Journey to The Journey

Using words like bold, fearless and audacious to describe Jesus' interactions with Jewish opposition simply are not sufficient. He went way beyond those descriptive terms. We just don't have the words to describe his relentless obedience to the one who sent him. This Sunday we'll see Jesus take his damning accusations towards his opposition to an entirely new level.

Taking jabs at the popular "Left Behind" series has become the norm in many Christian circles. I'm anticipating these doctrinal jabs to intensify at the reboot of this movie that will star Nicolas Cage in 2014 (not even joking, click here and see for yourself). Whether you think "Left Behind" is deserving of all the bad mouthing, doctrinally flawed or not, you wouldn't want to base your eschatological position off of a novel would you? No...

"Christ, the light of the world, is for us as well as for others, if we humbly follow Him, cast our souls on Him, and become His disciples. Let us not, like thousands, waste our lives in doubting and arguing and reasoning, but simply follow. The child that says, 'I will not learn anything till I know something' will never learn at all. The man that says, 'I must first understand everything before I become a Christian' will die in his sins. Let us begin by 'following' and then we shall find light." - J.C. Ryle

We're on to a NEW chapter in John's Gospel this Sunday. However, this chapter comes with a bit of a twist, that being John 7:53-8:11 may or may not have been written by John and part of the original text. Disputes over this passage aren't anything new but leave us trying to decide if it belongs in this gospel.

I'm a little giddy about the passage that I get to preach on this Sunday. This climactic moment that takes place with Jesus at the feast of booths is probably my favorite event in John up to this point. The celebratory meaning behind the last day of this festival combined with Christ's BOLD pronouncement give us striking details as to how the Old Testament points to Jesus as the messiah.

The opposition to Jesus' ministry in Chapter 7 of John is beginning to gain serious traction in their efforts to silence Jesus. However, it's a wonderful and mysterious truth that they will accomplish nothing until God permits it. While it's a concept we can't come close to wrapping our feeble minds around, the sovereignty of God offers the believer great hope and peace in the midst of any circumstance.

Pastor Tripp not only has an amazing mustache but does an effective job of communicating the challenges of being a pastor and the pitfalls that we're all prone too in ministry. At times I felt like I was being punched in the gut but what this book continuously reminded me of was how much I need to cling to the sufficiency of God's grace as I lead, there is no substitute.

Sunday morning we'll see the tension and opposition to Christ's ministry continue to build as we walk through John 7:1-24. In the midst of turmoil Christ's commitment to truth and obedience is something that should grasp our intention and inspire us. Though those around him continually proposed other routes to glory Jesus' obedience to the Father is unwavering.

The Arminian verses Calvinism debate, around and around it goes but when it ends we actually do know, when Jesus comes back. I'm personally fascinated with reformed theology and have thoroughly enjoyed numerous reformed theologians and their encouraging resources. However, discussions on biblical truth can often be (perhaps inevitably) met with intense hostility, especially with brothers and sisters in the faith. How are we going to deal with these situations when they happen? Can we do anything to prevent them?

When offensive biblical truths are faithfully taught some people will simply not accept it. The rejection of truth is then always followed by complaining. People often react to biblical truth in this way and we have a perfect example of such a scenario here before us in John's gospel (John 6:52-70).