November 16, 2025

Pastor Shane Krause

Cause/Effect—In life, there's almost always a cause behind every effect — an agent driving each action. We live in a world shaped by cause and effect. Recognizing that pattern is essential to living wisely. If you want a healthy heart, you need to understand what leads to heart disease. If you're aiming for financial stability, you have to consider the long-term impact of your spending before making big purchases. And if you desire the peace that comes from a close walk with God, it's important to understand what fosters that kind of relationship. As we approach the end of the church year, our Scripture readings begin to draw our attention back to the central themes that have echoed throughout the year. In this final series, we’ll reflect on how God’s kingdom works through cause and effect — not in a mechanical or transactional way, but in a way that reveals His heart and His purposes.
Judgment/Peace—If you were making a list of things that might make society more peaceful, would you include “more judgment”? Probably not. Most people assume that judgment leads to conflict, not peace. Yet a lack of judgment is a luxury many cannot afford. Our world is filled with victims of abuse, violence, and oppression—often with evil that goes unnoticed and unpunished. A future without the hope of judgment offers no real peace. Without it, victims are left to either despair completely or be consumed by the desire for revenge. A future with judgment, however, brings peace. It offers those who have been wronged the assurance that one day, perfect justice will come.
When we are deeply wronged, what are our options? To take matters into our own hands? To give in to despair? Jesus offers a better way: to trust that He will keep His promise to return and bring judgment. And the result of that promise? Peace—because we know that every wrong will one day be made right by the one righteous Judge.
 
Cause/Effect—Judgment/Peace