by Pastor Cecil | Jul 8, 2014 | Revelation
Revelation 3:2-3
Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have found your deeds unfinished in the sight of my God. Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; hold it fast, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you.
In 1963, as a new Second Lieutenant in the US Air Force, my first assignment was at Lackland AFB in San Antonio, Texas. I was officer in charge of the basic training records of the new Air Force recruits that were processed at Lackland. Basic training is always an extremely stressful ordeal and you never seem to get enough sleep.
Each day we had basic training recruits assigned to do the janitorial work in our building. On a particular day one of the men assigned to our building was given the task of wiping down the baseboards of the main office.
The Senior Master Sergeant in our division directed my attention to this recruit. His arm had been going back and forth along the baseboard, but had stopped as he had fallen sound asleep with his head leaning against the wall.
For some humor we decided to have a little fun at his expense. We stood over him and had someone shout as loud as possible, “ATTENTION!” His eyes opened and he saw the two of us, an officer and an NCO, standing over him. It was a shock he would not soon forget. We assured him that we would not report this.
In like manner, we often fall asleep instead of remaining faithful to the task the Lord has assigned to us. I pray that the Holy Spirit will wake us to the task at hand as we open the Word and hear “ATTENTION!”
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Mar 5, 2014 | Revelation
Revelation 3:3
Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; hold it fast, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you.
I do not think I could drive without rear view mirrors. They give a proper perspective about what is going on around you as you drive. Sometimes there are dangers from behind you that you need to consider.
As born-again believers, it is important that we look into our spiritual rear view mirror frequently. It will keep us from being rear-ended by situations that might otherwise overtake us.
It is important for us to remember that our enemy, Satan, prowls around like a roaring lion. If I am correct, lions hunt in groups called prides. Often the roar of one will cause the prey animal to panic and run into the waiting jaws of other members of the pride.
As we travel through this wonderful life that the Lord has given us, we need to do so with caution. It is not that we are to be paralyzed by fear, but we need to keep our eyes peeled in all directions. The safest route we can take is staying close to our Lord by reading His Word and conversing with Him in prayer all through the day and night.
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Aug 27, 2013 | Revelation
Revelation 21:4
He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.
When I read passages like this, I really get homesick for heaven. The thought that everything that causes us pain here will be passed away is beyond our comprehension. All of us experience pain. Pain is of different types—physical, emotional, spiritual, to mention a few. Our tolerance to pain is interesting to observe. It is always more interesting to observe pain in others than it is in ourselves! In heaven all pain will end!
Many years ago I was volunteering to work on remodeling a church. There was a young man in his twenties who was also part of the work detail. Suddenly we heard this young man scream in obvious pain and rushed in to see if he may be fatally wounded. We discovered him holding his finger and dancing around in circles as he continued his loud screams. It was only a small sliver. We were not too sympathetic and gave an impromptu mimicry of his display. He was indignant and protested that there was even blood. We were not impressed!
In contrast I recall traveling with our high school football team the year after I graduated. I was standing on the sidelines when one of our players was tackled just a few feet from me. We were all cheering for him when I heard him softly mutter; “Rats, I just broke my arm!” It was so casual that we thought he might be teasing. We were wrong and he was right—it was broken!
What a difference in the manner in which people perceive the pain they experience. Pinprick-sized cuts can hurt and broken bones can hurt, and family conflicts can hurt, and being unappreciated can hurt, and being falsely accused can hurt, and being ill can hurt—we could go on for a long time. The bottom line is that pain is a reality of life.
Praise God, there is a light at the end of our tunnel of pain! Athletes, as well as others, are sometimes forced to work through their pain for the good of the desired objective. They know that the goal is worth the agony. We would do well to learn that lesson ourselves. But there is a time coming when pain will disappear!
I love the book of Revelation. It gives meaning and direction to everything else in Scripture. I heard of a noted Bible scholar who had been teaching an in-depth study of Revelation. An older man in the class came up to him following one of the last classes and said he could sum up the Book of Revelation in two words. The scholar scoffed until the old man said, “Jesus Wins!”
As long as we are alive we are almost certainly going to encounter pain. We have a choice of allowing the pain to become the focus of our attention, or to endure the pain in order to accomplish what Christ calls us to do for Him.
The hope and vision that propels us is that our pain will end. The Apostle Paul has already said it better than I could ever phrase it: 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
—Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | May 21, 2013 | Revelation
Revelation 22:21
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
Sunday morning, just before the service, one of our youngest members came up to me with her Bible open to the last verse in the Bible, Revelation 22:21. She was thrilled with the words of blessing that were given to the Apostle John to encourage believers of all ages.
I have been thinking about this passage since that time and reflecting on the meaning of the word grace. I have heard it defined as the favor of God at the expense of the shed blood of His precious Son, Jesus Christ.
Jesus came into the world for the purpose of giving us His grace. He loved the world to His very own death. Did we deserve it? No! Did we need it? Absolutely! You see, we can never be good enough to earn salvation. Salvation is never achieved by being good enough or doing enough good deeds. It is only by the grace of our Savior that we have salvation.
Let me be very candid at this point. If you think you have received salvation by holding membership in a particular group or by doing good deeds, you are mistaken. We are saved ONLY by confessing our sins and inviting Jesus to be the Lord of our life. If you have not done that before, please, I implore you to do it immediately.
As we read through the book of Revelation we discover the plan and purpose of God to be fulfilled in and through Jesus Christ. Years ago I heard a minister quote an older member of his congregation sum up the book of revelation in two words: JESUS WINS!
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
—Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Dec 26, 2012 | Revelation
Revelation 2:4-5
Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love.Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent.
The commercial turmoil of the season has been in full swing for weeks and months now. While Christmas Day 2012 has come and gone, there is much hectic furor still to be found as people rush to stores in order to return items that were too small, too large, too garishly loud, too blah, too – – – you get the picture.
There has been a slight increase of interest in things spiritual these last few weeks as people sang Christmas carols, attended Christmas pageants and watched programs on television that emphasized the birth of the Savior of the world. The problem is that all too quickly most have lost their interest.
In the Scripture for today, the Lord reveals to the Apostle John a letter to the church in Ephesus. This was a dynamic church that was complemented for their labor, patience, abhorrence of evil deed doers, and false teachers. But there was something lacking—they had lost their first love.
It is possible for us to have activities that are spiritual in nature and have wonderful intentions, but lack the love that first existed when we were new Christians. Now is the time for us to perform an evaluation of our walk with the Lord to determine if He would find that we still possessed the first love for Him. I pray that we will be found worthy of His name.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
—Pastor Cecil
by Pastor Cecil | Nov 26, 2012 | Revelation
Revelation 5:9b
You are worthy to take the scroll, and to open its seals; for You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation.
One of my favorite ministers of days gone by was Major Ian Thomas. He was a commissioned officer in the British Army during World War II and later gave himself totally to serve as a minister of the gospel. His unique manner of presenting the gospel has challenged countless hearers.
One of the quotes that I recall Ian Thomas making in reference to the atoning work of Jesus Christ was from a sermon preached entitled, A GRAIN OF WHEAT. The life He lived qualified Him for the death He died. The death He died qualifies us to receive the life He lives.
Our qualification for serving the Lord is not based upon how devoted, spiritual, or good we are. It is not by the many works of righteousness that we have done or ever will be able to do that will qualify our standing and relationship with the Lord. It is the work that was completed on the cross. He died that we might have life and have it to the full.
A vital question remains: What have we done and/or what are we doing with the life that we have received from the completed work of Jesus? Are we living in life and victory or do we drag along in the death and defeat of our own resources? We need to come alive in Christ and share the life with those around us.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
—Pastor Cecil
