The Valley of Dry Bones.

Peter.. a true example of Christian growth

2011-11-28T11:27:00.000-08:00

When Jesus first met Peter, he was out in his boat fishing… doing what he did. Everybody knows the story about Peter and the cock crowing three times and about the time Peter started walking on water and then how his faith shrank and he fell in….

Peter was a funny guy. He was one that I could relate with. He was always eager, easily excitable, and human in the fact that he sometimes put his foot in his mouth and often made a fool of himself.

Today, I want to look a little bit closer at the life of Peter. As we examine the scriptures we will find a poor fisherman who was called by the Lord and subsequently followed and became a fisher of men.

Peter loved the Lord. Yet even he stumbled. Peter was wise in some things, and kinda dumb in others.

If anything we will learn that Peter was like you and me. He was human. He wasn’t perfect. We will also see that he didn’t just stay the same. We will see that he matured a great deal.

His life demonstrates how a young believer, or a babe in Christ can grow into a spiritual adult.

John 21:1

Here the disciples are fishing in the Sea of Tiberias after the death and resurrection of Jesus.

Joh 21:1 After these things Jesus shewed himself again to the disciples at the sea of Tiberias; and on this wise shewed he himself.
Joh 21:2 There were together Simon Peter, and Thomas called Didymus, and Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee, and two other of his disciples.
Joh 21:3 Simon Peter saith unto them, I go a fishing. They say unto him, We also go with thee. They went forth, and entered into a ship immediately; and that night they caught nothing.

So Before Jesus came he was a fishermen and after his resurrection, when Peter didn’t seem to know what to do next, he returned to what he knew.

We must be careful ourselves. This can be a lesson in human nature. We can have an experience with Jesus, and if our human nature is fed more than our spiritual nature, we may return to the old familiar things… That’s one reason why it’s so important not to forsake the assembling of believers. We need encouragement and we need discipleship.

Anyways…. Verse 4
Joh 21:4 But when the morning was now come, Jesus stood on the shore: but the disciples knew not that it was Jesus.
Joh 21:5 Then Jesus saith unto them, Children, have ye any meat? They answered him, No.
Joh 21:6 And he said unto them, Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and ye shall find. They cast therefore, and now they were not able to draw it for the multitude of fishes.

Here we learn a lesson as well. They being experts fished all night long and caught absolutely nothing. They did all of the right things, had the proper tools and the proper know how, but sometimes even that is not good enough.

Have you ever tried your best at something and still failed? Have you ever failed at something you are really good at? Sometimes we look at our situation in disbelief because we’ve done all we can Earthly do and we still fail. Here the Lord reminds us that he alone brings the increase. It reminds me not to get to full of myself or to get to comfortable without giving the Lord credit.

Back to the biblke and Peter J

Joh 21:7 Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved saith unto Peter, It is the Lord. Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he girt his fisher's coat unto him, (for he was naked,) and did cast himself into the sea.

For all of you who are envisioning Simon Peter sitting in the boat butt naked with a half a dozen other guys and thinking to yourselves that he was definitely in violation of some sort of man law, you would be right …. If that were the case… they wore undergarment.. the fisherman’s coat was a heavier coat worn back then for the cold and the wetness.

Can you imagine Peter seeing Jesus on the shore getting so excited and jumping into the water and doggy paddling toward shore franticly?

Peter couldn’t help it, he was excited.
Joh 21:8 And the other disciples came in a little ship; (for they were not far from land, but as it were two hundred cubits,) dragging the net with fishes.

200 cubits equals 300 feet which is actually about the distance of a football field…

Can you imagine peter dog paddling and the boat moving easily next to him? I imagine the other apostles looked at him and just shook their heads.. Peter was an over achiever wasn’ t he?

Joh 21:9 As soon then as they were come to land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid thereon, and bread.

Jesus already had breakfast cooking.. which goes to show, even before he told them to cast out their nets, he already had everything. He is the great Provider!

Joh 21:10 Jesus saith unto them, Bring of the fish which ye have now caught.
Joh 21:11 Simon Peter went up, and drew the net to land full of great fishes, an hundred and fifty and three: and for all there were so many, yet was not the net broken.

Even though Peter just swam this football length’s distance and even though he was tired, he beat everyone else to the boat and pulled up the net. Jesus spoke and Peter executed. Peter must have really been excited.

If it were me I would probably still be swimming to shore screaming “hey guys, wait for me”

Joh 21:12 Jesus saith unto them, Come and dine. And none of the disciples durst ask him, Who art thou? knowing that it was the Lord.
Joh 21:13 Jesus then cometh, and taketh bread, and giveth them, and fish likewise.
Joh 21:14 This is now the third time that Jesus shewed himself to his disciples, after that he was risen from the dead.
Joh 21:15 So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs.
Joh 21:16 He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep.
Joh 21:17 He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep.

This must have been very important. Jesus commanded him three time to feed my sheep. I don’t think those words ever left Peters mind.

Joh 21:18 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou wast young, thou girdedst thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest: but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not.
Joh 21:19 This spake he, signifying by what death he should glorify God. And when he had spoken this, he saith unto him, Follow me.
Joh 21:20 Then Peter, turning about, seeth the disciple whom Jesus loved following; which also leaned on his breast at supper, and said, Lord, which is he that betrayeth thee?
Joh 21:21 Peter seeing him saith to Jesus, Lord, and what shall this man do?

Here Peter is looking at John and he asks Jesus, what about John?
Joh 21:22 Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me!

Jesus was telling Peter to watch your own lane or mind your own business. When we follow Jesus it is more important that we fulfill god’s will for our own lives than it is for us to concern ourselves with what he has planned for our neighbors.
At this point in Peter’s life, he is still a relatively young man. You know how old dogs lay around and old dogs run and play and want to wrestle? At this point Peter is still a pup, but Jesus tells Peter that one day he will be old and his wreckless carefree ways will change.He even tell Peter how he will die when he’s old.

Its at this point 30 years later that Peter is much older and much wiser. It’s way after Pentecost

Let’s turn to 1 Peter 5 : 5-14

Background

1 Peter is one of only 2 books in the bible written by the Apostle Peter. As we discussed before, the book of Mark was written by one of Peter’s disciples. Peter was the main influencer in the gospel of Mark, but these two epistles, or formal letters, are the only two written directly by Peter.

It was written approximately 30-40 years after Jesus’ crucifixion. By this time Christianity had spread all through the Roman Empire and many churches existed. By this time, Peter was no longer a young man.

Do you remember shortly after Jesus’ death, that he appeared to the disciples while they were out fishing in the sea of Tiberias?

To be clear, they were not churches like we have today where respectable people gather in fine buildings wearing their finest clothes arriving in big clean cadillacs…

AT this time in history there was a Jewish uprising and the Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed.

The early church was persecuted.. early Christians were persecuted.. They were killed for their belief in Christ. It is around this time that Peter writes this letter. In Verse 1 of the book he says : to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia

1Pe 5:5 Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.

1. We’ve always heard we are to respect our elders, and also to honor our parents, but here Peter is telling us that we, as Christians, should submit one to another in humility as Jesus showed in his example… Imagine the master of this universe and the designer and master of every universe beyond the reaches of modern technology washing feet, kneeling before mere men subjecting himself…

1Pe 5:6 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:

Humbling yourself does not mean you are not of value. Jesus said his kingdom is not of this world, and neither is this ours. We belong to him and someday when we get home, God will exalt us.. imagine standing before God and him exalting us?

1Pe 5:7 Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

Every line in this book… The Lord Careth for you.. The creator of over 7 billion living people and every living thing that has ever ben cares enough for you that you can cast not some, but all, all of your cares upon him.

The Lord never complains about having a plate too full or a load to heavy… He is always ready for more. The bible says “who for the joy he endured the cross…. If he could enjoy the crucifixion what burdens do you or I have that he might find to be challenge..

The Lord is more than capable !

1Pe 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

Lions, Tigers, and bears, and monkeys… that seems too be the theme of the news in Zanesville and Peter warns us here….. Sheriff Lutz says we’re all clear and that we are safe again… Theres one that he forgot about.

Satan is still loose and he still stalks his prey much in the same way as lions do in the wild. Chances are if you’re here today praising the Lord, the devil is pacing around with his eyes on you!

1Pe 5:9 Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.

Peter is saying here, fight to the finish. Fight to the death. Never give up. Its always too soon to quit!

1Pe 5:10 But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.

Peter is saying here that the struggles we face here are nothing more than the fiery furnace of a blacksmith whereby iron is formed from something useless into a new life form where it can be of use to its master. Its this very same fire that hardens steel.

1Pe 5:11 To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

God has dominion forever. God is always in control. God is never surprised, even to the end of time. Even in your life and my life right now.

1Pe 5:12 By Silvanus, a faithful brother unto you, as I suppose, I have written briefly, exhorting, and testifying that this is the true grace of God wherein ye stand.

1Pe 5:13 The church that is at Babylon, elected together with you, saluteth you; and so doth Marcus my son.

1Pe 5:14 Greet ye one another with a kiss of charity. Peace be with you all that are in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Sometimes God asks us to do things that are difficult. Say hello with a kiss next time J

Peter gives us in these verses a lot of Good advice. This is the old tired Peter. Not too long after this book was written, Peter was crucified.. he was lead to his death just as Jesus said he would for his service to the faith and for his love for Christ. Peter, being humbled by this experience, no longer rushed or jumped right in, but he asked that he, unworthy to be crucified in the same manner as our savior Christ, requested that he be crucified upside down.

Listen to your heart... ??

2011-11-28T11:13:00.000-08:00

We’ve all had tough decisions to make. As Christians we know the bible says “Seek out wise counsel”

You see, we know that when emotions are involved our brains get a lil foggy.

Have you ever approached a friend for advice and got a reply like this:

You gotta listen to your heart

Follow your heart

Sometimes people just don’t know how to respond to the lil jams of life we seem to get ourselves into. Others are scared to tell you what they really think and others yet still, cant deal with their own problems let alone offer you advice on yours.

“Listen to your heart”

Your friends think they are giving you a deep intellectual response. They think they are offering you good advice. Is it?

We all know who Dr. Phil is. On one of the message boards on his website a woman spoke of divorcing her husband. She posted her thoughts on the message board there and this is the sort of advice she received :

If you can't give 100% to this relationship, then it's not fair to your husband or your children. I have actually started divorce proceedings against my husband. I can't stay wondering if there is something else out there. You are not being selfish!!!! You need to follow your heart. Like someone told me not to long ago......If you don't take care of your heart who will?

The woman seeking advice responded with this:

Thank you sooo much for that understanding.... I do feel so guilty, he is trying everything he can to make me happy and fix everything I've asked to be fixed, but it is not in my heart and I know what I must do. My son turns 18 this week and as soon as that is over, I'm going to make arrangements..... I have no money of my own and I don't know what i'm going to do, but I have to follow my heart. I feel that there is something out there for me and I want to discover it...

Friends, maybe that sounded like good advice to you. But GOD Forbid you or I ever offer up advice like that to anyone, whether they be Christian or not!

Pr 14:12 There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.

When we seek out worldly counsel we get worldly counsel.

Friends, my question for you this morning is :

Can you trust your heart?

Can you trust the world?

Can you trust the wisdom of the world?

What is truth and where do you find it?

Who…. Really, Who do you trust?

Jeremiah 17:9

Jer 17:5 Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD.

Jer 17:6 For he shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh; but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land and not inhabited.

Jer 17:7 Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is.

Jer 17:8 For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.

Jer 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?

It seems as if the word of God and the wisdom of the world is at odds doesn’t it? Isn’t that always the case?

Even though The world tells us to listen to our heart, The bible says "GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

In Numbers, God says “remember all the commandments of the LORD, and do them; and that ye seek not after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye use to go a whoring.”

Friends, I think I’ve made a point already with you but I wanna make sure your getting this. This is important.

Here are 5 lies that the world tells us. If you go to WikiHOw.com and search “follow your heart” this is the 5 points given.

1. Do what you want to do, not what other people think you should do. Listen to yourself and don't pay attention to anyone else's opinion (unless they're positive) In other words, if a man’s words don’t tickle your ears, ignore it!

2. Listen to your conscience. Part of following your heart, (assuming that your not an evil person) is doing what is right, and what feels right. Your conscience will most likely tell you this. This is the world’s way of inserting morality. But notice it said that the world has to start with the premise of “you’re not an evil person”. The bible says there is none righteous, no not one.

3. Ignore criticism, never respond to it. Don't pay attention to anything negative anyone else has to say. Doesn’t the bible say A wise son heareth his father's instruction: but a scorner heareth not rebuke.?

4. Don't be afraid to stand out. Most likely, you may not be following the same path that other people will, but that's okay.

a. : Mt 7:13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:

5. Don't be afraid to stand up for yourself. Follow your heart.

Even though the world tells us to listen to and follow our hearts, the bible is pretty clear on the matter.

Have you ever been given the advice:

You have to do what’s right- for you?

This is a philosophy known as moral relativism. Do you buy into its doctrines? I think maybe all of us buy into it a little bit, whether we admit it or not.

Moral relativism is this: the claim that no ethical system is better than another. It stems from the fact that to judge an ethical system, it must be judged by a moral standard. Since every ethical system should evaluate itself as the best and only moral system, and every other system is flawed and immoral, it is assumed that moral judgments about ethical systems are meaningless.

Moral Relativism rests on the belief that values are subjective. It is holds the belief that there is no objective morality, that there is no such thing as right and wrong, good or evil.

Basically, moral relativism leaves the judgment of what is right and what is wrong up to the individual. Whats right for me may be wrong for you and whats wrong for me may be right for you. In other words, let me decide whats right for me and you decide whats right for you and we’ll just agree not to judge each other based off of our own heathonous acts.

Have you ever wondered why the world hates God so much?

Its for this reason right here. Sin.

God hates sin and if they admit that there is a God then there must be a right and a wrong.

If right and wrong can be defined in absolute terms then they have to admit that they are sinners. Admitting that they are sinners implies that some of their actions are deemed filthy, atleast in the eyes of God.

If this is the case, then they have to admit that they have filthy lusts. If they want to square up with God they must humble themselves before him.

But, Pride says there is no God. When our pride has us convinced of that then not only is there no God but there is no sin. When there is no sin then we have no reason to give up the filthy sin we hold so tightly to.

We can roll around in our in squaller like pigs rolling in the slop. They love it. Wash a pig and whats it do? Returns to the mud just as fast as it can.

You may say, I’ve never doubted the deity or supremacy of God.

Friend, when we buy into this moral relativism, that’s exactly what we are doing.

We all seek after the truth. Its where we look for it that gets us into trouble. The only truth that can be found absolutely is right here: contained in the word of God.

Gods holy word has no supplement and needs no help.

Friend, Jesus Christ died on the cross that we might live in fellowship with him. This world is going to offer tough times and tough choices.

Lean not upon thine own understanding. Lean not upon the intellectual ramblings and philosophies of the world.

If you cant trust the wisdom of your heart then how can you trust the wisdom of your friend, unless your friend quote the bible.

Hate not rebuke. Seek truth only in the word of God. Remember, even the bible says sin can be fun for a season. Take your joy in the Lord.

Or you have to do whats going to make you happy in the long run.

I bet a lot of people following their hearts are going to be doing the things that make them happy are gonna have a lot of fun in this world.

His ways truly are higher than ours

2011-11-27T17:35:00.000-08:00

It was 1944, and Bert Frizen was an infantryman on the front lines in Europe. American forces had advanced in the face of intermittent shelling and small-arms fire throughout the morning hours, but now - all was quiet.

His patrol reached the edge of a wooded- area with an open field before them. Unknown to the Americans, a battery of Germans waited in a hedgerow about two hundred yards across the field.

Bert was one of two scouts who moved out into the clearing.

As Bert made his way across the open field, he pondered about how many of his fellow soildiers he had seen die in the past months of fierce fighting. He thought about all of the Germans he had killed himself. He thought about how the first one made him sick and made him vomit. He thought about how After a while he had become numb to the killing and how now, it didn’t even bother him. The only good German is a dead german he thought to himself.

Once he was halfway across the field, the remainder of his battalion followed. Suddenly the Germans opened fire, and machine gun fire ripped into both of Bert’s legs. He could feel the burning metal scorch through his flesh, ripping and taring through his lower extremities.

As Bert’s legs gave out beneath him, he fell to the ground. It felt as if he was falling in slow motion and as his body twisted-- he looked to the sky.

He somehow noticed through his pain how dark the sky was. The rest of his battalion fell back, withdrawing into the woods for protection, while a rapid exchange of fire continued.

Bert lay helplessly in a small stream- as shots volleyed overhead. Still he stared toward the grey sky as he wondered where his weapon had fell.

There seemed to be no way out. He shifted his eyes now toward the ground to look for his weapon. His hands and fingers had blindly- and frantically felt around searching for his M-1 grand.

To make matters worse, he now noticed that a German soldier was low crawling toward his position. The German had to have seen him. Death was now imminent. He closed his eyes and squeezed them in fear as he awaited his own execution.

To his surprise, a considerable period of time had passed- without the expected attack, so he ventured opening his eyes again. He was startled to see the German kneeling at his side, smiling.

His heart nearly leaped out of his chest and his mouth was completely dry. Somehow, in that very moment, he wondered if he had time to unsheathe the knife he carried on his belt.

He may still have one chance left to kill this German as he had so many before. Admittedly, He had been in very bad positions, but never did his own death seem so close. This could very well be his last breathe---if he could not find his dagger.

As his hands came up empty he closed his eyes again and exhaled.

He noticed that somehow he was able to take another breath and then He noticed that the shooting had stopped.

Troops from both sides of the battlefield watched anxiously. Without any verbal exchange, this mysterious German reached down to lift Bert in his arms and proceeded to carry him to the safety of Bert’s comrades.

Having accomplished his self-appointed mission, and still without speaking a word, the German soldier turned and walked back across the field to his own troop. No one dared break the silence of this sacred moment.

Bert could not speak. What was this that was happening? Why did this man do this? Why was he still alive? Why didn’t the German kill him? For that thought, Bert feared one of his comrades might shoot the German in his back – but no one did.

Moments later the cease-fire ended, but not before all those present had witnessed how one man risked everything for his enemy. Bert’s life was saved through the compassion of a man whom he considered his enemy.

This makes me ponder:

Would killing Bert have been justified? It’s only human to think that by killing Bert, the German would be settling the score. After all, this is war.

Didn’t Bert deserve to be killed? Hadn’t he killed Germans his self?

Why did this German let Bert live?

Even when Bert looked up to see the smiling German, he thought of killing him.

Why was this german smiling? Maybe the german had grown to enjoy killing. Maybe executing Bert would have felt like getting a trophy or maybe his smile showed the german was enjoying the thrill of the hunt.

All these things Bert thought, but never could Bert imagine that he was smiling with compassion.

This goes against our human nature.

Wouldn’t killing Bert be the right thing to do as a soldier? Isn’t killing someone in war a lawful order?

Maybe the German was just weak? Do you think that’s it?

Which action do we consider takes the most strength?

To take a man’s life who deserves to be killed? Or forgiving the man who has done us wrong?

It’s crazy the thoughts that we as mere human beings are able to justify. The fact is, this german could gave ended this story by just utilizing the few muscles it takes to operate a trigger finger. How much more of his strength and energy did it take to give this man mercy and show him compassion?

The average man weighs 179 pounds. The germans were 200 yards away and Bert had made it halfway across the field.

Simple math calculations tell me that this german had two choices.

Carry this man 100 yards, the length of one football field to safety or one tug of the finger?

How would you or I end it?

Which path do we choose? The one where we be justified or the one where God be glorified?

You see, not only did this german choose the path that cost him the most physicaly, he also chose the path that exposed his life to the greatest amount of risk and could have cost him his life.

If we had to assign a value to this man’s actions, or in other words we were going to give him a monetary award, what would it be? To us it may have been a dollar deed, but if Bert were here I bet he would argue that it was priceless…

If we ourselves think our own mortality is worth so much, what you or I be be willing to pay for the immortality of our souls?

The good news is Jesus already paid the price. The price was so high that there isn’t enough cash, silver or gold in all of the world to buy God off. God hates sin. That’s what seperates us as men from our creator.

Jesus paid the price and offers it freely… for what? For our love? We only love him because he first loved us. By loving God, By loving Jesus, we aren’t doing any body in heaver any favors.

Isa 55:1 Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.

1. Jesus is the living waters. When he speaks of those that thirst, he is speaking to those who long to fill the emptiness in their heart. He is speaking to those who are being called by God. Isn’t it amazing that God calls each and every one of us? 6 Billion people on Earth and God is calling for you, even by name!

2. When Isaiah talks about those wine and milk, he is talking about riches in those days. It is the riches of God, but there is no price we can pay!

Isa 55:2 Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness. ( I think this may be my new favorite verse)

1. What a waste to spend our time and energy toward things of no heavenly value he is saying!

2. These things of the earth will not satisfy your soul

Isa 55:3 Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.

1. God is offering us Salvation through the seed of David.

Isa 55:4 Behold, I have given him for a witness to the people, a leader and commander to the people.

Isa 55:5 Behold, thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest not, and nations that knew not thee shall run unto thee because of the LORD thy God, and for the Holy One of Israel; for he hath glorified thee.

Isa 55:6 Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:

1. Seek God early, now while he is calling you. There will come a day when we all kneel before the Lord. Don’t wait until that last moment of judgement to ask for his forgiveness. We all have an expiration date on this earth!

Isa 55:7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

Isa 55:8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.

Isa 55:9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

1. Just like the German who saved Bert, God’s ways are higher than our ways, though God’s grace is infinite in comparison with that of the German.

Isa 55:10 For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:

Isa 55:11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

1. God is in control. There is nothing we can do to against God. The things we do against god are really only against ourselves. Also, we are not responsible for the harvesting of fruit. Our job is to simply be faithful with the seeds of faith. It is only through god that there is any increase.

2. But he also says that his word shall not return void. Every seed, if sewn in the truth of God for the glory of God will bring some sort of increase.

A soldier's faith

2011-11-27T17:19:00.000-08:00

The ministry of The Soldier’s Sanctuary has always had a motto.

2 Timothy 2:3-4

“Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth, entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.”

This is the charge that the apostle Paul gave to Timothy and it is also the charge that God has given unto you and I. Paul’s telling Timothy that life as a faithful follower of Christ is a life of Service. It is a life of surrender. It is a life of sacrifice. Paul is saying that upon your ordination, you have enlisted into the service that bears a lifelong commitment.

This is not just the charge to Timothy as an ordained minister. It is also the charge to every member of this church.

I’m not just talking to the men here. This Charge is also for the women and for you kids.

The calling we all have is to endure hardness, to persevere. The fact is each and every one of us will face storms in our lives. Sometimes at work, it may seem that we’ve been given more work to do than we’ve been given day to do it. Sometimes we are held accountable for results in things we have no control over.

Sometimes at school you will have to deal with bullies. You will have to deal with the peer pressure to do the wrong things like smoking, cheating, and skipping school. You will have to deal with the social pressures of fitting in.. From The clothes you wear to the ways you spend your time after school.

For moms, you get to have all of the stress of maintaining a home as well as the stresses your husband brings home from work and the baggage your kids bring home from school.

There are times when the road of life gets a little tough. Sometimes the burdens we carry can get heavy and wear us down.

My message for you today is this “Trying times are no time to quit trying.” When your problems seem like giants is keep a Godly attitude. Remember, King Saul thought Goliath was too big to fight; David thought he was too big to miss.

My message for the soldiers sanctuary is that each and every one of us need to follow the examples of the soldiers of the bible.

There are many examples of Soldiers in the Old and New Testaments. We look at Matthew and we find a Centurion who begged Jesus “Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented.”

Jesus answered “I will come and heal him.” But the soldier answered him “Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed.”

“For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it.”

Quick notes: The soldier sought Jesus, not to heal a relative. This was not his own flesh and blood, but it was his servant. I don’t know if this was a private in the centurion’s army or a hired servant. What I do know is this centurion humbled himself before the Lord because he really cared about his servant. Jesus said of him “Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.”

Jesus said this to his followers and held up the centurion’s faith as a testimony, as an example of what right looked like.

There is nothing in the bible that says this centurion was a Jew or studied the Old Testament. In fact he was probably a gentile, being a hated Roman. In fact, he wasn’t a follower of Jesus. He had heard of the Jesus and traveled to Capernaum in desperation. None the less, this soldier had faith.

What about our faith? Let me ask you this. How many of you have faith in Jesus Christ? What do you believe that faith will do? Do you believe that your faith in Jesus Christ is strong enough to get through Saint Peter’s gates after your soul leaves your lifeless body 6 feet under?

If we have faith that’s capable of passing from one form of life to another… and strong enough to conquer death, hell, and the grave…. then why don’t we have faith that conquers the stress of going to work or school or faith that God will keep his promises or meet our needs?

Faith is a funny vehicle.. Some people trust their faith will get them to Heaven when it very seldom is capable of getting them to church!

There is another soldier I would like to introduce you to. His name is Caleb. Please turn in your bibles to Numbers 13: 17-21

In these passages, we will examine the actions of a soldier called Caleb. I will skip some of these verses to focus on him. Caleb was a great soldier. He lived and fought well into his old age. Caleb had been there with Moses when he led Israel out of Egypt. He was there when God divided the waters of the Red Sea. He had seen all that God had done and he believed.

Israel is in many ways, a picture of the church. The struggles they faced as they journeyed through the wilderness shows us there is much more to salvation than just being set free. After the Lord had delivered them out of Egypt and Pharaoh’s hand, they still struggled. They were free but life was still hard.

Have you noticed how hard life is after salvation? God had a land flowing with milk and honey prepared for them. It would be a land of giants and a land of battles, but it was theirs if they wanted it. Now, as you know - Israel chose to wander in the wilderness. Here's another great picture of the Christian life. God saves us, and promises us that we can have a life of victory, joy, and peace. Instead we often choose to live our lives deflated, defeated, and depressed. Where is our faith?

**Here, Moses is sending a spy party to look at this land that God has promised to give them. Moses is asking them to gather strategic information.

Verse 17

Nu 13:17 And Moses sent them (Caleb was amongst those sent) to spy out the land of Canaan, and said unto them, Get you up this way southward, and go up into the mountain:

Nu 13:18 And see the land, what it is; and the people that dwelleth therein, whether they be strong or weak, few or many;

Nu 13:19 And what the land is that they dwell in, whether it be good or bad; and what cities they be that they dwell in, whether in tents, or in strong holds;

Nu 13:20 And what the land is, whether it be fat or lean, whether there be wood therein, or not. And be ye of good courage, and bring of the fruit of the land. Now the time was the time of the firstripe grapes.

Nu 13:21 So they went up, and searched the land from the wilderness of Zin unto Rehob, as men come to Hamath.

Skip down to verse 25

Nu 13:25 And they returned from searching of the land after forty days.

Nu 13:26 And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron, and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh; and brought back word unto them, and unto all the congregation, and shewed them the fruit of the land.

Nu 13:27 And they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sent us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it.

Nu 13:28 Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak there.

*** God had promised them this land. But where was their faith? What was more real, God’s promise or the threat of the inhabitants, these giants.

Skip 29

Nu 13:30 And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it.

*** Caleb was a man who faithfully believed God. Of course he had seen the giants. He didn’t care. What was real to him was the fact that God had kept his word and had delivered them out of the hands of all of their enemies and had provided for them manna to eat while they wondered in the wilderness.

Nu 13:31 But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we.

Isn’t this just like people? Claiming to be the children of God, seeing with their own eyes that what God had promised them was true, and still having no faith.

“ A man who gives in when he is wrong is wise; a man who gives in when he is right is a coward.”

These men had beheld with their own eyes the promise of God. Have you ever heard seeing is believing? Not for these jokers.

Nu 13:32 And they brought up an evil report (An evil report, I have to assume is a lie or an extreme exaggeration) but they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature.

Note to self “Dishonesty is a coward’s way of getting out of trouble.”

And verse 33

Nu 13:33 And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.

They talk in verse 33 about how the giants measure up in their sight as large and how they in their sight are small compared to these. What does this say about their opinion of God?

Let me ask you this. Have you ever let your worries, whatever they may be dwarf God?

Let’s continue into chapter 14

Nu 14:1 And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night.

Nu 14:2 And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness!

Nu 14:3 And wherefore hath the LORD brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt?

Isn’t it a shame? The bad attitude and cowardice of the few spies had spoiled the attitude of the masses. This why it is so important to let our lights shine. A bad attitude is like a cancer. Fear is the exact opposite of faith and grew so rapidly and overcame most of the children of Israel.

This is exactly what it means to cause your brother to stumble. How ridiculous? The bible says they wept and cried… Where was there faith? Hadn’t they eye witnessed the same fulfillment of God’s promises as Moses and Caleb?

In verse 2 we find them complaining against their leaders and against God! As we read through verse 3 these jokers have lost completely almost all faith!

Skip to verse 7

And Josh and Caleb answered these saying, “The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land.

Nu 14:8 If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey.

Nu 14:9 Only rebel not ye against the LORD, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the LORD is with us: fear them not.

Can you hear the wisdom in their plea?

Let me ask you this. How do you think God felt after meeting the children of Israel’s needs over and over and after performing miracle after miracle and they still don’t have the faith to trust him?

How does it feel when you find out somebody your really close to, lets say your parents or your siblings or even your spouse doesn’t trust you?

What if you had never done anything but come to their side every time they needed you? Now you know that we as humans fall short from time to time, but God doesn’t come up short. That’s the problem, when your faith fails, in essence you are telling God that he can not be trusted!

I know what your thinking, that’s pretty bold. Your right, it is. What are the giants you face? How big do they look next to our God? When your fear of worldly giants is greater than your faith in the living God, you might as well slap God in the face and call God’s providence a dwarf.. A dwarf that can’t even be trusted?

How do you think God would react to such small faith? A lot of churches preach about a God who is nothing but love and grace. Well, it certainly is true that God does love us. And it certainly is true that true that God’s grace is greater than our capacity for sin. But that’s because God is greater than we are!

Let me tell you. This buddy Jesus or this hippie God that some preach about isn’t showing us the whole picture. Let’s see how God Felt at their lack of faith.

Verse 11

Nu 14:11 And the LORD said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke me? and how long will it be ere they believe me, for all the signs which I have shewed among them?

Nu 14:12 I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of thee a greater nation and mightier than they.

God was pretty ticked off. Is this the reaction that you want to get from God? How do you think God feels when our faith comes up short?

Moses pleaded with God on their behalf.

Nu 14:15 Now if thou shalt kill all this people as one man, then the nations which have heard the fame of thee will speak, saying,

Nu 14:16 Because the LORD was not able to bring this people into the land which he sware unto them, therefore he hath slain them in the wilderness.

Nu 14:17 And now, I beseech thee, let the power of my Lord be great, according as thou hast spoken, saying,

Nu 14:18 The LORD is longsuffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation.

Nu 14:19 Pardon, I beseech thee, the iniquity of this people according unto the greatness of thy mercy, and as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.

Here we see Moses pleading on their behalf. It’s kinda like Jesus. Boy, isn’t it good we have some body to intercede for us when we fail God? Remember when Jesus said at the cross : forgive them father for they know not what they do” This is a picture of that.

The difference between grace and faith is this. God ‘s grace is us being given something we did not and could not earn. That’s grace. Mercy is God keeping us from getting exactly what we deserve!

Verse 20

Nu 14:20 And the LORD said, I have pardoned according to thy word:

Nu 14:21 But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD.

Nu 14:22 Because all those men which have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice;

Nu 14:23 Surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked me see it:

Nu 14:24 But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it.

Because the Jews lacked faith, many of them did not see the Promised Land. How does that apply to us? Look around. If your not living in the land of milk and honey and maybe you feel less than satisfied with what God has given you, maybe instead of blaming everyone else we could take a good long look in a mirror and examine our own faith.

God doesn’t fail. It’s not in his nature. We fail. It’s our faith that fails.

Let’s not end this morning message focusing on bad news. Let’s liven it up a lil. Please turn in your bibles to Joshua 14.

We find Caleb speaking to Joshua here. It is a time of relative peace for the Israelites. The once fierce general Joshua is an old man now. He is less fiery than he once was. Probably a lil smaller in stature too. You know how old people shrink? I think that’s how I see Joshua now.

How many of you have seen the Mel Gibson movie ”We were soldiers”? Remember the old Sergeant Major played by Sam Elliot? That is how I see old Caleb. This old soldier still has it.

Verse 7

Jos 14:7 Forty years old was I when Moses the servant of the LORD sent me from Kadeshbarnea to espy out the land; and I brought him word again as it was in mine heart.

Jos 14:8 Nevertheless my brethren that went up with me made the heart of the people melt: but I wholly followed the LORD my God.

Jos 14:9 And Moses sware on that day, saying, Surely the land whereon thy feet have trodden shall be thine inheritance, and thy children's for ever, because thou hast wholly followed the LORD my God.

Jos 14:10 And now, behold, the LORD hath kept me alive, as he said, these forty and five years, even since the LORD spake this word unto Moses, while the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness: and now, lo, I am this day fourscore and five years old.

Here Caleb, the old soldier is 85 years old. And guess what? He’s itching for a fight. Why? Because God had given him a promise 45 years previously and Caleb believed him on it!

Jos 14:11 As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in. The real strength he is talking about is not his ability to weild a sword, but he is talking about the strength of his faith. Even for war says this 85 year old man!

Jos 14:12 Now therefore give me this mountain, whereof the LORD spake in that day; for thou heardest in that day how the Anakims were there, and that the cities were great and fenced: if so be the LORD will be with me, then I shall be able to drive them out, as the LORD said.

What an example of a soldier we have in Caleb. He never questioned God’s ability to deliver him from the hands of his enemy. Picture this: an 85 year old man climbing the side of a mountain. He’s going to claim his inheritance. He still has to climb the mountain just as we do today. When he finally got to the top he had to fight, just like we will. We too will have to fight.

This old man climbed his way up to battle Giants. What about your giants and my giants? But Caleb’s God and Caleb’s faith was greater. After the last giant fell and after the last one fled, Caleb finally received his inheritance.

“Even to their buttocks”

2010-05-23T14:02:00.001-07:00

Simple truths……. The bible is full of simple truths- Little lessons we can learn and apply in our own lives. These simple truths should be true universally. Let's read Second Samuel chapter 10 verses 1-5 and see if we can identify some of these simple truths…

2Sa 10:1 And it came to pass after this, that the king of the children of Ammon died, and Hanun his son reigned in his stead.
2Sa 10:2 Then said David, I will shew kindness unto Hanun the son of Nahash, as his father shewed kindness unto me. And David sent to comfort him by the hand of his servants for his father. And David's servants came into the land of the children of Ammon.
2Sa 10:3 And the princes of the children of Ammon said unto Hanun their lord, Thinkest thou that David doth honour thy father, that he hath sent comforters unto thee? hath not David rather sent his servants unto thee, to search the city, and to spy it out, and to overthrow it?
2Sa 10:4 Wherefore Hanun took David's servants, and shaved off the one half of their beards, and cut off their garments in the middle, even to their buttocks, and sent them away.
2Sa 10:5 When they told it unto David, he sent to meet them, because the men were greatly ashamed: and the king said, Tarry at Jericho until your beards be grown, and then return.

Now many would probably say the moral of this story is "no good deed goes unpunished."

Sometimes when you try to do the right thing, it seems like often we get burned for doing so. No good deed goes unpunished….. That's not the point here. In fact, that's a cute lil saying, but it doesn't hold to be true all of the time. The problem is, this is a true story taken from the pages of history.

Lets break these verses down in a language we can all understand and see what gems of wisdom , what simple truths we can find here.

2Sa 10:1 And it came to pass after this, that the king of the children of Ammon died, and Hanun his son reigned in his stead.

Translated: The king of Ammon died and his son Hanun took over the kingdom.

2Sa 10:2 Then said David, I will shew kindness unto Hanun the son of Nahash, as his father shewed kindness unto me. And David sent to comfort him by the hand of his servants for his father. And David's servants came into the land of the children of Ammon.

Translated: Because Hanun's dad was so kind to me, I will do something to show my goodwill toward his son. So David sent some of his servants to comfort Hanun during his loss.

2Sa 10:3 And the princes of the children of Ammon said unto Hanun their lord, Thinkest thou that David doth honour thy father, that he hath sent comforters unto thee? hath not David rather sent his servants unto thee, to search the city, and to spy it out, and to overthrow it?

Translated: The royal men of the kingdom of Ammon said to the king " do you really think King david sent these people to comfort you or do you think he sent these men to be spies so he can attack us?

2Sa 10:4 Wherefore Hanun took David's servants, and shaved off the one half of their beards, and cut off their garments in the middle, even to their buttocks, and sent them away.

Translated: So king hanun had David's men's beards shaved off of half their faces and cut their nightgowns in half- so that their "buttocks" were exposed.

A couple of notes….

Concerning their beards- Shaved off the one half of their beards - The beard is held in high respect in the East: the possessor considers it his greatest ornament; often swears by it; and, in matters of great importance, pledges it. Nothing can be more secure than a pledge of this kind; its owner will redeem it at the hazard of his life. The beard was never cut off but in mourning, or as a sign of slavery. Cutting off half of the beard and the clothes rendered the men ridiculous, and made them look like slaves: what was done to these men was an accumulation of insult.
Concerning their garments- They wore the long shirts like they do in the middle east that came down nearly to their feet.

2Sa 10:5 When they told it unto David, he sent to meet them, because the men were greatly ashamed: and the king said, Tarry at Jericho until your beards be grown, and then return.

Translation: The men were so ashamed to come back looking as ridiculous as they did, that they met David in private to tell him what happened. I think David felt sorry for them so he sent them off to Jericho to hide till they could re grow their beards.

I don't know about 2500 years ago, but I know they wore the same clothes all of the time just 120 years ago almost day in and day out. I don't have any historical reference or knowledge of this. I know this because when you watch Bonanza, Lil Joe always wore a green coat, Adam always wore black, Hoss always wore a tan shirt and a brown vest. They always had the same clothes on.

Picture David's servants riding up to meet David and him not being able to hold back the laughter at how ridiculous they looked.

There are some simple truths to be found in these texts.

Just because someone's related to you, don't mean their qualified to run your business or your kingdom. Think George Bush and Hilary Clinton here.
If you have something really sincere to do or say, you had better do it yourself. Do you think if David had showed up himself that would have happened?
Pick your advisors well. Remember, these advisors were "princes" which means they were related. Being royalty they probably had nothing better to do with their time than dream up conspiracies.
Misery loves company. Normally a prince is an heir to the throne. These princes were probably miserable with envy.
Power and Wealth seems to make folks paranoid. They were scared to death David was scheming to take what they had- which was nothing compared to the kingdom he ruled over.
Pick your enemies wisely. This was the mighty David who defeated Golliath…… Kinda silly to pick a fight with him I think.
If you're going to where one of those long shirts, make sure you wear underwear too.

Now, in all seriousness, let's see what this cost them.

David gathered his Army and sent them to destroy these people. The kingdom of Ammon, knowing they were no match for Israel, brought in foreign Armies. When these Armies met, the bible says in verse 19:

"And when all the kings that were servants to Hadarezer saw that they were smitten before Israel, they made peace with Israel, and served them. So the Syrians feared to help the children of Ammon anymore."

There's a simple truth to be found here as well. This one is the most important of all.

When the line is drawn in the sand, side with God.

There's a war going on. You had better be on the same side as God- he and his always win. Are you on God's side today?

Budget deficits, taxes, and the whole danged thing!

2009-06-16T22:20:00.001-07:00

The United States federal budget deficit stands at 1.85 Trillion dollars for FY 2009 according to the Congressional Budget Office. An article here on the TR says the state of Ohio is looking at a 3.2 Billion dollar deficit this year. As I pointed out at council last Monday, the city's income tax revenue is down by 12.5 percent over the first 5 months of this year. That's the worse decline in income tax revenue since 1983. Will our city be faced with a possible deficit beginning next year?

President Obama plans on letting the Bush tax cuts expire at the end of this year, which will result in a tax increase. The state is kicking around increased sales taxes and perhaps rolling back the states tax cuts from 2005. Will the city have to do the same thing?

My point is, at every level of government we are spending more money than we have. You cant have deficit spending forever. Eventually they will either have to cut expenses (cut your services) or raise their revenue (increase your taxes.) Either way, we're in trouble. This isn't a Democrat problem or a Republican problem, it's an American problem. It's an Ohioan problem. It may soon become a Zanesvillian problem.

We have a responsibility, a sacred trust between generations, to be good stewards of our nations assets. Those who came before us paid a price for us, and we're paying the price for our children- only we're borrowing in their name. Think of this. We are about to use stimulus money to pave Pine street. It will probably need repaved in 10 years. If you have a 6 year old today, they will be paying taxes to pay for it's repaving today when they are old enough to drive, and will then have to pay to have it repaved again. Does that sound fair? They will be paying for something they will never see the benefits of.

When did we as Americans decide to take the easy route? When did we decide not to handle our problems head on and decide to pass the buck? We are living beyond our means, mortgaging our children's future for our own personal gain.

I call on all public servants to do just that, serve the people. Return to some level of fiscal responsibility, and quit squandering our nations treasures. From city council to the United States Senate, lets bite down hard, and take our own medicine. I call on all private citizens to get involved in the governing of our nation, our state, and our municipalities.

Politicians of all kinds have been running this country into the ground long enough. It's time for us to rise to the challenge, and face these goliaths head on. Demand better. Hold elected officials accountable. Speak out. Stand up. Be willing to make sacrifices. Be willing to fight. Let's put aside our political differences and stand together as Americans. Americans don't quit, we don't back down, and we don't take the easy way out. We do not bend, we do not bow, and we don't lie down, not without a fight we don't.

It starts with me and it starts with you. Are you ready?

Let Freedom Ring, a study of Liberty.

2009-03-21T21:23:00.000-07:00

I have long been a fan of American history and the founding fathers, the greatest of which I believe was Benjamin Franklin. This evening while writing another blog I had the television on behind me and had to stop for a while when a show came on about Franklin's life. I went back to writing and left the television on the same channel. After the Franklin show was a show about the Liberty Bell. I was over listening while writing and was surprised to hear about the inscription that is on the side of the Liberty Bell.

"Proclaim LIBERTY throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants thereof Lev. XXV X."

That's Leviticus 25:10 if you’re a little rusty on Roman numerals as I am. Liberty is something the founding fathers had a firm grasp of and desire for. In fact, these authors of American democracy understood this concept more than any other generation of Americans since.

I found the work of Alexander Tyler in another book I have been reading and came across his study of Democracy. He studied the world's greatest democracies and came to this conclusion:

"A democracy is always temporary in nature; it simply cannot exist as a permanent form of government. A democracy will continue to exist up until the time that voters discover that they can vote themselves generous gifts from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates who promise the most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that every democracy will finally collapse due to loose fiscal policy, which is always followed by a dictatorship. The average age of the world's greatest civilizations from the beginning of history has been about 200 years. During those 200 years, these nations always progressed through the following sequence:

§ From bondage to spiritual faith;

§ From spiritual faith to great courage;

§ From courage to liberty;

§ From liberty to abundance;

§ From abundance to complacency;

§ From complacency to apathy;

§ From apathy to dependence;

§ From dependence back into bondage."

These 8 steps begin in bondage and end in bondage. I don't know why that is, but it appears pretty accurate. With all of the news today about bail outs and stimulus’s, this is kind of scary.

In my opinion, America is in the stage of dependence. The federal government depends on other nations to buy our debt. The states depend on the federal government to supplement their budgets. A huge portion, probably nearly half of the citizens rely on the government for some level of financial support. Our businesses, our banks, our families, all depend on on government money.

Have you heard "the government that gives you everything can take it all away." It's funny how we slave away for a dollar bill that says "IN GOD WE TRUST" yet we don't look to God to provide for our needs, we look to government!

Where else have we heard the word Liberty used by the founding fathers? How about on July 4^th of 1776? "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." The founding fathers were not fools. They knew that God was the author of Liberty.

If dependence leads to bondage, who would you rather be a slave to? If one is a slave, then there must be a master. If you depend on the government, then you will eventually be in bondage to the government. If you are in bondage then you are a slave. If we are then ourselves slaves, then government in this case must surely be the master. Is this the genius of those who signed the Declaration of Independence at the birth of this nation? Is that what Abraham Lincoln meant when at Gettysburg he said "that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth"?

It is my hope for America that we will turn back to God to meet our needs. Every generation of Americans have faced diversity. Every generation before us has overcome those obstacles and paved the way for this generation. Will we be the last generation to enjoy a higher quality of living than our predecessors? Ronald Reagan said it best in 1964. The choice is still ours, and the options are still the same.

"You and I have a rendezvous with destiny. We will preserve for our children this, the last best hope of man on Earth, or we will sentence them to take the last step into a thousand years of darkness."

- Ronald Reagan

A Man's Worth

2009-03-21T20:01:00.000-07:00

What is a man's worth?

I remember a couple of years ago when I was recruiting up in Coshocton. I spent a lot of time up there and got to know a lot of people in the community. There are two kids in particular that come to mind. They didn't really know each other, but they both attended the same church. I got to know both of these young people pretty well. By society’s standards, they were outcasts.

I was thinking about these two kids and the church they attended. I thought it was awesome how the young people at their church took them under their wing. I thought about how the majority of their peers shunned them. They were not cool or hip. I also thought about how God must see these two.

Matthew 25:40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."

Matthew 25:45 Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.

You see, God loves all of his children, and we are all his children. When God sees souls saved, he doesn't care how about society's view of them. Remember the parable about the sheep?

Matthew 18:12 How think ye? if a man have an hundred sheep, and one of them be gone astray, doth he not leave the ninety and nine, and goeth into the mountains, and seeketh that which is gone astray?

Matthew 18:13 And if so be that he find it, verily I say unto you, he rejoiceth more of that sheep, than of the ninety and nine which went not astray.

When we look at people, we should look at them and try to see them the way God sees them, with love. God was glad to have those two young people back in his flock. He rejoiced at their return. How do we as a people a judge our fellow man's worth? Do we take one look at them and judge them by the clothes they wear? Do we judge them by the color of their skin? Do we blow them off because they are not on our economic level? Is a man's opinion less valuable because he doesn't have the education that we do? Do they not need salvation just as we do?

In God's eyes we are all the same. We are all sinners and have earned our place in Hell's pit. What have you done in your own merit to earn your place in Heaven? If you can list anything other than accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you are seriously mistaken.

If you count yourself as a member of God's flock, and you see one which is not, where do you think the Lord is? My bet is that he is out there calling unto the one which is lost. Where do you want to be? If I have a choice, I want to be where the Lord is. He said in his word that he would be out seeking that which has gone astray. He said he would go out into the mountains if he had to. If we are following Jesus, will we not have to follow him into the mountains?

As we go out into the world in whichever endeavor we find ourselves, as we meet others along the way, I will always try to remember that those I meet are his, and therefore my brother or sister. I will try to see them as God sees them. I will try to love them as God loves them.

The question we asked in the beginning was "what is a man's worth?" This is a fairly simple question to answer, if you answer it with another question. What is a man’s worth to God? The kingdom surely belongs to the king, and all its treasures to him as well, but treasure and gold could not pay the price. Blood was required, so he sent his prince. God sent his son to be a sacrifice for us. He died so that we would not have to, and rose again that we may live! God did all of this for us, for the greatest of us, and the least of us. That’s how much man is worth to God!

Blessed Mondays

2009-03-16T19:15:00.000-07:00

I got up very early this morning and had to head down to Morgan county to conduct an ASVAB at Morgan High School. My role there was pretty simple; walk around and look important. I was in a pretty good mood to begin with. Morgan County is a special place. It's a small town. The people there are awesome. When I was still in the Army and recruiting, it was my favorite place to go.

While there, I was walking around thinking. I started singing a little song in my head that we sometimes sing in church. It's simply two words repeated. "Praise God, praise God, praise God, praise God". You sing it to the tune of amazing grace. Well, while singing this little song, I started praising God. Can you imagine that? I started thinking about all of my blessings and just had to thank God for all he has provided.

As I was walking and singing, I started to feel a sense of calmness. I started to feel what the apostle Paul referred to as the peace of God that surpasses all understanding. Man! What an awesome feeling. Jesus referred to this as "the comforter" in the Gospel of John. It is hard to describe in words the feeling that a fellow gets when he knows he's at peace with God. It made me wonder, why don't I have this feeling everyday?

I realized that everyday I make a decision. Everyday when I wake up, I have a choice to make. Will I choose to walk with God? Will I choose his ways over my own? Unfortunately, I more often than not choose my own way. More often than not I fail. More often than not I find myself unhappy.

Today I chose to walk with God. Today I chose to put him first. Today, I was happy. Now I'm going to be honest. I wasn't perfect today. It wasn't entirely peaches and cream. I think I still got upset for about twenty minutes at one time. With all of today's faults, it was possibly one of the better days of my life. Nothing overly spectacular happened. I didn't accomplish any major goals. I didn't resolve any open issues. I simply was at peace with God. Friends, if I could do nothing else, that would be be enough!

I guess something clicked today. If I don't feel that sense of peace tomorrow, it's my own fault. Tomorrow will be a better day than today. Tonight I will listen to the book of Matthew on CD till I fall asleep. I will wake up tomorrow and read my bible and do my blog. After that I will go for a walk and sing that little jingle. I don't know what tomorrow holds, but I sure am glad I know the one who holds tomorrow!