Covenant Presbyterian Church

The children are acting up more than usual. Draconian disciplinary measures are introduced; they last three days. The mirror reveals flab. Diet books are consulted; fasting ensues. Three days. Gas prices temporarily spike; the pumps are flooded with worried drivers. Prices rise again. Iran is fiddling with uranium; bomb Tehran. Panic. This is the fruit of secularism: too much information, no objective standard for judgment, a shattered inner identity. There is no god, no providence, no future beyond what we create for ourselves.

Today is "Super Sunday." The reason, of course, is the annual Super Bowl, the single-most important athletic event of the year. Only the Greek and Roman games of antiquity equal it in pageantry, public interest, and profitability. The Super Bowl is not without its impact on the church. Many congregations have chosen not to hold the traditional Sunday evening service tonight, not so much in deference to the game as in recognition that attendance will be gutted.

The life of the righteous is filled with tests, great tests of faith: not to determine our worthiness of heaven, measure our strength, or prove our endurance. God tests the faith of the righteous to prove the certainty of his promises, the sovereign power of his arm, and the depths of his love for us in Jesus Christ. Of late I am aware of too many tests to recount: sickness and death in our congregation and its extended families, job and financial uncertainties, interpersonal conflict, struggles with sin, and weariness with long-standing family disturbances.

Two important legal decisions were handed down last week. In a highly publicized case, the United States Supreme Court upheld Oregon’s law permitting doctor-assisted suicide. Since the Federal law in question neither specifically disallows the dispensing of medicine to bring death nor intends to restrict existing state medical laws, Oregon’s law must be upheld, according to the Court’s reasoning. The Alabama Supreme Court released convicted rapist and murderer, Renaldo Adams, whose crimes landed him on death row. The jury took less than thirty minutes to recommend his execution.

Life has many seasons. There are periods of great exertion, full of youthful vigor, dreams, and goals. Great responsibilities are eagerly accepted. In the parenting years, children’s needs dominate: discipline, education, preparation to serve God and man. Mid-life work is undertaken with the realization that the years are passing quickly, strength not what it once was, the elder days coming. Each period is punctuated with seasons of joy and sadness, victory and defeat, weariness and strength, health and sickness.

Many wondrous realities are given to us through Jesus Christ: forgiveness of sins, peace with God, the indwelling Spirit with his gifts and graces, and a completed revelation. Yet the full glory of our salvation is hidden. The glories that lie ahead for the child of God are known dimly when revealed at all. And we often forget, forget that our earthly lives are of infinitesimal duration and experience in comparison to everlasting life, to what shall be. Absorption with the present life is thus unwise and ultimately frustrating.

Death is the horrible specter that haunts the human experience. It is the great equalizer of men. The best and worst of lives end in death. Men respond to death in various fashions. Some seek forgetfulness, hoping in the hustle and bustle of life to break its hold upon the conscience. Some adopt a stance of pretended bravery in its cold pale, either through jokes or a cavalier attitude. Paralyzed by the fear of death, others hope to prolong life through physical fitness and vitamins. Some pray that a scientist somewhere will find the cure for death.

Those familiar with Ben Hur from the movie alone will be unaware that the opening chapters of Lew Wallace‘s novel concern the journey of three men, a Hindu, a Greek, and an Egyptian, to find a child. Each man represents the pinnacle of the three leading world religions of the day. Each has found serious deficiencies in his respective religion and encountered persecution for voicing them, for seeking something better. God revealed to each of them that the truth for which they were seeking is about to be born in a person.

The last two weeks of each year are not easy ones for many Reformed Christians. Our culture's Christmas observances make us feel extremely uncomfortable. We loathe the materialism and worldliness associated with Christmas. We are troubled that so many churches feel the need to modify their worship services and physical appearances in order to "celebrate" the season. People sometimes ask why our church does not hold candlelight vigils on Christmas Eve, perform Christmas cantatas one Sunday near Christmas, or decorate a Christmas tree.

Confronting sin is an important aspect of the life of any Christian family. In fact, it is a daily part of living under the same roof with sinners. As part of a family, you see the best and worst of one another, witness each other’s quirks and foibles, and, yes, know the sinful tendencies of every member of the family. And at one level, I think one reason God ordained the family structure is so that these sins may be handled primarily within the context of the family - lovingly, privately, consistently, and patiently.