2020 – a “revealer” year
Wildfires, hurricanes, missiles launched in the Middle East, the death of Kobe Bryant, impeachment, COVID-19, stock market crash, quarantine, unemployment, racial tensions, peaceful protests and destructive riots, political gridlock and election campaigns … our inbox and social media posts have all revealed something about us, our neighbors, our country and our world.
Here’s a “revealing” exercise and assessment …
Pause for a few moments, reflect and take an honest inventory of your life over the first three quarters of 2020. What have the events of this year revealed about you and your world? Do you like what you see or have seen?
Use the phrases below as a prompt. Complete the thought that is listed.
What has (have) …
- nature (wildfires, hurricanes, climate) revealed …
- tensions in the Middle East, China, North Korea revealed …
- sudden deaths of public figures, celebrities and athletes revealed …
- the impeachment process revealed …
- COVID-19, quarantine and social distancing revealed …
- the uncertainty in the stock market revealed …
- government gridlock and politics revealed …
- the entertainment and news media revealed …
- race relations revealed …
- your social networks (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram) revealed …
- wealth and positions of power revealed …
- family, friends and neighbors revealed …
- institutions (including churches) revealed …
- my actions, thoughts, words revealed …
After I went through that inventory, the only response I could offer was …
Lord, have mercy!
Christ, have mercy!
Lord, have mercy!
In a world ravaged by sin, death and the Devil, the Triune God teaches us where to find and how to receive all of the gifts that only He can give.
A Call to … Repent! Receive! Rejoice! (repeat)
At the heart of this journey are three calls (and a fourth) from God …
- a call to repent (a brutal and honest acknowledgement of sin and a “beggar like” dependence on the Lord Jesus)
- a call to receive (a bold faith to believe and trust that though we have nothing to offer the Lord Jesus, He has everything to give)
- a call to rejoice (a surpassing, surprising and sacred joy given by God that rests in the promise that when you have the forgiveness of sins in Jesus you have … everything!!!)
- a call to repeat, repeat, repeat (a formation of a spiritual “habitus” – set of habits – that makes the reception of the gifts of the Triune God a way of life – The Receptive Life)
Here’s a wonderful summary quote from the Lutheran Confessions (Apology, Article XIIA (V) Repentance).
The sum of the preaching of the Gospel is this: to convict of sin; to offer for Christ’s sake the forgiveness of sins and righteousness, the Holy Spirit, and eternal life; and that as reborn people we should do good works. [30] So Christ includes the sum of the Gospel when He says, “Repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in His name to all nations” (Luke 24:47).
Apology, Article XIIA (V) Repentance, Concordia: The Lutheran Confessions: Second Edition, Paul Timothy McCain, Concordia Publishing House
Beginning Thursday, October 22nd …
I’d like to invite you to start a journey that will teach you how to live, not just a day, but a life of repentance – a life spent running to the Lord Jesus and receiving and rejoicing in all of the gifts that only the Triune God can give.
Here’s the itinerary and some next steps:
- Ten Days of Preparation and Examination Using the Ten Commandments (starts Thursday, October 22nd – click here to join)
- A Day Set Aside to Repent, Receive and Rejoice in the House of God (East Bethlehem Lutheran Church has set aside Sunday, November 1st for this day – you can click here to participate)
- A 12 week course, process and experience called The Receptive Life that will help you learn where to find and how to receive all of the gifts that only the Triune God can give. (starts Monday, November 2nd – click here to enroll)
If you’d like to learn more about the process you can click on the button below. The link will direct you to an Overview and a Video Sequence series.
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