Tag: church

What are You Producing?

Matthew 21

matthew 21 19

After Jesus had cleared the Temple of the merchants who were selling things in his Father’s house, Jesus approached a fig tree because he was hungry. Unfortunately for Jesus, the fig tree didn’t have any figs on it. At that moment, Jesus spoke to the tree and it completely withered up. His disciples were amazed by this, and were confused why this had happened. I understand the disciples’ confusion because it took me a long time to figure out why this story was in the Bible. What in the world is this talking about? Why would Jesus choose to wither a tree?

 

After much study, I found that this was a parable of Jesus, although one that was lived out. God’s people that were doing terrible things in God’s Temple were the same as this fig tree; they were not producing any fruit. Because the tree didn’t produce any fruit, Jesus rejected it and allowed it to crumble. The message could not be more clear: if God’s people aren’t producing good fruit, they will crumble and wither.

 

Jesus talked about “bearing good fruit” many different times, but I want to discuss just two. In John 15, Jesus said that we cannot bear fruit without living in communion with him. You cannot produce anything of substance if Jesus isn’t part of your daily life. Just as a branch cannot produce fruit without being attached to the trunk, we cannot produce anything if we are not constantly attached to Jesus.

 

In Matthew 7:15-20, Jesus says that we will know people by the fruit that they produce, whether good or bad. If we see an apple on a tree, we know that it is an apple tree; if we see a pear, we know that it is a pear tree. In the same way, if we see good fruit being produced, we know that person comes from Jesus. On the other hand, if bad fruit is being produced, we know that that person is from somewhere else.

 

So the question for you today is this: “What are you producing?”

Are you producing the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23), or are you producing the same thing as all the sinners in this world? If you aren’t producing good fruit, it is time to reconnect with the Lord of your life, Jesus Christ. We cannot do it without him.

 

-Talon Paul

Don’t Give Up on Them

Matthew 20

for the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard.

In Matthew 20:1-16, Jesus gives a very interesting parable about a landowner who hired some people to work on his land. He hired one man early in the morning, one at 9:00 am, one at 12:00 pm, one at 3:00 pm, and another at 5:00 pm. At the end of the day, all of them received a day’s wage, which they had all agreed to. Understandably, the one who was hired first was upset that he received the same pay as the person who started at 5:00 pm. The landowner simply told him that he agreed to work for that day’s wage and wasn’t being unfair.

 

This parable is talking about people’s salvation. There are some people who have been saved for many, many years; they have dedicated their life to Jesus, served in the Church for years, and made many disciples through their lifetime. Then there are people who come to faith at the very end of their lives, sometimes repenting on their deathbeds. However, in the eyes of God, both those people have the same reward waiting for them: life in the Kingdom of God.

 

There are at least two things we should learn from this parable. The first is that it does not matter when someone comes to salvation; we should rejoice that they came to faith at all! We shouldn’t view them differently than we view someone who has served for years in the church. Everyone who accepts Jesus has received the same salvation, according to Romans 10:9-10. We need to be happy for that individual, not jealous or bitter towards them.

 

The second lesson we learn here is that we should never give up on people. As long as there is still breath in their lungs, we have a shot at blessing them with the gospel. Just because a friend or family member that you know has rejected the gospel right now, doesn’t mean that they will never accept it. There is always an opportunity for their salvation in God’s eyes. Our job is simply to try and plant a seed in their life, and allow God to cause the growth (1 Corinthians 3:5-6). So do not give up on that person you have been working with, no matter how hopeless the situation may seem; you do not know what God could be doing in their hearts.

 

-Talon Paul

What Fills YOUR Heart?

Matthew 12

matthew 12 34 b

We find in Matthew 12 that Jesus hasn’t slowed down. In fact, all the surrounding naysayers,  the Pharisees, are turning the criticism up. They were obviously feeling threatened. What I find most interesting though in these 50 verses is how familiar it all sounds. Just like then, the Pharisee in many of us now is also killing the mission and effectiveness of the church too.

 

Not uncommon in today’s age is to view a Pharisee as bad, yet the Pharisees were, to some extent, well-meaning people. They studied the law and knew it as well as anyone. Some were sincerely seeking God. After all, Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea, both Pharisees, arranged for Jesus’ burial. They were sympathetic to Christ and, from what I can tell, ultimately ended up following him. The mission of the early church was radically advanced by a converted Pharisee – Paul. The irony is the people who declared to love God the MOST ultimately killed his offspring when he showed up to heal and teach the nation.

 

Rightfully, Jesus condemned the Pharisees for their pride, lack of compassion and hypocrisy. Observe some of their exchanges in this one chapter alone and you might find it leaving a bad taste in your mouth, too. They were always trying to trip him up and I can’t recall one time where he was praised for his tireless work.  In verse 34 Jesus compares the Pharisees to a cluster of snakes and remarks “for the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.” How all too often do I find myself under pressure or stressful situations looking to my own self-justification and self-importance, just like the Pharisees. Denying God is exactly what I do when my attitude justifies me more than reflecting the heart and love of Christ.  

 

The religious leaders of the time were obsessed by their rules and detailed interpretations of the Old Testament law but they had largely ignored the key points of it – justice, mercy and faith. Oh that we learn this lesson in our congregations today opening wide the doors to welcome in the broken, bruised and hurting. Jesus is interested with reality. It is easy to pretend that everything is okay and that we have everything together. If we want to pretend that everything is fine when it isn’t that is up to us, but we shouldn’t expect other people to live up to the standards that we are pretending to live by.

 

The gig is up for me. I won’t do it anymore. My heart is full and declaring just like Paul that “but for the grace of God go I.” (1 Corinthians 15:9) I am imperfect and Jesus is restoring me everyday. Use me, Lord, as you will to build your church.

 

-Julie Driskill

God’s Word in My Life

isaiah 55 11

                I grew up in the Church.  From the time I was a baby I’ve been in Church.  I’ve been taught the Bible my entire life.  As a preacher’s kid I sat and listened to my dad preach every Sunday.  I remember as a child sitting in Sunday School and being captivated by the flannel graph stories (look it up, it’s a real thing).  I would see the picture of the ark, and the different animals gathered 2×2 going into the ark.

                I still have my first Bible.  It was an illustrated children’s Bible, it had a zippered case.  I read the Bible stories and enjoyed looking at the pictures.  When I was six my mom taught me to say the 66 books of the Bible in order.  It made it much easier to follow along and look up verses.  I could also easily win the “sword drills” a kind of contest to see who could look up various verses the fastest.  I even learned to memorize some verses.  John 3:16, Psalm 23 and John 11:35 were some of my early favorites.  I like John 11:35 because at church camps they often had you quote a verse from memory as you were in the lunch line.  John 11:35 was the shortest and easiest verse in the whole Bible to memorize: “Jesus wept.”

                I was baptized when I was eleven and I began to take my Bible study more seriously.  I would read whole chapters and whole books of the Bible.  I became aware that not all people read the Bible exactly the same way.  The Church I attended came to certain conclusions about what the Bible said, and people of different denominations came to different conclusions.  Sometimes their conclusions didn’t make sense to me and I wondered why they didn’t see things the same way that my Church did.  I puzzled over this for many years.

                When I graduated from high school and began college my goal was to become a doctor.  I wanted to help people, and make a decent living.  Doctors checked off both those boxes.  But while I was in college I got a part time job working in a Christian bookstore.  I had some friendly discussions with my boss who was a Christian but from a different denomination.  As I shared with him what I believed he shocked me by saying that he didn’t think what I believed was right, and he wasn’t convinced that it was Christian.  Now I had a job on my hands.  To show from the Bible that what I believed was indeed Christian.  He and I spent the next year debating the Bible.  Literally, he would make a premise and give his defense.  I would read it, and write my response.  Then I would make a premise and give my defense, and he would read it and give his response.  Over the next year we traded hundreds of pages.  I found myself staying up late every night pouring through the Bible looking up verses (this was long before internet searches).  I was thinking about the Bible day and night.  So much so that I wasn’t really spending much time reading the class material at college.  Somehow economics, biology, philosophy, psychology and sociology just weren’t as interesting to me as Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

                One night I realized that what I really enjoyed doing was studying the Bible.  Then I realized that if this was my passion then it didn’t make sense to study to become a doctor, I should study to become a pastor.  I made my decision to leave the university and to attend Bible College. (By the way, you don’t need to become a pastor in order to make the Bible central to your life.  We need good doctors, lawyers, teachers, carpenters, mothers and ditch diggers who immerse themselves in the Bible as well.)

                As I was getting ready to leave for  Bible college I said my goodbyes to my friends and co-workers.  After a year of studying and debating the Bible with me my boss said, “You haven’t convinced me to believe as you believe, but you have convinced me that what you believe is Christian.”  I felt I had achieved a small win.

                For more than 30 years I’ve been reading, meditating upon, teaching, preaching, writing about, and counseling others with the Bible.  It is the foundation of my whole life.  I’ve read small passages slowly and repetitively so they could sink deeply in (lectio divina).  I’ve read large portions quickly to see the grand sweep of God’s story.  I once read the entire Bible in a two week period of time.  (8 hours a day for 2 weeks and you can read it cover to cover).  It was amazing!

                Do I regret choosing to be a pastor instead of a doctor?  Well, I make less money as a pastor than I would have made as a doctor.  But I realize something very important.  Doctors are very important but they don’t have all the answers.  This came to light several years ago when I became a hospital chaplain.  One day I was called in to sit with a young mother  whose husband had been in a serious accident.  The doctors were trying to save his life.  She was in the waiting room with two small children hoping that he would survive.  I sat with her and prayed with her.  Eventually, two young doctors came into the waiting room.  They were residents,  which means they were young in their practice.  They stood before the woman and told her that they had done all that they could, unfortunately, they couldn’t save her husband.  They then looked at each other, and then looked at me and said, “We’ll leave you to talk with the chaplain” and they left the room.  I realized that this was what God had called me to be.  The one who people turn to when all else had failed and their world has fallen apart and not even the best of science and technology can fix it.  When all that humanity can do comes up short, we are left with God and God’s Word.  And that is by far the most powerful thing in all the world.  God’s Word Never Fails.  A passage of the Bible that has been important all my life comes from Isaiah 55.  God’s Word will accomplish what God desires.  May you immerse yourself in the only truth that can truly save.

Isaiah 55:6-13

Seek the Lord while he may be found;
call on him while he is near.
Let the wicked forsake their ways
and the unrighteous their thoughts.
Let them turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on them,
and to our God, for he will freely pardon.

 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the Lord.

 “As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.

 As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,
 so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

 You will go out in joy
and be led forth in peace;
the mountains and hills
will burst into song before you,
and all the trees of the field
will clap their hands.
Instead of the thornbush will grow the juniper,
and instead of briers the myrtle will grow.
This will be for the Lord’s renown,
for an everlasting sign,
that will endure forever.”

J.Jeffrey Fletcher, MDiv, BTh, CSD,  Chaplain, Valley Health

So Much to Consider

Hebrews 10_24
Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
Hebrews 10:22‭-‬25 NIV
In this day and age, it’s not always easy to be real.  The influence of social media has pressured most of us into unrealistic expectations.  The constant “everything is the greatest ever” post, or the crazy filters that make us all look like models.  But reality is different, and you know what?  That’s just fine for God.  He wants our best no doubt, but he also wants us exactly how we are right now. That’s why we should draw near to him with a sincere heart, God knows us intimately already, so there’s no reason to try and fake anything with Him.
Knowing that we’re accepted just as we are, should put us at ease. With that we also know we are forgiven, we were bought with the price Jesus paid.  This means we don’t have to carry the baggage that sometimes comes with the regret of decisions made.  This can be really freeing for some.  So if we’re able to be real, and we know we’re forgiven, what’s next?
This scripture says to let us consider how to spur one another on to love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, and encouraging each other.  This implies that we should take time to think of ways to help and encourage our brothers and sister in the church.  Can you imagine how great church could be if we all made it a priority to be there as much as possible, and continually thought of more ways to encourage one another?  What if we made it a priority to spend time together outside of the four walls?  We could change the world. Maybe that’s a bit optimistic, but I do know we would at least change ourselves.
-Jerry Briggs

Building Others Up

1 Thess 5 11

1 Thessalonians 5:11

We are social beings. We were created by God to interact both with other humans and God himself. It doesn’t matter if you believe in God or not we need each other to keep living healthy stable lives.

 But in the Church, the most important part of interacting with one another is that we are able to build each other up. Being a part of the church does not mean you passively sit in a pew or chair 1 or 2 days a week waiting for the preacher to tell you how to live your life. It means building relationships and getting to know each other and helping with each person’s needs.
I know if I did not have my friends and family and other church members that I would be lost. I wouldn’t be as successful or as well taken care of as I am today. I am so grateful for the people in my life who have taken the time to get to know me and to share life with me. But it hasn’t always been the same people.
This Sunday, don’t just sit next to the same people you always sit with. Try to move around and change it up. Get to know new people and ask what they need help with, maybe even pray WITH them. Just go and be social with your Christian Family.
-Jesse Allen

Provision, Patience and Perseverance

ruth 3 18

Ruth 3:14-23

In the first half of Ruth 3 we find that Boaz responds favorably to Ruth’s advances and proposition. However there was an obstacle keeping them from moving forward in their relationship. Boaz explained to Ruth in verse 12 that even though he is her kinsman there was another relative closer in line that would have a stronger claim to her hand.  When Ruth is leaving Boaz after sleeping at his feet, under his cloak on the threshing floor Boaz tells to bring him the shawl she was wearing. When she holds it out to him Boaz takes 6 measures of the barley that he had been sleeping on the threshing floor protecting and gives them to her. He remarks that he doesn’t want Ruth to go back to Naomi empty handed, most likely as a sign of his acceptance of Ruth’s advances and to continue providing for them. I love how Boaz consistently takes up this role and responsibility as a provider in the way he takes care of both Ruth and Naomi. In many ways love relationships really do mirror Christ and the church — especially in the way God loves and cares for His people.
When Ruth returns to Naomi and tells her everything that happened — her first response is that they must wait. Naomi is sure of Boaz’s intentions and that he will move forward in settling the issue of another kinsman closer in relation to marry Ruth. We can see Ruth, Naomi and Boaz acting faithfully with patience and perseverance in this passage.  Ruth was patient — not making her requests known to Boaz until the time was right as was Naomi. Boaz too made sure to go through the right channels to pursue Ruth and who knows how long he had patiently been waiting for a woman to be available that had her character.
Is there an area in your life or situation where you aren’t trusting God’s leading and patiently waiting for his provision?
Shelby Upton

 

Our Life is a Letter

2 Corinthians 3 2 (1)

“1Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some people, letters of recommendation to you or from you? 2You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everyone. 3 You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.”

2 Corinthians 3:1-3

 

Have you ever had to write a letter of recommendation for someone or had one written for you?

 

In this passage the Corinthians are requesting a letter of recommendation from higher up disciples to prove that Paul is doing the work of the Lord. Paul explains to the Corinthians that their life should be his recommendation letter, a confirmation of his teaching.

Imagine if your life was a letter, open to anyone to read, and when they read it they would know exactly who you are, what you stand for, your convictions, your beliefs, your faith or the lack of. Paul is saying our life is a letter written on our hearts through the Holy Spirit. How we live confirms the message of the gospel. It’s a way for others to see and understand why we dedicate our time, money, and energy into church, ministry, mission work, church camps and much more. When we face the king on judgment day we will not be getting a letter of recommendation from our pastors or parents saying why we should be in the kingdom. Instead Jesus will read the letter of our hearts and our life.

If our life is a letter open to the world to read what do you want people to read? What kind of letter are you going to allow the spirit to write upon your hearts? And will you choose to follow it?

 

-Elleigh

Generation to Generation

rebecca 6

It brings me so much joy to see youth and young adults pursuing ministry. It is wonderful to see the next generation serving other members of the church and the community in the name of Christ. Young people that “get it”. They want to make a positive difference and make an eternal impact on the world around them.

I am so thankful for the people who were there for our generation. The adults that worked, studied, served, and prayed with us. Our Youth Workers’ commitments to our church and faith were evident in their church involvement.  I was so blessed because I got to serve alongside so many solid servants of Christ. We did the little, insignificant things along with the big stuff. It didn’t matter if it was unclogging a toilet, doing a food collection, visiting a nursing home, rolling coins after a fundraiser, working on a broken down church bus, speaking or singing in a worship service-whatever the task, our Youth Workers were working it out beside us. They spoke with encouraging words of wisdom and instilled confidence as we overcame difficulties that stood in the way to completing our mission. After all, a true follower of Christ is willing to present the gospel, help others, even wash some dirty feet…

The Apostle Paul had the opportunity to bring countless generations of people to Christ. We are still learning from his writings today. Timothy had the chance to learn from him first hand. Paul refers to Timothy as “my true son in the faith”. He had worked alongside Paul for years and had served the churches. Paul made sure that Timothy understood and practiced the essentials of the Christian faith. He also prepared him for leadership.

Paul informed him in 1 Timothy 3:15, “But if I am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth.” Paul wanted Timothy to know how to serve the Church, how to deal with problems and encourage the people to grow in Christ.  He warned him about terrible times in the last days because of how evil many people would become (2 Timothy 3:1-5). He also passed along a charge, “But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (2 Tim. 3:14-17)

What great advice for all generations!

-Rebecca Dauksas

More Letters for You

 

2 peter 3 17

God’s Word has so much wisdom, teaching and blessing for us today.  We are not so different from the early church and the words that God gave the writers of the New Testament letters still very much apply to us today.  If God were to send a letter to you today –  which of His New Testament letters would he send to you?   Don’t forget to read God’s Mail to you today!

Today we will be looking at the 8 books called the General Epistles (or Letters) which make up the 4th division of New Testament books.   There is a lot of wisdom in these books.

Hebrews – Jesus is Better than…Anything!

It is unknown who wrote the book of Hebrews, though some suggest it may have been Paul.  It was written to remind and convince the Jewish Christians that Jesus is the Messiah.  It appears the Jewish Christians had already endured much persecution for their faith in Jesus – perhaps rejection by their Jewish family and friends who didn’t accept Jesus as the Messiah.  Some were rethinking their commitment to Jesus and were thinking of returning to their Jewish roots and Old Testament law.  The author of Hebrews was writing to show that Jesus is superior to the prophets, angels, Moses, the priests and the whole Old Testament law.  Jesus is the NEW high priest who made the ultimate, perfect sacrifice so we could enter a new and living covenant with God.  The book was written to encourage the Jewish Christians to not give up, to persevere in their new faith and to “hold unswervingly to the hope we profess for he who promised is faithful.” (10:23).

James – Faith in Action

This book was written by James, the brother of Jesus and a leader of the early church in Jerusalem.  The five short chapters that make up the book of James are sometimes compared to the Old Testament book of Proverbs because it contains so much wisdom.  In this letter, James teaches several short sermons on how to live a Christian life on a daily basis.  Over half of the verses contain a command or instruction for Christian brothers and sisters – such as “If any of you lacks wisdom he should ask God,” and, “Everyone should be quick to listen and slow to speak and slow to become angry.”  James stresses the importance of LIVING out your faith – with actions consistent with your Christian faith.  It is not enough to say you are a Christian and you love God and your neighbor.  You must DO it daily.  If Hebrews tells us WHY to become a Christian (because Jesus is better than…), then James is where we learn HOW to be a Christian.

1st & 2nd Peter – Stand Against Trouble

Written by Simon Peter, one of the disciple who, with his brother Andrew, left his nets to follow Jesus.  Peter was far from perfect (denied Jesus 3 times), but he would be the ROCK on which the church would be built – and we see that taking place in the book of Acts.  In 1st Peter he is writing to encourage the church that is being persecuted by the Roman Empire.  He writes, “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.  Be self-controlled and alert.  Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.  Resist him, standing firm in the faith.”  (1 Peter 5:7,8).  We would be wise to remember and live by these words as well.

1st, 2nd & 3rd John – This is Love

Written by John, the disciple and close friend to Jesus who also wrote the gospel of John.  In the 5 chapters of 1st John, the word ‘love’ is used 35 times and it also reoccurs in the next two letters several times as well.  The “beloved disciple” John, writes of God’s love, and our love for God – as well as our love for our brothers and sisters.  John emphasizes that in order to love God we must obey his commands – which means loving others.

Jude – Beware of False Teachers

Written by Jude who identifies himself as James’ brother (perhaps making him also Jesus’ half-brother).  It would just about be quicker , and no doubt much better, to read Jude’s book of 24 verses than to read my overview.  He says he would have liked to write about salvation available to all believers, but instead he felt the need to warn the church of the importance of testing those in the church to see if they are saying or doing anything contrary to God’s Word.  He writes of immoral men using God’s grace as a license for follow their own evil desires.  He likens them to the residents of Sodom and Gomorrah, and says a similar fate awaits them.  He urges the church to remain true to their faith and to “snatch others from the fire” (verse 23).

 

God’s got a lot to say to you because He loves you and wants to see you in His Kingdom – more on that tomorrow!

 

Don’t Let it Sit Unread in Your Mailbox!

-Marcia Railton