David & Goliath Is Not About You
Fellow soldiers of the cross,
We have begun my favorite season of the year: Lent. Unlike the rest of church seasons which get their names from Greek and Latin (e.g. Epiphany, Pentecost), 'lent' actually comes from the old English word 'lencten.' It refers to springtime, the time of year when the days begin to lengthen. More importantly, it's the season where we spend 40 days journeying with Jesus to His cross and empty tomb. And the first Sunday in Lent always sets the tone for the weeks and special days that follow. This Sunday we'll witness as Jesus undergoes 40 days of fasting and faces intense temptations from the devil in the wilderness. (This is, coincidentally, why Lent is also 40 days long.)
The first Sunday in Lent encapsulates what the entire season seeks to highlight: Jesus for you. He was born for you and lived for you. Now He fights for you. He steps onto our battle so that He can succeed where we failed; so that He can win where we repeatedly lose. So that He can defeat the devil for all the times we haven't and can't and won't. And this victory that Jesus wins over Satan is just the beginning. Jesus will withstand everything the devil throws at Him in the wilderness, and yet the devil won't give up without a fight.
So throughout the season of Lent we'll watch as the devil keeps throwing temptations in Jesus' path through the words and actions of those closest to Him. The people closest to Jesus will be the ones who want to deter Him from His cross the most. It will be Jesus' own disciples who abandon, deny, and betray Him. It will be the very people Jesus comes to save who put Him on the cross. Despite it all, Jesus fights and ultimately wins...for you.
This victory over the devil in the wilderness is just a precursor, of course, a foreshadowing of the ultimate victory Jesus will win both by dying and rising at the conclusion of Lent. But we're getting ahead of ourselves. One Sunday at a time ... there's just too much to take in this week and we don't want to miss any of the comfort and strength Jesus displays and dispenses for us in this most solemn and beautiful season of the year.
We'll consider all of this on Sunday by looking at the well-known story of David and Goliath (1 Samuel 17). It's well-known but commonly misapplied by and to modern-day Christians. On Sunday we'll see that this story, like all the stories in Scripture, is really a picture of Jesus, who fights for us and wins the victory against all our enemies big and small.
I look forward to taking this 40 day journey with you every year and I hope to see you on Sunday as we begin the trek together. God bless your Saturday in His name and with His grace! We will have daily Lent devotional books for you to pick up on Sunday, so be sure to grab one of your way out!
I pray you all had a blessed week and I look forward to seeing you Sunday!
In Christ our Victor,
Pastor Bater