Letter from From the Pastor’s Desk
There are three great themes that course through the Bible: God’s presence, God’s promise and God’s love. Like the Trinity, when you think of one, you really think of all three. While each individual component can be examined separately, each is so intimately linked with the others that it cannot be conceived alone. That is, God’s presence is His promise of love, which is His nature and effect.
The importance of understanding the three great themes of the Bible and how they work together is that as ambassadors of Christ, we bear two primary responsibilities. The first is to be able to articulate God’s message. The second is to know to whom we speak, i.e. a world that, apart from God, is fundamentally hopeless because it worships the earthly trinity of “me myself and I” rather than the one true God.
In response to the human situation, Jesus concludes the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7), with the parable of the Wise and Foolish Builders. This parable is a classic double story. That is, there are two stories side by side that, taken together, make one message. In this kind of parable, the way to study it is to make two columns. Label one “Similarities” and the other “Differences.” The differences are the options in life. The similarities are the ways things are.
As Jesus tells the story, the wise man builds his house on the rock. A storm batters the house but it stands. The foolish man builds his house on the sand. A storm comes and flattens it. The differences are the choice of foundation and the result. The similarities are that both choose a foundation. Each one builds a house. Both live in their respective house. Finally, each one faces the storm. The point that Jesus is making is that we will all face hardship and difficulties. Some of us will give up hope while some will endure. The determining factor is the foundation of one’s life.
The grand point is that when you choose Christ, the embodiment of God’s presence, promise and love, as the basis for how you live and what you do, the result is that when you face that inevitable storm of life, you can make it through. With Jesus, we always have hope.
If you or someone you encounter is experiencing hopelessness, remember that Jesus is the embodiment of the hope of God. Further, Christ came because God loved world beyond all reason. So know this: no one is ever more than a prayer from being able to stand in the presence of God and to know Jesus as Lord. Jesus came to us that we might know God truly for God is love. This is God’s great promise. Let this be the message of your life.
I wish you peace.
In Christ,
Chris