Friday, February 7, 2014
EPIPHANY (AH HA!) MOMENTS = IT'S ABOUT WHO SHOWS UP
My eighth grade year my mom finally allowed me to play football at Armstrong/Cooper High School (our local activities headquarters). I was pretty excited to say the least. Until I got to the practices. I wouldn't say the coach made it unbearably tough, but practices weren't the "fun" that I imagined. Because of that I was usually tempted not to go. But even at that age I knew (as both my parents also reminded me), that if I didn't go to practice I wouldn't learn the offense or defense. I wouldn't know how to work with the team. And I most certainly wouldn't have a very good relationship with the coach. And that was just a sport!
Showing up is not just important, it is absolutely critical. That's true of an athlete, student, soldier, or even a "god." Our Lord knows this well. Even after the fall into sin of Adam and Eve, God the Father continued to "show up" and raise His disobedient children as He still does today. Talk about patience!
Even when He knew what would happen, God the Son -- Jesus Christ -- showed up at the Garden of Gethsemane to willingly go to His death on the cross for our sins! Talk about love!
At Pentecost, God the Spirit showed up and gave the twelve apostles exactly what Jesus had promised He would -- the encouragement and tools they needed to share the Word of God with the whole world. Talk about support!
That same triune God stands ready to reveal the mysteries of the Holy Scriptures to us also. His desire is to strengthen the muscles of our faith with His Word and to get us ready for the daily battle against overwhelming temptations. Therefore, I most certainly *need* a growing relationship with this one and only Divine Coach! A Coach who always shows up!
God's Third Commandment is pretty clear. "Remember the Sabbath Day, to keep it holy." Going to church may be tough. Whether it is getting up Sunday morning or trudging through the snow. It might not always be the "fun" that we thought it should be. But it is certainly necessary for our training, for our "instruction in righteousness" as 2 Timothy 3:16 says. And it's not just the training in righteousness or holiness of God-pleasing living, but it is being instructed in the righteousness of Christ's sacrifice that was graciously and freely given to all by His blood, sweat, and tears! That's why the Word of God lovingly encourages and emphasizes, "BLESSED are those who hear the Word of God and treasure it!" (Luke 11:28).
