This morning, as we enter into the Christmas season, we're also beginning a new message series. Together, we'll recall and dive deeper into that warning and awesome prophetic word from Isaiah regarding the birth of Jesus. Within this prophecy, Isaiah assigns four names to Jesus. We start this morning with the name: Wonderful Counselor.

We live in a world full of counselors. People are quick to give you their opinion and their advice; whether you ask for it or not. There are countless self-help books and Dr. Phil's galore.

With all of this counsel and advise, you think we would all be generally physically, emotionally, and spiritually healthy people. A quick glance at our culture and you quickly see how broken and unhealthy we still are, however.

It's not that people are rejecting this counsel, either. Many people are trying desperately to improve their lives and to find healing. They do what their counselors instruct them to, but still find themselves broken.

There is a whirlwind of counsel all around us, but what we are in desperate need of is a word of counsel from the Wonderful Counselor, Jesus.

Granted, it can be wise to seek the advice of others, however, not all advice is good and sound advise and not everyone has your best interests in mind.

Proverbs 15:22

Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.

We often fail in life simply because we live life our own way, by our own opinions and by doing what we feel is right. After all, we know best right?

We often lose our battles simply because we quietly fight them alone.

Proverbs 20:18

Plans are established by seeking advice; so if you wage war, obtain guidance.

When everyone does what is right in their own eyes, chaos, conflict, and calamity are sure to be there. When everyone cooperates together looking to the interests of one another and seeking after God's will, unity, peace, and success are enjoyed by all.

We think we know ourselves well, but it is impossible to know yourself by yourself. It is only through the interaction with others that we truly find who we are.

Many, that's right, Jesus said that MANY will argue with Him saying that they did this or that in His name, telling Jesus who they are, but He will simply respond, "I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers."

We think that we know who we are and we think that we do good. However, we must seek out counsel from Jesus through others to know who we truly are so that we will not be one of the many who unknowingly deceived themselves.

Our hearts are deceitful and our understanding corrupt. We cannot trust in ourselves to know what is best for us no matter how much our flesh tells us to. We must give our whole hearts over to the Wonderful Counselor and submit our understanding to Him.

Proverbs 3:5‭-‬8

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.

When we seek out the counsel of many advisers, we must seek out the counsel of those who are seeking after God's and listening to His word and His voice. This is where healing and success can be found.

Isaiah 8:19-22

19 When someone tells you to consult mediums and spiritists, who whisper and mutter, should not a people inquire of their God? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living? 20 Consult God’s instruction and the testimony of warning. If anyone does not speak according to this word, they have no light of dawn. 21 Distressed and hungry, they will roam through the land; when they are famished, they will become enraged and, looking upward,

Ever wish that life

had a 'restart' option?

Feel like running

away and starting new?

All of us have had

moments when we've felt that way.  We all

have regrets and we've all made our share of mistakes.  Sure, we know that we have forgiveness and a

second chance through Jesus.  However,

Jesus doesn't erase our mistakes or the natural consequences of them.  He doesn't take us back where we missed it to

allow us to try again.

In Exodus chapter

16, we find God's people in a similar situation.  God had set them free from literal slavery

and harsh mistreatment.  He promised to

give them a land all of their own that was rich in abundant blessings.  He was leading them to it by a cloud by day

and fire by night. 

As they crossed

through the dessert on their way to it, they began to have regrets.  They were looking forward to where they were

heading, but were growing weary on their way there.  They wished that they were back in their

slavery.  Even in those horrific

circumstances, they fondly remembered the good food that they were able to

enjoy.

They began to

grumble and complain and even began to say that they wished that they had just

died at the hands of their captors, the Egyptians.  Their hope had dried up and their trust in

God had withered.  This happens as we try

to go backward in life and forget about God's promises and where He is taking

us. 

Regret is a

relentless beast with an unquenchable hunger and thirst for our hope.  It swallows it whole and leaves us

empty.  Resist the enemy of regret by

remembering the promises that you are heading into and the good things that God

has done for you in the past!

God responds to

their grumbling in this way:

Exodus 16:2-5

2 In the desert the

whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. 3 The Israelites said to

them, “If only we had died by the Lord’s hand in Egypt! There we sat around

pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into

this desert to starve this entire assembly to death.”

4 Then the Lord said

to Moses, “I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out

each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see

whether they will follow my instructions. 5 On the sixth day they are to prepare

what they bring in, and that is to be twice as much as they gather on the other

days.”

God chose to respond

to their grumbling with the test of a blessing. 

God provided them the meat that they craved and daily provided them a

unique bread from Heaven.  It was white

in color and tasted like wafers of honey probably much like Baklava today.  God promised to provide just as much as they

needed every day and twice the day before the Sabbath so that they could rest

on it and not gather.

Every day was a

fresh start.  Every day God miraculously

provided them exactly what they needed. 

Every day God proved Himself faithful, trustworthy, and reliable.  Every day God gave His people the opportunity

to simply trust Him.  God was patient

with His people.  God was giving them

chance after chance to grow and mature and develop their faith enough to be

able to walk into His promises and take hold of them.

Did the people trust

what God said and instructed them in? 

Nope!

They were told to

gather about three pounds of it per person. 

Last week, we were

challenged to move faith-forward.  We

learned that faith is not about the results, but about our obedience and trust

in God as we follow Him.  This morning,

we're being reminded of that old fable that 'slow and steady' wins the race.

Paul wrote several

times about this race of faith that we are running.  Of course, we're well aware that this race

that we are running isn't a 40 yard dash, but rather, a life-long marathon.  To run this race requires perseverance,

endurance, and yes, that fruit of the Spirit that we desire the least;

patience!

Sure, God's plans

and purposes for your life may be far grander than you can even imagine, but we

achieve those plans and purposes by obediently following Him one step at a

time.  Even as we were reminded two weeks

ago, many miraculous acts of God's provision occurred progressively as it was

being given out without even realizing that a miracle was taking place until

afterwards.

There's only six

more weeks left in the regular NFL season. 

As painful as this reality might be, the Ravens have us beat by 2 games

so far…  At least we're still beating the

Browns overall, right?  We'll soon be

getting ready for that pinnacle game that every team sets out to play in every

year; the super bowl!

The super bowl might

be the end goal, but it is achieved one game at a time.  Winning the game might be the goal, but it is

achieved one touchdown or field goal at a time. 

The end zone might be the goal, but it is achieved 10 yards at a

time. 

First down might be

the goal, but it is achieved as each individual player does their part and

executes the play as planned.  Executing

the play might be the goal, but it achieved as each player memorizes those

plays and disciplines themselves through practice and intense training.

The super bowl is

ultimately won and lost in the weight room, during the morning run, at the

dinner table, and at off-season practices.

Sure, we all love

those 75 yard runs and hail Mary passes caught while diving into the end

zone!  However, in all truthfulness,

those championship rings are earned through consistently executing plays one

yard at a time.

Winning the race

that Christ has called us to is no different. 

We win this race through one step of obedience and integrity at a

time.  Yes, we must faithfully do our

part, but then we need to patiently wait on God to do His part.

James 5:7-11

7 Be patient, then,

brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming.

Talk about

patience!  None of us want to wait that

long, right!?!?  The Greek word used here

is parousia which does mean the future, physical return of Jesus.  However, this word is also defined simply as

the presence of God.  In other words,

don't get ahead of God and try to force things to happen - even if those things

are His will.  Be patient until the

Lord's coming!  We continue on as James

gives us a natural example of this spiritual reality.

See how the farmer

waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn

and spring rains. 8 You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s

coming is near.

The farmer does

their part.  They plow and plant and

water.  Then, the longest part of the

farming process?  They wait and wait and

wait until God grows their crop and it eventually bears fruit.  Then,

The Rolling Stones

hit the nail on the head with their hit song, “I Can’t Get No

Satisfaction.”  If we’re honest with

one another, what most often consumes our thoughts and hearts is what we do not

have.  We’re always in need of

something.  Simply put, we’re never

satisfied.

We have two holidays

coming up that stand in stark contrast with one another: Thanksgiving and

Christmas.  On Thursday, we’re giving

thanks for our blessings.  On Friday,

we’re shoving people out of our way because we absolutely have to get that TV

deal for Johnny’s gift this year!

We can’t get no

satisfaction.  If we could, the

advertising industry wouldn’t be the giant that it is.  Americans wouldn’t be in the mountain of debt

that they are in.  According to Discover,

the average household carries $16K of credit card debt and $132K of other types

of debt.

Why can’t we get no

satisfaction?  Because we are always

focused on what we do not have.  We focus

on how things could be better.  We want that

new iPhone, that bigger or newer car. 

Financial institutions and retailers are great marketers!  No interest for a year, 5% cash back, free

one-day shipping, rewards a-plenty, spend more – save more.

We’re great at

justifying spending ourselves, too. 

You’ve earned it, you definitely need it.  Yours keeps breaking down and is starting to

nickel-and-dime you.  It’s for your kid’s

safety.  You’ll get more done if you had

it.  The excuses go on and on that we

give ourselves.

There’s nothing

wrong with having nice things, but there is obviously something wrong when we

spend what we don’t have to get it. 

God’s word is true when we’re advised that:

Proverbs 22:7

The rich rule over

the poor, and the borrower is slave to the lender.

You work too hard to

still be in slavery!  You work too hard

to make someone else rich!  Every swipe

of that credit card is like going to the bank and applying for a loan.  That $8 lunch is going to end up costing you

$16 by the time that you pay it off!

Sometimes we can’t

get no satisfaction in life for the same reason.  We wish that we were thinner, smarter,

prettier, bolder, anything-ier than what we are.  The comparison game is a losing one – a

chasing after the wind as Solomon put it in Ecclesiastes or just dust in the

wind as Kansas put it.

What does God ask of

us to achieve greatness?  What does God

ask of us to meet our legitimate needs?

Whatcha got?

God doesn’t need you

to get something more to be blessed, God desires to bless what you already

have!

Jesus gave another

contrast to two churches found in Revelation:

Revelation 2:8-9a

8 “To the angel of

the church in Smyrna write:

These are the words

of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again. 9 I know

your afflictions and your poverty – yet you are rich!

Revelation 3:14;17

14 “To the angel of

the church in Laodicea write:

These are the words

of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. 15 I know your deeds, that you are neither

cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16 So, because you are

lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. 17

You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you

do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.

What do you

have?  What has God entrusted to

you?  You may not think that you have

much by the world’s standards, but to Jesus, you are rich!  Sure you may be afflicted or even in poverty,

but Jesus says you are rich! 

You are blessed and

dearly loved.  You were worth the King of

kings and Lord of lords sacrificing everything!

1 Timothy 6:6

…godliness with

contentment is great gain.

God asked Moses,

“Whatcha got?”  With his staff

and cloak, he performed the miraculous to lead God’s people to their freedom

and another step closer to the promised land even parting the Red Sea with it. 

With a simple cloak,

Elijah and Elisha parted the Jord

“You don’t know

what you don’t know.”

This statement

speaks to the reality of our unintentional ignorance.  It’s true that we often do not know what we

do not know.

What is worse is

when we totally miss it.  When we’re

completely and thoroughly informed, but still totally miss it.  Parents know this scenario full well.  You’re looking your kid straight in the eyes,

going over instructions in detail, they are nodding their head in agreement,

but you know that they have no clue what you are asking them to do.

We often don’t know

what we don’t know, but what’s worse is when we’re aware, but still just don’t

get it. 

It’s when we can

quote something, but not really know what it means.  It’s when we can solve the mathematic

equation, but have no idea what it is used for. 

It’s when you laugh along with everyone, but didn’t get the

punchline.  It’s when you do what you’re

asked to do at work, but don’t understand why you’re doing it.

All of us are this

way when it comes to following Jesus from time to time.  Sometimes, we go through the motions, but

don’t really grasp the purpose behind why we’re doing what we’re doing.  We quote His word, but don’t fully understand

what He was saying.

We’re not alone when

it comes to missing it in this way.  His

very first disciples had those moments fairly often!

Several times, Jesus

warned His disciples about His death and resurrection in detail.  This threat was the buzz of the town as the

religious leaders were waiting for the right moment to kill Jesus.  He and His disciples were about to enter

Jerusalem where this would all soon take place.

His disciples were

still amazed by His teaching that many who are first here on the earth will be

last in Heaven and vice-versa.  All of

the others were terrified of what was about to take place.

Mark 10:32-34

32 They were on

their way up to Jerusalem, with Jesus leading the way, and the disciples were

astonished, while those who followed were afraid. Again he took the Twelve aside and told them what was going

to happen to him. 33 “We are going up to Jerusalem,” he said, “and the Son of

Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law.

They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles, 34 who

will mock him and spit on him, flog him and kill him. Three days later he will

rise.”

If Jesus’ disciples

were physically there with Him, face-to-face, and were bluntly told exactly

what was going to take place missed it, how easy is it for us to do the same?

Just before Jesus

had this side-chat with them, He had such an encounter.  Hopefully, this morning, we can learn from

this young man’s mistake so that we don’t miss it as He did.

This morning, let’s

ask God for ourselves, “Where am I missing it?”  This encounter was so memorable and important

that Matthew, Mark, and Luke record it in their accounts.

Mark 10:17-34 (Matthew 19:16-30; Luke 18:18-30)

17 As Jesus started

on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. “Good

teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

Reading this, we

would think, “Awesome!  Praise

God!  Let’s get this man

saved!”  However, Jesus responds a

bit differently than we would expect.

18 “Why do you call

me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. 19 You know the

commandments: ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall

not steal, you shall not give false testimony, you shall not defraud, honor

your father and mother.’”

20 “Teacher,” he

declared, “all these I have kept since I was a boy.”

21 Jesus looked at

him and loved him.

This short, simple

statement gives us a bold reminder of the context of what Jesus is about to

say.  At this point, Jesus is looking at

the man with sincerity.  His attitude

toward Him is motivated by His love and appreciation for this public display

desiring eternal life.

By the world’s

standards and by outward appearances, this man has be

[The below text has been machine translated and may contain errors. Please listen to audio for original and integral translation]

I’m gonna kind of talk about the Old Testament I thought the Old Testament but what kind of in sharing with me also includes the New Testament because God never separates himself God is who he is and the God of the Old Testament really is the god of the New Testament and although when you’re reading that you might think he’s not because he seems like he’s so different but the truth is God is God and he doesn’t change ever since before we were created and through all of eternity God will be God and He will be who he is and we will see aspects of his character that we might think he is this or we might think he is that and to give you an example if you never met me before and I am talking to somebody with a stern voice because they were told they are not to do that and they did not listen and now because of that there was a consequence that is going to come and they are going to reap what they sow and they need to understand that this is why you are to do it this way now if you’ve never met me before you might think wow she is kind of a mean person wow she doesn’t have any sympathy wow she must think she’s so wonderful that who gives her the right to do that because you don’t know me you don’t know the circumstance all you hear is a blip of my life and now you’ve drawn a conclusion you may never meet me before and you might come across me sometime and I am laughing I am just laughing hysterically and worshiping the Lord and just enjoying his presence and enjoying my friends and having a good old time and just talking about the kindness of God and look what God has done and giving and just filled with joy and you might think wow she is a really fun person to be with I kind of like to join that gang they’re all having a good old time I wonder who she is I wonder how I connect with her because I like that and then you might find somebody who had met me for the first time and heard me saying this is not right and you may not do it again and they may say you might say to them hey I just saw this person she’s so much fun I can’t wait to get to know her and they’ll say you don’t want to get to know her I know I just saw something and that’s what she’s like and they’re like no no no this is what she’s like no no no this is what I know yeah but this is what I know now God has many aspects just like we do and it doesn’t mean that I’m not both God is a holy God that never will change God will not tolerate sin that will never change god is slow to anger and great in loving-kindness that will never change God loves the world so much that He gave His only Son to suffer and die so that the world can come to know the heart of the father for them that will never change God has a plan from the beginning it has never changed he knew there was a plan B before he ever set plan a into motion because guide already knows everything he sees the end from the beginning he doesn’t start here and look out he goes I know that so let’s start here God made a way for us that’s our God so if you hear things in the Old Testament or you read them try not to stumble over what you read because God is a just God he is a holy God and he requires his people to obey Him in fact the word says in Samuel he said I desire obedience over sacrifice but God I did it all for you I’d ask you to do that I asked you to do this you ever done that as a parent hey I want you to go take out the trash you come back hours later crash isn’t dumped what are you doing the dishes but as she dumped the trash I know but I decided I want to do the dishes you know I don’t like to do dishes mom this is a sacrifice and you say but I don’t desire sacrifice I desire obedience that’s our God okay so don’t let you understand I’ll give you an example when Abraham was shown the promised land you know Abraham saw the promised land Abraham’s way back in Genesis we in the

Last week, we

learned about the powerful reality of God’s promise to be with us.  We learned from Daniel and his buddies that

when God is with us, even though we will still go through the fires of life,

that we can escape them without even smelling like the smoke surrounding

us!  We even saw a literal, physical

example of how true this promise really is!

With the Holy Spirit

within us, we can confidently proceed through whatever life throws our way

knowing that God is with us and for us. 

Even as Daniel proclaimed just before being cast in that fiery furnace:

Daniel 3:17-18

17 If we are thrown

into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and

he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. 18 But even if he does not, we

want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the

image of gold you have set up.

Of course, we know

that they were not exactly delivered from the fire, but that Jesus accompanied

them through the fire and spared them from the dangers of it.

Today, we are

learning about another fire.  Not the

hazardous and destructive troubles of life type of fire, but a fire that forges

great things, burns away impurities, and stirs up zeal and passion that spreads

rapidly.  The fire that we’re learning

about today is the fire of God!

Deuteronomy 4:24

For the Lord your

God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.

God is an all

consuming fire. 

Natural fire can

serve many good purposes.  When contained

within a box with air blown over it, it is able to heat an entire building

through even the coldest of winders. 

When contained within a box along with raw food, it cooks delicious

meals.  When a wildfire runs rampant

destroying forests and homes, a controlled fire placed ahead of its path is

able to stop it in its tracks.

You can literally

fight fire with fire!

When fire begins in

unexpected places, it can be extremely destructive.  A home standing for decades can be destroyed

in a matter of minutes.  As Smokey the

Bear teaches us, just a small spark can begin that raging wildfire mentioned

previously destroying thousands of acres of land.  Actually, the book of James mentions this

destructive force as well.

James 3:5b

Consider what a

great forest is set on fire by a small spark.

The fire of God is

no different.  It can be both destructive

and beneficial. 

The fire of God fell

and destroyed Job’s sheep and servants. 

The fire of God fell and consumed 2 of King Ahaziah’s captains and 100

members of his military.  250 people were

consumed by His fire when complaining against their leaders followed by 14,700

killed by a plague.

Aaron’s sons were

destroyed by the fire of God because they brought to His altar unauthorized

fire, because it was introduced contrary to His command.  Several times, His fire destroyed His own

city and people because of their rebellion. 

In the end of days:

2 Peter 3:10

But the day of the

Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the

elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it

will be laid bare.

However, when that

same fire of God is appropriately contained, the benefits are amazing!  For example, God’s fire burned a bush, but

did not consume it, to get Moses’ attention and proclaim his destiny from it.  Fire grabs people’s attention for sure still

today!  In fact, God also still speaks

through His fire today!

Let’s take a look at

the comparison of the fire of God experienced in the Old Covenant on through to

the New Covenant.  We begin just after

the ten commandments are given to God’s people after they are lead out of Egyptian

slavery.

Deuteronomy 5:22-27

22 These are the

commandments the Lord proclaimed in a loud voice to your whole assembly there

on the mountain from out of the fire, the cloud and the deep darkness; and he

added nothing more. Then he wrote them on two stone tablets and gave them to

me.

23 When you heard

the voi

Last week, we

learned how we were created with the need for relationships – with God and with

one another.  No matter what relationship

it may be – with God, coworkers, spouses, class mates, friends, children,

neighbors, etc. understanding is critically important for us to possess.

This morning, we’re

continuing on the theme of relationships as we begin to understand more fully

one of the best known promises of God. 

Before we can fully appreciate this promise for the amazing blessing

that it is, we must first must be aware of what we lack without it.

Perhaps one of the

worst and most painful feelings in the world is loneliness.  Having been created by God for healthy

relationships, being lonely is like slowly suffocating.  It kills from the inside out and the one

suffering this agony often shows no outward symptoms at all.  They just silently and quietly suffer

sometimes even with a smile on their face.

In fact, the most

painful moments experienced with loneliness isn’t when we have no one around

us, but when we are surrounded by people who make us feel alone.  It’s when you encounter that person that you

used to be so close to who now wants nothing to do with you.  Rejection and loneliness are very close and

dark companions.

If loneliness is a

spike, rejection is the sledgehammer driving it to deeply pierce our souls.

Loneliness and

rejection are often the end results of not being understood.  In fact, the times when we often feel the

loneliest are when we are surrounded by people who simply do not understand us.  They laugh and scoff out of ignorance of what

we are going through; disregarding and discounting us.

Perhaps even your

faith has made you feel this way at times even when surrounded by others.

Elijah felt just

this way.  In fact, he had a pretty

well-rehearsed lament about it.  Three

times he complained that he was the only one left faithful to God.  After his amazing show down with the prophets

of Baal, God assured Elijah that there were actually still 7,000 faithful to

Him.  Though this may have been true,

Elijah’s reality from his perspective was that he was all alone literally

fleeing for his life from Jezebel.

Paul wrote to remind

us about this fact:

Hebrews 4:14-16

14 Therefore, since

we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God,

let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. 15 For we do not have a high priest

who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been

tempted in every way, just as we are – yet he did not sin. 16 Let us then

approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy

and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Even in our darkest

moments when we feel as if though we have no one on this earth or no purpose

for our lives, Jesus can empathize with us. 

We see pictures of Jesus being a strong and attractive man full of

compassion that attracts everyone to Him. 

We read about thousands of people following Him.  It’s easy to think that there is no way that

He could possibly relate to feeling that way. 

Isaiah prophesied

about Jesus, however, a bit of a different picture:

Isaiah 53:2-6

2 He grew up before

him like a tender shoot,

    and like a root out of dry ground.

He had no beauty or

majesty to attract us to him,

    nothing in his appearance that we should

desire him.

3 He was despised

and rejected by mankind,

    a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.

Like one from whom

people hide their faces

    he was despised, and we held him in low

esteem.

4 Surely he took up

our pain

    and bore our suffering,

yet we considered

him punished by God,

    stricken by him, and afflicted.

5 But he was pierced

for our transgressions,

    he was crushed for our iniquities;

the punishment that

brought us peace was on him,

    and by his wounds we are healed.

Jesus may have been

surrounded by people, but they were people who simply

Relationships.  God exists as one; Father, Son, and

Spirit.  We were created with the need

for relationships – with God and with one another.  God’s command to us is to love Him with our

everything and others as we love ourselves. 

Our life purpose – no matter how unique – can only be fulfilled through

relationships with others.

Not only are

relationships necessary for life, the most amazing experiences, the best of

memories, and some of the most valuable assets possessed through life’s ups and

downs exist through relationships.

Although

relationships can be incredibly rewarding, they do come at a risk.  After all, if God has to command us to

express love through our relationships, that means that it isn’t something that

is going to happen naturally.  It means

that people that we have relationships with are not always going to be easy to

love.  If relationships were all amazing

and beneficial to us with no downsides, love would always come naturally.

In reality,

relationships can be difficult.  If you

think you’ve been in some challenging, selfish, and outright abusive

relationships, consider Jesus and His own people.  All that He ever did was everything right and

all for their benefit expressing love perfectly.  All that they did was accuse, manipulate,

flog, scourge, and hang Him on the cross. 

Yet Jesus never turned His love off toward them, even forgiving them

from the cross.  Jesus can well relate to

what you’ve been through!

Think about our own

relationship with Jesus.  He has put up

with quite a bit of selfishness and abuse from us and yet His love still

remains.  We are so fickle and faithless

while He remains steadfast and faithful. 

We base our relationships so much on our emotions and circumstances

while He bases His relationship on unchanging truth.

What makes

relationships so difficult at times? 

Well, according to numerous studies from many different sources, a

consistent top reason for relationships of all sorts failing has been labelled

as a communications issue.  Whether it be

a marriage, friendship, employer, contractor, etc. many issues that arise

within those relationships is blamed on either the lack of communication or

poor communication.

Although this is

confirmed by therapists and human resource departments and psychologists alike,

I found it interesting that the Bible does not seem to really address

communication as a common problem, though.

Why is this?  Well, as I thought about it for a while, God

revealed this reality.  We were created

by God to be in constant communication with the world around us.  We can’t help but to constantly communicate

to the world around us.

Think about us

sitting here right now since the service started.  Although most of us aren’t saying a single

word, we are clearly communicating.  And

those who are chit-chatting during the service, well, that communicates

something, too.

 

Maybe you’ve found

yourself staring out the window watching the cars go by or birds catching

worms.  Maybe you’ve laughed a few times

or been staring at your phone playing Mario Kart or reading or taking notes.  Maybe you caught yourself nodding off for a

nap or clapped or shouted.  Maybe you’ve

put your arm around your love or held their hand.  Maybe you’ve rolled your eyes a few times or

crossed your arms or shook your head ‘yes’ or ‘no’ in response to

something. 

Communication is

happening all of the time and most of it isn’t even intentional; it just

happens.

That couple seeking

out counsel on the brink of divorce is likely communicating plenty to one

another!  They may both say that they are

having communication problems, but after listening for a few minutes, you’ll

find that they have been communicating quite a bit to each other!

They said so much by

the way they spent money, by being on their phone during dinner, by coming home

late, by never planning dates, by the way they discipline their children or

forgetting to pick them up from a practice; even by the

This morning, we’re

continuing our message series entitled “Reclaimed” which is all about

becoming who you were created to be. 

This series begins our focus on the work of the Holy Spirit and His

ministry, the third core value of New Hope.

1 Timothy 1:15 

(ISV)

This is a

trustworthy saying that deserves complete acceptance:

To this world Christ

Jesus came,

sinful people to

reclaim.

We were each created

uniquely and intentionally by God.  We

were created on purpose and for a purpose. 

The process of being reclaimed is all about reaching that full potential

that we were created for.

Matthew, Mark, and

Luke all recorded this incident

Mark 10:46-52 (NLT)

46 Then they reached

Jericho, and as Jesus and his disciples left town, a large crowd followed him.

A blind beggar named Bartimaeus (son of Timaeus) was sitting beside the road.

Now we don’t know a

whole lot about Bartimaeus, but just his name reveals quite a bit.  In Hebrew and most eastern cultures, a name

was not just a name. 

A name held

significance that often defined who a person was and their life purpose beyond

just a way to identify one person from another. 

For example, God renamed Abram which meant “exalted father” to

Abraham which meant “father of multitudes” when he gave him the

prophetic word that he would be the father of many nations.

Bartimaeus’ name was

of Chaldean origin being formed from two root words.  The first is the Hebrew word, “bar”

which means “son” and the second word, you guessed it,

“Timaeus.”  Actually, most of

your Bibles probably already defined that meaning of his name.  Why? 

Because this is incredibly significant!

Bartimaeus was born

and was never really given a name of his own; no identity or purpose.  It is reasonable to assume that he was born

blind for this reason.  What is the

Hebrew meaning of the name Timaeus? 

“Highly prized.” 

Although neither the Bible nor extra-Biblical texts give us any

definitive history behind this man’s life leading to this moment, the fact that

it records his name and this account in 3 of the 4 gospels is significant. 

So much can be

inferred just by his name alone.  His

father was a highly prized individual and he was nothing more than a blind

beggar.  The way that he was treated by

those who knew him confirms this assumption. 

To many, he was little more than an annoyance – someone to overlook and

marginalize.  That guy that you pass

every time that you pass through the gate of Jericho.

Unlike the culture

that we live in, this culture was not kind to those who were disabled. They

were considered to be cursed by God and many would treat them as such.they were

a burden to society and their only purpose in life was to beg, it was their only

way of supporting themselves and their only hope for survival.

I’m grateful for the

country that we live in and the culture that we live in that still overall

honors life and values it. A culture that provides opportunity for all no

matter their lot in life.

Maybe you can relate

to bartimaeus, though?  After all, who

are you?  To some, you might be a nobody,

you might be little more than a screw-up. 

You might not measure up to much in the eyes of others, in fact, you may

even annoy them.  Maybe you are also

better known for your problems than for who you really are.  That’s OK, Jesus absolutely sees something

far greater in you!

Despite Bartimaeus’

disability, however, he did have one keen ability – his hearing!

47 When Bartimaeus

heard that Jesus of Nazareth was nearby, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of

David, have mercy on me!”

I think it is

interesting that the Son of Timaeus called out not, “Jesus Christ!”

not “Jesus of Nazareth!” not “Son of God” not “Son of

Man” not, “Master!” or “Lord!” or “Teacher!”

or any other name which Jesus was commonly referred to as.  He shouted, “Jesus, Son of

David!” 

This name was the

name that was used for the long awaited Messiah, the savior coming in the line

of King David w