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Why is that true? Because, in a broken world populated by broken people, we all suffer. And now … Jesus!Įvery well-trained and experienced biblical counselor has developed a theology of suffering. And they need the support and encouragement of the people in their local assembly, even if that must be done, at least temporarily, through virtual meetings.
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The strugglers you serve in your soul-care ministry need Jesus. These days, there are a lot of believers struggling with soul-challenging circumstances because of the pandemic. So, what did Thomas miss when he “skipped church” on Resurrection Day? He missed a LOT! And because he failed to attend the meeting, he struggled for eight days more than necessary.
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That is, as the text mentions, all but one of them. But they were His group of followers who gathered on the first day of the week. Jesus’ disciples do not, by themselves and at this time, constitute a New Testament church. “ Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” That’s you, me, and your counselee! The Context of the Conversation He Promises Blessing for Those Who Walk in Faith (v. He does that right in the middle of a period of struggle, a season of doubt? YES! And He uses believers as the vehicles of His transforming message. 23)Ĭan God-does God-still change lives? Yes. He Gives Confidence in the Power of the Gospel (v. Ministry in Jesus’ Name is not done in the power of the soul, but through the power of the Holy Spirit The focus of a transformed heart is to glorify God by representing Jesus well. When our focus shifts from ourselves to Him, there is an expected and commissioned corollary- our concern will extend to others on His behalf. When the glory of the resurrected Jesus is the focus of life, delightful emotions explode. Jesus offers this greeting, and this kind of future, not once but twice on Resurrection Evening. When all the essential parts of life come together, there is peace. He Envisions and Offers Change (Wholeness, v. Jesus would soon say, “… I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matt. When Jesus arrives, everything, most notably the focus of those men, shifts to Him. Imagine the scene: a group of disciples is in a locked room focused on themselves and dreading the future. And what does He do for struggling believers in those moments? The same things He did for His disciples in their struggle: He enters your life-and the lives of your counselees-in the same way. Jesus enters the narrative miraculously (in John 20:19). The focus of life becomes self and survival. Challenging, God-ordained circumstances unrelated to the global pandemic-a broken or strained relationship, a life-dominating sin, physical illness or debilitation, persistent grief because of heart-breaking loss-often produce the kinds of emotional upheaval about which many biblical counselors have recently written.Īnd our response to these present-day struggles is often to do what Jesus’ disciples did- hide! Although some movement-restricting quarantine measures have been imposed upon us, you probably know people who have used (and extended) those measures to escape circumstances they find uncomfortable.Īnd what is the result of such soulish struggles? They turn people inward, collapse their world, change their thinking, limit their relationships, and ravage their souls. The people you are counseling these days are, no doubt, struggling in many of the same ways the disciples struggled. Those were the circumstances experienced by Jesus’ disciples on the evening of the day of His resurrection, an event announced to them by Mary Magdalene but not yet confirmed by their own experience (see John 20:18-29). Self-sequestered.Īs I write this, we are all still trying to understand and manage the personal, familial, and ecclesiastical impact of an international pandemic and the resulting quarantine.īut the descriptors above do not relate exclusively to our circumstances in 2020.
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