Sunday, July 21, 2019

“The Worst Decision (Choice) You Could Ever Make”

I  John 5:14 (NKJV)_ “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.”

I  Kings 12:8-11 (NKJV)_But he rejected the advice which the elders had given him, and consulted the young men who had grown up with him, who stood before him. And he said to them, “What advice do you give? How should we answer this people who have spoken to me, saying, ‘Lighten the yoke which your father put on us’?” 10 Then the young men who had grown up with him spoke to him, saying, “Thus you should speak to this people who have spoken to you, saying, ‘Your father made our yoke heavy, but you make it lighter on us’—thus you shall say to them: ‘My little finger shall be thicker than my father’s waist! 11 And now, whereas my father put a heavy yoke on you, I will add to your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scourges!’ ”

Everyday our lives are filled with opportunities that call for decisions. Yes decisions – conclusions or resolutions (a firm decision to do or not do something) reached after consideration (i.e. what to wear, to participate or not, where to go, what time to get up). Decision is the action or process of deciding something. When trying to make a good decision (choice) a person must weigh the positives and negatives of each option, and consider all the alternatives.
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Sunday, July 14, 2019

“Be Steadfast”

We believe that Scriptures teach that only real believers who endure to the end, Saints are able to persevere (1) Through their attachment to Christ which distinguishes them from fake professors; (2) Persevering saints have a special Providence watching over their welfare; and, (3) They are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation.

Perseverance – the action or condition or an instance of persisting in a state, enterprise, or undertaking in spite of counter influences, opposition, or discouragement; steadfastness.
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Sunday, June 30, 2019

“If I Have”

Luke 19:1-10 (NLT)_ “Jesus entered Jericho and made his way through the town. There was a man there named Zacchaeus. He was the chief tax collector in the region, and he had become very rich. He tried to get a look at Jesus, but he was too short to see over the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree beside the road, for Jesus was going to pass that way. When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name. “Zacchaeus!” he said. “Quick, come down! I must be a guest in your home today.” Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy. But the people were displeased. “He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner,” they grumbled. Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!” Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.”

Life is filled with situations where we, and others may not have done the right thing. These errors of life need correction and when we are confronted about them, we must be forthcoming. Such was the case when Zacchaeus came face to face with Jesus. His guilt moved him to a “declaration of benevolence”, …”I will give half my wealth to the poor”; but when it came to confessing his wrong, he said, “if I have taken anything from any man by false accusation, I will pay back four times the amount that was taken.” Today’s message will deal with “If I Have”.
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Sunday, June 23, 2019

“Have A Nice Day”

Lamentations 3:18-23_18 And I said, My strength and my hope is perished from the Lord: 19 Remembering mine affliction and my misery, the wormwood and the gall. 20 My soul hath them still in remembrance, and is humbled in me. 21 This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. 22 It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. 23 They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. (KJV)
18 I tell myself, “I am finished! I can’t count on the Lord to do anything for me.” 19 Just thinking of my troubles and my lonely wandering makes me miserable. 20 That’s all I ever think about, and I am depressed. 21 Then I remember something that fills me with hope. 22 The Lord’s kindness never fails! If he had not been merciful, we would have been destroyed. 23 The Lord can always be trusted to show mercy each morning.” (CEV)

There are days in our lives when it seems that nothing is going right and will work out in our favor. We find ourselves slipping into hopelessness and the way we feel on the inside often shows upon the outside. Other people, some who are strangers wish you well, they say to you, “Have a Nice Day”. How many times have you heard these words or said these words to someone. Sometimes they are spoken out of habit, without any real feeling, and at other times they are spoken as encouragement. Today’s message is to encourage you and to tell you, “you can have a nice day” because the Lord’s mercies and compassions fail not and they are new every morning, great is his faithfulness to you.
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Sunday, June 16, 2019

 “ A Child’s ‘Point Man’ “

John 10:9, 10_I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. 10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” (NKJV)
Yes, I am the gate. Those who come in through me will be saved. They will come and go freely and will find good pastures. 10 The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.” (NLT)

I Peter 5:8_ “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:” (KJV)
“Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.” (NLT)

How blessed we are today to celebrate the contributions that fathers and father figures make to the lives of their children. Today we honor fatherhood, paternal bonds, male parenting and the influence of fathers in society. Because our children live in a “combat-like” society, where male family leadership is becoming more and more extinct, I call on fathers to be their child’s “Point Man”.
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Sunday, June 09, 2019

“The ARROGANCE of Some People” (Part 2)

I Corinthians 5:1-13 (NLT)_ “I can hardly believe the report about the sexual immorality going on among you—something that even pagans don’t do. I am told that a man in your church is living in sin with his stepmother. You are so proud of yourselves, but you should be mourning in sorrow and shame. And you should remove this man from your fellowship. Even though I am not with you in person, I am with you in the Spirit. And as though I were there, I have already passed judgment on this man in the name of the Lord Jesus. You must call a meeting of the church. I will be present with you in spirit, and so will the power of our Lord Jesus. Then you must throw this man out and hand him over to Satan so that his sinful nature will be destroyed and he himself will be saved on the day the Lord returns. Your boasting about this is terrible. Don’t you realize that this sin is like a little yeast that spreads through the whole batch of dough? Get rid of the old “yeast” by removing this wicked person from among you. Then you will be like a fresh batch of dough made without yeast, which is what you really are. Christ, our Passover Lamb, has been sacrificed for us. So let us celebrate the festival, not with the old bread of wickedness and evil, but with the new bread of sincerity and truth. When I wrote to you before, I told you not to associate with people who indulge in sexual sin. 10 But I wasn’t talking about unbelievers who indulge in sexual sin, or are greedy, or cheat people, or worship idols. You would have to leave this world to avoid people like that. 11 I meant that you are not to associate with anyone who claims to be a believer yet indulges in sexual sin, or is greedy, or worships idols, or is abusive, or is a drunkard, or cheats people. Don’t even eat with such people. 12 It isn’t my responsibility to judge outsiders, but it certainly is your responsibility to judge those inside the church who are sinning. 13 God will judge those on the outside; but as the Scriptures say, “You must remove the evil person from among you.”

The fourth Sunday in May I preach part one of this series. It dealt with the arrogance of those who had knowledge others didn’t have and how they looked down on them. The text scripture said, knowledge “puffs up”, and in our text scripture today again we find “puffed up” people. We find in today’s message that one man’s arrogance affected the church so that many in the congregation were also “puffed up”, proud, when they should have been mourning.
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Sunday, June 02, 2019

“Everyone’s Child”

Luke 2:41-52 (CEV)_41 Every year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for Passover. 42 And when Jesus was twelve years old, they all went there as usual for the celebration. 43 After Passover his parents left, but they did not know that Jesus had stayed on in the city. 44 They thought he was traveling with some other people, and they went a whole day before they started looking for him. 45 When they could not find him with their relatives and friends, they went back to Jerusalem and started looking for him there. 46 Three days later they found Jesus sitting in the temple, listening to the teachers and asking them questions. 47 Everyone who heard him was surprised at how much he knew and at the answers he gave. 48 When his parents found him, they were amazed. His mother said, “Son, why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been very worried, and we have been searching for you!” 49 Jesus answered, “Why did you have to look for me? Didn’t you know that I would be in my Father’s house?” 50 But they did not understand what he meant. 51 Jesus went back to Nazareth with his parents and obeyed them. His mother kept on thinking about all that had happened. 52 Jesus became wise, and he grew strong. God was pleased with him and so were the people.

In earlier years of my life and those of you in my time and older may remember when you were everyone’s child in the neighborhood. You could eat at their home, run errands for them, play with their kids, and they could even chastise you. We live in a world now where children are exploited in sex trade, slave camps, drug trade, etc. and are fatalities from homicides. During Jesus’ childhood, the “Everyone’s Child” concept was practiced, and Jesus’ parents felt that he was safe away from them because they trusted the other travelers who were with them.
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Sunday, May 26, 2019

“The Arrogance of Some People” (Part 1)

I Corinthians 8:1-3_1 Now concerning things offered to idols: We know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love edifies. And if anyone thinks that he knows anything, he knows nothing yet as he ought to know. But if anyone loves God, this one is known by Him. (NKJV)
1 Next is your question about eating food that has been sacrificed to idols. On this question everyone feels that only his answer is the right one! But although being a “know-it-all” makes us feel important, what is really needed to build the church is love. 2 If anyone thinks he knows all the answers, he is just showing his ignorance. 3 But the person who truly loves God is the one who is open to God’s knowledge. (LB, paraphrased)

The Apostle Paul encountered an issue in the Corinthian church on at least five occasions. Each circumstance was different but there was one common variable, arrogance. Yes, arrogance…an attitude of superiority revealed in an overbearing manner or in presumptuous (failing to observe the limits of what is appropriate) claims or assumptions (a thing that is accepted as true or as certain to happen, without proof). My friends, anyone of us can behave vainly at any given time in our life, but it’s a prevalent problem among Corinthian believers and it is hurting the church. Though arrogance is the subject of this message, the broader picture deals with “Christian liberty”. Today’s message is the first installment entitled, “The Arrogance of Some People”.
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Sunday, May 19, 2019

“The Best of Times and The Worst of Times”

Ecclesiastes 3:1; Jeremiah 29:11; Romans 8:28

Promotions, graduations, achievements, etc. are a special time of celebration and joy. The journey to get to these milestones, however, can be filled with peaks of success and valleys of disappointment, moments of hope and times of desperation, but you made it. Now what? You celebrate yesterday and look forward to tomorrow, even so, there is anxiety and fear of the future, and a bit of sadness as you leave the familiar what was. Today’s message parallels these times, the best and the worst.
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Sunday, May 12, 2019

“God’s Phenomenal Woman” (Mother)

James 4:6a, c; I Peter 5:10; Luke 1:5, 6, 13-17
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Sunday, May 05, 2019

“God Will Honor You”

John 12:20-26 (NLT)_20 Some Greeks who had come to Jerusalem for the Passover celebration 21 paid a visit to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee. They said, “Sir, we want to meet Jesus.” 22 Philip told Andrew about it, and they went together to ask Jesus. 23 Jesus replied, “Now the time has come for the Son of Man to enter into his glory. 24 I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone. But its death will produce many new kernels—a plentiful harvest of new lives. 25 Those who love their life in this world will lose it. Those who care nothing for their life in this world will keep it for eternity. 26 Anyone who wants to serve me must follow me, because my servants must be where I am. And the Father will honor anyone who serves me.”

The Word of God teaches us to honor one another. “Honor” may be defined as…to esteem or regard highly; merited respect. God, Christ, parents, the aged, church officers are worthy of honor. Honor is obtained by wisdom, discipline, humility, honoring God, and serving Christ to mention a few. Today’s message will share a verse which says, if anyone serves Christ the Father will honor him.