The Present Evil Age

Boston Marathon Bombing.....3 dead....
Man kills infant son by shaking him.....
Woman poison's her live-in boy friend....
Wall Street investor swindles people for billions of dollars....
Pastor uncovered in an adulterous affair....
And the list goes on and on and on.....

You don't have to look very far to understand the truth that Paul wrote about in Galatians 1:4: Speaking of Jesus, Paul wrote,"Who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father." The Present Evil Age? What he is saying is that we live in a time (or period of time) between two other periods of time. The day that we live in lies between Jesus' first trip to earth, where he took on the flesh, shape and form of a man.....and his next time to come back or what some folks refer to a his 2nd coming. So between his Jesus' first time here and his return, lies this present evil age. I know what you're thinking...hasn't there always been evil on this planet? Well, yes ever since the fruit was picked and eaten in the garden. But if you look at our society today, you have to see that we are on down the road in our evilness. We have kicked God completely out of the conscience of society. We have relegated churches to the back burner of importance. In my estimation, two generations have been raised who do not understand or know God. Oh they may have a head knowledge of Him. But they do not know Him. Knowledge about something isn't the same as knowledge of something.

People who don't know God, look at church and the people who attend as being somehow deceived and deluded. They find no value in going to church. They look at the Bible and even though they may own one, they do so as some sort of talisman or luck charm. Even if they read it, it is hard for them to understand. They see no connection between what they read and their everyday life. Just being truthful here....
In fact, the majority of society knows more about what the church is against than what it truly stands for. How sad is that? Maybe we haven't been very good stewards of getting out the right message. What I read in my Bible...yes, that antiquated book that won't go away, is that Jesus was all about pointing the way out of the "present evil age" that was happening in his day. He was all about healing people (which by the way is still part of the mandate He left us to do..the whole "Praying for people to be healed thing). He could take a happy meal and do some serious damage to the human appetite. Feeding over 5,000 on one occasion and 4,000 on another by using a few fish and biscuits. Sounds to me like Jesus was anti-hunger. 

You see, that's all I want to do when we gather on Saturday nights at Vineyard Recovery. I want to introduce my Jesus (or at least the Jesus I know at this point. He keeps revealing himself to me on many different levels) and have a place where we can catch our breath from living in the "Present evil age" all week. A place where the hurt can be soothed. The emptiness can be filled. The hopelessness can be replaced with purpose. The loneliness can be shattered and broken by a new relationship that will never go away. A place where the words that are spoken have meaning and usher in the presence of God. A place where the "Present evil age" is left on the sidewalk while we shut the doors to just be with God and with others like ourselves.  A place of healing. We're not just on the road to recovery...we are recovered....recovery is not something that is over the hill and if I keep walking I hope to find it. Recovery begins the moment you say yes to Jesus. Recovery is a right now moment and because it is instituted and driven by the Spirit of God, it is life changing. That is why God has called me to open up Vineyard Recovery, to be a place where He can come and meet with all of us who are broken and hurting. A place where we can be healed so we can go back out into the "Present evil age" and tell someone else who is hurting, "Hey, why don't you come with me next Saturday night. I know a place that you will love."
See you tonight...
7 p.m.
Downtown Gadsden on Broad Street, between 4th and 5th streets...
Vineyard Recovery Fellowship.

God on you...
mb