Meeting the Parents

I remember driving with my girlfriend to Onalaska, Wisconsin.  We took her normal route and I'll be honest and say that after Cresco I drove exclusively through towns and on roads I'd never driven before.  We eventually got into Minnesota and she pointed out her favorite little town called Spring Grove.  We continued on toward Wisconsin and drove beside a beautiful stream that runs through well kept farms on hillsides.  We eventually crossed the mighty Mississippi and soon after pulled into a driveway on Valley Vue Drive.

We walked into the house and I stood in a house I was a bit afraid to be in.

"Mom and Dad, this is Matt." Christine said smiling.

My girlfriend introduced me to her parents in their home.  I was welcomed very warmly because they are kind people and because their little girl loved me.

Many of you can remember the moment of being introduced to your girlfriend or boyfriend's parents.  Usually being introduced to the parents is a big deal.  You don't usually introduce someone to your parents unless you're serious about them.  Well, that girlfriend is now my wife and her parents are my parents-in-law. 

I thought of that moment when I read the passage below:

"He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white.  I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and His angels." Revelation 3:5

I will acknowledge his name before my Father and His angels.

Perhaps you do remember or at least can imagine the satisfaction of your significant other introducing you to his/her parents.  But can you imagine the scene Jesus Himself tells us about in Revelation 3:5?!

Imagine you walk into the throne room of God the Father.  Angels surround Him.  Flashes of lightning and rolls of thunder surround the throne.  Light brighter than you have ever seen emanates from God and His angels.  You walk nervously through the gates and into this court to stand before the Lord of all Creation.

"Dad, this is Matt.  You're going to love him.  I do." Jesus announces with a proud, wide, beaming smile and His arm around your shoulder.

Jesus Himself will acknowledge you.  All that you need to do is overcome. 

What is overcoming?  The one that overcomes is the one that holds on to their faith.  An overcomer is one that never abandons the winning team.  The one that overcomes is the one that confesses the name of Jesus no matter the cost.  An overcomer is someone like Stephen who acknowledged Jesus while being stoned to death and a moment later Jesus acknowledged him before His Father.

"He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches." Revelation 3:6

Hear this: Hold on to Jesus and He will hold on to you and He will never and can never lose His grip on you and one day He will acknowledge your name before His Father.

Be an overcomer.  Anticipate the honor Jesus has in store for you and hold on to faith today. 

David's Rag Tag Group

Before King David was king he was simply David.  David had been told by the prophet Samuel that he would be king but for a long time David was not actually king.  In fact, for a good chunk of this time David was in hiding trying not to be killed by the current king, King Saul. 

"David left Gath and escaped to the cave of Adullam.  When his brothers and his father's household heard about it, they went down to him there.  All those who were in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their leader.  About four hundred men were with him." 1 Samuel 22:1-2

As I read this passage a few weeks ago I wondered why David was surrounded by such a motley crew.  This group of four hundred men could be described as a rag tag group.  These men that flocked to David was the Who's Who of Who's Not.  This group was as nobody as it gets.  David got promised that he'd be king and his army is a bunch of disenfranchised guys with credit card debt; meanwhile, King Saul had an army of thousands of paid professionals.

Why did this bunch of losers flock to David?  Why did the 'haves' stay with King Saul while the 'have-nots' gravitated to David?

Well, it's simple: those who's life is comfortable don't want a new kingdom and those who's life stinks want new management.

King David and King Jesus are parallels.  King Saul and king Satan are parallels. 

See, David was anointed king back in 1 Samuel 16 but didn't become king until 16 chapters later.  It took years for the nation to experience what Samuel had proclaimed in 1 Samuel 16.  Jesus, the Christ (which means Anointed One), is King but in this world it is a here but not yet here reality; we aren't fully experiencing life in King Jesus' Kingdom like we will will when the old king dies.  King Saul was still on the throne when David was anointed and Satan "the prince of this world" (John 14:30) still has some sort of reign now.

Who is most inclined to want a change of leadership in this world?  The ragamuffins, the downtrodden, distressed, the discontented and those in debt. 

"Then Jesus said to His disciples, 'I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.  Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God." Matthew 19: 23-24

The people that most long for a new kingdom, the Kingdom of Heaven, are those most dissatisfied with the current regime. Those most comfortable here and now are most likely to be the most uncomfortable in the here after. The: poor in spirit, those who mourn, the meek, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness (Matthew 5:3-6) most want the Kingdom of Heaven.

So, what can we learn from David's rag tag group?  What Gospel lesson is there for us in these two verses?

1) Proclaim the Gospel to the Outcasts of Society.

Everyone needs the Gospel, but the history of Christianity shows us that the Gospel spreads like wildfire amongst disenfranchised groups.  The people who aren't high on the hog here long for a new world order the most.  Reach out to those society labels weird or losers or a waste of your time.

2) Have a Holy Discontentment.

We are commanded to be content, yet we should have a holy discontentment.  I first heard that phrase from Pastor Matt Chandler and I'm stealing it, though he may have borrowed it, too.  A holy discontentment has a founded trust in Jesus but a deep longing to experience the fulness of King Jesus' Kingdom.

Be one of those that recognizes their indebtedness and is discontent with the current kingdom and flocks to King Jesus today.