The Rev. Thomas Nibbe
Sunday, May 16, 2021 @ 11:00 a.m.
“…therefore it is necessary to choose one of the men whohave been with us the whole time the Lord Jesus was livingwith us, beginning from John’s baptism to the time when Jesuswas taken up from us, for one of these must become a witnesswith us of His resurrection…” (Acts 1:21-22)
“…so they nominated two men: Joseph called Barsabbas (alsoknown as Justus) and Matthias. Then they prayed, ‘Lord, you know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two you have chosen to take over this apostolic ministry, which Judas left to go where he belongs.’ Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias…so he was added to the eleven disciples…” (Acts 1:23-26)
“…that person is like a tree planted by streams of waterwhich yields its fruit in season…and whose leaf does notwither…whatever they do prospers…” [Anonymous] (Psalm 1:3)
“…as I would not be a slave…so…I would not be a master…” [Abraham Lincoln]
“…this is the One who came by water and the blood—Jesus Christ.He did not come by water only, but by water and blood…and it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth…for there are three that testify: the Spirit, the water, and the blood…and the three are in agreement. We accept human testimony, but God’s testimony is greater because it is the testimony of God which He has given about His son…”(1 John 5:9-13)
“…sanctify them by the truth…your Word is truth…as you sent meinto the world…I have sent them into the world…for them I sanctifymyself, that they, too, may be truly sanctified…” [Jesus] (John 17:6-19)
the message
Grace and peace in the Lord Jesus to you and yours this precious dayand always! It is such a privilege to share the priceless perspectives and views of the Holy Bible. They are life-giving for us as we continueto be challenged day by day in a very real world, with sure words andguidance for heart, soul, and mind. May the good Lord continue toenfold you in His love and protection. Take Jesus along with you today.
I invite you to join me in prayer this morning…
Lord, let us step forward in our lives with courage and sufficient powerto take on the day, but put that all important “hedge of protection” withinand around us. We praise you in advance for providing all we need thisday to perform, outdo ourselves, and prosper. We will continue to giveyou the praise in both pleasant or unpleasant circumstances. We give you thanks and praise in advance for all that befalls us with peacefulhearts. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
the message
How confused we become when it comes to placing value upon things, experiences, and events that happen in our lives. It’s so easy to imagine we accomplished more than we did, or less…
We sometimes think about these as we evaluate our experience as followers of Jesus and as active members in our church. Were we worth the Lord’s effort? How we wish we could do more… something always stands in the way. How we, at times, think of how shoddy our performance may have been in this or that instance…whether it was or not. How we wish sometimes we could do things over. How we wish we could cover over recurrent thoughts of past mistakes…and, also, on the other hand, how often, we are able to polish up re-imaging accomplishments of sorts from the past, only to be brought down to earth, by sensing, without obsessing…
“all of our deeds are but filthy rags”
before God’s watchful eyes. (It’s strange how this phase can at times be a comfort for us. It’s not about what we accomplish in order toplacate God. It’s about who we know and trust.) How we wish at times we had more energy to serve Christ, commit to greater challenges, and also have the personal grace to deal with others while doing so.
I want to affirm what the commentary I’m reading says about my relationship with Jesus…
“…whoever believes in God’s Son has eternal life…”
When I think about eternal life, I think about perfection all around me, forever bliss, and magnificent glory…to thrust away every single touch or dab of negativity and heartfelt yearning of the soul. Above all, I think of a place where there is no stress when I think of heaven.
What is the point Jesus is making in regard to the relationship of faith,of belief, to eternal life?
It’s so easy to over-estimate or under-estimate our accomplishmentsin life. It’s so easy to miss the mark in terms of evaluating our personalworth and sense of success in life. It’s so very easy to get stressed out while attempting to live a daily life that manifests personal joy and personal deep-seated peace.
Whoever believes in Jesus has eternal life in the here and now. In Himwe have all we need. We don’t need to “wait” for eternal life becauseit begins the moment we believe. We don’t need to work for it becauseit is already ours. We don’t need to worry about it because God Himselfhas given it to us and has place His seal of guarantee upon it.
I would suggest that the life in Christ involving great effort is about havinggood feelings about yourself…and as the Scriptures point out…that ourefforts in behalf of Jesus are never in vain. You deal with what comes about—having done your best. Human perfection doesn’t seem to be ahuge advantage in the Bible I read. Your best with your whole heart issufficient. If I am wrong in this, please make sure to correct me now.
I have a thought that makes sense to me. Often, we get the notion thatstress is thrust upon us. Well, the Bible seems to say that God is notgoing to give you more than you can handle. At times in my life I havequestioned that…and I know that you have done the same. Stress willalways be part of life, but you and I have the habit of…adding on!!!We place more of a burden upon ourselves than God would ever require!
Come on! Get off of the treadmill!
Take things as they come. Trust in God’s Word. Take one thing at a time.Be aware that you may be thinking you have to take something on thatyou don’t have to take on. Your life in Jesus is not about taking on morethan what is humanly possible. Your efforts in Jesus are not about beingabsolutely perfect—because no human being is perfect—and besides—and I often emphasize this…no perfect people are going to heaven!The reason for this…is…there are no perfect people. The Lord knows youquite well (it’s surprising, it’s sometimes frightening how insightful) andwill never give you more than you can handle, more than would giveyou a great deal of personal satisfaction. Find out what is unnecessary.
We add on stress when we feel we haven’t done enough. We add onstress when we take on more than we know we can do. We add onstress when we try to emulate past perfect performances (that neverever really occurred in the first place). We add on stress when we areso focused upon personal perfection that personal excellence takesa back seat. You and I are meant to excel as we receive all the giftsGod gives to us when we surrender to Him. My platoon commanderin Quantico (Marine Corps Schools) once whispered in my Christianear (he somehow knew I was one) in a challenging moment of training…
“…there is no failure with God…”
Let Go and Let God!
It’s the power and compassion of the Lord that gives us all we needto be the person we were meant to be…and the person we know weare…go ahead and surprise all the folks at church and at work bydazzling them with your excellent performance and resilient personality.When you do things “the easy way” in Jesus that excellence and resilience will be accompanied by your attractive attributes of personal joy and deep-seated peace.
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