1 Corinthians 2:1-10
You'll remember, friends, that when I first came to you to let you in on God's master stroke, I didn't try to impress you with polished speeches and the latest philosophy. I deliberately kept it plain and simple: first Jesus and who he is; then Jesus and what he did—Jesus crucified.
I was unsure of how to go about this, and felt totally inadequate—I was scared to death, if you want the truth of it—and so nothing I said could have impressed you or anyone else. But the Message came through anyway. God's Spirit and God's power did it, which made it clear that your life of faith is a response to God's power, not to some fancy mental or emotional footwork by me or anyone else.
We, of course, have plenty of wisdom to pass on to you once you get your feet on firm spiritual ground, but it's not popular wisdom, the fashionable wisdom of high-priced experts that will be out-of-date in a year or so. God's wisdom is something mysterious that goes deep into the interior of his purposes. You don't find it lying around on the surface. It's not the latest message, but more like the oldest—what God determined as the way to bring out his best in us, long before we ever arrived on the scene. The experts of our day haven't a clue about what this eternal plan is. If they had, they wouldn't have killed the Master of the God-designed life on a cross.
That's why we have this Scripture text:
No one's ever seen or heard anything like this,
Never so much as imagined anything quite like it—
What God has arranged for those who love him.
But you've seen and heard it because God by his Spirit has brought it all out into the open before you.
Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved.
I hadn’t really planned on watching the television coverage of singer Whitney Houston’s funeral, but as the hour drew near for the service to begin, I found myself listening to the choirs sing before the service began. The atmosphere of worship was so palpable that I could do nothing else. In the old-fashioned gospel music, the message rang loud and clear… that God loves each of us, regardless of our station in life. One person Tweeted the following… “look @ God! turning a time of grief and sorrow into one of worship, praise and celebration for ALL the world to see. amen.”
Celebrities truly are not born any different than the rest of us. Many grow up in ordinary circumstances… some grow up “in the church. More than a few have overcome incredible obstacles in their lives… poverty, abuse, addictions, illness. Sadly, some are overcome by these afflictions – even those who grew up learning about God. If you have ever known someone who struggled with addiction and other “life challenges,” you may have asked, “How could this happen? I thought they knew God!”
Here is the message of this passage for me – and you – today. Life is often messy. As I have shared in recent days, our heart often knows what God wants us to do… but the minute we seem to get on track, sin comes along to trip us up and try to knock us down. If you don’t believe that Satan has power, you’re living in a dream world! The key thing to understand is that God is more powerful. So yes, someone can love God and deeply desire to serve Him… yet struggle with addictions, financial troubles, illness (physical and/or mental), and much more. It doesn’t change God’s love for this person… it doesn’t change the fact that God’s “master stroke” in sending Jesus to die on the cross for our sins includes those who struggle, also. Let’s be honest, our “sins” may not be as public… our struggles and failures as familiar to the masses… but they are just as profound… and just as forgiven, if we have called on Jesus to save us.
In his funeral remarks, Pastor T.D. Jakes reminded us that “Love is stronger than death” – GOD’s love. He noted that it looks like death won again… but 2000 years ago, Jesus showed us that His love is greater than death. And that is what we must remember today. Many of us have experienced grief over the death of someone who left us far too soon… but this was not because death won… or that God removed His love from us. This is the mysterious part… how - and when - GOD sometimes loves us enough to call us to Him and remove us from the challenges we are facing on this earth.
The message is simple, pure, and everlasting… God is love… He loved us long before we were formed, and His plans for us are perfect and amazing. And while we mourn the passing of those who have left us – whether their life struggles were quite visible and public, or they appeared to “have it all together” – we celebrate that God is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Through His spirit, God is able to use even a service of mourning to celebrate all that He is able to do in and through us. We may never know how God will use this worldwide public broadcast of a funeral service for His glory… but we must never underestimate the power of God to get His message to those who need to hear it.
To God be the glory for blessing Whitney Houston with such amazing talent. May He comfort her now as she rests in His arms… and may He comfort those who grieve her passing. More importantly, may He “turn a time of grief and sorrow into one of worship, praise and celebration for ALL the world to see.” In the midst of this public tragedy, may others come to know the amazing love and power of a relationship with the God who loves us so mysteriously… and completely.
©2012 Debbie Robus
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