Jesus is become to us the manifest expression of God’s manifold provision for our many needs.
Yes, you are needy. Admit it or don’t. We both know it’s true. We all know it’s true.
You’re beat up. You’re naked. You’re lost. You’re needy.
And no one else cares, no one else loves you to the degree or depth that God does.
How else does the gospel message even make sense or come to be apart from a divine reality saving us from our sorry human condition?
The gospel is the bridge between what you know experientially to be true in you and what you hope to be true beyond you.
The 3 Truths You Know
Life happens. Rain. Sun. Heat. Cold. Wind. Snow. Skin is a poor defense against those things. We all experience them. We all have skin. Therefore, we all need something else. That something else is a shelter.
Some people just don’t like you. Rightly or wrongly. Personally or impersonally. At best they don’t care, but mostly they care only for your harm and demise. We are vulnerable. We need a shield.
You are dumb and weak. Maybe not in your professional field, recreational interests, or doing sudokus. But in most things you either don’t have a clue or don’t have the strength. We’re sheep. We need a shepherd.
The 3 Truths You Hope To Find
An open door. When the elements exert their power over us, our first and only thought is, ‘How can I get out of this?’ Anything will do. But something permanent would be perfect.
A safe place. Arrows of hatred whiz by. Unkind words stab. Mistreatment stings. To just be ignored will do, but to be saved would be perfect.
A hero. When you don’t know, you want to know someone who does. When you can’t, you hope there is someone who can. A stranger will do, but a father would be perfect.
Jesus, My Shelter: Protection from the elements
Jesus is the only person I know who has ever calmed a storm with his words. Use your physical eyes to witness the powers that roam this world – the elements. They are unrelenting, impartial, unsympathetic, impassionate, furious. Now apply that to the world that lives inside your chest. Storms don’t just blow across the plains, and hurricanes don’t only affect the coasts. They rise in our hearts, minds, and souls.
We live in a world threatened and terrified by disaster. Jesus alone stands above the unchangeable elements. He has weathered the elemental wrath of God that is tracking directly across our souls. He has withstood every torrential temptation and damaging disappointment.
The best we can do in a storm is hide. The same holds true for the storms of life. And Jesus invites us to hide in Him. He provides Himself as the protection we need from the elements of life. ‘…your life is hidden with Christ in God.’ Jesus used the image of a door to describe His role in the rescue mission of the gospel. He is the only true shelter you will ever find for your soul. Come in out of the rain. Jesus is your shelter.
Jesus, My Shield: Protection from enemies
Jesus, My Shepherd: Provision for everything
Good Word! It seems that we will do all that we can to avoid admitting our helplessness and sinfulness. Yet, until we own our sin as our own we will never own the Gospel as our own. We can point fingers and blame people or circumstances for our sin but that is not true repentance nor will we receive forgiveness. But when we own it then we can find true shelter in Jesus.
ReplyDeleteI really like the sentence, "The gospel is the bridge between what you know experientially to be true in you and what you hope to be true beyond you."
Keep posting.
Looking Toward Home,
Jason (Your Brother in so many ways...)
Thanks, Bro. Feel free to use that line anytime. I like it, too!
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