"Here I Am!I stand at the door and knock.
If anyone hears My voice
and opens the door,
I will come in and eat with that person,
and they with Me."
+ Jesus
(Revelation 3:20)
From January to June this year, I have had the joy of spending time with young people connected to Emmaus City Church, engaging the Scriptures with them alongside one of my favorite reflections on God called Deep Down Faith by Cornelius Plantinga Jr.
"Here I Am!
And this is our final post, a recap of the road we've walked on together along with an invitation to keep learning and to keep opening our minds, hearts, and lives to Jesus.
Opening the Door to Jesus
(Again and Again)
Opening the Door to Jesus
(Again and Again)
The Spirit ...opens our hearts to God's voice.
Charles Lamb once said that if Shakespeare were to walk into a room, we would all rise to our feet. But if Jesus Christ were to come in, we'd all fall to our knees. For He is our Lord. And it is He who knocks.
For months, we have been exploring Christ and the Christian faith. There are many who believe what we've read is true and that it continues to be important for us to learn. But most of it is information.
You do need information
to be a maturing Christian,
but you also need more.
You need a Savior ...
You need the Christ.
You need the Person
who knocks.
Nothing in this book finally matters, in fact, unless you get up and open that door. You need to give in and give up. You need to lift up your head and open the everlasting door. And the King of glory will come in.
7 Lift up your heads,
O you gates!
O you gates!
O you gates!
And be lifted up,
you everlasting doors!
And the King of glory shall come in.
8 Who is this King of glory?
The Lord strong and mighty,
The Lord mighty in battle.
9 Lift up your heads, O you gates!
Lift up, you everlasting doors!
And the King of glory shall come in.
10 Who is this King of glory?
The Lord of hosts,
He is the King of glory.
+ Psalm 24:7-10
Prayer Starter
It has always been like this. The disciples of Jesus Christ were like us in this way. For instance, they had heard with their ears the prediction of Jesus' resurrection. Maybe they half-believed these words. And maybe the words didn't mean much to them. But then, on Easter morning, in a meeting that must have stopped their hearts, the disciples meet the risen Lord. They saw Him. And they knew Him.
Even if you've already answered that knock and opened the door, it's good to occasionally re-invite Jesus into your life. Do that in your own words now or use this simple prayer:
Come in, Lord Christ,
and make Your home in me.
Amen.
Experiencing Faith in Your Life
The Spirit renews our hearts
and moves us to faith,
leads us into truth
and helps us to pray,
stands by us in our need
and makes our obedience
fresh and vibrant.
+ Our World Belongs to God 29
Many of the things we read and discussed may have seemed empty to you — just words, just marks on paper that lack real meaning. We've been trying to describe and understand the Christian faith, including repentance, the cross, and the wonder of God's grace. We've introduced interest in Jesus' Church, in the covenant, in the Kingdom of God. But we all may have found some of what's been read and studied to be empty or puzzling or boring.
But we also know that if you keep on in the faith, much of what you've learned will come alive for you sooner or later. This can happen unexpectedly. You might one day be low and guilty and weak because of some foolish sin. You then experience the love of God that comes for us exactly when we are low and guilty and weak. You learn by experience the meaning of grace.
Or perhaps you join with others in a summer workshop or other service project and find, to your amazement, that you are enjoying the work, that it is important to you, and that you feel like a part of a great, living body. "Church" takes on new meaning for you.
We can hear with the hearing of ears.
One day, in the grace of God,
we shall see.
Prayer Starter
Ask God to make your faith
more than just words or knowledge
— to make it really come alive to you
through your daily experiences.
Receiving, Keeping & Giving Trust
Remember, we began with God,
as all proper religion does.
We wanted to know
who God is
and
how God speaks and acts.
Then we thought about ourselves and
our need for a Savior.
We studied the human tragedy
of the fall and what came from it.
We discovered God's
surprising rescue arrangement
— a covenant of grace.
In the heart of Deep Down Faith,
we looked at our way
out of the mess caused by sin.
We wanted to know how God
has been at work to provide salvation,
to salvage and to save.
We were reminded of
who Christ is
and
what saving work He does.
We saw how the Holy Spirit
makes the work "take" in us, and
we talked about justification,
faith, repentance, and sanctification.
Within sanctification itself
we studied
the role of law and prayer.
We also saw how
God organizes His people for nourishment
and for
doing His work in the world.
That is, we learned something
about the Church, the sacraments,
and the Kingdom of God.
And in the end
we have been studying how
history will end and
what the new heaven and
the new earth will be like.
With all of the above, you've been entrusted with the most valuable trust anyone ever has. Some of you have been blessed by parents who promised at your baptism to raise you to love the Lord. Others may have been blessed by church members who prayed for you and taught you the faith as you matured. You may have been blessed by siblings, by relatives, friends, teachers, and/or pastors. If you were so blessed, then all of these — and perhaps others, too — have been handing over the trust of Jesus Christ to you.
Without trust and reasons to trust and things handed over in trust, human life would be terrifying. It would also be hopeless and godless to have no one or nothing to trust. And the most valuable thing ever handed over in trust is the knowledge of Jesus Christ and His good news of salvation for us. Without this knowledge of rescue, redemption, and restoration, the world becomes a maze for us to figure out on our own so we can try to rescue ourselves alone.
Faith in Jesus is a treasure of a trust.
And God entrusts this treasured faith to youto keep and to give to others.
And all of us in Jesus' Church
get to keep giving this
invaluable faith to others.
For Reflection
In what ways has the Christian faith
been "handed over in trust" to you?
Who has God used to pass the faith
along to you?
Prayer Starter
Ask God to make you a
good receiver, keeper, and giver
of the Good News of Jesus Christ.
+ Deep Down Faith,pgs. 248-255
Next Post:
May God's Kingdom come, His will be done.Que le Royaume de Dieu vienne, que sa volonté soit faite.愿神的国降临，愿神的旨意成就。Nguyện xin Nước Chúa đến, ý Ngài được nên.Jesús nuestra Rey, venga Tu reino! 🙏💗🍞🍷👑🌅🌇
With anticipation and joy,
Rev. Mike “Sully” Sullivan
Charles Lamb once said that if Shakespeare were to walk into a room, we would all rise to our feet. But if Jesus Christ were to come in, we'd all fall to our knees. For He is our Lord. And it is He who knocks.
For months, we have been exploring Christ and the Christian faith. There are many who believe what we've read is true and that it continues to be important for us to learn. But most of it is information.
You do need information
to be a maturing Christian,
but you also need more.
You need a Savior ...
You need the Christ.
You need the Person
who knocks.
Nothing in this book finally matters, in fact, unless you get up and open that door. You need to give in and give up. You need to lift up your head and open the everlasting door. And the King of glory will come in.
7 Lift up your heads,
O you gates!
O you gates!
O you gates!
And be lifted up,
you everlasting doors!
And the King of glory shall come in.
8 Who is this King of glory?
The Lord strong and mighty,
The Lord mighty in battle.
9 Lift up your heads, O you gates!
Lift up, you everlasting doors!
And the King of glory shall come in.
10 Who is this King of glory?
The Lord of hosts,
He is the King of glory.
+ Psalm 24:7-10
Prayer Starter
It has always been like this. The disciples of Jesus Christ were like us in this way. For instance, they had heard with their ears the prediction of Jesus' resurrection. Maybe they half-believed these words. And maybe the words didn't mean much to them. But then, on Easter morning, in a meeting that must have stopped their hearts, the disciples meet the risen Lord. They saw Him. And they knew Him.
Even if you've already answered that knock and opened the door, it's good to occasionally re-invite Jesus into your life. Do that in your own words now or use this simple prayer:
Come in, Lord Christ,
and make Your home in me.
Amen.
Experiencing Faith in Your Life
The Spirit renews our hearts
and moves us to faith,
leads us into truth
and helps us to pray,
stands by us in our need
and makes our obedience
fresh and vibrant.
+ Our World Belongs to God 29
Many of the things we read and discussed may have seemed empty to you — just words, just marks on paper that lack real meaning. We've been trying to describe and understand the Christian faith, including repentance, the cross, and the wonder of God's grace. We've introduced interest in Jesus' Church, in the covenant, in the Kingdom of God. But we all may have found some of what's been read and studied to be empty or puzzling or boring.
But we also know that if you keep on in the faith, much of what you've learned will come alive for you sooner or later. This can happen unexpectedly. You might one day be low and guilty and weak because of some foolish sin. You then experience the love of God that comes for us exactly when we are low and guilty and weak. You learn by experience the meaning of grace.
Or perhaps you join with others in a summer workshop or other service project and find, to your amazement, that you are enjoying the work, that it is important to you, and that you feel like a part of a great, living body. "Church" takes on new meaning for you.
We can hear with the hearing of ears.
One day, in the grace of God,
we shall see.
Prayer Starter
Ask God to make your faith
more than just words or knowledge
— to make it really come alive to you
through your daily experiences.
Receiving, Keeping & Giving Trust
Remember, we began with God,
as all proper religion does.
We wanted to know
who God is
and
how God speaks and acts.
Then we thought about ourselves and
our need for a Savior.
We studied the human tragedy
of the fall and what came from it.
We discovered God's
surprising rescue arrangement
— a covenant of grace.
In the heart of Deep Down Faith,
we looked at our way
out of the mess caused by sin.
We wanted to know how God
has been at work to provide salvation,
to salvage and to save.
We were reminded of
who Christ is
and
what saving work He does.
We saw how the Holy Spirit
makes the work "take" in us, and
we talked about justification,
faith, repentance, and sanctification.
Within sanctification itself
we studied
the role of law and prayer.
We also saw how
God organizes His people for nourishment
and for
doing His work in the world.
That is, we learned something
about the Church, the sacraments,
and the Kingdom of God.
And in the end
we have been studying how
history will end and
what the new heaven and
the new earth will be like.
With all of the above, you've been entrusted with the most valuable trust anyone ever has. Some of you have been blessed by parents who promised at your baptism to raise you to love the Lord. Others may have been blessed by church members who prayed for you and taught you the faith as you matured. You may have been blessed by siblings, by relatives, friends, teachers, and/or pastors. If you were so blessed, then all of these — and perhaps others, too — have been handing over the trust of Jesus Christ to you.
Without trust and reasons to trust and things handed over in trust, human life would be terrifying. It would also be hopeless and godless to have no one or nothing to trust. And the most valuable thing ever handed over in trust is the knowledge of Jesus Christ and His good news of salvation for us. Without this knowledge of rescue, redemption, and restoration, the world becomes a maze for us to figure out on our own so we can try to rescue ourselves alone.
And God entrusts this treasured faith to you
And all of us in Jesus' Church
get to keep giving this
invaluable faith to others.
In what ways has the Christian faith
been "handed over in trust" to you?
Who has God used to pass the faith
along to you?
Prayer Starter
Ask God to make you a
good receiver, keeper, and giver
of the Good News of Jesus Christ.
+ Deep Down Faith,
pgs. 248-255
Next Post:
May God's Kingdom come, His will be done.
Que le Royaume de Dieu vienne,
que sa volonté soit faite.
愿神的国降临，愿神的旨意成就。
Nguyện xin Nước Chúa đến, ý Ngài được nên.
Jesús nuestra Rey, venga Tu reino!
🙏💗🍞🍷👑🌅🌇
With anticipation and joy,
Rev. Mike “Sully” Sullivan
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