Redeemer Fellowship Johnson County

Where do we go to for refuge when the chaos and powers of this world close in on us? Psalm 46 aims to give us confidence that God, as creator of all things and sovereign ruler over all things, is the only refuge we need. Ultimately, our grounding for such confidence is found in the person and work of Jesus (Col. 1:15-20). In light of that truth, we are invited to surrender our lives to God, take refuge in him, and to live as his ambassadors in this fallen and broken world.

The Psalms give us both permission to bring our real, whole heart to God and they provide for us what we need to say to back to God in honest moments. Psalm 9 and 10 function together as they show us what sounds like to both have confident faith and struggle to make sense of the brokenness of the world. In the middle of that struggle we see the hope provided by remembering that God is the king of the universe, a just and righteous judge who will right every wrong, and a stronghold for the oppressed.

God delights to deliver us. He’s the only one who saves us from the pain that we experience from the world around us and the sin inside of us. When we are drowning, God is faithful to rescue us. We can place our entire identity on our neediness and God’s faithfulness to save us from all sin because of the work that His Son Jesus accomplished by dying on the cross for our sins.

The age old question is, can I trust you? Are you trustworthy? So much of our lives and our relationships are built on trust… But in a world that is filled with brokenness, lies, deception, is there anyone I can trust? Is there anything I can put my hope in and won’t let me down? In Psalm 16, David pushes back on the lies of the Serpent in Genesis 3 by making a bold statement: God is TRUSTWORTHY which means we can trust that He is good for us and we can trust that He is not going to leave us.

The Psalms engage us on a deep level to reorient our hearts toward God. Psalm 104 paints a portrait of a God who is utterly transcendent and beautiful. He rules all things with the sound of His voice, and all creation obeys when He speaks. Yet He is not a cold, uncaring, or remote God. He is intimately involved in every aspect of His creation, giving abundant provision. These two facts about God call us into a life of repentance and worship to the God who abundantly provides.

In this last letter to the seven churches we see a city that is wealthy, prominent, and in so many ways saw themselves as self sufficient. Their one glaring need was water. In contrast to other neighboring cities with cool springs or hot mineral springs historians tell us that Laodicea's closest river was undrinkable and would make you nauseous. In his mercy Jesus points to this physical need as a way of helping them to see their deeper spiritual needs. Once we can be honest about our needs then we can turn to Jesus to satisfy.

The way that we exist as a church matters, and in a time of scattered affections and strategies, we see that the most important thing Jesus is looking for in a church is faithfulness to his word. The church at Philadelphia is only one of two churches in Revelation about whom Jesus has nothing but good things to say, even though He says that they're weak and have little power. Because they have been faithful to Him, Jesus promises to vindicate, protect, and be present with them. Even more than that, he promises them a place or prominence, significance, and power in his kingdom.

The church of Thyratira is the smallest of the seven churches and yet they receive the longest letter. Jesus affirms their growth and love and maturity, while at the same time warning them that they have begun to embrace teachings about power and pleasure from the world that are in opposition to core Christian beliefs. This letter invites us to consider the danger of tolerance when it comes to the exclusive claims of Jesus' lordship.

While the Christians in Pergamum were quick to claim Christ as Lord in culture that stands opposed to the one true God, they were also being led astray by false teachers who diminished the holiness of God and the horror of sin. This opened the door to rampant sexual immorality in the Church that Christ says he will come to judge if they do not repent.

The cultural pressure that Pergamum was folding under ethically is indicting of us, to highlight how much more easily we are conforming to worldly values and influence without the threat of persecution. We need to be woken up to the ways we are drifting so we can return to God with our whole heart and display his matchless worth to the world in our actions not just our words.

The widespread use of pornography and engagement in pre-marital sex by Christians are two specific ways the teaching of Balaam and the Nicolaitans has infiltrated the church. We must remember that Biblical prohibitions are intended to protect something precious, not deny something pleasant. God isn’t a stingy father who is holding out on us, he’s a wise Father who knows what’s best for us. Obedience is always worth it, there’s no waste or missing out when you follow God.

The Good News is that there is more grace in Jesus than there is sin in us and he offers us a new name and identity through faith. He loves us too much to leave us perishing in our sin.