Who Do You Say I Am?

This is the sermon I will be preaching in the morning.
Update: here is the link for the audio

Mat 16:13-20 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?"

14They replied, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets."

15"But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?"

16Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."

17Jesus replied, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. 18And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. 19I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven." 20Then he warned his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Christ.

Jesus has been with the disciples for a while now. They have seen Him perform many miracles. They have watched Him walk on water, calm the sea, heal people and cast out demons. They have listened to Him argue with the Pharisees and Sadducees. They have heard Him preach many lessons. They have been offered a chance to leave and they said “where would we go?” So now in chapter 16 of Matthew vs. 13 they are entering Caesarea Philippi.
Ceaseara Philippi is one of two towns in Judea named Caesarea. Caesarea Philippi was named by Herod the Tetrarch in honor of Augustus Caesar and the name Philippi is in owner of Herod's son Phillip the tetrarch who rebuilt and beautified the city. It was located at the southwest base of Mt. Hermon. Originally it was called Paneas for the god Pan. And at one point in its history it was a center for Baal worship.
Jesus and the disciples are standing in an area that has a long history of sin as Peter makes his confession. I think that's important because when Jesus calls us we are standing in an area (our life) that is filled with a history of sin. When we confess Jesus as our savior we are saying I'm here trapped in this sin save me from it.

And Jesus asks " Who do People say that the son of man is" Whom do men say that I the son of man am? Notice he calls Himself Son of Man. Jesus wants them to answer about the human side of Him. Jesus wants Peter to acknowledge what the crowds that follow them are saying about this man Jesus who is walking around preaching and performing amazing miracles. This man who is not afraid to challenge the religous establishment of the day.

Vs. 14 They replied, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets."

Notice everyone they have suggested is someone who is dead or gone as in the case of Elijah. The crowds recognize there is something supernatural about Jesus. They may not realize that this is Immanuel (God with us) but they do know that this is not a regular man. In Mark's Gospel the authority that Jesus speaks with stands out. In Mark 1:22 they were amazed because he taught as one with authority and not as the teachers of the law. The Jews notice that Jesus doesn't speak as someone who has studied the law but as someone who knows God personally.

Some say John the Baptist. John the Baptist! John the Baptist had been beheaded a few months before. Look at what the man that ordered for John's head to be taken said about Jesus. Matthew 14:1-2
1At that time Herod the tetrarch heard the reports about Jesus, 2and he said to his attendants, "This is John the Baptist; he has risen from the dead! That is why miraculous powers are at work in him."
Herod believed Jesus was John the Baptist. He believed that somehow John had come back from the dead. Many others in the crowd of followers believed Jesus was John the Baptist.

Others say Elijah, Elijah was a powerful man. He was able to perform miracles and they knew that Malachi 4:5 had prophesied that Elijah would come back before the day of the Lord. So it made sense to many that this must be Elijah. Elijah never died and had went to be with God already. In Matthew 17 Jesus is talking to the disciples and they ask Him about Elijah coming first and Jesus tells them in Vs. 12 But I tell you, Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him, but have done to him everything they wished. Then they realize in Vs. 13 that John was the one that came in the spirit of Elijah. Peter actually witnessed Moses and Elijah carrying on a conversation with Jesus.

Still others Jeremiah. Wait! Jeremiah! Why Jeremiah? To truly understand why a Jewish man in Jesus's day would think of Jeremiah we have to read the same thing the Jewish people read. There is a series of books called the apocrypha. Apocrypha comes from a Greek word that means "those that have been hidden away". They are a series of writings that are not considered to belong in the canon of the bible. Martin Luther said the apocrypha was 'Useful historical writings”. He also believed that while these books were not inspired Christians should be familiar with them and at times they should even be read in services. The original King James of 1611 contained these books and so do many Catholic bibles today. In the apocryphical books of Maccabees we have some Jewish history and in those terrible times of the seculid kings we read about a revolt. In 2 Maccabees 2:4-7 we read about Jeremiah taking the ark of the Covenant and hiding it in a cave and 2Ma 2:4 It was also contained in the same writing, that the prophet, being warned of God, commanded the tabernacle and the ark to go with him, as he went forth into the mountain, where Moses climbed up, and saw the heritage of God.
2Ma 2:5 And when Jeremy came thither, he found an hollow cave, wherein he laid the tabernacle, and the ark, and the altar of incense, and so stopped the door.
2Ma 2:6 And some of those that followed him came to mark the way, but they could not find it.
2Ma 2:7 Which when Jeremy perceived, he blamed them, saying, As for that place, it shall be unknown until the time that God gather his people again together, and receive them unto mercy.
The Jewish people having heard this and the stories about it believed that Jesus was Jeremiah coming to bring the ark of God out of the cave.

Or one of the prophets.
Notice Peter didn't say a prophet. He said one of the prophets. In Luke's account of this event he even says "Or one of the prophets of long ago has come back to life." (Luke 9:19)
They are now thinking of all the prophets and saying he could be this one or that one, but no one is saying hey maybe he is a new prophet, and definitely no one is suggesting that this is the Son of God
In every case the Jews believed that Jesus was someone that had risen from the dead. They believe that Jesus is someone who has been with God but they do not understand that this is God in Human flesh.
Vs. 15 Jesus looks at Peter "But What about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?"

Who Do you say I am?
That is the most important question you will ever answer. Even if you don't believe in Jesus, on the day of judgement you will stand in front of Jesus and answer that question.
Think about that for a minute! Who do you say I am?


That is an important question for all of us to ask .Who do you say Jesus is? That is the question of a lifetime the answer either brings you eternal life or eternal damnation. Think about that the most important question you will ever answer and you will have to answer it someday is; Who do you say I am?
I have heard people say Jesus is a great teacher, but not God. The problem with this view is Jesus went around telling people that he was the son of God. If a man was walking around today and he appeared to be a genius and everyone was amazed at what a great teacher he was, but then this man started telling you well I'm just telling you this because I'm God. I'm the only way to heaven and oh yeah to get there you have to eat my flesh and drink my blood. If Jesus was not God then he was a stark raving lunatic. Are you going to go to an asylum and expect to see a great teacher? NO! Are you going to call a crazy person a great teacher?
Many people believe he was a prophet, but not the savior. The problem with that is that God gave us through Moses a way to test the prophets. In Deutronomy 18 Moses says to see if a prophet was sent by God is to see if his prophecy comes true if it does God sent him. Jesus’s prophecy of dying and coming back to life was true. He also said that He was the one sent by God.

Who Do you Say I Am?
How many would answer that with, my Lord and Savior. That is how Peter summed it up. In 2 Peter, Peter refers to Jesus as our Lord and Savior 4 times. In that short letter that is how Peter sees Jesus, and that is how we should view Jesus. Our Lord and Savior. I want to take a minute and talk about these two words though. The word Lord is (koo'-ree-os) it means supreme in authority, controller and master. Basically Lord can be summed up King. King Jesus!
A King is ruler the supreme one in authority and a kings subjects would refer to him as Lord. When we say Jesus is our Lord we are saying that he is our King. A king has many responsibilities they are to keep invaders out and protect their subjects. They are to try and grow their Kingdom and maintain control of those that are subject to them. King Jesus does all these things
look at
· 1 Corinthians 10:13 No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.
o Jesus will not let sin invade us if we resist it.

· John 10:29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father's hand.
o Jesus protects us.

· Luke 19:10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost."
o Jesus builds His kingdom.

· Hebrews 12:6 because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son."
o The Lord Disciplines those that are his

My question is how many of you that claim that Jesus is your Lord; live your life, as if He is your King. When you walked in this sanctuary this morning, Did you walk in with the same reverence you would if you were walking up to the throne of a King? Our King gave us a book that tells us what he expects of us! Did you follow the orders of your King this week. Did you even read the orders that your King gave you?
Maybe you don’t like thinking of Jesus as King. Thinking of Jesus that way bothers you. You like thinking of Jesus as a loving Priest that forgives you of your sins. You say I live under grace and the bible says that is all that is necessary. Grace alone! Grace Alone! Actually the Bible says repent and be saved. Read Mat_11:20-24 It will really rain on your day if you think you can live your life however you want and Jesus is going to say that’s okay you tried. And do you know why; because you didn’t try! It sounds to you like I’m saying works are required. You are going to hate this, if that is what you think. Grace is the Greek word charis (khar'-ece) guess what it means the divine influence upon the heart, and its reflection in the life. Did you catch that “and its reflection in the life” part. Yeah people should see that reflection of Jesus in your life. They see they by the way you serve Him.
God has forgiven us through grace and I want to come back to that, but first I want us to read a parable Jesus told in Luke 19. Luke tells us that Jesus told this parable because the disciples believed the Kingdom of God was about to appear. Jesus tells this parable to let them know that it was time for Him to begin His Earthly reign. If everyone one is there I’m going to start in Vs. 12
He said: "A man of noble birth went to a distant country to have himself appointed king and then to return. 13So he called ten of his servants and gave them ten minas.[a]'Put this money to work,' he said, 'until I come back.' 14"But his subjects hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, 'We don't want this man to be our king.' 15"He was made king, however, and returned home. Then he sent for the servants to whom he had given the money, in order to find out what they had gained with it. 16"The first one came and said, 'Sir, your mina has earned ten more.'
17" 'Well done, my good servant!' his master replied. 'Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter, take charge of ten cities.'
18"The second came and said, 'Sir, your mina has earned five more.'
19"His master answered, 'You take charge of five cities.'
20"Then another servant came and said, 'Sir, here is your mina; I have kept it laid away in a piece of cloth. 21I was afraid of you, because you are a hard man. You take out what you did not put in and reap what you did not sow.'
22"His master replied, 'I will judge you by your own words, you wicked servant! You knew, did you, that I am a hard man, taking out what I did not put in, and reaping what I did not sow? 23Why then didn't you put my money on deposit, so that when I came back, I could have collected it with interest?'
24"Then he said to those standing by, 'Take his mina away from him and give it to the one who has ten minas.'
25" 'Sir,' they said, 'he already has ten!'
26"He replied, 'I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but as for the one who has nothing, even what he has will be taken away. 27But those enemies of mine who did not want me to be king over them—bring them here and kill them in front of me."
Jesus is talking about ascending to heaven and returning at his second coming. At Judgement.
Look at Vs. 27But those enemies of mine who did not want me to be king over them—bring them here and kill them in front of me."
Are you allowing Jesus to reign over you? This passage clearly shows us that we are to serve the Lord as King here on earth. The bible clearly teaches us this. And if you don’t want to accept the fact that you are a servant to King Jesus, you will hate heaven anyways, because the bible also shows us that Jesus will reign in a heavenly Kingdom and an Earthly Kingdom.

Jesus is my Lord and Savior

Now what about Jesus as savior. At night I like to watch old TV shows and one of my favorites is the Andy Griffith Show. A few weeks back the episode where Andy saved Gomer’s life was on. Andy sees that the service station is on fire and he runs in and pulls Gomer out. If you have never seen this episode just about every television show made up until reality shows ruined television had a show with a similar plot. So Andy saves Gomer’s life. Gomer is so thankful that he serves Andy in every way he can. He does so to the point he becomes annoying to Andy. If you truly understood what it means to call Jesus your savior then you should be that thankful. So thankful that your life revolves around trying to do everything you can to serve Jesus.
Think about this for a minute. God created man, man said I don’t need you and your authority. And thereby sentencing man to death. God decides to save man by.. now look at this… God who created man and owes us nothing decided to save us. He did this by coming to Earth as man. He came in the form of the Son of God… JESUS! Then he allowed His creation to beat Him, Spit on Him, Rip His beard out and then after making fun of Him nail him to a cross and leave Him hanging till he died. God who at any time could have called down a whole host of Angels to destroy us. Allowed us, His creation, to Kill Him. And in that death our sins were washed away. Now it gets even better. God, Jesus rises from the grave and ascends to Heaven so that we too can go to be with the father in Heaven. If God didn’t do this for us. If God didn’t save us in this way we would go to Hell. And all we have to do to accept this salvation is believe. That Jesus Christ is the son of God that came and died for our sins and then rose again. That’s it! Just believe and that doesn’t make you want to drop on your knees and cry out, thank you Lord Jesus! I give my life to You. All of me! I Live for you. My life is an offering to you Lord. Are you not that grateful that He saved you. And being saved did not end on that day on the cross. Jesus saved you that day and every day since he has been saving you by that divine influence on the heart, that reflects in ones life that divine influence that refines and makes pure. And we will be saved on that day of Judgment when we stand before God and Jesus says oh that one I paid his fine already.
Saved by grace. If you are saved you will feel that divine influence on your heart, that convicting of sin that helps to purify and give you the righteousness that only comes from Jesus Christ. James said Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. That’s because that divine influence in James reflects.
We are saved by grace, But when you look at what Jesus did for you. What that Grace cost Jesus. If that doesn’t make you want to serve and demonstrate that you serve Jesus, then you don’t truly understand what the one you are calling Lord and savior did for you.
I think I want to go a little deeper here Because I have been emphasizing the deity of Jesus. The fact that He was God. But to truly understand the cost of that forgiveness you have to see that Jesus was also fully man. Let’s look and see how human Jesus was.
Mark 11:12 The next day as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry.
John 19:28 Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, "I am thirsty."
John 11:35 Jesus wept
Jesus hungered, thirsted, wept, and he was tempted by the devil. He felt sorrow at Gethesamne. Matthew 26:38 When Jesus was in the garden of gethsemane he prayed "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will."
When Jesus was nailed to that roman cross He felt the pain just as you and I would. When Jesus died for our sins. It was a horrible punishment for Him. He felt the humiliation, the emotional and physical hurts just as we would.
Yet even knowing what he was about to go through Jesus suffered for us. Why?

You are the Christ the son of the living God.
Because Jesus was the christ the son of the living God come to take away the sin of the world. What has become known as Peter's confession is that Jesus is the Christ the on of the living God. What does this mean though. What did it mean to Peter 2000 years ago as he stood next to Jesus saying these words. When Peter said you are the Christ he is acknowledging that Jesus is the annoited or the one sent by God The prophets had told the Jews that God was sending someone to come to them and take over and rule. These prophecies go as far back as Genesis 3. When Peter says the son of the living God Son is Peter saying I realize that you are fully human flesh and blood just like me , but I also realize that you are God the one true living God.

Jesus replied, Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my father in heaven.
If your translation says Bar-Jonah that just means son of Jonah. Jesus called Peter that because He was acknowledging That Peter was born of man but Jesus was born of God. Now I want to look at what Jesus meant by his was not revealed to you by man. Have you ever thought about what Christians believe and how unbelievable it sounds to an unbeliever. This man Jesus who was fully God, but also fully man, was born of a virgin. He brought people back from the dead healed them then he was killed. three days later he rose. Visited a whole bunch of people then kind of floated up to heaven in their sight. He is coming back though with a sword in his mouth to take over. All of this was done so that we could go to heaven you know that place where the streets are made of gold. What we believe is pretty amazing and god has to prepare our hearts for that message. John says that God draws us. then as Peter did we have to confess who Christ is.

And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hades will not overcome it.
In the verse before this one Jesus called Peter Simon. it's not unusual for God to change a mans name when he decides to use them.
Saul became Paul.
Abram became Abraham.
Jacob became Israel
The Greek meaning for Simon is a name. It comes from a old testament Hebrew name Simeon (The son of Jacob) which means hearing. But the meaning of Simon is just a name. Jesus renames Simon Peter here. Peter is a Greek word Petros (pet'-ros) which means a piece of rock, like a stone or boulder. The word rock in this verse is Petra it means a large slab of Rock. It is the same word that is used in look when talking about the wise builder who dug down deep and laid the foundation of his house on Rock (Petra). So I'm going to read this verse now with our new words and let's think about what it means that way. And I tell you that you are Petros, and on this Petra I will build my church. I tell you that you are just a small rock Simon, but on this solid rock I will build my church.
I go through all of that to demonstrate that while some denominations believe that Jesus was telling Peter that he was going to build the church on him that is incorrect. Jesus is the cornerstone of the church. The foundation which as any of the builders here today will tell you is the most important part is the fact that Jesus is the Christ. The one sent to take away the sins of man. Church (ekklēsia -ek-klay-see'-ah) simply means assembly. It's used in Acts to mean a riot. When Jesus says My Church He means a called out assembly of believers. It has nothing to do with a building or a denomination. it also does not mean everyone in the building. The church is the believers of the world and it is built on the fact and belief in that fact that Jesus is the Son of God come into the world to forgive man of sin through His death and resurrection.

And the Gates of Hell will not overcome it.
That is to say that the devil will never stop it. to fully understand this you must look at the persecution of the early church. Acts talks about a little of the persecution; Being thrown in jail, put in stocks, beaten. In 1563 a man named John Foxe printed an English translation of his book Acts and Monuments of These Later and Perilous Days. We know it as Foxe's Book of Martyrs. Foxe took the historical accounts of the early persecution of the church and put them into a book. I'm Just going to tell you about the deaths of the apostles and despite theses horrible deaths the number of Christians grew daily.
Peter, Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Jude, Simon the Zealot = Crucified
James, Matthew, Matthias, Paul = Beheaded
Thomas = Speared
James = beaten and thrown from temple roof then had his head busted open with a tool used to beat cloth as he prayed for those who had beaten him.
And John before he was banished to the Isle of Patmos was dipped in a cauldron of boiling oil before being banished. history records he escaped this without injury.
Despite Satan doing his best to hold back the spread of Christianity. It grew to what we have today.

In conclusion I'm going to sum up what we have heard today. We come to our knowledge of Jesus surrounded by our sin. Our sin pulls us toward Hell, but Jesus reveals Himself to us. Then all we have to do is as Romans 10:9 says If we confess with our mouths that Jesus is lord and believe in our hearts that God raised him from the dead, We will be saved. But by confessing that Jesus is Lord. We are saying that Jesus is King of our lives, that we will serve him in whatever way he calls us to serve him. Our Lives will reflect that Lordship Jesus has over us. Just as a subject of a king would bow down to their King we will bow down to Jesus. We realize that Jesus has no use for us if we don't want Him to reign over us. If we understand what being saved truly means and the extent and the cost of it we will be grateful for that saving grace. People will see that gratefulness we have to the Lord reflected in our lives. By believing in Jesus as the Christ the Son of the living God we become members of the Church and Satan will never take that away from us. If we live our lives as if Jesus is our King we will aid in the growing of that Kingdom Jesus' Church.

When God Moves Faster Than We Do

This will be an unpopular post and probably make some people angry, but the bible is full of people that offended in an effort to speak of Jesus and what God wants. I do ask either read this post all the way through or don't read it at all. I'm going to start by saying I have never been in a church when it split. I've been in a church where there was tension over a decision and some people left and I still bear the scars from seeing how Christians react to these kind of situations. I also saw and did what was necessary to rebuild harmony so that the Body of Christ would not suffer. The church I attend did split many years ago before I was there and I still hear negative comments by people who do not belong to either church or they are new to the community. As far as church members both churches communicate on events and invite each other to events.
The main thing we as Christians most remember is that the church is not ours. It belongs to and IS the bride of Jesus Christ! When you insult a biblical church you are saying "hey Jesus your wife is ugly." Now back to the subject of church splits, The book of Acts tells us about the early church and how we should do church. Paul went from town to town planting churches.
When a church grew it sent members to start another church. Look at Romans 16. First Paul asks them to accept Phoebe from the church of Cenchrae. Next he greets Prisca and Aquila who were at the church in Corinth and now they are back in Rome. (Acts 18:1-2) This is just a couple of people who went to help grow a church. Before somebody says vs. 17 says to watch out for those who cause divisions it also says contrary to the doctrine you have been taught. The biblical example of a church is for it to grow and then split and start a new church.
Sometimes Christians resist change. We like our church why would we go to another one. Many think the bigger a church is the more it can reach out. The more "means" it has. The fact of the matter is New churches are good. there are many excellent books and lessons on churches that prove through data that new churches promote growth in the established church and the new church. Every church split I have heard or read about both churches wound up gaining members.
God wants us to grow and multiply, when we move to slow for him God finds His own way of speeding things up. I've heard the people use the excuse that the devil was at work in splitting "that" church. I agree, just like God used the devil to teach Job some lessons and how He used to the devil lead a bunch of Jewish people to crucify the very person that they had been waiting on to deliver them. That worked out pretty good for me in that through the crucifixion of Christ my sin was atoned for.
As Paul and Barnabas were leaving Pamphylia, A young man named John Mark decided instead of continuing with them he would go back to Jerusalem(Acts 13:13). Later Paul and Barnabas decided to go back and see how the churches they planted were doing.(Acts 15:36-40) Barnabas wanted to take John Mark, but Paul refused and they "Split". Is that a bad thing? Paul gathered other people and went anyways. Silas and another young man named Timothy(Acts 16:1-5) learned under Paul's tutelage. Barnabas and John Mark didn't give up ministry either, they continued on and Paul himself felt that John Mark was a great help in Ministry(2 Titus 4:11).
God split two experienced church planters up to accomplish His will twice as fast. We are all one church the bride of Jesus we must come together and act like it! We should encourage one another, support one another, and pray for each other. I pray for both churches that split near me. I pray that God will bless both of them. I pray for the leaders of both and pray that they will again realize sometimes God's will is not ours.
God Bless,
MSW

As Jesus Sees

August is here! Time for children to head off to school and time for our revival, plus this year there will be a revival for the youth. Another busy month where it’s easy to get caught up in all we have going on and forget about others. So what can we do to prepare ourselves for this busy month?
First the most important thing we can do is pray. Before we can pray we need to prepare ourselves for prayer. Start by taking a minute a looking at people the way God looks at them. Think back through your day. Think of everyone you have met today. How did you see them?
What do you know about them? What problems are they having? What good things do they have going on in their life? Often I’m so busy with my life that I forget to take a minute and look at people as Jesus would.
When Jesus sat down at the well(John 4:6-29) with the Samarian woman He didn’t look at her like the Jews or even his own disciple did. The Samarians were hated by the Jews. The Samarians worshipped God but they also worshipped idols. In the apocryphal book of Sirach we can see in the words of a Jew exactly how they felt about the Samarians. Sirach 50:25-26 There be two manner of nations which my heart abhorreth, and the third is no nation: They that sit upon the mountain of Samaria, and they that dwell among the Philistines, and that foolish people that dwell in Sichem.
Plus this woman had multiple adulterous affairs; a good Jew would never defile himself by speaking to her. But Jesus looked past all this and spoke and asked for water. Jesus spoke kindly and lovingly to her. Jesus told her that He was the deliverer. Thanks to Jesus not looking at her with condemnation and hate she came to know Jesus and brought others to Him. This is how we should look at God’s people. With love!

MSW

The Genealogy of Matthew

I had written a post to put in my church newsletter, I always post them here also, but I Lost the USB drive I had it saved on. Well I finally found it. So here is the post that was supposed to appear on Mother's Day.

The Genealogy of Jesus
Matthew 1:1-16
The Bible is full of Genealogies, Those lists of names that seem to go on forever and appear to serve no purpose but to lull us to sleep. It is amazing how many times I have asked someone have you ever read the Bible and they tell me, “I tried but it got to where everyone was begating somebody and I just couldn‟t read it.”
These genealogies are pretty amazing when we slow down and read them though. God stuck little nuggets in there to see if we were still paying attention. Like the story of a cursed man who simply prayed that God would bless him and God did exactly that (1 Chronicles 4:10) or little tidbits of information such as when the Earth was divided (1 Chronicles 1:19).
Matthews‟s genealogy of Jesus is like that. If we slow down and read it we will notice that in this list of 39 fathers four mothers are mentioned. Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and Bathsheba were important to God. He wanted us to see these four mothers that led to Christ. So what makes these four mothers so important?
Tamar prostituted herself to have an incestuous relationship, Rahab was a prostitute herself, Ruth was a pagan, and Bathsheba strolled around nude and had an affair that led to the death of her husband. In some churches these ladies wouldn‟t even be allowed in the door. Yet Matthew, through the divine inspiration of the Holy Ghost, wanted us to see that not only where these ladies allowed in the door, they were seated at the right hand of God. They were placed on a pedestal to be admired. Rahab even made it into the Hebrews Hall of Faith (Hebrews 11:31).
So why is that? First I think we should realize that no matter what we have done in our past God can use us. Just as these ladies lead to Christ, we also can leave our past behind and lead people to Christ. Each of these women, with the exception of Ruth, when we hear their names the bad they did immediately comes to mind. Yet, let‟s look the type of children they raised.
After Genesis 38 it seems Tamar simply disappears until Matthew chooses to bring her up again. But that isn‟t true. Not only is she mentioned, she is in some mighty fine company. In Ruth 4:11-12 the elders of Bethlehem are giving the marriage of Boaz to Ruth their blessing and they say to him, “May your family be like that of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah.” Sounds like the elders felt Tamar did a good job raising her boys.
Rahab not only gets mentioned in Hebrews but James also mentioned her in James 2:25. After Jericho was destroyed she was accepted and lived among the Jews. She met a man named Salmon whose father was the leader of Judah (1 Chronicles 2:10). They were married and raised a son together. Again we can see that Rahab made a fine mother and raised a fine gentleman of a son by the name of Boaz.
Ruth, as we see by God allowing her to be the only Gentile with a book of the Bible named after her, was a woman after God‟s own heart. While not a lot is said about her children in the bible, the book of Ruth says tons about her character. Ruth gave up what she thought would be her only chance to marry (Ruth 1:11-13) after becoming a widow so that she could take care of her mother-in-law. (Ruth 1:16-17). She went to a completely different culture to serve God and be faithful to Him and His Laws.
Last but not least we have Bathsheba, who so easily betrayed her marriage bed and allowed the death of her husband. But look at the son she raised. Solomon became the wisest and richest man alive. Yes, God granted this to Solomon but it was because Solomon only asked for a discerning heart so that he could rule God‟s people justly. God told Solomon, “I‟ll give you whatever you want.” Solomon could have asked for anything. Yet all he wanted was to be able to discern between good and evil.
Moms, you are important. God entrusts you with the care, keeping, and teaching of „His children‟. Be diligent in raising them in Christ‟s love.
MSW

Staying Near Sin

What an interesting story we have in Genesis 19. Two angels show up to warn Lot to flee. Lot offers them a place to sleep and they turn him down saying, "We will just sleep here in the square." I can imagine the panic on Lot's face. He knows that he is in a sinful place, and he must protect these two angels, but imagine the embarrassment of having to tell God, “Yes I love you and follow you, but I’m eyeball deep in sin right here and it really isn’t good for you to be here.” I believe sometimes many of us find ourselves in that same situation.
So Lot convinces the angels to stay at his house and that night the men of the village show up to rape the angels. “Lot steps outside and tries to persuade the men not to do this thing, even offers his daughters up for these men to do whatever they want. Lot has allowed sin to take such a hold on his life that as he tries to flee from it, he is willing to sacrifice those whom he should feel he needs to protect.
God saves Lot, gives him the means to escape from this sin and as Lot is fleeing, he begs God not to make him go to far away form his sin. (Genesis 19:20) Lot’s not wanting to turn fully to God and abandon the sin that has a hold on him. This leads to the destruction of his wife and moral destruction of his daughters.
How many of us can relate to what this story says. As we come to know Jesus we refuse to turn from the sins that have sway over us. As we claim to be a Christian we allow sin to still control us and lead to the destruction of those we love. We allow sin to ruin our lives, when we know that it is not necessary.
MSW

To Know Him

I was reading through Genesis today in the NKJV and I came to 18:19. The verse just seemed to jump out at me and speak. It says, “For I have known him, in order that he may command his children and household in the way of the LORD, to do righteousness and Justice, that the LORD may bring to Abraham what He has spoken to him."
God knew Abraham so that he could spread the word. God expected Abraham to teach his children and his household, those that are around him everyday, that there is a Lord and savior, and this Lord is going to watch over and take care of His children.
This verse applies to us today as much as it did to Abraham 4,000 years ago. When Jesus is revealed to us, He doesn’t want us to keep it a secret. He wants us to go out and proclaim it loudly. He wants us to tell everyone around us that there is a Lord and savior that can truly change your life. After Andrew met Jesus the first thing he did was go and tell (John1:41). When they were standing amongst a crowd of 5,000 Andrew jumped up, grabbed a kid and said, "come here I want to show you something amazing. (John 6:9) Watch what this guy can do with that fish you have there. Oh, by the way His name is Jesus."
We should be like Andrew, get to know the people around us and when God gives us an opening say, “Hey kid, watch what this guy can do for you.” “Oh, by the way did you know that he died on a cross so that you may live. Yeah let me tell you about that.”
MSW

Let No Man Separate

The other day I was drug into a conversation about divorce. A friend was trying to convince another friend to divorce his wife after discovering an affair. He told the other friend that the bible said a man could divorce a woman if she had an affair. He looked at me expecting me to confirm what he said. I told him it actually said that if a man divorced his wife and married another woman he would be committing adultery also, even if she had already had an adulterous affair.
After he told me I must have misunderstood what I read, we turned to Mark 10:11 He answered, "Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery against her." He stared at me for a minute and asked if it was in another Gospel, so I turned to Matthew 5:32 and read "But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, causes her to become an adulteress, and anyone who marries the divorced woman commits adultery." My friend informed me he liked that version better. I told him that he is making the bible say what he wants it to say.
God Created humans man and woman. The woman, as symbolized by the taking of Adams rib, is a part of her husband. Genesis 2:24 tells us that for his wife a man will leave his parents and become united in a Holy marital covenant and the two will become one flesh. Jesus tells us in Mark 10:9, “Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.” In Malachi 2:10-16 God shows us that he sees our faithfulness in marriage, in direct relationship to our faithfulness to Him.
It is no coincidence that Jesus referred to Himself as the Bridegroom (Matthew 9:15) and the church is his bride. Just as Jesus wants us to be faithful to Him, He wants us to be faithful to our wives. Jesus does not turn His back on us when we sin. Divorce and adultery or awful things that have become common and promoted in our society, but that is not what God wants.

“I hate divorce,” says the LORD God of Israel, “and I hate it when people clothe themselves with injustice,” says the LORD Almighty. So be on your guard, and do not be unfaithful. Malachi 2:16 TNIV

"It was because your hearts were hard that Moses wrote you this law," Jesus replied. "But at the beginning of creation God 'made them male and female.''For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.' So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate." Mark :10:5-9

YEC 2009

I and 5 other adult leaders carried 18 youth to YEC in Nashville TN last weekend. It truly was an amazing weekend. We had a young lady that was invited by one of our youth get saved. I had another young lady tell me Sunday night that she went home read her bible and prayed which she told us she doesn't do very often. I just got done reading a post by Clayton King saying that 2000 got saved that night, including a chaperonne, a youth pastor and three security guards. The part that has me so excited though is that Saturday morning we were asked to pray for someone we thought needed to know Jesus. I challenged our youth and entire church to go out this week and witness to the person they prayed for.

Well monday morning I prayed that God would give me that oppurtunity and the courage to do it. God did His part and I got my chance to witness to them and they are starting to read the book of John. I ask that every one pray for me as I to continue witnessing to this person and especially that this person will come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.

Today I played Lecrae for a friend. (Lecrae is a Christian rap artist.) Well in the process of this I had two people come up and ask who this music was by. I'm thrilled that there will be two people listening to music that will proudly proclaim that Jesus is Lord. I pray that they lead many more to listen to music that can attract a group that usually listen tto music that promotes sex, drugs and violence.
MSW

The Way, The Truth, The Life: Part 3

This is the third of three post.

Part 3
I am the way and the truth and the life
The life

In the beginning God created the heavens and earth and on the sixth day God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, in our likeness, (Genesis 1:26)

(Genesis 1:27) So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.

Since we have been discussing the Trinity I want to take a second to stop and look at these two verses. Right here at the very beginning of the first book of the bible, first chapter, God reveals to us the trinity. In the Beginning we have God, Genesis 1:2 we have the Spirit. Then Genesis 1:26 we have Jesus. In vs1 God says let Us make in Our image. Then vs27 says in God’s image. To me this first book demonstrates the Trinity as clear as can be.


John 3:16 KJV “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

John 5:26 “For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son to have life in himself.”

John 6:33 “For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”

Revelation 11:11 “But after the three and a half days a breath of life from God entered them, and they stood on their feet, and terror struck those who saw them.”

Notice all of these verses have God giving Life. Life is given by God. God is the orchestrator of life and we are granted eternal Spiritual life by God through the Son’s sacrifice on the cross.

I am the way and the truth and the life
Jesus is the way to the truth that the Holy Spirit brings to give us eternal life by and with God.

For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. I John 5:7 KJV

The Way, The Truth, The Life: Part Two

This is the second post of three. The first is here if you haven’t read it yet.


Part two
I am the way and the truth

The truth
During the trial of Jesus, Pilate asks Jesus “What is truth”

John uses the word truth 26 times in his Gospel compared to
Matthew who uses it once
Luke who uses it once and
Mark who uses it twice
John then uses the word truth 20 more times in his Epistles. Obviously John wanted us to see what the truth was.

Webster tells us that truth is sincerity in action, character, and utterance

Scripture tells us that our sinful mind is hostile to God (Romans 8:7)

Genesis 6:5 The LORD saw how great man's wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time.

Genesis 8:21 The LORD smelled the pleasing aroma and said in his heart: "Never again will I curse the ground because of man, even though every inclination of his heart is evil from childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done.

How can we be sincere in action, character, and utterance if our every desire is evil?

John 1:17 “grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.”
Christ gives us that truth! Through Christ we can walk in truth and light. (1 John 1:7; 3 John 1:4) But how does He do that? How does Christ turn our every evil desire truth and sincerity?

John 4:23 “Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.”

John 4:24 “God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.”
We worship in spirit and truth! What is this spirit and truth we worship in?

The Spirit of Truth
(John 14:15-17) “If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.”

John 16:13 “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth.”

The truth is the Holy Spirit and the message it proclaims. This Spirit of truth comes through Jesus Christ, and we are to worship in this Spirit of truth. For through this truth we will be set free from sin and the damnation that sin brings.

John 8:32 “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

The Way,The Truth,The Life

I was preparing a lesson the other day from John 14:6 and it went in a direction I wasn’t expecting so I thought I’d share it. It seems I have seen the Trinity represented in several things I have studied lately and it also appeared to me that it was represented in John 14:6
It was suggested that instead of this being one edited for length post I post it in a series.

I want to start out by looking at where we are at before discussing the verses in John 14. Jesus has already entered Jerusalem and is at the last supper. He washes the disciples feet and informs them that one of them will betray him Judas leaves the room. Jesus tells His disciples that where He is going they cannot go. He tells Peter that he will deny Him. Jesus tells them that He is going to prepare a place for them and that they know the way to where He is going. Thomas asks how they can know the way, when they don’t know where he is going. During this dialogue Phillip asks Jesus to show them the Father.
Jesus replies to Philipp that anyone who has seen me has seen the father. Then Jesus asks “Don’t you know that I am in the Father and the Father is in me?”

John 14:5-7
"Thomas said to him, "Lord, we don't know where you are going, so how can we know the way?" Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him."

John 14:9 b
Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father.

“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
It is easy to see the father and the son in this dialogue but upon a closer inspection its easy to see the Father, Son, and Spirit.

First Let’s look at the statement I am the way. The way to what? The way to Heaven? Simply put, yes! But there is much more to be found in that phrase.
When Jacob was at Bethel he had a dream of a ladder. (Genesis 28:10-15) And this Ladder went up to Heaven. The angels ascended and descended on it. Jacob’s ladder is Jesus Christ. Jesus is the mediator! He is the way that all God’s blessings come to us and that our prayers make it to the Father. He is the way that we make it to heaven.

1 John 5:11-12
And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.
This eternal life is in His Son. It is through Jesus Christ that we find our way to eternal life.


In Leviticus Chapter 4 God’s word tells us of the Sin offering. When someone sins they are to bring their offering which must be without defect. The Priest after sprinkling the blood will burn the offering. Now Listen to the last part of v35 “In this way the priest will make atonement for them for the sin they have committed, and they will be forgiven.”
In this way the Priest will make atonement. This Way! But that is no longer the way. We have Jesus as our Priest, and as our Lamb, and as our way.

The blood of these lambs and bulls and Goats was not what caused forgiveness for these people. It was the Faith they showed God by Obeying Him.

(Hebrews 10:4) “It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.”
The offering did not take away their sins. It was just a way to make them realize they were sinners. It was a way to make them realize they needed forgiveness and that forgiveness could only be granted by God.

(Hebrews 10:14) “because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.”
Jesus is our perfect lamb and our one sacrifice. Through Him we have found a way to heaven and God.

The Least of These

"They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?'
"He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.' Matthew 25:44-45


I wanted to share an experience I had right before Christmas. I say this not shame or criticize, but as a reminder for us all as to how we as Christians should act toward our brothers. I also realize my grief was caused by my own actions. Even if you don’t want to listen to me whine about my bad day please read the last three paragraphs because it’s something we as Christians should never forget. I drive or should say drove an older car with a lot of miles on it, and due to my negligence it was a little past due for servicing. It was my last day to work before being off for Christmas. It was a really rough 12 hour day. I probably looked pretty rough from working all day and I know I did not smell all that great from sweating all day. By the way it was a Sunday. My job requires me to work every other Sunday and my bill collectors assure me that it is in my best interest to do that.
So I get off work and at 7:00 pm and it’s 15 degrees outside (for any northern readers that I may have 15 degrees will translate to painfully cold here in the south). I live about 50 minutes away out in the middle of nowhere. My commute this day was along back roads and was going fine until my car overheated, blew a head gasket, and spit water (and defiantly not enough antifreeze) all over my windshield. Knowing that there was a small country church up the road where I could park, I limped my car along for about another half mile. Church was still going on so I sat in my dead car which was extremely cold due to having to drive with the window down to see. Oh and my dumb self left with a sweater but no coat that morning.
After about 30 minutes which felt more like an hour to the then shivering me I managed to get a hold of my wife on my cell phone and ask her to come and get me. She is still about 30 minutes away and had to finish cleaning up the church after a play and dinner before she could come get me. I tell her I’m fine and didn’t have any where else to go to at the moment.
Then I see some hope, church lets out and people are going out to their cars. One couple pulls over and asks me if I need any help. I tell them my car has broken down and I wanted to make sure it was alright to leave it there till morning when I could get someone to come and help me tow it. They tell me the pastor is still in the church and to go and talk to him.
I take off my cap and head in the church. I want to remind everyone I look like a man who has worked for twelve hours in a hot and sweaty factory. There were about ten people in the church and I ask where their pastor is. They point me to an office down a hall, and I go to ask if I can leave my car. I asked the pastor and he said that was fine and then he went back to watching a football game on the TV in his office. I stood there for a second and he did not say anything else so I went back outside. Okay I realize I could have asked if I could wait inside, but in my eyes that would have been rude on my behalf.
As I waited outside the rest of the congregation came out and left, nobody saying a thing to me. When the pastor left he stopped and asked if somebody was coming to get me. I said yes and he said have a good night and drove off. A little while later my wife and father in law showed up and carried me home.

I sat in a car for about 2 hours with no coat and no heat in 15 degree weather. I couldn’t feel my fingers and was shivering uncontrollably when I got into my wife’s heated truck. I realize I should have carried a coat that morning and I should have taken better care of my car. I even realize that I could have asked to stay in the church or sit in someone’s car.
The more I thought about it though, the more I thought about what would have happened if it had happened at my church. If a stranger walked in and needed help would no one stop to see if there was anything they could do to help. Would no one offer to sit there and talk with this person? I started to think, what if that person who broke down in my church parking lot did not know Jesus? Would I not invite them into the church and share the gospel with them. What if that person died that night and I was the last person God chose to share the news of His Sons sacrifice with them? I think it bothered me more than nobody asked if I knew Jesus than the fact that no one would help me with warmth. Comfort is temporary souls are eternal.
We never know when God is going to send us someone who needs us or needs to meet Him. Let’s all keep that in mind and be found faithful.

"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.' Matthew 25:34-36
MSW


I want to say again that I’m not judging this church but it caused me to judge myself and how I treat others. Maybe that was the reason it happened is so God could open my eyes a little better.

Light in the Darkness

A friend came up this morning and told me I need to post something. Apparently I have been quiet for too long. I told him I’ve been too stressed to write lately. Let me just say I hope January is not what the rest of the year is going to be like for me. Twenty six days into the year and it seems like everything is crashing down. The last week of December my car broke down and it would be cheaper to replace it than to fix it. God came through and found a very affordable replacement for me, but the unexpected coming up with enough cash to replace a vehicle put a little strain (stress) on the finances.
I’m starting online classes. The last two weeks have been nothing but a big stressball as I tried finding out what books were needed, getting the cash to get them, and praying that they arrived in time for me to read them before the reading assignments were due. Then my DVD lectures didn’t arrive, so I have to get that handled. Plus worrying about how I’m going to do in school and how I’m going to balance time between family, work, school and church.
I had a lot of unexpected extra responsibilities come up at church and a strain in a close friendship at the same time. Needless to say the last three weeks have been hectic.
Now I’m done with my sob story and will move on to the important stuff. Where does Jesus fit into all this? As we go through our lives, many times we seem to get overwhelmed by the world. Jobs, school, family, hobbies even church and religion in itself will come between our time with Jesus. We have to remember that Jesus promised to take care of us. Matthew 6:26 ask us are we not more than the birds of the sky and our Lord takes care of them? If we seek first the kingdom of God, God will take care of everything else.(Matthew 6:33)
Yet when we feel that the sky is falling down on top of us, what can we do? As the stress has built up I have deepened my prayer life. As I talk to Jesus and give my burdens to Him, He reminds me of the many blessings he has given to me. The blessings always outnumber the trouble. Once you pray and thank God for all your blessings you realize the treasure you truly have. When you ask the Lord to help you through the problems you are facing, you feel relief knowing that He will live up to His promise to take care of you.
The other thing that has helped me is starting a very aggressive reading of the bible. Everyday as I read and study the bible God shows me something to help me. For example yesterday as I read 2 Samuel 22:29-37 God spoke to me and reminded me He was there and would never forsake me (Hebrews 13:5-6)
So hopefully I will be back to posting more regularly soon.
MSW

And I leave you with 2 Samuel 22:29-37

29 You are my lamp, O LORD;

the LORD turns my darkness into light.

30 With your help I can advance against a troop;

with my God I can scale a wall.

31 "As for God, his way is perfect;

the word of the LORD is flawless.

He is a shield for all who take refuge in him.

32 For who is God besides the LORD ?

And who is the Rock except our God?

33 It is God who arms me with strength

and makes my way perfect.

34 He makes my feet like the feet of a deer;

he enables me to stand on the heights.

35 He trains my hands for battle;

my arms can bend a bow of bronze.

36 You give me your shield of victory;

you stoop down to make me great.

37 You broaden the path beneath me,

so that my ankles do not turn.

Everything

I love this video. I cry every time I watch it. I have found hundreds of skit versions and three video versions of this skit. It starts with our walk with Jesus then it shows how we let relationships come between us and Christ. Then it moves on to money, status, alcohol, depression and finally we run back to Jesus who will help us fight off the evils that tempt us. I Hope you enjoy this version. I'll also post the lyrics below the video.
MSW

Find me here, speak to me
I want to feel you, I need to hear you
You are the light that's leading me to the place
Where I find peace again
You are the strength that keeps me walking
You are the hope that keeps me trusting
You are the light to my soul
You are my purpose
You're everything
And how can I stand here with you
And not be moved by you
Would you tell me how could it be any better than this
You calm the storms and you give me rest
You hold me in your hands
You won't let me fall
You still my heart, and you take my breath away
Would you take me in take me deeper now
And how can I stand here with you
And not be moved by you
Would you tell me how could it be any better than this
And how can I stand here with you
And not be moved by you
Would you tell me how could it be any better than this
Cause you're all I want,
You're all I need
You're everything.. everything
You're all I want
You're all I need
You're everything.. everything
You're all I want
You're all I need
You're everything.. everything
You're all I want
You're all I need
Everything.. everything
And how can I stand here with you
And not be moved by you
Would you tell me how could it be any better than this
And how can I stand here with you
And not be moved by you
Would you tell me how could it be any better any better than this
And how can I stand here with you
And not be moved by you
Would you tell me how could it be any better than this
Would you tell me how could it be any better than this

The Punishment Due Us

What is the worst punishment a man can have for doing wrong? Our criminal Justice system has many punishments in it. They range from community service, fines, jail time all the way up to even capital punishment. Let’s think about the jail time for a minute. You have done wrong and now you must be punished. You are locked up and separated from your friends and family. You can no longer see the ones you love whenever you want.
Even worse than that is the punishment that is due all of us. In Genesis 4:13-14 we are told of Cain’s punishment for slaying his brother. Cain tells God his punishment is more than he can bear. What is his punishment? He is to be put out of the presence of God. Cain can not stand the thought of no longer being in the presence of God. While Cain gave into flesh and did not give God the offering he should he still loved and worshipped God. Now because of his sin he is lost and sent out of God’s presence.
You and I are on that same trail 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, Galatians 5:19-21, and Revelation 21:8 all give a list of those who will not inherit the kingdom of God. We all fall somewhere on those lists. The alternative to the kingdom of God is hell and eternal separation from God.
Think about that for a minute. We all have times we fail and feel we are separated from God. Now imagine that separation is eternal. Cain said my punishment is too much for me to bear.
We do not have to suffer the same fate as Cain though. We can be forgiven and not only have an eternity with God, we can have a personal relationship with Him through Jesus. All we have to do is admit to God that we are a sinner, understand that through the blood of His Son we have been washed and sanctified. Completely forgiven of our sins, we can live a life walking with Jesus and knowing that we will never be separated from God.
MSW

The Rooster

Yesterday I was lying in bed thinking about a discussion on freewill that had been going on. That got me thinking about my grandmother. I know my mind works weird.
Anyways, my grandma Cill used to have a pet rooster. It would ride on her shoulder as she worked in the yard. This rooster trusted and loved her. Most roosters are mean and see humans as trying to control THEIR barnyard. It is their natural tendency to either attack or run from humans, but this rooster, after learning that my grandmother cared for it, would come to her and trust her.
We are like that rooster. Our natural tendency is to do everything for ourselves and if someone tries to control our lives we get defensive and attack or we run the other way. Yet when we learn that Jesus loves and cares for us, many of us will choose to obey. Then through the help of the Holy Spirit, we come too fully and trust and obey. Even though it goes against our nature to ask for help we choose to ask for God’s guidance.
Our choice to go against our very nature and worship God and follow Jesus brings Glory to God. By freely choosing Jesus over our sin nature we lead an example to those who have not yet conquered the world’s hold over them. Plus when we turn our lives over to Jesus He then helps us to overcome the world through His Holy Spirit.
MSW
By the way I’m not sure if the chicken escaped the dumplings or not. Maybe one of my aunts or uncles will see this and let me know.

LORD, You have treated Your servant well,
just as You promised.

Teach me good judgment and discernment,

for I rely on Your commands.

Before I was afflicted I went astray,
but now I keep Your word.

You are good, and You do what is good;
teach me Your statutes.
Psalm 119:65-68 HCSB

Lord Prop Us Up

I received this in an email yesterday and thought I would share it here


Every time I am asked to pray, I think of the old deacon who always prayed, 'Lord, prop us up on our leanin' side.' After hearing him pray that prayer many times, someone asked him why he prayed that prayer so fervently.

He answered, 'Well sir, you see, it's like this... I got an old barn out back. It's been there a long time; it's withstood a lot of weather; it's gone through a lot of storms, and it's stood for many years.

It's still standing. But one day I noticed it was leaning to one side a bit.

So I went and got some pine poles and propped it up on its leaning side so it wouldn't fall.

Then I got to thinking about that and how much I was like that old barn. I've been around a long time.

I've withstood a lot of life's storms. I've withstood a lot of bad weather in life, I've withstood a lot of hard times, and I'm still standing too. But I find myself leaning to one side from time to time, so I like to ask the Lord to prop us up on our leaning side, 'cause I figure a lot of us get to leaning at times.

Sometimes we get to leaning toward anger, leaning toward bitterness, leaning toward hatred, leaning toward cussing, leaning toward a lot of things that we shouldn't . So we need to pray, 'Lord, prop us up on our leaning side, so we will stand straight and tall again, to glorify the Lord. ''

It's so wonderful that we have Jesus to lean on.

Hamas

While Israel is fighting Hamas, it is nice to know God is still at work converting people to Christianity.
Voice of the Martyrs' Persecution Blog pointed me to a Fox News story about Mosab Hassan Yousef, The son of one of Hamas Founding members. It tells a little about his conversion to christianity.
Praise God on how he is working on some in the Middle East. In David Jeremiahs' Book What in the World is Going On he tells of a Muslim who had Jesus appear to him in a dream. This then led him to an Egyptian Christian who gave him a bible. The authorities found out and sentenced him to die. On the day he was to be executed no one showed up. They came to him later and said away you demon and set him free. He later learned on the day he was to be executed the executioners son died.
Jesus is still working on lost souls in the Middle East.
MSW

New Year Prayer

It's 2009, Happy New Year! For the second year in a row I brought in the year with the youth of my church. A minute before midnight we knelt before the altar and prayed in the new year. This is such a powerful way to bring in the year. Talking with God about the last year and the upcoming year. It was extra special for me this year as I have two of my own girls in the yourh and my wife came to the church with my son to join us for praying in the new year. So I got to bring in the new year worshipping God with the youth and my family. Thank You Lord for that blessing.

Lord I thank You for the blessings You have given me in the last year. Father I thank You for the trials and lessons You have given me. Some of them Lord, I did not think I could make it through, but You were always there proving the promises You gave in Your Word. I realize now they strengthened me and prepared me for the plans You have in the future. Father I pray You will be there in the next year to lead me and show me the way. I pray that when You call I will move with out hesitation. Father thank You for allowing me to bring in the year with the youth and with my family at Your altar. May we all serve you faithfully in the upcoming year. I pray these things in Your Sons name .In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
MSW

A New Year

2008 is behind us and we have begun 2009. As we start this year out it is a great time to reflect on last year and ask ourselves some questions.

• How have I served God in the last year?
• Have I reflected my Lord and savior Jesus Christ in my life?
• What failings and mistakes have I made and have I confessed them to God?

Ask yourself “How have I served God?” “What have I given back to the Lord?” and “What sacrifices have I made?” God loves to see us use our gifts to spread His message. Not everyone is gifted to teach or go and witness to strangers. Not everyone has been given monetary wealth by God, but He has given everyone a gift and wants to see us use it. Some people are gifted with a smile. It is amazing what a smile can do for someone who is having a bad day. Some people are gifted with the ability to make a stranger feel right at home. Some people are gifted with planning or designing abilities. There are many gifts God can use. Take a moment and pray that God will show you your talents and how you can use them to serve Him. (Romans12:6-8)
When people see you do they know that you are a Christian? Can they tell that there is something different about you? Is the hope that Peter talks about visible in you? As a Christian you have a part of Christ living inside of you. Do you let that part show, or do you hide it? Our lives should be a living testament to the Lord! Paul said “Do you not know that your bodies are God’s holy temple?”(1 Corinthians 3:16)
Now think back over the year. Ask yourself “How have I failed God in the last year?” “Have I carried it to Him in prayer?” God knows we are human and that we will sin. (Romans 3:23) That is why He sent His Son to die for our sins. God wants us to confess to Him so that we will think and reflect on our sin. We must realize that we are sinners and a holy God cannot look upon sin. We must know that we don’t deserve God’s love before we can truly see it.
So take few minutes go to God in prayer and talk to Him about the last year. Let Him know that ‘yes, Lord, I am a sinner and I have not been everything I could be for you. Father I have not served you in every way as I should. Lord, there have been times when I wasn’t reflecting your glory as I should have. Lord I thank you for your forgiveness and grace. I thank you for sending your Son to be my Lord and Savior. Search me and give me a pure heart. Show me how you would use me. Lord may I be found faithful in the end. Amen.

MSW