Illuminate Community Church

05/17/2020 - Joy and Pain - Philippians 1:1-14

I'm very excited to announce "Joy Unchained" is the new series beginning this Sunday. It's a study in the book of Philippians which is written by the apostle Paul while a prisoner of Rome. What would he want to tell us while wearing the chains? The message is simply this: there is joy in adversity. I don't remember much about the early years of my public school education. I do remember feeling anxious. I also remember not fully trusting my parents when they said the experience would be good for me. "Yeah right, how could being around kids I've never met and in a new environment be good for me??" Eventually I gave in and it worked. I made a lot of new friends. Have you noticed this spiritual principle? God often has to "shake us up" to move us beyond where we are in life. As the country begins to reopen we find a variety of (and oftentimes heated) opinions regarding safety, security and sanitization. There were big challenges as we entered quarantine but there might be bigger ones as we re-engage. It seems that everyone is in one of two places. We are either entering adversity or we are coming out of adversity but either way we can know that this is not the last adversity we will ever face. So what is the secret to finding joy in adversity? Paul gives us the answer and it's not found in something but in someone.

05/10/2020 - For Such A Time As This! - Esther 4

Esther's story is a great one. She is taken from total obscurity to national prominence as Queen of the Persian empire. But there's a twist. She's a Jew and Jews were about to fall on hard times because of a racist scoundrel named Haman. For now, Esther has kept her ethnicity a secret. However, she will be asked to take a risk to save her people. She doesn't want to do it because she's interested in maintaining her palace lifestyle. What would compel Esther to take a stand? The grace of God.
 
Her cousin Mordecai gives a simple but compelling speech. This changes Esther's perception of the world and her place in it. He says, "And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” This phrase is in the passive tense. Literally, it means, "brought about by another." Esther's position as queen was a door opened for her by God. When God is in it, there is no risk. She used her position to save her people. Does this sound familiar? Jesus would use his position to offer salvation to all people. Esther lived, but Jesus would die. Christian, do you fear taking risks for God? The grace of Jesus toward you and me dispels that risk. So perhaps now more than ever God is giving you open doors of opportunity to reflect the image of his son Jesus Christ - for such a time as this!

05/03/2020 - The Lion King(dom) - Daniel 6

The story of Daniel and the lion's den is a Sunday school favorite. But it's not just for kids. The faith of Daniel is for every Christian who wants to please God in all circumstances. Have you ever thought about why God allows the lions in our lives? The answer is found in the outcome of the story. Through the witness of Daniel, his faith, and the faithfulness and power of God, an entire nation came to know and revere the Lord. The Persian king himself proclaims, “For he is the living God and he endures forever; his kingdom will not be destroyed, his dominion will never end.”
 
Daniel's entire life reminds me of what Jesus said about being different. Jesus said his followers should be like salt. What does salt do? It enhances the taste of food. Christians should be people who enhance every environment they enter. However, in ancient times they didn’t have salt shakers, instead, they used salt as a preservative. Salt keeps things from decaying and it prevents food from spoiling. This is the ministry of every Christian. We go out as little salt shakers. What comes out of us inhibits the decay of sin in others because we carry the gospel. This is what Jesus did. He reached out to everyone. Now, this is easier said than done because salt goes where things are falling apart; salt enters what is decaying. The world is coming apart. Our current circumstances are creating new and amplifying old pains. Daniel's life is a strong reminder that faithfulness is the key. What lions are you facing today? There is only one way to be saved from those lions and that is through faith in God.
 
We are also reminded that Jesus was placed into the den of death and came out alive; and because of that every lion’s den we encounter has already been dealt with!

04/26/2020 - Another In The Fire - Daniel 3

The story of Daniel is the story of worship. In our lives today, there is a constant battle for our worship's attention. King Nebuchadnezzar commanded all people in his kingdom, including those in high and low esteem, to bow down and worship the golden image when they heard the sound of the musical instruments being played. The strategy of the enemy is at all costs to get us to look away from the Lord to a “golden image” of our circumstances, and be ensnared in the “sound” which creates an atmosphere of fear, panic and confusion around us. Daniel and his friends had determined to look upon God and tune out the sounds. "We will not bow down!" This would come with a great threat. The king was angered, the furnace's fires were made hotter and Daniel's friends were tossed in. But God can take the fires of the enemy and turn them against himself. Nebuchadnezzar saw a fourth man walking in the flames alongside these young men. He describes him like this, "looking like a son of a god." Isn't that interesting? This is the way the gospel writers describe Jesus: the God-man. Jesus always walks with us in our fiery trials. His presence will make the fire of our trials something supernatural and situations will turn around from hopeless to hope-filled and beyond! This is why we worship Him, for He alone is worthy!

04/19/2020 - For Such A Time As This! - Daniel 1:1-16

Most change brings pressure. Christians know what God does with pressure. He turns ordinary stones into gems. This is the history of God's people. There was pressure on Abraham as he left his homeland. There was pressure on the nation of Israel under Egyptian rule. Daniel felt the pain of leaving his home overnight and being squeezed into Babylonian culture. Esther's pressure revealed that she was created, "for such a time as this." Christian, you need to be reminded of this right now.
 
There's a word frequently used to describe current worldwide events: unprecedented. I would like to reframe this word. These are unprecedented times for the gospel. Christianity was built for this moment because we have what the world is longing for. For the next four weeks, we'll be looking at the lives of several faithful saints who have gone before us. We'll walk in the shoes of these men and women and discover what it takes to be a life-giving force in a pressure-filled world that his hurting.
 
For such a time as this!

04/12/2020 - Victory! - Easter Sunday

Long before World War II newspaper headlines proclaimed, "Victory!" there was a much bigger battle fought and won. The stone was rolled away. The tomb was empty. The apostle Paul sums it up... 
 
“Death is swallowed up in victory.”
 
“O death, where is your victory?
 
"O death, where is your sting?”

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 15:54-56

It's been said that all of man's life is one long attempt to avoid death. Death is separation, a dividing of things that ought to be united. Fundamentally, it is separation from God. Death also marks the separation of the soul from the body. Not only did Jesus bear the wrath of God on our behalf; he endured death, the separation of his soul from his body. And let's not forget what Jesus did upon his death. The Saturday event is very important. Following his death for sin, Jesus journeys to Hades, to the City of Death, and rips its gates off the hinges. He liberates Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David, John the Baptist, and the rest of the Old Testament saints, ransoming them from the power of Sheol. 

As the old gospel song proclaims, "Because there was no grave that was going to hold his body down, there won't be any grave that's going to hold your body down." On that resurrection Sunday one thing for certain was proven. There is no fear that the resurrection cannot conquer. So let's proclaim it together church family...

The Lord is risen! The Lord is risen indeed!

4/10/2020 - Good Friday 2020

4/5/2020 - The King Has Arrived! - Palm Sunday

Matthew 21:1-13

It's becoming increasingly common for people to ask, "Is the Coronavirus God's judgment?" The answer is yes and no. Disease and virus are the results of what took place in the Garden of Eden. When Adam and Eve sinned all of creation became a broken and cursed place. Romans 8:22 explains...
 
"For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now."

The Garden of Eden experience brought another pandemic that entered the world: death. Not all disruptions are a form of judgment. Instead, they are meant to get our attention. Pandemics terrify us. They cause us to ask, "What about me? What happens if it gets serious? What happens if I die? What's next???" Jesus came to answer these questions. He came to reverse the curse and the events of Passion Week prove it. At the beginning of the week, he will arrive announcing his kingship. But by the end of the week, we see that this kingdom is very different. No white war horse for him. He'll ride a donkey. No golden crown for him. He'll wear a crown of thorns. It's all necessary for him to answer your, "What's next for me?" question. So take heart Christian, your king has arrived!

3/29/2020 - Life Disrupted - Jonah 4

You need some good news and encouragement right about now. Let me give it to you. Your life is in God's hands. There's never a moment when he doesn't watch over you. How's this for comfort... "You have seen me tossing and turning through the night. You have collected all my tears and preserved them in your bottle! You have recorded every one in your book." Psalm 56:8 The whole world has pushed the paused button and continues practicing social distancing. (I prefer "physical distancing" because we need to stay social.) The results are starting to come in. Families are reconnecting around the dinner table. Americans are tuning in to church services they once left. People are checking in on neighbors. Disruptions cause us to pause and think about what's important to us. Our man Jonah has come to the last chapter of his story. Let me forewarn you. It doesn't end the way we want it to end. You see, he hasn't learned from the disruptions in his life. God is showing Jonah the lack of love in his heart but he doesn't see it. He is bothered by the fact that God would remove his earthly comforts. In fact, he cares more about his own security than the salvation of thousands of people. Jonah failed to accept God's larger plan for the common good. This is important. God cares deeply about the common good of all people. The simplest acts of kindness will not be forgotten during times of crisis. And neither will selfish ones. Be encouraged Christian, you have a part to play in showing the world what you really believe about your God. A friend of mine said it well: "Christians should be washing their hands, not wringing them!"

3/22/2020 - A Christian's Place In A Disrupted World - Jonah 3

Fear is the world's most powerful motivator. Fear will paralyze our actions, consume our minds and make us forget who we are. Remember, the devil is a thief and he loves to steal our peace. So it's good to have this verse in our minds and hearts...

"For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control." 2 Timothy 1:7

Power

Love

Self-Control

It's the power of God that gives us the ability to love and exercise self-control. Jonah was called to minister to lost people caught up in the fears of life apart from their creator God. Jonah didn't want to do it. He ran. God pursued. God gave Jonah a second chance. From the belly of the fish Jonah exclaimed, "Salvation comes from the Lord!"

These are the days of disruption. God has ordained them for you and me. These are the times for which God calls us to imitate Jesus Christ. Let's not run away from them but rather let's run toward them. It's the Spirit of God that helps us overcome the spirit of fear. Can we pray this together?

"Lord, you have given us your son to prove you love us. You have given us your Spirit to empower us. Give us now your compassionate heart and lead us as we minister to those in need. All for your glory!"