There is nothing better than the remembrance of the goodness of God and seeing how it produces fruit in our lives. I’m excited to also share a link to the entire sermon that I preached that sparked this series as we wrap it up with this post.

First, if you haven’t, take a minute and get caught up on the first two parts of the series. Also, make sure you sign up to the email list so you can get posts delivered right to your inbox.

1. Theology of Remembrance Part 1 – Our remembrance of the goodness of God stirs our affections for Jesus
2. Theology of Remembrance Part 2 – Our remembrance produces a grateful heart

Human Motivation and Action

We have a tendency to take things into our own hands. I grew up in Chicago during the days of the legendary Michael Jordan. Without fail, in the last few minutes of any game when the Bulls were down there was not even a doubt who the primary ball handler would be. Who was going to take the final shot? Of course, it was going to be MJ. I’ve listened to numerous interviews of Michael Jordan describing his thought process during these moments. It was simple, he wanted the ball and was determined to take things into his own hands to win the game.

This motivation is present in all of us, however, we begin to think that we are in fact God. We believe that when chaos in our lives occur that the best chance we have is to take things into our own hands. If we were to take an honest look at our selves we would find that we are truly not capable. It would be impossible and this creates a serious frustration. Further, we try to respond from our finite knowledge and experiences. As believers, we have a better option. We can turn to Christ and allow the Gospel to inform our decisions and actions.

God Remains Faithful In Spite Of Our Circumstances:

Why should we turn to Christ? Because he is not shaken by our circumstances. God is not surprised or taken back by the situation are your in today. Rather, as we see in Romans 8: 28-30 God is continually working things together for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. What an incredible truth to know that God is for us and with us! I think its important to note that this does not mean we will not go through trials, tragedy, and seasons of sorrow and lament. What we do know is that in these seasons we can trust and count on God being with us through every moment. This reality became so true to us as we experienced the goodness and comfort of God as my 9 month old son went through hospitalization and tests after he had a complex febrile seizure.

Today we can rest and rejoice in this truth. That God does not leave us regardless of our sin, failure, and unfaithfulness. Rather, he stays with us and remains faithful.

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You can listen to my sermon on Genesis 35 here

The post Genesis 35: A Theology Of Remembrance Pt. 3 appeared first on Joel's Travels.