Sermons from Good News: Choose God's Way

Blogger's note: This was the Sunday I first visited Good News Church. I didn't know it at the time, but 7-8 months later I would become a member, attending and tithing regularly. Looking back, this particular message would turn out to be prescient, given the events that would soon follow. To God be the glory for all that He has done, is doing, and will do through this church.

Notes from services at Good News Christian Church 2/9/2020

Offertory message:

Deuteronomy 30:11-20

Choose God's way.

New Testament version: follow Jesus -- in relationship

Sermon message:

Book of Joshua. Part where they're conquering Jericho.

"You can be victorious this year." "There may be challenges but you can win if you keep your eyes on Jesus."

"I will be with you."

"Meditate on God's word. Keep it before your eyes. Speak and speak and speak the word of God. Then faith will start to grow."

Joshua had been reading, feeding, and speaking the word of God. He built faith. Then he was able to do God's command regarding Jericho regardless of how ridiculous it may have sounded.

Psalm 34:19 "many are the afflictions of the righteous. But the Lord delivers him out of them all."

"accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative"

Life has challenges but it's not the end of everything.

In an unrighteous world, righteous people are naturally going against the grain.

Speaking the Bible against evil: "it is written..." speak it into being.

God is a deliverer. Throughout the Bible, He delivers.

"Cast ALL your cares and ALL your anxieties on him. For he cares about you." 1 Peter 5:7

Psalm 55:22 "cast your burden on the Lord. He will sustain you. He will never suffer the righteous to be moved."

Takeaway #1: Challenges are temporary. God and His word are eternal.

2 Corinthians 4:18 "we look at the unseen not the seen. For the seen is temporary. The unseen is eternal/permanent."

Psalm 118:24 "this is the day the lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it."

Takeaway #2: what you believe is important

Mark 9:23 "Jesus said: if you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes."

First believe (God's promises, etc). Then things are possible.

Mark 11:24 "whatever you desire. When you pray, believe that you receive them and you'll have them."

Mark 16:16 "Jesus says: if you believe you'll be saved. If you don't you'll be damned."

Then we position ourselves to knock the walls down

1 John 4:4 "you are of God, children, and have overcome them. Because greater is he that is in you than he who is in the world."

Ephesians 6:16 armor of God, this verse is about the shield of faith.

"I believe I'm protected." Then it works.

Isaiah 54:17 no weapon that is formed against you shall remain. And every tongue that rises up against you in judgment you will condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord and their righteousness is from him.

Romans 8:37 more than a conqueror through Christ who loved us

Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

Philippians 4:19 but God shall supply all our needs

Takeaway #3: what you say is important

Proverbs 6:2 you are snared with the words of your mouth. You are taken with the words of your mouth. Saying "I can't ..." ensnares you. It keeps you in that "can't" place.

To break the snare: say "I can through Christ" to your own inner "I can't"; and also to times in the past when someone else said you can't.

Mark 11:23 your faith can even move mountains

First you believe it, then you say it, then you get it. SPEAK IT INTO BEING.

Ephesians 6:17 "take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Holy Spirit which is the word of Go

On using this blog to (try to) serve God

I've been sick with a cold the last few days. Am I "really" sick? Not particularly... after all, I am well enough be out of bed and writing this blog entry! But it's allowed a time of reflection and checkpoint, on quite a number of things, although I've only gone through some of them thus far.

Since the calendar flipped over to 2021, my mission has been to share my notes from my church's sermons. I began taking notes since they re-opened to in-person a while back, but I didn't start putting them in my blog until later, I've had entries with sermon outlines twice a week for some time. I'm now reaching the end of catching up on all sermons at my church, so in a sense, that part of the mission is done.

My mission was to get the truth about God, Jesus, and the Bible out considering things I began really seeing in our nation (and to a lesser extent, the world) in the last year. How things have changed just since March of last year, and specifically how much the people I used to know changed, has left me rather in disbelief still. Sure, I too have changed. But I still stand that I believe that the ways I have changed were to try to become more Godly and less worldly. And not just talking or thinking about it, but also in the doing. I used to be much more lackadaisical about swearing and drinking, but now I would say I've abstained about 95% more than I used to. I'm a lot more judicious in spending money, even when tempted. I used to get fast food from places like Chipotle, Panera, and Naf Naf multiple times a week, every week. Now, I think I've been to Chipotle like twice since March of last year, and I haven't been to Panera or Naf Naf even once. And while I still struggle to get into and spend time in the Word (like always), I'm learning new things in the Bible that I hadn't even come across before. Like faith and how important it is. [And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. Hebrews 11:6, NIV] One of the things I prayed for was for more spiritual formation. I'm getting it. I'm grateful for it.

So to then see the people I used to spend time around a lot, to have my eyes opened to how much it appears to me that they have been misled, is heartbreaking. While a lot of things do matter in this world, what I see getting pushed to the back corner is that the Bible is the Word of God. Hence my oversaturation of posts talking directly about His Word. Because it's too important for people not to know. It's too important for people not to know about Jesus' saving grace, specifically because without it, a person is on track for an eternity in hell.

When I posted on Facebook about Jesus vs. hell back in January and February, I got pushback from a couple members of my former church, basically saying "that's not what the Bible says!" I couldn't believe it. I had posted this verse: [“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. Matthew 7:13-14, NIV] ...and in response that's what was thrown back at me. But the text absolutely says that unless one goes through the narrow gate, that person ends up in hell! By the way, these same people claimed to be all about "loving Jesus" (you know, the guy who said the above verse)!

Hence my motivation. I also went back to 2019 when I first resumed blogging, and, except for a six-month break last year, I've been writing since. But in 2019 it was interesting to see what my goals were. I'd basically spent a number of years wanting to return, but waiting for what I felt was a green light from God before doing so. I knew what I didn't want to do, which was to just use this blog to talk about myself too much. I jotted a few things I decided I would do here, and by and large I think I've followed it (July 2019's mini-sports kick aside). A few months in, my then-girlfriend suggested I use the blog to post about my faith, first by doing it as a discipline for Lent that year, and then a few months later when my former church went on a month-long season of fasting as we welcomed our new (then-potential) senior pastor. For the next year, I used it as a combination of faith reflections, as well as a few topical series that spoke to me, that I could also tie to faith.

Then last year hit. Not just COVID, but all the uproar after George Floyd's murder, particularly among many members at my church at the time, made me rethink a lot of things. And I mean, a lot of things.

In a couple weeks I'm going to begin my summer classes. Yes, two. But my love is in both classes with me, and one of them only lasts four weeks. So it feels doable. My thought too was, once I caught up on all the sermons, I would take a break, and it seemed to coincide perfectly with the start of my summer classes. But then I heard my pastor talk about the following dichotomy in a recent sermon:

Satan wants to tell you: "give up, give up, give up."

But God is saying: "get up, get up, get up."

So onward I press with this blog, continuing to post sermon notes from my church, even if it's now going to be only once a week instead of twice. I do it because people need to know about the life-changing power of God's mercy and truth. Even though that's actually my previous church's (previous) slogan, I feel my current church does a better job of doing it these days.

As for growth edges and life goals:

1.) Begin to transition to my new career.

2.) Prepare for marriage. (I haven't proposed yet, but it's basically something my love and I talk about openly and regularly. It's basically a matter of when, and that when is based upon finances.)

3.) Pursuing sobriety.

4.) Pursuing and practicing self-control.

5.) Growing in faith. (If you haven't been reading some of the more recent posts, my church has been doing a now six-week sermon series directly on faith. But even before that, the importance of practicing walking in faith with Jesus has been sprinkled in just about every sermon.)

6.) Using this blog in the next season to accomplish and show forth these fruits.

Sermons from Good News: strong faith, part 6

Blogger's note: I picked up a cold in the last couple days, so I missed church in-person, out of respect for the others there. They post their services on YouTube the following day, so I got to watch it in its entirety and a.) felt very blessed by it, and b.) I missed being with everyone there.

Church 5/22/2021

Offering Scripture: Proverbs 11:25

Sermon message: Strong Faith, part 6: Faith pleases God

1 Timothy 6:12; 2 Timothy 4:7; 

Great faith is always accompanied with great love. Galatians 5:6

Spiritual gifts should be motivated with love. 1 Corinthians 13:1-2

Without love there is no reward at all.

Great faith needs to be motivated by great love. They work together. 1 Corinthians 8:13

Difference between Abel and Cain, Adam, and Eve: Abel acted in faith, even though they all heard God's voice. Abel chose to believe God, no matter what.

When we question God's existence, love, abilities, etc... it makes Him sad. If we don't believe Him we don't receive His protection or His blessings.

Psalm 78:41 "Yea they turned back and tempted God, and LIMITED the Holy One of Israel."

**I can actually speak to this from experience.

Mark 6:5 "And he could do there no mighty work, save that he laid his hands on a few sick folk, and he healed them. He marveled at them because of their unbelief."

Mark 16:15-16. If we don't believe, we don't receive salvation. If we do believe, we receive salvation. Same with blessings.

Book of Hebrews: what faith looks like from other people's

Hebrews 11:5. Enoch pleased God.

Genesis 5:18-23. Only Enoch and Noah are described in the Bible as having walked with God. (In Hebrews Enoch is described as having pleased God.)

What does walking with God look like?

1. Walking with God is walking in faith.

Genesis 5:21-24; Hebrews 11:5

Walking in faith = walking with God = pleasing God

1 Timothy 2:4. God wants us all saved. He wants us to believe Him, because if we believe Him, we will be saved. And He made a way.

John 3:17. "For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him would be saved."

John 14:6 "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and no one comes to the Father except through Me."

God wants us to walk with Him while we are on earth, not just to merely escape hell, so that He can bless us and protect us.

Psalm 23 -- describing King David walking with God.

Genesis 5:21-27

Methuselah: "When he dies it will come" (the flood) Methuselah was the oldest man ever lived.

God wants people to come to repentance. That's why He is long-suffering. 2 Peter 3:9

When we walk with God it'll please both Him and us.

2. Faith believes it pays to believe God.

Hebrews 11:6

Malachi 3:8-10  (the way to look at this passage: don't limit God; "it robs Me from being able to bless you")

Pastor Tim says: "Faith is a privilege; faith is not a pain." God says: "faith pays."

Jeremiah 17:7

3. Faith tells others about God.

Faith doesn't hide. People of faith don't hide.

Jude 1:14-15

Luke 11:7

Defending the Book of Genesis, because apparently it's needed

Why do I choose to go with a belief and a people that is seemingly becoming more and more in the minority these days?

Let's just start with this: I believe that the flood caused Noah to build his ark really happened. Noah was told to build his ark years before the rains came. Years. And people mocked him, ridiculed him, and derided him. They still do now. At my work is a photograph of a meme of two cats under an umbrella in pouring rain, and it says: "Noah called. He picks us up in ten minutes." First, Noah didn't wait until the rain began before rounding up the animals. He did that while the skies were still clear. Second, it was the majority that disbelieved Noah, and many who mocked him. It was the majority that had fallen away from the God of the Bible, and the majority that mocked the minority who obeyed the LORD their God even when by all appearances they looked the part of the fool.

Let's go straight to the Scriptures for more detail. The account covers Genesis 6, 7, and 8.

When human beings began to increase in number on the earth and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that the daughters of humans were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose. Then the Lord said, “My Spirit will not contend with humans forever, for they are mortal; their days will be a hundred and twenty years.” The Nephilim were on the earth in those days—and also afterward—when the sons of God went to the daughters of humans and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of renown.
Genesis 6:1-4 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Genesis%206:1-4&version=NIV

I'll stop here for a second. There are many folks who say they are Christians, in addition to those who are non-Christians, who discredit the Noah/flood story because "it's too far back." Therefore, remember that scripture also says this:

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
2 Timothy 3:16-17 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=2%20Timothy%203:16-17&version=NIV

A few things to remember: 1.) this is the New Testament, also saying that the entirety of the Old Testament, is historically accurate and inspired by the LORD God Himself. 2.) If all Scripture is God-breathed, then it also indeed confirms that Jesus was and is who the scriptures say He is: the Son of God, and therefore the one true God of the universe. Also, to buffer the first point, even Jesus indicates that the early parts of Genesis are accurate, by this passage:

“Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”
Matthew 19:4-6 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Matthew%2019:4-6&version=NIV

Jesus got it from this passage which comes from, yes, Genesis 2. This took place before the account of the flood and of Noah's ark-building project.

The man said, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,’ for she was taken out of man. ” That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.
Genesis 2:23-24 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Genesis%202:23-24&version=NIV

If even Jesus, the Son of God, and God in the second person, says that the creation story is real, then that means the creation story is real.

As for Noah, who for years and decades was being ridiculed for building such a large vessel (with no other human help besides his family), and made to look the fool, everything he did was in direct obedience to the God of the Bible, and nothing else:

The Lord then said to Noah, “Go into the ark, you and your whole family, because I have found you righteous in this generation. Take with you seven pairs of every kind of clean animal, a male and its mate, and one pair of every kind of unclean animal, a male and its mate, and also seven pairs of every kind of bird, male and female, to keep their various kinds alive throughout the earth. Seven days from now I will send rain on the earth for forty days and forty nights, and I will wipe from the face of the earth every living creature I have made.” And Noah did all that the Lord commanded him.

Genesis 7:1-5 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis+7%3A1-5&version=NIV

The Bible reveals that in fact, God will not be made a fool:

Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.

Galatians 6:7 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=galatians+6%3A7&version=NIV

Moreover, back to the Noah story, God was not to be made a fool then, either:

Noah was six hundred years old when the floodwaters came on the earth.

Genesis 7:6 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis+7%3A6&version=NIV

God will not be made a fool. The floodwaters did come, and it did kill everyone else besides Noah, his family, and all the animals they squared away on the ark. Now, there are those who love to take this story and use it to point out how "bad" God is. Kind of a flip-flop from previously denying God's existence, like saying "well, if He did exist, He must be some sort of terrible god." Here's what Genesis 8 has to say about God's character:

But God remembered Noah and all the wild animals and the livestock that were with him in the ark, and he sent a wind over the earth, and the waters receded. Now the springs of the deep and the floodgates of the heavens had been closed, and the rain had stopped falling from the sky.

Genesis 8:1-2 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis+8%3A1-2&version=NIV

I'm going to add a technical note, something I didn't realize until a few weeks ago when it was pointed out to me that not all the waters that swallowed up the earth came from the sky. When this flood occurred in Noah's day, it wasn't just the rain that fell that made it flood. In the second verse of the last passage, the springs of the deep and the floodgates of the heavens contributed to the floodwaters. And I think that alone can account for a lot of the archaeological and topographical mysteries that scientists have been trying to solve (and sometimes do "solve" on their own). But more on that later.

To finish off what Genesis 8 has to say in defense of God's character (not that it ever needed defending, anyway):

The Lord smelled the pleasing aroma and said in his heart: “Never again will I curse the ground because of humans, even though every inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done. As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease.”

Genesis 8:21-22 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis+8%3A21-22&version=NIV

Bottom line: God is good. Even though we humans are not.

We are in a day and age where the non-believers and deniers of Christ as LORD are increasing in number. And as I have also seen, those who say they have received Christ as Savior and as LORD, are increasingly also denying certain Biblical truths. I know of at least one person who explicitly has denied the truth of Genesis prior to the beginning of Abram's story in Genesis 11. What takes the place of Genesis 1-10? The theory of evolution, which I must first remind you that it is only a "theory" and not even a story. There's no story because there's no account of someone who was alive 15 billion years ago to tell it. There's not even an account of someone alive even one million years ago to tell us what was happening.

But the majority appears to have long fallen for it. And for a while, I fell into that crowd as well. Heck, I was raised in it! But over time, I experienced the God of the Bible reaching out to me. First, it was getting me back to church after I had left it years earlier and wandered into spiritual exile for a number of years, and really plugged into a church community in such a way that I couldn't leave. Second, it was plugging me into a men's Bible study group, something a year earlier I was directly resistant to, after it had become clear that a certain pattern of obsession was blocking me from growing further into my faith (I had grown some, but then I hit a roadblock). Third, it was Him gently dealing with a stronghold that directly blocked me from believing the Bible as a whole, which was my vehemently staunch pro-gay marriage stance. My staunch perspective included stances against other things the Bible declared sins, like divorce, and really any sex outside of marriage. (After all, I was around gay people and people who had gone through divorces! I heard their stories; what else was there to believe?)

Then I was invited to a Bible reading challenge by one of my best friends, to read it all the way through in one year, from beginning to end. It was during this time I got saved. The Bible became more alive and real to me. Among many other things, I saw how seamlessly the Old Testament continued into the New, and actually felt sympathetic and empathetic toward the Lord's grief and anger as Israel (and eventually, Judah) slipped further and further away from Him, and continued in their evil, from evil king to evil king to somehow even more evil king.

In the years since, the battle has been over whether I would listen to God over other people or not. I still struggle a lot to just "sit down and read my Bible," even though I have abundant personal experiential evidence that says I get a lot out of it when I do. I even had exercised the rationale that, "if I could just get the Bible in comic form", or "if I could watch God's Word on YouTube", "it would make it easier for me to get into the Word." However, I have a graphic comic Bible and a bevy of Biblically Christian YouTube channels that I subscribe to, and for a few months now I haven't watched any of them. But with my other arguments exposed for being false things I've been feeling myself, what simply stands for an argument now is: "I just don't want to."

It's still a work in progress, a selfish stubborn stance that is rooted in nothing more than laziness and pride. But God has won me over in other areas before, even in areas I never thought I would change. I never thought I would become a conservative, Bible-thumping Christian. But here I am. And it's because I have found that there's really nothing else in this world worth thumping. Science cannot answer whether there is a God or not, and it cannot answer whether the Bible is true or not. And actually, I'm finding both of my statements are false. In fact, true science, without any manipulation whatsoever, points to a supernatural creator of the universe. True science, without any manipulation, backs up the Bible and reveals the Holy Scriptures to be true, factual, historical, and inerrant. These so-called theories about "evolutionism", about "being born that way," about "being meant to be the gender opposite of how you were born," about "life not counting before birth," about (this is a riot) "the value of one's life being based in whether one is able to survive or not"... none of these are actually rooted in science or scientific discovery. They are rooted in the twisting of scientific discovery, or in the "filling of the gaps" --gaps that the actual science has left. More often than not, things have been added to true science that "feels" science-y and maybe possess just "enough" of the appearance of science to be considered "scientific."

Take what I shared earlier in this blog post about the effects of the flood from Noah's day. Evolution says that a meteorite killed off the dinosaurs 65 million years ago, and that the so-called "ice age" began 18,000 years ago and ended 11,700 years ago. Carbon dating is supposedly one of the key things what has determined the so-called "timing" of both events. As is dating the soil, rocks, and so on. But the Bible (and specifically Jesus, the Son of God) says:

When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen:

“Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!”

“Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”

Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!”

“I tell you,” he replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.”

Luke 19:37-40 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=luke+19%3A37-40&version=NIV

The stones will cry out. The same stones that scientists carbon date to tell us how old they think the universe is, how old they think dinosaurs are, and how long ago a suggested "ice age" must have occurred. And yet, this is the bunk that people are buying into left and right: hook, line, and sinker. The universe didn't create itself. The house you live in, the bank you go to deposit or withdraw money, the grocery store you shop in... the country you live in... someone, or several persons, built the house, built the bank, built the grocery store, and founded the country that you live in. It didn't just "evolve" from the dust of the earth. So why would the universe create itself? Why would the earth create itself?

It's because it didn't. Just as the architectural firm Skidmore, Owings and Merrill designed and built the Sears Tower (now Willis Tower), and just as George Washington, John Adams, John Hancock, Alexander Hamilton, and the rest formed the United States of America, so did the God of the Bible create the heavens and the earth:

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

Genesis 1:1 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Genesis%201:1&version=NIV

As such, it should follow that there would also be a definitive point in time where it happened:

And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.

Genesis 1:3 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Genesis%201:3&version=NIV

Let's not make a mistake about this: there was a definitive point. It's not that everything came together all at once, but unlike the evolution period where things just "gradually happened," there were definitive points when things came into being. Every human being has a definitive birthday, no? You wouldn't say of someone who popped out of the womb on, say, on May 21st, "well, this person was born sometime in the spring of such-and-such a year, with scientific studies saying this birth likely would have happened in the month of May." No! Each person has a definitive date of birth! (Even if in some cases it's listed incorrectly. But that's besides the point.)

I will admit it took me quite a while to believe that universe was created in seven days after a lifetime of believing it self-created over the course of 15 billion years. It was because the latter teaching was repeatedly drilled into my head by multiple sources: my parents, my church, my schools, as well as friends and other adults that were in my life. But as I considered it, I first realized that because none of us were alive at the beginning of time, no one can really say how the universe formed. As such, I felt it pointless and a waste of air to argue over how old the universe is. But then as the God of the Bible worked on my heart especially in relation to His Word, I started realizing that the Holy Scriptures were more trustworthy than anything earth could put out there. Even if I didn't understand some things that the Bible was saying (and this is still true, by the way), it had earned my trust to the point that when I didn't understand why, I could still trust it to be right. I still don't understand fully how the universe came to be, let alone how long it may have "really" taken for things to be developed and arranged, but I can trust that God was in control and making sure things were working the way He intended it to be.

I choose to go with a belief and a people that is seemingly becoming more and more in the minority these days, because it has shown itself to be true, through and through. Regardless of how many, or how few, people agree with it, I believe it, because I am choosing to believe God over people. I am choosing to care more about what God says, about the universe, about me, and about people around me, than what people have to say about the universe, about me, about themselves, and also about God.

I'm a Bible-believing Christian, and what that means is I take every bit of the Bible at face value, chief among it being the fact the Jesus Christ died for my sins, resurrected Himself less than 48 hours later, and said that anyone who believes in Him will not perish but instead have eternal life. Therefore, if I receive this same Jesus as my Savior and as my LORD, I will be saved, live forever (even after I pass away), and get to enjoy Jesus' company, as well as that of so many who also have said yes to receiving Jesus as their LORD and Savior, for years and years and years to come. My message to you is that this same free gift is available to you. I invite, encourage, exhort, and challenge you to humble yourself and receive it. This is the best offer that you will ever see in your lifetime.

Sermons from Good News: Understanding God's Word

Church 3/4/2020 Wednesday

Pastor Tim @ Good News Church

Understanding God's word

Wisdom matters in order to understand (the word)

Proverbs 4:7

Faith is needed in order to receive anything from God

When traveling abroad you need to use the local currency to buy/sell anything

Faith is heaven's currency

Stories: watch what happens

Luke 8:43,44
Faith is an action--faith requires action

Luke 8:45,46
Jesus said someone specifically reached out to him--intentional reaching out to receive from God today/tonight

Luke 8:47,48
We need faith to receive from God
And we need to act on that faith

Acts 14:8,9,10
Paul heals a man crippled from birth

Mark 9:23,24,25
Lord I believe but help my unbelief

Hebrews 11:6
Without faith it's impossible to please God not just that God exists but also that He rewards those who diligently seek Him

[Confusion is not from God]

James 1:5-8
If we waver bc of doubt or confusion we won't receive from God. Wavering = believing whatever someone says regardless of who they are.

"Who has been confusing me?"

1 Corinthians 14:33
God is not author of confusion

God wants to bless us in this life and in the next
We shouldn't prioritize this life or the next life out of proportion. I often obsess about this life.

1 Timothy 4:8
Bodily exercise profits little, bc its only for this life. It has some value but not as much as....

Godliness, which profits into all things, both for now and for the next life

Spiritual exercise: devotionals, study, prayer, worship to Jesus

2 Corinthians 9:6-15
Especially verse 10
They share freely and give to the poor.

2 Corinthians 10:1

Philippians 4:10-23
Especially verse 17 & v19

Similar to exercise, being blessed in this life is temporary. God still cares about it.

Sermons from Good News: strong faith, part 5

Church 5/15/2021

Offertory scripture:

May those who delight in my vindication shout for joy and gladness; may they always say, “The Lord be exalted, who delights in the well-being of his servant.”
Psalm 35:27 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Psalm%2035:27&version=NIV

Well-being = prosperity = Shalom = Ease, favor, health, peace, prosperity (financial, emotional, spiritual), safety, wholeness

Say it: to get us to believe it in our hearts, and not just our minds.

He wants you to give so you can be while in your finances.

Forgive so that you can be whole in your relationships.

Sermon message:

Strong faith, part 5

The head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is only Remaliah’s son. If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all.’”
Isaiah 7:9 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Isaiah%207:9&version=NIV

Israel is no stronger than its capital, Samaria, and Samaria is no stronger than its king, Pekah son of Remaliah. Unless your faith is firm, I cannot make you stand firm.”
Isaiah 7:9 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Isaiah%207:9&version=NLT

And the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is Remaliah's son. If ye will not believe, surely ye shall not be established.
Isaiah 7:9 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Isaiah%207:9&version=KJV

Reminder passage:

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
Hebrews 11:6 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Hebrews%2011:6&version=NIV

Faith transcends natural law.

To wit:

In Joshua's time, his troops marched around Jericho and then yelled, and the wall fell down. Not only so, the wall fell onward. Both go against natural law, law of war, etc.

Peter followed Jesus' direction to go get a coin out of a fish's mouth. This goes against natural law and law of supply and demand.

A woman grabbed Jesus' cloak and instantly was healed. This violates the natural laws of medicine.

To get more faith, read the word of God.

This way we can reach into the spiritual world and bring into the natural world things that haven't materialized yet.

Faith is important. Feasting on the word of God also is important.

Thesis tonight:

Faith is an offering and an offering is worship.

One of the most powerful books in the Old Testament is the book of Isaiah.

One of the most powerful books in the New Testament is the book of Hebrews. This book tells us that Jesus is the end of the law. It tells us how important faith is, what faith is, and examples God uses to tells us about both.

By faith Abel brought God a better offering than Cain did. By faith he was commended as righteous, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith Abel still speaks, even though he is dead.
Hebrews 11:4 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Hebrews%2011:4&version=NIV

Background behind Cain and Abel:

Now Adam had sexual relations with his wife, Eve, and she became pregnant. When she gave birth to Cain, she said, “With the Lord’s help, I have produced a man!” Later she gave birth to his brother and named him Abel. When they grew up, Abel became a shepherd, while Cain cultivated the ground.
Genesis 4:1-2 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Genesis%204:1-2&version=NLT

A common question: (for some reason) Where did Cain get his wife?

From one man he created all the nations throughout the whole earth. He decided beforehand when they should rise and fall, and he determined their boundaries.
Acts 17:26 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Acts%2017:26&version=NLT

Cain's wife was also born from Adam and Eve. However, this is not considered inbreeding. Considering that in the beginning, the entirety of humanity consisted of Adam, Eve, Cain, and Abel (since murdered and died)... any other humans would have had to come from Adam and Eve. The gene pool was not what it is now. It wasn't until later, when God gave the law, that it was a problem to marry and have relations with people that were technically close family members. So while Cain's wife was technically also his sister, her pool of genetics was considered different enough from Cain's that they could marry and have children.

When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned.
Romans 5:12 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Romans%205:12&version=NLT

The Gospel depends on us understanding that we all have sinned, and that we came from Adam and Eve; therefore we also need to understand that we need a savior.

Because one person disobeyed God, many became sinners. But because one other person obeyed God, many will be made righteous.
Romans 5:19 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Romans%205:19&version=NLT

For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.
Romans 5:19 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Romans%205:19&version=KJV

Point #1: Faith offers an acceptable offering of worship.

In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.
Genesis 4:3-5 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Genesis%204:3-5&version=NIV

There's a time of worship. There's a place of worship. There's the offering of worship.

Abel gave God his best. Cain did not. Also Abel gave God what He wanted, but Cain gave God only what he felt like giving.

Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name.
Hebrews 13:15 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Hebrews%2013:15&version=NIV

By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.
Hebrews 13:15 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Hebrews%2013:15&version=KJV

And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.
Hebrews 13:16 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Hebrews%2013:16&version=NIV

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.
Romans 12:1 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Romans%2012:1&version=NIV

Point # 2: God tried to help Cain and tries to help us.

“Why are you so angry?” the Lord asked Cain. “Why do you look so dejected? You will be accepted if you do what is right. But if you refuse to do what is right, then watch out! Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master.”
Genesis 4:6-7 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Genesis%204:6-7&version=NLT

Much has been made about God rejecting Cain, but the reality is Cain rejected God.

Point #3: Cain's faith was weakened because he refused to offer worship

Giving will strengthen our faith.

And our faith increases our giving.

When we withhold worship to God, it weakens our faith.

Abel physically died but went right to God. Cain lived but had a miserable life. Abel got the better deal by far.

By faith Abel brought God a better offering than Cain did. By faith he was commended as righteous, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith Abel still speaks, even though he is dead.
Hebrews 11:4 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Hebrews%2011:4&version=NIV

Abel's story and legacy lives on even though he passed away.

Bottom line: Faith is an act of worship.

On growing up, and what it really takes

You can't force people to grow up. To some degree, the right circumstances can, and to another degree, one can set boundaries, such as: "if you do this, then I will do that," or "if you don't do this, then I won't do that." But you can't force someone to grow up. You can't force someone to change.

When I was in my early 20s, both during college and after, after a certain season or amount of the passage of time, I periodically asked myself: "did I finally grow up? Am I now functionally an adult?" (Spoiler: the answer was "no.") But as I look back, one glaring lie that I believed was that I would magically somehow figure out how to be an adult. I suspect that my parents did, too, and were subsequently disappointed when my actions (or inactions, as that may be) showed that I wasn't.

I think I have an idea where the lie originates: the idea that humans are just like animals. ("After all, we are part of the animal kingdom.") Animals have instincts that they are either born with, or are able to learn after observing 100%, at which point they are able to survive. Then there is the lie that humans are by nature basically good, with only a few that turn bad. Moreover the idea that because humans are supposedly by nature good, that all hatred is taught.

The Bible teaches differently:

1.) that humans are by nature sinful, selfish, and easily corruptible, each one of us. This compelling article on humanity's sin nature is full of overwhelming Biblical evidence.

2.) we are most definitely not animals! In fact, God specifically designed for us to have mastery over the animals. ["what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them? You made them rulers over the works of your hands; you put everything under their feet: all flocks and herds, and the animals of the wild, the birds in the sky, and the fish in the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas." Psalm 8:4,6-8, NIV]

3.) because humans are by nature sinful, selfish, and easily corruptible, we have to be taught how to be patient, forgiving, kind, compassionate, and so on.

One example: a number of years ago, I saw a father walk his then-six-year-old daughter through the correct way to get his attention. She had been interrupting him while he was talking to someone else. If humans were by nature good, then why did a six-year-old need to be taught patience, courtesy and respect? After all, according to this line of thinking, she would have been born already knowing how to be patient, courteous, and respectful. Or surely, at minimum, having observed her parents model these attributes, she would picked it up on her own after a few observations, would she not? And certainly, after six years of observation, she should have mastered such skills as well as they, right?

I think not!

Growing up is the same thing. What I have found is that at its most barebones, it says this: "I am going to initiate and take charge--whether it's of a project, or my own life--and I'm going to accept (and take) responsibility for its results." To it I would add that it also involves putting into practice trusting God. It's one thing to preach in churches about trusting God and the importance of doing so, but it's wholly another to know experientially what that entails. Yes, this can feel scary. And, for some people, it requires serious help for a person to make it to this stage. Sadly, this is true for many more than any of us realize.

I do believe God gave me counseling and therapy as a route to this point. I also believe He gave me it because, frankly, I needed it. But, one thing I've come to realize is that, while I believe the right counseling and therapy is good and important, it means nothing if you're not saved. As great (in one sense, anyway) it is to be able to grow up, what's more important is knowing that you have a relationship with Jesus, and that you know that for sure. A big part of growing up is nicely summed up in the following passage:

14 For this reason I kneel before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. 16 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18 may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Ephesians 3:14-19, NIV.

One's work is never done. If I can offer encouragement to anyone reading this who is feeling tired, weary, or hopeless about their personal or spiritual growth, it is this: no one is ever perfectly "grown up"; no one is ever perfectly "an adult"; because all humans are sinners (and born sinners) there is no magical point of "perfect" adulthood. For the longest time, I thought there was. But there isn't. It is why I reiterate: just get saved. Just receive Jesus as your Savior and Lord, and accept His sacrifice on the cross. Life down here is hard, whether you're homeless or a billionaire, whether you're unemployed or have the title of the Queen of England. But regardless of where you're at, it doesn't have to all go to waste. There's another life on the other side, a better one, if you receive Jesus. (The flip side is that it will absolutely get worse if you don't, even if in this life you were homeless, unemployed, or in jail.) But, while you're still alive, now is your opportunity.

Sermons from Good News: God loves you and He wants you blessed

Church 1/16/2020

Offertory scripture:

Theme: Malachi 1: honor God

Sermon message:

Point: God loves you and He wants you blessed.

The Bible is a love letter to us from God.

Even though the world is full of turmoil, God will bring us through this.

The Bible will sometimes have answers that don't appear to make natural sense.

1 Corinthians

The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.

1 Corinthians 2:14 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=1%20Corinthians%202:14&version=NIV

Tonight's thesis: Welcoming God's power by raising your hands.

If God can lead the Israelites to the promised land, He can lead us.

Teaching passage:

The Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim. Moses said to Joshua, “Choose some of our men and go out to fight the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hands.” So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset. So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword. Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this on a scroll as something to be remembered and make sure that Joshua hears it, because I will completely blot out the name of Amalek from under heaven.” Moses built an altar and called it The Lord is my Banner. He said, “Because hands were lifted up against the throne of the Lord, the Lord will be at war against the Amalekites from generation to generation.”

Exodus 17:8-16 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Exodus%2017:8-16&version=NIV

Joshua is first introduced, in this passage.

The Amalekites were also first introduced, in this passage. (They are the descendants of Esau.) Israel wasn't the one attacking. The Amalekites were the ones attaching. Satan is using these people to try to steal, kill, and destroy the Israelites. The Amalekites were part of the reason the Israelites were afraid to go into the promised land. These people are interwoven into other parts of Israelite history.

Remember what the Amalekites did to you along the way when you came out of Egypt. When you were weary and worn out, they met you on your journey and attacked all who were lagging behind; they had no fear of God. When the Lord your God gives you rest from all the enemies around you in the land he is giving you to possess as an inheritance, you shall blot out the name of Amalek from under heaven. Do not forget!

Deuteronomy 25:17-19 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Deuteronomy%2025:17-19&version=NIV

Do not forget to pray or read your bible. When you stop, Satan will attack you because you lag behind the others.

Always in exodus it talks about tomorrow. What you do today will affect your tomorrow.

I will make a distinction between my people and your people. This sign will occur tomorrow.’”

Exodus 8:23 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Exodus%208:23&version=NIV

Pharaoh said, “I will let you go to offer sacrifices to the Lord your God in the wilderness, but you must not go very far. Now pray for me.” Moses answered, “As soon as I leave you, I will pray to the Lord, and tomorrow the flies will leave Pharaoh and his officials and his people. Only let Pharaoh be sure that he does not act deceitfully again by not letting the people go to offer sacrifices to the Lord .”

Exodus 8:28-29 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Exodus%208:28-29&version=NIV

The Lord set a time and said, “Tomorrow the Lord will do this in the land.”

Exodus 9:5 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Exodus%209:5&version=NIV

Therefore, at this time tomorrow I will send the worst hailstorm that has ever fallen on Egypt, from the day it was founded till now.

Exodus 9:18 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Exodus%209:18&version=NIV

Raised hands are part of biblical prayer. It's a position. It's important and in the Bible.

Moses replied, “When I have gone out of the city, I will spread out my hands in prayer to the Lord. The thunder will stop and there will be no more hail, so you may know that the earth is the Lord ’s.

Exodus 9:29 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Exodus%209:29&version=NIV

Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in front of the whole assembly of Israel, spread out his hands toward heaven and said: “ Lord, the God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven above or on earth below—you who keep your covenant of love with your servants who continue wholeheartedly in your way.

1 Kings 8:22-23 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=1%20Kings%208:22-23&version=NIV

When Solomon had finished all these prayers and supplications to the Lord, he rose from before the altar of the Lord , where he had been kneeling with his hands spread out toward heaven.

1 Kings 8:54 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=1%20Kings%208:54&version=NIV

Then, at the evening sacrifice, I rose from my self-abasement, with my tunic and cloak torn, and fell on my knees with my hands spread out to the Lord my God

Ezra 9:5 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Ezra%209:5&version=NIV

Ezra praised the Lord, the great God; and all the people lifted their hands and responded, “Amen! Amen!” Then they bowed down and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.

Nehemiah 8:6 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Nehemiah%208:6&version=NIV

Hear my cry for mercy as I call to you for help, as I lift up my hands toward your Most Holy Place.

Psalm 28:2 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Psalm%2028:2&version=NIV

I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands.

Psalm 63:4 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Psalm%2063:4&version=NIV

Praise the Lord, all you servants of the Lord who minister by night in the house of the Lord . Lift up your hands in the sanctuary and praise the Lord.

Psalm 134:1-2 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Psalm%20134:1-2&version=NIV

Therefore I want the men everywhere to pray, lifting up holy hands without anger or disputing.

1 Timothy 2:8 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=1%20Timothy%202:8&version=NIV

Bottom line: what does the Word of God say? Don't let your tradition keep you from worship God.

Raised hands bring victory in spiritual battles. It's a spiritual weapon.

So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill.

Exodus 17:10 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Exodus%2017:10&version=NIV

For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

2 Corinthians 10:3-5 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=2%20Corinthians%2010:3-5&version=NIV

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Ephesians 6:12 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Ephesians%206:12&version=NIV

When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset.

Exodus 17:12 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Exodus%2017:12&version=NIV

Raised hands reminds us that God is fighting for us.

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this on a scroll as something to be remembered and make sure that Joshua hears it, because I will completely blot out the name of Amalek from under heaven.”

Exodus 17:14 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Exodus%2017:14&version=NIV

Moses built an altar and called it The Lord is my Banner. He said, “Because hands were lifted up against the throne of the Lord, the Lord will be at war against the Amalekites from generation to generation.”

Exodus 17:15-16 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Exodus%2017:15-16&version=NIV

Sermons from Good News: strong faith, part 4

Church 5/8/2021

Offertory scripture:

Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.
Isaiah 40:28-31 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Isaiah%2040:28-31&version=NIV

Sermon message:

Preface, about mothers and Mother's Day.

President George Washington said this about moms:
"All I am I owe to my mother: success morals intellect and education I owe to my mother."

President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed Mother's Day as a national holiday.

John F Kennedy:
"Mothers all want their sons to grow up to be president but they don't want them to become a politician."

Franklin Delano Roosevelt:
"The mother is the one supreme asset to national life. They are more important than artists, scientists, politicians.." etc

President Ronald Reagan:
"From my mother I learned the value of prayer. To dream and to see those dreams into reality. "

Sermon message: Strong faith, part 4

Faith draws God's blessings

To review:
And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
Hebrews 11:6 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Hebrews%2011:6&version=NIV

A working definition of faith:
Faith draws God's blessings, His power and His presence into your life, just like a magnet draws metal to it.

You see a challenge in you life. Then you read God's Word. Find the promise God has. Read it. Then you choose to believe God's Word over your fear or your challenge. And then you act on the word of God.

One act: confess the Word of God instead of how big the challenge is.

Jesus says:
23 “‘If you can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for one who believes.”
Mark 9:23 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Mark%209:23&version=NIV

Context:
A man in the crowd answered, “Teacher, I brought you my son, who is possessed by a spirit that has robbed him of speech. Whenever it seizes him, it throws him to the ground. He foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth and becomes rigid. I asked your disciples to drive out the spirit, but they could not.” 19 “You unbelieving generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy to me.” So they brought him. When the spirit saw Jesus, it immediately threw the boy into a convulsion. He fell to the ground and rolled around, foaming at the mouth. Jesus asked the boy’s father, “How long has he been like this?” “From childhood,” he answered. “It has often thrown him into fire or water to kill him. But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us.” 23 “‘If you can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for one who believes.” Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!” When Jesus saw that a crowd was running to the scene, he rebuked the impure spirit. “You deaf and mute spirit,” he said, “I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.” The spirit shrieked, convulsed him violently and came out. The boy looked so much like a corpse that many said, “He’s dead.” But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him to his feet, and he stood up.
Mark 9:17-27 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Mark%209:17-27&version=NIV

Presence of faith draws the blessings of God.

Conversely: Lack of faith repels the blessings of God.

15 He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.
Mark 16:15-16 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Mark%2016:15-16&version=NIV

If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
Romans 10:9 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Romans%2010:9&version=NIV

For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.
Romans 10:10 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Romans%2010:10&version=NIV

Faith will attract God, blessings, and His power.

Faith will also repel Satan, problems, and trials.

Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
James 4:7 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=James%204:7&version=NIV

Point #1: How you respond when facing us very very very important.

And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:19 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Philippians%204:19&version=NIV

A theoretical situation:
Question: "Don't you think things are terrible right now?"
Answer: "Yes, but my God..." (followed by Philippians 4:19)

Listen to those who lived through the Great Depression and chose to trust God.

Say the Word of God.

38 Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”
Luke 6:38 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Luke%206:38&version=NIV

In addition to speaking God's Word:
Another way to receive God's blessings is to Help someone else.

Point #2: Faith draws you and God closer

Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
James 4:8 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=James%204:8&version=NIV

When you draw close to God you draw close Him to his blessings to his presence and to his power.

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
Hebrews 11:6 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Hebrews%2011:6&version=NIV

Point 3: when you act in faith, you will look foolish to some but not to God.

Key question: Who do I want to please? God, or people?

The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.
1 Corinthians 2:14 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=1%20Corinthians%202:14&version=NIV

Others may reject you or leave you or think you're weird but God won't.

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
Galatians 6:9 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Galatians%206:9&version=NIV

Consider Elijah:

Now Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word.”
1 Kings 17:1 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=1%20Kings%2017:1&version=NIV

Elijah did what God told him even though it seems crazy. Then God rewarded him. See below:

Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah: “Leave here, turn eastward and hide in the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan. You will drink from the brook, and I have directed the ravens to supply you with food there.”
1 Kings 17:2-4 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=1%20Kings%2017:2-4&version=NIV

So then Elijah did what God said.

So he did what the Lord had told him. He went to the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan, and stayed there. The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook.
1 Kings 17:5-6 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=1%20Kings%2017:5-6&version=NIV

Faith draws God's blessings. Even when others think you're foolish.

The second person of faith: this unnamed widow who is still known about and preached about.

Some time later the brook dried up because there had been no rain in the land. Then the word of the Lord came to him: “Go at once to Zarephath in the region of Sidon and stay there. I have directed a widow there to supply you with food.” So he went to Zarephath. When he came to the town gate, a widow was there gathering sticks. He called to her and asked, “Would you bring me a little water in a jar so I may have a drink?” As she was going to get it, he called, “And bring me, please, a piece of bread.” “As surely as the Lord your God lives,” she replied, “I don’t have any bread—only a handful of flour in a jar and a little olive oil in a jug. I am gathering a few sticks to take home and make a meal for myself and my son, that we may eat it—and die.” Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small loaf of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son. For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord sends rain on the land.’”

1 Kings 17:7-14 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=1%20Kings%2017:7-14&version=NIV

So she did what Elijah told her:

She went away and did as Elijah had told her. So there was food every day for Elijah and for the woman and her family. For the jar of flour was not used up and the jug of oil did not run dry, in keeping with the word of the Lord spoken by Elijah.
1 Kings 17:15-16 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=1%20Kings%2017:15-16&version=NIV

Faith draws blessings from God. Especially when we give first.

Leaving Facebook, plus my thoughts on the 73%

The idea was I was going to post all or half of this on Facebook as a going-away message. Due to different things happening since I first wrote this, combined with what I felt was urgency to step away, I've stepped away and not posted it. So it ends up here:

I've got a lot to share with everyone today, plus an announcement. But first, some scripture to shape my message.

1.) What God's Word, through Apostle Paul, has to say about moving on and not staying stuck in the past:

12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 3:12-14, NIV

2.) What God's Word, through Apostle Paul, has to say about use of freedom, and more about the example we should follow:

Paul’s Use of His Freedom

19 Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. 20 To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. 21 To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. 22 To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. 23 I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.

1 Corinthians 9:19-23, NIV

3.) What God's Word, through Apostle Paul, has to say about the need for self-discipline:

The Need for Self-Discipline

24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. 25 Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 26 Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. 27 No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

1 Corinthians 9:24-27, NIV

What I say about the above: like Paul, I cannot claim to have successfully apprehended these disciplines. In fact, the best I can claim is to have repeatedly failed at them. But what I can also claim is that I am trying, and moving toward obedience when the Spirit speaks. (That is, the Holy Spirit. Not any other kind of spirit. We must not listen to them or given them any attention. And in times like these, the other spirits speak much. So, tune them out.) Since 2005* I've enjoyed a particular kind of freedom that, while not intrinsically bad, can become destructive if it is given more power than it is meant to have. This winter and spring, my intent was to use this freedom to speak more, because the world needs Jesus. More specifically, the lost, the deceived, they all need Him. Sometimes the message of the cross, the resurrection, and of eternal life needs to be harsh. Other times, gentle. Nonetheless, I have tried.

I have tried the best I knew how to get not only the message across: the love of Jesus, the realness of the resurrection, the Bible's inerrancy, the reality of heaven (and unfortunately, the reality of hell, also) ...but also the urgency of getting the message across. In a science-loving, loving-the-self corner of the world, it seems impossible. But it's not. Science has its place, and we wouldn't be anywhere near where we are in terms of discovering our own capabilities as a human race without it. And the God of the Bible does allow us freedoms to explore and make discoveries. But -- the reality is it's Jesus or hell when you die. When I die. When anyone dies. And one big mistake I know I have made in my walk with Jesus is the idea that we have all the time in the world and that "no one has to convert today." But, one thing this pandemic should have taught us, especially those who don't know where they're going when they die, is that we don't know when our time is up. End Times or no End Times, a lot of people have died in the last 15 months, possibly more so than any other period in history. The turning point, Jesus or hell, already came for them. If you're still alive, yes you still have time. But now is that time. Make the decision. Say "yes" to Jesus as your Lord and as your Savior.

This next part goes off the original topic of why I'm leaving Facebook. But it's still a topic near and dear to my heart, as it addresses my coming-to-faith story, and what I learned along the way. It also addresses a response I received -- on Facebook -- a year-and-a-half ago when I took the rare step of posting blog posts as Notes on Facebook. The response was basically that 73% of Americans are Christians. I couldn't respond at that time, because I didn't know how to research for it. Here is my response now:

I wish to address another thing: this idea ("statistic") that 73% of Americans are Christians. Wrong. 73% of Americans are church-goers. But as the saying goes: "merely going to church doesn't make you any more of a Christian than merely going to a garage makes you a car." Now, don't get me wrong: going to church is a good start. It's better than not going to church. ("not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching." Hebrews 10:25, NIV)

But: I grew up Episcopalian. A Christian church, right? They have beautiful music. They do quote scripture regularly. We said/sang the Lord's Prayer. We confessed our sins, on our knees, on those kneelers. Got baptized as an infant. Got confirmed in 6th grade. I'm now "a Christian", right? In subsequent years, after leaving the Episcopal church, wandering from church to church to (occasionally) some kind of spiritual temple, I learned about salvation through accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. I thought: "that sounds nice. I'd like some of that." A few years later: "nah," and wandered some more. But nonetheless, I thought for sure now I was a Christian, simply on the merit of liking the idea of having Jesus as my Lord and Savior.

When I first started attending the Vineyard church in Evanston, I remember hearing about there being a definitive point where one decides to follow Jesus. Thing is, I thought I was already a Christian when I first started going, by virtue of growing up Episcopalian, and if not that, then certainly by liking the idea of having Jesus as my Lord and Savior. Right, just like the other 73% of Americans. Episcopalian, Catholic, Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, Lutheran, Methodist, you name it, "sure, that gets you into heaven."

No. What nagged at me then was I couldn't pinpoint a specific point in time where I decided to say "yes" to following Christ. It nagged at me because that moment didn't exist. Not until a day in March 2013 when I read through Deuteronomy 32:26-27, which says: "I said I would scatter them and erase their name from human memory, but I dreaded the taunt of the enemy, lest the adversary misunderstand and say, ‘Our hand has triumphed; the Lord has not done all this.’” (NIV)

I have my own personal reasons as to why that passage led me to give my life to Him which I will not divulge right now. But it was that passage that led me to say officially say, "OK God. I'm in. For real."

As solid as that was, it missed something: I was by myself when I gave my life to Jesus. Thing is, we need witnesses. Others, who can also say, "yes, he gave his life to Jesus." Later that year, I said "yes" to co-leading a church small group. I then said "yes" to becoming an official member (and being expected to tithe, which I began doing). Then I got baptized, as an adult. In front of the church, a video recording played of me saying: "Jesus is Lord." Upwards of 1,000 people are witnesses to my declaration.

Then the desert. Life didn't get easier for a while after I said "yes" to Jesus. In fact, it got harder. But that's part of saying "yes" to Jesus. Because doing so means Jesus changes you. Jesus changes you not only to be more like Him, but also so that your life conforms to the Word of God. (Which is really the same thing. The entire first chapter of the Gospel according to John says that Jesus is the Word. Literally.) I digress. Since 2013 when I first gave my life to Jesus, He has grown me and changed me in a way that myself a decade ago wouldn't recognize. And I'm grateful for it.

Since I first gave my life to Jesus for real, He has grown and changed me beyond belief. Yes, therapy helped plenty. But it was the God of the Bible, it was Jesus, who made that possible. Therapy, while good, will only get you so far without saving faith in Jesus. And churches, while good, will only get you so far without the God of the Bible. If a church doesn't follow the Holy Spirit's leading, and especially if it goes against what is written in the Word of God, that church will no longer be a Christian church, and its members who swear by that church, no longer Christians. Because they're no longer following Jesus, no longer following the Holy Spirit, and no longer following the Bible. These things are musts, not just for one's salvation (remember: Jesus or hell), but also for whether a church is Christian, and whether its members are really Christians.

So that "73% of Americans are Christians" figure is way bloated. Merely believing in God, or merely believing in Jesus, is not enough. James 2:19 states: "You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder." And no, the demons won't be making it in to heaven when they die.

According to the Huffington Post in 2014: (https://www.huffpost.com/entry/americans-bible-word-of-god_n_5446979) Only 28% of Americans believe that the Bible is the Word of God. And that, to my understanding, is a source that's worldly and not Christian. So for those who are in the world and of the world, one of your own sources states that the percentage of Americans who are Christians is more like 28%.

OK -- some people's angry reactions will lead to the question: "what defines a true Christian, then?" Here is my take:

1.) true Christians have not only accepted Jesus Christ as Savior and as Lord (you can't have one without the other), but also accepted a personal relationship with Him.

2.) true Christians believe that the Bible is the true, literal Word of God, infallible and inerrant. Not: "metaphorical", "allegorical", and the like.

3.) true Christians not only believe the first two things, but also, in relationship with Jesus and the Bible, let Jesus and the Bible convict them of their sins and let God make personal changes in their lives, their hearts, their attitudes, their behaviors, and their minds.

That third one is what I'm working on. Specifically, I'm working on letting God work on me. That requires trust, and it requires trusting Him to do what He wants in me. That's hard. It's not easy. And in my journey, even after saying "yes" to a personal relationship with Jesus, even after beginning therapy, I myself have had many, many moments, where I have resisted letting Him change me.

The truth is, like many addicts and recovering addicts, I am addicted to the old way of doing life. Even now. And yet: I have gotten victory over masturbation*, pornography, and video games. But I have not gotten victory over YouTube. Or Facebook. Or wasting time. Or dwelling on the past. (Even though I have healed from the vast majority of my past.) A work in progress.

But, the three points I listed above: that is what makes a Christian a Christian, and a Jesus-follower a Jesus-follower. Not merely going to church.

[* After careful prayer and consideration, I realized I have to put an asterisk there, for transparency's sake. I have made a whole ton of progress, entirely by God's grace, and it has been a battle of will. The truth is, over the last decade, I have whittled down the amount of times I still give in to this by at least tenfold. It's rare now, and has been rare for sure for about a year, that I give in.]

In my revised post series I was going to post before leaving, the below is where I would have picked up:

I myself am a work in progress. As such, I am grateful to God the Father, to Jesus, and to the Holy Spirit for rescuing me, healing me, growing me up, and for His continued grace and mercy to me. I still need it. (I still resist it!) I still need it. I'm even now living out some dreams, as well as dreams yet to come. It is great! Not perfect -- I'm still on earth here -- but great!

BUT -- in terms of obedience to Jesus, the God of the Bible, I now cut to the chase:

Philippians 3:14: "I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."

And 1 Corinthians 9:24: "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize."

I alluded to things I still need to get victory over in my previous post. It has become clear that Facebook is one of those items. Since 2005* (*except for 2012, 2013, and a little of 2014) I have enjoyed using it to connect with people. But it has power that hinders my ability to continue growing. Last year, I took a six month hiatus and I found it to be a great decision. I came back (pre-planned) at the end of the year, thinking, "oh yeah, I've conquered this!"

Nope. I have not. And while my wish this year was to use it to be a platform for Jesus, the Bible, and the Christian faith as really the only way to heaven, my need to develop true self-control outweighs it.

The last section below, in my shortened version for Facebook, I was going to crop parts of this out, particularly the parts that allude to the other large section I planned to crop out.

An epilogue: I shared a lot of big things, including my heart. I expect responses. Some of you will not like my comments about the 73% Americans. That's fine. And some may be surprised that I left the Episcopal church a long time ago. That's fine. And yet, others of you will really like the overall of what I have to say. As such, I will allow some time for people to process what I wrote, before I remove my profile.

My contact info is in the "About Me" section of my profile page. Links to my music and blog pages are also on my profile page where my contact info is. I'm not taking those down anytime soon. But I am doing this for me.

One potential thought process I went through was: "what about my music? People I've performed with have used Facebook to post videos of me performing music." But, as many Facebook posters I've seen have commented: "we musicians don't care about "exposure." We expect to get paid." I agree 100%. My music -- and specifically, the gifts God gave me -- speaks for itself. So I leave with no worry of losing opportunities for "exposure" as an artist.

As for this idea of using Facebook to "shout the [urgency of the] Good News of Jesus Christ from the rooftops," well, I believe God will open a different door regarding that. The only other thing I could possibly say at this point is simply this: "give your life to Jesus Christ. Now. You don't know when you'll die until it happens. You do not want to find out the hard way that Jesus is who the Bible says He is."

I officially put in the request for my profile to be deleted on May 4th. Because of processing that Facebook apparently does, it'll still be up there until June 3rd. But as of now, I cannot officially log in unless I want to reverse the deletion process. I will not be doing that, which means I'm free.

Sermons from Good News: God wants you blessed

Church notes 1/9/2021

Offertory scripture:

Good will come to those who are generous and lend freely, who conduct their affairs with justice. Surely the righteous will never be shaken; they will be remembered forever. They will have no fear of bad news; their hearts are steadfast, trusting in the Lord.

Psalm 112:5-7 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Psalm%20112:5-7&version=NIV

Sermon message:

God wants you blessed. Every season. No matter what.

Five important things God wants you to know: (from Apostle Paul's letter to the church in Ephesus)

(Context: Paul is in prison at this time. Ephesus is a big city; it has a big pagan temple; it also has one of the biggest Christian churches in the city. In other words, lots of darkness but also light.)

God wants us to know Him more

I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.

Ephesians 1:17 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Ephesians%201:17&version=NIV

(God knows your heart. God wants us to know His heart. God wants to restore you and bless you; that's why.)

Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

Galatians 6:7-10 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Galatians%206:7-10&version=NIV

Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted.

Galatians 6:1 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Galatians%206:1&version=NIV

God wants you to know you can still have hope.

I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people,

Ephesians 1:18 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Ephesians%201:18&version=NIV

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Isaiah 41:10 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Isaiah%2041:10&version=NIV

The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.

Psalm 46:7 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Psalm%2046:7&version=NIV

Surely God is my help; the Lord is the one who sustains me.

Psalm 54:4 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Psalm%2054:4&version=NIV

What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies.

Romans 8:31-33 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Romans%208:31-33&version=NIV

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

Romans 8:28 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Romans%208:28&version=NIV

God wants you to know how HE sees YOU.

I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people,

Ephesians 1:18 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Ephesians%201:18&version=NIV

9 “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!

Matthew 7:9-11 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Matthew%207:9-11&version=NIV

God wants you to know His power is available to you.

and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength

Ephesians 1:19 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Ephesians%201:19&version=NIV

he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come.

Ephesians 1:20-21 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Ephesians%201:20-21&version=NIV

But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people.

2 Timothy 3:1-5 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=2%20Timothy%203:1-5&version=NIV

You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.

1 John 4:4 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=1%20John%204:4&version=NIV

God wants you to know peace in hard times.

“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

Luke 2:14 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Luke%202:14&version=NIV

While you're on earth you can have peace. But it doesn't mean that there will be peace in the earth. It means you can have peace in the middle of the storm.

Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Harran. When he reached a certain place, he stopped for the night because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones there, he put it under his head and lay down to sleep.

Genesis 28:10-11 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Genesis%2028:10-11&version=NIV

He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. There above it stood the Lord, and he said: “I am the Lord , the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you. ”

Genesis 28:12-15 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Genesis%2028:12-15&version=NIV

When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” He was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.”

Genesis 28:16-17 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Genesis%2028:16-17&version=NIV

Early the next morning Jacob took the stone he had placed under his head and set it up as a pillar and poured oil on top of it. He called that place Bethel, though the city used to be called Luz.

Genesis 28:18-19 - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage?search=Genesis%2028:18-19&version=NIV

Jacob lays the stone (aka his problem) and lays it down at the altar before God.
He takes oil and anoints the problem.
He speaks Word of faith (renames the town Bethel: the house of God)