Two Responses to Crisis
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I want to speak to two groups of people this morning. The first is God’s people, His family if you will. I’m referring to the people who believe in, who trust and follow God. I’m talking about God who has revealed Himself in the Judeo-Christian Bible. He is known as Yahweh - His divine name - He’s the Sovereign, Self-sufficient Almighty God who is the Creator of Heaven and Earth. He alone is eternal - without beginning or end. He’s the Living God - above all gods.
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I want to speak to two groups of people this morning. The first is God’s people, His family if you will. I’m referring to the people who believe in, who trust and follow God. I’m talking about God who has revealed Himself in the Judeo-Christian Bible. He is known as Yahweh - His divine name - He’s the Sovereign, Self-sufficient Almighty God who is the Creator of Heaven and Earth. He alone is eternal - without beginning or end. He’s the Living God - above all gods.
And in these last days God has revealed Himself through His Son Jesus Christ. Christ who left Heaven, the spiritual realm and was born into our physical realm, who lived, suffered and died on a cross to forgive us of our rebellion or sins against God, and who rose from the dead on the third day.
So, the first group is God’s people, those who believe in and follow Jesus Christ. The second is everyone else. Not me - but God - either with Him or not.
I have a question for each group, for each person:
1) How should God’s people respond to crisis?
2) How should everyone else respond to crisis?
To God’s people, listen closely. I’m going to read several passages of Scripture, and hopefully we’ll connect the dots when we’re done.
Go back to when Israel was in slavery to Egypt. They were in “crisis” for over 400 years. Then God delivered Israel, rescued them, they crossed the Red Sea and then assembled at Mt. Sinai. In
while Moses went up to God. The Lord called to him out of the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the people of Israel:
‘You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself.
Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine;
and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.”
… Moses went up to God. Yahweh called to him out of the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the people of Israel: 4 ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself [God always wants to bring us to Himself]. 5 Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; 6 and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.”
Israel, God’s people (still are) were to be priests to the nations - to the world. Their duty was to reveal Yahweh to all people - to make much of Him and help reconcile humanity to God.
Look at . This is around 700 BC, Hezekiah is now King of Judah. Judah has spent years in spiritual and physical crisis. In his first year as king, he repaired the temple.
He brought in the priests and the Levites and assembled them in the square on the east
and said to them, “Hear me, Levites! Now consecrate yourselves, and consecrate the house of the Lord, the God of your fathers, and carry out the filth from the Holy Place.
-54 He brought in the priests and the Levites and assembled them in the square on the east 5 and said to them, “Hear me, Levites! Now consecrate yourselves, and consecrate the house of Yahweh, the God of your fathers, and carry out the filth from the Holy Place. 6 For our fathers have been unfaithful and have done what was evil in the sight of Yahweh our God. They have forsaken him and have turned away their faces from the habitation of Yahweh and turned their backs.
Now it is in my heart to make a covenant with the Lord, the God of Israel, in order that his fierce anger may turn away from us.
My sons, do not now be negligent, for the Lord has chosen you to stand in his presence, to minister to him and to be his ministers and make offerings to him.”
10 Now it is in my heart to make a covenant with Yahweh, the God of Israel, in order that his fierce anger may turn away from us. 11 My sons, do not now be negligent, for the LORD has chosen you to stand in his presence, to minister to him and to be his ministers and make offerings to him.”
Again, there is a call for God’s people to be priests, to serve and to stand in the gap between God and humanity.
Look at . Now we’re talking to the Church, God’s people, followers of Jesus Christ.
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul.
Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.
9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, [what Israel was be to the ancient world, the Church is to be to the modern world] a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
Lastly, look at . The Author, the Apostle John introduces himself as a brother and partner in the tribulation, in a time crisis (persecution).
and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood
and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood 6 and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Lastly, look at . The Author, the Apostle John introduces himself as a brother and partner in the tribulation, in a time crisis (persecution). To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood 6 and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
I know I want through that fast, but hope you’re connecting the dots. God’s people are called to be priests to the world in every season of life. We are to be priests in tribulation and in rest, in crisis and in peace.
So, what do priests do? They do many things in service to God - we don’t have time to cover all, but I will summarize the best I can.
Priests …
1) Live a sacrificial life separated / consecrated to God / Living sacrifices - no greater love …
2) Have a responsibility to identify what is holy and sacred and what is common. To help identify what is righteous and what is sinful. What is moral and what is immoral - what is of God and what is not.
3) Have a responsibility to proclaim God, to worship Him and make Him known to the nations.
4) Bridge the gap between God and humanity. Priests are the intercessors between the saved and the unsaved. Priests are the ministers and servants of grace and truth in an effort to help reconcile people to God. Priests are the only ones who can stand in the gap …
5) Fulfill the whole law of Christ by loving God with all their heart, soul, mind and strength, and love their neighbor.
So, how should God’s people respond to crisis? Embrace the calling; embrace the priesthood. The world needs us to intercede, to stand in the gap …
My second question is to everyone else. How should you respond to crisis?
Every crisis, whether personal, in a community or global is an opportunity to repent and turn to God. Repent simply means to turn from a life of rebelling against God to a life of loving God; to turn from doing life your way to doing life God’s way.
This pandemic is the perfect opportunity to evaluate how short and vulnerable our lives are. And God’s Word is very clear that each person has only one life to live and after that each will face judgment. Judgment is not facing an angry wrathful God who hates us, but rather it’s facing the consequences of our choice to either receive the gift of salvation through Jesus Christ or our choice to reject Him.
Now, I’m not saying God caused this pandemic. But I do know this, that as people reject God more and more, God slowly removes His covering of protection. That’s why in the last days we see an increase in sickness, hatred, immorality, wickedness, and natural disasters etc. The more humanity rejects Jesus Christ, the more He removes His protection. However, as I already said, with every crisis comes an opportunity to seek Him, to repent, to confess sins and receive His grace and forgiveness and consequently, receive new life now and eternal life later.
The Bible is full of examples of people rebelling against God, choosing to be their own gods, choosing to be their own masters, choosing to shake their fists at God and saying I’m doing life my way, I’m in charge here. They become angry with God, blame God and reject Him …. And with each case, God always offered an opportunity to repent and to reconcile with Him. God would warn and warn and warn, saying, “Come back to me before it’s too late.”
I’m not the preacher on the street corner shouting, “Repent! The end is near!” But I am a preacher saying, “Repent, because the end is near.” Coronavirus or not, no one is guaranteed their next breath.
Scripture says today is the day of salvation. I’m asking you to consider turning to Jesus Christ … He loves you! Is this pandemic a warning or is it just a reason to evaluate our lives, I don’t know But is an opportunity to know the God who created you, loves you and wants to rescue you from eternity in Hell.
that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us,
tells us to seek God, and find our way toward him and we will find him, because He not far from any of us. But it also tells us that the days of ignorance are over, and God now commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man [Jesus] whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.”
tells us to seek God, and find our way toward him and we will find him, because He not far from any of us. But it also tells us that the days of ignorance are over, and God now commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man [Jesus] whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.”
To God’s people: It’s time to be the priests to the world and intercede
To everyone else: It’s time to come to Christ.
If you want to receive Christ right now, let’s pray: