I hope that Sunday’s sermon helped you see why we shouldn’t ignore genealogies:). But in all seriousness, let me give you a list of Scripture references to encourage you. These are references that I pondered while considering that God knows our names. Remember, a genealogy is a list of names that reveals God remembers—especially the one in Ezra 2. After 70 long years, God brought His people home. He had not forgotten them.
- Isaiah 49:1: “The Lord called me from the womb, from the body of my mother he named my name.”
- John 10:3: “To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.”
- Luke 10:20: “Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”
- Matthew 6:26-33: “Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”
When I consider these promises, there is no way I can forget that God sees me and knows me. If you’re a child of God, a believer in Jesus, your name is on God’s heart. Meditate on these verses…slowly. I pray that this will encourage you as you walk out your faith this week. There will be several moments when you’ll feel forgotten, alone, or discouraged. Or you’ll have a great success or triumph. All that matters in both of these moments is that God knows your name. Let that encourage you and humble you.
A few thoughts on the effect of Charlie Kirk’s assassination:
I shared several things with our church body on Sunday about this horrific tragedy. We also took some time on Sunday night to answer questions from various people, and it was a sobering time. Let me just add some highlights from those conversations, in case you weren’t in attendance at either.
- Charlie was an unashamed follower of Jesus. It’s one of the things that drew people to him. He shared his faith publicly, and he lived by the principles of his faith.
- Whether we agree with him or not, we should all agree that a murder like this (plus the school shootings and the recent train stabbing) is evil and has no place in our society. Anyone rejoicing in Charlie’s death or the other murders that have taken place should re-evaluate their priorities and their worldview.
- What made Charlie’s murder so challenging for Christian Americans is that it’s the first moment in recent US history where a public figure who was an unashamed follower of Jesus was murdered in broad daylight. This is something we read about in Voices of the Martyrs, but we don’t see it in the USA, until now. This is one reason why it’s shaken so many Christians.
- The 1960s had four political assassinations that devastated our nation. That’s the most in US history. Sadly, these things run in cycles, and we’re seeing another cycle right now.
- It is time to turn the temperature down, but that doesn’t mean we don’t speak the truth or share the truth. Freedom of speech is not freedom of violence. Words are not violence, and people should be free to share them without fear of violence. As Christians, we should make sure that we submit to God’s way of handling opponents:
- Matthew 5:43-44: “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you…”
- Romans 12:17-21: “Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”
- 2 Timothy 2:24-26: “And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.”
- 1 Peter 3:14-17: “But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God’s will, than for doing evil.”
- In my opinion, Charlie’s death does not change anything about how Christians are to handle themselves in this world. We are called to love Jesus and demonstrate and declare His gospel. We are called to love our neighbors and our families. We are called to be committed to the Church, as God’s people, not neglecting to meet together regularly. We are called to raise any children God gives us in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. We are called to expose the deeds of darkness and declare God’s truth in a world that needs Him. This has always been our call.
- However, Charlie’s death can result in taking many of us from the sidelines to the battlefield. In Philippians 1:12-14, Paul wrote, “I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ. And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.” Paul’s imprisonment emboldened believers to speak the word without fear. I believe that God uses moments like these to stir his people to greater boldness. While it doesn’t change what we’re to do in this world, it can give us backs of steel to do it.
- This is the video where I obtained the quote I used on Sunday from Charlie: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DOdBE2wjt6z/?igsh=dnprbG5sdGR1MHM2.
This week and looking ahead:
This week, we will look at Ezra 3:1-7 as we consider why worship should be a priority in our lives. If you’ve been at CLF for very long, you’ll know that this is one of our favorite topics.
On October 5th, we will have a significant and unique announcement in CLF history that will take place. If you call CLF your home church, we would highly encourage you to attend our Sunday service. We realize it’s the opening weekend of deer season, but this information can’t wait for your big buck:). So, if at all possible, do your best to be with us that day.
Cheap Seats (most people’s favorite section):
- In honor of Anthony Rizzo’s retirement, you need to watch this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=paaFLpJg79o. Rizzo was a long-time first baseman for the Cubs, and this moment was absolute gold.
- I’m not sure that A&M’s win over Notre Dame was a major breakthrough because I’m not sure how good Notre Dame is. However, it is an excellent win for the program against a “blue-blood” program, revealing that A&M is on the rise.
- I’m not a Ducks fan, but I don’t understand how a team wins on the road, against a Big Ten opponent, and drops two spots in the rankings. That seems odd to me.
- It could be that Archie Manning is not that good right now. Did I say that out loud? Arch seems like a really great young man, so I’m hoping that he’ll grow and mature as a quarterback. I can say, I don’t know how I would respond to the pressure he’s under.
Have a great week!
Christ is King!
In Christ,
Dave York
