Wait and Hear from the Lord

Sermon March 2, 2014  Wait and Hear from the Lord

Scriptures

Exodus 24:12-18

This passage is an emphasis to HEAR God’s voice and connect it to obedience.

During this season of Epiphany the church probes deeply the “good news of great joy”( Luke 2:10) that has come to the world in the birth of Jesus.

He is the light that shines in darkness (John 1:5).  To his light the nations are drawn, and in His light the people who dwell in “thick darkness” (Ex. 20:21) come and see the light of the grace and truth of the triune God.

The Old Testament lesson for the final Sunday after the Epiphany magnifies the image of light with additional images of the revelation of God -  Mountain, Cloud, Fire, and Glory.

These images  come to the “High point” in the Gospel lesson for the day – The Transfiguration of Jesus on the mountaintop.

The revelation of God on Sinai is not offered as a model for religious experiences of the glory of God in general. IT Speaks of a decisive revelation of God to Moses that in time leads to the unique revelation of the glory of God in the “Beloved Son” to whom we are commanded to “listen” (Matt. 17:5

Moses meeting with god on Mount Sinai is essential to the people of Israel as they face a forty-year journey through the wilderness to the promised land.

The transfiguration in Matthew is essential to the disciples as they head into the terrifying time of the passion.

Both texts are critical to us ass we face into our own forty day observance of Lent.

Jesus set out into a spiritual wilderness to face temptations, to overcome our worst fears, to die to ourselves in order to gain faith that God is indeed, present, loving, and wonderfully protective of our welfare.

The Point in this is God let the people know that God would communicate with them through Moses.

An echo of Exodus can be heard in the Gospel of Matthew when God speaks from the cloud: “This is  MY Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased: LISTEN TO HIM!” (Matt. 17:5).

The first time  God calls Moses to come up and worship. The second time Moses is called to receive the Law that will be used to instruct  the people….It suggests a link between the keeping of the Torah and worship.

Come Up to Me…….

On the Mountain…..

And Wait……

And I will give you tablets of stone.

Psalm 99  UMH 819

The story of the Transfiguration illustrates the message of Psalm 2.  Whatever earthly power we may have ultimately is NOTHING compared to the Power of God.

Our human sense of being in contrl is an illusion, as the disciples learned that day on the mountain.

This is not a loss.  Rather , the knowledge that it is God – not we--- who is in control comes as a huge relief.  This relinquishing of  power is the joy of  the life of faith.

While we are called to serve with fear and trembling and awe at the mighty power of god, we do so with the peace that comes with knowing everything rests in the hands of our loving, liberating, and life-giving God. 

As the psalm concludes, “ Happy are all who take refuge in Him (v.12).

2 Peter 1:16-21

Where were you on 9/11?  That day is fixed in your mind. No doubt most of us can go back and remember where we were when we heard the news. We may even remember exactly what we were doing.

Imagine you being on the mountain when Jesus was Transfigured.  It was a fixe transformative event in the lives of these three disciples and especially Peter’s.

We all have experiences that anchor our lives, shape our values, and define our commitments.

We find it frustrating when our narration of these experiences does not seem to influence the behavior of others, As if our stories could have the same impact as the experiences themselves.

The writer of 2 Peter relates the event of the transfiguration as an experience that anchors his life and specifically frames his understanding of the “prophetic message” (V. 19).

The writer of this passage knows that, given the circumstances of life and the various temptations within a world at odds with God’s purposes,

The life of faith requires memory and hope, persistence and perseverance, if it is to manifest a constancy that achieves the level of character.

We have no great certainty of the word itself, until it be confirmed by the testimony of the Spirit.

For God has so knit together the certainty of the Word and the Spirit, that our minds are duly imbued with reverence for the Word when the Spirit shining upon it enables us there to behold the face of God.

Here the text, the Spirit, and the reader’s mind are all knit together. The Word becomes alive with the Spirit of God. It is a transforming transfiguring moment in ones life when the Word of God shines on that moment in time in your life.

Matthew  17:1-9

We glimpse that moment when the evening news reflects nothing but chaos, and then there is one story of a person’s graceful act of healing a broken world by caring for another person the world would rather forget.

These are moments when people begin to understand that where there is suffering, there is Holy Ground.  These are the moments when we realize God is present in suffering and sacrifice, just as God is present in the promise and potential of our lives.

Peter, James, and John accompany Jesus us the mountain after hearing the news of Jerusalem and Jesus imminent death. (Jesus foretold his death and resurrection in Matthew 16:21-28). After 6 days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother and brought them up into a high mountain apart. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white.

This moment of transfiguration is just such a moment.  On one hand, the transfiguration affirms Jesus divinity; on the other , it begins to give the disciples eyes to see God’s light in the chaos to come: death, loss, fear and resurrection, the work of the early church.

The challenge to the disciples is to live in a world without Jesus’ bodily presence.  The transfiguration anticipates this challenge, inviting us to live in “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Corin. 4:6).  As that light shines in our hearts, the incarnate God is made real in the everyday.

The moment of transfiguration is that point at which God says to the world and to each of us there nothing we can do to prepare for or stand in the way of joy or sorrow.  We cannot build God a monument, and we cannot keep God safe.

We also cannot escape the light that God will shed on our path.  We cannot escape God, Immanuel with us.  God will find us in our homes and in our workplaces.

God will find us when our hearts are broken and when we discover Joy.

God will find us when we run away from God and when we are sitting in the middle of what seems like hell. And he says: get up and do not be afraid”( v.7).

God comes into the world as a human hand laid upon a shoulder and the words, “do not be afraid.”

God comes to us quietly, gently, that we may draw near and not be afraid.

God’s glory is majestic and so far beyond our capacity to receive it that we can take just as much of God’s glory as a human hand can hold.

Fear not….Wait… Be still and Know that I am God…..Hear His Voice as He is speaking to each of you at this very moment.

Wait and Hear from the Lord.  Amen.

Hymn of Reflection UMH 451 Be Thou My Vision

Love Your Enemies

Sermon February 23, 2014

Love Your Enemies

Lev. 19:1-2, 9-18

YOU shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy….

As he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written:
“Be holy, because I am holy.” (I Peter 1:15-16)

We have the power of Choice. We are not forced to obey in the Christian life. WE obey because we Love Him.

We have that power within  us to reject god’s instruction – but where else shall we go?

If we refuse His words, which way will we turn.

If we turn away from the authority of God’s Word, to whose authority do we yield.

Our mistaken so often is that we generally turn to a human leader.

The word holiness occurs 650 times in the Bible  If we added similar words that mean the same such as sanctify or sanctified the number would go upwards of over 1000.

It is said that heaven is a holy place where nothing unclean can enter.  God himself is described by the adjective Holy – Holy Spirit, Holy Lord and Holy Lord God Almighty.

The bible also points out that “without holiness no one will see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14)

What does the word holiness mean? When the scriptures declare God to be holy, they mean that He is kind, merciful, pure and blameless with a white heat intensity of degree.

Holiness when referring to humans can be compared to the Fruit of the Spirit found in Galations 5:22 ----the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance…….

This is the essence of this passage:   You shall love your neighbor as yourself.

Psalm 119:33-40  UMH 842

Teach me, O Lord, the way of your statutes, and I will observe them.

The psalmist acknowledges that life according to God’s law, while entirely dependent upon God, requires participation and reorientation on the part of the faithful.

The psalmist prays, “Turn my heart to your decrees, and not to selfish gain” (v.36)  God provides the law and the understanding, but the psalmist has to follow the law and act with understanding.

Turning to God often means turning away from something else.  The speaker cries, “turn my eyes from looking at vanities,” which also can be translated as “worthless things” (v. 37.)

As we seek to discern God’s ways in the midst of complicated and troublesome situations, we would do well to echo the psalmist’s prayer for understanding,  seeking god’s gift of abundant life not only for ourselves and those who are close to us, but for the whole world.

I Corinthians 3:10-11, and 16-23

For no one can lay any foundation other than the one that has been laid; that foundation is Jesus Christ…

You are God’s holy temple and Gods Spirit dwells in you. God’s temple is holy and you are that temple.

You can be implied to an individual as well as to the “Church Community”.

Paul reminds the early Christians at Corinth to remain unified, to remember that they have only one true leader – Jesus Christ.

While Paul was writing, of course, to the people of the first-century church, division and misdirected priorities are not Unfamiliar to contemporary Christians of today.

It is easy to get mired down in quarrels over who is right, who is the most faithful, who is the best suited to be a leader in the church.

Paul has something different to say: a timeless reminder to the church to place God at the center of everything they do together.

Paul is urging intentionality, with a deep awareness that we build on the foundation of Jesus Christ.

Any other foundation will be tried by fire.

V. 12 and 13 ¹² Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;

¹³ Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is.

The ultimate test for our ministerial work is the test of fire, the test of endurance in times of difficulty and challenge.

Paul further points out that we are the temple of God.  God dwells in the temple, but the temple is not a building, it is a community of believers. 

Community is what we are called to build, knowing that the holy spirit dwells in the people of God.

Matthew 5:38-48

Don’t be mad but be glad and turn the other cheek. Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.

Jacob Damkani a Jew that accepted Jesus and has an Evangelistic ministry to the Jews faces this persecution daily in Israel. 

This sermon seems to push us to the limit.  But when we think of Jesus and the persecution he suffered it becomes clear….We are called to Love as God Loves.  It is a plan of action rooted in the promise to be made “children of your Father in heaven” (v.45).

The sermon here and elsewhere is a portrait of the very heart of God, one who loves the unlovable, comes among us in Christ, suffers our worst, and rises to forgive us.

Turn the cheek, give the cloak, go another mile, lend, love the enemy – because that is how God loves.

What do we get for loving, forgiving, being kind and gracious, and offering generosity?  Some of us are too suspicious of the outcome and may resist living the values of God’s realm.  We are more intent on making sure no one has a chance to abuse or tyrannize us again. Some of us are so stubborn we would rather be right than be in a relationship with others.

Some of us may shrug our shoulders and declare, “ I’m only human,” as a way to justify the failure we are unable to overcome on our own.

God’s community is filled with people who think of others first.  Every decision and action is carried out for the common good.  Each person is a sister or brother to the other and acts out of love.

The capacity for this kind of love is due to the empowering love given by God, who is love.  We are able to be gracious, forgiving, hospitable, and generous because we are children of the God who showers us with abundant grace, mercy, love, and protection.

John Wesley preached holiness and perfection. A hallmark of John Wesley’s Methodist revival and the variety of Holiness movements he spurred (Nazarene, Holiness, Assemblies of God) was the great seriousness with which they took Jesus’ command in 5:48 (Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

Why would Jesus command such a thing if it were not possible?

Perfection does ot mean always choosing the right fork at the dinner table, nor does it mean attaining to such divine attributes as omniscience.  IT means loving as God Loves, with every breath God gives us.

“Be Perfect,” is not an indictment; it is a promise that carries the possibility that we may love the world as God has loved us – fully, richly, abundantly, and completely.

That is how we can love our enemies. Amen.

Let your Words Choose Life

Sermon February 16, 2014    Sermon –- Let your Words choose Life

Today’s readings challenge us to choose life.  As the church, we are called to focus on what God’s kingdom requires, what it blesses, and how the worshiping community is to live out its distinct calling to be the body of Christ. Jesus calls us to choose the practices that will bring God Glory and Honor.

Proverbs 18:21
Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit

Every word you speak has power—to build or destroy hopes and dreams, to restore or cause loss, to heal or break the spirit, to bring delight or despair, to bless or curse—for God’s Word says that death and life are in the power of the tongue.

Deuteronomy 30:15-20

¹⁵ See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil;

¹⁶ In that I command thee this day to love the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his judgments, that thou mayest live and multiply: and the Lord thy God shall bless thee in the land whither thou goest to possess it.

¹⁷ But if thine heart turn away, so that thou wilt not hear, but shalt be drawn away, and worship other gods, and serve them;

¹⁸ I denounce unto you this day, that ye shall surely perish, and that ye shall not prolong your days upon the land, whither thou passest over Jordan to go to possess it.

¹⁹ I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:

²⁰ That thou mayest love the Lord thy God, and that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he is thy life, and the length of thy days: that thou mayest dwell in the land which the Lord sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.

There are consequences to pay for making the wrong choices. God desires for us to choose life which is on the covenantal side. A marriage is a covenant between two people. As long as both honor the covenant life is good. But if one decides to become unfaithful most generally there will be consequences to pay and it could lead to divorce.

We make a covenant with God by accepting the Blood of Jesus that was given for our salvation.

Some people can accept the covenant and live faithful lives to Jesus.

Others fight against the covenant and seem to struggle throughout life.

God did not write the Bible to be a coffee table book just to show. It is the instruction book on how to live.  If it is not read the information does not pass from God to you.

Psalm 119:1-8  UMH 840

Happy are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the Lord.

This is a good statement for those that accept the covenant and try to live their lives according to the instruction manual that God gave. Their lives are happy and full of blessings. The law of the Lord is the Torah or the instruction of God.

The Word of God revealed in Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of the Word that the Torah illustrates in this diadactical and instructional psalm.

I Corinthians 3:1-9

Paul is working to counter factions in the Corinthian community that have formed around claims of superior wisdom attributed to various religious teachers.

Pauls response to this situation has been to deny that human wisdom, however, exalted, has any ability to attain reliable knowledge of God (Chap 1)

Paul argues instead that it is the Holy Spirit that equips human beings to know God truly (Chapter 2), rather than rhetorical-philosophical cleverness.

Some of us may have many Christian broadcast on our cable or satellite. If you have ever sat for any length of time and watched program after program you can see how confusing it can be. One is saying this. One is saying that. Until You get confused. God is not the author of confusion. That is why He has told us to let the Holy Spirit be our teacher and guide. If we listen to man more than we listen to God we will get confused.

Matthew 5:21-37

Jesus makes it clear that if we are in conflict with one of our brothers or sisters, we are to go and seek restoration or reconciliation with that person before we bring our gift to the altar.

This would imply that old scores need to be settled and wounds healed before we gather around the holy table to receive the sacrament. Such action, of course, would serve as the ideal, in that each one of us could kneel before the Lord with a clear conscience and lighter heart.

However, we also know that there are just those moments when the ideal is not immediately possible.  The process of reconciliation and forgiveness often takes time, and not a small amount of patience on the part of both parties. 

It would be an awkward situation, for all concerned, if folk refused to offer their gift –“ourselves, our souls, and bodies..” because of some unresolved relationship, yet to be mended.

Holding grudges and resentments towards others will EAT YOUR LUNCH>

There was a profound reading that I found in a magazine article that helped me to see and understand the importance of forgiveness more clearly. It was written by a clergy person and this is what it said:

“If you have a resentment you want to be free of, if you will pray for the person or the thing that you resent, you will be free.  If you will ask in prayer for everything you want for yourself to be given to them, you will be free.

Ask for their health, their prosperity, their happiness, and you will be free.  Even when you don’t really want it for them and your prayers are only words and you don’t mean it, go ahead and do it anyway.

Do it everyday for two weeks, and you will find you have come to mean it and to want it for them, and you will realize that where you used to feel bitterness and resentment and unforgiveness and hatred, you now feel compassionate understanding and love. “(AA Bigbook page 552)

There are things that have happened in this church through the years. There are things that have happened in your family through the years. There are things that have happened on the job through the years.  You might have buried it but it is still there eating on you like a cancer.

Jesus is coming soon. It is time to get rid of it. How do I know? Because God has brought it forth in today’s message for someone.

Un-Forgiveness is probably one of the most common problems  and does the most damage in churches  and families today.

Matthew 6:12 from the Lords prayer: And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.

Sometimes it is referred to as trespasses or sins.

Jesus goes on to comment in the 14^th verse saying: For if you forgive men their trespasses your heavenly Father Will also forgive you….v. 15 But if you forgive not men their trespasses, NEITHER will your Father forgive your trespasses.

IF We want God to forgive us, we must at the same time forgive others.              In this way we are choosing Words of Life. This is Love and Love covers a multitude of Sins so say the scriptures.

But Pastor you just don’t know what I have experienced…….I may not but God does. I am just the messenger. God is speaking to each of you this morning on this issue. Including the pastor.

It always boils down to “Choice”.  The one precious gift God gave to humans.

Adam and Eve had a choice. And we know what that wrong choice created.

A choice can affect the rest of your life.

A choice can change the rest of your life.

If you are just a church attender and a pew warmer God is saying Make the right choice.

Today is the day of salvation.

Today is the day to choose life.   Jesus said I am the way the truth and the Life.

If you have never made that choice I invite you to do so today.

Say this little prayer with me.

Lord, I have made a lot of wrong choices in life. Help me today to make the right choice. Help me to choose Life. I repent of my sins. I repent of unforgiveness in my heart. And today I choose to accept Jesus as my Lord and Savior. Amen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You are the Salt and Light of the World

Sermon February 9 2014

You are the Salt and Light of the World

Isaiah 58:1-12

Worship style and practice are not what pleases or offends God, according to Isaiah. Worship style and practice are not to blame for the exilic decline of the community.  They are not the measuring sticks by which the people of God will be judged.  They will not restore or preserve a relationship with God in and of themselves.

From the beginning of time it has always been about relationship with God. He wants a relationship with us.

This is a curious thing to say to a community reconstituting itself following a return from exile.

It is a frustrating thing to say to a church trying to reinvent itself, beginning with the practice of worship.

Worship is the most important thing we do together.  It is the place that forms us into the people of God.  It is the place where we inhale God’s love and grace, so that we can be sent forth to exhale God’s love and grace in a broken world in need of redemption.

Psalm 112:1-10  UMH 833

Psalm 112 is an exhortation. It begins with the call to “Praise the Lord!” then gives the reason for doing so: those who fear the Lord are happy. The text assumes that the audience fears the Lord and keeps the commandments; therefore, they ought to praise God.

Trembling in awe of God as we do, we are always, always offered the Amazing Grace of  both the promise of God’s unconditional Love and the Humbling chance to have a purpose, to make a difference, to be a part of something bigger than ourselves. 

That is the obeying-God’s –commands part of the deal.  It turns out to be better than it sounds.  Obedience, a word of our culture hates, turns out to mean having a chance to make a difference, to make the world a  better place.

I Corinthians 2:1-16

The great temptation that the church faces in Corinth is a desire for security and a reliance on their own ingenuity and knowledge.  It goes without saying that these challenges continue to plague the church in our own day.

Threatened with decline, we flock to the latest guru who can help us to ‘grow” our congregations, if  only we cultivate seven habits of highly successful congregations or follow twelve simple steps or adopt a new mission statement.

Jesus is the answer, we say, but what is the question?

May be we should say if Jesus is the answer maybe the problem is with me and my relationship with Him.

WE do good in reciting prayers, traditional rituals, and hymns. If only each of us could renew that relationship with Jesus our churches would once again come alive.

A church that is alive and vibrant has Jesus as Lord.  Not potato salad, pot luck or pot roast.

Matthew 5:13-20

Jesus uses two metaphors to describe and prescribe who his followers are and what they do for and in the world.

The first is  “ ye are the salt of the earth” suggest that Jesus gives them as his disciples a distinctive capacity to elicit goodness on the earth.  Like Salt, which is used to alter or enhance the taste of food, the disciples capacity to elicit goodness as they participate on the earth should be of profound consequence, in the ways that we find in (5:3-10

The danger for disciples is that they may lose that capacity by forgetting that they are to disorder the status quo by valuing those who are dispossessed, caring for those who suffer loss, seeking to do justice, showing mercy, having integrity, being peacemakers, and courageously standing for what they believe.

Disciples who do not engage in such practices that humanize life on earth will be like salt that has lost its taste.

The second metaphor, “ You are the light of the world,” invites us to consider the role of diciples as a gathered community (vv.14-16). Light enables us to see things and is a kind of energy that gives things color, helps vegetation to grow, provides solar power for electricity, and can be focused for specific uses such as a laser.

Like light, the disciples as a gathered community have the overarching purpose of being the mirror that refracts God’s light so that all peoples and nations can know of god’s justice and mercy.

As a gathered community the disciples are like light when they engage others in the world, enabling when they engage others in the world, enabling diversity (giving things color), nurturing a healthy ecofriendly world (Helping vegetation to grow), generating policies for ecojustice (providing solar power), and restoring or repairing whatever relationships that need such (focusing for specific purposes).  These are the good works that will glorify God.

As Jesus declairs to his newly commissioned disciples and followers that he has not come to abolish the law or the prophets, he claims his place in God’s history of the liberation of and covenant with God’s chosen people.

Jesus admonishes his followers that breaking the commandments oneself or leading others to do so is an offense against the Divine Eternal purposes.

In verse 20 Jesus enjoins his followers in these words: “For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

The righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees is concerned with observance of tradition, public displays of piety, and adherence to the letter of the law.

The righteousness of Jesus flows from his relationship with God and, in turn, is the ground of Jesus’ relationship with his followers.

“ Let your light shine before others so that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”

There is always a contrast of light and dark.

Jesus encourages his followers to bring light to a dark and broken world.  The light is the light of the gospel, and it draws all people to its warmth and radiance. This mission has been primary, from the very beginning, throughout every age. The first thing we see in Genesis on page one is

God said, Let there be Light……and the Light was.

In order for the light to be seen, we must be willing to go where the darkness exists, to engage and walk through it, so that, in time, the light can overcome it.

Finally, human righteousness is about being the salt of the earth and the light of the world.  As the salt of the earth, we are disciples of Jesus when we allow our characters to be formed by God’s blessings.

As the light of the world, we are followers of Jesus when we accept the covenantal blessings as a call into relationships with despised groups because of what we believe – even if it means that we may be persecuted.  Amen.

The Lord is Faithful and Shall Choose Thee

Sermon Jan 19 The Lord is faithful and shall choose thee.

January 19 – Isaiah 49:1-7; Psalm 40:1-11; I Corinthians 1:1-9; John 1:29-42

God’s call emerges as a dominant theme in today’s readings.  Isaiah proclaims that God’s call came even before he was born (Isaiah 49:1b).  John clarifies his prophetic calling to proclaim the coming of Christ (John 1:31b).  Jesus invites John and others to “Come and See” (John 1:39).  Andrew calls to his brother Simon, “ We have found the Messiah” (John 1:41b), and brings Simon to Jesus.  Jesus calls Simon to discipleship and renames him Cephas (Peter).  As God has called disciples since the beginning of time, so Christ calls us through these many scriptures.

Isaiah 49:-7

⁷ Thus saith the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, to him whom the nation abhorreth, to a servant of rulers, Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of the Lord that is faithful, and the Holy One of Israel, and he shall choose thee.

When people are being selected to take part in anything it gives a thrill to the soul to be selected.

Think about the Almighty God, King of the Universe selecting you right here where you live. You have been chosen, you have been called, you have been selected to serve as an ambassador for the Kingdom of Heaven.

There is coming a day when every knee on the earth will bow to Him.

Phillipians 2:5-11 (From the Message)

^5-8 Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn’t think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn’t claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death—and the worst kind of death at that—a crucifixion.

^9-11 Because of that obedience, God lifted him high and honored him far beyond anyone or anything, ever, so that all created beings in heaven and on earth—even those long ago dead and buried—will bow in worship before this Jesus Christ, and call out in praise that he is the Master of all, to the glorious honor of God the Father.

Psalm 40:1, 8, and 11

 I waited patiently for the Lord; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry.

Today, people are impatient. We live in a hurry up world. We can not wait. Everything has got to be right now. No patience with each other and no patience with ourselves. And we are too busy to wait and see what God has to say about the issue we are facing.

God wants us to Wait on Him. Seek His Guidance. Listen to His voice.  We say a quick prayer and get up and try to solve things ourselves.

⁸ I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart.

That is the  reason that we are instructed in the Torah to keep His Words.

Deuteronomy 6:4 (KJV)

⁴ Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord:

⁵ And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.

⁶ And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:

⁷ And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.

⁸ And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes.

⁹ And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.

We may ask someone :  What’s on your mind?  And God wants us to ask What is on your Mind God for us today. God has given us words of instruction for life through His Word and to keep these words before our eyes and mind all of the time.  This develops a relationship with God that will keep us on the straight and narrow path.  If God is on our mind all of the time it protects us from evil and temptations.

I Corinthians 1:-9

⁹ God is faithful….

How powerful is that statement?  We know in our hearts that He is faithful. He will never leave us. He said he would be with us until the End.  Yet so many today would rather seek out the counsel of the ungodly than to seek the counsel of God.

John 1: 29-42

²⁹ The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.

John’s witness of who Jesus is…..the Lamb of God.

John Said:

³⁴ And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God.

Today we have the word of God preached and taught on radio, television, the internet every day 24/7. God is seeking and calling whosoever will hear His Voice. The early disciples heard him and followed him.  Today Gods voice is calling you out. God is wanting to commission you to be a disciple of Christ.

³⁷ And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus.

³⁸ Then Jesus turned, and saw them following, and saith unto them, What seek ye? They said unto him, Rabbi, (which is to say, being interpreted, Master,) where dwellest thou?

³⁹ He saith unto them, Come and see. They came and saw where he dwelt, and abode with him that day: for it was about the tenth hour.

⁴¹ He first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messiah, which is, being interpreted, the Christ.

Often our image and understanding of God is far too small.  When Nathaniel first heard of Jesus he was skeptical about anything good coming out of Nazareth.  Philip responded by inviting him to come and see Jesus for himself.  Firsthand experience always trumps what others may say about God and most other things as well.  The writer of Colossians says that Jesus is the “image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation: for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created (I: 15-26).

The first disciples had little to go on but the word of a friend until they began to hang out with Jesus themselves.  Then they discovered that Jesus was the real thing.  He really was more than just a good man and finally they were able to identify him as Messiah and Son of God.

Do we know who Jesus is?  May we have the courage to face our own questions to do as those early disciples did, give ourselves to living close enough to Jesus to really get to know who he is and who God is as he gives a clear picture of the relationship between his beloved Abba and himself.

If ever there was a time in the history of  mankind that man needs to hear and respond to the voice of God calling it is TODAY.  Today is the day of salvation. We have started a brand new year. A new opportunity to make some changes in our life and answer the call that God is giving unto us. We have put it off long enough. We need to do more than just hear.

We need to apply ourselves to being the disciples that Christ wants us to be.

We serve a Mighty and Awesome God.  A God of Mercy and Grace.  Full of love and forgiveness.

Regardless of what you have done in the past. Regardless of how many times you may have failed in your walk with God. Today is the day of salvation. Your 2^nd chance.

I  John 1: 9

 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Maybe you want to come to this altar and make that confession.  Maybe you just want to rededicate your life to God.  If it is  too hard for you to get up out of your seat then say it right now with all of your heart and mean it that you want to accept this call today.

Let us all say a prayer of recommitment together.

Father according to your word if we confess our sins you are faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us of all unrighteousness. Today this moment January 19, 2014 we confess all of our sins and unfaithfulness to you right now. Forgive us and transform us into what you would have us to be for this new year. Restore the Joy of our salvation.  We ask, believe and receive in Jesus name. Amen.

January 2014 News Letter

January 2014 Newsletter

January 5-  Isaiah 60:1-6, Psalm 72:1-7; Ephesians 3:1-12; Matthew 2:1-12

In the Northern Hemisphere, we are experiencing the darkness of midwinter.  Days are short and nights long.  But there are other forms of darkness – poverty, war, injustice, oppression, hatred, prejudice, fear – forms that also affect us just as they did the people of biblical times.  In these passages, light breaks through the darkness:  a prophet calls us to arise and see the light of liberation and peace, reconciliation and joy; the psalmist prays for a ruler who will light the way of his people with righteousness, prosperity, and an end to oppression and injustice.  The writer of Ephesians lights the way through mystery, with a message of the good news of Christ Jesus; and the Magi follow the light of a star, finding more than they were looking for, to return home transformed.

January 12 –Isaiah 42:1-9; Psalm 29; Acts 10:34-43; Matthew 3:13-17

Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan, at the hands of John the Baptizer, publicly identifies Jesus as the Christ- the Messiah, the Anointed, the Chosen One of God. [Yeshua]  This baptism also marks the beginning of the ministry for the long-awaited Messiah, whose coming is foretold in the Isaiah reading.  As Peter explains the Acts passage, we can trust in the saving work of Jesus the Christ.

January 19 – Isaiah 49:1-7; Psalm 40:1-11; I Corinthians 1:1-9; John 1:29-42

God’s call emerges as a dominant theme in today’s readings.  Isaiah proclaims that God’s call came even before he was born (Isaiah 49:1b).  John clarifies his prophetic calling to proclaim the coming of Christ (John 1:31b).  Jesus invites John and others to “Come and See” (John 1:39).  Andrew calls to his brother Simon, “ We have found the Messiah” (John 1:41b), and brings Simon to Jesus.  Jesus calls Simon to discipleship and renames him Cephas (Peter).  As God has called disciples since the beginning of time, so Christ calls us through these many scriptures.

January 26 – Isaiah 9:1-4; Psalm 27:1, 4-9; I Corinthians 1:10-18; Matthew 4:12-23

Themes of light and darkness focus the readings from Isaiah, Psalm 27, and Matthew’s Gospel.  In the midst of loss (destruction of one’s homeland, the death of John the Baptist), hope is not lost.  God’s light shines in the darkness: “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness – on them light has shined” (Isaiah 9:2).

[For the year 2014, listed below are a few books the Pastor recommends.

Breaking the 12 Jewish Codes that will Transform your Life, Family, Health, and Finances – Perry Stone

The Four Blood Moons –Pastor John Hagee

The Seven Festivals of the Messiah – Eddie Chumney (Thursday Night Bible Study – Belt Parsonage)

Who is the Bride of Christ- Eddie Chumney

Restoring the Two Houses of Israel-Eddie Chumney

Ponderings of the Pastor

Shared from the book- God Calling.

Between the Years

Our Lord and our God.  We joy in Thee.  Without Thy Help we could not face unafraid the year before us.

I stand between the years.  The Light of My Presence is flung across the year to come – the radiance of Sun of Righteousness.  Backward, over the past year, is My Shadow thrown, hiding trouble and sorrow and disappointment.

Dwell not on the past – only on the present.  Only use the past as the trees use My Sunlight to absorb it, to make from it in after days the warming fire-rays.  So store only the blessings from Me, the Light of the World.  Encourage yourselves by the thought of these.

Bury every fear of the future, of poverty for those dear to you, of suffering , of loss.  Bury all thought of unkindness and bitterness, all your dislikes, your resentments, your sense of failure, your disappointment in others and in yourselves, your gloom, your despondency, and let us leave them all, buried, and go forward to a new and risen life.

Remember that you must not see as the world sees.  I hold the year in My Hands – in trust for you.  But I shall guide you one day at a time.

Leave the rest with Me.  You must not anticipate the gift by fears or thoughts of the days ahead.

And for each day I shall supply the wisdom and the strength.

Blessings on the New Year 2014

Pastor Cleve