12.22.09
Posted in Uncategorized at 3:56 pm by Pastor Josh
Three days until Christmas, and most of us are busier than ever. We are being carried along by schedules and expectations and it’s quite easy to become overwhelmed by all that is going on. In those hectic moments brought on by Christmas or just life itself, we find ourselves longing for a little bit of peace. Just a moment, just a brief respite from the daily stress that plagues us all.
The longing for peace is not exclusive to those needing a break, either. In fact, the topic of peace is talked about a great deal in our day and age by those in all walks of life, especially this time of year. We often hear of political figures discussing or desiring peace. All over the world, we can find people looking for peace. The great question is this: can we really have peace? The Biblical answer is yes, but some would be surprised to find that the means to peace is not diplomacy, education, treaties or politics. True peace is a gift from God and can only come from Him.
In Luke 2:14 we find the message of the angels to the shepherds, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.” This statement was not God’s wish that man would have or find peace. It was His declaration that His peace was now present on earth among men. Because of Christ, Peace was now come. Peace was there and peace is here. The real question from a biblical perspective is not about how to find or obtain peace, but rather how to experience the peace God has given.
We often focus on peace as an absence of conflict, but biblical peace focuses on a condition of the heart. Biblical peace is an inner state of tranquility or stillness brought on by harmony between God and man. Before we can experience peace in our lives, we must be at peace with God. The only way one can be at peace with God is through faith in Jesus Christ. If we have trusted in Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and if we have accepted what Christ did for us on the cross, we can have peace. It is promised to us in Romans 5:1: “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” It is a present possession. The enmity is wiped out. The judgment is gone. We are at peace with God because of Christ and what He has done for us.
After we are at peace with God, there is the real potential for the experience of peace in every area of our lives. Jesus said in John 14:27 that He was leaving His peace with His followers. Paul says in Galatians 5:22 that peace is a fruit of the Spirit. According to the Bible, peace is definitely possible. The way to experience this peace is clearly spelled out for us in Scripture.
First, we find that we must rely completely on God and trust Him with all of our heart. Isaiah 26:3 promises: “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.” When we find that we are without peace, it is always traceable to some point that we ceased fully trusting God and began relying on ourselves. To have peace, we must rest in God and trust fully in Him.
Secondly, we must pray. In Philippians 4:6-7 we read: “Be anxious for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” In every circumstance, in everything, we must pray. When we do, God has promised that His peace will keep our hearts and minds.
Lastly, we see that we must submit to His peace. Colossians 3:15 says, “And let the peace of God rule in your hearts.” This is a plain exhortation that applies to all of us. We must let God’s peace rule in us. God wants you and I to have rest of heart. He wants us to experience that which we naturally long for. Everyone who is willing to trust God and have peace with God through Jesus Christ can also have the peace of God if they will simply receive it.
As Christmas overtakes us in just a few days, I would encourage everyone to simply give up your control and let God’s peace rule in your heart. If you do, you will have the most peaceful and rich Christmas ever, regardless of what might be going on around you. Merry Peaceful Christmas!
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11.03.09
Posted in Uncategorized at 7:13 pm by Pastor Josh
I recently began preaching through the Minor Prophets in the Sunday morning service and this week we begin Jonah. Jonah is a unique book because it doesn’t primarily deal with the prophecies of Jonah, but with a story of his call to Nineveh and response to that call. Jonah is also unique for another and more familiar reason: he was the only recorded prophet to attempt running from God. For some reason as I was working today, it was this familiar fact to which God kept drawing my attention.
Later, my personal Bible study was from I Samuel 26 and 27. Chapter 26 is about David refusing to do harm to Saul and at the end of the chapter they go their separate ways. The thing that really caught my attention was the beginning of chapter 27. David says, “…I shall perish one day by the hand of Saul. There is nothing better for me than that I should escape to the land of the Philistines.” I had never really thought of this before, but David had a great personal victory, but was overcome by fear and ran away. We might look at David, the mighty soldier and spiritual giant, and be shocked by this fact, but he was not alone. Throughout the Bible we see instances of great men running away. Moses ran away from Pharaoh after he killed an Egyptian soldier. Elijah ran away from Jezebel. The disciples ran away from the Garden of Gethsemane and abandoned their Lord. All of these great men had this in common: they gave into their fear and they ran away.
As we relate these stories back to Jonah, we probably notice that there seems to be one major difference. These men were running from circumstances and Jonah deliberately runs away from God and His plan. However, as I looked more closely, I realized that these things are one in the same. In Jonah 4:2 we find Jonah’s reason for running away. He tells God that he ran because he didn’t want God to forgive Nineveh and forestall their punishment. This tells me that Jonah was also afraid. He was afraid that God’s plan would supersede his own desires. Although saying this sounds much worse, it is really no different then those other men who ran because of fear. When we are afraid, it really boils down to a fear that we aren’t going to like God’s plan for us. James 1 tells us that sometimes God plans difficult times so that we can grow in our faith. When we become afraid of these times and run away from them we are acting just like Jonah. We are rejecting God’s plan for us and embracing our own.
Unfortunately, this behavior is natural and the tendency to react this way runs deep. Often, we just feel like running away. Because of this, I think, God offers us a solution in terms that we can understand. Proverbs 18:10 says, “The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous runs into it and is safe.” When we feel like running away, whether we’re scared of what’s happening or whether we’re scared of what God wants from us, the solution is the same: run to the LORD, your faithful Father. Run away from Him and you are in danger of discipline and misery, but run to Him and you are safe.
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08.19.09
Posted in general at 10:45 am by Pastor Josh
Several weeks ago, God began to speak to me pretty clearly about my need to revitalize my personal prayer life. Like most Christians, I have always acknowledged the importance of prayer and declared the power of it; but God was speaking to me about making it a passionate priority in my life, not only in word, but in practice. I committed myself then to practicing prayer more consistently, passionately, and affectively.
As He so often does, God was also speaking to my wife and several others about prayer at the very same time. Discussion about this eventually led us to believe that God would have us dedicate the month of August to prayer as a church. Each Sunday I have preached about prayer in the morning and in the evening we have had activities that have focused on prayer and fellowship. Already we are seeing God answer prayer and work in our own hearts, and we are anticipating great things from God as we renew our dedication to prayer.
This idea of dedication, or devotion, to prayer has really been the driving force behind all that God has been teaching us about prayer. One of the passages of scripture that has been most influential is Colossians 4:2-4. The Bible is full of instruction about prayer, but this passage in large part summarizes what we should know about prayer and God has really used it to burden me about prayer.
To begin with, Paul says to “devote yourselves to prayer.” Devote means to give or apply one’s time, attention, or self entirely to a particular activity, pursuit, cause, or person. When applied to the activity of prayer, this forms an incredibly demanding concept albeit not a new one. Jesus Himself taught this very principle. Luke 18:1 says that Jesus was telling a parable to teach that “…at all times they ought to pray…” On another occasion He was teaching His disciples about things to come and ended with the exhortation to “watch therefore and pray always…” This is obviously something we must understand and embrace in spite of how daunting a task it may seem. As a disciple of Christ I must be passionately devoted to prayer. It has to be as natural and consistent as taking my next breath. Every single circumstance of my life should drive me to prayer. With the Lord’s help, I can and must live in a constant state of readiness to pray. It need not always be formal or long. It can simply be a quick, heartfelt thought to God. I have come to realize that this is what God expects of me and this is what is necessary if I truly desire to honor Him as I say I do.
Besides devotion, Paul includes in Colossians 4:2 a reminder that our prayers should always be done with thanksgiving. If we are devoted to prayer as we should be, then it is only natural that we will also be dedicated to thankfulness. At least it should be natural. Biblical prayer is not selfishly motivated nor is it filled with self-centered requests. Biblical prayer is about bringing glory to God and seeking His will so that we might align ours with it. Prayer should always include praise and thanksgiving toward God. No matter what we might need, there is always something to be thankful for. As I have been studying prayer this month and specifically this passage, God has increasingly burdened me with that truth. As I seek to devote myself to prayer, I must be sure that I am praying with the right motives and asking for the right things.
Paul deals with this very idea in Colossians 4:3 as he asks them to pray for him that he might have opportunity to share the Gospel and clarity of speech in doing so. While God obviously wants us to approach Him with all of our needs and desires, there is great Biblical precedent for the fact that our primary focus in prayer should be spiritual things. Especially as we see the prayers of the apostle Paul, we find that spiritual needs take priority over all others. We should be consistently and persistently praying for the spiritual wellbeing of ourselves and our brothers and sisters in the Lord. This is a prayer for holiness, maturity, sanctification, and growth. I need to be genuinely concerned with things that are eternal and not temporal. The things of this earth will pass away and only matter right now. Spiritual things, however, have eternal significance and I should prioritize my prayers accordingly.
Ultimately, through this passage and others, God has been teaching me that prayer must be more than just a flippant, formal prayer or a self-seeking wish. Prayer is about communing with my Father and maintaining my relationship with Him. Prayer is a vital part of every Christian’s walk, and as James says, “the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man accomplishes much.” However, it can only accomplish much when we are practicing it, so my prayer is that I can become increasingly devoted to prayer as a way of life. I urge you to consider your prayer life and to be passionately devoted to prayer.
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08.14.09
Posted in Uncategorized at 9:11 am by Pastor Josh
Over the past few days, I have spent a great deal of time in prayer seeking God’s face for His answers to some personal situations. In addition to prayer, of course, I have spent a great deal of time trying to come up with some solution myself. I’m not necessarily saying that’s a problem, but part of my devotional time this morning included the following passage from Psalms that talks about putting our trust in the right things.
Psalms 33:16-22, “The king is not saved by his great army; a warrior is not delivered by his great strength. 17 The war horse is a false hope for salvation, and by its great might it cannot rescue. 18 Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his steadfast love, 19 that he may deliver their soul from death and keep them alive in famine. 20 Our soul waits for the LORD; he is our help and our shield. 21 For our heart is glad in him, because we trust in his holy name. 22 Let your steadfast love, O LORD, be upon us, even as we hope in you.”
The psalmist is writing here for the sake of Israel and he is speaking of a national dependence on God as opposed to a dependence on military might. He is assuring the nation that their deliverance comes from God and not a mighty army or strong soldiers or great equipment, and we can certainly see in the nation of Israel that this proved true time and time again. However, as I read these words I could not help but catch the more general message being conveyed as well. I cannot depend on personal, physical resources for the solutions to my problem. No matter what the situation or problem and no matter how well prepared I might think I am to handle it on my own, I must not rely on my own abilities or resources to achieve victory.
What I must do, though, is rely completely and totally on God. The psalmist says that “the eye of the LORD is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his steadfast love, that he may deliver their soul from death and keep them alive in famine.” Previously, in verses 13-15, it has been said that God looks down from heaven and observes the deeds of all mankind. Now, we find that as He observes all mankind and sees those who fear Him, He watches them with the particular goal of protecting them. This makes me think of a father taking his child to a playground with lots of other children. He may see them all, but he is keeping his eye on his child and he is ready to act if anything threatens that child. This is what we can be sure God is doing for us. I might be unaware and think that I am acting independently, but God has his loving, Fatherly eye on me and He is protecting me.
This protection we notice is both spiritual and physical. Once I am His child He is forever the protector of my soul. Also, it says that He will protect us during difficulty. From this truth I can make many observations that should bring great comfort in times of difficulty. 1: No matter how tough circumstances get, the have no bearing on the things that really matter. I can lose all material possessions and never lose my soul. 2: If I have trusted God for the most important thing of all – the salvation of my soul – then why won’t I trust him to take care of me, too? 3: It never says He will protect from difficulty. In fact, the psalmist says he is watching to “keep them alive in famine.” We may face famine or some other corporal difficulty, but God will provide everything we need for life as long as that is in His will.
When I understand these simple truths, I can realize that God is my only true source of help. He is my help and shield. He is my solution and my protection. I am insufficient, but He is all sufficient. My resources are limited, but His are limitless. When we make the choice to live in light of this fact, we can have great joy. When I trust in him, He will bring gladness to my heart no matter how gloomy my circumstances might seem.
As I search myself for answers and solutions I become frustrated, tired and overwhelmed. Discouragement is never far behind and the spiral of despair goes on and on to places I should never find myself as a child of God. But when I give up and acknowledge that my resources, my strength and my preparation is insufficient and I turn to God who is my help and shield I can rest in the confidence that He is taking care of me and I can experience His gladness of heart. I can sing with the psalmist, “Lord let me continue to bask in your faithful love because my hope is in you and you alone.”
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