by Pastor Cecil | Jun 16, 2009 | Acts
Acts 26:20
“But made known openly first of all to those at Damascus, then at Jerusalem and throughout the whole land of Judea, and also among the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works and live lives consistent with and worthy of their repentance.” (The Amplified Bible)
I was saved when I was nine or ten years old. It’s been so long ago that I cannot remember my exact age. It is not essential to know my age, I just knew that I was not a Christian and the only way to become one was to confess my sins and invite Jesus into my heart.
There were about ten or fifteen other kids kneeling at that altar at the same time. The Pastor had told us to stand when we knew that Jesus had become our Savior and Lord. When I poured out my sins to the Lord and prayed for Him to come in, I knew that something had happened. I had been born again! When I stood I saw that all of the other kids were on their feet, I felt confused. But I knew what had just happened was real. I was now a born again Christian!
Did that mean that I could live any way I wanted? NO! Did it mean that I had to start the process of spiritual growth? Absolutely! Spiritual growth can never precede spiritual birth. Just as I had a lot of physical maturing ahead of me, so I had a lot of spiritual maturing to do.
There are some who have the sequence wrong. They hold to the view that we must do things to merit salvation. Beep! Not according to my Bible. Isaiah 64:6 says: “For we have all become like one who is unclean [ceremonially, like a leper], and all our righteousness (our best deeds of rightness and justice) is like filthy rags or a polluted garment; we all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away [far from God’s favor, hurrying us toward destruction].” (The Amplified Bible)
That does not sound like we can do anything to be justified by our good deeds or righteous actions. Spiritual birth must precede spiritual growth. It is only then that we learn and practice what it means to be a faithful born-again believer. The right sequence!
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jun 15, 2009 | Psalm
Psalm 23:4
“Yes, though I walk through the [deep, sunless] valley of the shadow of death, I will fear or dread no evil, for You are with me; Your rod [to protect] and Your staff [to guide], they comfort me.” (The Amplified Bible)
As you may recall, I served as a police officer while attending college. From time to time I would discover an unlocked door at a business. You would never know whether it was just an over-sight, or a possible burglary in progress.
The policy was to search the business carefully with your gun drawn in one hand and your flashlight in the other hand. One of the most frightening things was to turn a corner and see someone with a drawn gun and flashlight facing you! It was a moment of panic until you realized that you were facing a full length mirror and you were seeing your own refection.
The image in the mirror was just that—an image. But it was terrifying! In like manner, the fear of death is an image. In fact it is a magnified image. Shadows are always larger than the real thing.
As I have read the accounts of God’s people who have been tortured to death across the ages since Jesus was here, I find that they die well. Think of Stephen who was stoned to death. He had such joy in the Lord that he preached a mighty sermon to his executioners and fell asleep with the vision of heaven in his eyes.
The next time you are tempted to fear death, stop and remind yourself that you are just passing through a valley filled with the shadow of death. The reason we need not fear is that the Lord is right there with us. Praise the Lord!
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jun 12, 2009 | Isaiah
Isaiah 55:1
“Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost.”
I know it may be hard to believe, but I used to be a Boy Scout. I learned how to start a fire without matches, how to tie knots, how to render first-aid and many other practical skills. We were taught that if you are thirsty you can quench your thirst by placing a clean round stone in your mouth.
We were camping in the mountains of Idaho and our Scoutmaster was taking us on a long hike up a mountain. As boys might do, we drank freely from our water canteens early in the hike and they were soon empty with many miles to go. It was then that our Scoutmaster suggested the stone in the mouth trick. Believe me—it sounds better in the Scout Manuel than in practice. We soon spit out the stones. By the way—I just had to get up and go into the kitchen for a drink of water!
There is also a spiritual thirst that the sincere believer experiences. We come to those places in our life that demand a renewal to quench our parched souls. Back in 1884, Lucy J. Meyer felt that spiritual thirst. It led her to write this week’s hymn.
“Ho! Everyone Who Is Thirsty“
Ho! every one that is thirsty in spirit,
Ho! every one that is weary and sad;
Come to the fountain, there’s fullness in Jesus,
All that you’re longing for: come and be glad!
Refrain: I will pour water on him that is thirsty,
I will pour floods upon the dry ground;
Open your hearts for the gifts I am bringing;
While ye are seeking Me, I will be found.
Child of the world, are you tired of your bondage?
Weary of earth joys, so false, so untrue?
Thirsting for God and His fullness of blessing?
List to the promise, a message for you!
Refrain:
Child of the kingdom, be filled with the Spirit!
Nothing but “fullness” thy longing can meet;
‘Tis the enduement for life and for service;
Thine is the promise, so certain, so sweet.
Refrain:
To access Ho! Everyone Who Is Thirsty, this week’s inspirational video from GloryScapes.com, please go to: http://www.gloryscapes.com/hoeveryonewhoisthirsty in your browser or click on the image below.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jun 11, 2009 | Daniel
Daniel 10:10-12
“A hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees. He said, ‘Daniel, you who are highly esteemed, consider carefully the words I am about to speak to you, and stand up, for I have now been sent to you.’ And when he said this to me, I stood up trembling. Then he continued, ‘Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them.'”
Have you ever experienced times of uncertainty in your life? I recall a major juncture in my life that required much prayer and fasting. I had a very successful career as a criminal justice planner. In fact, I was Deputy Director of our agency. But God seemed to be calling me into active ministry.
The problem was that I did not receive an immediate answer. What did I do? I kept right on inquiring of the Lord. In a way it was frustrating, yet at the same time it drew me closer to the Lord than ever before.
It was weeks of soul searching and waiting for God to lead the way. When the answer came it was a little scary because it was something that had not been done before. It was during the lunch hour and I had been praying and studying the Bible at my desk. I felt the Lord leading me to write something down on a card:
1. Your Senior Pastor will ask you to become a part of the pastoral staff.
2. He will ask that you begin on a part-time basis. (There were only full-time associates at our church).
3. You will be asked to serve as Pastor of Discipleship.
I felt a strange feeling of peace sweep over me. I knew that I was simply to rest in the Lord and allow Him to work out the details. I had no idea how He would do it. It was a few weeks later following the evening service that the Senior Pastor asked me over to the parsonage for a snack. At that exact instant the Holy Spirit spoke in a clear way: “Be sure to take the card!”
We had a bite to eat and it seemed like the Pastor was acting a little uncomfortable. He finally blurted out, “I would like to talk with you about something.” I knew it was time to step out in faith so I slipped the card from my pocket and placed it upside down on the table.
He proceeded to ask, “Will you consider becoming a part of the pastoral staff on a part-time basis and to serve as Pastor of Discipleship?” I asked him to turn the card over and notice the order that I had been directed to list them. We both wept with joy that the Lord was in control.
When we pray, the Lord hears, but it may be weeks, months or perhaps even years before we hear His voice. His timing is always perfect and His plans for our life are for our good and His glory.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jun 10, 2009 | John
John 14:25-27
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.”
Back when I was 20 years old, I was in the US Air Force and stationed at Rapid City, South Dakota. I was a jet aircraft mechanic with the 54th Fighter Interceptor Sqaudron. Someone had the bright idea that we buy a car and take it to the local stock car racetrack to see how we would fare against the veteran stock car racers.
With our limited resources we could only afford an old jalopy that looked like a relic from by-gone days (it was!). We slapped some red, white and blue paint on it and someone painted our squadron emblem on the side. Even with the paint it still looked like an old beat up wreck that was better suited for the junkyard than the race track.
Our driver made a pretty good showing the first week the car raced. As I recall he came in second or third. There was an old mechanic in our outfit that knew just about everything there was to know about engines. He took the engine apart and rebuilt it completely. I can still remember him throwing parts out saying, “We don’t need these they just take up room!”
The next race was a farce. Our car was untouchable. The seasoned drivers, who had laughed at the broken-down old jalopy at the beginning, were now wanting to know what was on the inside! He wouldn’t tell them!
I hope you will immediately be able to see that there is a spiritual application to all of this. It is not what is on the outside that counts, but what is on the inside! We live in a world that is increasingly cynical because they have observed some spiritual leaders who talked holy but were full of corruptible things.
That inward vileness was what Jesus observed in the religious leaders of His day. As we read today’s Scripture we observe that Jesus did not treat these “holier than thou” teachers with the respect they demanded of the people.
How could He do that? Very easy, Jesus was the Son of God and, although He was very man, He was also very God. This gave Jesus the ability to know what was in the human heart. No matter how good the religious leaders looked and acted, Jesus told them that they were full of death.
What would Jesus see in our heart? We may be able to fool family and/or friends, but the Lord knows our heart. He knows if there has truly been repentance and a sincere turning away from the path that leads to death. Pay heed! Your eternal destiny is at stake.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
