by Pastor Cecil | Nov 28, 2008 | 2 Corinthians
2 Corinthians 4:15-16
“For all things are for your sakes, so that the grace which is spreading to more and more people may cause the giving of thanks to abound to the glory of God. Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day.”
Did you catch the last phrase in today’s Scripture? “Our inner man is being renewed day by day.” In a day when some people are using face lifts, tummy tucks and botox treatments to disguise the aging process, the advance cannot be halted.
Paul is pointing out to the church at Corinth that “our outer man is decaying.” We may slather on all manner of putty, cream or salve to fill the cracks and blemishes, but underneath the truth remains.
Almost every week, Joyce and I watch the Gaither Homecoming program on TV. In one episode there was a tribute to George Younce, who sang with the Cathedral Quartet for many years. Bill was telling how George was an encouragement even when he was experiencing major health problems.
Bill related that one time George had called Bill and sang a little song about an elderly man who had married an elderly wife without really knowing her. On their wedding night the couple went to their hotel room and the wife began to get ready for bed. She took off her wig and placed it on the chair. Next she removed her teeth, placed them in a glass on put them on the chair. Next she removed a glass eye and, yes, she placed it on the chair. Finally she removed a wooden leg and it too went on the chair.
The new bride looked at her new husband and asked if he was coming to bed? He replied; “No dear, I am going to sleep on the chair—there is more of you there!”
Our physical body may be aging, but for the believer our inner man (the spiritual part of our being) should be growing more and more each day. This spiritual growth should be evidence of our walk with the Lord. There is an old song of the church that best illustrates this point: “Day By Day”.
Verse One
“Day by day and with each passing moment,
Strength I find to meet my trials here;
Trusting in my Father’s wise bestowment,
I’ve no cause for worry or for fear.
He whose heart is kind beyond all measure
Gives unto each what He deems best–
Lovingly, its part of pain and pleasure
Mingling toil with peace and rest.”
Verse Three
“Help me then in every tribulation
So to trust Thy promises, O Lord,
That I lose not faith’s sweet consolation
Offered me within Thy Holy Word.
Help me Lord, when toil and trouble meeting,
E’er to take, as from a father’s hand,
One by one, the days, the moments fleeting,
‘Til I reach the promised land.”
As we are being renewed day by day, I pray that we will come to the realize that our hope is not in this world. We have a hope and a calling to be mighty in spirit. As we are renewed in His own image we become more and more a blessing to those around us. We can be the motivation for others to be renewed in their spirit and give thanks to the Lord.
Blessings dear hearts! Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
— Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Nov 27, 2008 | Ezekiel
Ezekiel 33:31-32
“My people come to you, as they usually do, and sit before you to listen to your words, but they do not put them into practice. With their mouths they express devotion, but their hearts are greedy for unjust gain. Indeed, to them you are nothing more than one who sings love songs with a beautiful voice and plays an instrument well, for they hear your words but do not put them into practice.”
Over the years I have attempted to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ as honestly as possible. I make every attempt to stay away from preconceived theories and to allow the Word of God speak for itself. In other words: “Jesus said it, I believe it—that’s good enough for me.”
From time-to-time I have observed people who go through the “motions” of spirituality, but “motions” are the size of it. One lady took me to task for being too spiritual in my preaching. Hello? Is anyone home here?
It seems that the message that the Lord was sharing with Ezekiel was that there will be people who attend services for reasons that are not spiritual. It may be that they want to impress people with their seemingly righteous life.
Remember that God knows the thoughts and intents of the heart. In Psalm 139:4 we read: “Before a word is on my tongue You know it completely, O LORD.” It may be possible to fool the preacher, those sitting next to you or even yourself, but you will never be able to fool God.
Let’s take it out of the area of church attendance and apply it to other Christian activities. When you listen to Christian music is it to worship God in the beauty of holiness or to be entertained?
When you read the Bible, is it to impress others by your knowledge of the Bible or is it to have the living Word of God speak to you? When today’s Scripture speaks of greed for unjust gain it is not limited to the “stuff” of life. It can equally apply to striving for the approval of others. BEEEP! Wrong reason!
Since our hearts are deceitful, it is necessary to examine them frequently. We are to do this before we receive the Lord’s Supper, but we should make it a practice to do this as frequently as possible—even several times a day.
My prayer is that we will come closer and closer to the Lord. I pray that we will have a sincerity that does not put on a show of spirituality, but that we will come to worship the Lord in spirit and in truth.
Blessings dear hearts! Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
— Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Nov 26, 2008 | Psalm
Psalm 103:1-5
“Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits-who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagles.”
Thanksgiving Day is almost here in the United States. Canada celebrated their Thanksgiving Day on October 13th. Many other nations around the world set aside a specific day to give thanks.
The Canadian Thanksgiving Day tradition goes back to the year 1578. English explorer, Martin Frobisher, had been trying to discover a northern passage to the orient. He did not succeed, but he did establish a settlement in what is now known as Newfoundland. He declared the second Monday in October as a day of thanksgiving and praise.
The traditions for Thanksgiving Day here in the United States go back to the year 1621 when the pilgrims gathered their harvest and rejoiced that God had given them crops to sustain them through the coming cold winter months.
As Christians we need to have a spirit of thanksgiving at all times. It is not only on the day when family and friends gather for food and fellowship, but in the days when food is scarce and the future is uncertain.
It is essential that we realize that our future is not defined by our years here on earth. We have an indescribable feast being prepared for us in heaven. It is the marriage supper of the Lamb. What a day of rejoicing that will be!
For this reason we can and should make each and every day a day to give thanks. Give thanks to the Lord that He has given us new life in Him and has placed the Holy Spirit in our hearts to guide and comfort. Thank you Lord! formal
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
— Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Nov 25, 2008 | Leviticus
Leviticus 24:9-10
“When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the alien. I am the LORD your God.”
I was just listening to a Christian radio station that gives news from a Christian perspective each hour. The commentator mentioned that 40,000 people had gathered at a 600 acre farm last week to glean. I went to the Denver Post newspaper and “gleaned” the following: “That tens of thousands of people came to a Weld County farm on Saturday to collect free potatoes, carrots and leeks could be one of the most palpable signs of a depressed economy.
The Miller family, which owns 600 acres of farmland outside Platteville, decided to hold a free food day because they had tens of thousands of pounds of extra produce at the end of their fall festival. Any day now, a deep freeze would ruin it, so the family let people come to the farm today to collect what they could haul.
They expected between 5,000 and 10,000—but instead found themselves inundated with cars and people with buckets and wagons and barrels ready to harvest whatever was available. They estimated the crowd at more than 40,000 people.”
Two thoughts flood my mind as I consider this information. The first is a question that is directed to ourselves: Are we leaving spiritual food behind from our own study of the Word of God for others to feast upon?
It is easy to take in more and more spiritual truth—but leave nothing behind for others to glean. We may possess pages—even entire notebooks—filled with things that have inspired us, but, sadly we have never shared them with others.
In today’s Scripture God instructs His people to be generous and caring for those who have a need for food in order to survive. Years later we find this acted out in the life of Ruth and Boaz. Please take the time to read the book of Ruth from start to finish and see how God works. Here is a test: Who was the great grandmother of David? (Hint: Read Matthew 1:5-6)
That was my first thought when I heard about the gleaning that took place in Colorado. There is a second thought: How eager and willing are we to glean out the spiritual truth that has been left for us?
We will notice in today’s Scripture that the farmer was to leave the edges of the fields for the gleaners. It may have meant more work to scrounge around the edges to find what was left, but it was there!
Sometimes we may be required to “glean” along the edges of Scripture to find the spiritual food that has been left behind for us. But here is a vital lesson to be learned: After we have “gleaned” the truth of God’s truth, we must leave some along the edges and in the corners of our life for others who need to be fed.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
— Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Nov 24, 2008 | 1 Corinthians
1 Corinthians 1:27-30
“But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him. It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption.”
I am not sure if I am the only one who makes mistakes, but I sure do. This morning Joyce and I had just finished a relaxing time in the food court of a local super market. As we rose to leave, I was the “gentleman” and picked up her cup, my cup, a croissant and a sack of trash. As we passed the trash bin I dropped the trash in and we walked out to the car.
Everything was going well until I opened the door for Joyce and looked down at what I had in my hand. It was not the croissant, but the trash bag. Yep! You have it right—I had thrown the croissant away and kept the trash! Brilliant!
I have thought about this today and realize that we are prone to make the same blunder when it comes to spiritual values in our life. We presume to know more about what is good and what is bad in our life than God knows.
Remember a man in the Bible named Job? God boasted to Satan that Job was the most righteous man in all the earth. This God fearing man had no idea that there was a battle in heaven over his integrity. He only knew that calamity after calamity crashed over him.
In his misery he began to question the goodness of God. How could his righteous God allow such evil things to blast away the very fabric of his being? Have you ever been in situations that made you want to question the righteousness of God?
In Job 38, God responds to Job. Notice that God ignores the attacks of Job’s accusers. In verse 2 He asks Job this question; “Who is this that darkens My counsel with words without knowledge?” How would you like to be confronted by the Lord like that? Be careful how you answer. There will come a day when we all will have to answer that question!
In Job 42:5-6, we read of Job’s answer to God’s interrogation: “My ears had heard of You but now my eyes have seen You. Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.” That is the response that the Lord is looking for in all of us.
God knows that we are not perfect. He knows our every thought and the motive behind each and every action we take. This is why we need to make sure that we do not throw out the precious things of God and find ourselves holding onto the worthless trash of this world. What are you holding in your hands?
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
— Pastor Cecil
