We live in a world that sometimes seems to be spinning out of control. From severe illness to climate disaster, broken relationships to armed conflict, not to mention our own bad decisions, it can feel like everything’s stacked against us. Many of us are looking for something positive, something beautiful, some kind of good news.
Allow me to share with you the hope and beauty found in the best news we could receive. And to do that, we should start at the beginning, with God Himself.
What does this mean for you?
From the beginning, God’s creative genius was on display. We experience this in the complexity of life and the beauty of creation around us every day. And that creativity included relationships, both between humans and with our Creator. We weren’t just made by Him, we were meant to know Him and be known and loved by Him. [Genesis 1-2]
Unfortunately, we all struggle to trust God, or in some cases even believe He exists at all. And as we ignore Him, things begin to fall apart. [Genesis 3] Our relationships with our Creator, people and even creation itself are damaged, and we all experience this damage in different ways, even to death. Where are the hope and beauty we long for? Where is God?
While it would be fair and just for God to turn His back on us too, He made a promise [Genesis 3:15]. Someone would make things right again. He repeated that promise in different ways through different people over time as many believed Him and watched and waited. And that promise was ultimately met by someone called Jesus.
Jesus was no ordinary man, but God Himself present with us. [John 1:1-18] He showed us what it means to live and love perfectly, even in a broken world. He demonstrated control over creation, giving glimpses of restoration along the way. He was willing to be fully damaged Himself, giving His own life to make amends for the damage we've done. And He came out of the grave 3 days later, proving definitively He is God, full of life and promise of a fully restored world to come.
What does this mean for you?
Jesus gave up everything to prove His love and show us He’s trustworthy. Now God calls us to turn away from every other thing we think we can trust and every thought or behavior that harms us and dishonors Him. Instead, you can turn to Jesus, trusting Him as Lord and Savior, the one who lived the perfect life you couldn't and loved you enough to die for you, all so anyone who believes Him could experience new life and repaired relationship with Him forever. [John 3:16-18] Ask His forgiveness for ignoring Him, and thank Him for the grace and love and mercy He’s so willing to give.If you truly trust Jesus Christ as Lord, I praise God with you! If this is all new for you, here are some next steps:
➤ Find a Bible believing church with a clear focus on Jesus to serve and worship in community with other Christians. [Hebrews 10:24-25]
(We recommend Acts 29, Sovereign Grace or similar. The Gospel Coalition or 9 Marks directories may also help. In St. Louis? Check out Chatham Bible Church or The Journey Family of Churches.)
➤ Get baptized in water, expressing your faith in and obedience to Jesus. [Acts 2:38]
➤ Get to know God's story in the Bible. [2 Timothy 3:16-17] (Try starting with John's Gospel.)
➤ Speak to the Lord in prayer. [1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, Philippians 4:6-7] He really is listening.
➤ Tell others who Jesus is and what He's doing. [Matthew 28:18-20]
The Lord will use all these things to help you grow in your
relationship with Him as Jesus becomes the most important Person in your
life through good and bad [John 16:33], and knowing Him the greatest desire of your heart. [Mark 12:30, Psalm 37:4]
Stop by the Know more page for tools to help you better understand God and His Word, and feel free to reach out with questions or prayer needs.
Also, before you go, here's a quick video you might find helpful. Enjoy!
