Lenten Thoughts - Week 5

Awesified!

Now that we created a new word this past Sunday, are you awesified with the Gospel? Are you awesified that Jesus has come to liberate you from your sins, your fears, and your doubts? He has come to set you free from your burdens and temptations. All Jesus’ mighty works of teaching, healing, and casting out demons are to remind and affirm to us that he has come to set us free from the evil influences of this world and to live as God intended—to love God and our neighbor with our new heart. Because of Jesus being and acting as the Messiah, Savior and Redeemer of our souls and community, we are free not to judge others, we are free to fight sexual sins, we are free to forgive others who have hurt us, we are free to take care of God’s world, we are free not to “keep up with the Jones”, we are free to care for the poor, the sick and the lame, we are free to honestly confess our struggles with others, we are free to put others interest before ourselves, we are free to be thankful and not complain, we are free from anger and resentment, we are free from bitterness and gossip, we are free to do good to those who hate us, and we are free to serve our community in mercy and justice. I could go on and you have probably thought other things that Jesus has freed us from. Be awesified that Jesus has come to set and make us free!!

His perfect life, his mighty works, his sacrificial death, his supernatural resurrection, and his kingly ascension remind us to be awesified. But they also remind us that He is awesified with us. He did all these things not just to wow us but so that we believe that He is wowed with us. He is and acts because He loves us and wants a deep and intimate relationship with us. Read again Luke 4 and be awesified but also read it knowing that he had you in mind and Jesus is awesified with you. Scripture says that He rejoices over us (Isaiah 62:5).

Here what Henri Nouwen encourages, “God rejoices. Not because the problems of the world have been solved, not because all human pain and suffering have come to an end, nor because thousands of people have been converted and are now praising him for his goodness. No, God rejoices because one of his children who was lost has been found. What I am called to is to enter into that joy. It is God’s joy, not the joy that the world offers. It is the joy that comes from seeing a child walk home amid all the destruction, devastation, and anguish of the world.”

And this one reason why Jesus has come— for us to experience this Father/child relationship so that we can be set free to live as his sons and daughters and reflect Him and His character even in the midst of all the brokenness we experience in this world. May it be so!

Warmly,

Pastor Jeff