Ben Connelly - Sunday, 22 August 2021
God's outrageous grace
Scripture References: Isaiah 53:1-6, 1 Corinthians 1:26-31, Matthew 8:14-17
Gathering Growing Going
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CloseHeroes are everywhere but what makes someone a hero? In today’s passage, we get to see that God doesn’t use heroes. The person God uses in Isaiah 53 is disregarded and despised. Not the sort of person we would choose to save the world. But God has always been in the habit of working through weak and unremarkable people. He does this to show that it is His power that makes us great, not our own efforts. We do not have to be good enough for God - He can use us no matter who we are, where we come from, or what abilities we have.
Scripture References: Isaiah 53:1-6, 1 Corinthians 1:26-31, Matthew 8:14-17
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Esther is such an exciting story! There are evil plots. There are interesting yet flawed characters. There is risk and sacrifice. There is heroism and villainy. Today, we are introduced to the villain of the plot, and what an evil scheming villain he is! He spins lies and concocts murderous plans to do away with the Jews, God’s covenant people. How will the people respond? Will he get away with his evil plan? Will God, who is not mentioned at all, intervene to protect His people, to live up to the promises He made to Abraham, the people at Mt Sinai, and to David?
There is so much that sounds familiar in these first two chapters of Esther: the world is dominated by loud and brash and imposing and degraded power, the people of God are small and struggling and faced with ambiguous decisions and actions and God seems so far away he is almost absent (at least to our minds and hearts). As we read this book, we will need God’s revelation to help us navigate its strangeness, its ambiguity, and its confrontational narrative. In this, we have the key to the book—the lack of God’s name in letters does not mean the lack of God’s presence.
He is risen! This morning we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. The tomb is empty, the power of sin and death has been defeated. It is fitting that if Jesus’ last words were “it is finished” than His first words to His followers are “peace be with you”. But this is no ordinary greeting. The work of Jesus, His life, death, burial and resurrection is the grounds on which our relationship with God can be restored. The brokenness and rebellion that once plagued our lives has been dealt with. It’s no wonder that Jesus’ words are “peace be with you”. Jesus doesn’t give peace as the world does, nor does He promise a life free from trouble. But He does promise life to the full. God promises Shalom, complete wholeness in relationship with Himself through Jesus. That is something to celebrate!
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