Jesus certainly understood that they were attempting to trap or stump Him with the question.  He simply responded, “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God”  (Matthew 22:29).

Many of our struggles, anxieties, and doubts arise from the same two issues — ignorance and lack of faith.  Today, many people talk about the Bible, but they fail to read it with any depth or regularity.  Positive thinking and eclectic reasoning have replaced divine directives.  The fact is that many who suggest that the Bible is too hard to understand have really not read much of the Bible.  Even those who claim the Bible to be God’s inspired message, study it quite infrequently.

Too many in our culture “miss the point” because they have minimized or neglected the power of God.  A person needs help to defeat an addiction or rebuild a damaged relationship.  That help is available from an all powerful God.  The apostle Paul echoed that faith in the famous words of Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.”  Our health may falter and science may disappoint, but the power of the Lord will still be there.

We often use excuses, but seldom appreciate them in others.  Recently the cruise ship Costa Concordia struck an underwater reef and flipped sideways costing about 30 people their lives.  Countering charges that he deserted ship, the captain, Francesco Schettino, suggested that he might have tripped and accidentally fallen into one of the emergency evacuation boats.

Jesus told a parable about men who agreed to attend a feast, but who later changed their minds.  He says, “But they all alike began to make excuses” (Luke 14:18-20).  Land evaluation, stock testing, and even marriage were exposed as flimsy excuses for failing to attend.

What was our last excuse for missing worship services?  What is our excuse for praying less than two minutes a day?  On the Day of Judgment, what excuse will we offer for having never become a Christian?  If our excuses sound a bit weak, how do you think they sound to God?

Jesus loves me this I know,

For the Bible tells me so.

Little ones to Him belong,

We are weak, but He is strong.

Yes, Jesus loves me… Yes, Jesus loves me…

Yes, Jesus loves me… The Bible tells me so.

Today may not be your best day.  You may have health or financial concerns.  There may be those in your family who have hurt you or written you out of their lives.  You may have anxieties about your career, the upcoming elections, or the church.  However, in the midst of all these shines this glorious truth — JESUS LOVES YOU.

Jesus desires to have a relationship with you and to equip you to live a victorious life.  In fact, He loves you so much that He left Heaven, came to earth, and died on a cross so that He could take you home to be with Him forever.  That is the greatest lesson you will ever learn!

However, if that question were asked regarding the functioning of the local church, what would the answer be?  What do you see as the most important cog in the church here?  Some would see the elders and their leadership.  Others might point to Mark or myself as full-time evangelists.  Still others would highlight the entire Bible class program or another ministry.  Would someone refer to the “prayer warriors” — men and women who regularly and passionately petition God for His favorably guidance and blessing?

The reality is that every member plays a role in the local church’s ability to carry out the Lord’s will.  Paul wrote the Ephesians, “but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him, who is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by that which every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love” (Eph. 4:15-16).

The future of the Old Hickory congregation hinges on what every member provides.  Whether you are young or old, male or female, recognized leader or not.  Your faithfulness and your participation are crucial.

This was not what I really meant or what I expected, yet it was very much what I needed.  The same is probably true of most of our resolutions for 2012.  Most of us tend to resolve to diet better, exercise more, and spend less.  We like practical issues rather than spiritually healthy resolutions like, treating others better, showing more patience, and enjoying every day to the fullest.  We might all be benefitted by asking ourselves what the Lord would like for us to do.

Three passages capture the heart of what I believe the Lord wants us to do in 2012:  First, “He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God?” (Micah 6:8).  Next, “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you.” (Matthew 6:33).  Finally,  “And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.” (Colossians 3:17).

Let’s be sure we have both our heart and our priorities right before we make and implement our New Year’s resolutions.

At midnight this Saturday evening, we will turn our calendars to a new year–the year 2012.  With it comes a host of new dreams and activities.  None of us know exactly what it will bring, but we certainly have reason to possess great expectations.

My prayer for your family and our entire congregation is that 2012 will be a year of great excitement filled with spiritual growth, familial joy, and good health.  May we all experience the beauties of peace, forgiveness, and wisdom.  Past years have been filled with blessings, but 2012 may be the best year ever.

While some of the events that will factor into the new year are beyond our control, much of this year’s story awaits our own writing.  The diary is blank.  What will we write on its pages for the next 365 days?  Our daily challenge is to set our priorities correctly.  We need to love the Lord with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength.  We need to seek the kingdom of God above any worldly or selfish agenda.

Certainly church attendance is an act of obedience — the Scriptures command our presence at the assemblies.  It is that unique time where, in His very presence, we offer our worship to God.  Yet, we gather for worship and study, because we need it.  We need to have our souls replenished.

Through my ministry, I do not recall ever talking to a person who regretted the effort they made to “be at church.”  Going the second mile in the face of bad weather or recurrent pain merely heightened the beauty of the “spiritual shower” the Lord provided their soul.

Let me challenge each of us to be regular in our attendance.  Your presence this Sunday (9:00, 10:15, and 5:00) will honor God, encourage your spiritual family, and “water your flowers.”

We need to remember that God is more interested in the quality of our effort than the stage or the audience where it is delivered.  The truth and passion of the sermon matter more than the number who hear it.  The Lord notices the heart of hospitality more than the number who actually eat the meal.

John 4 records a day in the life of Jesus where He chose to sit at Jacob’s well and converse with one woman.  We are introduced to the reality that this woman was both immoral and a Samaritan, but to Jesus she was important.  The encounter made a difference in her life and the lives of her friends.  Through the years, that dialog has greatly affected the lives of thousands of others who needed to know that Jesus could deliver His powerful blessing on one person at a time.

This week, we need to focus on doing our best, as we touch or teach others.  It may be the meal you fix the family, or the Bible class you teach.  Remember, what matters is not the number who share the feast, but the heart that delivers it.  God will take our little and multiply its effect.

If giving brings joy, this congregation should be overflowing with happiness.  Recently you donated 122 coats for the Warm Coats from Warm Hearts project.  In addition you contributed a very large sack of Bibles to be passed out.  Your generosity has kept us $500 a week above budget for the year.  This surplus has allowed us to extend our local benevolence program thousands of dollars beyond budget and to continue supporting Disaster Relief which has supplied 8 1/2 million dollars of aid this year.  Additionally, you help with the Crisis Pregnancy Center, Inner City Ministry, Summit Hospital snack baskets, and other ministries throughout the year.  Now, you are generously providing for families during the Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons.

As the Lord develops a giving and serving heart in us, let’s be sure to offer thanks.  A servant-heart banishes selfishness and materialism. It reveals a love for others that mirrors the divine trademark.  It adorns our faith and makes our discipleship shine in the midst of a world filled with religious lies.

There are no shortcuts to building a good marriage.  Both partners have to develop communication skills, practice patience and forgiveness, and persevere through the good and the bad times.  There are no shortcuts to a balanced budget–at home or in Washington.  There are no magic pills  to achieve weight loss or physical fitness.

Likewise, there are no shortcuts to discipleship.  Jesus said, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me” (Mt. 16:24).  Paul offered no magic pill to developing faith when he wrote, “Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God” (Rom. 10:17).  John echoes Jesus’ message to the church (Rev. 2:10), “Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life.”  There was no shortcut to the eternal reward.

The media advertises all types of simple, easy, painless, and inexpensive solutions to our complex problems.  The reality is that most of these are deceiving, disappointing, and dangerous.  God took no shortcut in addressing our “sin-issue”; He sent Jesus to die on a cross.  We need to be careful not to offer a shortcut in our response.