Guest Speaker: What Now? - Pastor Greg Hendricks

FC’s mission is to culture like Christ, and the vision is Jesus. After an amazing Easter service

last week where Pastor Josiah asked “Can I Get a Witness?” and his cousin Danny explained

how God brought him back from the dead, Pastor Greg declared,”Don’t just believe He rose;

walk like He is alive!”

How easy it is to celebrate Easter. Mountaintop experiences are wonderful, but valleys give us

opportunities to mature when we are rooted in Jesus. Being rooted in Jesus Christ helps you

deal with life’s ups and downs.

Pastor Greg read from Luke 24:13-35 where two followers were walking from Jerusalem after

the crucifixion to Emmaus a town seven miles away. As they walked, they talked about the

recent events. Jesus joined them, but they did not recognize Him. Jesus asked them what they

were discussing, and they sadly responded that He must be the only one that did not know what

happened in Jerusalem with Jesus. As they approached Emmaus, they invited Jesus to stay

with them and eat. “When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke

it and began to give it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him….”

Luke 24:30-31 (NIV)

The first point was “Your direction may be off, but His presence never is.” The two Jesus

followers were returning from Jerusalem to Emmaus seven miles away. Seven is the number of

completion or wholeness in the Bible. They were discussing the events that saddened them.

Jesus asked them, “What are you discussing together as you walk along?” Luke 24:17

(NIV) When the Lord asks you a question, He is not asking for information, for He is omniscient

(all knowing). He may be asking to get your attention or to make you think.

One passage that reveals the Lord’s presence is Psalm 139:7-8. “Where can I go from your

Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I

make my bed in the depths, you are there.” (NIV) Wherever you go, He is there. He still has

His hand on your health, your attitude, your finances, your situation. Sometimes you might not

recognize him like these two followers, but He is there. One of the verses that steadies my

heart is “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you!” Hebrews 13:5 (NIV) I cite that verse

to myself when I feel alone. Another verse that undergirds the fact of His presence is “If we are

faithful, he remains faithful, for He cannot deny who He is.” 2 Timothy 2:13 (NLT) That is

Jesus’ prescription about what to do; be faithful.

The promise was in Jerusalem, but they were going to Emmaus. Their dispositions took them

away from the promise, for their expectations did not meet their experiences. The two followers

were in the valley, for they said,”…but we had hoped he was the one who was going to

redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place.” Luke 24:21-

22 (NIV) Their pain might have masked their “recognizing him.” Luke 24:16 (NIV) Does your

pain ever mask your recognizing Jesus? Does your pain mask you from knowing what God is

doing?

Pastor Greg declared,”When your hope collapses, your direction drifts, but Jesus can step in

and make it straight.” That’s what Jesus did for these two followers. He joined them as they

were leaving Jerusalem and stepped into their confusion. He is the God of direction and

destination. “I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I

will guide them; I will turn darkness into light before them and make the rough places

smooth.” Isaiah 42:16 (NIV) When the Living One opens the written word, amazing things

happen.

The real point is how you deal with the valley. “You may have lost your way, but you can re-

discover it in Yahweh.” Thank God for the blood of Jesus who takes away the sin of the world.

Jeremiah 29:13 states, ”You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your

heart.” (NIV) Ask yourself if you are looking at the situation through the view of satanic

suggestion or anchoring in God’s vision. "Even when your direction is off, His presence is on,”

emphasized Pastor Greg. “You may have lost your way but you haven’t lost the victory.”

The second point was “If you don’t experience Him in His Word, you won’t recognize Him in

your experience.” Pastor Greg told us to read the Word, to know Jesus through the Word, and to

read it yourself. Jesus “explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning

himself.” Luke 24:27 (NIV) “You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in

them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me.” John 5:39

(NIV) Pastor Greg declared, “There are five prophetic words, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts.”

Time in the Word shows us how to talk to tax collectors, Samaritans, lepers.

We need to anchor ourselves in the Word and confirm what others say with the Word. If they do

not agree, release the person’s advice. What prevented the followers from recognizing Jesus

could have been wrong expectations, lack of knowledge of the Scripture or it was not on their

timing. But Jesus divinely drew them in. “It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; to search

out a matter is the glory of kings.” Proverbs 25:2 (NIV) The New Living Translation is “It is

God’s privilege to conceal things and the king’s privilege to discover them.” We benefit

when we search the Scriptures. God will stir your spirit.

“God can be present and still be unrecognized if your perception is focused on the problem not

His presence.” The two followers were absorbed in the events, the crucifixion, their

disappointment, their confusion. But we are to “live by faith, not by sight.” 2 Corinthians 5:7

(NIV) Jesus had to awaken the two followers.

“The Word of God can correct what your emotions try to convince.” How often have you doubted

the Lord because of how you felt? How often have the circumstances looked grim because of a

health crisis? ”Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.” Psalm 119:105 (NIV)

When you let the Word of God light your path, your feet can go in His direction not in the

direction of the attention-getting circumstance. “When scripture starts to speak in your life,

confusion starts to lose its voice to your life.” Let His word wash over you in the circumstances

that are too big for you, that are yelling at you, that overwhelm you. “The teaching of your

words gives light; so even the simple can understand.” Psalm 119:130 (NIV) “If faith

shapes your sight, the Word will steady your steps.” Steep yourself in His Words instead of in

your circumstances. Release them to Him and read His love letter to you.

The final point was “Jesus is fully revealed in intimacy, not just proximity.” The two followers

invited Jesus to eat with them. “ When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave

thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they

recognized him….” Luke 24:30-31 (NIV) Are you inviting Jesus into your finances, your job,

your quarrels, your free time? Let Him sit at the table with you. Jesus said,”Here I am! I stand

at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and

eat with that person and they with me.” Revelation 3:20 (NIV) Revelation did not hit them

until they invited Him in. Invite Him into your health situation. Ask Him to heal you. Invite Him

into your confusion. Ask Him to give you clarity of thought. Invite Him into your irritability. Ask

Him to fill you with His peace. Tell Him, ”Lord. I am struggling right now.”

“Proximity doesn’t guarantee revelation. Intimacy does.” Judas was at the table of Last Supper.

He was near Jesus, but did he allow Jesus into his heart of hearts? In James we learn “Come

near to God and he will come near to you.” James 4:8 (NIV) So read His word and get to

know the Author.

“An intimate walk with Jesus prepares you for turbulent tussles with the enemy.” Even Jesus

had an encounter with the devil in the wilderness. “When the devil had finished all this

tempting, he left him…Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit.” Luke 4:13-14

(NIV) And Jesus cited Scripture to fend off satan and his wiles. That is one reason to know the

word and capture it in your heart, mind and soul.

“Your ability to walk victoriously is tied to your devotion to live intimately.” Romans reminds us so

well that “In all things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” Romans

8:37 (NIV) Pastor Greg emphasized,”You don’t win because you fight harder. You win because

you walk closer.” How do you walk closer?

As we walk closer to the Lord Jesus Christ, read His Word, and align our hearts to His, we will

reflect Him more in this troubled wold.

Calendar:

4/17-LB potluck, worship, and speaker Bo Quillar in the Activity Center at 6:00pm Friday.

Blessings,

Larry and Annette