Midweek Message - Living in Love

1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. (NIV)

As part of the history class that I took in High School, I had to study the origins of World War 2. Our class spent several weeks focusing on FDR’s Presidency and how he motivated the American people to deal with the Great Depression, as well as leading them through the dark days of the global war. We also had to learn his exceptional words - which are still often quoted - from his first inaugural speech in 1933: ‘The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.’

There’s no doubt that we are living in anxious times. Most of the good folks I know are fearful of the future because uncertainty has robbed them of their confidence. Others feel that partisan politics have become an extreme problem and that we are heading toward a severe conflict which will divide our communities, our congregations, and our families. The longer this insecurity continues, the deeper our divisions; the more our unfettered concerns grow, the fewer connections we will have with one another. Fearing our fears will erode our trust; fueling our fears will break our nation.

All this has happened before. Centuries ago, when Christians were actually being persecuted and the survival of the church was questionable, old men like the Apostle John called upon the community of faith to face their fear by replacing it with love. To be fearful was to punish yourself with anxiety; to be faithful was to replenish yourself with love. John fully believed that our lives were meant to be focused on love and not overwhelmed with fear.

Today, Christ’s Church, as always, has the remedy to reduce our fears and relinquish our anxieties. The Spirit of Christ within us has the power to overcome the spirit of spite outside us. Fear is a manipulator which imprisons our souls with lies; faith is a motivator which frees our spirits with love.

May you bring all your fears to Christ and exchange them for His love.

Prayer: Loving God, help us to live lovingly rather than existing fearfully. Enable us to follow Jesus faithfully and share His love generously. In Christ’s Holy Name, we pray. Amen.

Short Devotion: A Man Called Barnabas

 

Acts 11:24 He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord. (NIV)

            I love this description of Barnabas from the Book of Acts. He sounds like a great encourager whose faith attracted others to seek and find Jesus. He is crucially important in the New Testament Church because Barnabas is the one who finds Saul back home in Tarsus and gives him an opportunity to serve Christ among the Gentiles. Up until that point, Saul – who would soon be known as Paul – was not recognized by the Church In Jerusalem as a worthy candidate to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ. The Church leaders still mistrusted Saul because they could not fully believe that he had been converted to Christianity, nor did they forgive him for the years of persecution during which Saul had terrorized Christian congregations from Jerusalem to Damascus.

            The great thing about Barnabas was that he was not territorial. He knew that Saul was the right person to accompany him on a new mission to the Gentiles. He restored Saul’s confidence and enabled the old persecutor to find a God-given role in the church. In many ways, Barnabas saved Saul’s life, as well as the subsequent life of Christ’s Church.

            I wish that we had more people like Barnabas in Christian churches. Too many church folks throughout the country and across the world are loud, aggressive, and judgmental. Instead of using the gifts of encouragement and compassion which Christ has given to the church, they would rather be forceful and unfeeling, self-righteous and condemnatory. It’s sad to see so much hatred and hostility come from so-called Christians; it’s disappointing to read false statements, lies, and conspiracies from folks who are supposed to represent the truth of God and the love of Christ.

            Perhaps God will raise up another Barnabas in our midst, so that we can climb down off our high-horses and humbly seek to live together by loving one another.  I hope and pray that this can take place soon, especially as we head into a new year that could potentially divide and diminish our love for one another even further.

Point to ponder: How do I encourage others with my faith? How have I discouraged others with my faith? How can Christ challenge and change me to cherish His loving ways?

Prayer: Lord Jesus, You love the unlovely and even heal the unholy. You laid down Your life for the imperfect and died for us sinners. Forgive our foolish pride and false words; set us free from our sinful prejudices and selfish behavior. In Your Holy Name, we humbly ask. Amen.

Psalm 73: A Psalm for Today

 

Psalm 73:6 Therefore pride is their necklace; they clothe themselves with violence. (NIV)

If you’ve never read Psalm 73 in its entirety, then I recommend that you do so. It relates the experience of a faithful worshipper who is driven to despair because of the threats, arrogance, and violence of the wicked. He has served God all of His life, so he expects things to be fair and just. All around him, however, powerful people are using their positions of authority to suppress the faithful; they are callous and hard-hearted; they do not care about those beneath them and they publicly proclaim their brazen and haughty ways.

 

            This causes the psalmist to question his faith in God. If so many unrepentant people are permitted to control the community, then why doesn’t God do something about it? Have the wicked won and the violent been given victory? Is there any point in believing in goodness or seeking justice? Have the scoffers manipulated the people with their malice? Have the thugs cowered the community into silence because of their threats? Those are the questions that the psalmist ponders and makes him wonder if God has lost control.

 

            I guess we all know those feelings and have asked very similar questions. Those who resort to violence and make threats against their opponents, who are unrepentant and seek to subdue others with iron fists and loaded rifles seem to have gained the upper hand. They even use Christ and faith to justify their hostile and antagonistic ways. Anyone who opposes them is deemed less than human; every one who does not follow their ways becomes a target. This, however, is inhumane and the complete opposite of what Christ called His followers to apply and live by each day. His personal command for Christians to love God by loving one another is ignored by the wicked and is replaced with ‘God takes care of those who take care of themselves.’

 

            Toward the end of Psalm 73, the psalmist realizes that those who are hateful, violent, and wicked will eventually destroy themselves. God will judge them for every careless and callous word and they will be condemned for their wickedness. As the psalmist states in verse eighteen: Surely you (God) place them on slippery ground; you cast them down to ruin.

 

            The psalmist’s faith has returned to him after wrestling with God and these questions. He understands that God sees, hears, and knows everything, so there will be no defense for those who persist in being callous, hostile, and wicked. Their violence will their own undoing; their faithlessness will condemn them forever. Psalm 73 closes with these grave words:

 

27-28Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you. But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign Lord my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds.

 

May God help and guide us to understand His ways and lead us away from self-righteous and uncompassionate words and deeds. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

 

If you would like to read all of Psalm 73, here is a link: Psalm 73

Love Confirmed - John 13:35

John 13:35 “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (NIV)

For the last two months, I have had the pastoral privilege of leading five young people in our church through the process of Confirmation. This coming Sunday all of them will stand before our congregation and make special vows, by publicly declaring their faith in Jesus and promising to follow in His footsteps as His disciples. It’s always a very sacred moment in the life of our church and it gives everyone a sense of accomplishment. Most of the young people in this group have grown up in our congregation, so their confirmation affirms the years of support and encouragement that they have been given from their families, both at home and in the congregation.

It will also be a time when the adults in the church should personally review their commitment to being followers of Christ. Discipleship is a life-long process and never ends until we leave the surly bonds of Earth. Each day should be an opportunity to learn more about God in order to apply our faith and effectively display our Christianity. For Jesus, being a disciple meant showing love to one another, so a faith which is devoid of this is a mere religious fabrication. If other people cannot see Christ’s love in our lives, then our faith has a credibility problem and will be seen as inauthentic.

I have a lot of hope for the young people who are being confirmed, as well as their older peers who have already been through this wonderful process. They seem to care more about one another and have a high sense of what is unfair, unjust, and untrue. The world and its environment deeply matter to them, so they expect those of us who declare ourselves as Christians to be actively involved in caring for our planet and for one another. What they do not expect from Christians is a hard-hearted and contemptible faith which treats others disrespectfully and vengefully discriminates against people who disagree with them. Young people loathe self-righteousness and reject all forms of greed. In my opinion, they are truer disciples of Christ because they understand that love is what generates faith in the first place, and not pride or fear.

Point to ponder

What does Christian discipleship mean to me? What does it actually mean to Jesus?

Prayer: Lord Jesus, we want to be Your disciples and show the world how much we love You. You also call us to be Your disciples but want us to show love to one another. Help us to follow Your simple teaching; help us to truly love one another. In your Holy Name, we humbly pray. Amen.

John Stuart is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. Come and join us for worship on Sunday mornings at 11:00 AM. You will be made very welcome 😊

Today’s image is one of John’s latest Pentecost drawings called ‘Spirit 2019.’ If you would like to view a larger version, please click this link: Spirit2019.