THIS IS YOUR LIFE

 Proverbs 4:10 Listen, my son, and accept my sayings, And the years of your life will be many. ¹¹ I have instructed you in the way of wisdom; I have led you in upright paths. ¹² When you walk, your steps will not be hampered; And if you run, you will not stumble. ¹³ Take hold of instruction; do not let go. Guard her, for she is your life.

How many times has good advice been ignored in your life, and what was the outcome? Sometimes, a single bad decision has tragic consequences. Sometimes, it is a matter of life or death. As of 2023, every day, 37 people in the United States die in car crashes with an alcohol-impaired driver. This is one death every 39 minutes. Each of these deaths has a lifelong impact on many lives that could have been prevented by following the simple advice, “Don’t drink and drive”. Some drunken drivers perish by their own hand, as well as taking the lives of innocent people. DUI drivers who caused a fatality and survive must live with the guilt of what they have done and the legal consequences for their actions. Solomon instructed his son to “take hold of instruction and not let go.” In other words, hold onto it for dear life because it can be a matter of life and death. Moses gave the children of Israel the same admonition prior to their entering the promised land, “Set your hearts unto all the words which I testify among you this day, which ye shall command your children to observe to do, all the words of this law. For it is not a vain thing for you; because it is your life” (Deuteronomy 32:46,47).

The Holy Scriptures are God’s instruction book to his children to show us the way we are to go, and the paths to avoid. Let all who name the name of Christ as Savior take heed to follow this “way of wisdom” so that we do have to live with many regrets and sorrows.

God bless,

Pastor Tom

THE DEPTH OF GOD'S LOVE

“For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;  That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God” (Ephesians 3:14-19).

Fridtjof Nansen was a Norwegian explorer who led an expedition to the Arctic Ocean in a search for the North Pole. He took his ship into very deep water. As part of his studies, he would drop a sounding line to check the ocean's depth. When the line was too short to reach the bottom of the ocean, he would record the date, time, location, length of line, and a final note that read, "Deeper than that." He would then lower a longer line with the same result and notation, "Deeper than that." Then he would make another attempt with the same result and notation: "Deeper than that." Finally, after lowering his longest line, the logbook received the final notation of so and so length of line and "deeper than that."

This story illustrates in a very small way what we know, and do not know about the depth of God’s love. No matter how much we learn about it, there is always more to learn.  No matter how much we try to plum the depth of God’s love, there is always more to it. The love of God is an infinite love!  Psalm 147:5, reads, “Great is our Lord, and of great power: his understanding is infinite.”  Infinite means “cannot be counted or numbered.”  We might use the word “immeasurable” to describe it. “As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us” (Psalm 103:12). This “infinite forgiveness” is just one aspect of the love of God. Our sins, once forgiven by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ will never be held against us. Gone, gone, gone, gone! Yes, my sins are gone. Now my soul is free, and in my heart's a song; Buried in the deepest sea, Yes that's good enough for me; I shall live eternally, Praise God! My sins are gone” (lyrics from a gospel chorus).  If you have experienced this wonderful love of God, take time to thank Him for it every day and share it with those around you. “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” (John 3:16). Fredrick Lehman wrote:

Could we with ink the ocean fill,
And were the skies of parchment made,
Were every stalk on earth a quill,
And every man a scribe by trade;
To write the love of God above
Would drain the ocean dry;
Nor could the scroll contain the whole,
Though stretched from sky to sky.

Keep pressing on,

Pastor Tom

 

 

BEHOLD, THY KING COMETH!

 Take a listen to a message on Christ's entry into Jerusalem fulfilling the prophecy of Zechariah 9:9

Listen at "Hear a Sermon" at faithsd.org

Shalom

ABOUNDING HOPE

 Romans 15:13 Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.

Abounding hope leaves no permanent room for depression, despair, or giving up. Abounding hope expects nothing less than great things from God! Abounding hope always points us in the direction of Christ. Abounding hope rest in Christ’s perfect love for us. Abounding hope overcomes the darkness with the light of Christ. Abounding hope sees beyond the present to the future which God has laid in store for his children. Abounding hope is the anchor for the soul, it is the balm of Gilead, it is the bright and morning star. Abounding hope is an expectation with certainty that God will do what he has said. It is based on the character of God who will never leave us or forsake us.

KINGDOM VIRTUES

 Romans 14 is one of the chapters in Scripture with great practical value for the local church. It deals with a division arising in the church over whether the Christian had the liberty to eat meat, or must he/she restrict themselves to vegetables. The two camps are described as the strong and the weak. Romans 14:2, “For one believeth that he may eat all things: another, who is weak, eateth herbs.” This is a dispute over what we call “Christian liberty.” Although the exact issue Paul is dealing with is not a cause for division in the church today, there are plenty of issues that still pertain to Christin liberty. For instance, does the Christian have the liberty to get a tattoo? Does the Christian have the liberty to attend a movie theater, or watch questionable television programs?  What about dancing or drinking a little wine? You can probably come up with your own list of questionable matters, but the real issue at heart in Romans 14 is, “how will the choices I make as a believer effect another Christian who may be weak/immature in their faith? Am I willing to forgo my liberty for the sake of their spiritual growth?  In verses 16 and 17 Paul brings his spotlight to center stage, “Let not then your good be evil spoken of: For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.” First of all, even if your action is right, it becomes wrong for you to do if another Christian is scandalized by it, and speaks evil of it. Secondly, Paul makes it clear that the citizens who will make up the future kingdom of God when Jesus rules upon this earth demonstrate kingdom virtues such as righteousness (godly living), peace (promote or harmony within the church), which brings them joy both inwardly and outwardly. These virtues on produced in them by their willing submission to the Holy Spirit, “… the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance:” (Galatians 5;22,23). How then should we live in the present? As Christian's, our lives should be characterized by virtues which promote the things that foster peace and edify (build up) the church rather than tear it down, “Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another” (Romans 14:19). Are you a peacemaker in the church, or a troublemaker? Do you promote unity or cause division? Are you someone who insists on your own rights and liberties, even if they hurt other people who need time for their Christian conscience to be developed? May the Spirit if God lead us all to follow the example of Christ who gave up the glories of heaven and humbled Himself by becoming a man to suffer and die for our sins “… if your brother is grieved because of your food, you are no longer walking in love. Do not destroy with your food the one for whom Christ died (14,15)..

Walk in love,

Pastor Tom