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Easter Has Passed, but Redemption Is Forever!

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By Jean Mooney

In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us. (Ephesians 1:7-8a, NIV)

I remember so clearly a time in my life when I thought that nothing from my past would ever impact my future. I remember thinking that if I could forget my past and try to calculate or somehow plan my future, then things would be okay, or at least better than they had been from my childhood. If I could just land that perfect job, or have the right opportunity for school, have the perfect car, or meet the perfect girl, etc., then everything would be all right, and my past would be forgotten.

Well, I succeeded with at least one item on my list—I met the perfect girl. And to this day I would not change that for anything!

For a while, I thought everything was going great. I had control over my job, I was excelling in what I did, I met the perfect girl (Geneva), we were starting a life together, and I thought I was forgetting my past. (And most of my friends here at Elim know that I had a very dark past.) Now, everything seemed perfect . . . at least for a little while.

Geneva and I moved in together and started a life. But our pre-marriage “honeymoon” did not last long. Shortly after we moved in together, things got a little bumpy. We conceived a child.

At first, I was extremely excited. This was a new opportunity for me to start a new family and move on from my past. But then the conversation began. I had thought I was happy about the pregnancy, but it soon dawned on me how it would impact our lives. And I was scared. On the one hand, I had no idea of the ramifications of having another child; and on the other, I knew that she did not want to go through with the pregnancy.

We were both trying to save face. I did not want to lose her by pushing to have a child, and at the same time I did not want her to have to face her parents and tell them that she was pregnant out of wedlock. So, I chose to conform. I gave up the fight, and we had an abortion.

There are so many times we find ourselves in a position of not being able to explain where we are at in life or what we are feeling. This easily puts us in a place of compromise: What should I choose? What should I say? What decision should I make? Will I conform, or will I fight? And if we do choose to persevere and fight, how long will we last? How much fight do we have in us? What are our chances of survival? And what are we fighting for?

We so often tend to forget that this is not only “our” fight. We have the greatest Warrior of all time, right there with us. And the fight begins with our choices: “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes” (Ephesians 6:10-11). Paul tells us not simply to be strong, but to “be strong in the Lord.” We don’t put on our OWN armor; Scripture tells us to put on GOD’S armor.

I don’t know about you, but I do not picture God as a very small guy! Yes, I am made in His likeness, but I personally think He is a lot bigger than me. So that makes for a LOT of armor. But God tells us that it’s okay for us to wear it. How empowering! Nothing is too big a fight for God, so if I just accept His will and choose to wear His armor, then nothing can be too big a fight for me.

I look back to 2003 and I do wish that I had never made the decision to conform. For a while I lived in regret and for the most part tried to forget. Then in 2007, after we were finally married, we did try to conceive, but then we had a miscarriage. I thought, Am I being punished? Maybe my sin had caught up to me! The fear and doubt started to take over: How big of a mistake did I make? Will I forever be punished by God for what I did?

But shortly after this, we had Talyana, which was one of the most joyous moments of my life. God’s grace was lavished on me.

I only recently looked for redemption and forgiveness for the choice that I had made in 2003. In our moments of weakness, He is made strong: “But he said to me, my grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9a).

For me, there is no greater story of redemption. My weakness gave way to death. But I can still be redeemed and blessed, and His power can still be made perfect. I have a God who loves me even though I turned my back on Him. I gave up the fight, and Jesus picked it right back up for me and continued to fight for me. He wants to save even me.

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Maybe Christmas, Perhaps…Means a Little Bit More!

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By Dan Amos

I don’t remember much about Christmases as a kid. I know we had a tree and lots of things wrapped under it. We didn’t have a lot in those days, but my mom and my dad, who was expressionless in words, loved us in giving what they could. I think we would open presents in the morning but got to open one on Christmas Eve. But the first Christmas I really remember something specific was probably in the month of April. I may be combining years, but only my mom and sisters could say differently. My dad had been away on an exceptionally long cruise aboard the USS Oriskany operating near Vietnam. He returned in the spring, and we waited to celebrate until he returned home. That “Christmas” morning I found a train set with a five-dollar bill wound up tightly and sticking out of a window of the caboose. The five is gone, but I still have the train set.

When I think of Christmas, I want it to be more than presents and things. Santa has never been anything more than a cartoon for me, but even the nativity is only part of the story. The first two chapters of Matthew and Luke are pretty much all we have telling us the account of Jesus’s birth, but they are packed with world-changing events.

Zechariah, Elizabeth, and John were relatives of Jesus, and John’s birth about six months ahead of Jesus’s birth puts a whole different light on Luke chapter 3 and the ministry of Jesus’s cousin John. This is the John who preached a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. It is the John who would baptize Jesus and kick off his ministry, and John who would be martyred for his faithfulness.

Luke chapter 1 also tells of Mary, the young woman who was visited by an angel and told of her favor with God. She conceived Jesus because “the Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.” A virgin, pledged to be married, but never having been intimate with a man, was pregnant. She lived in a small town in a time when it was unacceptable to be pregnant out of wedlock.

In Matthew chapter 1, we are told of Joseph learning of Mary’s pregnancy and his intent to break ties with her. The angel of the Lord visited Joseph, and he heard of the child Mary would bear. Matthew doesn’t name the angel, but Gabriel was the messenger to Zechariah and to Mary.

Luke chapter 2 tells of the journey to Bethlehem, the birth of Jesus, and the celebration in heaven where the worship spilled over to the Earth. Matthew 2 picks up the story a time later, when the Magi came looking for the king. They had seen a star rise and interpreted it as the sign of a king’s birth. Once in Jerusalem, the star led them to Bethlehem, where it no longer moved.

Herod knew the prophecy of the birth of a king, and when he heard the Magi were looking for him, Herod was scared for his own future. He schemed to get the Magi to lead him to the infant king and sent them to find Him. They did find Jesus and presented Him with the expensive gifts that we all know—gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Then they were warned in a dream not to return to Herod.

Joseph was then warned to take his family to safety in Egypt. When Herod realized the Magi wouldn’t be telling him where to find the infant king, he ordered his men to kill all the boys in Bethlehem who were two years old and under. But Jesus and His family were kept safe in Egypt until Joseph was again told to return home because Herod was dead.

So, Christmas is more than elves and reindeer, presents, family and parties. Christmas is a miraculous working of the Holy Spirit, foretold in Scripture, revealed in events, and it reveals the worst of mankind, politics, trickery, and murder. But in the end, the intricate weaving of events is the stage from which Jesus would be revealed decades later when the other baby of the Christmas story declared, “Behold, the Lamb of God!”

It’s a huge story of intimate local events to global politics and stellar movements. It would be impossible to put together unless you were writing about it from a perspective of knowing the end from the beginning. Matthew and Luke were inspired to write by the Holy Spirit. That’s our God. At the time of our first sin, he already knew the plan of redemption, of how he would fix the mess we made. Jesus, the Lord saves. Merry Christmas!

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A Favorite Verse That is So Much More

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By Dan Amos

Have you ever run across a verse that acts as the proverbial two-by-four upside the head? I can definitely point to Romans 1:20 as an example. I read it. Then I re-read it over and over. I pondered it and printed it out and posted it on my monitor at work. It was such a foundational verse, one that underpins my worldview and helps to explain our current situation.

For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse (Romans 1:20).

This is a verse of incredible hope to me. God created. He’s in control, always has been and always will be. While He has chosen to limit His revelation to us, enough is there that we can know, whether we are a scientist or not. There’s enough evidence to acknowledge His majesty, that we have to actively deny Him to not see it. I see how we are fearfully and wonderfully made and I know that I don’t have the kind of faith to believe inorganic matter spontaneously came alive on its own and overcame entropy to organize into the complex, interdependent organisms that are people.

The rest of the chapter is less hopeful, more instructive as it describes the consequences of our denial:

For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools ( Romans 1: 21-22)

We know the consequences of our sin and that of our ancestors. What was made very good was spoiled. Life became difficult and finite as a result. What we are experiencing today was not part of His plan, but it is redeemable even in the tragedy and loss.

I count myself fortunate and blessed in this time. I am thankful more than ever and for more than before. I have often given thanks for those who serve in our military, law enforcement and medical service. Now, I recognize my gratitude for the truckers, the clerks, the stockers. I am thankful for all those people who make everyday living possible and who continue on today under difficult conditions and often with smiles under their masks. I hope as we return to a new normal, whatever that may be, that we don’t forget how we were served so well by so many.

There are many who are making an extraordinary effort on our behalf. We have Sunday service because of many sacrificially serving. Every week because of people like Lars P. and Gregg Z., we are getting closer and closer connected while physically apart. How wonderful that they are harnessing technology to serve.

And of course the Good News is we are not doomed to condemnation without hope:

But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus (Romans 3:21-24)

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A Life of Forgiveness

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By Kendrick Gilli

On Easter Sunday, Pastor Martin talked about redemption and forgiveness—the perfect sermon for Easter, since these words would not even be in our vocabulary if not for the pain and suffering experienced by our Lord Jesus. As Martin and then Cameron talked about this, I was transported back in time.

God was preparing me for understanding redemption and forgiveness years before I ever came to Him. While I was growing up, I was blessed with the Gilli family, who took me in as one of their own blood. I could tell many stories about my Grandma Gilli, but one that is so vivid in my mind happened when I was about 10. I grew up working the fields by the time I was 9 so that I could afford clothes for school. Being poor is no excuse, but at that age, I was mesmerized by the “large” sums of money that my Grandma Gilli kept in the cigar box from the sales at the fruit stand. Over a period of several weeks, I stole money until I had about $100. This seemed like a fortune to me. It wasn’t until I started to spend the money that she became wise to everything.

My mom wanted to whup my behind, but Grandma Gilli did something crazy. She sat me down and talked to me. In her eyes I saw the pain that I had caused her, not from the loss of money, but from the betrayal. There were consequences, of course, but I remember not exactly what they were, only that betrayal. After this, my Grandma Gilli never spoke of it again. I am sure that everybody watched me carefully for a while, but she never treated me any differently. In that one example, I saw forgiveness, even though I did not know what forgiveness really was until much later in life.

Through the years, I continued to see Grandma Gilli love people and give forgiveness freely. It was these examples that helped mold my own life and my willingness to forgive. When I picture Jesus on that cross, I see those eyes of my Grandma Gilli, filled with sorrow and love, and I feel my heart breaking with all my sins. However, I also remember the redemption. I don’t have to hold on to the guilt and shame, because I am completely and totally forgiven.

On the beach, after the resurrection, Jesus gently reminded Peter of his denial. Jesus did not do this angrily or abrasively; no, He knew that without this conversation, Peter could not become the Rock Jesus intended him to be. Do you need forgiveness for something? How did God work to show you that forgiveness when you needed it most?

Until we are freed from our guilt and shame, we are unable to be fully used by the Lord. Thankfully, we have a God who does not want us stuck in the past, dwelling on our sin. Just as Jesus met Peter where he was and offered him a second chance—no strings attached—He is offering us that as well. Is there some sin or shame that you have been holding on to?

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The Riches of His Grace

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……By Jeff Foerster

In this week’s sermon on the book of Ephesians, Brian Sharpe laid out for us three precepts for living as a redeemed people. They are as follows:

These are good; these are great. But there is a problem: me. I want to make these powerful guidelines simply checklist items to perform and then put away. I might even take out the list daily, but only to make sure I’ve “accomplished” each item. These three points are spot on; the problem is the depth of sin’s corruption in me. I am not as bad as I could be, but every area of my being has been tainted by sin.

Wow, how depressing, right? Stay with me for just a little longer—the solution is lovely.

The other day, while watching a Seahawks game on the tele, I heard a rapping at my door. What should appear before my eyes, but two messengers of slavery. I engaged them in conversation, during which one suggested as a precept that “We are all God’s children, right?” Uh, no—sorry dude. If all people begin as God’s children and then I am promised the right to become a child of God, the foundation of Scripture becomes a wee bit uninspiring, and Jesus’s sacrifice becomes merely symbolic nicety. In truth, we have a default position, judged guilty, and a default destination, everlasting separation from God in Hell.

Okay, I promised “lovely,” but I gave you “Hell”—not without purpose, however. Only the propitiation and expiation of the cross and the resurrection can establish right relationship with God, rescuing us from the penalty of sin. We receive this not by being born in the flesh, but by being born of the Spirit. Only in understanding the depth of our depravity, our foundation in darkness, can we truly appreciate what Christ has done for us in redeeming us from the grave, from death itself! From this perspective, we begin to desire to know of God and to know God, to spend time with this God who becomes our Father, not the One we deserve, but the One we need. We needed saving, and in His abundant generosity, He also gave us a home and a future.

From this position building into desire, longing, we can recognize that sin and Satan have no hold on us, the Bible teaching us that we are born again, into life, and not into the ways of death. When we “walk” by spending time with our God in silence and in speaking, in prayer and petition, while working and while planning, while driving and while shopping, we will have neither time nor inclination to go down the “path of the prostitute.” When in close relationship with our Father, the Lord of all glory, we will clearly see our sin for what it is, our hearts will be broken for it, and we will, in repentance, fall on His mercy and purpose to walk, nay, RUN in the other direction. Simply, success is found in an ongoing relationship with the living God.

I end with Brian’s question: How should knowing we have an inheritance affect the way we live? His answer: take your eyes off the present and place them on the future. Our future is Christ—FOREVER!

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Change in the Making

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By Tom Chase

It’s funny … the older I get, the more reflective I guess I become. I find myself wanting to have lived well. And asking myself if I’ve done so. It can be really easy to get to the place where we come down pretty hard on ourselves. Maybe at times that is warranted — a simple kick in the pants to remind us who we are. However, when we dwell in that self- (or other-) inflicted perspective, that we will never measure up, it can be difficult to move in a positive direction. The great news is that God does not expect us to live in that environment. He is not the source of the condemnation. He does and will convict us, but He does not hold us down with our condemnation.

Romans 8:1 tells us, “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

In Christ, we do not stand condemned!!!

As Ephesians 1:2-14 tells us, in Him we are:

  • Blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ.
  • Chosen before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight.
  • Predestined for adoption (to be his kids) by His pleasure and will.
  • Redeemed through His blood.
  • Forgiven of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace.
  • Grace-lavished people (recipients of God’s abundant grace).
  • Made an insider to the mystery of his will—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.
  • Chosen for the praise of His glory.
  • Marked with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession

All this is to the praise of His glory! In addition, we can remind ourselves of this because He has reminded us that He is not through with us yet.

Philippians 1:6—“Being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”

It is from this perspective that we can be freed to experience God’s changing power and live in the hope He has called us to.  The rest of chapter one of Ephesians tells us of that hope and the amazing power that is available to us.  If you would like, just read it and allow Him to heal the hurts that may be holding you back.

If music speaks to you, one more thing that may encourage you, like it does me, is this song by Addison Road:

“Change in the Making”

There’s a better version of me
That I can’t quite see
But things are gonna change
Right now I’m a total mess and
Right now I’m completely incomplete
But things are gonna change
‘Cause you’re not through with me yet

This is redemption’s story
With every step that I’m taking
Every day, you’re chipping away
What I don’t need
This is me under construction
This is my pride being broken
And every day I’m closer to who I’m meant to be
I’m a change in the making

(for more see link below)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yU2drg8FtBg

Enjoy!

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