RISE above
Transcend daily news cycles with His peace
Romans 16:20: “The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet” (ESV), or Psalm Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. 110:1: “Sit at my right hand, until I make your Not as the world gives do I give to you. enemies your footstool” (ESV). Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them But it goes further than that. While it’s Jesus’s be afraid. – John 14:27, ESV power that provides the credibility for the promises, it’s Jesus’s desire for His own acclaim that enMy typical morning routine is probably similar sures they will be kept. This is very good news as to yours. With a cup of coffee in one hand and the Lord is not only all-powerful but also all-lovmy cell phone in the other, I go to my media outing. And one significant way He exalts Himself lets of choice and catch up on the news. And like many if not most, a degree of sadness inevitably is by pouring out His favor on needy people like sets in after reading the ever-present litany of me. It began at the cross. “For our sake he made sin-plagued stories. But unlike many if not most, him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him I too often permit the emotion to fester and take we might become the righteousness of God” (2 on a life of its own. This is not without conseCorinthians 5:21, ESV). It’s a most interesting Greg Grotewold quence, for a subtle yet hindering melancholy dynamic. Because Jesus received what He didn’t usually follows. deserve (condemnation and death), I too received what I didn’t Needless to say, this is not a good way to start one’s day. It’s not deserve (redemption and life). The spotless Lamb was crucified only unhealthy but also unnecessary. Yes, it’s an inescapable fact so as to satisfy the judgment my sin triggered. He died my death. that the world groans from a depravity that is increasingly more prevalent and pronounced. But there’s another inescapable fact His love is so deep and wide that it, in fact, surpasses comprehenthat must be brought to the forefront as I confront such realities. sion (Ephesians 3:18-19). It’s Colossians 1:15-18, arguably the most powerful passage in all This incomprehensibility doesn’t stop there, though. Fathom of Scripture: this. Calvary didn’t seek Jesus; He sought it. Nothing required the He [Jesus] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn Son to leave the perfect communion He enjoyed with the Father of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and become the God-man. It wasn’t imperative to His own acand on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominclaim that He save anyone from eternal doom. Jesus would have ions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through been perfectly justified to leave me in my hell-bound state and him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him seek other less treacherous and painful means by which to gain all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that praise. But that’s not the path He chose. Because of His great in everything he might be preeminent (ESV, bracket added). grace and mercy, He took the hard road of redemption and Paul has a couple of aims here, and they are both massively im- made essential to His glory plan an inessential like me. portant. He wants us to understand who Jesus is, and He wants It’s a love that will never be diluted, compromised, or relinus to understand why Jesus is who He is. The two are intricately quished. Nothing will separate me from His care. “For I am linked and together a key antidote in combating somberness. sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor The apostle is not known for his ambivalence. With no equivothings present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height cation, he makes clear that Jesus is the reigning force of the nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to universe. The Lord creates all things, holds all things together, separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” and is before all things. He formed and superintends solar systems, atomic structures, and everything in between. Jesus has no (Romans 8:38-39, ESV). Yet another wonderful promise of hope cosmic equal; He is the King of kings and the Lord of lords. No backed by the character of Christ. one can thwart the King’s plans as there is nothing outside of His It’s against this backdrop that I’ve made some changes to my ultimate influence. He is never surprised, never caught off guard. morning sequence. After I grab my coffee but before I pick up Paul is as unambiguous as to why. Quite simply, all things were my phone, I reach for my Bible and engage in some memory created by Jesus for Jesus. Everything He does is directed at His care. I pore over verses that speak to Jesus’s glorious nature, own acclaim. Jesus is preeminent over all things so that He can including many of those above. They’ve helped remind me that receive the glory from all things. He exists to be praised and He is in control, which in turn has helped grow my assurance in worshipped. His sovereign goodness. And to the Lord’s glory, I can now read While this makes for intriguing Christology, what does this mean for me and my daily struggles for joy? I would argue pretty the news without becoming unduly alarmed. The sad stories are much everything. It’s Jesus’s sovereign authority as outlined in still sad and the injustices still unjust, but the peace I’ve begun Scripture that gives credibility to Jesus’s promises as outlined in to carry allows me to transcend them. And for that, I praise His Scripture. In the context of my emotional state, Colossians 1:15name and thus fulfill the reason He redeemed me. 18 (and the many other passages that speak to His rule) makes This peace can be yours too. Turn to Jesus and make Him possible the peace that the Lord speaks of in John 14:27. Same your treasure. n goes for the assurances found in Romans 8:28. “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, Greg Grotewold lives in Oakdale, Minn. with his wife, for those who are called according to his purpose” (ESV). It Sandi, and their two sons, Luke and Eli. He is a deacon in would be lunacy given the demonic influences of our culture for Paul to make such a declaration were it not for verses like his local church and greatly enjoys serving in this capacity. By Greg Grotewold
38 July / August 2022 | Christian Living
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