“Then he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know the man.” And immediately the rooster crowed.” – Matthew 26:74

In the moment of crisis, Peter failed horribly. He was so afraid of being found out as a follower of Jesus that he called down God’s curse upon himself, lying to escape danger. Yet mere weeks later he would stare down the leaders of his nation, embrace beatings and imprisonments, and embark on a life of constant danger that would ultimately lead to his own death. What happened?

First, Jesus forgave his betrayal and restored him. When we fail Christ, there is always hope. In Christ we aren’t defined by failure, but by Christ in us. Christ stands ready to forgive and restore us to service even after the worst betrayal.

Second, Peter received the Holy Spirit. The presence of God’s Spirit living in him utterly changed Peter from a boastful coward to a humble giant who would lead the Jesus movement in its formative years. In his own strength, Peter was literally afraid of a servant girl. In the strength of the Holy Spirit, Peter was no longer held back by his fear.

If you’re a follower of Jesus Christ, that same Spirit of boldness and power lives within you! The Holy Spirit comes upon us the moment we commit our lives to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. We live in a fearful age in which we often define ourselves by what we can’t do. But since you have the same Spirit of God Peter had, you need to understand you’re actually defined by the presence of God within you, not by any limitations imposed by yourself or the world. You’re empowered to go far beyond your own capabilities. While fear may always gnaw at your heart, God’s Spirit enables you to break through that fear.

#FOLLOWJESUS

NOTE: While Pastor Brian is on sabbatical, we offer this devotional which was originally published on February 11, 2020.

“And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.’” – Matthew 26:27-28

In the Bible, covenants are ratified by the shedding of innocent blood. In Hebrew, to make a covenant is literally to “cut” a covenant. The blood of animals was shed when God covenanted with Abraham and when He later covenanted with Israel. Jesus came to cut a new covenant between Holy God and sinful mankind. Jesus came to offer His blood for a new covenant of grace and forgiveness for sins that is freely given to everyone who believes in Him.

Like every biblical covenant, this new covenant required innocent blood to be shed. Jesus offered that blood Himself. It was His sinless life that was sacrificed and His holy blood that was shed on the cross to establish a new covenant free of the Law and founded on God’s amazing grace and mercy toward us. The cup of the Lord’s Supper is a vivid, visible, tangible reminder and proclamation of Christ’s sacrificial death on our behalf and why He gave Himself to that death. The cup engages our senses to deepen our awareness of the cost of our freedom and forgiveness.

Rejoice in what Jesus did for you in making Himself the sacrificial lamb cut for your covenant of rightstanding before God. Rejoice and remember. Thank you, Lord Jesus!

#FOLLOWJESUS

NOTE: While Pastor Brian is on sabbatical, we offer this devotional which was originally published on March 8, 2022.

“The heart of man plans his way,
but the Lord establishes his steps.”
– Proverbs 16:9

2020 has certainly reminded us that while our plans might be great plans, we don’t control the world! Fortunately God is a sovereign God who providentially rules the universe down to the tiniest detail. We can trust that He works all things for the good of those who love Him. We can also trust that He is all-knowing, all-wise, all-powerful, and all-good.

Thus we can cope during strange and painful times in the certain knowledge that while we may not understand the why’s or the how’s, we can rest in God’s sovereignty. This brings us back to our ever-changing plans. Planning is helpful and we should be people who plan. But we must also understand that as followers of Christ we serve a sovereign God who may confirm our plans or redirect us completely at a moment’s notice. We must learn to be OK with that reality. When we do, we truly yield control of our lives to the One Who can be trusted with that control. It’s then that we learn to walk in His way, allowing Him to establish our path rather than foolishly insisting on making our own way.

#FOLLOWJESUS

NOTE: While Pastor Brian is on sabbatical, we offer this devotional which was originally published on July 2, 2020.

“Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord and all the rules. And all the people answered with one voice and said, ‘All the words that the Lord has spoken we will do.’” – Exodus 24:3

We never lack good intentions! We mean well, we really do. Like the Israelites, we commit and re-commit ourselves to being good people and following all the rules. Yet despite our personal determination and commitment to self-discipline, we fail, just like they did. Soon the Israelites would forget everything they just said, heard, and saw with their own eyes, choosing to worship a statue they made themselves as God. We aren’t different.

We make our promises to God, but when we labor in our own strength and energy, we ultimately fail, exhausting and discouraging ourselves in the process. God is perfect. He is perfectly holy, righteous, and good. We simply cannot match up to His standard of perfection – “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).

What we must learn, and re-learn often, is that we cannot achieve perfection on our own. Only God is perfect, so it required the sacrifice of the perfect God-man, Jesus Christ, to pay the penalty for our sins, so that all who believe in Him can be forgiven and receive the Spirit of God. It is then that God both sees us as perfect (Christ in us) and empowers us to become increasingly like Christ ourselves.

As we learn to live with and by the Spirit within us, we open ourselves for genuine and lasting heart transformation by the power of the Spirit. What is impossible for us is possible for God. By the transforming power of the Spirit, we grow in our holiness and our following of Jesus. By God’s power, and His alone, we increasingly can do what God commands us to do. We will never be perfect this side of the heaven, but God’s grace transforms us when we stop trying to change by our strength and instead deepen our relationship with Him, unleashing His power to change our sinful hearts.

#FOLLOWJESUS

NOTE: While Pastor Brian is on sabbatical, we offer this devotional which was originally published on February 18, 2020.

“They said to Moses, ‘Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt?’” – Exodus 14:11

Sometimes it can be hard to embrace our God-given future! The past, even when it was degrading, miserable, and full of failure, still tugs at our hearts because we love the familiar, the comfortable, and the known. We re-imagine the drudgery of the past as a mythical golden age, forgetting the bad parts, and we long to return. Too bad!

God seldom calls us to just stay where we are as we are. In calling us to follow Jesus, He calls us to change every day. He calls us to move forward into a future that isn’t clearly understood and is deeply uncomfortable because every step is unfamiliar.

Like the Israelites, when danger looms along our unfamiliar journey of faith into the future, we often fear the worst and long to turn back the clock, retreating into the comfortable past. That isn’t how the world works and that certainly isn’t how God works! There is no going back. In fact, God is most glorified when we move boldly forward into the future, following Jesus into the unknown. Why?

Because it’s as we step into the future, facing new and unfamiliar dangers, that we’re forced to truly walk with God, following Jesus rather than running ahead, lagging behind, or wandering off to the sides. As we follow Jesus into the future, afraid and uncomfortable, we’re forced to truly depend on God rather than ourselves. Our eyes are opened to His active engagement in the world and in our lives. Ultimately we learn that His plans and vision are far greater than ours.

We grow. God is revealed and glorified. It’s a win all around, but it still makes us uncomfortable, afraid, melodramatic, and longing to retreat. That’s why, as we face the future each day, we must remind ourselves of the words of Jesus, “I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

#FOLLOWJESUS

NOTE: While Pastor Brian is on sabbatical, we offer this devotional which was originally published on February 13, 2020.