What Jesus put into motion was fully launched on the day of Pentecost.
Fast forward to present day...
There can be no more vivid reminder of the battle between good and evil and the need for the power of Pentecost than what happened last Monday night while we were in the middle of ministering Strong Men in Tough Times in our Monday Night Men's intensive.
A man's life was tragically taken in a blatantly immoral manner.
That terrible mobile phone video Monday night of the death of George Floyd was a CT Scan of our hearts ... we are a people who need a savior, who needs forgiveness, who need a revelation of human dignity, we need a moral washing of the soul, we must be people of mutual respect.
At the core of Jesus’ life and ministry was justice for injustice, freedom for the oppressed, grace in the face of inhumanity... when he wept over Jerusalem in Luke 19 it was because of our spiritual ignorance, in Luke 13 it was because of institutional injustice.
We need Jesus. And we need your voice.
Love will win, but only if aggressively applied.
When Nehemiah discovered that Jerusalem was destroyed, he first repented for his nation, his brethren. He hadn’t caused it. He didn’t live there - he was a slave 1700 miles away. But he accepted responsibility.
That’s a man. He prayed for forgiveness and righteousness to prevail. And then, he did something about it. He acted.
In the same spirit as Nehemiah, I repent for the sins of my nation, God heal our land, and may The Cross of Christ cover us with a shroud of grace ... until all men live in harmony as brothers.
Psalm 133:1 says, “How wonderful and pleasant it is when brothers live together in harmony! (Unity)”
Additionally, let me add a few points to help all of us process and move into action on the issues we face today. Five key points of perspective to help us in our hearts today;
- Paul said “... this one thing I do”, speaking of pressing into the heart and presence and rhythms of Almighty God. Do that first before you speak ... use his sovereignty as your filter.
- Your comments in the moment will become your children’s context for a lifetime.
- Speak the words of Jesus - His prayer, the Lord’s Prayer - into your soul, before you speak your words into another man’s heart.
- Hurt with those who hurt. Grieve with those who grieve. Love takes the pain from another onto ourselves... we are our brother’s keeper.
- Don’t talk to people about injustice until you’ve first spoken to God about your righteousness.
I’ve made more mistakes than I care to remember ... but some of them have become life’s regrets. My biggest regret may be not having spoken up when I should have ... or having spoken up when I shouldn’t have - and not knowing the difference.
Remember this - Hope is alive, Hope has a name, Hope's name is Jesus!
