Pentecost Sunday 2023

Acts 2:1-21 KJV; Pentecost Sunday; The beginning of the Season of Pentecost. Empowered by the Holy Spirit we go out to share the Good News that the Church might grow and be edified.

One Sacrifice

One sacrifice for sins for ever!

And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins:

But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;

From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool.

For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified. 

                                                                (Heb 10:11-14 KJV)

That one offering was the life of Jesus the Christ. The offerings of sheep or goats or birds no matter how unblemished they appeared to be could never atone for all of our sins. Those sacrifices had to be repeated over and over again. But, the sacrifice of the life of the only begotten Son of God could and it did. Jesus willingly sacrificed himself that we might be forgiven our sins and reconciled to our Father. The promise of the Lord as revealed to Isaiah has been fulfilled in the Christ. Our sins are wiped away by faith in his loving sacrifice for us.

Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. (Isa 1:18)

It is good to consider ones sins and to repent of them. But, all too often the devil and the world around us will remind us of our pasts. The devil will cause us to wonder if we have been truly forgiven. Do not let him cause you to doubt what Christ has done for you. 

In Christ you are forgiven!

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Jezebel

 And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and withal how he had slain all the prophets with the sword.

Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to morrow about this time.

                            (1 Kings 1:1-2 KJV)

I have this real vivid picture of Jezebel in my head. Some things you picture you just can't forget. My Grandma Hill was a very strict Lutheran. Now, I have no clue what Jezebel actually looked like but my grandmother seriously portrayed her as a not nice lady of the night. I will never forget her comparing females who wore red lipstick to Jezebel. 

I have never been able to wear lipstick except maybe a little clear gloss one and then. Every time I've even thought about wearing some, I thought about my grandmother and how disappointed she would be and decided against it. Some things we learn never disappear. They are imprinted on our hearts and minds forever.

Other than really judging women who wore lipstick; she was a good, patient, and  a very loving woman. Although, she may seem a little strict by today's standards and even the standards of the sixties I learned a lot from her. She put up with a lot of stuff being thrown at her. Yet, she put up with it out of her great love for others. I witnessed how she cared for her family and her neighbors no matter what trouble they might be stirring up. It was also very evident how very much she loved the Lord.  She was a sinner as we all are. But, in Christ she was a saint!

My hope is that when I am gone from this earth I have lived a life that has been  an example of patient and loving service to others.

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Scarlet or White?

though your sins be as scarlet
they shall be as white as snow

Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth: for the Lord hath spoken, I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me.

The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib: but Israel doth not know, my people doth not consider.

Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters: they have forsaken the Lord, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, they are gone away backward.

Why should ye be stricken any more? ye will revolt more and more: the whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint.

                                                                              (Isaiah 1:2-5 KJV)

Who do you worship? Who or what is your god? Do you really love the Lord enough to repent of your sinful ways? Do you understand that he died to make the unrighteous righteous? 

The Lord's warning through Isaiah to Israel is to be heard by all of us of these generations as well. Is your life laden with iniquity? Iniquity begets more trouble in our lives than anyone needs. However, following in the way of the Lord will be peace to your troubled and angry souls.

There is a promise in this first chapter of Isaiah along with the warning. It is: "Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool." (Isa 1:18)

The guilt of our sins stand out for everyone. Red as crimson they catch the eye of those around us. But, by the red blood of Jesus they are washed away by faith in his life giving sacrifice for us. The unrighteous become righteous by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. 

Step aside from the path of iniquity; turn your life around and follow in the footsteps of Jesus that you and your neighbors might live in peace.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Beware of Wolves in Sheep's Clothing!

“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles?

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’
                                                                          (Matt 7 15-16, 21-23 NIV)

Every congregation seems to have at least one or two antagonists. It just goes along with being Christians. If Jesus was persecuted so shall the true sheep be persecuted. Those antagonists, those sheep in wolves' clothing will often be seen in the congregation as one of the most caring, loving people one could know. That's what wolves do. 

In the fairy tale the "Little Red Riding Hood, the wolf stalked Little Red Riding Hood. Skulking behind the trees in the forest, he watched her as he concocted his plan to overpower her. His plan was good. He befriended her on the path to her grandmother's house giving her directions and stalling her. The Big Bad Wolf got to the grandmother's house in time to either tie up the girl's grandmother and shove her in the closet or eat here depending on whose version of the story you are reading. Either way the wolf is not as friendly as he appeared to be on the path to grandma's house. He then jumped into grandma's bed pretending to be here when Little Red Riding Hood got there. The sad end to the story is that the Big Bad Wolf gobbled Little Red Riding Hood all up. 

And, the moral of the story is... Way too often congregations are deceived by wolves in sheep clothing. They skulk behind the closed doors planning to deceive so that they might overpower others and have their own ways. They want control. They have no clue or desire to know what God's will is for the congregation. They want what they want and they do not care who they destroy: pastor, council members, the entire congregation. Maybe, they aren't even aware how damaging their words and actions might be. Maybe they do. Either way they are dangerous to the life and the health and the growth of the congregation. Congregations must be aware that not everyone is a true sheep or a shepherd. Not everyone is a friend of Jesus. Yes, we are to pray for them and to love them. But, we are not to allow them to damage anyone in the sheepfold. The good shepherd protects the sheep. (John 10:1-18)

How do you deal with them? A congregation that I previously served wrote into their constitutions the scriptural response to that. 

“If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over. But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector.

“Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."

                                                                                  (Matthew 18:15-18)

May God help us to protect his sheepfold that none should be lost.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Hide From The Lord?

   I watched as he opened the sixth seal. There was a great earthquake. The sun turned black like sackcloth made of goat hair, the whole moon turned blood red, and the stars in the sky fell to earth, as figs drop from a fig tree when shaken by a strong wind. The heavens receded like a scroll being rolled up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place.
   Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and everyone else, both slave and free, hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. They called to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can withstand it?” (Rev 6:12-17 NIV)

The sixth seal is opened and the earth and skies are shaken. The world as we know it is devastated in the face of the wrath of God. Not only are the earth and heavens shaken; but, the people are shaken at the knowledge of the coming of the Lord. They would hide beneath the falling mountains if they could. They would rather be crushed to death than to face the Lord God in the day of His judgment.

John's visions are horrifying to those who do not worship the Lord; to those who know that they have turned their backs on God. There is still time. We don't know how much time. Turn to the Lord. Love and serve the Lord, your God, with all your heart and soul and mind. The visions of the end can be terrifying for those who do not worship the one true God. But, for those who do, we know that all things are for the good of those who love Him; for His Kingdom comes

God's Peace - Pr. J