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Have a Disturbing Day

Words of Faith Final

Have a Disturbing Day
Words of Faith 12-30-2021
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2021
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL
www.faithfellowshipweb.com
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Matthew 2                 
     After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem [2] and asked, "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him."
    [3] When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.

        Have you seen the bumper sticker that says: Wise Men Still Seek Him? I like that. It is very true. But there is another truth. It says: "When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him."  
       The arrival of Jesus was disturbing. Very disturbing. And, frankly, it is not nearly so snappy but we would be correct to wear a pin or post a bumper sticker around Christmas that says: "Herod is Disturbed, and All the World With Him."
       The truth is that Jesus cannot enter any town or country or family or church without disturbing it. If we understood that, life would make more sense. Somehow Christian culture got the idea that Christian influence would always be nice and gentle and never disturb things.  
        Somewhere along the line, we got the idea that the Christian message was always one of peace and love, which would never offend or upset the status quo. Somehow the church got the idea that everyone would be comforted by announcing the message of Jesus.
        Nothing could be further from the truth. When Jesus arrives, wise men seek Him, but all of Jerusalem, all the world is disturbed.
       But isn't Jesus the Prince of Peace? Yes. But that peace will come first in our hearts and then after a final battle. And peace does not often come to the soul of a man without a fight. Peace never comes to a family or a town without a struggle. Herod was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.
       The truth is that if you share Jesus in your neighborhood, He will disturb things. If you share Jesus in your workplace, school, or community, He will disturb people and relationships. Notice that I said HE will disturb things and people. You will not and should not disturb things. He will do that. I have met some people who assumed that it was their job to disturb things, when, in fact, Jesus is perfectly capable of doing that! He doesn't need your help.
      The person and message of Jesus are disturbing. He requires us to surrender our lives to Him. There is no other way. We must face our own sin and human frailty. There is no other alternative. We must release control of our lives and receive His grace. He disturbs our pride, work ethic, and sense that we have things under control. Any other message is a compromise.
      His message is even disturbing to the church-- maybe especially disturbing in the church. The church often must confess its own sin and that it is not the Kingdom of God. It is not in control. It is a frail, human, sinful vessel with power only when empowered by the Holy Spirit. It cannot manage or program the Kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. That is disturbing!  So much so that the church has more often stoned its prophets than embraced them. How often have you heard a/the church, local or institutional, confess its sin or error? Keep thinking. Counting? Uh huh.
        But most of all, Jesus disturbs you and me. Don't miss that. Year after year, Christmas after Christmas, He confronts us with truth so simple and love so pure that we melt in His presence. For all our efforts at explaining, singing, preaching, and praying, we find nothing we can do to capture Christmas. The best we can hope for is that it will capture us. He will capture us. And He will disturb us. So. Have a disturbing day.

        Disturb me, O Lord. Help me to understand the disturbances that You are authoring around me. Give me grace to speak Your truth without compromise. In Jesus' name.

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© Jeffrey D. Hoy 2021
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy - Faith Fellowship Church (EFCA)        
2820 Business Center Blvd.
Melbourne, Florida 32940 (321)-259-7200
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
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The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail, excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2021 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.