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St. Peter’s
Stewardship News
The Simple Truth
The simple truth is the sum of the matter.
Trusting in the simple truth of God’s word and applying it in our
lives. How much are we willing to give? Are we willing to walk
with Him no matter what will be said about us? How it will be
seen? Even by the leaders in our church, our workplace, or our
government.
The Gospel of John, Chapter 9 talks of a blind
man who was healed by Jesus. Jewish culture at that time viewed
birth defects as the direct result of sin. Actually any illness was
seen as a direct result of sin. There is truth to that viewpoint in
the sense of the fallen man as it relates to Adam. But not in the
sense of a parent’s sin manifesting itself in the defects of their
children. Interestingly enough the disciples of Jesus asked who
sinned with this man, him or his parents. Jesus’ answer was no one
but this was done so that God’s glory would be seen. Ironically,
the rest of the chapter shows who was able to see.
The blind man not only received his physical
sight but he also had his spiritual eyes opened. He saw Jesus for
who He was, the Son of God, the light who came into the world so
that man may see. Yet, the religious leaders refused to believe
because the healing had been done on the Sabbath day. The miracle
did not matter too many of these men as verse 16 shows, but there
were some who saw God’s glory. Yet, the majority refused to believe
because a man-made interpretation of the Law was violated.
There faith would not allow them to trust in
the unknown. What little faith they had, but I have to wonder who
had more faith? Did the Jews of Jesus’ day or do we? We are just
as bad at times. We want all the answers, we need to have a plan,
we need to see the final results and know we can achieve them…and
all of that before we can even start. Yet, the truth is very
simple. In the words of the blind man, “I was blind, but now I
see.” The facts were there for the Pharisees to see, yet they still
refused. Why? Was their pride so great that they had to believe in
only themselves? Had their power and influence reached a point
where it was more important then God? Had their faith been placed
in their ability more then God’s ability? Now, ask those same
questions of yourself.
The truth is right there in the Word. It is
revealed to us on a daily basis, yet we strive to find fault in the
message. We are afraid to admit in our weaknesses, so that Christ
may be seen. There is a lot of time and energy spent in attempting
to discover loopholes in the Word of God. There is a lot of debate
on the literal interpretation of the Bible. Why? Because it is the
truth! And to admit that would require us to walk away from our
abilities and to embrace the truth, love and power of God. The
Truth speaks for itself. God’s Word requires our study so we may
learn to live as stewards of Christ. As we learn to live in His
Word, we will be challenged to put aside our worldly desires and
seek out the kingdom of heaven. My prayer is that we strive to echo
the words of the blind man, “I was blind, but now I see.”
In His service,
Rick Miller, Chairman of Stewardship Committee
To submit information for the "News & Notes" please contact us
via email;
St. Peter's Church
or call the church office at 260.749.5816
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