Sunday, December 27, 2020

Peace in a Pandemic




Hi Friends!

The post that follows is one that I shared in August of 2020 - I am more convicted now of what I wrote then and so I am reposting this with hopes of blessing others - I will be using this blog weekly in 2021 to lead CCC through a Scriptural study authored by the late Ravi Zacharias  - I hope you will check back weekly beginning January 3, 2021 and be encouraged through the study of The WORD with the goal of taking The WORD to the world.

God's Peace and my prayers,
Jeff

From August 2020

Everyone leans-into something to find peace - and for many in the world that something changes readily - and tragically those somethings often lead to a world of hurt.

Too many vices in the world to list on a single page - many manifested with external consequences and all manifested with internal consequences - and multiple variations manifested within each of us.

The Bible assures us of many things about Jesus - I want to encourage you to think about a couple of these things during the Corona Pandemic - 1) Jesus never changes and 2) Jesus always provides peace.

The Bible describes the peace that Jesus offers as out-of-this-world - a peace that far exceeds our human understanding - a peace that guards our hearts and protects our minds.

The Bible also assures us that Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever - which means if we lean-into Him continually - that we will always experience out-of-this-world peace.

Please don't confuse this promise of peace with the reality of heaven - a place without a single sin or a single tear stain - a place prepared by Jesus for followers of Jesus when they depart this world.

This world is a place of many sins and many tear stains - a place with multiplying challenges and compounding storms - can someone say social injustice, prejudice, pride?

It may sound too-good-to-be-true but it's not - in the midst of any challenge that comes in the world (even ones we bring upon ourselves) - Jesus never fails to bring peace because He never changes.

Some say Jesus is a crutch for those who follow Him - and if that's all He were that would be most sufficient - but the Bible doesn't say that Jesus is a crutch.

The Bible says He is a rock that cannot be moved - and when you combine a rock that can't be moved with compassion that cannot be exhausted - you get peace that is experienced but unexplainable.

Jesus came into this world to save us from sin and death - He became sin on our behalf so we might become the righteousness of God in Him - so that we might have right relationship with God in Him (I Corinthians 5:21).

Focus on Jesus and you will always find perfect peace - and that peace which is perfected in Him will ultimately be perfected in us - and may it be on earth even as it is in heaven with my hope that the picture above speaks a thousand words more than mine.

God's Peace and my prayers,
Jeff

1 comment:

  1. Recently I've been leaning on the fact that Jesus is always the same, and that God has a plan for all this. Not a human "this happened, so I'll do that". Not a chess-like "if I do this, they probably will...". God flat-out knows. He knows what will happen in today's service, He knows what tomorrow's headlines will be, and He knows what will replace headlines in a thousand years, if Jesus tarries that long. That's a winning combination.

    Jim Elliott said "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose". Amen, and amen. This world is transitory. Jesus is eternal.

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