Church Staff Devotions: Christ, Our Champion - Hebrews 2:18

Hebrews 2:18  Because He Himself suffered when He was tempted, He is able to help those who are being tempted.

This is one of the most important verses in the Bible and a divine promise that I cling to day after day. I honestly don’t think that I could maintain my faith without this blessing. I make mistakes again and again. I’m tempted to do wrong things repeatedly. I’m far from perfect and like everybody else, I lead a sinful life. Only Christ can rescue me from the temptations I face. Only Jesus can redeem me from the sins I still commit.

And Jesus can do this, not only because He has the divine power, but because He also knew of the human struggle and emotional wrestling that accompanies temptation. Christ was sinless, but that doesn’t mean He wasn’t goaded by the devil. Jesus obeyed God completely, but that was only accomplished by constantly overcoming temptation.

In other words, because Jesus knows what we go through, He understands our struggles and can forgive our sins. It doesn’t mean that He condones what we do or totally excuses us – if that was the case, we could rid ourselves of our consciences and do whatever we wanted. Jesus forgives us when we fail because He wants to restore us to God’s blessing, but not even He with all of His empathy about our tempting times and sinful situations can pardon us without our contrition, our sorrow, and our shame.

So what does this mean for all of us? Perhaps you’re struggling with a temptation that is breaking your resolve; maybe you’ve done something bad that you deeply regret. Whatever the facts, know this: we can come to Jesus sincerely and contritely to ask His forgiveness. He understands our predicament and only wants to restore us to God’s love. If we come to Him today, He will pardon our sins and change our lives. All we need to do is ask.

Prayer:                        Lord Jesus, You were tempted innumerable times throughout Your life, so You perfectly understand what we go through each day. Help us to come to You with our guilt and pride, our shame and regrets so that we may place them at Your feet and put our lives back into Your hands. Forgive us for every sin that we have ever committed, whether we remember them or not. In Your Holy Name, we sincerely pray. Amen.

John Stuart is currently the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment or ask questions of today’s message, please send him an email to pastor@erinpresbyterian.org.

Today’s image is one of John’s stained glass designs for Easter. It’s called “Cross of Many Colors.” If you would like to view a larger image of the drawing, please visit the following link: http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2282/2301426682_7f0b9c037f_b.jpg

Church Meeting Devotions: Hoots Mon! - Psalm 61

Psalm 60:4      I long to dwell in your tent forever and take refuge in the shelter of your wings. 

Things didn’t go according to plan at a wedding in Scotland yesterday. A tame owl had been specially trained to carry the wedding rings and land on a perch beside the outside altar. It was supposed to be a wonderfully synchronized event. However, the piper began playing just as the owl was signaled to fly. A scared lapwing shot out of the bushes and the owl chased its prey up into a tree. The lapwing escaped but the owl remained perched on a branch. The wedding rings were still attached to its legs!

As one of my Scottish friends wrote: what a hoot! Eventually the owl was coaxed down from the tree and the ceremony continued. If Robert Burns had been around, I guess he could have penned the immortal lines: “the best laid schemes of owls and pipers gang aft agley.”

When the psalmist wrote about taking refuge in the shelter of God’s wings, he wasn’t literally saying that God had wings. He was using a metaphor to describe his absolute confidence in God’s protection. In the midst of his personal troubles and crisis, he had the utmost faith in God’s guidance and deliverance. Even if all of the psalmist’s plans went haywire, he would be still be assured of God’s grace and love.

To me, this is what makes faith so important –it gives us a hope in God that He will not abandon us, and a love from God that can never be extinguished.

Prayer:                        Lord God, thank You for allowing us to take refuge in the shelter of Your wings. Thank You for granting us unlimited grace and everlasting love. In the midst of our problems and worries, we constantly rely upon Your Presence and Guidance. In Jesus’ Name, we pray. Amen.

John Stuart is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment on today’s message, please send him an email to pastor@erinpresbyterian.org.

Today’s image is John’s drawing of Dunure Castle in the West of Scotland parish where he used to minister. You can view a larger version of the drawing at the following link: http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4024/4718989531_b55884b457_b.jpg

Church Staff Devotions: Patiently Building - Mark 15:29-30

Mark 15:29-30            Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads and saying, "So! You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, come down from the cross and save yourself!"  

A massive digger has just been parked outside of my church study window. The contractors are getting the equipment in place in order to begin digging up the back yard of the church, so that we can lay the foundations of a new extension. A lot of the brush and some of the smaller trees at the back will, unfortunately, have to be dug up and destroyed in the process. This time next year, I’m going to have a completely different view from my office window.

I’m not very good with changes like this and the subsequent upheaval is going to command a lot of my patience. I know that the end results will be worthwhile; it’s just the current painstaking process that causes me problems. In order to build, something has to change. In order to grow, something has to be lost.

When the passers-by hurled their insults at Christ, they had no idea that God was beginning a new creation and that a new faith was being born. The people scorned Christ because it appeared as though He had let them down. They thought He was the Messiah who had come to rid them of the Romans and its Empire. In fact, Christ did do that but it took about 400 years to achieve. The passers-by wanted Christ to do it immediately. They weren’t prepared to wait and obviously thought that when Jesus died on the Cross, His mission and ministry were over.

But in the midst of the painstaking process of death by crucifixion, Jesus was saving the world and establishing His Church. God works in mysterious ways and there’s nothing more mysterious than creating new life in the midst of death. The old ways were being destroyed forever. The rites of sacrifice were over. Jesus laid down His life to the destruction of death in order to bring about pardon and forgiveness, resurrection and restoration to all who were willing to accept His sacrificial death and believe in His power to save them from their sins. He was patiently building salvation.

Prayer:                        Lord Jesus, You destroyed the old ways of religion and gave birth to a new faith on the Cross. We are heirs to that blessing and we praise You for completing the painful process of salvation, so that we may be given the glorious opportunity of being restored to God forever. In Your Holy Name, we thankfully pray. Amen.

John Stuart is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment on today’s message, please send him an email to pastor@erinpresbyterian.org.

Today’s drawing is John’s latest lighthouse print of the Nubble Lighthouse in Maine, USA. You can view a larger version of the drawing here: http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1006/4597010807_503a3fe91d_b.jpg