The sovereignty of God means there is absolutely nothing that happens in the universe that’s outside of God’s influence and authority. God is above all things and before all things. He is the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end. (Rev. 21:6)

It’s hard to believe how fast this year is going. Next Sunday is Palm Sunday, then Easter, and Resurrection Sunday April 4. So, next week we cover Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem and the empty tomb the following week. The events of this morning’s passage takes place between those two. Jesus’ return to Jerusalem the final week of His earthly ministry and His resurrection. Here, John captures a portion of Jesus’ last words to lost people.

The greatest lack in our church is discipleship. This was never made clearer to me than over the past twelve months of the pandemic. What I learned about our church is that we weren’t as discipled as we (I) thought we were. We aren’t as committed to discipleship as we need to be. By discipleship I simply mean gaining a solid, working grasp of God’s word and applying it to our lives; leading to Kingdom growth.

The church is not immune to angry attitudes, words, and actions either. Any long-standing member of virtually any church can attest to the outbursts at a business meeting. What Christians must understand is that wrongly placed anger is destructive. Righteous anger is corrective, it actually can lead to positive outcomes.