He Has Overcome - Letter From Pastor Evan

Dear Praise Family,

In my last email, I wrote so that we might know of God's faithfulness to us (If you didn't see it, you can read it here) . Hopefully you have had the time to look back at the past year and see how God has indeed been faithful and gracious to us, even in the midst of trial! Part of that email also encouraged us to look forward to 2021, knowing that God will continue to be faithful because "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever," Hebrews 13:8. This is God's word to us!

In the events of the last 24 hours, though, it doesn't look like God's grace and faithfulness is abounding. When we turn on the news and see the upheaval all around us, it's easy for us to think that God has suddenly lost control, or worse yet, that He doesn't even care! After all, how could a loving God allow such turmoil? How could he not answer our prayers for better days to come?

In the midst of these questions, I want to remind you that God is working, in spite of the world around us! In John 16:33, Jesus says to His disciples, "In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world." Jesus isn't blind to the fact that this world is broken. In fact, He spoke these words while He was alone with the disciples in the Upper Room before His wrongful arrest, His unfair trial, and His brutal execution, all of which His disciples witnessed. And Jesus' words would come to pass as the disciples endured tribulation in this world as Luke records in the book of Acts! The world was broken then, and it is broken now. It is broken today.

But God's words didn't just point to tribulation. He said, "But take heart; I have overcome the world! In His resurrection, Jesus showed that He was victorious, over the worst that the world could give. All of unrest, all of tribulation, all of the sin that only seeks to crush us in this life could not keep Him in the grave; He rose in victory over it!

For those who have faith in Christ, He imparts that same victory to us. Though we will have trouble, our Savior, who rises above all tribulation, "gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ," (1 Corinthians 15:57) and points us to the Kingdom of Heaven prepared for us. Only there will He "wipe away every tear from [our] eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away," (Revelation 21:4). Our ultimate hope is in Heaven, not here on earth!

In the meantime, be encouraged by the hope of a glorious Heavenly Kingdom that is ours in Christ and that we will experience one day! And in the meantime, pray for our country, that God would intervene and bring hope to those desperately need it now.

He has overcome this world! He is victorious… even today.

In Christ,
Pastor Evan