by Pastor Cecil | Jan 29, 2016 | Matthew
Matthew 28:19-20
“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.”
I was born in 1934 to a humble working class family in the United States. One hundred years earlier, Katherine Hankey was born to a wealthy family in England. Katherine found great joy in sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ with others. She conducted Bible studies all over the city of London.
At age 30, Katherine experienced medical problems that prevented her from leading her Bible studies for one year. It was during that year of rehabilitation that she wrote a long poem about her Jesus. The last part of her poem contains the words of this week’s hymn. The music was composed by William Fisher.
I LOVE TO TELL THE STORY
I love to tell the story of unseen things above,
Of Jesus and His glory, of Jesus and His love;
I love to tell the story, because I know ’tis true,
It satisfies my longings as nothing else would do.
Refrain: I love to tell the story, ’Twill be my theme in glory,
To tell the old, old story, of Jesus and His love.
I love to tell the story, more wonderful it seems
Than all the golden fancies of all our golden dreams;
I love to tell the story, it did so much for me,
And that is just the reason I tell it now to thee.
Refrain: I love to tell the story, ’Twill be my theme in glory,
To tell the old, old story, of Jesus and His love.
I love to tell the story, ’tis pleasant to repeat,
What seems each time I tell it more wonderfully sweet;
I love to tell the story, for some have never heard
The message of salvation from God’s own holy Word.
Refrain: I love to tell the story, ’Twill be my theme in glory,
To tell the old, old story, of Jesus and His love.
I love to tell the story, for those who know it best
Seem hungering and thirsting to hear it like the rest;
And when in scenes of glory I sing the new, new song,
’Twill be the old, old story that I have loved so long.
Refrain: I love to tell the story, ’Twill be my theme in glory,
To tell the old, old story, of Jesus and His love.
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jan 28, 2016 | Romans
Romans 5:1-2
“Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.”
Back during my college days there was always a lot of stress as we waited to get the results of work that we had submitted. As I recall there were comments that sounded like this; “I hope I did okay.” It was not a confident expectation, but a lot of unknown.
In Scripture the word hope is used frequently. In fact it is used well over 100 times. It is interesting that both in the Old Testament and in the New Testament, the word denotes a voice of confidence or expectation.
It is common for us to use the word hope in times when we doubt that it will happen. Advertisers announce a huge drawing in which a large amount of money will be given to some lucky winner. It could be us and we may hope it will be, but our chances are slim to none!
The hope that we read about in today’s Scripture is a confident expectation. God says and He is always true to His Word. Our hope is the kind that rejoices before it happens because we know it will. Confident expectation! That is our hope!
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jan 27, 2016 | Psalm
Sometimes the Word itself is so powerful that to add comment is to detract. Please read and re-read this powerful chapter from the Psalmist David.
Psalm 19:1-14
“The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork. Day unto day utters speech, and night unto night reveals knowledge. There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard. Their line has gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.
In them He has set a tabernacle for the sun, which is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoices like a strong man to run its race. Its rising is from one end of heaven, and its circuit to the other end; and there is nothing hidden from its heat.
The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple; the statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes; the fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Moreover by them Your servant is warned, and in keeping them there is great reward.
Who can understand his errors? Cleanse me from secret faults. Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins; Let them not have dominion over me. Then I shall be blameless, and I shall be innocent of great transgression.’
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer.”
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jan 26, 2016 | Psalm
Psalm 37:23
“The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in his way.”
Have you ever noticed that God’s timing is different than ours? There are times when we roar through life at a frantic pace and wonder why God is not keeping up with us. He promised to direct our steps, so where is He?
The better question would be: “Where are we?” God is the same, yesterday, today, and tomorrow. The same cannot be said about us. We are prone to vacillate back and forth, both in our physical life and in our spiritual life.
One of the problems, as I see it, is the reality that God places “stops” in our life just as frequently as He orders our steps. We seem to believe He will be pleased if we stay busy, but if God is not in it, He will not be pleased if we step when He wants us to stop.
My experience has shown me that those “stops” of the Lord provide the greatest times of spiritual growth as well as the times when He brings about the most fruitful ministry. The next time you feel God telling you to stop … STOP!
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jan 25, 2016 | Isaiah
Isaiah 40:31
“They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”
It just happened again! I encountered two drivers that were in such a hurry that they ignored traffic laws, as well as the laws of common sense. (There are such things you know!)
A car ran a red light and almost hit my car. At the last minute he stopped and avoided a collision. In a separate incident a car was behind me at a stop light and began honking his horn. The problem was that the light was red and it was impossible to proceed. As soon as it turned green I proceeded and the impatient driver tore past me in a rage. Go figure!
I recall Pastor John Hagee tell about being stopped behind a car at an intersection. When the light turned green the car remained stopped. After two sequences of green, he honked his horn and rolled his window down and shouted out; “Either move it or milk it!” As he turned to his left he saw a car with several members of his congregation. They just smiled and asked if he was having a bad day.
It is so easy to get our schedule to the top of our priority list that we impose upon those we come in contact with. Our Scripture for today tells us to wait upon the Lord. That means that we allow the Lord to control our life.
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
