Just the opposite!

I believe it is safe to say that we as a nation are doing just the opposite of the first part of this verse:

Proverbs 14:34  

Righteousness exalts a nation,

But sin is a reproach to any people.

We are living in sad times. As a nation we now exalt sin! Vileness is everywhere! Sexual immorality, filthy talk, personal attacks on people created in God’s image, lies, stealing, murder, idols, and much much more! The movies, tv shows, music, books, magazines, and folks everyday lives exalt sin. How much longer will God put its it?

Sadly people love sin and idols more than God. God told us in His Word that this is the way it would be:

Matthew 7:13-14 

13 “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.

Let us as followers of Jesus be living righteous lives before our God. Setting the example for others and sharing the gospel and the love God shows us. Let us stand against sin but do it in a way that leads people to Jesus not a way from Him.

Pray folks pray! This nation needs it!

Tom

Back to the Beginning! You must know what God did! #4

A couple of side notes:

1. In the video I said  Cain was the Father of Lamech...He was not his father but a forefather.

2. There is a Lamech in Cain's family tree and a Lamech in Seth's family tree.Don't get them confused! Cain's family will come to an end at the flood but Seth's family line will continue through Noah.

Back to the Beginning! You must know what God did! #4

A couple of side notes:

1. In the video I said  Cain was the Father of Lamech...He was not his father but a forefather.

2. There is a Lamech in Cain's family tree and a Lamech in Seth's family tree.Don't get them confused! Cain's family will come to an end at the flood but Seth's family line will continue through Noah.

Don’t be foolish!

The bible is God’s Word. Recently a magazine whom I will not mention proclaimed the bible as one of the most over rated books of all time. Wow! How foolish! Look what God says here:

1 Corinthians 1:18 

18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

The main message of the bible is what Jesus came to do for those He loves…die on the cross for their sins. So sadly for those with the opinion that God’s Word is over rated…well that makes them fools and they will perish in hell if they do not repent of their sins and follow Jesus as Lord. Sadly their are many more besides this magazine who feel the same way or just plain ignore what God says! 

Let us pray, love, and try to reach all we can with the truth of God’s Word! Time is running out!

Tom

If God is not leading….

If God is not leading everything in your life then your life is not in proper order!

Psalm 127:1 

Unless the Lord builds the house,

They labor in vain who build it;

Unless the Lord guards the city,

The watchman stays awake in vain.

God must be in and leading everything we do!!! He is our GUIDE and WISDOM and our PROTECTOR! 

Have you given all the rights to every area of your life to the Lord for Him to control? Or are you still trying to control parts yourself? Let God have it! We are hurting ourselves when we try to do it without Him! 

God, WE are yours!!! Use us Lord!

Tom

It won’t be easy!

Remember if you are a faithful follower of Jesus and are doing the work He has called you to such as sharing the gospel and the truths of scripture, living an obedient life to the scriptures, your life will not be easy:

2 Timothy 3:12 

12 Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.

Some forms of persecution will happened to you. Being made fun of, rights taken away, physical harm, and yes in some cases even death!

BUT when you go home one day to heaven, it will be worth it all!

Romans 8:18 

18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.

Keep the faith and stand strong brothers and sisters!

Tom

One day soon…

Romans 14:11 

11 For it is written:

“As I live, says the Lord,

Every knee shall bow to Me,

And every tongue shall confess to God.”

Let us never forget that one day soon Jesus will return to gather His people who have called upon His name as Lord and Savior to take them to heaven. One other thing will happen at this time as well….those who are saved will bow and those who have rejected Jesus will bow and ALL will confess Jesus is Lord! The King has come! Praise the Lord!

I pray all will call upon Him willingly now before it is too late!

Tom

Back to the Beginning! You must know what God did! #3

Get out!

Here is what God says we should do:

James 1:21 

21 Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.

Get out all the junk (sin) in our lives and be filled with God’s Word. The Word is the only thing that tells us how to save our souls and that is through faith in Jesus alone!

So let me ask you this morning….how much of God’s Word did you get in yesterday? The day before? How much are you going to get in today? The Word is how you know what filth is and then you repent and get it out!

Let us do as God says….faithful followers will obey!

Look what Jesus said: John 14:15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments.

Tom

Why did Jesus come to this world?

Why did Jesus come into this world?

1 Timothy 1:15

15 This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief.

The answer….to save horrible sinners like you and me! 

Have you put your faith and trust in Him as Savior and Lord? He is the ONLY way to heaven and the only way to have peace and joy in ones life!

Tom

Life!

As a follower of Jesus this is to be our life:

Colossians 3:17 

17 And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

Everything we say or do is to bring glory to God, and then we thank Him for the opportunity to do so!

Chew on that today!

Tom

Time with God a must everyday!

Billy Graham wrote: “Through my years of experience I have learned it is far better to miss breakfast than to forgo a session with God’s Word. It’s not that Bible reading is some kind of religious fetish bringing good fortune, but that I lack decisiveness and purpose and guidance when I neglect what is more important than food that is necessary for my body.”

Do you and I put that kind of importance on spending time with God everyday? God desires a relationship with us and we must desire that relationship as well. To have a good relationship you must spend time together. Since it is God we are talking about, time every day is a MUST!

Remember these words from Jesus:

Matthew 4:4 

4 But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’”

God’s word is as important as food for us to live! If the time you spent in God’s word was to keep you alive like food does would you be alive??? Or would you have starved to death?

Time spent alone in prayer with God is also needed daily! Jesus set the example for us:

Luke 9:18 

18 And it happened, as He was alone praying, that His disciples joined Him, and He asked them, saying, “Who do the crowds say that I am?”

Many times in scripture it talks about Jesus going off to be alone…we are confident it was to spend time with God in prayer!

Do not forsake daily time with God in Bible reading and prayer! It is life for the followers of Jesus!

Tom

Back to the Beginning! You must know what God did! #2

Put your worries in the arms of God

Psalm 94:19

In the multitude of my anxieties within me,

Your comforts delight my soul.

If I did not have God to lean on every single day, I would be in deep trouble! God comforts me as no other can. I just do my best to turn all my worries over to Him. After all He is in control! Here is another verse to think on:

1 Peter 5:7 

7 casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.

Give God everything! He cares about you and loves you!

Tom

Wake up satisfied!

Psalm 90:14 

14 Oh, satisfy us early with Your mercy,

That we may rejoice and be glad all our days!

First thing in the morning when you roll out of bed, praise the Lord for His Mercy! After all he woke you up. Hopefully you had a good nights rest and He has given you the opportunity for salvation through the shed blood of His son Jesus! 

When you wake up satisfied then you can rejoice the rest of your day knowing God is good no matter what may come your way because He has shown us mercy, time and time again!!!

God I am satisfied with you, what else do I need?

Tom

Oh what Love!

Romans 5:6-8 

6 For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Let these verses sink in for a bit! 

Jesus died for you and for me! We the ungodly….sinners! That’s right that’s who we are! Jesus loves us so much that He came to this earth to die for sinners so we can be right with God by His sacrifice. Wow!

Would you do that for someone who does you wrong everyday? I did not think so…but Jesus did! That is love for those who He created!  

Chew on this today! We have have broken the laws of God and are guilty before the Judge. But thanks be to God He will pardon those who are covered by the blood of Jesus as Savior and Lord of their life!

Thank you Lord Jesus!

Tom

Back to the Beginning! You must know what God did!

Don’t Forget!

Do not ever forget this:

Revelation 1:8 

8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”

Jesus always has been!

Jesus died!

Jesus resurrected!

Jesus will come again!

These are facts, so be prepared! Worship, love, serve, and obey the Lord always!

Tom

Much to be learned…

I am sure all of us can learn something from this verse from God’s Word:

Proverbs 17:28 

28 Even a fool is counted wise when he holds his peace;

When he shuts his lips, he is considered perceptive.

Many times if we would heed these words we would be much better off! Let the words of our mouths be what Jesus would say and not what the rest of the world would say!

If you don’t know what Jesus would say…get in the word and find out!

Think on that today!

Tom

I need all I can get!

I don’t know about you but I need all the grace I can get from the Lord!

James 4:6 

6 But He gives more grace. Therefore He says:

“God resists the proud,

But gives grace to the humble.”

Lord help us all to realize the only thing in our life to be proud about is YOU! Help us to be humble at all times so we can receive the grace we do not deserve from You. Help us always to put others first and show them the love of Jesus!

Tom

Easter is over now what?

You went to church yesterday to celebrate the risen Savior. I pray you have made Him Lord of your life at some point. If not that is the first thing you need to do! Repent of your sins, put you faith in Jesus alone to save your soul! 

Secondly, if you are a follower of Jesus whats next for you? Thankfully Jesus has told us what to do before He went back to heaven:

Matthew 28:18-20 

18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.

We are to “Go” and make disciples. Which means tell folks about Jesus by sharing the gospel (the good news of the death burial, and resurrection of Jesus) so folks can also call upon Jesus as their Savior! To disciple also means we don’t just share gospel and leave. If they call upon Jesus we then must teach them how to follow Jesus! How to read the scriptures, how to pray, importance of church attendance, find a place to serve in the church, and how to share their faith with others.

Easter is just the beginning fo the followers of Jesus! He has called us to serve and obey just like He did! So lets “GO”!!! Don’t let your life just go back to doing nothing for our Lord!

Tom

Easter Sermon 2018