Good Friday - Horrific and Glorious

What happened on Good Friday? The most horrific event in all of human history!

The sinless, innocent, guiltless, spotless, pure, harmless, holy Son of God, Jesus Christ of Nazareth was betrayed . . . abandoned . . . secretly arrested . . . falsely accused . . . denied . . . illegally tried . . . wrongly condemned . . . slandered . . . mocked . . . humiliated . . . scorned . . . rebuked . . . rejected . . . beaten . . . whipped . . . ridiculed . . . crucified . . . pierced . . . brutally murdered!

Such was the horror that His body was left mangled, the earth was cracked, and the sky was darkened! Justice seemed to evaporate; hope seemed to disappear; and salvation seemed to vanished! The cross of Jesus Christ was a most horrific site!

What happened on Good Friday? The most glorious event in all of human history!

When the Lamb of God was slain, He took away the sin of world thereby accomplishing and securing redemption for everyone who believes in Him! The Sinless One dying for the sinner. The Savior saving. The Perfect Sacrifice satisfying the Father’s wrath against our sin. The Substitute taking our place. Life dying to impart life to dying men. Righteousness yielded up to impute righteousness to the unrighteous.

Such was the glory that Christ, through the cross, won for the Father, a people from every nation! Justice was preserved; Hope was established; and salvation was achieved! The cross of Jesus Christ was the most glorious event in all the universe, in all human history, and will be celebrated for all eternity!

“For You were slain, and by Your blood You ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, and You have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.” Rev 5:9-10

God Has Brought Us a Long Way...In Many Ways!

By God’s grace and through a 100% vote of approval, Clovis Evangelical Free Church of Clovis, CA has called me to be their new Teaching Pastor! Now let me back up and fill in some blanks. It has been quite a journey of faith for us. In more ways than one, God has brought us a long way!

Geographically. As one raised in the South and having family mostly in the state of South Carolina, I thought I would always minister within the local region. God had other plans in mind, and as always, He brought me around to His will for my life! Trials have a tendency to increase your openness to the Lord’s direction. During the past year, God certainly broadened my scope of ministry possibilities. A few years ago, I probably would never have entertained a move across the country. Now, a few hardships and hopefully a bit more wisdom later, it just seems the natural thing to do. In fact, Clovis, CA already seems like home! God has brought us a long way!

Denominationally. Although the Evangelical Free Church considers itself an association and not a denomination, I am coming from the Southern Baptist Convention. SBC is definitely a denomination. I never really thought this would happen either. Again, God had other plans in mind, and as always, He has brought me around to His will for my life! I’ve never known anything else but being a Baptist, and I am thankful for my upbringing, my education at Baptist institutions, and the commitment of the SBC to missions, the Scripture, and theological training. So this new environment will be an adjustment for me, but one I am excited to embark upon. The EFCA has a solid affirmation of faith and is missional as well. There is no doubt in my mind the Lord has made this transition for me and I look forward to seeing His blessing and work among the Ev Free churches worldwide!

Spiritually. The past 10 months have been a test of faith for my family and I. God has provided encouragement, strength, food, finances, friends, prayers, fellowship - in short, He has proven HImself faithful and absolutely sufficient for everything we need. We have found it all falling from His loving Hand! I praise Him! After finding ourselves back in the ocean of an unknown future, the Lord began to slowly reveal our new future via the internet! It was Summer who first spotted a church advertising their search for a pastor. She knew it was a stretch to even mention it to me because, as stated above, it was not SBC and it was in CA! At the time I wasn’t even sure how to locate CA on the map! However, when I logged onto their website, I simply couldn’t believe my eyes. The very fundamentals and convictions of church life that I was fully committed to had been adopted by this congregation as their Principles of Ministry. I was so refreshed, not so much that I thought I would ever actually become the new pastor, but that a church somewhere had so committed to the Scripture’s teaching on the Church!

Needless to say, I sent a resumé right away. I always believed it was a long shot! Why would they even consider someone like me with such short tenures? Then they called! But....they called to inform me that they wanted to put my resumé on hold. I will never forget that conversation. It was the most positive “No” I had ever received (and I’ve received quite a few)!

Then...they called to say they wanted to seriously consider me. It was a thrilling surprise. Next, there was a skype interview. Then, there were three visits. Three members of their committee spent the weekend with us in Kentucky, Summer and I spent a weekend with them in Clovis, and then I spent another weekend with the elders and staff in Clovis. Another skype interview was in there somewhere. We then we were invited to come out for 11 days of candidating!

Candidating included two Sunday morning sermons, 3 Q and As (a few more too), and meeting with the various ministry groups of the church throughout the week. It was a whirlwind experience, but very profitable. After so much interaction, beginning with that first phone call, the church body really has a good knowledge of who I am and vice versa.

It all came to the concluding moment last night. Summer and I were waiting anxiously for the phone to ring. It did. I answered. And the church was roaring!! The Chairman of the elders informed me that the church had voted unanimously to call me as their new Teaching Pastor! Two miracles in the same night! A unanimous vote (God must be at work!) and a church that is actually going to allow me to be one of their shepherds! God has brought us a long way!

To the fellowship of Clovis Ev Free:

My family and I are deeply grateful for the opportunity you have extended to us. You have so warmly and fully welcomed us into your family and we are incredibly humbled. I am surprised that I get to pastor anywhere! I don’t deserve it. So your call is a bountiful grace to me. It is a joy to join with you, on the same page, headed in the same direction, walking, living, and striving together for the glory of God! God has brought us both a long way, and He has a long way before us that is grand, hard, joyful, tearful, and wonderful! Let’s make Him famous together, from Clovis to the ends of the earth, for His glory and for His Church!

Blessings!

Wil Owens

Teaching Pastor

Clovis Ev Free, Clovis, CA

www.clovisevfree.org

Book Review: Crazy Love

Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God. By Francis Chan with Danae Yankoski. Colorado Springs: David C. Cook, 2008.

Crazy Love is both encouraging and very challenging! I was tremendously encouraged reading Chan’s book because he urges us to be authentic, real, New Testament believers! His message is simply that we must take the Bible’s message to heart, and that’s not so simple. We tend to live in a state of comfortable denying affirmation! By that I mean, as evangelicals we affirm the Bible’s teaching but our lifestyles tend to deny it! Being a disciple of Jesus, truly following Him, living for the next life usually results in less comfort, less safety, and more risk! We are conditioned to move in the opposite direction of taking up crosses and denying self! Chan’s work is a gentle, yet stirring reminder to get our priorities off of self and back on Christ!

It is also extremely challenging because while I resonate deeply with living out our faith in honest, radical ways, I have so very far to go. I was personally challenged when Chan gave testimony of moving into a home dramatically reduced in size so that he could spend more for the kingdom of God than for his comfort! I was also thoroughly challenged when he utilized Jesus’ teaching on the Final Judgment in Matt 25 to call us to treat other people as if they were Christ! Christ Himself will say to the sheep and to the goats that the way they treated others, He took personally! It really stung when Chan then used traffic scenarios and family relationships to illustrate the point!

Chan doesn’t just jump straight into pulling us back in line with true Christian living. He begins by drawing our eyes upward to focus on our God. He begins with God’s great attributes, the brevity of this life, and God’s undeserved, relentless love toward us in Christ. In this way, his application that follows is not manipulative or guilt-laden but rather an outflow of reflection on our heavenly Father. We love Him because He loves us!

Other strengths I would mention are Chan’s tone and his emphasis on missions. This book does not come across as beating you up with truth. It is truly speaking the truth in love. No doubt, it punches in the gut at times, but not in order to condemn but rather to correct our affections and purposes. It is also thoroughly missional. Living simple in order to give more for Gospel causes; storing up treasure in heaven instead of collecting junk on earth; having a thirst for dying people rather than glutting on self, I loved it. I hope and pray to grow more in it!

I also applaud Chan’s careful guard against legalism. He doesn’t prescribe specific behavior that we must all follow. For example, not everyone is called to downsize their home. Maybe. But maybe not. However, we are all called to spend this life for God’s glory, and that will take on many forms and various applications.

Crazy Love would be an excellent group study or just as suitable for personal devotion. It’s easy to read in terms of readability, not so easy in terms of repenting from coasting through life and investing this life in the Kingdom of God! It’s worth it though! It’s worth everything to be constantly reminded that the one thing that truly matters in this life (that ends soon!) is that we will stand before our Lord in the next (that is never-ending)!

You can purchase a copy here.

April '11 Update - Search And See

Dear Friends:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! I trust this update finds you growing and rejoicing in grace and the hope we have in our Savior! The Lord continues to bless us with many ways of being involved in His work around the world.

• The Mission Team is now preparing for our upcoming trip to Myanmar and India, Oct 1-13. We are excited about participating in a special graduation, visiting villages, caring for orphans, teaching in Bible Colleges, encouraging the saints and sharing good news!
• The children’s book is in the illustration phase.
• The ministry in Africa continues to grow with more baptisms and preaching points added this past month.
• Sermons received 435 downloads in 21 States and 11 Nations. We continue to broadcast in Liberia as well.
• Our orphan sponsorship in India continues consistently.
• One more African pastor was sponsored, leaving now only 4 more pastors who need sponsors. (You can sponsor a pastor for $60/month which provides the needs of his family)

*In other news, my family and I are spending the first days of April in what may be (looks to be) our future home for ministry. Many of you have been praying for us. Please continue to do so. I will preach April 10 and the church will vote that evening whether or not to call me as their new Teaching Pastor. God’s will be done for His glory!

Blessings!

Wil Owens

Gal 2.20