intellectually we know this is a promise to us, but it seems to mock us. We truly long for it, but it may not be our experience at this moment in our lives. Our soul’s cry could easily be reflected by the words of that ancient prophet Isaiah when he wrote.

Why do you say, O Jacob, and complain, O Israel, ‘My way is hidden from the LORD; my cause is disregarded by my God? - Isaiah 40:27

Or, as we would say, ‘where are you, God, when my life is falling apart?’ The real problem may not be that God is not there, but rather a lack of understanding of who our heavenly Father really is. We rarely see ourselves as the problem; instead, we are upset with God because He seems indifferent to our plight, pain, and present predicament. Could it be that we take ourselves far too seriously and God not seriously enough in our world? Could it be that our world originates with ourselves at the centre and God is somewhere on the sidelines? Could it be that we have lost sight of God’s majestic greatness; which, as J. I. Packer states, “The Christian’s instincts of trust and worship are stimulated very powerfully by the knowledge of the greatness of God.” 2 Could it be that we pursued the false substitutes and trappings of worldly values and found them empty and blamed God for the emptiness in our souls?

There are moments in all our lives when we need a message of comfort. We need to hear a message that will help us transcend our momentary afflictions and lift our hearts to new highs and new hopes. Israel was experiencing just such a time when Isaiah penned chapter 40. In Isaiah chapter 40, we gain a new glimpse at the majesty of God that brings renewed hope and vision. Folks, a vision of God can transform our worn, broken, and empty hearts and fill us with incredible hope and joy. It was A. W. Tozer who wrote in his book, ‘The Knowledge of the Holy,’ “What comes to our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us. ...He goes on to say, ‘the man who comes to a right belief about God is relieved of ten thousand temporal problems, for he sees at once that these have to do with matters which at the most cannot concern him for a very long time...” 1 What we believe in our innermost being will determine our spiritual future. Our understanding of the nature and character of God determines how we respond to Him.

We are living in an age of emasculation. The need for strong but tender, loving fathers is often neglected as we live in an age of irresponsibility and self-fulfillment. What is true of biological fathers is equally true for spiritual fathers. One of the most profound discoveries I came to as a young pastor was that ’a pastor is a spiritual father.’ However, spiritual fathering is not reserved for church leaders. Still, the need for men of God to take on the responsibility to serve others in the church in a loving, nurturing, encouraging and instructive role has never been greater. One of the texts that validates this concept is found in 1 Corinthians 4, where the apostle Paul explains this very idea. 1 Corinthians 4:14-16: "I am writing this not to shame you but to warn you as my dear children. Even if you had ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers through the gospel. Therefore I urge you to imitate me." In the earlier part of the chapter, Paul describes the nature of his ministry among the people. He describes ministers as ‘servants of Christ,’ but the usual word for servant, diakonos, is not used here, but hyperetes originally meant those who were an under rower in a large ship. Leon Morris relates: “From this, it came to signify service in general, though generally service of a lowly kind (subordinate), and subject to direction.” However, he clarifies that they were entrusted with the mysteries God has revealed. The word entrusted is translated from the Greek term oikonomoi, which was the person “who supervised a large estate (administrator or manager). Unless he was to be a slave to his slaves, a rich landowner had to find someone to do the routine work of running the estate. ...He held a responsible position; he was set over others and directed the day-to-day affairs. ...Then in relation to the master, he was a slave, but in relation to the slaves, he was a master.” Paul was saying to the Corinthians that these spiritual leaders or fathers were before God, subject to the direction of the Lord and entrusted with the gospel’s message. In relationship to the church, they were to oversee or manage the church, serve the people and were ultimately responsible to God. At the conclusion of the chapter, we find Paul making an appeal and issuing a warning. In these two approaches to the issues that the church in Corinth was facing, we learn about the nature of being a spiritual father. There are certain things we learn from Paul, the spiritual father.

Within the pages of the Bible, we discover that Christians are the wealthiest people on this planet. I’m not speaking of material wealth, but instead of the great blessings, money cannot buy. Things like a clean conscience, a pure heart, peace of mind, healthy and loving relationships, and the guarantee of a Father’s love and care. Our relationship with God is the key to appropriating or receiving these riches. It believes that what God says is true and that acting upon those promises is the greater reality of our lives than what our feelings dictate to us, but it all begins in prayer. How can we be transformed? How can we experience the richness of life that Jesus Christ promised us? In writing to the Ephesians, Paul focuses on our spiritual riches. In Ephesians chapter one, we discover what it means to be a Christian and learn about our spiritual identity. It is one thing to hear about what we possess but another to experience its reality in our lives. How can we share the blessings that God has for us? How do they come to us? It begins by asking. As we move away from that incredible sentence found in the first chapter, we conclude the chapter with the apostle Paul praying for the believers. As we begin to commune with God in prayer, much of what God has promised becomes ours. Our problem so often is that we struggle with prayer. We struggle with how we ought to pray and what we ought to pray for. Here in the conclusion of chapter one, we find one of the most powerful prayers in the Bible. Paul begins by giving us his reasons for why he prayed the way he did, and as we shall discover, the apostle Paul shows us how to go about praying for God’s riches to be our portion.

What’s true about us individually is also magnified collectively. We can bemoan the moral direction of our society. We can cringe as we see national calamities affected by sinful values. But what is the answer to the effects of moral deterioration upon a nation? God begins by addressing each of us as individuals. We want transformation to happen apart from God bringing about real change within each human heart. We are looking for major collective changes, while God is looking at changing individual lives, which ultimately brings about collective change. What I’m saying is that the answer is found in each of our lives being personally addressed by God. The problem ultimately is not ‘out there,’ but ‘in here,’ our innermost being that needs transformation.

Shattered dreams are difficult to handle. One of the founding members of our church family came to faith in Christ through a very painful experience. She and her husband had just finished building their dream home when he arose from breakfast one morning to tell her that he was leaving her for someone else. She was so traumatized that she fell apart emotionally and became for a season hospitalized. It was there that a fellow patient challenged her to live life again, and she eventually found hope in learning to trust Christ. Tragedy and loss come in many faces: it can be an overwhelming health issue or a relational one like I just shared. It could be huge financial reversals or losing a loved one to death. When tragedy strikes, life can so quickly lose its lustre and meaning. We can struggle with the desire to move forward because life as we know it will never be the same. One of the great sermons of all time was preached by a Scottish minister named Arthur Gossip, who, the Sunday following the sudden and unexpected death of his beloved wife, entitled his message, ‘When Life Tumbles In, what then? It’s a question that we all need to answer in our hour of trial and tragedy. As we prepare our hearts during this Easter season, I want us to look at an event that triggered what was about to happen to Jesus, his own death and ultimately, his resurrection. The hour of the greatest victory was preceded by one of the most tragic moments, the cross.

God wants to change how many of us see money and possessions. Rather than allow them to possess us, which usually entraps us into debt, God wants to free us from that stronghold and learn to use what He blesses us in more significant ways. How we use what God has given us reveals much about who we are. Do we see our resources as a tool to help others? One of the more significant paradigm shifts comes when we see ourselves as God’s managers, rather than thinking that we somehow possess what God has blessed us with. It is seeing ourselves as a steward and accountable to God for every area of our life.

Where does hope come from? The short answer is God, but why do we so often settle for gloom and doom? Why can’t we get past the quagmire of distress and despair? For a vast amount of time, the history of Israel and Judah was threatened or subjugated by foreign kingdoms and empires. The issue for them, as it is for us in the current situation we find ourselves in, is where we place our trust. Where is the place of absolute security? In Isaiah 8, we discover that Isaiah and his children’s names are signs to the nation of God’s faithfulness in delivering His people from the threats around them. Even as the nation of Judah was trying to overcome threats to their lives, they needed to discover that God was their only real hope and refuge. What was true for them is equally true for us. We must find our strength and hope in him. It is in this context some amazing verses that speak to us of the Christmas story. Possibly the most notable verse speaking of what transpired that first Christmas is Isaiah 7:14: “Therefore the LORD himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.” We know that Immanuel means, ‘God with us,’ as Matthew tells us in Matthew 1:23. We need that assurance that God is with us in every life crisis. Isaiah continues in chapter 8, where the nation is once again being threatened by outside forces, which in turn causes internal polarization. Isaiah then speaks words of reassurance that God is with us: “Raise the war cry, you nations, and be shattered! Listen, all you distant lands. Prepare for battle, and be shattered! Prepare for battle, and be shattered! Devise your strategy, but it will be thwarted; propose your plan, but it will not stand, for God is with us.” (Isaiah 8:9-10) What is Isaiah saying? When people rise up against God’s people, not as an instrument of God’s correction, but as a strategy to destroy God’s people, their plans will fail. God is with His people. God will protect and help us. It was critical for them as it is for us to live in this quiet confidence and hope and not allow what we see happening around us to terrify and imagine the worse.

Trials, tests, crises, disappointments, heartbreak, rejection, and various other sorrows that invade our lives often cause us to ask questions. If God is so loving and good, why this loss, this pain, and struggle in my life? The atheist will answer cynically; it is because there is no God. But the Christmas story is part of God’s answer to our question. There is another way to deal with ‘the human condition.’ We can discover that God is sufficient for us in life’s darkest moments. There are amazing things that God can and wants to reveal to us in those moments. We can encapsulate the message with a word that comes from the book of Isaiah. God experiences the pain with us and then moves to bring redemption to our situation. “In all their distress, he too was distressed, and the angel of his presence saved them. In his love and mercy, he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old (Isaiah 63:9).”

We are all born into a family, or else by God’s grace, and we have been chosen through adoption. What is true in the natural realm is equally true in the spiritual. We are born again and adopted into God’s forever family, which is called the church. It is our eternal family. The church is more than an organization; it is a living organism. It is relational in nature, more like an extended family. Like all relationships, there are moments when they are threatened. How do we respond? What are some of the aspects of creating healthy relationships, families and communities of faith? We know that the enemy of our soul is always trying to stir up discord. Strife, division, bitterness and unforgiveness leave casualties. So what then makes for healthy relationships? Families? And Churches?

Do we understand God’s purpose for us as a people? Are we committed to God’s plan for our lives, or has the business of life caused us to become caught up with the rat race? Do we have a purpose that reflects something beyond ourselves and our families? C. S. Lewis once wrote: “The glory of God, and, as our only means to glorifying Him, the salvation of human souls, is the real business of life.” One of the most powerful truths in Scripture and a general principle of life is simple; life produces life. There is something about life that reproduces. We are meant to reproduce. Now I realize that there are exceptions to this principle, but this is a principle that God instituted right from the very beginning of creation. Mankind was designed to reproduce. “God blessed them and said to them, Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground (Genesis 1:28). After the great flood, which was a judgment on man’s failure to obey God’s directives and live life solely for themselves, we read how God reissues the same command to Noah and his family, as He did to Adam and Eve at the very beginning of human history. Notice how God didn’t change His agenda (cf. Genesis 9:1-2).” 1. Humanity was to reproduce his own kind. 2. God gives us authority and dominion over the rest of creation for us to succeed at what He has asked us to do. With authority and privilege comes responsibility. When God issues a command, He gives us the power and the ability to carry it out.

Where are we headed? Where is our world going? What is God really doing? There are so many cries of warning today, from so many different quarters: from the economy to the ecology. After a while, we can turn a deaf ear. We feel that everything will somehow remain the same. Yet just a perusal of history would warn against that kind of ostrich, “bury your head in the sand” mentality. In Peter’s final letter, we discover what he was concerned about the welfare of people remaining behind facing some very real challenges. In the last chapter, of 2 Peter, Peter states his purpose in writing the letter. He addresses our thinking. He was concerned that we would be stimulated to wholesome thinking, which he knew would produce wholesome living.

In the first century, the church lived with an incredible expectation of Christ's return. Two thousand years later, Jesus hasn’t arrived yet. Many questions! Some have challenged the premise of His return. Yet others have called ours ‘the terminal generation.’ There is no question in most people’s minds that we are racing towards new frontiers. The Scriptures propose that we are racing towards a new world order. One where God will reign supreme in every heart, where judgment for sin will transpire. Where every injustice will be addressed. Where there will be a new heaven and a new earth. We are on the brink of Christ's return. We are drawing closer to that day. There are only two responses to the truth of Christ's return.

This week’s message is a continuation of what we had looked at last week; the introduction of Peter’s second letter. I introduced the idea of learning how to stand when everything around us is crumbling. One of the problems that we encounter in the Christian life is the balance between what God does and what we are responsible for. In other words, how are we to respond to what God does for us. There are two wrong approaches: one is passivity where we leave everything up to God. The other side of the equation is that we act as if everything depends upon ourselves for outcomes. Peter was guilty of trusting in his own ability to stand, and the result was failure and a fall. However, what is more important is that Peter learned how to stand. After being restored, Peter could look back and see how things went wrong in his life. He now points out 2 Peter 1:10 “...For if you do these things, you will never fall...” The question that arises is simply: what things?

What often trips us up in life’s most challenging moments is not the problems but a wrong perspective of the situation and our own inability to handle things. If anyone understood this as a close follower of Jesus, it was Peter. In his second letter, Peter conveys something critical for our spiritual growth and development for us to stand regardless of what is happening to us and around us. Are there measures to strengthen ourselves for and while we are in life’s great tests? What can we do to be humbling trusting God, so that we remain standing in life’s greatest storms?

So, what will keep us from falling? Some of us may be in a major spiritual battle at this moment. The battle for our soul is intense. Peter is going to guide us so that we prevail in that battle. Peter knows how critical our thought life really is, as what we believe and experience will shape how we respond to what is before us. It will affect how we ultimately will act.

There is no crown without a cross! Humility is the means to exaltation. It is a recognition that apart from God’s grace and a dependence upon Him, we will not run the race of life successfully. Yet, went we embrace God’s path there are significant obstacles that must be overcome. Great trials and challenges attend the path of the follower of Christ. John Bunyan’s, incredible allegory, ‘Pilgrim’s Progress,’ reveals so many of the challenges on the way to heaven, which he calls, the ‘Celestial city’. We are shocked by some of the hardships that come our way as Christ followers. We may even question that if God is so good, why does He allow us, whom He loves so deeply, to undergo suffering? That’s a question that haunts so many people in the dark night of the soul, the hour of trial. If we study Scripture carefully, we will discover two words that seem incongruent and yet are always together: glory and suffering. Here in Peter’s letter, we find it repeated several times. Peter is writing to believers that are suffering injustice and persecution, writes to encourage, comfort, and explain that there is a purpose even in their sufferings. He begins by shattering the myth that we will never suffer. He is trying to prepare the reader that they should not be surprised, neither consider it strange, nor be ashamed, when we experience suffering.

Do you believe that we are living in the End times? Whenever I ask that question to Christians, most of them state unequivocally, absolutely. What they mean is that this world is coming to an end as we know it. A new world order is about to come upon us from beyond this earthly planet—a cosmic invasion. God returning to complete the work of redemption, which will now include our very planet. This supports what the New Testament explains. That since the death and resurrection of Jesus, we have been living in the last days. The early church lived with a heightened expectation that Jesus was due to arrive back on the planet at any moment. There was a sense of urgency to fulfill the mission that Jesus had commissioned the church to accomplish. It was a significant mission with incredible challenges but not without amazing authority and support from Jesus, Himself. He said that He would be with us on that mission, helping us to accomplish our part of it. However, one of the challenges for many believers today is that we have lost a sense of urgency and expectation that believers gain when we are walking close to Jesus. Though living in this world, we must ever be mindful that we don’t embrace the values of our world.

If there is one critical element in learning to enjoy life, it can get along with people. Yet, we discover sooner or later that there are no problems quite like people problems. So, if we are going to enjoy healthier and more enjoyable lives, we need to learn how to live in harmony with others. In our text from 1 Peter, we’ll discover how to achieve harmony, restore broken relationships, and thrive even when attacked.

We are living in a day in which people don’t know how to work out their differences. This is especially true in their most meaningful relationships. We will be learning from 1 Peter how to operate within the context of their culture and apply those truths to ours in dealing with seemly impossible situations we are faced with in our marriage, family and close interpersonal relationships.

Scaling Mount Everest is a major accomplishment, and it takes much preparation and the need for experienced guides to take you through to the top. It is a perilous and difficult enterprise. The Bible explains that Jesus is our guide as a believer over the mountain called life, particularly that place on the ascent where we encounter injustice. Jesus leads us on the same path that he earlier travelled. If we follow him on that path, we will address the personal injustices that we will encounter in this life. We are living in a world filled with injustices. The question is often why are we suffering these injustices rather than asking how we can endure and grow through the seasons of injustice? Are we suffering because of something we have done wrong? Or are we suffering because of something we have done right? How can Peter’s first-century context become applicable to us today?

Spiritual speaking, we swim with the sharks every day as believers. We are living in an environment that is foreign and dangerous to living a victorious Christian life. In the first century, Christians were accused of all kinds of terrible things. People who march to a different drumbeat than the rest of the culture will be held in suspicion, which was certainly true of the early beginnings of Christianity. We find ourselves living in a world that is growing more overtly hostile to Christians. As my title suggests then, how do we swim with the sharks? How can we live a life that will help destroy the image that being a follower of Jesus is an evil thing? Especially when the institutional church has often failed, sinned and abused people? How can we live a holy life in an unholy world, dealing with misconceptions and accusations that are not always justified? How should we live now that we are God’s beloved people and function in an environment that is hostile to living a holy life?

What does it mean to live like a ‘Rock Star.’ Popular culture means idolizing fans, fame, fortune and many other things in life that may not be appropriate. Yet, God has his ‘Rock Stars.’ He calls them ‘living stones,’ as they are a part of the place where He lives. The holiest place in ancient Israel was the temple. It was the place where God lived. Yet, something powerful happened when Jesus came on the scene; he changed the parameters of where the holy place was. It no longer became a physical earthly building, but that holy place was within the hearts of those who trust Christ as Lord and Savior. We will be examining Peter’s analogy from 1 Peter 2:4-10 and discover a great truth, and it’s the application being given to us.

Leonardo Da Vinci said: “that a life without love is no life at all.” Often in trials, feelings of abandonment can overwhelm a person. Believers are tempted to gradually turn away from God and allow their minds to be closed toward Him, possibly blaming God for not caring. Isaiah was called by God to speak words of comfort to the people of God, who found themselves in exile. They needed to be reassured that God had not forgotten them and that they would be restored. This theme that Peter now applies to these first-century believers who may feel that they have been forsaken by God. They need a word of reassurance, comfort and grace. Peter will remind them that God’s promises are eternal and will endure despite the trials they are now facing. Here in 1 Peter 1:22-2:3, we have a movement away from a word to the specific individual’s calling to live a holy or wholesome life toward how each of us should relate to each other in the community of faith. In other words, we are directed for the moment away from our focus on our personal responsibility toward God and to see how our calling impacts the people around us, particularly fellow believers.

In the apostle Peter’s first letter, he instructs us on what we ought to be and do because of our relationship with God. Out of this message of love called grace, Peter challenges us to live a holy life. But what does it mean to be holy? Or maybe an even more important question needs to be answered, “how can I be holy when I’m living in an unholy world? We need to consider some things regarding one of the most misunderstood concepts in the Scriptures: holiness.

Simon Peter understood the grace of God because of how powerfully he himself had experienced it. Peter could easily recall his bravado, the night in which Jesus was betrayed and his own denial and absolute failure. Years later, Peter is far wiser and humbler can encourage and strengthen those walking in life’s most challenging moments. How do we handle the challenges and consequences of our own sinful choices? How do we handle those things that happen in our life that we have no control over? Disease or tragic accidents that leave us forever changed? How do we handle life’s disappointments, injustices, and persecutions? Or dealing with false accusations that cost you a job? Or worse, the loss of a significant relationship? For many living today, the issue is living in this hour where anxiety rests just below the surface. We are living in a restricted time, with minimal human contact and support? How can we re-discover joy in life’s most painful moments? These are all elements that Peter is writing to address. He desires to encourage, strengthen, comfort, and instruct fellow believers walking through some very challenging moments in their lives. Let’s pray that people come to genuine faith in Christ and are strengthened and encouraged through this challenging time in all of our lives.

As we look after the book of Proverbs, four general qualities emerge, describing the nature of wisdom as the godly woman. The literary genre here is a heroic poem and what is characteristic of ancient heroic poems is that it is poetry in action. The Hebrew word for wisdom is in the feminine tense, and therefore throughout the book, we understand that wisdom is a woman, and the choice that is being given is the type of woman the son is going to embrace. On the one hand, we have the seduction of the strange woman who had enticed the foolish, experience consequences that are dire. Whereas the invitation of the wise woman or wife brings honour, riches and life. In these descriptions in the closing chapter of the book, we learn of some of the important qualities of a godly woman and the nature of God’s wisdom. The value of wisdom or the godly wife is critical in the blessing that she brings to those who embrace her.

Occasionally, the Scriptures pull back the curtain for us to gain some insight into that invisible world and its impact on our lives. Daniel 10 brings us behind the scenes to understand the spiritual entities that are at war with God’s purposes for our world. What we discover is a great spiritual battle occurring in the heavenly realms. Most people may feel like they are pawns in the great chess match, but the reality is that God is working out His purposes, and we as His people are a part of that cosmic plan. Tremper Longman reminds us that “The Bible as a whole calls us to a life of a warrior in a world of conflict.”

Historically, after times of incredible evil, people often go back to life as if nothing ever happened. I’m sure for many Jewish people living during, and after Christ's resurrection, life continued with little or no change. In other words, these events were quickly dismissed, and nothing was learned from them. If we were to travel back to the crucifixion event, it was a defining moment that changed everything for the disciples, not just in the theological understanding, of sins being forgiven through Christ's sacrificial and substitutionary death, but that it was in the early disciples lives a moment of confusion and devastation. It seemed so unexpected, but it would ultimately change the trajectory of their entire futures. What is true of them is also true of us. The crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus is a life-transforming experience for people even today. We could also say that other events in people’s lives are life-transforming; the loss of a spouse, the death of a child, a life-changing accident, wars, famines, and pestilence can be added to that list of changing our future trajectory or direction in life. What then happens after Covid for us? What are the life lessons that God is trying to teach us during this time and event in our lives? How will we move forward considering this event? What can we learn from the disciples in their experiences of despair, confusion, joy, and then the implications of Jesus’ resurrection that can be applied to our lives today?

What makes God weep? When peace is offered and is rejected! What can we then expect? What happens when humanity conspires against God? In light of an ever-changing world where human freedoms are being diminished, where is our only hope for true freedom?

We live in a day where many believe that how one lives is not considered critical in their ability to be an effective leader. However, that has not always been the thinking in the past, and certainly not in the thinking of the wisdom literature. A person’s moral life has a huge impact on how they will govern others. It was Harry Ironside that related: “Harry Ironside rightly points out: “He who would rule well over a nation must first be master of himself.” We will be exploring some of the pitfalls and dangers that people should avoid in their lives to be effective parents, employers, and religious and political leaders and what the primary focus should be.

The great value of the past is that we can learn from it. One of the reasons that the bible is so valuable is that we are learning how God has related to humanity over the course of thousands of years. Though the context of life may appear different, God has not changed, and the reality is that as human beings, we are still struggling with the same issues. We are living in a day where there is an absence of respect and honour toward others. Suspicion, criticism, fault finding, and anger are the order of the day. Yet, as we tour the New Testament, we find totally different ethics reflected by Jesus and his followers and their instruction to genuine believers. These are some of the ‘sinful desires that wage war against our soul’ (cf. 1 Pet. 2:11). How do we see others? How do we respond to those we disagree with? Or those who criticize and attack us? What does it mean to be a non-conformist? How do we live a transformed life in a morally perverse world? What does it mean to submit to God, others, and even those who are in various realms of authority over our lives?

It was C. S. Lewis who wrote: “Evil comes from the abuse of free will.” There is a moral order and when we violate that order by our human rebellion, it creates chaos, confusion and calamity. With so much perversity and evil in our world and found even within our own souls, how can we move forward? Where is the right path to restoration and order? What truly ought to be the proper approach to living life? In Proverbs, we find this path in the knowledge of God and his ways, which is the right path for life. This is called wisdom. So, how can we secure it and continue to walk in it? What are some of the things we should consider and observe?

Have you ever considered what it was like to be cooped up in the ark for a year, after 40 days of rain? Can you imagine the work of feeding the animals and yes, and cleaning their stalls? Or what it was like to be stuck in slavery in Egypt with a promise of a deliverer and a return to Canaan land, but a generation passes with no one showing up? Or consider the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness before possessing the promised land? The sheer challenges, disappointments and frustrations would impact the best of us. After a while weariness sets in. We are currently living in a time of testing. We all are experiencing a restricted lifestyle, with a longing for an end to come and a return to some sense of normalcy. I sense an increasing weariness in people. The temptation is to complain, fight, or faint? Is there a place where we can recharge our souls and find renewed strength in such a time as this? This Sunday we’ll discover how.

One of the core issues that not only affect each of us individually but also affects how we live together as families and within communities is the issue of personal self-control, as well as the need to utilize discipline in instructing those we are responsible for. Those who refuse to listen to correction will ultimately be brought down. The wicked want to live unrestrained lives, but the consequences of allowing people to cast off all restraints is that the ultimate impact is greater complexity in life, more entanglements and ultimately a destructive outcome for individuals, families, and communities.

Some people say that people are willing to do things that they might not otherwise consider for a certain price. Some people in desperate times would do terrible things for very little. Here in Proverbs 28, we will examine three areas that reveal a distinct difference between the wise/righteous person and the foolish/wicked person.

Wisdom addresses every sphere of our lives, including the workplace. Who are the people who ultimately succeed in their work? People who diligently do their work and understand what is happening in the context of their work environment. Another critical element is the ability to manage or understand people.

In the conclusion of Proverbs 27, we find a few verses that address how to be successful in our work environment and the management of our finances which are critical to living life well. In this agrarian backdrop are lessons to be applied in our contemporary context. There are three things we need to be aware of in a constantly changing world as it pertains to our work and life.

One of the greatest gifts in life is friendship, but what does it mean to be a friend? What does it require to have healthy relationships? What are some of the challenges in friendship? What kinds of behaviours diminish relationships with others? These are the kinds of dynamics we will be exploring from Proverbs 27.

Wisdom is the skill of healthy social interactions. It is also the ability to discern where people are coming from and how to respond wisely (with restraint). This message will be addressing three primary groups: fools, sluggards and mischief-makers (which includes busybodies, reckless speakers, gossips, deceivers (liars).

When we don’t walk in wisdom we can cause a lot of interpersonal relational damage.

In wisdom literature, we have some powerful insights into the value of determining what and who is influencing our lives. This is particularly critical in the realm of leadership, as leaders make decisions that impact the lives of those they lead. In Proverbs 25, we find a number of proverbs dealing with the issue of leadership and those who follow. Here we find a number of elements that shape and influence human behaviour. I’ve grouped them into three key areas of human dynamics influencing human relationships.

People worldwide are watching with deep interest what will happen next Tuesday, during the U.S. federal election. Our exposure to the U.S., primarily through the various American outlets accessible by Canadians, has deeply influenced our own culture in subtle and not so subtle ways. Many in the U. S. are holding their collective breath as they wonder how people will respond to the outcome of this election. How do we respond in life when things don’t go the way we want them to? Do we fret? Stew? Vent? Are filled with anger? Despair? What does the wisdom literature have to say to us regarding our involvement with the political process, especially when there are so many divisive issues? Meanwhile, in Canada, laws are silently passing that will have significant future ramifications to our ‘religious liberties.’

What are we giving our energies to? What is it that we really desire in this life? Here in the wisdom literature, we are reminded of those things that either build us and others up or tear our lives apart. We need discernment to make wise choices with the investment of our lives. Here in Proverbs 23, we find a group of Proverbs entitled 30 wise sayings. We will see that in living wisely, there are some things we ought to discipline our lives to walk in freedom. There are things we need to restrain ourselves from while others we need to embrace. Whatever we give our life to will determine the kind of life we will live. There are two aspects of wisdom living that we need to develop.

"Are you really listening?" We are moving into a new subsection called ‘Thirty Sayings of the Wise.’ Tomorrow we’ll be looking at the first six. The prologue challenges us to internalize God’s instructions to help guide us in our life decisions. What follows is many exhortations that urge strong moral courses of action. We will be highlighting three things we ought to avoid and two we need to embrace. We should not exploit the weak nor build relationships with hot-tempered people. The final thing we should avoid is making rash financial promises. What we need to embrace is to value what is sacred from the past and develop our skill sets to move forward in our lives. This will enhance our confidence and trust in God. Join us tomorrow at 9:30 am, 11:15 am or 6:00 pm to hear Pastor Paul's message, "Are you really listening?"

The wisdom writers in Proverbs are challenging us to examine our values and embrace those that help us grow into the kind of people that reflect the nature of God. One of the great challenges is when we compromise who we are for the sake of earthly fame and fortune. Who we become as followers of Christ is more important than what we acquire. Here in the first sixteen verses of Proverbs 22, we see this issue being addressed. There are instructions regarding our attitude on riches, relationships, and the ultimate reward for the way we live.

The drama of history is played out along the frontiers of great belief systems as they ebb and flow. …The conflict of our day is theism versus naturalism. Theism is the belief that there is a transcendent [personal] God who created the universe; naturalism is the belief that natural causes alone are sufficient to explain everything that exists. …Is ultimate reality God or the cosmos? Is there a supernatural realm, or is nature all that exists? Has God spoken and revealed his truth to us, or is the truth something we have to find, even invent, for ourselves? Is there a purpose to our lives, or are we cosmic accidents emerging from the slime?

The way we live determines what people will ultimately say about us. Jesus talked about two roads, one narrow which a minority are walking on, the other a very broad road leading to destruction. In Proverbs 21, we will be evaluating the characteristics and nature and outcomes of those who walk on one path versus the other.

What does a person of wisdom look like? What characterizes them? People who walk in wisdom know both what to avoid and what to embrace. For example, wise people avoid addictions, alienating those in authority, creating strife and listening to gossip. So, what are the things we ought to embrace? Wisdom is diligence, concern about others, faithful, leading blameless and honest lives. What they communicate is invaluable; they address issues of evil first in themselves and then in others. They also realize their own limitations and know when to seek the advice of others in making major decisions. These all express the nature or characteristics of biblical wisdom.

Wisdom helps fashion the kind of person we will become. A person of integrity is integrated, whole and healthy. This inner development of personhood affects our relationships with others and how we see our world. What we desire is also a reflection of what is within our hearts. Wisdom develops certain values that help shape our lives. Here we see in Proverbs the constant contrast between the wise and foolish person in a relationship to money, openness to correction, accepting responsibility for their own actions and what is truly motivating their lives.

The power of our words is such that it can bring harmony or strife. Words can help build up people, families and communities, or they can tear them down. It’s amazing how much Proverbs has to say about speech. Last year, I wrote a master’s thesis on this issue of communication from the book of Proverbs. Out of the 886 verses found in Proverbs, there are an estimated 246 verses that address the issue of speech, speaking, listening or acting upon what has been communicated, which makes up over 27% of all proverbs. That gives us an indication that communication is central to human relationships.

We were all shocked this week by the brutal and tragic death of one of our city’s physicians while serving at the clinic where he worked. How are people responding? Shock, fear, anger, sorrow, and grief fill hearts over this tragic episode. Some are showing their support by financial gifts for the two young daughters left fatherless. We question how this can happen in our world. It shatters our sense of security. It also reminds us how fragile and transitory life is. It calls us to focus on what is important: the people around us. Yet, that’s part of the human dilemma; we often struggle in our relationships with others. Proverbs gives us some important keys to helping us have healthy relationships.

What is the right attitude about our civil leaders? Many people today question the competencies of governments today. How does that affect our compliance with what is being asked of us? What happens when we disagree? Where is God in the equation? Proverbs 16 speaks to the issue of God’s Sovereignty and human responsibility related to this issue of authority.

What we say either enhances or diminishes our relationships with our family members, co-workers, neighbours, classmates, and friends. What does the ancient wisdom literature teach us regarding having healthy communications with those around us? Paul Koptak points out the challenges of living with others. “Social interaction and business dealings always have an element of conflict and difference of opinion, but conflict can be aggravated, or it can be calmed, depending on how one answers. The wise person knows how to get at the matters of concern and work toward solutions so that all parties involved are reasonably satisfied.”

What fuels the life of a disciplined or wise person? What are the outcomes or rewards as well as the legacy of that kind of life? Paul Koptak reminds us: “These Proverbs [chapter 13] charge us to examine our desires, not only because they direct our lives [the fuel the embraces discipline] but also because they will be fulfilled. If our deepest desire is to live wisely, we will have it, and if we wish to live in what the wise call folly, we will have that as well.”- Paul Koptak, Proverbs, NIV Application Commentary, (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2003), 366. These rewards or outcomes of living wisely, receiving instruction and correction, which is what biblical wisdom is about, or foolishly, not only shape our destiny but become the legacy we pass on to others.

A truthful life is about speaking truthfully and honestly. Why is lying such a problem? It is one of the characteristics of a heart condition that is both self-deceived and, as a result, communicates that deception to others. Jesus came to bear witness of the truth. Satan is the Father of lies. In the book of Revelation, we find that ‘all liars’ are found in the lake of fire. What is scary is that some people are deceived into believing a lie. The apostle Paul explains the reason for this as “they refuse to love the truth (cf. 2 Thess. 2:9-11).’ Lies, when exposed, destroy relationships, but truth has an enduring and, ultimately, a healing aspect to it.

There are basically two responses to crisis, one of which is fear that leads to hoarding because of the uncertainty that lies ahead. Some people are behaving selfishly, driven by fear and uncertainty. On the other hand, some people live generously because they have confidence, hope and faith in a God who holds all of our tomorrows. Generous people reflect the heart of the most generous person of all, namely God. What we are about to discover is that generosity does not diminish us; rather, it enriches us, as well as those we bless.

One of the great mistakes in life is to assume that our sin will go unnoticed, unheeded or unpunished. It may seem both individually and as a culture that how we live may not have immediate ramifications, but there are ultimate consequences for sin. Sin separates us from God. It not only impacts our life but the lives of others in negative ways. Sin always diminishes us.

Proverbs tells us that we are to guard our hearts, for out of the heart come the issue or essence of life. In the conclusion of the narrative section of Proverbs, the two ways of life contend for our hearts. If we are wise, we listen to Wisdom’s instruction and correction that leads to life. If we are unwise, we reject Wisdom’s counsel and find ourselves with a hardened heart, a mocking attitude, with devastating consequences in our lives. In a world that advertises so many options and choices, the reality is that there are only two paths in life, one leading to a life of insight and understanding while the other leads to a frustrating, cynical and critical approach to life. We are left with the choice of which path we will choose.

One of the great problems of the church has been to try and suppress desire, but as we’ll see, it is a part of the human equation. It is something God gave us: a longing to be satisfied. The problem is that we often try to satisfy that longing with the wrong objectives. So what we are about to discover is how to find satisfaction within the deepest longings of our hearts.

The life of Wisdom is a prudent life. Prudence means we learn to exercise sound judgment in practical matters. One of the subtle temptations is that we become so ‘heavenly-minded we are no earthly good.’ Proverbs 6 teaches us that heavenly-minded people are practical. Proverbs 6 deals with such issues as financial debt, work and the kinds of people we surround ourselves with. It’s never too late to begin to develop prudence in our lives.

We are going to look at a condition so rare that it not only creates happiness in our lives but deeply impacts the lives of others. So what moves people from the sidelines to the playing field in their service of King Jesus? A renewed vision of God and a proper understanding of who we truly are will strip away all earthly pretense. Attitude determines behaviour. What we are is demonstrated by what we do. This is the beauty of the Christian life--that God works from the inside out.

We will be continuing our series from the book of Proverbs. What kind of intensity should we be pursuing wisdom? Proverbs describes it as a singular passion. Those who find wisdom are rewarded beyond their expectation with knowing God and experiencing blessings while also learning what to avoid particularly when it comes to unhealthy relationships. So many pitfalls can be avoided when we discover wisdom’s path.

The desire to fit in and belong is a very natural human trait. God designs us to relate socially to others, to be in the community. Here in Proverbs, we see the temptation is framed in a call to join the community. A legitimate human need is being appealed to and demands fulfillment. But the problem is that God has a way and means to fulfill legitimate human needs within healthy and proper boundaries. It must never come at the expense of disobedience to God’s word, which ultimately brings death. Why is the call of the crowd so seductive? We often take our cues of who we are, in other words, our sense of identity and value, based on how others relate to us. Therefore, it’s critical who we choose to join up with.