November 19, 2023 "God Is At The Table With Us In Every Circumstance"

ReNew Ames Messages

We're moving toward Advent and this scripture gets us there. John is writing this letter to real people in a real place and time. These are people who needed to be reminded that God is present and that God is large. So John gives them a vision of the divine that is much larger than our brains can comprehend: God is larger than space and time as we know it - but also invades space and time as we know it. The one who was, who is, and who is to come. This idea is all over the pages of the scriptures. God tells Moses to tell the people "I Am sent you." Let's rewind to the creation story - God creates through God's word - through speaking. In John 1: The Word of God becomes flesh. In Paul's letter to the Colossians: In Jesus all things hold together. God is larger than space and time as we know it - but also invades space and time as we know it - just to be with us. I wonder - why do we need to be reminded of this? God wants to be with us in our pain, our grief, our struggle, our sorrow. And God wants to be with us in our joy and our happiness. The only question is - do we have eyes to see it and ears to hear it? Speaker: Aaron Vis Scripture: Revelation 1:1-8