Rise from the Ashes

This powerful message calls us back to the foundational principle that transforms everything: true repentance. Drawing from Job 42:6 and the tragic story of David and Absalom in 2 Samuel, we're challenged to understand the difference between being sorry and being truly repentant. Sorry says 'I got caught' or 'this cost me something,' but repentance finds comfort in the dust and ashes of our shame, crying out 'Lord, expose me and restore me.' The sermon uses a beautiful farm illustration—a baby chick alone in a brooder, standing motionless until an older chick is introduced, suddenly coming alive and learning to eat and drink. This is the power of discipleship and community. We weren't made to walk alone. The heart of the message confronts the modern church's tendency to chase shiny lures—bigger buildings, better entertainment, more charismatic speakers—while missing the essence of holiness. Absalom, the handsome son with eight-pound hair, stole the hearts of Israel not through righteousness but through manipulation and pretty promises. Today's church faces the same danger: division caused by people who look good, sound good, and promise better, but lead God's people away from true authority and authentic repentance. We're reminded that God works through authority, that iron sharpens iron, and that even Jesus grew in wisdom and stature. The call is clear: rise from the ashes of repentance, be holy because we are holy, and become the voice of truth in our communities before pressure reveals who truly belongs to Christ.