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Showing posts with the label Worship

The Promise of Pentecost

  Acts 2:17-18 – “‘And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God,  That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your young men shall see visions, Your old men shall dream dreams. And on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days; And they shall prophesy. Pentecost is promised in both the Old and New Testaments. In Luke 24:49 Jesus shared this promise, “Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high.”  John the Baptist prophesied of this mighty outpouring in Matthew 3:11, “I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” The following Old Testament Scriptures promised the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2: ·  ...

Thanksgiving and Praise

  Psalms 26:7 - “That I may publish (proclaim) with voice of thanksgiving, and tell of all thy wondrous works.”             We are entering into a season of praise and thanksgiving. In the next few days we will gather with our families and friends to celebrate Thanksgiving. People will travel great distances to gather around the table and share a meal of thanksgiving. This is a wonderful holiday and we should enjoy our time with family and friends.             Worship involves a number of elements. Two elements that are closely related are thanksgiving and praise. Though they are similar there are differences. Praise is a powerful weapon to be used against the enemy of our soul in spiritual warfare. Praise nourishes the soul, prepares the heart to become pure, and builds us up in faith.             The twin sister of praise is thanksgiving. These two elements of prayer look alik...

God Loves A Cheerful Giver

  II Corinthians 9:6-8 – “But this  I say:  He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.  So let  each one  give  as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.    And God  is  able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all  things,  may have an abundance for every good work.”              The subject of giving can be a controversial subject in our churches today. Some will accuse the church of just being after their money. We must acknowledge there have been those who abused their position of leadership to manipulate God’s people for their own purposes.    The truth is God’s Word says a great deal about how we are to give and manage the resources He places in our responsibility. William R. Kimball writes, “Ch...

A Spirit of Thanksgiving and Praise

  Psalms 26:7  - “That I may publish (proclaim) with voice of thanksgiving, and tell of all thy wondrous works.” We are entering into a season of praise and thanksgiving.  In the coming days we will gather with our families and friends to celebrate Thanksgiving.  People will travel great distances to gather around the table and share a meal of thanksgiving.  This is a wonderful holiday and we should enjoy our time with family and friends.   Worship involves a number of elements.  Two elements that are closely related are thanksgiving and praise. Though they are similar there are differences.  Praise is a powerful weapon to be used against the enemy of our soul in spiritual warfare.  Praise nourishes the soul, prepares the heart to become pure, and builds us up in faith.  The twin sister of praise is thanksgiving.  These two elements of prayer look alike, perform alike and come from the sa...

The Voice of Propaganda

  Isaiah 36:13-20 – “Then the Rabshakeh stood and called out with a loud voice in Hebrew, and said, “Hear the words of the great king, the king of Assyria! Thus says the king: ‘Do not let Hezekiah deceive you, for he will not be able to deliver you; nor let Hezekiah make you trust in the Lord, saying, “The Lord will surely deliver us; this city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.”’ Do not listen to Hezekiah; for thus says the king of Assyria: ‘Make peace with me by a present and come out to me; and every one of you eat from his own vine and every one from his own fig tree, and every one of you drink the waters of his own cistern;    until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards. Beware lest Hezekiah persuade you, saying, “The Lord will deliver us.” Has any one of the gods of the nations del...

The Lord is My Shepherd - Relationship

Psalms 23:1 – “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” This beautiful Psalm begins with the words, “The Lord is my Shepherd.” When we read and pray these words it becomes personal. David, who was a shepherd wrote declaring the Lord is my shepherd.  Jesus did not leave the splendor of heaven and come to this fallen world just to establish another religion. He came to heal the breach brought on by humanity’s sin. He went to the cross and suffered so we can know Him intimately. He came to restore the fellowship we can have with the Father. I John 1:3 says, “We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.” Jesus died and rose again so we can be victorious over sin. I John 5:5 says, “Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?”  I Peter 2:24 says, “who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, hav...

Exposing the Strongman

  Mark 3:23 -27 – “So He called them to Himself and said to them in parables: “How can Satan cast out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. And if Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end. No one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. And then he will plunder his house.”             We are engaged in a spiritual battle. Jesus said, “No one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. And then he will plunder his house.” In Revelation 12:10 we learn about true spiritual warfare, “Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, ‘Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, w...

True Characteristics of a Successful Church

  Matthew 16:18 – “ And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” We have entered into a time of divine reset.  God has pushed the reset button. We continually hear people using the words, “A new normal.” Perhaps Romans 8:22-23 describes the times we are currently experiencing. “   For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body.”  Many are wondering, what will our future look like?  There are many businesses that will not survive the Covid-19 lockdowns and economic downturn.  People’s jobs and livelihood have been threatened and some are very fearful of the future.  I want to encourage you. As...