Asked to give a little synopsis for the church bulletin, this is what I wrote:

We have natural bent towards religion. That is, we tend to find our identity by what we do, rather than in Who God is. It is easy to think we have done so much on our own, for our "gains" are clearly seen by looking at our own religious resumes and feeble good works — especially by comparison with others. Yet, in the Gospel, the ground has become level for everyone, from the talented and motivated to the least gifted. The common thread is God’s grace in Christ, and our response in humility (looking out to Him, not into ourselves).

The Gospel of God’s glorious grace is the only means God has designed to set us free from empty religion. We no longer come to our Creator as ones holding our great accomplishments in our hands. Instead, we along with the Apostle Paul, can rightly say, "whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ" ( Phil. 3:7 ). Our empty doing is traded for priceless knowing. We now can know, love and enjoy Jesus our Savior as the supreme object of our affections and the true desire of our hearts. Does that describe your trajectory?

Knowing I would be speaking to (almost?) all Christians, I was quick to remind us that the Gospel is for Christians to. We never outgrow our need for Christ, and the good news of His glorious grace. Aimed at helping us all discover grace-renewal in the God of all grace, and be people who "worship in the Spirit" (  Phil. 3:3 ), I wanted us to see that knowing, loving and enjoying our Savior above all else is the goal of God in the Gospel.

We can truly say to Jesus, "Nothing compares to the greatness of knowing You."

Listen below [or download]:

Message: All of Life is Preparation

[download mp3 ]

Primary text: 1 Samuel 18:1-16

Supporting texts: Psalm 57 ; Romans 5:1-5 (+ 8:17-18 in concept)

Here’s a brief intro/summary for the sermon they put in the church bulletin:

As a young man David received a promise and prophecy from God: he was to be king over the nation of Israel. Yet, more than a decade passed before this faithful man would sit on the throne as king. During that time he was the recipient of the mad tirades and lunacy of current king Saul. Everything pointed to God’s promises failing. Why the delay? (David was clearly the better man for the job.)

What was God up to in the process? Watching David’s life and response to disappointments, personal anguish and persecution helps us keep perspective in uncertain times. In this "happy tension" between suffering and glory, David trusted in God’s sovereignty — He knows what He’s doing — and began to learn to see life through God’s eyes. Can you relate to David’s seemingly unending disappointments? Our Creator made us for Himself and never wastes any situation in shaping our character — all of life is preparation .

Essentially this message is one I’ve been "swimming" in for the last four years. Let me know if it impacts you as it has me during this season.