"Here am I! Send me." Isaiah 6:8
Today Pastor Stan talked about the gap between our basic need of salvation and the Biblical mandate to then serve God. He said “People come get saved to go to heaven, not to serve God.” It is an amazing statement Isaiah makes here because just moments before he cried out:
“"Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, The LORD of hosts." Is. 6:5
Why was he so convinced of his unworthiness to be in the presence of God? He had seen the King. Pastor explained it was more likely that he had only seen a glimpse of God’s glory because he would not have survived had he actually seen God. That said, Pastor went on to say, “If you could see a true vision of heaven and hell you would never have a tough time serving God again.” What happened to Isaiah between “Woe is me…” and “Here am I.”
And he(Angel of God) touched my mouth with it(hot coal from the alter of God), and said: "Behold, this has touched your lips; Your iniquity is taken away, And your sin purged." Is 6:7
This is representative of the purging of our sins at the point of salvation. So at this point Isaiah has received forgiveness of his sins due to his willing repentance. It is at this point that God says:
"Whom shall I send, And who will go for Us?" Is 6:8
Here is where Isaiah replies:
"Here am I! Send me." Isaiah 6:8
This conversation is important because it is not enough that we accept salvation from our sins. We must approach our relationship with God as a opportunity to thank Him by serving Him. Christ did not die on the cross so we could sin at will and still go to heaven. He gave His life so we could choose to serve God and bring Him glory. Pastor wrapped up by telling that Grace is for ignorance of the Word not rebellion to God. I don’t believe we can out sin God’s grace but I also don’t intend to test that theory.
The short answer is you will live forever. Do you intend to live out eternity in heaven or hell? Like Pastor said, if you had any idea what the options were truly like you would never have a tough time serving God again. Let the words of Isaiah be the antem for the rest of your life.
"Here am I! Send me."
FWC Podcast
Monday, March 28, 2011
2/27/2011 Can You Handle the Truth?
The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! This is He of whom I said, 'After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was before me.' John 1:29,30.
To introduce this verse Pastor informed us that the Bible has a mistake. This is a contradiction in the time line of John’s narrative. John is speaking of Jesus here but how could Christ have been before John if John was born first?
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. John 1:1.
Christ has always been. He was never created. He simply has always existed. To me this little exercise Pastor took us through has a profound importance. I have heard many people talk about how Christ could have been a teacher or prophet. Pastor talked about how many will try to say He was a good man but not God. Right here in John, that option is taken away from us. If Jesus had been born one second before John then when John says, “He was before me” he could simply have been talking about birth order. The fact is He wasn’t born first. So when John says Jesus came before he is clearly speaking of Christ’s eternal nature. His place as the Messiah, He is the Son of God. No way around it that is what he is saying.
Like Pastor has said, you don’t have to believe it, but don’t lie to yourself about what the bible says. This is not a matter of believing the Pastor about who Christ is, John spells it out clearly and plainly. Without that understanding of Christ’s Godhood, we cannot understand the significance of the Cross. He wasn’t a great man, Jesus is God amongst us.
But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. John 1:12, 13
We are all born of woman but unless we are born again, born of God we cannot have the right to become children of God. Pastor laid this out for us simply, to be born again you must believe in your heart and confess with your mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord. We must ask Him to forgive our sins and we must pledge our love and devotion to Him in gratitude.
Jesus answered and said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." John 3:3
Now the problem is that no matter how simple or obvious the truth, some people frankly don’t want to know it. When asked, most people would say they want to know what is true, but Christ is the fulfillment of all truth. Genuine seekers will always end up at the cross. We all want the best life possible but we spend our lives seeking it in the world and only find pain.
"But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you." Mathew 6:33
Unfortunately, many people who have been fooled to believe they are too smart to need Jesus will find themselves suffering eternally in Hell for their arrogance. Please don’t be one of them. Believe in your heart and confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and ask him to forgive you your sins. He will make you one of His children. Do this now and begin to discover the fullness of what life could be.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. II Corinthians 5:17
To introduce this verse Pastor informed us that the Bible has a mistake. This is a contradiction in the time line of John’s narrative. John is speaking of Jesus here but how could Christ have been before John if John was born first?
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. John 1:1.
Christ has always been. He was never created. He simply has always existed. To me this little exercise Pastor took us through has a profound importance. I have heard many people talk about how Christ could have been a teacher or prophet. Pastor talked about how many will try to say He was a good man but not God. Right here in John, that option is taken away from us. If Jesus had been born one second before John then when John says, “He was before me” he could simply have been talking about birth order. The fact is He wasn’t born first. So when John says Jesus came before he is clearly speaking of Christ’s eternal nature. His place as the Messiah, He is the Son of God. No way around it that is what he is saying.
Like Pastor has said, you don’t have to believe it, but don’t lie to yourself about what the bible says. This is not a matter of believing the Pastor about who Christ is, John spells it out clearly and plainly. Without that understanding of Christ’s Godhood, we cannot understand the significance of the Cross. He wasn’t a great man, Jesus is God amongst us.
But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. John 1:12, 13
We are all born of woman but unless we are born again, born of God we cannot have the right to become children of God. Pastor laid this out for us simply, to be born again you must believe in your heart and confess with your mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord. We must ask Him to forgive our sins and we must pledge our love and devotion to Him in gratitude.
Jesus answered and said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." John 3:3
Now the problem is that no matter how simple or obvious the truth, some people frankly don’t want to know it. When asked, most people would say they want to know what is true, but Christ is the fulfillment of all truth. Genuine seekers will always end up at the cross. We all want the best life possible but we spend our lives seeking it in the world and only find pain.
"But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you." Mathew 6:33
Unfortunately, many people who have been fooled to believe they are too smart to need Jesus will find themselves suffering eternally in Hell for their arrogance. Please don’t be one of them. Believe in your heart and confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and ask him to forgive you your sins. He will make you one of His children. Do this now and begin to discover the fullness of what life could be.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. II Corinthians 5:17
2/20/2011 Do you want a Fruitful Life?
Today Pastor Stan was preaching from the Book of John Chapter 12 verses 24, 25 & 26. He started with the question, “Do you want a fruitful life?” I find this question interesting because when asked this question in just about any context most people would say “yes, I want a fruitful life”. However, as Pastor pointed out, most of us are not willing to do what it takes to have a fruitful life.
When we hear about the swimmer Michael Phelps spending 10 hours a day in the pool or Tiger Woods practicing his golf swing every day we are not shocked because they are the best at what they do. Of course to be a great athlete you must be committed to the task fully. A great musician must spend 100’s of hours practicing before they will play at Madison Square Gardens, we would not expect anything else.
The question is, why do so many Christians think they can simply show up on Sunday and “phone it in” the rest of the week and be successful and live a fruitful life in Christ? Shouldn’t we at least expect God to get the same level of commitment out of us that the PGA gets out of Tiger Woods? God wants and deserves nothing less then our whole lives. I mean this both in the entirety of your lifespan and the complete submission of your entire life today.
I will quickly go over the three paradoxes that pastor talked about because they are important to understanding the fruitful life.
Paradox 1: "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain. John 12: 24
The point here is that in order to gain the fruitful life we must first be willing to die to our selves so that Christ can make us a new creature.
Paradox 2: "He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.
The idea here is priorities. If we want a fruitful life then the condition of our eternal soul must be more important then the immediate desires of our flesh here and now. The fascinating thing here is that the Word also tells us that all good things come from God. Therefore, by forsaking the things of this world for the things of God, He promises to meet our needs here in abundance. Love it.
Paradox 3: "If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor.
I see nothing complex here. In order to call ourselves Christ’s servant we must follow Him. If we want the Father to honor we must serve His Son. Easy to say tough to do until we develop a life long habit of making our flesh submit to our spirit.
Finally, want the fruitful life? Die to yourself, serve Christ by following Him and His father will honor you.
Be Blessed!
When we hear about the swimmer Michael Phelps spending 10 hours a day in the pool or Tiger Woods practicing his golf swing every day we are not shocked because they are the best at what they do. Of course to be a great athlete you must be committed to the task fully. A great musician must spend 100’s of hours practicing before they will play at Madison Square Gardens, we would not expect anything else.
The question is, why do so many Christians think they can simply show up on Sunday and “phone it in” the rest of the week and be successful and live a fruitful life in Christ? Shouldn’t we at least expect God to get the same level of commitment out of us that the PGA gets out of Tiger Woods? God wants and deserves nothing less then our whole lives. I mean this both in the entirety of your lifespan and the complete submission of your entire life today.
I will quickly go over the three paradoxes that pastor talked about because they are important to understanding the fruitful life.
Paradox 1: "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain. John 12: 24
The point here is that in order to gain the fruitful life we must first be willing to die to our selves so that Christ can make us a new creature.
Paradox 2: "He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.
The idea here is priorities. If we want a fruitful life then the condition of our eternal soul must be more important then the immediate desires of our flesh here and now. The fascinating thing here is that the Word also tells us that all good things come from God. Therefore, by forsaking the things of this world for the things of God, He promises to meet our needs here in abundance. Love it.
Paradox 3: "If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor.
I see nothing complex here. In order to call ourselves Christ’s servant we must follow Him. If we want the Father to honor we must serve His Son. Easy to say tough to do until we develop a life long habit of making our flesh submit to our spirit.
Finally, want the fruitful life? Die to yourself, serve Christ by following Him and His father will honor you.
Be Blessed!
Saturday, March 26, 2011
2/13/2011 Do You Have a Ministry?
Today Pastor began by asking the question, “Do you have a ministry?” He then took us to 2 Corinthians 5:17 & 18. It is here that Paul explains to believers that we are new creatures reconciled to God through Christ Jesus. Paul then tells us that all who are reconciled also have a ministry of reconciliation. He goes on to describe us as “ambassadors for Christ, as though Christ were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God.” (Verse 20)
The point here is that while some are called to be pastors, prophets evangelists etc. we are all called to be ministers. We all have the ministry of reconciliation. All believers must make it their purpose to use their time treasure and talents to bring as many people as possible into a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. What that looks like in the life of each believer will certainly vary.
While the details of how we all carry out the ministry of reconciliation can vary wildly, Pastor gave us all some solid advice that every believer should apply in all areas of life. He said, “People won’t care about how much you know until they know how much you care.” This is important for those who have been saved for many years and have a great deal of knowledge. It is easy to be so worried about getting the information out that we forget we are talking to people with needs and hurts right now. Christ set the example when he had hungry people and instead of telling them “Don’t you understand my message is more important than bread!”, He fed them. He showed real compassion and love.
Sometimes the greatest tool we have in evangelizing the people around us is our ears. One thing I have learned in sales is that people are far more likely to care what you have to say after they know you care about them. This works in selling products and in spreading the Gospel. One-on-one evangelism only works if the person first believes the messenger cares about them personally.
The summary here is, love People, spread the Product(Gospel) and be aware that to most people you are the only bible they will ever see. Therefore you are the Packaging.
See yourself as a minister everywhere you go and in every interaction you have and it is just a matter of time before you will find yourself growing the Kingdom of God one relationship at a time.
The point here is that while some are called to be pastors, prophets evangelists etc. we are all called to be ministers. We all have the ministry of reconciliation. All believers must make it their purpose to use their time treasure and talents to bring as many people as possible into a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. What that looks like in the life of each believer will certainly vary.
While the details of how we all carry out the ministry of reconciliation can vary wildly, Pastor gave us all some solid advice that every believer should apply in all areas of life. He said, “People won’t care about how much you know until they know how much you care.” This is important for those who have been saved for many years and have a great deal of knowledge. It is easy to be so worried about getting the information out that we forget we are talking to people with needs and hurts right now. Christ set the example when he had hungry people and instead of telling them “Don’t you understand my message is more important than bread!”, He fed them. He showed real compassion and love.
Sometimes the greatest tool we have in evangelizing the people around us is our ears. One thing I have learned in sales is that people are far more likely to care what you have to say after they know you care about them. This works in selling products and in spreading the Gospel. One-on-one evangelism only works if the person first believes the messenger cares about them personally.
The summary here is, love People, spread the Product(Gospel) and be aware that to most people you are the only bible they will ever see. Therefore you are the Packaging.
See yourself as a minister everywhere you go and in every interaction you have and it is just a matter of time before you will find yourself growing the Kingdom of God one relationship at a time.
2/6/2011 'Professing to be wise, they became fools'
This past Sunday Pastor Stan was preaching from Romans 1:18-34. Verse 22 in particular grabbed my attention. "Professing to be wise they became fools". I have known many people throughout my life that are quite impressed with their own intelligence. What Paul is talking about here in his letter to the church in Rome, is that when we look to our own wisdom, or our own ability to understand the world we become fools. It often amuses me when my kids are talking to their friends and they are having a serious conversation about something they see. They will do their best to interpret the world around them from their limited perspective. It is cute when they are children but I cannot imagine the harm it would cause then if they never grew past the childish points of view. No matter how smart my kids are they simply lack the necessary vantage point of years and experience to understand the world around them. Their world is small and it will grow as they do.
Why do we adults think this reality does not apply to us? I have seen much of the world and been many places in my life thus far and I know that I have a unique perspective of how the world works. When my children ask me questions about places I have been I can share my perspective with them and grow the world for them just a little bit. Likewise, God has a perspective that is far beyond what I can comprehend and therefore has wisdom and knowledge that I am simply incapable of attaining. With that said, He also has written a book, sent His Son and the Holy Spirit to give us all the knowledge and understanding we are capable of. Plus a bit more.
The creator of the universe who made this amazing creation just for us, and because He loves us also wants us to know that He loves us and He desires a personal relationship with each and every person. As the chapter in Romans continues Paul explains that as men lean more on their own wisdom they are given over to evil. We begin to worship the creature rather then the creator. The more we think we have all the answers the further we get from the truth and we continue to become fools.
Pastor also reminded us of our pledge we take each week in which we profess the the bible is the incorruptible, indestructible and perfect word of God. He asked if we truly believed that what bible said was true. Then he explained that we must know our bible and who God says we are or we will live in confusion. Throughout my life and my walk with Christ, I have have this to be true of me personally. When ever I start to feel confusion coming or doubt or uncertainty I stop and ask myself if I have been seeking God's counsel or man's counsel. God gives us people who have the ability to hear from God and give wise counsel. Their counsel is not wise because they are wise, their counsel is wise because God is wise.
Finally, Pastor made the point that God is not gay. This is not just a provocative statement, it is countering the lie that God "makes" people gay. That myth should die as soon as you read verses 26 and 27 in which Paul is clear that homosexuality is not "natural" and is "shameful". In fact Paul lists this with a number of other sins and explains that God will let them descend in the madness that will come and they are deserving of nothing less then death. This is not a popular point of view in our culture today and in fact can get you lots of scorn form many "Christians" also. I believe this is why Pastor emphasized this point. Not to simply offend for no reason, but to remind us that Christ said that the world would hate us for His sake and as our society gets further from God's truth and is more impressed with man's wisdom the more they will become fools.
Simply put, Pastor does not want us to become fools.
Follow the link below to visit our Media page where you can download or subscribe to the podcast of the Sermons here at FWC.
FWC Podcast
Why do we adults think this reality does not apply to us? I have seen much of the world and been many places in my life thus far and I know that I have a unique perspective of how the world works. When my children ask me questions about places I have been I can share my perspective with them and grow the world for them just a little bit. Likewise, God has a perspective that is far beyond what I can comprehend and therefore has wisdom and knowledge that I am simply incapable of attaining. With that said, He also has written a book, sent His Son and the Holy Spirit to give us all the knowledge and understanding we are capable of. Plus a bit more.
The creator of the universe who made this amazing creation just for us, and because He loves us also wants us to know that He loves us and He desires a personal relationship with each and every person. As the chapter in Romans continues Paul explains that as men lean more on their own wisdom they are given over to evil. We begin to worship the creature rather then the creator. The more we think we have all the answers the further we get from the truth and we continue to become fools.
Pastor also reminded us of our pledge we take each week in which we profess the the bible is the incorruptible, indestructible and perfect word of God. He asked if we truly believed that what bible said was true. Then he explained that we must know our bible and who God says we are or we will live in confusion. Throughout my life and my walk with Christ, I have have this to be true of me personally. When ever I start to feel confusion coming or doubt or uncertainty I stop and ask myself if I have been seeking God's counsel or man's counsel. God gives us people who have the ability to hear from God and give wise counsel. Their counsel is not wise because they are wise, their counsel is wise because God is wise.
Finally, Pastor made the point that God is not gay. This is not just a provocative statement, it is countering the lie that God "makes" people gay. That myth should die as soon as you read verses 26 and 27 in which Paul is clear that homosexuality is not "natural" and is "shameful". In fact Paul lists this with a number of other sins and explains that God will let them descend in the madness that will come and they are deserving of nothing less then death. This is not a popular point of view in our culture today and in fact can get you lots of scorn form many "Christians" also. I believe this is why Pastor emphasized this point. Not to simply offend for no reason, but to remind us that Christ said that the world would hate us for His sake and as our society gets further from God's truth and is more impressed with man's wisdom the more they will become fools.
Simply put, Pastor does not want us to become fools.
Follow the link below to visit our Media page where you can download or subscribe to the podcast of the Sermons here at FWC.
FWC Podcast
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