4 Minute Devotions: King Egbert

Passing faith onto our children is a special privilege. Kids’ sermons on Sunday morning’s are the perfect vehicles for enriching their spiritual lives.

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Proverbs 8:15 By me kings reign and rulers make laws that are just;

I love talking to our church kids on Sunday mornings. It’s a privilege to share faith with them. I love the answers that they give to my questions, especially when they put me on the spot.

Many years ago, I invented a character called King Egbert, who is always doing silly things. His wife Matilda usually has to fix things for him and bail him out of the trouble he causes. I draw cartoons of the character and produce coloring-in sheets for the children. They seem to like the stories and look forward to the talks. I always relate the story to a Bible message and we usually sing a short song about the story at the end.

There’s a lot of wisdom in the Book of Proverbs and this morning’s verse reminds us of the sovereignty of God. Our leaders may be appointed by the people, but God is in control of the whole earth. We may go through bad economic crises or natural disasters, during and after which our leaders will try to steer our people in the best possible course. We look to them for leadership, but at the same time we pray to God for help. Those simple prayers reflect our faith in the sovereignty of God. He is our King and He is in control.

Prayer: Lord God, we call You the High King of Heaven which means that we place our lives totally under Your control. In good times and bad times, You constantly watch over our lives. You help us through both joyful and painful moments throughout our days on earth. Thank You for being our King and the Sovereign of the Universe. In Christ’s Holy Name, we pray. Amen.

PS King Egbert is on the internet. You can see some pictures of King Egbert at http://www.kingegbert.blogspot.com/

John Stuart is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment on today’s message, please email him at pastor@erinpresbyterian.org

4 Minute Devotions: Just Stories

Some people say that the Gospels are just mere stories. Peter, however, declared that they were eye witness accounts of what truly took place in Christ's lifetime. Our challenge today is this: do we accept Peter's testimony?

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I love making up stories, especially for the children of our church on Sunday mornings. I guess I started telling stories for my brothers late at night when we were kids. Three of us shared the same bedroom and each of us had to deal with my mother’s insanity in different ways. At night time, sleep never came easy for any of us, so I would tell stories to my younger brothers and eventually they would sleep peacefully. I can’t really remember what any of those stories were about – it all took place about forty years ago – but those storytelling skills have stayed with me, which is why I enjoy giving the kids sermon during worship.

Some people believe that the Gospels are just made up, and have become stories that people must accept or they will experience the Church’s wrath. Eckhart Tolle in his book, “A New Earth” makes such a complaint. He writes about the Bible being a collection of stories with morals within them that are imposed upon the readers or hearers. What he is trying to do is to undermine the value of the Bible and diminish the faith of Christians.

2 Peter 1:16 We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.

Peter, in his second letter, faced similar opposition, which is why he reminds his readers that the events he relates about Jesus were not just stories, but eye witness accounts of what actually happened. Peter insists that he was there when Christ was transfigured. It is not a magical story, which is meant to charm the listener; it is an actual reporting of what truly happened.

Tolle may wish that the Gospels were mere stories so that he can pursue his own misguided philosophy. Peter, however, was willing to die for what he knew to be true, so for me, his testimony has more authenticity than anything Tolle can make up.

The question for all of us today is this: are the Gospels mere morality tales to help us through life, or are they God’s truth to lead us to eternal life?

Prayer: Lord Jesus, Your life is so different from all others and Your messages are meant to challenge our lives and change our ways. Some voices in the world would have us believe that Your teaching, Your existence, and Your purposes are just mere myths. Help us to hold fast to Your ways and keep us from falling into the temptations of unbelief. In Your Holy Name, we pray. Amen.