Friends, as you know, Pastor Gregg has been doing a deep dive into the deity of Jesus in his current sermon series, The Light in the Darkness. Many of us have taken notes during his preaching. Here are a few of mine, along with references to the good preaching. Please share yours.

The first sermon, “His Power Revealed,” detailed Jesus’ miracle of feeding five thousand with five loaves and two fishes and highlighted several truths. In John 6:5 Jesus asked Philip, “Where can we buy bread to feed all these people?” The next verse drives home why Jesus came: “He was testing Philip, for he already knew what he was going to do.” This is where the truth of the Gospel message is manifested; that is, Jesus knew he was going to save us to everlasting life and give us hope of that life, and hope in this earthly life. It is what he was all about, and we should be devoted to sharing this Good News. The preeminent power of Jesus is to save; he can furthermore give us abundant life through his power to heal us, deliver us from evil, and provide for all of our needs, as promised in Philippians 4:19. We can never give up and never lose hope. Pastor Gregg cited Matthew 19:26, one of the bedrock verses for our determination and hope: “Jesus looked at them intently and said, ‘Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible’.” When our troubles seem to swallow us in darkness, Jesus is the Light we should look to. He is our blessed hope. Titus 2:13.

In collaborating with PG in the writing of this, he shared some insight into the narrative; Jesus would give his life on the cross just one year from the time of the miracle of the loaves and fishes. Our Lord declared in verse 35 of John 6, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” The disciples seemed to be having a hard time grasping what Jesus did with the bread and fish. As Pastor put it, “He is revealing that he has the power to save, not to fill their bellies but…their spiritual hearts.” Jesus emphasized the disciples’ lack of understanding in verse 26: “Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, you want to be with me because I fed you, not because you understood the miraculous signs.” Maybe this is one reason God wants us to ask for wisdom. Proverbs 4:7.

One thing PG preached that really stood out was this: “When Satan tests you, he is trying to destroy you. However, when God tests you, he wants to transform you.” We are being transformed into the likeness of Jesus. The transformation sometimes leads to places that are confusing, fearful, and dark, but Jesus is always our Light and our Deliverer. “The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” Psalm 27:1. It was true for king David and it is true for us. 

We are reminded that God has placed us on a path, while others would have us doing something different. The path is the Christian walk, the straight and narrow way which leads to life, which Jesus revealed by his light. If we walk in the Light, we will be able to invite others into the Light and point them to Jesus. That glorifies God, which is why we are here.

Taste and see, friends,

Lamar Ennis

Wednesday, May 8, 2024