By Pastor Kevin Barnhart
Spring Grove Evangelical Free
Before the sun rose in the east, before the land began to stir before others were awake and before His day of ministering, traveling, and teaching began to dominate the minutes and moments Jesus woke and went to the mountain to pray. What it must have been like to be one with the Father living in heaven and now feeling the hot sand on His feet, the irritation of hunger, the tears of loss, the frustrations found in leaving the heavenly throne to human hand … I can’t even begin to fathom this.
We go through these times, times of ebbing and flowing with deep profound connection with God to times where we barely can fit Him in. Nevertheless, in the chasm of distance that can be created when we don’t find time erosion of our soul will inevitably come crashing in. We were made by God, and we were made for God. Some of us realize this and some rebel against it but the truth of the statement remains. All of us were created by God and all of us were created with hearts, hands and heads that were made FOR God. We were ALL created in His image.
Life is full of distractions, deadlines, pains, sorrows, selfish behaviors, and the erroneous mindset of independence. We don’t need anything, just pull up your bootstraps and get to work! Nike told us “Just do it.” We often believe this or at least are willing to die trying. But … Jesus says we cannot; not on our own.
Then the question becomes “does this please God?” Do my words, my heart, my actions, my choices please God? Who am I modeling my life after, who dictates where I am going, my daily decisions, my needs, wants, how I speak? Does my family get to decide that? Do the ads on TV get to tell me what matters? How about my friends? Who gets to be the King of my heart, the Master of my moments, the Shepherd of my soul? Well, if not these people maybe it is ME?
You were created to worship the creator not the created. But since the fall, since sin entered Eden, we have been tempted, tried, and failing at doing this well. We are pulled towards the created. Towards our need for independence, selfishness, towards houses, cars, important jobs, degrees, medals, towards money and all that the world has to offer. But God offers us something more. He offers His Joy, His peace, His love, His heart, His blood … in Him is eternal life. Given your reality, given mine-given life as we know it would you like some of that?
We can’t make it there if we hold onto this world. We can’t be image bearers of God and reflections of Jesus if our hearts are steeped in this world. We need to set our eyes on HIM, not just once but every moment of every day. We need to spend time with Him, to pray, to fall to our knees, to surrender, to loosen our deadly grip on the Me (ness) of our hearts and make room for the King to reign. Will this make Jesus happy? It is so simple and yet so challenging to actually do.
Let me ask you this: when your spouse locks eyes with you after dinner on a Friday night, or when your child runs up and hugs you after school, when your parents send you off to college, when you come to the end of your earthly days who do you want to reflect? This world, your mom, your dad, your sports hero, a famous singer? Or do you want to lock eyes with the ones who know you and love you and hear them say: do you know who you remind me of: Jesus. No, not perfectly but as Gary Thomas once put it – should there not be at least a family resemblance?
True we cannot be perfect, but we can die trying!
Lock eyes with the Savior, scrape the maggots off your soul and remove the poison of this world, allow God to change you. You are in fact HIS, a chip off the old family block! And what better than to get to heaven and hear the Father say, “Just a chip off the old block! Well DONE!”
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