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Desolation and Promise [Slide: On the wing of abominations will come one who makes desolate. ( Daniel 9:27 , NASB95)] We live in desolate times. The prophet Daniel speaks of the antichrist as “the one who makes desolate.” According to the Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary, one definition of desolate…

Living In Exile Our story this morning carries us to the land of Babylon. The Jewish people live in desolation. The Assyrians conquered and scattered the northern Kingdom of Israel. Now, Babylon sacked the small Kingdom of Judea and deported most of the population to Babylon. They had wiped the nation…

In the story of the beheading of John the Baptist and in Jesus' response to the news, Matthew invites us into the Garden of Gethsemane to struggle out the implications of the will of God in our own life. Where will we align ourselves? Will we honor and believe the powers of this world, and thus, dishonor Jesus with our lack of faith? Will we honor King Jesus with our faith in him, laying down our life for him, for the truth and glory of Gospel banking everything that Jesus is our only hope.

Scripture: Hebrews 4:14-16, Jesus the Great High Priest The practical benefit for us in having Jesus as our Great High Priest in Heaven is that Jesus gets it! Jesus knows our weaknesses. Jesus knows our needs. And Jesus totally gets it. Jesus says to us, come on up to the throne of grace and receive all the mercy and grace that you need. In gratitude for the mercy and grace that is ours, we hold firmly to our faith in Jesus and, like Jesus, we extend mercy and grace to others.

As the devil tempted Jesus so he tempts us to doubt God’s goodness, willingness, and ability to provide all of our needs. He also tempts us to doubt our relationship with God. Finally, he tempts us to abandon hope for God’s provision and to make providing for our needs the top priority in life. Jesus shows us that an absolute trust in God’s provision grounded in the Word of God overcomes the devil’s temptations.