Will We Remember?
Remember… The theme of our Palm Sunday Cantata was “Remember”. I wonder though, will we remember?
Recently, I was looking over some photos and videos of my grandkids when they were first born. Such memories make me smile and think of the relationships that have been built with those same grandkids over the past few years. When putting together a funeral service last week, I took a moment to reflect over the funerals that I’ve done in the last 16 years, as well as those in the last 6 years that I’ve been here at Mt. Pleasant. Those services represent lives full of memories made with family, friends and even some memories that I shared with these saints that have gone on to glory.
While such memories make us smile and may even bring a tear to our eyes, this wasn’t what the lines from the cantata called us to remember. We have been encouraged to stop and give thanks for the Lord’s faithfulness to us in our own lives, but even beyond that, to give thanks for all that He has done in the past—before our time. The pages of Scripture are filled with the faithfulness of God. From Genesis to Revelation, we have one account after another of God’s gracious dealings with man, God’s love for His own, and how that love has been expressed from the garden to the cross.
I believe at least part of the reason we have so many stories of ancient times are so that we see the pattern of God keeping His promises, caring for and teaching His people about who He is, and what He is like. We read about promises made, and then later read about how those promises were kept. We read a prophetic word about the Messiah, and then later read about how that prophesy was fulfilled. We read one continuous story of God’s plan to redeem mankind because of the love God has for us and because of our desperate need for redemption.
The final verse of the last song, which Bill Pedersen sang as a solo, and was written by Tommy Walker, went like this: “I still remember the day You saved me, the day I heard You call me by name. You said You loved me, would never leave me and I’ve never been the same!”1 Can we still remember back to that time? Maybe we can’t remember the time or the place, but hopefully we still remember what it was like to feel loved by God, to feel the weight of our sin lifted from our shoulders, and to sense the closeness we now have with Christ, contrasted with the separation we felt before. Remember what that was like; remember how grateful you felt when you were saved. Remember how unworthy you knew you were, but the grace was offered still.
Remembering will cause us to be a more grateful person; to have a greater sense of dependency on Christ alone for our salvation, and the relationship that we now enjoy with Him. Remembering will help us to remain more humble, and perhaps a bit less inclined to look down our noses at someone else still struggling with their life. Remember when you were in their place, lost and alone and without any real hope in this world. Remember how glad you were when someone shared Christ with you!
Maybe it’s because I’m getting older, (I’ll be hitting the big 5-0 this year). Maybe it took 3 months of reviewing the songs of this cantata to jog my memory. Whatever the case, I find the theme of “Remember…” a helpful exercise. Maybe you will too. I also encourage you to do some of that remembering while in prayer too. It will help your prayer life, I promise. Remember the time……..
By His Grace Alone,
Pastor Bruce Jacobsen
1 Vader, Rouse, Apsinall 2012 Remember, Where the Past Ends and Forever Begins, Praisegathering Music Group 83-84
Friday, April 6, 2012
Friday, March 2, 2012
March Desktop Article
“Then Jesus came to them and said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age’. “
(Matt. 28:1-20 NIV)
Someone once said, “When it’s all said and done, there’s a lot more said than done.” How true that is in so many areas of life, and no less true within the confines of the church. We say that our mission is “Changing Lives by the Power of Jesus Christ”, but do we believe that enough to be actively involved in that work? Are we living out the last thing that Jesus gave us, the church, to do? We can’t expect the work to be done by someone else. Even if all we think we can do is pray, do we seriously focus on doing that?
I am more and more convinced that the power of prayer needs to be behind everything we do as a church, and not just praying, “Lord, bless our efforts in this ministry”, but seriously pleading with God to work in specific ways, using ordinary people in extraordinary ways. Sunday School teachers, how much time do you spend in prayer for your students each week? Sunday School students, how often do you lift your teacher in prayer each week? All of us, how much time do we spend in prayer each week for someone who we have reason to believe has not yet trusted Christ for salvation?
Has faith moved us to action, and if not, is it true faith if we’re unwilling to act upon it? In Hebrews 11, we’re reminded, “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see…And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.” (Heb. 11:1,6 NIV)
“He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.” Now that’s a promise to hold on to. If God is doing the rewarding, you know it’s going to be good. Will it all come to us in this life? Thankfully no, we’ll know so much more of the blessing of God once we cross over into the “Promised Land”, that we could ever even imagine here and now.
Here’s some homework that I’d like to see us focus on for the near future. Keeping in mind our goal verse for 2012, “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.” (2Tim. 2:15 NIV), in light of that, what does it mean to be a disciple, and to make disciples? When we can begin to understand and live into that work, we will see God truly change lives through the power of Jesus Christ.
By His Grace Alone,
Pastor Bruce Jacobsen
(Matt. 28:1-20 NIV)
Someone once said, “When it’s all said and done, there’s a lot more said than done.” How true that is in so many areas of life, and no less true within the confines of the church. We say that our mission is “Changing Lives by the Power of Jesus Christ”, but do we believe that enough to be actively involved in that work? Are we living out the last thing that Jesus gave us, the church, to do? We can’t expect the work to be done by someone else. Even if all we think we can do is pray, do we seriously focus on doing that?
I am more and more convinced that the power of prayer needs to be behind everything we do as a church, and not just praying, “Lord, bless our efforts in this ministry”, but seriously pleading with God to work in specific ways, using ordinary people in extraordinary ways. Sunday School teachers, how much time do you spend in prayer for your students each week? Sunday School students, how often do you lift your teacher in prayer each week? All of us, how much time do we spend in prayer each week for someone who we have reason to believe has not yet trusted Christ for salvation?
Has faith moved us to action, and if not, is it true faith if we’re unwilling to act upon it? In Hebrews 11, we’re reminded, “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see…And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.” (Heb. 11:1,6 NIV)
“He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.” Now that’s a promise to hold on to. If God is doing the rewarding, you know it’s going to be good. Will it all come to us in this life? Thankfully no, we’ll know so much more of the blessing of God once we cross over into the “Promised Land”, that we could ever even imagine here and now.
Here’s some homework that I’d like to see us focus on for the near future. Keeping in mind our goal verse for 2012, “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.” (2Tim. 2:15 NIV), in light of that, what does it mean to be a disciple, and to make disciples? When we can begin to understand and live into that work, we will see God truly change lives through the power of Jesus Christ.
By His Grace Alone,
Pastor Bruce Jacobsen
Friday, February 3, 2012
February Post
“His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’ “
(Matt. 25:23 NIV)
“Well done, good and faithful servant… come and share your master’s happiness.” How we long to hear those words one day. We like to hear approval, and appreciation for what we’ve done. Whether it came from a parent, a school teacher or an employer, we like to hear a “good job” once in a while. But in the grand scheme of things, when we come to the end of our life, what would it be like to hear those gracious words from our Lord and Master, Jesus Christ.
What does it take then for us to expect to hear those words? For the answer to that, let’s go back to the parable of the talents, the occasion for this verse from Matthew. There was a man going on a journey, but before he went, he put various servants in charge of various amounts of money to take care of while he was gone. One servant thought only of himself, of not wanting to be blamed for taking a risk and losing his master’s funds, and dug a hole in the ground and hid it. The other two servants were more diligent, and took their master’s resources and immediately put them to work, yielding a good profit for their master upon his return.
Those who were commended were servants of action, of responsibility, of faithfulness and devotion. They didn’t sit around, waiting for someone else to do what needed to be done; they got busy and did it themselves. They were wise about their investments so as not to squander their master’s resources. They put to use what they had been entrusted with, and made good use of it.
The occasion of the parable of the talents was a description of the Kingdom of God. The talents or amounts of money that are entrusted to the servants are the gifts and resources that we, His bride the church, are entrusted with. What then is the work to be done in the master’s absence, but the work of building up His kingdom? Whatever the resources, gifts and abilities He has given us in His wisdom and graciousness, we are to put to work in the building up of His Kingdom so that when He returns, He is able to be pleased with the work that has been done while He was away.
If we truly want to hear the words, “Well done, good and faithful servant,… come and share your Master’s happiness”, then we need to be diligent and industrious about carefully, but faithfully utilizing all the gifts, abilities and resources that He has blessed us with to be building up His kingdom. That means investing our lives into the lives of others, giving of our time and talent and effort, not in seeking our own comfort or pleasure, but in seeing lives changed and God glorified.
By His Grace Alone,
Pastor Bruce Jacobsen
(Matt. 25:23 NIV)
“Well done, good and faithful servant… come and share your master’s happiness.” How we long to hear those words one day. We like to hear approval, and appreciation for what we’ve done. Whether it came from a parent, a school teacher or an employer, we like to hear a “good job” once in a while. But in the grand scheme of things, when we come to the end of our life, what would it be like to hear those gracious words from our Lord and Master, Jesus Christ.
What does it take then for us to expect to hear those words? For the answer to that, let’s go back to the parable of the talents, the occasion for this verse from Matthew. There was a man going on a journey, but before he went, he put various servants in charge of various amounts of money to take care of while he was gone. One servant thought only of himself, of not wanting to be blamed for taking a risk and losing his master’s funds, and dug a hole in the ground and hid it. The other two servants were more diligent, and took their master’s resources and immediately put them to work, yielding a good profit for their master upon his return.
Those who were commended were servants of action, of responsibility, of faithfulness and devotion. They didn’t sit around, waiting for someone else to do what needed to be done; they got busy and did it themselves. They were wise about their investments so as not to squander their master’s resources. They put to use what they had been entrusted with, and made good use of it.
The occasion of the parable of the talents was a description of the Kingdom of God. The talents or amounts of money that are entrusted to the servants are the gifts and resources that we, His bride the church, are entrusted with. What then is the work to be done in the master’s absence, but the work of building up His kingdom? Whatever the resources, gifts and abilities He has given us in His wisdom and graciousness, we are to put to work in the building up of His Kingdom so that when He returns, He is able to be pleased with the work that has been done while He was away.
If we truly want to hear the words, “Well done, good and faithful servant,… come and share your Master’s happiness”, then we need to be diligent and industrious about carefully, but faithfully utilizing all the gifts, abilities and resources that He has blessed us with to be building up His kingdom. That means investing our lives into the lives of others, giving of our time and talent and effort, not in seeking our own comfort or pleasure, but in seeing lives changed and God glorified.
By His Grace Alone,
Pastor Bruce Jacobsen
Friday, January 13, 2012
January post
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” (Hebrews 12:1-3 NIV)
As we reflect back on the past year, and on years past, let us keep in mind the hand of God in all of that. Let us reflect on the blessings of the past, and even those things that while they may not have seemed like blessings at the time, we were able to see God blessing through the hardships we may have faced. These become for us some of the “great cloud of witnesses” of God’s faithfulness to us through the years. Then, as we look ahead to the New Year, let us not forget His faithfulness of the past, and let it give us confidence, even in the face of opposition, to move out in faith to what lies ahead.
The text reminds us to “fix our eyes on Jesus”. There are so many distractions around us, clamoring for our time, attention, and devotion. Keeping our eyes fixed or focused on Jesus can help us to keep everything else in perspective. When it comes to family, keeping our eyes fixed on Him can help us to have the proper perspective when it comes to family matters. Being godly spouses, parents or children depends on having the perspective of first belonging to God, but then understanding how we are to bring glory to Him in how we relate to one another.
When it comes to the workplace, keeping our spiritual eyes fixed on Jesus helps us to have a holy perspective of what it means to be a godly employee or employer. Paul reminds us in Colossians 3:23-24, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” When we keep our eyes “fixed on Jesus”, when we run everything we do through the filter of our faith in Christ, it helps keep all the other relationships of our lives in proper balance and perspective.
It may also help to keep Christ’s motivation in view. “…who for the joy set before him endured the cross…” It was what Christ knew was at the end of the finish line that kept Him going. Paul mentions that goal at the end in the passage in Colossians as well, “…since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward.” While there are blessings that we may enjoy while still here on earth, there is so much more that is stored up for us in heaven, if we keep pressing on, and keep our eyes fixed on Him.
By His Grace Alone,
Pastor Bruce Jacobsen
As we reflect back on the past year, and on years past, let us keep in mind the hand of God in all of that. Let us reflect on the blessings of the past, and even those things that while they may not have seemed like blessings at the time, we were able to see God blessing through the hardships we may have faced. These become for us some of the “great cloud of witnesses” of God’s faithfulness to us through the years. Then, as we look ahead to the New Year, let us not forget His faithfulness of the past, and let it give us confidence, even in the face of opposition, to move out in faith to what lies ahead.
The text reminds us to “fix our eyes on Jesus”. There are so many distractions around us, clamoring for our time, attention, and devotion. Keeping our eyes fixed or focused on Jesus can help us to keep everything else in perspective. When it comes to family, keeping our eyes fixed on Him can help us to have the proper perspective when it comes to family matters. Being godly spouses, parents or children depends on having the perspective of first belonging to God, but then understanding how we are to bring glory to Him in how we relate to one another.
When it comes to the workplace, keeping our spiritual eyes fixed on Jesus helps us to have a holy perspective of what it means to be a godly employee or employer. Paul reminds us in Colossians 3:23-24, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” When we keep our eyes “fixed on Jesus”, when we run everything we do through the filter of our faith in Christ, it helps keep all the other relationships of our lives in proper balance and perspective.
It may also help to keep Christ’s motivation in view. “…who for the joy set before him endured the cross…” It was what Christ knew was at the end of the finish line that kept Him going. Paul mentions that goal at the end in the passage in Colossians as well, “…since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward.” While there are blessings that we may enjoy while still here on earth, there is so much more that is stored up for us in heaven, if we keep pressing on, and keep our eyes fixed on Him.
By His Grace Alone,
Pastor Bruce Jacobsen
Friday, December 2, 2011
Christ in you, the hope of Glory
“I have become it [the church’s] servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the word of God in its fullness—the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the saints. To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” (Colossians 1:25-27 NIV)
I included the three verses to give some context to the passage, but the phrase I want to close in on for this article is “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” By now we’ve already celebrated the first Sunday of Advent, on which the theme for that Sunday was “hope”. When I think of “hope” in regards to Christmas, one main theme comes to mind.
Living in the age we do, we often take for granted the hope that Christ offers. All of us have grown up in a time where the orthodox church has universally recognized that salvation is found in Christ’s atoning sacrifice, so that’s not something we have to wait on or longingly hope for. The work of Christ is done and it comes to us now by faith in Him.
What we do still hope for, though, is the reality of that finished work on the cross for us. While we’re still here on this earth, we have not fully experienced that work of atonement, that work of clearing us before the Father on that day when we stand before Him. The celebration of Christmas for us is the recognition of a plan of God, put in motion with the incarnation of Christ—His coming to the earth in human form. That event set in motion God’s plan of redemption that had been told about for centuries, but in ways that left the details cloudy at best.
Paul writes in his first letter to the church in Thessalonica, 4:13, “Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope.” Paul goes on to tell them what to expect when Christ returns, but he does so in order that they may have a greater hope than the rest of the world. We have faith in the promise of God that one day, whether at the end of our days here on earth, or when He returns to rapture the church to heaven, one day we will experience “Christ in you, the hope of glory”.
Christmas marks the celebration of God’s great gift to all who will believe. It marks hope renewed as we look forward to our heavenly home; joy experienced through the forgiveness we enjoy in Christ; peace with God made possible as we take on the righteousness of Christ; and the love that motivated the whole plan of redemption.
May your Christmas celebrations be filled with reflections on what is ours now in Christ, whose earthly birth we celebrate once again this year. Have a blessed Christmas!
By His Grace Alone,
Pastor Bruce Jacobsen
I included the three verses to give some context to the passage, but the phrase I want to close in on for this article is “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” By now we’ve already celebrated the first Sunday of Advent, on which the theme for that Sunday was “hope”. When I think of “hope” in regards to Christmas, one main theme comes to mind.
Living in the age we do, we often take for granted the hope that Christ offers. All of us have grown up in a time where the orthodox church has universally recognized that salvation is found in Christ’s atoning sacrifice, so that’s not something we have to wait on or longingly hope for. The work of Christ is done and it comes to us now by faith in Him.
What we do still hope for, though, is the reality of that finished work on the cross for us. While we’re still here on this earth, we have not fully experienced that work of atonement, that work of clearing us before the Father on that day when we stand before Him. The celebration of Christmas for us is the recognition of a plan of God, put in motion with the incarnation of Christ—His coming to the earth in human form. That event set in motion God’s plan of redemption that had been told about for centuries, but in ways that left the details cloudy at best.
Paul writes in his first letter to the church in Thessalonica, 4:13, “Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope.” Paul goes on to tell them what to expect when Christ returns, but he does so in order that they may have a greater hope than the rest of the world. We have faith in the promise of God that one day, whether at the end of our days here on earth, or when He returns to rapture the church to heaven, one day we will experience “Christ in you, the hope of glory”.
Christmas marks the celebration of God’s great gift to all who will believe. It marks hope renewed as we look forward to our heavenly home; joy experienced through the forgiveness we enjoy in Christ; peace with God made possible as we take on the righteousness of Christ; and the love that motivated the whole plan of redemption.
May your Christmas celebrations be filled with reflections on what is ours now in Christ, whose earthly birth we celebrate once again this year. Have a blessed Christmas!
By His Grace Alone,
Pastor Bruce Jacobsen
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
“Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours: Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness. Through these He has given us His very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.” (2 Peter 1:1-4 NIV)
The more I learn about God, ( and I am still learning about Him every day), the more I am amazed at His great love and provision for us. The more I come to understand about His nature and character, the more I am stunned by His patience with us—with me! The more I gain knowledge and understanding of Him, the more I sense the grace and peace that is ours in Him.
On one hand, you’d think that understanding more and more about this incredible God who has created all there is, and holds it all together; who holds unspeakable power at His disposal, the more I would be in fear of Him. But on the other hand, the more I learn about His love for us demonstrated through His Son, Jesus Christ, and that His “great and precious promises” are for us, the more comfort that brings me. When things on the surface seem to go awry, I know that He holds us in the palm of His hand, and only allows what He deems best for us.
At a time of the year when we are urged to reflect on our blessings, and return thanks to Him who has given us so much, may “His love for us” top the list of things we are grateful for, knowing that such favor is undeserved and unwarranted, except that He has chosen to love us in such incredible ways.
From Peter’s first letter, we have this rich promise as well: “In this [our salvation] you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.” (1Peter 1:6-7)
Even in the midst of difficult times, we are assured that God is working on our behalf, working to refine our faith into something more valuable than gold.
I pray that the more you learn about God, and the more He reveals Himself to you that this knowledge will bring grace and peace to your heart and mind as well.
By His Grace Alone,
Pastor Bruce Jacobsen
The more I learn about God, ( and I am still learning about Him every day), the more I am amazed at His great love and provision for us. The more I come to understand about His nature and character, the more I am stunned by His patience with us—with me! The more I gain knowledge and understanding of Him, the more I sense the grace and peace that is ours in Him.
On one hand, you’d think that understanding more and more about this incredible God who has created all there is, and holds it all together; who holds unspeakable power at His disposal, the more I would be in fear of Him. But on the other hand, the more I learn about His love for us demonstrated through His Son, Jesus Christ, and that His “great and precious promises” are for us, the more comfort that brings me. When things on the surface seem to go awry, I know that He holds us in the palm of His hand, and only allows what He deems best for us.
At a time of the year when we are urged to reflect on our blessings, and return thanks to Him who has given us so much, may “His love for us” top the list of things we are grateful for, knowing that such favor is undeserved and unwarranted, except that He has chosen to love us in such incredible ways.
From Peter’s first letter, we have this rich promise as well: “In this [our salvation] you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.” (1Peter 1:6-7)
Even in the midst of difficult times, we are assured that God is working on our behalf, working to refine our faith into something more valuable than gold.
I pray that the more you learn about God, and the more He reveals Himself to you that this knowledge will bring grace and peace to your heart and mind as well.
By His Grace Alone,
Pastor Bruce Jacobsen
Thursday, October 13, 2011
“God is exalted in his power. Who is a teacher like him? Who has prescribed his ways for him, or said to him, ‘You have done wrong’? Remember to extol his work, which men have praised in song. All mankind has seen it; men gaze on it from afar. How great is God—beyond our understanding! The number of his years is past finding out.” (Job 36:22-26 NIV)
When we begin to think about God, who He is, what He is like etc, it can be overwhelming because He is truly beyond our understanding. But, I would encourage you, rather than throwing up our hands in despair that we’ll never really know what He is like while we’re still on this side of heaven, make an effort—make a valiant effort to know Him.
It’s true that God’s “thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways declares the Lord,” (Isaiah 55:8), but God still works through the world we live in and through His Word to make Himself known to us. While it’s true that our simple human minds can’t fully comprehend His majesty, we are drawn closer to Him when we seek to know Him better. While it is true that He has created the entire natural world that we see, and much that we can’t see, beyond the stars, galaxies that our strongest telescopes have only begun to see, the psalmist still can write, “I love the Lord, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy. Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live.” (Psalm 116:1-2)
It seems apparent that the Christian church today in large part has given up her pursuit of God, and instead of finding out who He is through a deep faith relationship with Him, we have crafted an image of Him that we’re willing to deal with; that we feel comfortable with. With the paltry wisdom God Himself has given us, we have made ourselves a mental image of God—no less an idol than the false gods that the Israelites were chastised for in the Old Testament.
If there is a prayer we can pray and expect God to answer, it is to ask Him to make Himself known to us. I believe He is just waiting for just such an opportunity to reveal Himself to us. In fact, it’s entirely possible that because we’ve neglected such a pursuit that He is holding off answers to other prayers we have been bringing again and again to Him. He’s more interested in a serious relationship with us than to make our life here on earth easier or better.
Just because a complete grasp of an understanding of God is impossible in this life doesn’t mean that understanding more of Him isn’t a worthwhile quest. Ask Him to make Himself known to you…but be ready, because He may just knock your socks off!
By His Grace Alone,
Pastor Bruce Jacobsen
When we begin to think about God, who He is, what He is like etc, it can be overwhelming because He is truly beyond our understanding. But, I would encourage you, rather than throwing up our hands in despair that we’ll never really know what He is like while we’re still on this side of heaven, make an effort—make a valiant effort to know Him.
It’s true that God’s “thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways declares the Lord,” (Isaiah 55:8), but God still works through the world we live in and through His Word to make Himself known to us. While it’s true that our simple human minds can’t fully comprehend His majesty, we are drawn closer to Him when we seek to know Him better. While it is true that He has created the entire natural world that we see, and much that we can’t see, beyond the stars, galaxies that our strongest telescopes have only begun to see, the psalmist still can write, “I love the Lord, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy. Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live.” (Psalm 116:1-2)
It seems apparent that the Christian church today in large part has given up her pursuit of God, and instead of finding out who He is through a deep faith relationship with Him, we have crafted an image of Him that we’re willing to deal with; that we feel comfortable with. With the paltry wisdom God Himself has given us, we have made ourselves a mental image of God—no less an idol than the false gods that the Israelites were chastised for in the Old Testament.
If there is a prayer we can pray and expect God to answer, it is to ask Him to make Himself known to us. I believe He is just waiting for just such an opportunity to reveal Himself to us. In fact, it’s entirely possible that because we’ve neglected such a pursuit that He is holding off answers to other prayers we have been bringing again and again to Him. He’s more interested in a serious relationship with us than to make our life here on earth easier or better.
Just because a complete grasp of an understanding of God is impossible in this life doesn’t mean that understanding more of Him isn’t a worthwhile quest. Ask Him to make Himself known to you…but be ready, because He may just knock your socks off!
By His Grace Alone,
Pastor Bruce Jacobsen
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