by Pastor Cecil | Feb 25, 2021 | 1 John
1 John 1:9
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Sin has been – is now – and will continue to be a problem until Jesus returns. Sin is not a subject that we generally choose up sides and debate. Sin is more commonly committed than discussed. Sin is frequently denied! (Please re-read this paragraph and let it sink in.)
We often apply the following assessments: Sin is what YOU do! An error in judgment is what I do! YOU CONFESS yours. I will just try to WORK ON MINE. That, my precious friend, is the maggot’s nest of a judgmental attitude, a denial of personal sin, and a sure way to appear to the world as a first-class hypocrite!
We seem to enjoy the spiritual sport of making the sinner grovel and cower before the so-called holy ones and do penance until we are satisfied. To me, that is wicked. It is interesting that John, the beloved disciple, is the one who wrote the letter of I John. He was Spirit-filled, beloved of the Lord, saw visions of the heavenlies, yet he still talked about dealing with personal sin.
In John 8, when the teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought a woman caught in the act of adultery to Jesus, He simply bent down and wrote in the sand and said, “He that is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” One by one the woman’s accusers turned and departed. Only Jesus was left standing there with the woman. DEAL WITH IT!
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Feb 3, 2021 | 1 John
1 John 4:7
“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.”
Today, February 14th, is Valentine’s Day. If you have not yet purchased that card, a romantic gift, or whatever, you had better get busy! There is very little time left to get that special something which will demonstrate in a meaningful way the feelings of love for that special someone in your life.
Unfortunately, there is phony (or fictitious) love present in our world that is often the result of selfish and greedy emotions. People often want things for themselves and use love as a tool to obtain what they think will satisfy their demands.
If my precious wife, Joyce, was still alive we would be celebrating 66 years of marriage this July. I can honestly say that my love for her is far deeper even though she has gone to be with our Lord. There is an important reason for our successful life of love and growth together — we kept the Lord at the center of our marriage.
Perhaps the greatest gift you can give your loved one this Valentine’s Day is to share together the precious love of God; commit yourself to allow His love to be expressed through you in your actions as well as in your words.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Nov 30, 2020 | 1 John
1 John 1:17
“And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.”
In Matthew 19:16-22 we read a sad story. A young man approached Jesus and asked what good thing he needed to do to inherit eternal life. In questioning him it was determined that this young man was obedient to the Law of Moses and he even loved his neighbor as himself.
In verse 21, Jesus offered him an invitation that would have changed his life. Jesus invited the young man to get rid of the things of this world and become His disciple.
Here was an obedient and observant man who prided himself on doing even more than the Law required, yet he went away from Jesus with a sad and heavy heart. Why? — Because he had great wealth! His love of worldly possessions robbed him of the blessed opportunity of being a follower of our Lord and eternal life.
We can only wonder how long it was before he realized that the puny wealth of worldly goods amount to nothing. It is a question we must ask ourselves and especially in connection with today’s Scripture. Where is our heart of love?
Blessings dear hearts. May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Sep 22, 2020 | 1 John
1 John 1:9
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Increasingly we live in a world that calls righteousness evil and evil righteous. If we as believers speak out against the perverse actions around us we are accused of being judgmental and narrow minded. In fact, much of the time we are called even much more derogatory terms.
Much of the human behavior that the Bible terms perverse has become acceptable in our modern world. If any believer has the audacity to speak out against so-called “alternative lifestyles” they become the targets of those engaged in such abhorrent behavior. But many times other people also attack a righteous view of such behavior.
I sometimes feel we attack such sins as homosexuality while accepting sex outside of marriage as normal. That is not the way God views it. We need to spend more time in the Bible and see that sins may go far beyond sexual sins.
Paul gives us a wide view of what God calls sin in Galatians 5:19-21: “Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like.” It is time for us to confess!
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Sep 10, 2020 | 1 John
1 John 2:17
“And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.”
In Matthew 19:18-22 we read a sad story. A young man approached Jesus and asked what good thing he needed to do to inherit eternal life. In questioning him it was determined that this young man was obedient to the Law of Moses and he even loved his neighbor as himself.
In verse 21, Jesus gave him an invitation that could have changed his life: “If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”
Here was an obedient and observant man who prided himself on doing even more than the Law required, yet he went away from Jesus with a sad and heavy heart. Why? Because he had great wealth! His love of worldly possessions robbed him of the blessed opportunity of being a follower of our Lord.
One has to wonder how long it was before he realized that the puny wealth of worldly goods amount to nothing. It is a question we must ask ourselves and especially in connection with today’s Scripture. Where is our heart of love?
Blessings dear hearts. May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
