by Pastor Cecil | Feb 12, 2018 | Hebrews
Hebrews 11:7
“By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.”
The definition of spiritual faith is found in Hebrews 11:1: “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Now unless I am missing something, substance and evidence are things that can be touched, held, and collected as exhibits. Faith on the other hand is usually described as being unseen but needing trust to believe that it is real. Hebrews 11:1 melds the two ideas together.
I have often used the analogy of going to a favorite ice cream store on a hot day. The enjoyment of your favorite ice cream cone does not begin when you take your first lick of that delectable treat — it is thinking about it on the way to the store.
In like manner we begin to enjoy the pleasures of our eternal home with the Lord as we walk this pathway of life. We may encounter conflicts, pain, and distress along our pathway, but we can demonstrate our righteousness by believing what God says is true. When we doubt God’s word, we demonstrate our unrighteous nature and this is displeasing to God. God desires for us to trust and believe!
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Feb 9, 2018 | Luke
Luke 24:29
“But they constrained Him, saying, ‘Abide with us: for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent.’ And He went in to tarry with them”
If you knew that you were very near the end of your life, what would you write? The author of this week’s hymn, Henry F. Lyle, was preaching his final sermon to the small congregation he had served for over 20 years. He was so weak that he had to be helped to the pulpit.
He encouraged his parishioners to rely on the Savior who loved them enough to die for them. His prayer, reflected in this hymn, is a prayer that each of us can breathe when we approach the valley of death.
Abide With Me
Abide with me—fast falls the eventide;
The darkness deepens—Lord, with me abide;
When other helpers fail and comforts flee,
Help of the helpless, O abide with me!
Swift to its close ebbs out life’s little day;
Earth’s joys grow dim, its glories pass away;
Change and decay in all around I see;
O Thou who changest not, abide with me!
I need Thy presence every passing hour;
What but Thy grace can foil the tempter’s power?
Who like Thyself my guide and stay can be?
Through cloud and sunshine, O abide with me.
Hold Thou Thy word before my closing eyes,
Shine thru the gloom and point me to the skies;
Heaven’s morning breaks and earth’s vain shadows flee
In life, in death, O Lord, abide with me!
Enjoy this week’s free inspirational video from Gloryscapes.com. To access Abide With Me, this free inspirational video from GloryScapes.com, please go to: http://www.gloryscapes.com/abidewithme/
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
—Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Feb 8, 2018 | Matthew
Matthew 8:34
“And behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus. And when they saw Him, they begged Him to depart from their region.”
Picture the scene: Jesus had just released two men who had been under the power of demons. They were now set free! The men must have been rejoicing with Jesus and His disciples about how free they felt. They now had new life and a new hope. Jesus had done what no other power on earth could do!
In their demon-possessed state they had been rejected by the community because of their violent behavior. Now that they were delivered they must have wanted to tell their friends and family the good news, but they just had to spend more time talking with Jesus. Before they could leave, the villagers came out to them. Instead of rejoicing with the healed men they were angry. The men who had tended the swine had rushed into town to complain that the swine had perished.
Not only did the people refuse to celebrate the miraculous healing of these men who had been demon possessed, they demanded that Jesus leave them alone. That is very similar to the way some sinners treat Jesus in our own day. Sometimes people become so comfortable in the sin of indifference that they demand to be left alone. They REJECT the Lord who offers them eternal salvation in order to remain in their perceived comfort zone. They fail to see they reject their own salvation.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Feb 7, 2018 | Matthew
Matthew 28:12-14
“When they had assembled with the elders and consulted together, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers, saying, ‘Tell them, ‘His disciples came at night and stole Him away while we slept.’ And if this comes to the governor’s ears, we will appease him and make you secure.”
Having spent over twelve years in the military, there is one thing I learned well — you do not receive rewards for sleeping on duty. If the disciples had in fact stolen the body of Jesus from the tomb, no cover-up would have been necessary. Why did the elders intervene and pay the guards bribe money to say they had fallen asleep? They must have known the guards had not been negligent in their duty, or no hush money would have been offered.
If they had seriously believed that the disciples had stolen the body of Jesus, there would have been a massive investigation and a search for the body of Jesus. Why were they not concerned about searching for it? They knew that Jesus had risen from the tomb just as He said He would!
Why did they pay up to have the guards shut up? The answer is very clear. Any public exposure would have affirmed that He had risen, so they devised a lie to cover the truth. They even placed themselves in jeopardy with Pilate by agreeing to cover for these guards. The very act of the cover up goes a long way in proving that Jesus rose from the grave. Which story do you believe?!
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Feb 6, 2018 | Psalm
Psalm 18:2
“The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.”
I was born and spent the first twelve years of my life in Camas, Washington. Just over 20 miles east of Camas is a huge basalt rock about 840 feet high known as Beacon Rock. When I think of a huge hunk of rock I think of Beacon Rock. It has weathered the storms of winter and the blazing heat of summer, yet it stands tall and strong.
When I think of my spiritual rock I think of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the one who created Beacon Rock and all of the other rocks on the face of our globe. He is the Blessed Creator of all things! He never changes regardless of the storms of life.
We need a strong rock like Jesus to see us through the trials and tribulations of our life. The reality is that we all pass through storms that threaten to overwhelm us. It is during these times that we need to anchor our life in the Rock of our salvation.
Who is your rock? Do you place your trust in some human being that is destined to die like every other human? That is not a wise and safe source of strength. While we need the comfort and counsel of others, even more so we need a redeeming Savior who loved us enough to become the rock of our salvation!
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
