SUB25: The Podcast: Recent Episodes
Tanner Vines
SUB25 is not a show or a program. We are a community. As a community we are seeking to know, love, and follow Jesus more. We do this by reading, studying, and obeying the Bible. We are made up of people from all walks of life. Some have been following Jesus for a long time and others have just started. Many are searching for answers to tough questions. Some are simply enjoying life. No matter who you are, where you have been, or what you have done, we invite you to be a part of our community.
We all want to find our specific purpose in life. Most of us know that our general purpose is to bring glory to God through worship and making disciples. However, we often wonder, “What does God specifically want me to do in life?” We want to know what God wants us to do 2, 5, or 10 years down the road, but that’s not where God has us yet. Sure, God can speak to us about our future, but God actually has a plan and purpose for us where we are now.
I just finished reading 1 Samuel, and there are a lot of different characters in the book. There is no doubt that Samuel, Saul, and David are the major ones, but there are also some others that are less talked about. In chapter 14, there is an unnamed young man whose job was to carry Jonathan’s (King Saul’s son’s) armor.
In chapter 14, we read that Jonathan and this young armor bearer kill a group of Philistines (the enemy). Now don’t miss this. God used the unnamed armor bearer to help protect Jonathan who would later help protect King David. The armor bearer could have been wishing that he was going to be king one day, but that wasn’t his purpose. His purpose was right in front him. His purpose was to stay faithful to Jonathan and work to protect him. The armor bearer didn’t know that Jonathan would one day play a major role in protecting Kind David. But this armor bearer was a part of God’s story. Did he get a lot of glory? No. No one even knows his name. But he had a purpose. What if the armor bearer would have been consumed with the future? He would have missed his current purpose – protecting Jonathan.
Now I’m not saying we shouldn’t think about the future, but many of us are so consumed with the future that we miss where God has us now. God has a purpose for us right now. Maybe it’s the same purpose 5 years from now, but maybe its not.
Currently, I’m on staff at GFBC. I’m married to an incredible woman. My current specific purpose is to be the best minister and husband I can be. Do I think about the future and what God wants me to do on down the road? Absolutely! But God has a purpose for me right now.
Maybe you’re in school or just working. Could it be that God’s purpose for you right now is to bring Him glory by working hard? Could it be that God’s purpose for you right now is to try to have God-conversations with those you go to school with or work with? Or maybe you have fallen in love with a country like Guatemala, Ecuador, or India. Could it be that God’s purpose for you right now is to bring awareness to the needs in that country? Could it be that God’s purpose for you right now is to rally others to pray for those people and send support to missionaries there? Or maybe God’s purpose is for you to go!
I may be getting a little crazy here, but what if God’s purpose for you right now is to love your parents well and be an example to your brothers and sisters of what it means to follow Jesus? You say, “I don’t like my purpose…” Well, get over it, because life is not about you and what you want. Our life is about bringing glory to God. If you want to find your specific purpose in life, stop looking 5 and 10 years down the road. Start looking at where God has your right now and start fulfilling the specific purpose He has for you.
What if everything changed today? I’m not talking about the circumstances in your life or the issues going on in the world. I am talking about you and your faith. What if you started to really believe the Bible? Sure, we all say we believe the Bible. But what if you really started to believe that the Bible is God’s Word. What if that belief drove you to truly read and study it? And what if God actually started changing you – changing the way you think, talk, and act?
In Romans 12:1-2, Paul writes, 1I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
What if you started to be a living sacrifice for God by acting on what you read in the Bible? What if you made the decision to stop conforming to the world? What if you studied God’s word and meditated on it to the point of being changed by it?
What’s keeping your from living that kind of life? Fear? Anxiety? Apathy? Distractions? Hope of a better life found in something the world has to offer?
Many will never truly believe God’s Word to the point of drastic obedience. However, the ones who do will experience God in a way that others long for.
So what does this mean for you? Try this – start small. What can you do today to move one step closer to God?
“If Christ is not all to you He is nothing to you. He will never go into partnership as a part Saviour of men. If He be something He must be everything, and if He be not everything He is nothing to you.” Charles Spurgeon
This past Sunday college students were spread out across the campus serving the church. We had a great time greeting, passing out mints, and loving people. Check out some of the photos below.
Here are a few shots from our most recent House Church. I love seeing the pure joy that community with believers in Christ brings.
- Tanner
Luke 3:16 “…whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose…”
John the Baptist must have been one manly guy. Matthew’s Gospel says that his clothes were made of camel hair and that he ate locust and honey. In Luke we read that John grew up in the desert. Bear Grylls has nothing on John the B.
In Luke 3:2, we read that God’s word comes to John, and he begins to preach. He begins preparing the way for Jesus. After people hear John preaching, verse 15 says they began to wonder if he is the promised “Christ.” This leads John to make an interesting statement…
Luke 3:16 says,
John answered, saying to all, “I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.
If you are a Chaco fan like me and you wear them a lot, you know that they can get pretty nasty. In the verse above we read that John didn’t see himself worthy enough to loosen Jesus’ "Chacos." Think about this. John’s view of Jesus was so high that he was not worthy of touching his filthy sandal. Just because Jesus is God didn’t mean that his sandals didn’t get as dirty as the next guy's. Sweat…dirt… animal poop… mud… I think we get the picture. John doesn’t see himself worthy to touch this sandal because it is on Jesus’ foot. John was obviously a very humble man and had a high view of Jesus.
If I am honest, I don’t think I view Jesus like this. I don’t think most of us view Jesus like this. In fact, most of us aren’t thinking about our “unworthiness” to touch Jesus’ sandal because we are too consumed with asking Jesus to "touch our sandals.”
That may not make sense to you. Think about it this way. A lot of times we view Jesus as the servant who is supposed to do things for us. We are focused on asking him to “touch our sandals.” John doesn’t think like this.
So what does this mean? Well, our view of Jesus affects everything. Our view of Jesus affects how we pray, serve, love, view people, view ourselves, read the Bible, work, talk… Do you see where I am going here? Our view of Jesus affects everything. Many of us do not love Jesus much because we view Him as the servant who is supposed to “touch our sandals.” If we will view Him as John did, we will begin to see His holiness, righteousness, magnitude, power, mightiness, and greatness…
So… how do you view Jesus?
Is Jesus your everything, or is He merely a tool you use to help you through hard times? Is Jesus your mighty and powerful savior, or is he just a name you add to a phrase you say when you are mad?
See, I think John the Baptist was right. We aren’t worthy to untie and touch the sandals of Jesus. We aren’t worthy to associate ourselves with him. But the love Jesus has for us is SO BIG that He reaches down and saves us from our filth. And we have the privilege of calling Him our Savior.
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All for Jesus.
- The Team