December 20th

In less than a week it will be Christmas morning!  This year has been a wild one for our nation and it has been both challenging and exciting for Meadowbrooke.  The challenges we have faced dwarf in comparison to all the great things that have happened in our church! I have officiated more weddings this year than any other year I have served as a pastor, we have witnessed an encouraging number of baptisms, the number of young men I mentor weekly has grown to seven, we have had the privilege of seeing a number of people come to faith in Christ, and we will officially conclude my sermon series in Ephesians this Sunday!  

Part of the message of Christmas is that with the birth of Jesus, we were given a perfect mediator when God took on flesh to be like us, identify with us, and to redeem lost sinners such as us (see Hebrews 1:1-4; 4:15)!  Think of what that means!  Think of all that we have learned from Ephesians concerning what it means to be a Christian and what it means to be the Church!  The apostle Paul wrote in Romans 8:33-34, Who will bring charges against Gods elect? God is the one who justifies; who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, but rather, was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us.  The evidence that you are becoming a stronger Christian is not that you are more independent from God because you need Him less, but a growing understanding and desire that recognizes how much more you need Him.

Jesus was born to die for sinners, Jesus died to rise in victory over the curse and death, and now He intercedes on our behalf!  A few verses earlier in Romans 8:31-32, we are promised: What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?  In these verses, we are invited to be strong in the Lord by going to Him and abiding in Him.  Earlier this week I read in Sam Allberrys book, One With My Lord: 

That God is so poised to give to us, so trigger-happy with his good gifts, is all because of who we are in Jesus.  It is why prayer is in his name.  If I were to come to God on the basis of my own performance, I would have no reason to expect to be heard, let alone answered.  But coming in the name of Jesus means coming wrapped in his perfect sonship.... 

We dont need to worry about breaking the ice with God or establishing a rapport.  He is already more eager to hear our prayers than we are to offer them.  The call to abide is as much an invitation as it is a command.[1]

This Sunday, we will discover the power behind the armor of God and how it is we are able to remain strong in the Lord (Eph. 6:10).  We will have multiple baby dedications during the first service, and each person who comes this Sunday will receive a gift to commemorate our time in Ephesians, so please do not miss this Sunday! 

Grace,

Pastor Keith