In two weeks we will begin together a nine week sermon series through the book of Colossians and I am so excited for what God has for us in this book. Colossians was written to a church on the brink of crisis as complacency and ignorance began to threaten the truth of the gospel. Though it was written some 2,000 years ago, its timeless message addresses issues facing us today.
We live in a day of relativism, where nothing is absolute. Life is subjective and left to each individual’s perception of it. We hear that our hope for life can be whatever we’d like it to be, that all roads will eventually lead to heaven. Colossians shows us that true hope is found in Christ alone. We live in a day of discovery. Technological and scientific advancements are light years ahead of those from just 50 years ago. Anything you want to do or know is just a mouse click away. Colossians shows us that all that satisfies our longings is Christ. We live in a day of brokenness: broken marriages, broken families, and broken relationships. People today are starving for meaning and Colossians gives us meaning. We live in a day of practicality. People aren’t really interested in truth but simply what works for them. They look at Christ practically. Does he really give peace, joy, and hope? Will he give me purpose in this life? Colossians answers those questions with a resounding yes! In our relativistic, advanced, broken, and tangible day, Colossians shows us that Christ is all. In Christ, Nathan
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Psalm 127:3-5 “Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.”
I want to thank everyone for their kind words and notes over the past few days congratulating and welcoming our new baby girl into the world. Faith Nicole was born early Friday morning and she is doing great. Morgan and I have been so blessed. We are thankful to have Oak Crest as our home and to know our children are being brought up by such loving people. When it comes to the birth of your fourth child, you would think it would be a little anticlimactic. You know what to expect, in a sense, so the anticipation of it all should be less. You know what it’s like to hold a new born for the first time so you would think it would be just like holding any other baby. You have so many moments already to cherish with your kids that surely it can’t get any better. But all the anticipation, all the excitement, and all the sweet moments were just as new and as fresh as they were with Lela, Elijah, and Josiah. There is something simply amazing about bringing a new life into this world. Why is that? I think the answer to that question is simple; children are a blessing from the Lord. This truth that we see in Psalm 127 is something we must treasure as the church. We live in a day when children are seen as a burden. Americans go to great extremes to make sure they don’t bring a child into this world. It is so important for us as the church to cherish life. A church that cherishes life is a church that cherishes the gospel. In Christ, Nathan “Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.” Proverbs 19:21
I’m sure all of us had lots of plans last week that were interrupted by the weather. This was the case for me. Our youth had an entire weekend planned for Student Life Conference that we had to cancel. My family had big plans of introducing a little girl into the world. Though this wasn’t impacted by the weather directly, my daughters delay was not on our radar. Life is full of plans but this verse tells us it is the purpose of the Lord that we rely on. As Christians we are at an advantage when it comes to our plans being interrupted. We understand that snow doesn’t fall randomly but that God is in control of the placement of every flake. We understand that the birth of a child isn’t random but that God knew before the creation of the world when each of us would take our first and final breaths. We worship a God who is in control of all things. So we rest in this truth. We rest in the purposes of the Lord. This does not mean that we know why God allows things to happen. It simply means that we know God. We know his character, we know his heart, because he has revealed it to us in his word. This is enough for the believer. As we enter into this time of sabbatical my challenge for each of us is to rest in the purposes of the Lord. We have no idea what the coming days hold. I’m sure we will be surprised by many things but we know that God will not be surprised. He ordained every moment of every coming day before the foundation of the world. Let’s commit together over these coming months to remain steadfast, walk in purity, and rest in the Lord’s purposes. In Christ, Nathan |
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December 2015
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