Hope to Do What?

Last Easter I took a little road trip with some friends to Minneapolis to visit John Piper’s church. He preached from the prayer of Paul in Ephesians 1. Some of Paul’s words are as follows: “I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power towards us who believe..” And this power within us is the same power that raised Christ from the dead (vs. 20) and placed him at the right side of God the Father (vs. 20b). Piper’s main point was that believers must meditate on these realities…for the remainder of their days. Even that would not be enough time for them to grasp how much hope is in them.

This concept of hope seems always to be an Easter morning theme, and rightfully so. If death defeated Jesus, then all the claims he made about himself wouldn’t mean anything, and they would have been buried along with him. But since Jesus defeated death, we must pay attention to those claims, because they escaped the grave along with him. They still stand true. Death has lost its sting, and hell has lost its victory. We worship a living Lord.

These are all truths that I expected to celebrate at church this morning. Little did I know…

I went to see the sunrise over the lake this morning since I had not been down there in a while. I didn’t have much of an agenda; with all of the recent rain we’ve been having all I wanted was to see the sun. I knew I would have time to get my regular service at 11 at some point. But as soon as I got there I felt like an agenda was handed to me. There was a sunrise Easter service on the shores of Oak Street Beach comprised of hymns, readings, and a sermon from Matthew 28. Afterwards the congregation headed back to their church building for breakfast. And that’s when I saw them: two homeless men huddled under blankets in the tunnel system that led up to Michigan Avenue. I’ve see them there before, so it’s not like I was shocked to see people sleeping on the streets. I live in Chicago after all. But the sight of these men was piercing. Here I was, walking with a group of religious folk in their Sunday’s best who complained about the sand in their high heels and the wind that messed up their hair, while these two men laid on a bed of sand, exposed to the wind all night long. I felt like I was in a modern version of The Good Samaritan.

Something in me snapped, and I couldn’t do it anymore. I couldn’t go out and eat with the congregation. I couldn’t bring myself to leave the beach. All this time I have been reading through the Gospels, for at least a month now. I’ve read them each twice. I have read the words of Jesus, of his compassion for the poor, made discoveries about his claims, and learned about the heart of the Gospel message. Jesus hated when the Pharisees and even his own disciples would separate themselves from the tax collectors and sinners. He hated these great divides. I found myself experiencing a similar situation. Those who passed the men did so quickly, as if to get it over with. They had their agendas and did not want to be inconvenienced. “That is not genuine Christianity” I thought to myself. What good is our religion if we just keep it to ourselves? What good are gifts and blessings and resources if we cannot use them to encourage others in the name of Jesus Christ? If we don’t, how will they know that he is the Messiah, that he indeed is risen? The same hope that Piper preached about a year ago and that churches today celebrated in light of the resurrection seems empty if it does not change us or cause us to respond. What are we going to do with the hope that we claim is so real?

I spent the next hour or so with these men who I now know as Henry and Leon. We had breakfast together courtesy of MacDonald’s, and talked about some of their latest adventures on the streets. I woke up this morning thinking that I would learn more about the hope that there is to have in Christ, but instead I was presented with an opportunity to do something with it. What a blessing.

If there is something that I would challenge you to do, it’s not to go out on the streets looking for homeless people to feed. If you got this sort of opportunity, sure, welcome it. People on the streets have some great stories to tell, and love to find people who want to listen to them. What I would challenge you to do is to be armed with the hope that the resurrection of Jesus Christ brings to you who have decided to follow Jesus. In your everyday, who can you reach with that hope? In 1 Peter 3:15 it says “But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you.” Friends, how can we give reason for a hope that we don’t display? If we keep our faith to ourselves, how will others know to ask us about it?

Notice that in each of the Gospel accounts after Jesus rose from the dead, he immediately told his disciples to act upon what they had witnessed. He commissioned them to go into all the earth and to make disciples. Jesus urged his followers to do something with the hope they had. Hope must turn to action. Whether in the big things or in the small things, may we live as people who hope. Even the faith of a mustard seed and small acts of obedience in the hands of a mighty God can accomplish much. Be encouraged.

A Prayer of Confession

“Forgive us for being afraid of that

Which we cannot understand or control.

We too often reject the way of Jesus Christ

Because self-giving love appears to be

So impractical and dangerous.

O God, make us followers of the way of the cross,

Trusting in your resurrection power.

Shine the light of your good news through us

That others may know your eternal and abiding love.”

Blessings.

It is Finished, it is Paid

I got the opportunity this past week to go out with a group on campus called Student Outreach. This ministry is geared towards Gospel-centered evangelism. We gave out the Gospel of John among other tracts in Millennium Park, and moved into the subway system to do the same when it started to rain. I was able to have some very interesting conversations with others as we waited on the platform in between the red line trains. More than once I was challenged by questions concerning Jesus’ death on the cross. One individual said something along these lines: “I don’t get why Christians always talk about Jesus’ death on the cross. It seems to me like a sob-story, used to make us feel guilty, like we owe him something now. I didn’t make Jesus die. Why did he need to?”

Imagine that someone harms you, or sins against you in anyway. Imagine that this hurts you deeply. Naturally, this would sever your relationship with that individual. You have two choices. You can make them pay, you can get revenge. You can make them suffer for what they did. Or, you can choose to forgive them, but this process would not come without pain. Choosing to let something go and to not hold it against someone who deserves to be punished is by no means easy, and it would take a lot out of you to continually choose love and forgiveness. But either way, someone pays. There is no such thing as forgiveness without payment. Murderers are sentenced to prison to pay for their acts. If the judge were to show them grace and let them go free, then the surrounding community would pay. Those involved would feel hurt that the victim’s life was not properly defended, and others would be put on high alert at the thought of the criminal roaming free on the streets. Justice comes with a price, and someone must pay it.

In Exodus 12 there is an account of the events surrounding the first Passover season. The Egyptians were a very powerful kingdom in those days, and they held Moses and his people captive. But in Exodus 12 God told of a wrath that he would send down that would kill the firstborn of every household unless that household spread the blood of a sacrificed lamb on its doorposts. The Israelites were God’s chosen people, and so he had no intentions of killing their firstborn. And yet, God did not exclude Israel from this command. They were not exempt from the wages of sin.

This story is a beautiful picture of sacrifice for the sake of life, yet it is not the greatest one. Luke chapter 22 records a Passover celebration with Jesus and his disciples. But there are two distinct things that were different about this particular meal. It was customary for the leader of the meal to stand and explain it. Back then this message would be about the bread of affliction that represented the Israelite ancestors who suffered in the wilderness and were delivered to the thanksgiving of modern Jews. But when Jesus took the bread, he broke it and said “this is my body”. He was referring not to the past affliction of his chosen people, but to his pending affliction and suffering that would be at the expense of his own body. Not only that, but at this meal there was a predominant dish missing. There was unleavened bread, and there was wine, but in the scriptures there is no mentioning of a lamb. But a lamb was customary and an essential part of the meal! The disciples must have been confused…but catch the significance: There was no lamb on the table, because the Lamb was sitting at the table.

Jesus is the Lamb of God. He did not temporarily cover doorposts in order to protect from momentary affliction. Rather, he covered the sins of the souls of men. His sacrifice is permanent, it cannot be washed away, yet it washes away all that is unclean. When Abram went to sacrifice his son out of obedience, God shouted out immediately for him to stop, and provided another sacrifice. But when Jesus hung on the cross, no one said stop. When Abram said that God would provide a sacrifice in Genesis 22:8, isn’t it beautiful to note that this indeed proved to be true? God did not just provide any sacrifice. He told Abram to take his son off of the wood, knowing that later his son would be crucified on it.

Hallelujah, what a Savior!

Blessings.

Faith: the Gaze of a Soul upon a Saving God

“Faith is the least self-regarding of the virtues. It is by its nature scarcely conscious of its own existence. Like the eye which sees everything in front of it and never sees itself, faith is occupied with the object upon which it rests and pays no attention to itself at all. The man who has struggled to purify himself and had nothing but repeated failures will experience real relief when he stops tinkering with his soul and looks away to the perfect one. While he looks at Christ, the very things he has so long been trying to do will be getting done within him..For faith is the gaze of a soul upon a saving God.”

These words of A.W. Tozer are shared in his work The Pursuit of God. I can certainly testify to their truth.

I cannot even count the number of recent conversations that I have had about the bondage of sin. It makes us slaves and leaves us in despair. Of it, no one is immune. And yet, this does not give us any right to attitudes of spiritual fatalism. On the contrary, it lays the groundwork for the commands of God: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind” (Luke 10:27, Mark 12:30, Deuteronomy 6:5). No, this isn’t the command of a selfish God, this is a command from a God of love who knows that our love for him will keep us farther from sin. How good of him. Our gaze is to be on God, on the father, that we might not wallow in despair and self-guilt, but that we would get a glimpse of the one who is greater than our heart, and greater than all troubles.

Even Jesus did this while he was here on earth. Countless times he withdrew and prayed and spent time with his Father. In John 5:19-20 Jesus says “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, the Son does likewise. For the father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing. And greater works than these will he show him, so that you may marvel.”

Jesus had a kind of faith that looked always upon his Father’s face. Where are you looking?

Let us seek this God who promises not to withhold himself from us. His promises are true, and provide every means for us to have hope..but that’s a whole other story.

“May I run the race before me,

Strong and brave to face the foe.

Looking only unto Jesus

As I onward go.”

Friends, may this be your prayer, our prayer.

Blessings.

Prodigal Sons

Luke 15:11-32.

Sorry for the long post..bear with me!

The parable of the Prodigal Son is one of the most, if not the most beloved parable found in the Gospel accounts. The timeless story of a father who welcomes back his rebellious son appeals to our affections, and rightfully so. It is a story of grace, love, and celebration towards what was once lost, yet later found.

I am so thankful for a recent assignment that challenged me to dig deeper into this text (how’s that for spiritual growth eh? Just kidding..but really!)

During these times it was custom for fathers to will their possessions to their sons upon their death. Their first-born son was to receive 2/3 of the inheritance, leaving the remainder to be split up among the other sons. Men could give gifts of their property to others before their death, but it was understood that the owner would retain official rights of the property until their death. Therefore, it is very provocative that this son (especially the younger) would ask his father for his part of the inheritance while his father still lived. Land in those days was tied so closely to identity. Men were the land that they lived on. Their entire well being depended on the condition and extent of their land. So for this son to ask his father for his part of the inheritance was like asking for his father’s identity. He was asking his father to split up his life. It would be custom for the father to disown the son for making a request such as this. He desired and loved his father’s things, not his father.

Amazingly enough, instead of responding in anger and rebuking him, the father conceded and gave his son his portion of the inheritance.  Most of us are familiar with how it continues from there..The son squandered all that was given to him and ended up pleading with a keeper of swine to give him work. To a Jew in those days, pigs were unclean, (Lev. 11:7) and so the son’s desire to work with them reveals his desperate state in this situation. He devised a plan to return to his father and work for him, that he might earn some money to pay back part of his debt. And so he did.

This is where it gets crazy..

First of all, the father, upon seeing his son from far off, ran to greet his him. Men in these days were quite dignified and wore long, expensive robes. Surely some heads turned as this father forsook his prestige in an all-out sprint towards his son. He did not even give his son time to utter his plan to make up for his frivolous actions. Instead, he kissed him and embraced him. With all composure aside, this father rejoiced. He had robes thrown on him, a ring put on his finger, and a fatted calf (a possession of great wealth) slaughtered for a feast. He called for dancing and celebration among the entire village. His son whom he loved was home.  

The older son who heard all of the commotion from out in the fields asked a servant what was going on, and was astonished at what he heard. He could not believe that his father would slay the calf and throw a banquet for his little, rebellious brother. Just like the father approached his younger son to welcome him home, he went to his older son to invite him into the party. Verse 29- “’But he answered his father “Look, these many years I have served you, and I have never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends.”’ The Greek word this son used for “served” here is “douleou” which means “to serve as a slave”. How heartrending this must have been for the father. Twice his love for his sons was rejected. First it was rejected when his youngest son desired to depart from his father with his father’s things. Again it was rejected when his eldest son revealed that working for him was like slavery. This son did not work out of love for his father, he worked that one day he might gain an inheritance that his father’s death would be good for. Oh how this applies to us today..

It is not hard to imagine how some of us treat God like the younger son. We think we’re self-made, and our pride tells us that we can do things on our own, through our own strength. We use God for his gifts, go at life our own way, and then come to our senses once our actions lead us into despair. Yet in so many ways we are like the older son too. We think that God needs our good actions. We think they’re worth something and that they will justify us and cleanse us. We completely miss the relationship aspect of abiding under the Father in obedience sourced in love. If we do good for our own benefit what does it matter? How does that connect us to the Father in any way? Even good deeds done for self are indeed done in vain.

Isn’t it amazing to think that God treats us the way that this father treated his sons? This father went against all cultural norms and broke customs in order to show unfailing love to his sons who did nothing but sin against him and refuse the love he bestowed upon them. Even when they sinned, he gave them grace. Not only did he forgive them, but he clothed them in love and marked them as his. He never withheld love from them in order to teach them lessons. I rejoice that God, a Heavenly Father treats his children this way. We have been invited into a blessed relationship with him, a relationship that is not defined by our good works and efforts, yet by his grace and great sacrifice. May we not desire to be like the younger son, too absorbed in our pride to fall in love with God, and may we not be like the older son or the Pharisees, who were too consumed in the law and doing good to fall in love with God.

May we have the strength to comprehend, as Paul notes “what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge” (Ephesians 3:18-19). And may this love motivate us to respond, not with pride or feelings of self righteousness, but with humility and love through thanksgiving for the living God and the risen Christ.

Blessings.

Wine and Suffering

Philippians 2:5-8

“Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, through he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking on the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”

Perhaps these are familiar verses to you as they are to me, yet let us not forsake them.

Isn’t it amazing that Jesus, the Son of God, would humble himself to be born of a woman in a manger to be the earthly son of a lowly carpenter? That was only the beginning of drastic changes for Jesus. No more heavenly places, no more glorious throne, no more direct fellowship with his beloved father. Yet out of love, he gave up all of these for redemption’s sake. He suffered even unto death.

I was reading in John 2 the other day about the first miracle of Jesus. He was at a wedding in Cana when the wine ran out (a huge deal in that culture in those days). Jesus’ mother was with him and very aware of his power, and so she informed the house servants to do whatever he said. In his response in verse 4, Jesus said  “my time has not yet come”.  Most commentators agree this does not mean that Jesus did not intend to perform a miracle by turning water into wine. Instead, by saying these words, Jesus was referring to his divinity and to his future suffering.

Think about the atmosphere of this situation for a moment. It was a wedding, and in those days, celebrations lasted as long as the funds did.  Everyone was dancing and singing and having a great time of celebration. Then there’s Jesus: a man who had not yet performed any miracles, thereby keeping his identity as the Messiah and God’s own son a secret. He knew of the judgment that would come upon him on the cross. He knew how he would be spit on, mocked, beaten, and denied. He knew that the beginning of his ministry and his miracles meant that the time of his suffering was growing closer. He knew what wine would later signify. He knew that it would represent his bloodshed and that he would drink it on his last night with his disciples. And here, he gets the ball rolling with his ministry by creating wine, that those around him might continue in gladness.

Jesus’ suffering was by no means all at once, on the cross. I cannot even imagine what agony he must have felt to be in the midst of the everyday and yet aware of what he would later endure. Throughout his entire ministry, Jesus chose to move closer to that suffering. He chose to surrender his rights and his authority every single day he lived on this earth. What great love is this that he would not only lay his life down on Calvary’s tree, but that every day prior he would choose humility.

It makes so much more sense to me now why Peter would command us in 1 Peter 4:1 to arm ourselves with this same kind of suffering as our Savior. If we clothe ourselves in suffering, we will be able to rejoice in our suffering as Jesus did in the midst of rejoicing. We live like we don’t have the right to suffer. Why not live as if we don’t have the right not to? The Bible does not promise anything to those who refrain from suffering, yet it promises great blessing and sanctification to those who for the sake of Christ do. Celebrate the suffering of Jesus Christ with me! May our seasons of suffering and prosperity honor his name and cherish his sacrifice.

Blessings.

King Without a Coin

I don’t care much for politics. Maybe I should rephrase: I don’t care much for endless debates, rallies, protests, and corruption. But politics consists of much more than these things. Governments are often to thank for the backbone of good found in the systems of most countries. And so I concede. Jesus likes politics. He said so himself…

It was a common occurrence for the Pharisees and Sadducees to inquire Jesus, looking to ensnare him. They wanted to find gaps in his wit and holes in his reasoning. Good thing the wisdom of Jesus never runs dry.

In Mark 12:14a, some Pharisees and Herodians said to him “Teacher, we know that you are true and do not care about anyone’s opinion. For you are not swayed by appearances, but truly teach the way of God.”

Sure, these are true statements, but they’re peppered with sarcasm and ill intent. These men were trying to tempt Jesus to just give them answers by complementing him and “buttering him up” so to speak. Their question arose: “Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not? Should we pay them, or should we not?” At this point they probably thought they had Jesus in a corner. If his answer was “yes”, then Jesus would be denying his heavenly kingship in front of them. Yet if he answered “no”, an entire government would be enraged. By answering to them that they should “render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s”, Jesus answered both “yes” and “no” at the same time, without falling victim to their schemes.

On the one hand, Jesus taught that man should honor their earthly masters and give to them what they have attained. For Caesar this meant an inscription on the Denarius, and so Jesus agreed that those taxes indeed belonged to him. But that’s where it ended. That is all that Jesus attributed to Caesar, because that is all that Caesar had his name on. To “render to God the things that are God’s” means a similar thing, yet God has his name on much, much more. In a sense, Jesus was hinting at the frailty of Caesar’s power, because all that his kingdom would collect were coins. Yet due to his majesty, the Kingdom of God inherits not merely material possessions, but the souls of men.

Everything about Jesus was entirely revolutionary. When asked if men should submit to worldly powers he says yes, because he knows that their leadership has been ordained by his Father under the umbrella of his sovereignty. When asked if men should submit to worldly powers he says no, because he knows that all allegiance belongs to his Father in Heaven. When people wanted responses in black and white, Jesus gave them parables. When people wanted to boast in their flesh, Jesus brought them conviction that drove them to their knees. When people wanted to lure him toward sin and fallacy, he stunned them with his wisdom and truth. The kingdom of Jesus is radically different than the one of this world. It doesn’t make sense here unless we understand the paradoxes that Jesus did.

Before Jesus gave his answer concerning the taxes paid to Caesar, he asked for a Denarius to be brought to him. How interesting. While Caesar had a coin with his name on it, Jesus didn’t even have one of them to his name. Jesus was coinless, and by way of tax, many coins were attributed to Caesar.

Jesus didn’t come to this world in order to inherit riches. He came to this world in the poorest and most humble state that he could, that those who believe in him might gain an inheritance bigger than this world could even imagine. He gave up wealth here, that we might inherit it tenfold in his Father’s Kingdom. He gave up comfort and stability, that we might find Heaven to be our home and resting place. Jesus came to earth and gave up his very self, that all the people of the world might live. Nobody can truly be a revolutionary without understanding this. It seems like those who wanted Jesus crucified knew this too. They released Barabbas, a murderer, because they knew that if he ever started trouble again they could re-imprison him. But they crucified Jesus and put him in a guarded tomb, because he was a revolutionary who they couldn’t predict.

How rich it is that Christ’s followers have the approaching opportunity to celebrate his victory over that tomb! The revolution that man tried to end at the cross had only begun at the cross. It was enriched the day he rose up from that grave.

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in Heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.”- 1 Peter 1:3-5

Blessings.

God the Source of all Good

GOD THE SOURCE OF ALL GOOD

O Lord God, Who inhabitest eternity,
The heavens declare thy glory,
The earth thy riches,
The universe is thy temple;
Thy presence fills immensity,
Yet thou hast of thy pleasure created life,
    and communicated happiness;
Thou hast made me what I am,
    and given me what I have;
In thee I live and move and have my being;
Thy providence has set the bounds of my habitation,
    and wisely administers all my affairs.
I thank thee for thy riches to me in Jesus,
    for the unclouded revelation of him in thy Word,
    where I behold his Person, character, grace, glory,
    humiliation, sufferings, death, and resurrection;
Give me to feel a need of his continual saviourhood,
    and cry with Job, ‘I am vile’,
    with Peter, ‘I perish’,
    with the publican, ‘Be merciful to me, a sinner’.
Subdue in me the love of sin,
Let me know the need of renovation as well as
      of forgiveness,
    in order to serve and enjoy thee for ever.
I come to thee in the all-prevailing name of Jesus,
    with nothing of my own to plead,
    no works, no worthiness, no promises.
I am often straying,
    often knowingly opposing thy authority,
    often abusing thy goodness;
Much of my guilt arises from my religious privileges,
    my low estimation of them,
    my failure to use them to my advantage,
But I am not careless of thy favour or regardless of
    thy glory;
Impress me deeply with a sense of thine
    omnipresence, that thou art about my path,
    my ways, my lying down, my end.

-VALLEY OF VISION

Room for Violence

Matthew 11:12

“From the days of John the Baptist until now the Kingdom of Heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force.”

I’d encourage you to check out the context of this verse. Commentaries proved helpful to me…

It is no mystery what Jesus demands from those who follow him. Here’s a glimpse: violence. Since I’m sure that word strikes you with all sorts of negative connotations as it did me at first, allow me to elaborate…Think about who Jesus claims to be. Think about what Jesus claims to be able to do. He is the Son of God, the Maker of Heaven and earth. He has the power to forgive sins, raise the dead, heal the sick, bring sight to the blind, make the lame walk again. Jesus is everything. He is all in all. Becoming a Christian means recognizing all of these things, it means recognizing our sin and our need therefore for a Savior. People who are genuine about all this stuff aren’t joking when they ask Jesus to come into their lives and change everything…because he can. But that’s just it. If we don’t believe this, then we’re not going to let him change us..we’re not going to let him re-order every aspect of our lives.

The violent understand that. They’re ready, they’re willing to be radically different, to make radical changes. Right? People who ask Jesus into their hearts just to “get that out of the way” kind of make him like their secretary. Here, Jesus, take my calls, schedule my appointments, but at the end of the day, what I say goes, and you will answer to me.

This weekend I had the opportunity to volunteer at a Dare2Share conference just outside the city. It is a gathering that teaches 5,000+ teens how to effectively share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with their friends and family. It was so Christ-centered, and the music (Shane and Shane) was awesome.

During one of the sessions, speaker Greg Stier told the teens to write at least 3 names on their hands of people who don’t know Jesus. Later he had them take a picture of their hand and send it to him. A slideshow was made of all these hands. The teens watched on the big screen as the names of their friends and family were prayerfully recognized. It was such a powerful moment to cry out to the Lord to reveal himself to those individuals, that one day their names may be written on his hands.

I’m not big on conferences that are all about emotional highs..but that’s why I loved this one so much. It wasn’t about raised hands and alter calls (although these have their places in worship). The main focus was on the responsibility of Christ’s followers to let him be the God that Christians claim he is, and to let him display the power that we claim he can. The kids were given a portion of the conference to call the names written on their hands, and to go out into local schools and work places in order to share the good news of Jesus with others. It pushed them to be “violent” in a sense..to step out in faith and to give the Gospel the chance to do what they claim it can. Francis Chan once said that he desires to live a life so dependent on the Holy Spirit that if the Spirit doesn’t show up, he’s screwed. That is how the “violent” in this case live their lives. They know everything must be about Jesus..They know that their lives must be devoted to seeing him glorified, and to daily refusing to gratify the desires of the flesh that only lead to death..and to the Christian reputation of hypocrisy.

At the conclusion of the conference one of the speakers said “This is not a conference. This is a runway. Go.”

May this be the attitude that we have toward all seasons of our lives. Jesus sends. Are we willing to be sent?