by Pastor Cecil | Apr 1, 2014 | 1 Kings
1 Kings 18:20-21
So Ahab sent for all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together on Mount Carmel. And Elijah came to all the people, and said, ‘How long will you falter between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.’ But the people answered him not a word.
There are many who know about Jesus and His saving work, and may even have faith that He is the Savior of the World — but have they been born again? To be born again is much more than simply believing about Jesus — it is inviting Him to be the Lord (the Boss) of your life.
Elijah was a faithful prophet of the Lord. He had the gumption to stand up against the wicked King Ahab and the 450 prophets of Baal. He challenged the people before he challenged the prophets of Baal. He wanted to know whether they stood for God or against Him.
In Matthew 12:30 and Luke 11:23, we read the words of Jesus as He challenged the people of His day: “He that is not with Me is against Me.” That leaves no middle ground for a namby-pamby relationship. If Jesus required a committed relationship then, He still requires it today!
In response to Elijah’s challenge the people remained silent. Their silence answered the question. In the same way our silence to the call to come to Jesus and be born again signifies our refusal to follow. If we desire to be counted as one of His own and have our lives transformed, we must stand up and be counted.
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Feb 27, 2014 | 1 Kings
1 Kings 18:20-21
So Ahab sent for all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together on Mount Carmel. And Elijah came to all the people, and said, ‘How long will you falter between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.’ But the people answered him not a word.
Are you fish or fowl? What do I mean by that question? I am really interested in knowing whether you have repented of your sins, trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ with all of your heart and had your name written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.
There are many who know about Jesus and His saving work . . . even had faith that He is the Savior of the World . . . but have you been born again? To be born again is much more than believing about Jesus—it is inviting Him to be the Lord (the Boss) of your life.
Elijah was a faithful prophet of the Lord. He had the gumption to stand up against the wicked King Ahab and the 450 prophets of Baal. He challenged the people before he challenged the prophets of Baal. He wanted to know whether they stood for God or against Him.
In Matthew 12:30 and Luke 11:23, we read the words of Jesus as He challenged the people of His day: “He that is not with Me is against Me.” That leaves no middle ground for a namby-pamby relationship. If Jesus required a committed relationship then, He still requires it today!
In response to Elijah’s challenge, the people remained silent. Their silence answered the question. In the same way, our silence to the call to come to Jesus and be born again signifies our refusal to follow. If we desire to be counted as one of His own and have our lives transformed, we must stand up and be counted.
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Feb 18, 2014 | 1 Kings
1 Peter 5:8-9
Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.
Back in the 1960’s, I served in the US Air Force at a remote radar site on the northern tip of the Canadian Province of Newfoundland. Our primary task was to protect our nation from attack by warning of possible enemy action.
One of the major elements in defending against aggression is being on alert at all times. I can still recall the long night hours when I was on alert for any sign of threat to our nation. When you are wide awake and expectant, it is much easier to react quickly and appropriately. When the night hours slipped by and our eyes felt like they were filled with sand, it was still necessary to react in a professional manner that comes from long hours of training.
In our spiritual walk we never know when the enemy will mount an attack. We can almost be certain that this attack will occur when we are weary and worn. If we have not spent the time in self examination, prayer, and Bible study, we will be very vulnerable to the attack.
There is one thing we can be sure about–we will meet our Lord face to face. It may be at the moment our eyes close in death or it may be when the trumpet sounds and we are called up to meet the Lord in the air. Either way, we must be on the alert with our lamps burning bright. Are you on the alert?
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Dec 5, 2012 | 1 Kings
1 Kings 17:13
And Elijah said to her,—Do not fear; go and do as you have said, but make me a small cake from it first, and bring it to me; and afterward make some for yourself and your son.
There are many jokes made about fruitcakes. One of the sayings I have heard across the years is that a fruitcake is very good, so long as you use it as a doorstop. I must admit that I tended to have that same opinion for many years.
My view of the lowly fruitcake changed when I was stationed with the US Air Force in St. Anthony, Newfoundland. I had not been there very long when I was invited to a home of one of the warm-hearted residents. I was served, of all things- – -fruitcake! But there was a huge difference. This fruitcake had been frosted with a delicious butter frosting. Wow! What a difference. I was now a fan of the former doorstop.
Sometimes we have been served a gospel message that is dry and hard. It seems that there were some who enjoyed it, but for the most part it remained untouched. Then we encountered a minister or a teacher who suddenly frosted the gospel message with the sweet reality of love, joy, and peace. Suddenly we could not get enough of it.
This is where each of us enters the scene. I think it is vital for us to spend enough time in God’s Word to discover how to make it alive and appealing to those we share our faith with. Being excited about what we discover in the Bible is the frosting on the cake. Please, whatever you do, do not make God’s Word a doorstop!
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
—Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Jun 18, 2012 | 1 Kings
1 Kings 17:13-14
And Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go and do as you have said, but make me a small cake from it first, and bring it to me; and afterward make some for yourself and your son. For thus says the Lord God of Israel: ‘The bin of flour shall not be used up, nor shall the jar of oil run dry, until the day the Lord sends rain on the earth.’”
Over the years of my ministry I have worked with many people who started strong, but somewhere along the way they lost the vim and vigor of their walk with the Lord. It is always heart-wrenching to observe the fire of spiritual commitment burn lower and lower. God had spoken clearly, but then the things of the world slipped and occupied the place that once belonged to the Lord.
In our Scripture for today we are introduced to a widow with a young son. We are told that God told her to provide for His prophet when he appeared. The problem was that the famine had become so severe that the food was all but gone. She had only enough food for one last meal and then she and her son would starve. Into this bleak scene the prophet Elijah appeared.
Rather than being dismayed by her story of impending doom, he asked to feed him first. From a human point of view that seems presumptuous. Here she was on the verge of starvation and he wants her to feed him first.
The reality is that God had spoken to both Elijah and the widow. She focused on the empty flour bin and oil jug. Elijah focused on the word the Lord had given to him. From his faith he assured her that the flour and oil would never run out as long as the drought remained. Not only was this true, but as an added measure of blessing, Elijah was used by God to restore life to the son of this woman. Trusting God instead of circumstances always brings blessings beyond measure.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
—Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Feb 7, 2012 | 1 Kings
1 Kings 17:13-14
Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small loaf of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son. For this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: “The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the LORD sends rain on the land.”
All too often we think of sacrificial giving in terms of foregoing the purchase of some little bauble and giving the money for the work of the Lord. We somehow have the idea that our money is our money and we can do with it as we please. In a way that is true, but the consequences of doing with our money as we wish is dangerous.
I have always been awed by the story of Elijah and the widow of Zarephath. You may recall that there was a terrible drought in the land that God had sent as a punishment of the godless King Ahab, and his wife, Jezebel. I am sure that many had died of starvation and the widow in this passage was near death.
We are told earlier that the Lord had told her that the prophet was coming and she should be prepared for him. I have no idea how long that had been, but there was barely enough flour and oil to make that last meal for herself and her son—then they faced death by starvation. Was it really God who told her to provide when she had nothing.
Incredibly, Elijah told the widow to prepare a small loaf for him FIRST, then make the meal for her and her son. In faith believing, she obeyed and brought Elijah his small meal. We must realize that this was no small gift. It was her ultimate act of sacrificial giving.
Above all else we need to inquire of the Lord what He wants us to give and how we are to do it. An obedient spirit is what the Lord is seeking. It is not the amount you possess, but your willingness to give it all that matters to God. Are you a sacrificial giver?
Blessings dear hearts. Give obediently to the Lord and be a blessing!
—Pastor Cecil
