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So much of what we do is empty without the love of Jesus fueling our actions. Throughout his life on earth, Jesus consistently showed compassion to others. That’s because Jesus is real and He invites us to follow his pattern of consistency in ways we live out our love for the people God puts in our paths. Jesus’ example invites us to make love and service part of our everyday life.
This week, we welcome the Crossroads Youth Group to share in their Mission22 experiences. The week focused on two aspects of mission work. The first part of the week was Getting Closer. They were prompted about their walk with God and how close were they to the Lord in order to love others authentically. During his time on earth, Jesus did some pretty amazing things. And we could recount all the miracles and the teachings and yet, Jesus did one thing that we could easily miss. Jesus got alone with God the Father through prayer. He got closer.
The transformation God makes in us begins on the inside and works its way out. Our heart changes from stone to flesh, from stubbornness to submission, from hardened to hearing, from thorny to teachable. When we receive and understand Jesus is Lord of our lives, we hand Him the keys to our hearts so that they will beat to the things that God desires. Our hearts become regenerated with the love of God for the things of God.
Who is that person in your life that you can tell anything to? Who is that person you can count on and trust? Being accountable to someone is more than being a friend; it means being willing to help them to carry the load they are bearing. We are all accountable to God and one day we will be judged for our obedience to God and how we lived out our faith. Having someone to walk with us can help us along our faith journey.
In biblical days, an armor-bearer was one who actually carried the shield and armor of his leader as he went into battle, often acting as his personal assistant. The term itself originally meant to figuratively or literally lift up, support, or simply help. The basic attitude of a Modern Day Armor-Bearer is one of servanthood. We are called to lift each other up, to support one another, to encourage, equip, and strengthen each other for the fight of faith. Therefore, it's no surprise the general functions of an armor-bearer: attend to, minister to, care for, help, be of use, assist, benefit, promote, support, make easy for, nourish and encourage are found in the formal definition of "serve”. We all need an armor-bearer as we walk the Christian walk.
Out of His holiness, God sets up the norm for acting, thinking, and living that is very different and separate from the patterns of our times. He does this through His Word. The Holy Spirit leads us as we consume God’s word to trust and obey. We as Christ-followers, as Christians living in this world, ought to be led by God’s word in our decisions, in our actions, and in our speaking. The Prophet Amos was given a vision of a plumb line in reference to One who would come, the One who is aligned with God’s desire for all humanity. Jesus came to show us how to live what He taught through love for each one of us.
Let me ask you, “What do you look at?” There is an urgency for Christians to authentic and true so that the world will desire to be like Christ, but what do you look at to maintain your relationship with God? Our friend Isaiah of the Old Testament had an encounter with God, an immersion that took him from sinner to saved to servant in what seems an instant. This weekend, we gather together to look at and be immersed in the awe and wonder of God moving from upward vision to outward vision.
This Sunday we celebrate Father's Day. It is an opportunity to honor those fathers who have stepped up to the plate and fulfilled their obligations as a Dad. We also thank those who have taken on the role of father when others have been absent. We recognize there is no perfect father other than He who sits on the throne, our Creator. Now more than ever men are being called to step up and be the Christian leader of their households and to raise their children with integrity, strength and Godly wisdom. Come this Sunday and see how we can all come together to guide and instruct the coming generations.
The Bible reminds us to take off the old and put on the new in several places. To put on “Christ.” Exactly how do we do that? How do we choose our fashion for the day? The Spirit of God reminds us to develop the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. In this world, many of those seem to be difficult to do and hard to wear, but the Holy Spirit gives us the ability to make a conscious effort to choose the right fashion statement to show Jesus to others.
Did you know that the Holy Spirit is given to believers to transform them, remind them, encourage them, and provide the zeal and confidence to live out the Christian walk in a weary wondering world? It is He that convicts the world of sin so that all may know of the power of the resurrection through Jesus Christ. The Spirit is not a force, it is not a way of thinking, and it is not self-ambition. The Spirit is a gift of God through Jesus Christ left with us and in us to bring our light into a dark world.
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