What the heck is an inheritance anyway?

In 1 Peter 1:3-5 the Apostle Peter says this:

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!

According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time."

I read this text just the other day and have been thinking quite a bit about it lately. What it essentially boils down to is that God in Christ has caused us to be reborn to a living hope. We, being firstly born "dead in our trespasses and sins" (Eph. 2:1), have in Christ been given a 2nd birth. This birth is not hopeless, leading fatefully to death, but is hopeful, leading surely to resurrection life! With this new life also comes a blessed inheritance. This inheritance, which = is imperishable, undefiled and unfading, is being kept and looked after for us by God in heaven. It is most surely ours, but awaits our ultimate possession of it at the culmination of our salvation.

And what is this blessed inheritance? It is the Lord Jesus Christ Himself! He is our great inheritance, our sure hope, our eternal life!

Now, the reason I've been thinking about this text lately is because of my grandfather's recent passing. It got me thinking about the inheritance he may or may not have left behind. Let me first clarify that I was not and am not thinking of this inheritance with any motive toward selfish gain. I am simply curious. I don't really know how the process of passing on an inheritance works; and I would assume most people (or at least the students I work with) don't either. So, it is for this reason I have been pondering the above text.

If I don't really understand "inheritances" then how am I to rightly glean from this text the rich nutrients it is meant to provide? If I know little or, in my case, nothing about inheritances, then how is knowing or learning that Christ is my inheritance supposed to move my soul to deeper love and adoration for Christ?

It is from these questions that got me thinking about how we read and understand the Scriptures. Please don't misunderstand what I'm about to say, for I have spent the past 4 years studying in a seminary that has a high and reverent view of Scripture and they taught me to handle it with the utmost care and diligence. I have studied the original languages and mulled over text upon text discovering deep theological truths that the Scriptures hold and pronounce. However, it was in that context, as well as working with students, that I began to realize that even thought the Bible holds these proverbial "nuggets" of deep truth it also houses a wealth of practical truths that sit on the surface of the text and stare us straight in the face. The problem is that we don't even understand these truths rightly. We have become so far removed from the culture of the Scriptures that we miss some of even the simplest truths.

Thus, I have started to read the Scriptures a little differently as of late. I have moved from the posture of detective, looking for clues within the Scripture that lead to deep and profound truth (this mostly because I'm just not smart enough to do that) and have taken the position of a curious child. I want to see and hear God in the simplest of stories and be moved by the Spirit with the most obvious truths!

So, the curious question which springs from my lack of understanding as of late is "what the heck is an inheritance anyway?"

What's yours?

For His Kingdom...

It's been awhile...

True, it has been some time since my last post. For this I sincerely apologize as this blog began with the intent of posting almost everyday. I had hoped that this would be a real means of communicating all that is going on in the Student Ministries of CRPC, as well as a place to share thoughts, musings, experiments and ideas. However, I have found it much harder to do that than initially expected. So, that coupled with the often discouraging lack of comments and interaction has caused a sense of waste in these writings.

Then I remember that it is not necessarily how many people view this blog, comment on posts or even get anything out of accidently coming across this page; but it is an issue of being faithful and committed to what I've began. So, with that in mind - I write.

Things have been a little crazy around here. Not just in ministry but in my personal life as well. I feel like I have been very absent as of late. I have been out of town for various things such as Spiritual Retreats, getaways, concerts and 50th birthdays. All of this has really been good, but it has also really jumbled my schedule. So I am glad to finally have a bunch of that travel behind me.

The ministry is going well! We have established a student leadership team and have had 3 meetings already. I have high hopes and expectations for these students. Our mid-week programs continue to be a good time to fellowship with students and speak truth into their lives. We are currently looking in to how we can make these programs better. Sunday school is also continuing on. This is a wonderful time of fellowship, rest and learning. I pray that these times are not a waste and that God would use these times to really touch the hearts and lives of our students.

With all that, please keep (or start) praying for us. We desperately need God to work in our lives and in the students lives.

For His Kingdom...

Parent Meeting...

I love experiments!

This will be my 2nd one I've attempted on this blog-site. So, we'll see how it goes...

We are in the midst of planning our next parent meeting and were wondering when the best day and time to hold it would be. So, we thought we'd do the most obvious thing and just ask.

Parents, this is for you.

- What would be the best day for you? Week day or week end?

- When would be the best time for you? Morning? Afternoon? Evening?

Please leave us a comment and we'll do the best we can to make the recommended accommodations.

Thank you for your continued patience with us as we move through this trying season of ministry.

For His Kingdom...

Life...

Life seems to come at us so quickly and sometimes so harshly. Not only is this so but many times it creeps up and blindsides us. We are swiftly caught off guard and soon find ourselves wondering what has happened.

This has been my experience over this past week. A couple of family issues, including the loss of my Grand-dad, aka "Papap," as well as ministry and church struggles have come upon me in no easy fashion. I have found myself feeling completely weak and abused, looking around for some glimmer of hope or perhaps even a slight answer to all this.

Then, yesterday at Papap's funeral I felt (I know, strange for a Presbyterian to say) God's presence in a very real and vital way. I was lead to read 2 Corinthians 1-3 with Amy before we left for the funeral, paying special attention to chapter 1. I was confronted by the comfort of God Himself and it quickly began to leak from the pages of Scripture into my own heart. I was no longer needing to be satisfied by answers or the discovery of hope. I found in that moment God was enough! I also understood that with this comfort, as was the case for Paul and Timothy, I was to comfort others. Thus, I took the comfort of God and sought to spread it to my family and friends. I pray that in that funeral God was honored and glorified and that His comfort was truly felt.

I mention this because I have heard Pastor Tullian say time and again that "Christ plus nothing equals everything." I believe that with all my heart and understand if fully. However, I wanted to experience it. So, I prayed. God has since brought all this "stuff" into my life that has stripped me down. Then, when I was feeling quite low and just tired, God granted me the desire of my prayer! He drew near to me and comforted me. God is great and His grace is ever so sweet!

"Papap, I'll miss you!"

For His Kingdom...