Can you have chocolate chip cookies without the chocolate chips? They wouldn’t be chocolate chip cookies any more would they? They would just be plain.

I have done something similar to this while making pancakes. I set out all of my ingredients that I needed for the recipe and mixed them all together and began to cook them. However, as I was cooking them in the pan, they didn’t “feel” like the normal pancakes that I usually make. They just weren’t turning out the same that they usually did. I suddenly realized what I had done: I forgot to put in the oil (or butter, I can’t remember which). Instead of nice, soft pancakes, they were turning out rather tough and stiff. They were more like bread than pancakes.

I could put in all those other ingredients, but when I forgot to put in that oil, they just weren’t pancakes anymore.

In the same way, you can do all sorts of things for others, giving to the poor, helping someone in need, but if you don’t do it with charity, it is of no profit for you.

“Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.

And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.

And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.” 1 Corinthians 13:1-3

Charity is benevolence, kindness, or brotherly love towards others.

For example, someone could see another person with a flat tire on the side of the road, and stop to change the tire for them, but not do it actually caring for the other person, like, “Good grief, don’t you know how to change your own tire?” 

“Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.” 2 Corinthians 9:7

After all, who wants to receive a gift from someone who doesn’t seem like they want to really give it in the first place? If it is not done in love, it is no profit to them. 

Jesus died not because He was forced to, but because He loved us. Because of Christ’s love for the world, we now have access to eternal life. Which is how we need to treat every one else: with love. 

When we have charity towards others, it will be forgiving when someone makes a mistake. It will forget and move on when someone repents and asks for forgiveness.

“And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins.” 1 Peter 4:8

Charity(love) will think about the needs of others. It will be patient, and kind. Whatever we do, whether it is making a cup of coffee for someone, or giving someone food or money, whatever it is, we need to do it with love.

In Christ,

Andrew

“Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.” Ephesians 4:29

What does it mean if something is corrupt? The word “corrupt” means “in a depraved state; debased; perverted, morally degenerate; weak in morals.” 

For example of the word corrupt, sometimes you will read or hear about a story of someone, or a group of people in government (peace officers, judges, mayors, govenors, etc) that have been “paid off” to look the other way to criminal offenses. I know that back in the 1920’s in the United States, some of the elected leaders in a community would be paid off by “mob bosses” to ignore the illegal activity that they would be doing. That would be called a “corrupt government,” where to a normal citizen they would see a judge as a someone who stood against crime, but in reality they were a part of the crimes themselves. Instead of doing what was right and moral according to the law, they were crooked, perverse, or “corrupt.” 

So when it says to let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, it means that we should not speak in a way that is “perverted” or “morally degenerate.” Corrupt communication would be using your speech to slander others, tell lies, verbally injure someone, speak evil, blaspheme against the Lord, or otherwise speak very foolishly. The kind of speech that does nothing to help another person become better or improve.

The Pharisees spoke evil of Jesus, saying that He cast out devils through the prince of the devils, which is blasphemy. They attributed Jesus’ works to the devil. 

“But the Pharisees said, He casteth out devils through the prince of the devils.” Matthew 9:34

Lying would be another form of corrupt communication, as it is morally wrong. Lying about someone shows that they don’t have love for them. 

Using the Lord’s name in vain would also fall under this category. Our Lord’s name is a great, holy, sacred thing, but some people use it as an exclamation of displeasure. They aren’t calling on His name in prayer or thanks, but they use it in an unholy manner.

Instead of using your voice to speak evil things, we should use our speech to edify others, which means to build them up. We should use our voices to sing praises to God, not to sing about wicked and sinful things. Instead of using your voice to spread lies, we should speak the truth.

Edify means to instruct or improve someone morally or intellectually. To “build them up” so to speak. Screaming curse or profane words at someone does not help them. It does not improve their life, or help them to change. In fact, it usually only serves to further anger or rile up someone. If someone is showing love and kindness, it is a good thing to tell them to keep it up, that they are doing a very nice, good thing. That kind of speech is edifying to hear.

The tongue can be used to speak good, and it can be used to speak evil. Without the guidance of the Holy Spirit, we cannot truly control our speech, as it says in James.

“But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.

Therewith bless we God, even the Father; and therewith curse we men, which are made after the similtude of God. 

Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be.” James 3:8-10

We need to pray for the Lord to help guide our speech.

“Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips. Psalm 141:3”

Use your voice for the glory of God. Don’t let it become tainted with evil speech, or perverse words. Keep your speech pure.

In Christ,

Andrew

Good morning and welcome in today. Today we’re going to take a look at the following passage of scripture.

James 2:10-13

¹⁰ For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.

¹¹ For he that said, Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art become a transgressor of the law.

¹² So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.

¹³ For he shall have judgment without mercy, that hath shewed no mercy; and mercy rejoiceth against judgment.

Before we start today, I want to make sure that you understand why the Old Testament law was set forth by God. It was there so that the whole world would become guilty before Him.

Rom 3:19 “Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.”

John 7:19 “Did not Moses give you the law, and yet none of you keepeth the law? Why go ye about to kill me?”

The law was there for a season to convict people of their sinfulness. It was there to show each of us that we can’t get to heaven without God’s help. We all need forgiveness with him.

You know, many people today have the ” I’m better than you syndrome.” That’s what I like to refer to it as.

In the eyes of God, we’re all equal. We are all equally sinful. Each of us are in desperate need of his forgiveness and mercy.

The problem with this syndrome is that people will justify or minimize their own sinfulness while looking at others and embellishing and inflating the problems of others in order to make them feel like they are not so bad of a person.

The Apostle Paul refered to himself as a wretched man. The people involved with this syndrome will not accept this truth but will quickly point the finger at other people to get the monkey of sin off of their back.

You may have stole the lunch money at school when you were a kid and then did nothing else the rest of your life, but if you don’t come to Christ and get forgiven for that sin you will end up in hell with everybody else who is impenitent. There will be people who are cast off into hell someday who we’re very important people in this world.

The life that we spend here on the earth is not about being better than others, it’s about helping others. It doesn’t matter if you’ve sinned one time, or 1000 times, we’re all equal in the eyes of God, because it only takes one sin, to keep you out of heaven. The disciples were trying to help the people of the church out of their sinful condition which is God’s calling for each of us.

The “I’m better than you syndrome”produces an elevation in your own heart and mind. It happens because perhaps you haven’t sinned as many times as others.

Christianity has nothing to do with being better than others. It has to do with being forgiven with God for your sins. If you are incapable of forgiving others you’re going to end up being unforgiven by God.

Each of us make mistakes along the way but we have Grace available through Christ and God wants us to be forgiving with each other. Remember, if you have committed just one sin, you’re guilty of all. Just take a look at one sin committed in the Garden of Eden. Because of just one sin they were cast out of paradise.

I’m better than you syndrome produces an elevation in your own heart and mind that just because you haven’t sinned so many times, you are better than others. It causes your heart to rise up with pride.

It only takes one sin to be guilty of everything. If you’ve committed one sin, you’re just as guilty as everybody else. This is a hard concept for some people to accept but it’s true. Because the punishment is equal for one or a thousand sins that makes everybody who sins equal in the eyes of God. That really makes you think, doesn’t it? It’s the great leveling. We truly are all equal, equally sinners in God’s sight.

One equality that we share in this world is that we are all sinners, there is nobody that is better than anybody else. You may have judgmental feelings towards somebody else, because they committed some wrong to you, but remember, we have all wronged God. All of us have sinned and come short of the glory of God. This is why each of us need to show mercy to others otherwise God will show none to you.

It’s easy to sit in judgment over other people for the purpose of looking down on them. Judgment in the church is not meant to look down on other people, but rather it is meant to help the offending party. You can have numerous gifts and abilities in the church, but if you lack love and compassion for others, you’re missing the whole point.

Many years ago, I heard a saying that when you sit and point your finger at somebody else, there’s three fingers pointing right back at you. Judge not lest ye be judged.

Matt 7:1-5

Judge not, that ye be not judged.

² For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.

³ And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?

⁴ Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?

⁵ Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.

Many people like to stand in judgment over others not to help them to become a better person but because they want to be in control or an authority over them. If you are in a place of authority and incapable of helping your neighbor out of the dirt to become a better person where’s the love of God in your heart? If you’re incapable of helping a neighbor who is suffering where’s the love of God in your heart?

I’m better than you syndrome focuses on the misdeeds of others rather than yourself. What you do is point the finger at everybody else rather than taking a look at your own sinfulness in your own heart. The law was there to show us that each of us are sinners and because nobody kept the law we want to be forgiving with each other. Whether somebody is a judge or a king, a prince or president, nobody is immune to the fact that each of us are sinners who need forgiveness with Christ in order to inherit eternal life. As God forgives us daily, we want to be forgiving with each other.

Christianity is about taking a look inside of your own heart instead of just standing in judgment over other people. The Old Testament law was there to teach us that we are all sinners. If you have sinned one time you’re equal to those who have sinned a thousand times.

Regardless of what people think, the church is a place that is filled with sinners. Each of us have certain weaknesses there we are trying to overcome. One person may have committed bank fraud while another person committed adultery. One person is a habitual liar while another may have committed fornication. Whatever the sin may be ,each of us are equal in the eyes of God.

When we become a Christian, each of us can get forgiven for our sins, through the blood of Christ. The Lord Jesus gives us an opportunity to change and turn from our sinful condition.

In the church we cannot look at another person and point the finger at them and say I’m better than the person across the aisle. We can never point the finger at others to say I’m better than them because I never commit fornication or adultery or I never stole from anybody else. The reason why is because we’re all forgiven sinners.

Matt 9:10-13

¹⁰ And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold, many publicans and sinners came and sat down with him and his disciples.

¹¹ And when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto his disciples, Why eateth your Master with publicans and sinners?

¹² But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick.

¹³ But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.

Think about our perfect Lord Jesus Christ, who came down from heaven above. He came down from the most perfect wonderful place, to be to this sinful world and walked amongst us. Jesus didn’t condemn this world to death.

If we truly have the mind of Christ, we want to save other people from their sinful condition. We want to help other people to get past their problems. We don’t want to be a stumbling block to others, but lift them up when they fall. Many people suffer from the I’m better than you syndrome today. They really feel like they are better than others, while the truth is, they’re not.

In this age of God’s mercy and grace, God extends His forgiveness freely to the entire world, as an opportunity for people to be in heaven with him, but we have to call upon his name.

The New Testament law is the law of liberty. True freedom is freedom and forgiveness from your sins. That’s why instead of having the I’m better than you syndrome, we have to realize that we’re no better than anybody else. We need to show each other mercy. We need to show each other compassion because He will have judgment without mercy that have showed no mercy.

We’re supposed to have judgments in the church. But these

judgments are meant to help people become better. They’re meant to help the people to grow. God offers us forgiveness and grace. If you can’t offer that to others, God is going to show you no forgiveness. That is too scary for me to contemplate.

Mercy is one of the greatest things that you could ever have from God. It covers a multitude of sins and washes and cleanses our minds of our faults and our mistakes.

Jesus forgives us of our sins, and he expects us to be forgiving with each other. We’re all the same in the eyes of God, a wretched world of loss, sinners who all are in need of God’s help. Each of us need to take a look into our hearts.

Christianity is to confess our faults to Him and come boldly to the throne of grace of His grace in time of need. He forgives us freely and forgets our past. When you get forgiven what does it cause you to do? It causes you to rejoice and call upon his name.

I’ve always thought that forgiveness can change our hearts. Without forgiveness, it’s just judgment. So let us not judge one another anymore, but judge this rather that no man put a stumbling block in his neighbor’s way.

Help one another to become better. Lift a brother up when they fall down. Restore others in the spirit of meekness because the truth is we’re all the same, a bunch of sinners who are on the need Gods forgiveness.

So think about those things for today and Lord willing, we’ll talk to you some more tomorrow. Till then bye Bye, everybody.♥️

tlkjbc.wordpress.com

“Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:10

To persecute means “to pursue in a manner to injure, grieve, or afflict; to beset with cruelty or malignity; especially, to afflict, harass, punish, or put to death for one’s adherence to a particular religious creed, or mode of worship.” Some synonyms would be oppress, harass, or distress.

If someone is persecuted, it basically means that someone is being punished for something they did or something they believe in. A quick example: a child in school might be teased or bullied for any number of reasons. Maybe they are “overweight” in someone’s eyes, and they are bullied, or persecuted, for the way they look. Maybe they aren’t as smart as other children, and they get “made fun of.” Or possibly they come from a poorer family, and need to use “hand-me-down” school items like backpacks, folders, etc, and because of this they suffer at the hand of others.

Places like North Korea, China, and several other Middle Eastern countries are some of the most perilous places on Earth for Christians. If someone professes belief in Jesus in some of these countries, they can be imprisoned, tortured, placed in forced labor camps, and even killed. I have read stories of entire stadiums that have been filled with people, and forced to watch as pastors are executed. Women and children imprisoned and forced to work in mines. All because they believe in Christ.

The persecution of Christians is nothing new. From the time that Jesus came to the Earth, those who worship the one true God have been persecuted for their beliefs. 

I used this recently but Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were thrown into a fiery furnace, not because they did something evil, but because they wouldn’t bow down and worship an idol. And although they came out unharmed, they still suffered persecution for their belief.

Persecution can even come from inside your own family. It is sad when someone becomes a Christian and your own family turns against you because you are trying to do what is right from the Bible. Before you were a Christian, they didn’t have any problem with the lifestyle you lived, out in the world. But when a person gives their life to Christ and lives for Him, all of a sudden you are a terrible person in their eyes and you suffer persecution from them. 

Look what happened to Abel. Abel gave the best that he had to God in an offering which God was pleased with, while Cain didn’t. Because Abel did what was right, he suffered persecution at the hands of his own brother, as Cain killed him. 

Again, look at the life of Paul. Once a high Pharisee in Judaism who used to persecute Christians himself, Paul converted over to Christianity and became the thing that he used to try to destroy. His transformation was so great that a while after he had been converted, his fellow Jews sought how they could put him to death. Paul(Saul, at that time) wasn’t out hurting others, killing people, or doing otherwise evil things, he was out there trying to save people’s souls from damnation. He preached the truth and he suffered many, many persecutions for the name of Christ. He gave a list of some of the things he had to endure.

“Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one. 

Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep; 

In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; 

In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness.” 2 Corinthians 11:24-27

What ever persecutions a Christian has to endure, we can have comfort knowing that Jesus will reward us for our faith.

“Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 

Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. 

Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.” Matthew 5:10-12

Persecution is something that you need to accept will happen as Christians. After all, Jesus Himself was persecuted. He was reviled, beaten, and crucified. Why? Because He was a criminal? No, He was persecuted because He showed love. He healed sickness, healed lame men, cast out devils, gave sight to the blind. Any one of these things should have been a clear sign to everyone who witnessed it that this was no ordinary man. He showed the world love, and the world hated Him. 

So it should be no surprise when the world hates you for your faith in Jesus. As Jesus said,

“Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.” John 15:20

Do not be discouraged or dismayed if you suffer persecution at the hands of others for the name of Christ. Hold fast to your faith. Rejoice, and leap for joy that you have been counted worthy to suffer for His name. People can persecute you, beat you, take away all that you have, even take your life, but they can never take away your faith. 

Blessed are the persecuted.

In Christ,

Andrew

Good morning and welcome in today. Today we’re going to take a look at some scripture from 1st Corinthians chapter 13 but before we do that I wanted to tell you a little story.

A few years back on a really hot sunny day one of our fans decided to give out. We had grown accustomed to that fan blowing some nice cool air in our living room but now it was broken and had to be replaced. What we decided to do was to run into town and purchase another one.

After about an hour of searching we found a perfect size fan for our house. It looked like it was going to work out fine for us. We got home that afternoon and it was very warm outside and we couldn’t wait to sit down and feel that cool breeze blowing through our hair. We set that new fan up on the dining room table and turned it on and what do you know, it didn’t work! We tried everything. We plugged it into a different extension cord but it didn’t work. We kept flipping the switch on and off trying different positions but the fan would not budge an inch. As we sat there sweating we stared at that fan and realized that we were going to have to return it because it was defective.

When something is defective it fails to work. It means it’s imperfect or faulty. In the church we are learning to walk in perfect charity. If somebody truly has this divine quality in their heart it will last forever. It is completely without defects or flaws. It is the mark of perfection in a Christian’s life.

1 Cor 13:8 Charity never faileth

Imagine going into your kitchen and turning on the light switch but nothing happens because the light bulb is burned out. True charity will never fail. If it truly is God’s love it is eternal. It has a constant glow like a warm fire. The form of love in the world is very temporal and worldly but God’s love is forever.

Rom 8:35-39

³⁵ Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?

³⁶ As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.

³⁷ Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.

³⁸ For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,

³⁹ Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

To separate means to keep or set apart to disconnect or to sever.

The apostle was absolutely convinced about the love of God found in Christ Jesus. No matter what you might go through in your life,… no matter how much people may cause you to suffer in this world,.. the Apostle teaches that we are conquerors through him that loved us. A conqueror is somebody who is victorious.

You can be stripped of everything you own. You can have friends and relationships who turn their back on you but nothing in this world can separate you from the love of God found in our Lord Jesus Christ.

Look at all the sufferings that men of God have had to endure through thousands of years. The Apostle John was hated by this world but he knew how much God loved him.

1 John 4:20 – If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?

1 John 3:15 – Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.

The Apostle Paul went through numerous amounts of suffering for the sake of the Gospel, but understood without any doubt how much God loved him.

2 cor 11:24-28

²⁴ Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one.

²⁵ Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep;

²⁶ In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren;

²⁷ In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness.

²⁸ Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches.

Because the scriptures teach us that God is love, love is eternal and never fails. His eternal love will not fail us.

Deuteronomy 31:8 – And the LORD, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.

Deuteronomy 31:6 – Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.

Forsake means to renounce give up or to abandon. People in the world may abandon you but God does not do that to us. Abandon means to desert, forsake and leave without intending to return.

Hebrews 13:5 – Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

In the world there are many people who will leave you but always remember Christ says I will never leave you. Just as the sun rises each morning and sets each evening God’s love is constant and never ending. To fully recognize this love that God has for you is like being a blind man who can be able to see for the very first time.

What each of us need to do in the church is to become a spiritual sponge. We need to soak up the love that God has for each of us and spread it around to each other and people in the community.

This world is in desperate need of forgiveness, mercy and love. The church needs to take the charity that we’ve been given and give it to the world. There are so many families and children from broken homes who need to hear that God loves and cares for them immensely. Jesus loves them so much that He laid down his own life for them at the cross so that they could have forgiveness with God.

John 3:16 – For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

The next time you sit next to a river I want you to watch as the flow of the water never stops. You can watch for hours a day but it never ceases to flow. God’s love is forever and is never ending. Christ Jesus is a well of water flowing up into eternal life. Many things can fail in life like my living room fan, but Gods love won’t. Remember that the next time you feel alone. Christ’s love is right there.

That’s where I’m going to stop for today, but Lord willing, I’ll talk to you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye bye everybody.♥️

tlkjbc.wordpress.com

“Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:” 1 Peter 1:8

What are some things that you cannot see, or haven’t seen?

One thing that I can think of right away would be the air. I cannot actually see the air, but I know it is there because each time I breathe my lungs are filled with oxygen.

A sailboat works by using the wind to propel it through the water. But wind is invisible. How does someone know if it is a good day to go sailing? Even though you cannot see the wind, you can see the effect that it has. If it is windy, the leaves in the trees will shake and blow around, and you can see the wind blow across the surface of the lake, creating waves that crash into the shore. You might not physically be able to see the wind, but you believe it is there.

One last thing. How do things decompose? What causes it? Bacteria. Unless aided by a powerful microscope, the human eye cannot see bacteria as it breaks down organisms. I once accidentally left a fish in the bottom of my fishing boat. After I had come home from the lake, I parked the boat and completely forgot about it. About a week went by and I decided to go fishing again and do you know what was left of that fish? Nothing but the skeleton, because the bacteria had eaten away and decomposed it. I didn’t see it, but I know that is what happened.

We cannot physically see God, but we can see what He does, and His creation. Everytime a new creature is born, it is because God created it. Every baby that is born each day and takes it’s first breath, was created by God. Each tree that bursts forth out of the ground was created by God. I don’t physically need to see something created or born to know that God is real, I accept it through faith. 

Faith is complete trust or confidence in someone or something. It is belief that is not based on physical proof.

I didn’t see God create the world in 6 days, but I have faith in the account that is written in the book of Genesis. I didn’t see Jesus heal a blind man. I didn’t see Him walk on the water. I didn’t see Him die on the cross and be risen up on the third day, but I believe it happened because that is what is written in His holy scriptures. That is faith. Believing in things unseen.

When Jesus showed Himself to His disciples after He had risen from the tomb, the disciples were filled with joy. But one of the disciples, Thomas, wasn’t there to witness it. When the other disciples came to Thomas to share with him the news, he wouldn’t believe it.

“But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. 

The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the LORD. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe. 

And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you. 

Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. 

And Thomas answered and said unto him, My LORD and my God. 

Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.” John 20:24-29

It was only after Thomas had physically seen Jesus that he believed that He was risen. 

I have faith in the word of God when it says that all who call on the name of Jesus will be saved. (Romans 10:13) I believe when it says Jesus is preparing a place for us and will take us to be there with Him when He returns.(John 14:2-3) I don’t need to see it with my own eyes. I believe that all scripture is inspired by the word of God (2 Timothy 3:16). 

It takes faith in Jesus to admit your faults and mistakes. If someone didn’t have faith in Him, why would we need to be forgiven? It is when we admit the fact that we are sinners and come to Jesus asking for forgiveness, that we can have our sins washed away. Someone who doesn’t have faith will not do this. 

I know that without Christ in my life, I would be lost, drowning in my sins. I would be in the dark, living after the lust of the flesh. But I have found the Light, I recognize my need for a Savior, and I am going to live the rest of my life in the service of Christ. Because I believe.

In Christ,

Andrew

What happens when you tell a child not to do something? They usually want to know why.

I can remember years ago being told not to do a specific thing, but it just made me want to know why. Why can’t I do it? What will happen if I do? 

One time I can remember I was told not to do something, and it only made me want to do it even more. I was once told to not roll big snowballs and roll them onto the street. “But it’s so fun” I told myself. “What harm will come of a few snowballs?” Meanwhile the voice of my parents rang in my mind, not to do it. Unfortunately I fell to the temptation, and did it anyway. It is the rebellious nature in our flesh that causes this. “Don’t do this,” “I’m gonna do it anyway.” I knew I wasn’t supposed to do it, but I did it anyway. 

It is a war in your mind. One side says something is good and okay to do, and the other side says it’s not. You have the Spirit and you have the flesh.

In the garden of Eden, they were told not to eat of the fruit of the tree of knowledge and good and evil. What happened when Eve was tempted by the serpent? She fell to that temptation. She wondered why they couldn’t eat from the tree, because the serpent told her that it was good to eat. The serpent said

“Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?

And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:

But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.

And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:

For God doth know that in that day ye eat thereof, your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.

And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.” Genesis 3:1-6

So you see, she knew that they weren’t to eat of the tree. She said so herself. Yet the serpent convinced her that it was okay to do, and she ate of the tree anyway. She did what she knew she wasn’t supposed to do. 

That is what happens in our mind. Like the cartoon of a devil on one shoulder and an angel on the other, our carnal mind fights against the spiritual. We are tempted to do what is wrong and evil, while the Spirit tells us not to. Our carnal mind wants to hit someone back when they hit you, but the Spirit says to love and do good to your enemies. 

Whenever we are tempted, we need to resist it, and overcome those temptations. James wrote, “Submit yourselves therefore to God, Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” (4:7)

When times of temptation arise, that is when we are tested.  Will we stand or will we fall? Will we succeed or will we fail? I know with the help of Christ, you will stay strong. 

In Christ,

Andrew

“Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? 

Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? 

Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? 

And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: 

And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? 

Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? 

(For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. 

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. 

Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.” Matthew 6:25-34

When we place our faith and trust in Jesus, we don’t need to worry about what we are going to eat, or what we are going to wear. 

Instead of worrying about these things, we should focus our attention on seeking God. When we put Him first, God will see this, and He will take care of you. As it says above, God takes care of all of the animals and He gives them everything that they need. We just need to place our faith in Him, and let Him take care of us. 

Remember when Jesus fed the five thousand? They followed Jesus all day, listening to Him preach and healing their sickness. What did Jesus do for them? He fed them. The disciples told Jesus to send them away to go and buy food for themselves(Luke9:12), but Jesus took care of that need. With five loaves of bread and two fish He performed a miracle and the whole multitude was filled, with even more to spare.

A second time, another multitude of people followed Jesus for three days, seeking to be healed from Him and hear Him. Three days!

“Then Jesus called his disciples unto him, and said, I have compassion on the multitude, because they continue with me now three days, and have nothing to eat: and I will not send them away fasting, lest they faint in the way.

And his disciples say unto him, Whence should we have so much bread in the wilderness, as to fill so great a multitude?

And Jesus saith unto them, How many loaves have ye? And they said, Seven, and a few little fishes. 

And he commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground. 

And he took the seven loaves and the fishes, and gave thanks, and brake them, and gave to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude. 

And they did all eat, and were filled: and they took up of the broken meat that was left seven baskets full.

And they that did eat were four thousand men, beside women and children.” Matthew 15:32-38

For three days that crowd followed Jesus. I don’t know if some of them had brought any food with them when they started on that first day, but by the third day you know they were hungry. But they continued to seek Him. Jesus knew what they needed, and He provided it for them. 

A personal story I have is one time we had an unexpected bill come in the mail that needed to be paid. At that time we didn’t have much money to spare, and we didn’t know where we would come up with the money to pay it. For the next few days we prayed to the Lord, asking Him to help us, and we left it in His hands. One day, with about a week left until the bill was due, we received a letter in the mail from our car insurance company, and inside it contained a check. Apparently we had been overbilled or something at some point, and the amount of the check was enough to take care of our bill. I know some people could just say that it was purely a coincidence, but I know better. Someone who says that doesn’t have faith in God. I know that God saw our faith in Him and heard our prayers. We sought Him first, placed it in His hands, and He helped us.

Today is enough that anyone needs to focus on. When tomorrow comes, then you can deal with it. Don’t worry about things in the future, but instead focus on putting God first. He knows what  you need. Do you know everything that will happen tomorrow, or later this week, or even later this year? Then don’t worry about it. Just focus on today. One day at a time. 

In Christ,

Andrew

Good morning and welcome in today. Today we’re going to take a look at a passage of scripture from The Book of Psalms but before we do that I wanted to tell you a story.

Many years ago I was coming home one afternoon from work. I was fairly young and still living at home but when I was on the highway that afternoon I saw somebody having trouble with their vehicle. I can’t recall who it was but I remember them having problems getting their car started.

I’m a terrible mechanic but I do know a few things in case of an emergency. I lifted up the hood of their car, and had them try to turn it over. It sounded like they didn’t have any power going to their starter, so I figured I’d start out with the most simple thing, cleaning and tightening the battery connections.

I didn’t have any tools so I asked them if they had a wrench. They had no tools in their car either. Suddenly out of the blue an older man pulled up, walked right up to me and said do you need a crescent wrench? With a smile he gave me the one that he had in his right hand.

Five minutes later the car was back on the highway and we all went our separate ways. This is my story of a helper who was helping another helper.

Have you ever had anybody reach out to help you in your time of need? It’s a great thing to have a helper. Jesus is the greatest helper that has ever been.

Psalms 54:4 Behold, God is mine helper: the Lord is with them that uphold my soul.

When you help somebody else it means to make it easier for them by doing something for them or offering one’s services or resources.

It’s to give or provide what is necessary to accomplish a task or satisfy a need; contribute strength or means to; render assistance to; cooperate effectively with; and to aid and assist.

Isaiah 41:10 – Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.

Listen to the words of the most perfect helper ever, our Lord Jesus Christ.

John 14:14 – If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.

When you have a chance to take a look at the book of Exodus chapter 14 you can read about the events of Moses and the Israelites trapped against the edge of the Red Sea. The Lord spoke to Moses in Ex 14:14 and told him…..

¹⁴ The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.

¹⁶ But lift thou up thy rod, and stretch out thine hand over the sea, and divide it: and the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea.

God helped Moses and the Israelites in their time of need.

Psalms 121:1-8  I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help.

In Genesis 6, the Lord reaches out to help Noah from the destruction of the entire world. He helps him by instructing him how to build an ark that would save him and his family from the coming flood. He helped Noah in his time of need.

Hebrews 13:6 – So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.

When you help somebody else in a sense it’s coming to their rescue. Look at how many people Jesus helped while he was here upon the Earth.

John 21:25 And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen.

Isaiah 50:7 – For the Lord GOD will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded:

Isaiah 41:13 For I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee.

As the Lord helps us, He wants us to help one another.

Luke 10:30-37

³⁰ And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.

³¹ And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.

³² And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.

³³ But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,

³⁴ And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.

³⁵ And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.

³⁶ Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?

³⁷ And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.

God wants us to help one another because He is the greatest helper there is.

In the Book of Genesis God created a helper for man. She was created for the sole purpose of attending to his needs each day.

Gen 2:18 And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.

Remember to help is to give or provide what is necessary to accomplish a task or satisfy a need of someone.

Matt 8:1-7

When he was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him.

² And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.

³ And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.

⁴ And Jesus saith unto him, See thou tell no man; but go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them.

⁵ And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him,

⁶ And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented.

⁷ And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him.

Notice in both of these events how Jesus says “I will.”

The greatest thing that He has ever done to help all of us, is to lay down His own life as a sacrifice for our sins at the cross. We need lots of help because we are all sinners. He gave up his own life to help us. Nobody can ever say that help is not available with God. He is the greatest helper that we could ever know and His name is Jesus. He’s ready and willing to help you too. Have you called upon his name for help lately?

Let’s think about those things for today and Lord willing we will talk to you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye-bye everybody.♥️

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