“About
midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the
prisoners were listening to them.
Suddenly, there was an earthquake, so violent that the foundations of
the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and
everyone’s chains fell off.”
– Acts 16:25-26
Dear Friends of Atonement,
A red haired Wisconsin
teen is kidnapped, her parents shot dead.
The 911 call leads police to the house, but less than a minute too late. She is gone, with no major clues as to who
took her or where. First neighbors and
relatives are shocked, then it’s our turn as we follow the newscasts day after
day until our hearts give in to the growing likelihood that little Jayme Closs
was dead. And then one day, there she
is. A sudden opportunity, and she’s
running through the cold and the snow into the arms of freedom.
Jayme’s story hit us
so powerfully because it shows us that God can set us free even when we have almost
lost hope. Deep down we know that all
things are possible for God. And yet we
often live our daily lives with a dim, flickering lightbulb of faith when it
should be as bright as the Florida sun.
Paul and Silas had such
a bright hope burning that night in the jail cell singing their first century
equivalents to “Amazing Grace” and “Shine, Jesus, Shine.” Arrested for healing a young slave girl whose
owners were exploiting her disease, Paul and Silas had been grabbed, stripped,
beaten, and thrown into the darkest cell in the local prison, their feet locked
in stocks. They had no idea whether or
not their captors would execute them in the morning, but there they were,
singing. Somehow they were just as free
after they walked into that cell as they were before. Goes to show, the world can’t take away what
God puts into your heart.
Could this be what
Paul was driving at when he wrote that in Christ we are called to freedom, and
“for freedom Christ has set us free” (Galatians 5:1). The world wants to take us captive and put us
in chains. It wants to tell us that even
after God gives us all things, we still need the world’s stuff. We need to keep acquiring things, to get the
latest this or that, to buy into this plan and get that paid subscription, to
make sure we have insurance for everything and access to anything. The world would have us stay too busy to
rest, too fearful to love, and too worried to think. The world wants us investing in the world
rather than the kingdom of God. But then,
along comes Jesus.
Jesus lived a life of
pure freedom. Yes, he was obedient to
his Father God, going down in the Jordan and up on the cross. But in everything he did he was free, freely
choosing God, choosing love, choosing you.
When that earthquake hit and Paul and Simon had their chains shaken off,
their cell door came off its hinges and fell to the floor. They were free. But instead of walking out, they chose, of
their own free will, to stay in that jail cell so they’d be there in the
morning. They knew the jail keeper would
be punished if they escaped. By freely
choosing to stay, they saved more lives than their own that night.
Giving
your offering is like that. You are free
to give or not to give. You could choose
to spend all your money on worldly things, eating out more, and buying extra
clothes, taking extra vacations, or slipping more into your 401(k). But you also know that it would only be investing
more in a kingdom which is already passing away. Christ has made us God’s people and citizens
of heaven. Because of him, we feel free to
invest in His eternal kingdom, and to freely live our thankfulness for all God
has done for us.
Giving
to God is an act of faith, a protest against the false voices that tell us that
our worldly worries are more real than our salvation. Being generous stands in opposition to the
mindset that we need to worry about tomorrow, about what we wear, about keeping
up with the neighbors. Each dollar in
the offering plate refutes the idea that having lots of things makes us secure,
and that we can’t be happy without the newest, shiniest stuff.
In
Christ, your chains are gone. Your bills
and debts do not define who you are or what you can do. Yes, you should pay your bills and manage
your debts, but also live reflecting the life of Jesus, who lived simply, loved
deeply, and gave generously. Thank you for sharing your offerings
with Atonement, for having the courage to give as your heart longs to, and as
your faith calls you. And if you’re not
quite there yet, remember that you are a chosen and beloved child of God, no
matter what. The door is open and your
chains are gone. Feel free!
Peace,
Pastor Scott
