29
Jan '21
Five Promises
29
Jan '21
From November through January we have enjoyed an altered Sunday school format. Our adult ladies and men were split into separate classes, with the ladies studying the “one another’s” of scripture and the men focused on character studies.
Beginning next Sunday, February 7 and continuing for five Sundays, through Sunday March 7, we will return to our regular class format. We will walk through Five Promises of God When Life is Hard. This study has been adapted from the book Always True by James MacDonald. This series will be available as a printed booklet, or you may follow this link to download the PDF. The printed copies will be in your classrooms. One meets in the Fellowship Hall, and the other meets in the FLC café.
Starting Sunday, March 14 we will shift to the split classes again for an as of yet unspecified amount of time.
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10
Aug '20
Count on Him!
10
Aug '20
2 Peter 1:4a, “Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises…”
Promises are only as good as the one who makes them. That is either good news or bad news, depending on who is making the promises on which you are dependent. Here is some good news, some really good news. God has made many promises to us in His Word. Nothing could be more certain and more comforting than the promises God has made to His people. They are always true, because God is truth. They are always good, because God is good. Therefore, we can be certainly comforted in them because they are from God. We can, and should, trust God’s promises, no matter what. Does that describe you today?
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30
Jul '20
YHWH
30
Jul '20
Isaiah 26:4, “Trust ye in the LORD for ever: for in the LORD JEHOVAH is everlasting strength:”
Three times in a verse of fifteen words God uses His personal, self-revealing name YHWH. Jehovah is the God who frequently reveals Himself to us through difficult circumstances. Often God will allow us to hit rock bottom in order for us to better understand and experience His ‘everlasting strength,’ which in Hebrew is literally ‘Rock of Ages.’ Jesus Christ is that Rock in a world of sinking sand. Don’t allow the tyranny of today’s tasks to turn you away from trusting in the personal, unchanging, self-existent, self-sufficient Rock of Ages. Perfect peace is there for those who trust Him, regardless of the outlook, and all the way to the end. Since His strength is everlasting, our trust should be, too.
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14
Jul '20
The Promise of God’s Presence
14
Jul '20
Isaiah 43:2, “When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.”
Ever felt as if you were drowning or about to be consumed by fire? In this promise from God He lets you know that you are not going through the water or the fire by yourself! The greatest treasure in this verse is the promise of God’s presence. “I will be with you.” God says. Are you in deep water? God will be with you! Are you crossing a raging river? God will be with you! Walking through fire? God will be with you! Don’t look for ways around the water or the fire. Trust God to carry you through on to the other side.
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25
Jun '20
Dug Down Deep
25
Jun '20
Luke 6:48, “He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock.”
Dug down deep is how Jesus described the person who trusts and obeys His Word. The person who learns and lives the Bible has a foundation dug down deep. So when the water rises and the wind blows and the storm beats against that house, it stands firm. Pretty houses on weak foundations are disasters waiting to happen. The foolish man builds his house upon the sand, but the wise man builds on the Rock. How firm a foundation, you saints of the Lord, is laid for your faith in His excellent Word! Trust God’s Word, and stand steady on solid ground.
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03
May '20
But There Is a God in Heaven
03
May '20
Nebuchadnezzar was so troubled he couldn’t sleep. His problem wasn’t just a weird or scary dream. The king feared losing what he had gained and still desired. Those fears about security and safety highlighted his struggle with ultimate issues: “Who am I? How did I get here? Why am I here? Where am I going? What does it matter?”
Nebuchadnezzar was so troubled he couldn’t think clearly. Since the wise men of the realm couldn’t explain his dream before they interpreted it, he commanded that they all be executed. In stepped Daniel. He got involved, along with Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. Their involvement was characterized by tact, prayer, practicality, thanksgiving, purposefulness, and humility. As Daniel stood before Nebuchadnezzar, this ruthless government leader asked him, “Are you able to tell me the dream I had and its interpretation?” (2:24b)
Not Me. But God
Every eye in the room was fixed on Daniel. A lot depended on what he was about to say and do. Time seems to stand still in meaningful moments like this, and the senses seem to be sharpened. Not only were all eyes focused on Daniel, but every ear was straining to hear exactly what he would say. What they heard was, “No. There is not a wise man, astrologer, magician, or soothsayer who can show the king what he desires.”
No doubt there were audible gasps in the room at that moment. Arioch the Captain of the Guard may have looked stunned and betrayed. I imagine Nebuchadnezzar’s eyes were instantly enflamed with fury. Perhaps not a few wise men sighed and hung their heads. All of this would have transpired in mere seconds, you understand, because there was not a wise man, astrologer, magician, or soothsayer who can show the king what he desires. But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets, and He has let King Nebuchadnezzar know what will happen in the last days.” (vv. 27-28)
You’ve heard it said before, but it’s a truth worth repeating, with men it is impossible, but not with God, for with God all things are possible. That’s not restricted to interpreting dreams.
This morning (and next Sunday) we will have an 11am drive-in service, and it will also be live-streamed. Please join us!
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24
Apr '20
Refuge
24
Apr '20
Nahum 1:7, “The LORD is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in him.”
The prophet Jonah had preached the urgent need of repentance in Nineveh. Revival broke out. The people and the city were saved. But a new generation returned to old patterns. The prophet Nahum was sent to proclaim God’s righteous judgment against this new generation of Ninevites who had rebelled against God. While God is angry at and will judge sin, He is also a good God who cares for His people. That had already been proven to this city, and is reiterated in today’s verse. Nahum preached here what Paul would later (Romans 11:22) “behold therefore the goodness and severity of God.” God is love and His love is a holy love. While He is a refuge for those who trust Him, there is no refuge for those who do not.
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21
Apr '20
Are You a “We”?
21
Apr '20
1 John 3:22, “And whatsoever we ask, we receive of Him, because we keep His commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in His sight.”
This has to be one of the most remarkable prayer passages in scripture, but we must understand that this promise is not made to every professing believer. Reread the verse, and ask yourself if you are one of the “we’s.” There are four:
- we ask…
- we receive…because – do not fail to notice this promise’s condition
- we keep…and
- [we] do. (This one is understood.)
So then, trust God’s Word, seek to keep His Word by the power of His Spirit, and endeavor to please Him in every aspect of your life. This enables our prayers to be confidently offered to God through Christ in the Spirit. This glorifies God. What glorifies God is always best for us.
Ask yourself. Is “we” me?
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18
Apr '20
Saturday with Spurgeon
18
Apr '20
“I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee” Joshua 1:5.
This word to Joshua is often quoted; it is the basis of that New Testament word, “He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”
Beloved, a life of warfare is before us, but the Lord of Hosts is with us. Are we called to lead a great but fickle people? This promise guarantees us all the wisdom and prudence that we shall need. Have we to contend with cunning and powerful enemies? Here is strength and valor, prowess and victory. Have we a vast heritage to win? By this sign we shall achieve our purpose; the Lord Himself is with us.
It would be woe to us indeed if Jehovah could fail us; but, as this can never be, the winds of disquietude are laid to sleep in the caverns of divine faithfulness. On no one Occasion will the Lord desert us. Happen what may, He will be at our side. Friends drop from us, their help is but an April shower; but God is faithful, Jesus is the same for ever, and the Holy Spirit abideth in us.
Come, my heart, be calm and hopeful today. Clouds may gather, but the Lord can blow them away. Since God will not fail me, my faith shall not fail; and, as He will not forsake me, neither will I forsake Him. Oh for a restful faith!
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12
Apr '20
The Day Death Died
12
Apr '20
Fear is powerful. Scripture teaches that the fear of God is the way of knowledge, wisdom, fruitfulness and joy. There is such a thing as healthy fear, but often our fear is unhealthy. You may discern the difference when your fear leads you to sinful practices. Fearing poverty, some put their career before anything and anyone else. Fearing loneliness, many behave against their better judgment thirsting for acceptance. Fearing failure, many will lie, cheat, steal, or worse. This means that the problem isn’t fear but what we do with our fears.
The greatest of all fears is the fear of death. That fears is universal, because death comes to us all. The rich cannot buy their way out of it. The intellectual can’t outsmart it. The physically gifted cannot outrun or outlast it. Death is the great leveler of humanity. No event is so sobering because no event is so final or so mysterious. The prospect of going through the veil by ourselves is enough to overwhelm any of us with fear.
Fear is what has humanity by the throat right now. We’re afraid to touch or be touched. We’re afraid of the air we breathe because we’re afraid of COVID-19. Our fear what we don’t understand, and we don’t know much about this new coronavirus other than out fears that it is a death sentence, either for ourselves or our loved ones.
Good news for the fearful!
Here is some good news. Christ Jesus came into this world to free those who were held in slavery all their lives by the fear of death. John 11 recounts the story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead, and provides a preview of Christ’s own resurrection. That chapter teaches us some comforting truths as we think about our own mortality. That will be our text this Easter morning.
One of my favorite passages of all scripture is John 11:25-6, “Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?”
View this morning’s livestream by following this link or by clicking the “Watch Video” button on our church’s Facebook page. A Facebook account is not required to visit that page.
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