Wednesday, April 30, 2025

Thirty Weeks of Psalms -- Psalm 4

      For a Psalm of only eight verses, there is a lot for us to unpack in Psalm 4. Starting with verse one, David, the author of this particular Psalm, asks the Lord to hear his prayer. David is distressed over the fact that his enemies are trying to bring shame and hardship upon him. 

     David knew something from experience. He knew that when he called upon the name of the Lord, the Lord heard him and delivered him from those who would seek to do him harm. 

     David says in verse 3, "the Lord has set apart the faithful for Himself." David knew that as long as he was being faithful in following the way of the Lord, the Lord would help him. 

     This is true in our lives. We will have times of trouble and distress as we go about living our lives. However, the Lord is faithful to us. Jesus has told us that He will never leave us nor forsake us. He is the same yesterday, and today and forever. We can count on His promises. We can know that no matter what life throws at us, the Lord Jesus has prepared a home for us in Heaven where we can be with Him and in His presence for all eternity. 

     In this Psalm, David tells us that when distress, hardship and problems come into our lives, that is not a time to be tempted and fall into sin. Hard times often lead people to fall away from the Lord. However, we can rejoice and keep our faith in God because we have the assurance of His love and provision. We know that our Father in Heaven loves us and will ultimately bring gladness and joy into the hearts of those who have placed their faith and trust in His dearly beloved Son. 

     Finally, David's final words in this Psalm can be for us too. He tells us that he will lie down and sleep in peace. This is because the Lord allows him to lie down in safety. We can rest knowing that the Lord is preparing the way before us. The Lord is guiding and ordering our steps until the day we see Him face to face. 

Tuesday, April 29, 2025

Verses For The Week

  Galatians 6:2 -- "Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ."

   Luke 14:11 -- "For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted."

Friday, April 25, 2025

The Weekend Sermon -- "A Second Chance Offered"

      Thank you for taking time to read this week's message. I hope that everyone had a happy Easter. May you all have a good week. 

     Last week, we rejoiced in the fact that Jesus has risen from the dead. He defeated sin, death, hell and the grave. Because He lives, we can have eternal life with Jesus forever if we put our faith and trust in Him. 

     In our message today, I want us to focus on one of the encounters that Jesus had after He rose from the grave. Before He ascended into Heaven, Jesus was on the earth for a period of 40 days. Paul tells us that during this time, Jesus appeared to many people including the apostles and over 500 others. 

     The post-resurrection encounter that I want us to focus on today is found in John 21. First, we need to set the stage. When Jesus was arrested and taken to trial, the Bible tells us that Peter followed to see what was going to happen to Jesus. Over the course of the evening, Peter would go on to deny that he knew or followed Jesus three different times. After his third denial, Peter heard a cock crowing, and he remembered that Jesus said that he would deny Him three times before the cock crowed. Peter was devastated. 

     When Jesus rose from the dead, I am sure that Peter remembered that he had denied the Lord. I am sure that he wondered what Jesus' response would be to him. Would things be the same again? 

     Jesus appeared to the disciples when they were out fishing. They toiled all night but caught nothing. Jesus told them to cast on the other side of the boat, and they did. They made a miraculous catch. Peter knew that it was Jesus, and he swam back to shore to see Jesus. 

     After breakfast, Jesus and Peter took a walk together. Jesus asked Peter three times if Peter loved Him. Peter said that he did love Jesus, and Jesus asked him to feed His sheep. The reason that Jesus did this was to show Peter that He had forgiven Him for each of His three denials. He offered forgiveness and a second chance for Peter to follow Him. Peter accepted Jesus' second chance, and Peter went on to do great things for the Lord. 

     There are times when all of us through the course of our lives do things that we know are not right. We do things that are sinful and displeasing to the Lord. We do things that grieve the Lord's heart. But the Lord Jesus offers us His forgiveness. He offers us another chance to come back to Him, serve Him and follow Him in His way. We have to accept His forgiveness and set about doing the things that He has called us to do. 

     If you have something in your life that is keeping you back from serving the Lord Jesus, confess it and ask the Lord to forgive you. He will. You can then begin again to serve Him and make a difference for Him in this world. Amen. 

Prayer Requests

     After what seemed like a period of improvement at work, things are getting really bad again. I am back to looking for something else. Please pray for me.

     Pray for those recovering from the earthquake in Myanmar and Thailand. Also, pray for those trying to recover from the storms in the southeastern part of the US. 

     Keep praying for an end to the measles outbreak here in the US. Get vaccinated if you haven't been vaccinated. 

     Let us pray for peace. Ukraine needs our prayers for peace with justice. We also need to remember Sudan, Yemen and Congo in our prayers. 

     For our prayer focus countries this week, let us pray for those living in Sri Lanka and Taiwan. Pray that many will come to know Jesus. 

     Next week, I will post the verses on Tuesday. I will start posting the Psalms book on Wednesday. The message will be posted on Friday. May God bless you all. 

Tuesday, April 22, 2025

Verses For The Week And An Update

     I mentioned that I was going to start posting the new Psalms book this week. That will start next Wednesday. Thank you. 

Psalm 24:1 -- "The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it. The world and all its people belong to Him."

Colossians 1:16 -- "For by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities. All things were created through Him and for Him."

Proverbs 12:10 -- "The godly care for their animals, but the wicked are always cruel."

Saturday, April 19, 2025

The Weekend Sermon -- "From Despair To Hope"

      Christ has Risen? Happy Easter to all. I hope that you have all had a good week. I thank the Lord for giving me the opportunity to bring this message today. 

     In this week's previous posts, we've seen that Jesus was betrayed, put on trial, and crucified. While on the cross, Jesus bore our sins in His body according to the Scriptures.

     After Jesus' death on the cross, He was taken from the cross and buried in the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea. A stone was rolled in front of the tomb, and Roman soldiers were placed in front of the tomb in order to guard against the disciples coming to steal Jesus' body. 

     On the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene, along with some other women, came to the tomb. When they arrived, they saw that the stone had been rolled away from the tomb. By the tomb, the angels declared to the women that Jesus was not there. He was alive and had risen from the dead. 

     Later, Jesus would appear to these women and to Mary Magdalene. He told them to go and tell His disciples that He had risen from the dead. 

     What did the women find when they went and told the disciples what they had experienced? They found the disciples in despair and fear. John 20:19 tells us, "On the evening of the first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, 'Peace be with you!"

     The disciples could not understand what Jesus had taught them about the fact that He was going to be crucified and then He would be raised from the dead. They were in fear and they were in despair about what their futures where going to be. And they were not alone. In the book of Luke when Jesus appeared to the two travelers on the road to Emmaus, He found them downcast and in despair as well. They had pinned their hopes on Jesus. The believed that Jesus was dead and gone, and they were in despair. 

     In both of these instances, the Risen Lord turned despair into hope. Jesus appeared in the flesh to His disciples huddled in the locked room. He said, "Peace be with you." Because Jesus had risen from the dead, there was no need for them to fear. Jesus had conquered the grave and was alive forevermore. All that He had told them and promised them had come to pass. 

     The same thing happened with the travelers on the Road to Emmaus. When they were breaking bread with one another, they recognized the Risen Christ. Their despair was turned to hope, because Jesus was the Victor over the the grave. 

     This world was in despair before Jesus came. We were all in sin and darkness. Sin brought death as a consequence because the wages of sin is death. But, Jesus who is the Light of the World came, and His light has overcome the darkness. 

     When Jesus died on the cross He took our punishment and bore our sins in His body. His death dealt with the problem of sin. When Jesus rose bodily from the grave, His resurrection dealt with the consequences of sin. In Revelation chapter 1, Jesus tells John in verse 18, "I am the Living One, I was dead, and now look, I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and hades."

     Because Jesus conquered the power of sin, death and hell, those who are in Christ do not have to fear death. When a person puts his or her faith in Jesus, their sins are forgiven. Those who die in Christ go immediately to be with Jesus in Heaven. When Jesus returns, everyone will receive a glorified body like the glorified body of the Risen Lord. Since Jesus has the keys of death and hades, we do not have to fear death and hell. Jesus is the Victor. 

     You can have forgiveness of sins and new life in Jesus by coming to Him in repentance and faith. Ask Jesus to forgive you of your sins. Believe in your heart that Jesus has been raised from the dead, and make Jesus the Lord of your life. If you come to Him, He will not cast you aside. Whosoever will may come and know the Risen Lord. Amen. 

Prayer Requests

     Please keep praying that I will get to feeling better. I am still having some problems. However, I am doing better in some ways as well. 

     Pray for those in Myanmar, Thailand and in the US Southeast who are recovering from natural disasters. Pray that they will get the help that they need. 

     Please keep praying for an end to the measles outbreak. Also pray for an end to other disease outbreaks in this world. There is still an mpox outbreak in parts of Africa. I believe that there is a vaccine for mpox, so I hope that people are able to obtain it. I know that there is an effective measles vaccine, and people need to get their children vaccinated. 

     Keep praying for peace. Ukraine needs peace. Russian aggression needs to come to an end. Also, pray for peace in Sudan, Israel, Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen and other areas of the world facing conflicts. 

     For our prayer focus countries this week, let us pray for those in the nations of Bhutan and Iraq. Pray that many will come to know Jesus. 

     Next week, I will post the verses on Tuesday. We will be starting something different next week. On Wednesdays, I will start posting 30 weeks 30 Psalms. Please look for that. I will post the sermon on Friday. May God bless you all. 

Friday, April 18, 2025

Good Friday

  God sent to take away the sins of the world. On the cross, Jesus took upon Himself the punishment that we rightly deserved for our sins. He took our sins in order that we might be forgiven and cleansed from all unrighteousness. The Bible says that whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. 

     What I am really focusing on during this Good Friday is the incredible suffering that Jesus went through. First of all, He had the suffering of being betrayed by one of His closest followers. He was then mocked, slapped and ridiculed over and over again. He suffered so much physically. Crucifixion is an incredibly horrific and painful way to be put to death. Jesus suffered as He took the sins of the world upon Himself. And, He suffered as He felt separated from the Father crying out "My God, My God, Why have You forsaken Me?" He did it all because of His great love for us. 

     Whenever I feel physical or emotional suffering, I know that Jesus went through pain and suffering as well. He knows and understands what I am going through. The Bible says that He is a high priest touched with the feelings of our infirmities. I thank the Lord that He is always with me helping me to keep going. 

      Jesus did all that He did for us because He loves us. He desires that all respond to His love and come to Him for forgiveness of sins. He wants to give you an abundant life now, and everlasting life with Him in the future. Call upon the name of the Lord today. 

Thursday, April 17, 2025

Maundy Thursday

      Before He went to the cross, Jesus broke bread with His disciples in the Upper Room. There, He explained to them that the bread represented His body that was to be broken for them. The cup was the representation of His blood that was to be shed for them. Whenever they ate the bread and drank from the cup, they were remembering His death until the time that He was to return to this earth to restore all things. 

     During the time when Jesus instituted the sacrament of Holy Communion, He also washed the feet of His disciples. He was demonstrating for them that they were to serve and not to seek to be served. They were to live lives of service helping each other and helping others to know about Jesus and to have the best lives that they could have while on this earth. 

     Jesus said in John 13:34, "A new command I give you. Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must also love one another." Jesus went to the cross and shed His blood because of His great love for us. He wanted to redeem us from our sins. He wanted us to have a relationship with Him that would last into all of eternity. 

    Jesus called us to love one another because love is what will allow us to be like Jesus in this world. When we love each other, we will want to share the good news of the message of Jesus with others. When we love each other, we will want to help to meet each others needs. We will reach out to the world in love so that others will be able to have a good life. 

    On Maundy Thursday, Jesus demonstrated loving service. He has called us to do the same as we live out our lives until He comes. Amen. 

Tuesday, April 15, 2025

Verses For The Week

 Philippians 4:6 -- "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God."

Colossians 4:2 -- "Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving."


Friday, April 11, 2025

The Weekend Sermon -- "Palm Sunday"

      Welcome to the Weekend Sermon for Palm Sunday weekend. I am glad that you are taking the time to read the message for this week. I hope that all of you are having a very good week. 

     Last week, we finished our series on the topic of faithfulness. Today, I will bring a message centered around Palm Sunday. Next week, the blog schedule will be a little different. I will post the verses on Tuesday, and then there will be posts on Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and I will post the Easter message on Saturday. The following week, I will start posting chapters of the new book on each Wednesday. 

     Palm Sunday has always been one of my favorite Sundays of the church year. In my church growing up, we never really had a special emphasis on Palm Sunday and Holy Week. However, when I started going to another church when I got older, we always had really nice Palm Sunday services. I enjoy the parade of palms and the singing of Hosanna in the Highest. It is good to sing praises to the Lord. One church in my area has a reenactment of Palm Sunday that includes someone acting as Jesus riding into the church on a real donkey. 

     When I think of Palm Sunday this year, I am thinking on two rides. First of all, on the first Palm Sunday, Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. The people praised Him and laid the palm branches in His path. The crowd recognized who He was, if only for a moment. 

     Jesus knew why He was riding into the city and what would occur in just a few short days. He was riding in to die on the cross as the Lamb of God to take away the sins of the world. The people called out Hosanna on Palm Sunday. However, in just a few days, the shouts would turn to crucify Him. We have no king but Caesar. 

     I thank the Lord Jesus that He was willing to come into Jerusalem and die that this universe might be redeemed from what had gone wrong. Because of who He is and what He has done, all of us need to give our praise to the Lord each and every day. Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to be praised and to receive all honor and glory.

    This Palm Sunday, I am also focusing on the fact that the Bible says that at the end of the age, Jesus will make a second ride. The Book of Revelation states that Jesus will return to earth riding on a white horse. The white horse is a sign of power and authority. The Roman rulers often rode in on white horses when they entered cities. Jesus is coming in power and great glory when He returns. He is not coming back as the suffering servant. He is returning as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. His rule and reign will have no end. All things will be restored to the Edenic state. 

     While we are waiting for the return of Jesus Christ, it is important that we follow the example of life that He set before us while He was here on earth. He showed us and taught us the right way to live. Right now, things are hard on this earth. In my country we are having what I see as just the beginning of perilous times. All of those who name the name of Jesus and confess Him as Savior and Lord need to stand firm in following the Way of Jesus in this troubled world. We must stand with Jesus until we meet Him at our death or until we see Him returning to this world to make everything right and the way that it should be. 

     As we serve Jesus now and wait for His return, let us praise the Lord with all that is within us. Let us magnify the Risen King. Amen.

Prayer Requests

     I am still having some health issues, so please continue to pray for me. Thank you. I have survived the stormy weather so far. 

     Pray for those who have been taken to El Salvador and wrongly incarcerated. Pray that the innocent will be released. Pray that no one will be denied the due process of law. 

     Let us continue to pray for those in Myanmar and Thailand who are recovering from the earthquake. Pray that they will receive that aid and the help that they need. Also, pray for those in the US affected by the storms and flooding. Keep praying for Mayotte. 

     Remember to pray for peace. Pray for peace in Ukraine. Pray for peace in Israel, Gaza, Yemen, Syria, Lebanon and Sudan. 

     Here in the US, there is an outbreak of the measles. Pray that people will get their children vaccinated. Pray for an end to this outbreak. 

     For our prayer focus countries this week, let us pray for those in the nations of Singapore and Senegal. Pray that many will come to know Jesus. 

     I have already mentioned what we are doing for the upcoming week. I pray that many people who don't know Jesus as Savior will read the blog and trust in Jesus this week. May God bless you all. 

Tuesday, April 8, 2025

Verses For The Week

 Luke 12:15 -- "And He said to them, 'Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.'"

John 10:10 -- "The thief comes only to kill and to steal and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly."

Friday, April 4, 2025

The Weekend Sermon -- "Faithfulness -- Conclusion"

      I hope that everyone is preparing their hearts during this Lenten season for the glorious time of Easter when we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. He is alive, and because He lives, we will rise with Him when He comes to this earth. 

     Today, I am going to conclude our series of messages about the subject of faithfulness. We will then move into Palm Sunday, Holy Week and Easter with our messages. After that, I have several different things planned out for the remainder to the year. 

     As we close out our series on faithfulness, I want us to look at the importance of being faithful in studying about and carrying out the way of Jesus. The Bible says that Jesus is the same yesterday, and today and forever. It also tells us that we are to look to Jesus and keep our eyes on Him. We are to follow Him in the way that He has shown us to go. 

     In order to be able to faithfully follow Jesus, we have to know what Jesus taught us. We have to learn about His way. One of the ways that we do this is by diligently and faithfully studying the Bible. I urge each of you to read, read and re-read the Gospels. Find out what Jesus said and how He lived while He was here on this earth. I would especially urge you to read what I call the core teachings of Jesus found in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7 and the Sermon on the Plain recorded in Luke 6. Also read and study extensively the Upper Room Discourse found in John chapters 13-16.

     When we know what it is that Jesus taught and what He did, it is then up to us to be faithful in doing the things that Jesus told us to do, and we must act like Jesus here in this world. We cannot just be hearers of the Word, we have to be doers of the Word as well. 

     One of the teachings of Jesus that I have placed a lot of emphasis on is the Golden Rule. Jesus called us to do unto others as we would have done unto us. If we would all be faithful in following this important teaching of Jesus, the entire world would be a much better place than it is right now. 

     The core of Jesus' teaching is that we are to love God with all that we have within us, and we are to love our neighbors as ourselves. Jesus was all about loving others. We are to be faithful in sharing the love of Jesus with others and loving this world just as Jesus did. 

     Let all of us be faithful in following the Lord Jesus. He is the Way. He will always be with us as we faithfully do His will in this world. Amen. 

  Prayer Requests

     So far, the storms have not caused any problems where I live. I thank the Lord for this. Please keep praying that my health will continue to improve. 

     Pray for those in Myanmar and Thailand who have been affected by the earthquake. Pray that they will receive the help and the aid that they need to recover. 

     Continue to pray for those recovering from storms on Mayotte. 

     Let us all keep praying for peace. Pray for peace in Ukraine, Israel, Gaza, Syria, Yemen, Lebanon, Sudan and the other troubled areas of this world. 

     For our prayer focus countries this week, let us pray for those in the nations of Pakistan and Chad. Pray that many will come to know Jesus. 

     Next week, I will post the message on Friday as usual. I will post the verses on Tuesday. May God bless you all. 

Tuesday, April 1, 2025

Something I Want To Say

      I've posted this verse before, but it is very appropriate right now with what is going on in the United States. Leviticus 19:36 -- "The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born." That means that everyone is entitled to the due process of law in this country.

Verses For The Week And Prayer Requests

 Before I post the verses, I have two prayer requests. Please pray that the severe weather predicted for my area this evening will not be too bad. Also, pray for the people in Myanmar and Thailand that they will get the help that they need to recover from the earthquake. 

Psalm 46:10 -- "Be still, and know that I am God, I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth."

Psalm 96:9 -- "Worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness, tremble before Him all the earth."