Greetings Christ Community Family!
The words of the Psalmist are apropos during this time, “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the LORD, “My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler. You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness, nor the destruction that wastes at noonday” (Psalm 91:1–6). I encourage you to read through this Psalm and meditate on the what the LORD has to say.
Frustration, worry, anxiousness, anger, weariness, and exhaustion are only some of the feelings that have enveloped our hearts and minds over the past few weeks. Remember that our hearts can easily be led astray when not anchored in the written Word of God and the incarnate Word, Christ Jesus. In the midst of all that is happening, I want to offer encouraging and challenging words for our faith family.
First, God is unequivocally sovereign. He who spoke the stars into existence and named each of them (Psalm 147:4), is the same God who controls even the virus that wreaks havoc around the globe (Ephesians 1:11). John MacArthur expounds on God’s sovereignty by explaining, “everything that exists in the universe exists because God allowed it, decreed it, and called it into existence. “Our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases” (Ps. 115:3). “Whatever the Lord pleases, He does, in heaven and in earth, in the seas and in all deeps” (Ps.135:6). He “works all things after the counsel of His will” (Eph. 1:11). “From Him and through Him and to Him are all things” (Rom. 11:36). “For us there is but one God, the Father, from whom are all things, and we exist for Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through Him” (1 Cor. 8:6).” (https://www.gracechurch.org/about/distinctives/sovereignty-of-god.) We must trust Him.
Second, God is working this crisis and all situations we face for our good. The Apostle Paul
wrote one of the most widely known and cherished scriptures to build our trust in God. He
wrote, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those
who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28). In the process of sanctification, “our good” isn’t always clearly perceived or acknowledged from our limited and partial vision.
However, God is working to mold, shape, and craft us more into the image of Jesus Christ
(Romans 8:29). We must trust Him.
Third, God is providing opportunities for unity within His church. It is easy to become stuck in
our own world, thus failing to notice the needs of others. God is orchestrating even these times to drive us to see and serve others. We are called to love our brothers and sisters in Christ. Paul wrote to remind the Galatian church of this same truth. “So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith” (Galatians 6:10). We must act on that trust in Him.
Fourth, God is giving us greater vision for His global mission. The news outlets are saturated
with what is happening in the world. May God use this awareness to foster greater prayer,
giving, and a willingness to go and spread Christ’s gospel to the ends of the earth (2 Corinthians 5:14; Acts 1:18). We must act on that trust in Him.
Fifth, God is exposing our own hearts through kindness and severity in order to bring us to
repentance and greater faith in Jesus. May the Holy Spirit convict us of our own heart idolatry that we have placed undue emphasis on other things rather than God as our treasure. May the Spirit show us the fragility of our own life and the utter dependency we must place on Him.
May God grant us hearts of repentance from our lack of love for Him and others, and instill in
us a tenacity of passionate pursuit of Jesus that is above anything we could think or imagine
(Ephesians 3:20-21). We must act on this trust in Him.
Let us not grow weary, brothers and sisters of Christ Community Church (Galatians 6:9). Let us continue to run this race with our gaze set on Jesus (Hebrews 12:1-2). Let us repent of our sins, trust in God, treasure Jesus and be led by the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-25).
For His Name’s Sake,
Pastor Brian