The Open Word (Audio)

Where do you draw your strength from? What about wisdom? Are you relying on your own willpower and understanding? As Pastor David encourages us in today’s message, when Jesus tells us to cast our nets on the other side of the boat, we can trust that He has the power to fill those nets. He is the Creator of the Universe, and He is all-knowing. Even when it makes no sense by our human understanding, He is a wise and caring Savior and we can trust in Him.

The men that started the early church were just that, they were men. They were flawed; they were weak; and they lacked the wisdom to understand what God was doing. Does that sound familiar? As Pastor David wraps up the book of Luke in today’s message, we can take comfort in knowing that God does not require perfect vessels to carry His message. It is Christ that takes these broken vessels and transforms them into complete and capable instruments of His Gospel.

Most of us have had things we’ve prayed for, maybe even for years, without experiencing a clear answer or response from God. This can be hard. In some cases, we may even question if He is listening. In today’s message, Pastor David reassures us that He is listening, and He will respond. It may not fit within our time frame, but He is a loving Father, and when we seek to follow Him and know His will, we can trust that He will reveal it to us in His perfect time.

As the crucifixion of Jesus approached, His disciples struggled to grasp the magnitude of what He was telling them. He wanted to warn them; to prepare them for what was about to happen and offer them hope, but they couldn’t get their mind off of their own agendas. As Pastor David challenges us in today’s message, we need to be wary of making the same mistake as the disciples. Instead of spending our prayer time asking God to assist with our plans, we should spend more time listening for Him to reveal His plans for us.

Are you seeking the living amongst the dead? Are you looking for spiritual peace and joy through following a set of rules and guidelines? Is it working? It probably did for a while… but eventually you fail, and you convince yourself that God can’t love a failure. As Pastor David teaches in today’s message, practicing religion does not bring joy or peace. We cannot earn our way into God’s favor. Jesus Christ alone can offer us redemption through accepting His free gift of salvation.

The world claims to offer happiness through riches and material possessions or through fame and the approval of men. These things certainly feel good for a period of time, but ask the richest men or women in the world if their happy, and in most cases, the answer is “no”. Every other headline addresses some new crisis or scandal amongst our most esteemed celebrities. As Pastor David explains in today’s message, there is only one true source of lasting joy, and that is found in Jesus Christ.

Jesus and His Father were one throughout all of eternity leading up to the cross. As severe as the physical pain was, the spiritual pain of being torn from unity with His Father is impossible for us to imagine. As Pastor David tells us in today’s message, our sin was laid upon Him and He suffered the punishment we deserve: physical and spiritual death resulting in separation from God. But that was not the end! He paid the price for our sin, then rose, conquered death and secured eternal life for all who believe in Him.

When we continue to live a life of sin, indulging the selfish desires of our hearts and flesh, we are displaying our ignorance for the true weight of our actions. Our sins represent hearts that have chosen to rebel against the heart of God and the law and order that He put in place. As Pastor David reminds us in today’s message, the collective weight of all mankind’s sin was placed squarely on Jesus on the cross. We will never be truly sinless in this mortal existence; it is only because Christ bore our sin that we can be seen as righteous before God.

As Jesus hung on the cross, in unimaginable pain, He was able to look out on His accusers with compassion and grace in His heart. The sin of every man, woman and child, starting with Adam, was responsible for putting Him on that cross. As Pastor David reminds us, every time we choose selfishness and sin, we are rejecting the salvation that was purchased on that instrument of torture. Even still, He died for us, knowing that He was bringing hope to the hopeless and redemption for those who accept His gift.

How incredible is the love of God! In today’s message, Pastor David helps paint a detailed picture of the extreme level of suffering that the cross inflicted on its victims. It was designed to slowly destroy the body in an excruciatingly painful way. Yet, knowing all this, having a human body, subject to all the pain a man can experience, Jesus willingly took the cup His Father passed to Him. He did it out of a deep, immeasurable love for all mankind, including those who nailed Him to that cross.