CREDIT: Martin Rulsch
Dear Friends and Family,
In case you missed it, the Olympics are coming up. I love to watch sports – baseball, college basketball, and a little football. During the Olympics though, my attention expands to other sports – specifically gymnastics. Why? World-class gymnasts pull out all the stops for the Olympics. They do some amazing things. As I watch, I’m constantly stunned at what they can achieve as these gymnasts defy gravity and the bounds of human movements. A frequent thought is, “That’s impossible!” Of course, it isn’t … because I just saw it happen … but still, it seems impossible!
This past week was Vacation Bible School and our theme was, “Jesus does the impossible.” While gymnasts and the other Olympic athletes seem to do the impossible, they are simply using the gifts God has given them to the maximum extent. But Jesus does do the impossible – in small and great ways! One of these impossible events we saw during VBS is Jesus walking on water as the disciples struggled to get their boat across the Sea of Galilee. They saw Jesus walking on the water and said, “That’s impossible!” (Mark 6:49-50/Matthew 14:26) Then, as soon as Jesus got in the boat with them, the wind storm ceased “And those in the boat worshiped Him, saying, ‘Truly You are the Son of God’” (Matthew 14:33).
Throughout His ministry Jesus did a selected number of miracles, things impossible for you and me, to a selected number of people, for one purpose – to show people that He is, as the disciples stated, the Son of God. And as the Son of God, as amazing and impossible as turning water into wine, walking on water, healing the sick and raising the dead are, He did something even more impossible for us to do. He lived a perfectly sinless life, died on the cross, and rose from the dead so that, you and I and all who believe in Him can receive the gifts of forgiveness of sin and eternal life. Jesus does do the impossible! Thanks be to God.
In Christ’s Love,
Pastor Jim