"Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord." - 1 Corinthians 15:58

Have you ever begun a great work and as you go about the in the work, you begin to grow weary? The energy has just escaped and suddenly you're losing heart and wondering why you started down this path at all. I think of Noah, who received instructions to begin building this massive ark, awaiting this great rain that God told him would come about the earth. During the construction of the ark Noah had mockers who thought Noah to be a bit eccentric, believing that God would bring rains that would cover the earth. Noah continued in the work, undeterred by the words of man and in due time he was saved from floods that came upon the earth.

How do we think about these things in our time. What does it mean to be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord? The early church had quite a massive task, didn't they? Telling all the world about the victory that Jesus had over sin, death, and the grave. Isn't that our task also? Now, God can't expect us in our day to have the same zeal as the early church, can He? Do we still live with the hope, that Christ has overcome the world and is preparing a place for us. This promise, that Jesus has conquered and reigns victorious, is our victory too, if we are in Him.

Still the questions remain don't they? There are many mysteries that we see in this world, but we are invited into this amazing Living Hope, that is in Christ Jesus and we are to stand firm on His word, not departing from it, even when things get tough. In Paul's letter to the church in Galatia, we see this encouragement:

"Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary." - Galatians 6:9

In due time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up, or grow weary! It is so easy to look at how big a task there is, but remember, God hasn't called you to fix all the world's problems. We need to be concerned with our own lives, our doctrine, and our walk with the Lord. How would we lead anyone if we ourselves aren't walking steadfastly?

"Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things, for as you do this you will ensure salvation both for yourself and for those who hear you." - 1 Timothy 4:16

Watch your life and the doctrine, if you do, it will not only help you but those who hear you. This salvation that we have in Christ, wasn't a cheap thing, it was costly, and we would do well to remember that cost. If we are prepared we will be able to help those around us. The message that Paul gives young Timothy in 1 Timothy 4:16 is that by carefully watching ourselves and our teaching we ensure salvation both for ourselves and for our hearers. This is such an incredible responsibility yet so many take it lightly.

Seize every opportunity that you are given to share the gospel and to speak life to those around you. It may be that you're the only one who may speak hope to them, and you may even ensure their salvation, if possible. We should be spreading the love of Christ to our tired and hopeless world. This movement that begun over 2,000 years ago, is still the greatest movement for freedom, justice, and love that the world has ever known. It is quite clear that our world is desperately craving such a movement and have sought counterfeit hope in so many cases.

Not everyone will receive our message, that shouldn't stop us from moving forward. Looking at the early church, many of them died for their faith, because what earthly reward could possibly be greater than the eternal reward that awaits us? The apostle Peter reminds us in 1 Peter 2:11 that we are strangers and foreigners in this world, heaven is our home.

"Beloved, I urge you as foreigners and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts, which wage war against the soul." - 1 Peter 2:11

What then shall we say, if God is for us, who can be against us (Romans 8:31). Keep on seeking after God, it is a pursuit worth all of our energy. We will not be put to shame if we continue to chase after Christ with all of our hearts. There may be difficulty here on earth, and it may be tough, but endure and stand firm to the end. We need to keep our eyes on Christ, He is the author and the finisher of our faith. Live a holy life, worthy of the calling for which you have been called, cling to Christ, don't depart from His word, live in the Spirit, and trust in God; He is ever faithful!

"So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith." - Galatians 6:10

How to begin? Sometimes beginning is a hard thing, trying to find the right words or the right thing to do. It is often a matter of much thought, how do we begin, taking a first step into something. There is an excitement at the beginning of a new venture that stirs the mind and the soul. Over time, we can find a once exciting venture to become an exercise in monotony. What happened, what changed, why do we become so disillusioned by the familiar?

Pleasures lose some of their splendor the more we partake of them, extraordinary sights become normative as we get used to seeming them often, and even the more incredible inventions become ordinary over time. I can remember a time at church in Seattle, WA when the power had gone out on a Sunday morning, and thinking how special our time of worship was as our sound system laid lifelessly dormant. The voices and acoustic instruments resonated through the room with a veracity that I had seldom noticed. What was going on?

The technological innovations that allow us to enjoy professional sounds and mastered musical tracks are quite enjoyable and I wouldn’t say that I would prefer to not have a sound system, only that the moment reminded us of the simplicity and enjoyment that came with not having power. We could still sing songs, we could still hit the notes, we could even still have instruments; we just didn’t have our normal equipment, and that made it special.

It is quite a human thing, especially as we age, to take for granted all of the things that we have and to not appreciate things that once caused us to be in wonder and awe. How wonderful miraculous is it that humans, not gifted with wings for flight, are able to soar above the earthy every single day. Many thousands of people each day take to the skies to traverse our world at speeds not even dreamed of over a century ago, yet it is a normal fixture in our time. How upset we get when there is a disruption or delay, and yet, the even the wonder of flight can get lost on us over time as it becomes familiar and normal.

There is an event that took place in history, that rings with grief, splendor, pain, glory, and an excruciating love that I can hardly comprehend. The passion of the cross of Christ and His march through Jerusalem in His final days walking the earthy as a man; how can we even quantify the awesome wonder of the cross? How sad is it then, that so many come to Christ and look upon the cross knowing all He has done and yet wane over time.

Luke 18:8 “I tell you that He will bring about justice for them quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?”

Humanity is an interesting thing to think about it, isn’t it? We are here on a planet, in the midst of an infinitely enormous universe, yet the minutia of life seems to matter, the small details that we care about, that others care about; but why? Of all the sentient beings on this planet of ours, we are constrained by thoughts of existence and eternity. Scripture teaches us that God has written eternity on the hearts of man.

Ecclesiastes 3:11 “He has made everything appropriate in its time. He has also set eternity in their heart, yet so that man will not find out the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end."

Amazing a thing it is, that we can care so much for things that are of little significance. The most important event in all of human history, an event that granted us freedom and salvation from the malady that affects all mankind, yet, we can come to take it for granted if we are not careful. I think this is one of the reasons communion is so important, it reminds us of the broken body of Christ and the spilled blood that gave us a new covenant we could never earn.

It is such an exciting thing to begin, but it is an immensely important thing to finish. This is something that it is fairly easy to see when we think of a race. Maintaining stamina and energy to complete the race is so important. What good is it if you start very strong but don’t have the energy to finish the race. Moreover, why engage in a race if you aren’t trying to win? The apostle Paul encourages us in 1 Corinthians 9, to run the race with endurance in such a way to obtain the imperishable prize that we eagerly await.

1 Corinthians 9:24-27 "Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win. Everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. They then do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. Therefore I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air; but I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified."

Don’t give up the fight, power through with endurance to finish the race well and receive a victors reward. Pressing onward, we should always remember how precious and costly the blood of Christ was and is, it cost Him everything, and He paid that price for each individual person on earth, all mankind. Let us never forget how much He gave so that we might be reconciled to Him. Keep going, and don’t let anything take your eyes off the prize.

1 Timothy 6:12 "Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses."

Ephesians 6:13 “Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.”

And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM”; and He said, “This is what you shall say to the sons of Israel: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” - Exodus 3:14

We recently had a great time together, during our Sunday service, speaking about Encountering God. Moses was a case study for us as we looked on to what it meant to encounter the Living God in a burning bush and how that impacted the life of Moses. When we are introduced to Moses in the beginning of Exodus we are are introduced to a beautiful baby who survived the edict of a powerful king who was fearful for the future of his kingdom because there was a foreign group of people growing rapidly and strengthening under his watch.

When we open up Exodus, we find the people of God, namely the Israelites (Children of Israel), who are living in captivity in Egypt. There arose a king (Pharaoh) who did not know Joseph. This was a problem, because while Joseph, during his day, was a prominent leader in Egypt and helped bring the Israelites to Egypt just before a massive famine would hit the region, the current Pharaoh didn’t know Joseph and was beginning to operate by fear because of the growing Israelite nation.

Moses survived the edict of the king, which was to eliminate the male children being born to the Hebrews. The parents of Moses, kept him for three months and his mother put him in a basket, covered it with papyrus and floated him down the Nile river. Moses was found by Pharaoh’s daughter, who found him to be beautiful, so she raised him as her own son, so Moses grew up in the royal palace. Moses, however, ended up running from Egypt after he murdered an Egyptian soldier who was mistreating a Hebrew slave.

Moses fled to Midian, met his wife there and lived in the estate of his father-in-law, Jethro. One day, while Moses was tending the flock of Jethro when he saw a rather extraordinary sight, a burning bush coming from the mountain. This wasn’t any ordinary burning bush, it was on fire but not being consumed. When he came near to the bush, the Lord spoke to him and he had an encounter with the Lord that he wasn’t expecting. The bush was on fire but not being consumed by the fire. That wasn’t the only thing that happened; God called to Moses from the midst of the bush, by name.

Moses, the unsuspecting shepherd of his father-in-laws flock suddenly finds himself in the presence of the Holy God of the universe. God instructs Moses to remove his sandals because he was on holy ground. Moses didn’t look directly into the presence of God, he looked away, quite in fear and awe of God. This encounter with the living God changed the life of Moses as God proceeded to speak to Moses and announce that the cries of the children of Israel were heard by God and God was going to deliver His people.

Moses, feeling rather inadequate, conversed with God as to why God would choose him. It is here that we even find out the name of God, I AM THAT I AM, or I AM. Moses inquired of God His name to be able to tell the people so that they might believe that Moses was actually a messenger from God.

How often have we felt utterly inadequate for the things God is calling us to? That is exactly when God shows Himself strong through us. God chooses to work through us, human vessels, as imperfect as we are. Moses was likely afraid, especially that he had fled Egypt for murder, even though a considerable amount of time had passed, I am sure Moses wasn’t too happy to revisit the land he had fled, the land of his birth, but he was obedient to God and demonstrated his faith in God.

Therefore I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in distresses, in persecutions, in difficulties, in behalf of Christ; for when I am weak, then I am strong. - 2 Corinthians 12:10

Had Moses not been paying attention to the burning bush or the voice calling his name, he would have never had the most profound encounter of his life, an encounter with the Living God. I wonder how many times I have dodged an encounter with God for fear missed something incredible that God was looking to do through my life. Moses would go on to journey with the Lord a few million Israelites, out of Egypt and through the desert where he would experience the miracles of God and deal with an entire nation marching towards the promised land.

By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he persevered, as though seeing Him who is unseen. - Hebrews 11:27

Moses, prepared by God, went and was built up in faith. When he left Egypt the scriptures record, in Hebrews 11:27; “…he persevered, as though seeing Him who is unseen.” This encourages us not to be afraid of man, whether peers, authorities, or even kings; but to follow firmly in what God has clearly called us into. If we follow where the Holy Spirit is leading us, we won’t be disappointed, we will instead see the glory of God, experience His power, and dwell in His presence.

"Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, as He already existed in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but emptied Himself by taking the form of a bond-servant and being born in the likeness of men." Philippians 2:5-7

We live in an ever changing world and our attention is constantly being tugged in every direction. With every challenge and new issue facing our world, things can quickly become overwhelming. This encouragement from the apostle Paul show us that we should have the same attitude, or mind, as Christ.

Everyone seems to want to be part of the latest movement or champion the cause of someone who has been victimized in some way, and these causes aren't bad, it is certainly admirable to work on behalf of someone else. To have the mind of Christ means that we think like He does and pattern our lives after what we see Jesus doing in the records of scripture.

Here in Paul's letter to the church in Philippi, he continues on by saying that Jesus came humbly and didn't think equality with God anything to grasped. The attitude that we see in Christ is quite different to much of what we see in the world today. Just think of everything that is screaming at us all day long on social media, the news media, and consumer ads; they teach us to love ourselves and think about our own likes, wants, and interests above all. This isn't what we see in Christ at all, His primary concerns was the Kingdom of Heaven, glorifying the Father, and His love for humanity.

How different would our world be if we began to shift our thinking and become more concerned about the things Jesus has called us to be concerned with rather than ourselves. What if we preferred others' interest ahead of our own? What if we love better and shared the Truth of the Gospel, unashamed? Those following Christ shouldn't be bitter people who spread strife, rather we should be savory, spreading peace, and showing others that we have been born to a Living Hope, namely, Jesus Christ.

Our world needs believers to have a different attitude, the attitude of Christ. This doesn't mean everyone will want to be our friend or accept us, the world did reject Jesus; it does mean that we will be spreading the Love of Christ, peace, and hope.

"Do all things without complaining or arguments; so that you will prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world, holding firmly the word of life, so that on the day of Christ I can take pride because I did not run in vain nor labor in vain." Philippians 2:14-16

What is temporary and what is eternal? These are questions that are undoubtedly of concern to us mortal beings. We have a vested interest in self-preservation and engaging in activities here on earth that would grant us a kind of good, healthy long life. We must grapple, however, with the reality that since sin was born into the world and we have fallen short of the holy standard that God has, we desperately need a savior. We have just that in Jesus Christ.

We have come into the world clothed in the temporary and we groan for heaven and the new tent, as scripture says, that we will be clothed in when we depart from this temporary dwelling of ours. It isn’t always an easy transition of thinking for us, we are feeble, and can often revert to helpless fears of oblivion. 

Our groanings, what are they? We are each unique in giftings, temperaments and longings. These qualities and characteristics of the heart, they inform our interactions, worldviews and thoughts. The apostle Paul in second Corinthians five reminds us that; while we are here in this temporary body, there is all the groaning of the eternal, for we long to be clothed with the everlasting that is only found in heaven. 

Ecclesiastes 3:11  — He has made everything appropriate in its time. He has also set eternity in their heart, yet so that man will not find out the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end.

Every person has eternity set in our hearts, for despite the pleasures of this world, we long for an eternal city. We have grown old, decrepit and short on hope in the body of sin to which we were first born. It is until we are reborn, until the living hope that we have in Christ, that we truly live. 

1 Peter 1:3 — Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,…

For this reason we don’t despair, though our outward man is in a state of utter decay, we are being renewed inside by what Christ has done for us. One question that constrains me in this age we find ourselves in is just this; have you any hope? There seem to be an infinite number of causes that people devote their lives to, but all for the temporary gains of this earth. These gains are vacuous however, our lives are but a vapor, here today and gone tomorrow. 

James 4:14 — Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away.

The life we live on the earth, though temporary, should be pointing us to the eternity that we eagerly await. We should enjoy the relationships and good fruits of our labors here, but also have an expectation that there is something more we are living for. We will all appear before the judgment seat of Christ to receive the compensation for our deeds here on earth, so don’t live merely for our time here on earth, but live instead with eternity in mind, so that on the day of judgment you won’t be put to shame. It can be all too easy to forget what is coming in light of what we currently see. Don’t allow the fading light of today to blind you to what is to come.

"Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres."
1 Corinthians 13:6-7

Have you ever been filled with delight? Have you ever been so enamored that it just drove you to sing? The scriptures have many instances where God shows up, remembers us in our weakness and it drove people throughout history to sing songs to the Lord. How do we, in a culture where we increasingly seek to be entertained, express our adoration to the Lord; moreover, do we truly delight in Him?

Recently, at services here at Redeemer Christian Church, we recounted the song of Hannah from scripture (1Samuel 2) when her son Samuel was born to her. Scripture says that the Lord remembered her; how often has the Lord remembered us? What was our song? Did we even have a song?

Sometimes in our talk about how much God loves us, and let us not be mistaken, He does; we can tend to take His grace, gifts and love for granted. This mindset is not a good posture for us to be in, when we take things for granted we tend to get into trouble. Would anyone board an aircraft if they knew it was not being checked or maintained? If it was ever found out that an airline or aircraft operator just took for granted that their aircraft would work and fly them without any inspection, not only would they lose their ability to operate their aircraft by authorities or worse, something catastrophic might ensue.

When we get too comfortable in our lives and take things for granted, we run the risk of not delighting in the Lord and instead, delighting in our stuff. Make no mistake about it, our stuff will not enrich us, in fact, it will leave us empty because temporal objects never truly satisfy us. We need to take a moment to regale the heroes of scripture who, unashamedly, worshiped God but what's more, they delighted in God. Far from this restricting us or causing us to miss out, God has given us desires and will grant us the desires of our hearts, if we would just delight ourselves in Him. 

"Delight yourself in the LORD; And He will give you the desires of your heart."
Psalm 37:4

Hannah, Mary (Jesus' Mother), David and so many individuals in scripture have been very careful to remember God in what He had done for them. We need to learn to delight in Him. If you were to give a gift to a loved one or someone and they relished in the gift but not delighted or appreciative of the person who gave them it creates a terrible gulf between the giver and the receiver. There is a strain on relationships that are based on gifts with no acknowledgement of who has given them. In the same way, God remembers us, and has our best interest in mind; we are then invited into a space where we can relish and delight in the Lord. There is a joy that only comes when we learn to delight in the Lord and trust that His will for us is good and His faithfulness is enduring toward us.

"The steps of a man are established by the LORD, And He delights in his way."
Psalms 37:23

When we allow God to establish our steps, He actually delights in our way. What a profound thought, that the God of the universe would delight in our way when we delight in Him. Choose to live in the Joy of the Lord, delight in Him with your life and persevere in the faith!

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden..." - Matthew 5:14

When you think about some of your favorite, choice foods, one of the main considerations one would have is flavor. How does it taste, what components add to the savory undertones, was it something you had when you were young? Salt has some important roles, not only does it add some good flavor to food, it also is a preservative and can help food, especially meat, last longer.

Jesus, in the Sermon on the Mount, refers to His disciples as the salt and light of the world. Not only are followers of Christ to be a light in a dark world, putting on full display for the whole world, the Love and gospel of Christ, but, in the same way, are to season the earth. How worthless is salt if it loses it's saltiness? Jesus asks this question and it is an important reminder that we need to remain in Him to preserve our saltiness.

Jesus also calls us the Light of the World. This is an important distinction as followers of Christ. We live in a dark world and this has always been the case, though I believe the days we live in are especially dark. It is vitally important that as followers of Christ, namely Christians, we bear the name of Christ and ought to represent the love and life of Christ to those around us. Though we live in a dark world, we have also been, at the same time, born until a living hope. Jesus Christ is our hope of glory and we need to always remember that.

Something that we also see in this passage of scripture is who glory is directed to when our light shines. When people see our good works, they should give glory to our Father in heaven. Our motivation for doing good shouldn't be to promote our own agenda or name but to bring glory to our Father in heaven. In reference to belief in God, C.S. Lewis had this great quote: "I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.” Once we are born into the Living Hope, Jesus Christ, it should affect how we see everything around us and open the eyes of our heart. 

Jesus came to fulfill the law and until heaven and earth pass away, the law will not be abolished, He goes as far as to say not even the smallest stroke or letter will be pass from the law. We need to live righteously and as disciple makers ourselves, be faithful as servants of Jesus. Paul, in his letter to Ephesus, reminds us that not all of us should desire to be teachers, because teachers will be held to a higher standard. Our lives need to reflect a change that confirms our relationship with Christ and also are marked with holiness. God even tells us to be Holy as He is Holy.

We need to be the Salt and Light of the world, the world should be more savory because of us and should be filled with the light of Christ. Darkness scatters and cannot exist where there is light, just light even a small candle in a dark space and you'll realize the power of light. 

“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by people. “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Your light must shine before people in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. “Do not presume that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill. For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke of a letter shall pass from the Law, until all is accomplished! Therefore, whoever nullifies one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. “For I say to you that unless your righteousness far surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. - Matthew 5:14-20

Romans 8:31 — What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?

When reading through Romans 8, there is such a crescendo as Paul highlights the message of the Gospel and brings together all of the knowledge and inspiration of the ancient scriptures and the fulfillment of promise that we only find in Jesus Christ. God has predestined us to be conformed to the likeness of His Son and we can trust that God’s plans for us are good and will give us the most abundant life we could ever imagine, in fact, far greater than what we can imagine. 

Earlier in the chapter, Paul makes an audacious, yet very true statement, in that our present troubles are nothing compared to the future glory that will be revealed to us. Therein lies this incredible expectation, that the glory that is to come, is so immense and far beyond any earthly glory we could think of. With that realization, our present troubles just don’t compare. That is quite a statement; people all over the earth are struggling, experiencing troubles, indeed I don’t imagine I can find a single person who says they have never had any problems, ever. 

So if our troubles can’t even be compared to the glory that is coming, why do we find so many people stuck on in life. Instead of looking at the glory to come we are stuck in the trespasses of this life. This doesn’t mean that we should ignore our lives or the lives of those around us, it only means that when we consider our troubles and attempt to compare them with what is to come, there are no points of comparison. 

Romans 8:18 — For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.

In light of all this, Paul begins a series of questions that informs life for us today. When we think about our struggles and then think of the future glory, we should be excited about what God has for us and begin to live our lives in preparation for that glory. When we consider the lives of those in the early church, there was this sense of unity, love and expectation. Our lives here on earth should testify of our hope of glory, namely Jesus Christ; as well as an expectation of the future glory to come. 

1 Peter 5:8 — Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

We see in 1 Peter 5 that we should serve God willingly, not for selfish reasons, but looking forward to the return of Christ. There is a warning in verse 8 that we do have an adversary and he is seeking someone to devour. This enforces the need for us to live lives that are truly given over to Christ, eagerly doing the work of ministry and being fully given over to Christ, not compromised with the world. We need to resist the devil, go to war with our sin; and especially flee from sexual sin. 

Back in Romans chapter 8, we see the Apostle Paul building, with his questions, a strong case for confidence in our faith in Jesus Christ. Despite the troubles in this life and Paul includes trouble, hardship, persecution, famine, nakedness, danger or sword; we are more than conquerors through Him [Jesus] Who loved us. Nothing can separate us from the love of God, not people, not death or life, not angels or demons, not the present or future, not powers, not height or depths. We need to live for Him with confidence, knowing that through Him we have victory. 

Romans 8:35-39  — Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or trouble, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? Just as it is written: “FOR YOUR SAKE WE ARE KILLED ALL DAY LONG; WE WERE REGARDED AS SHEEP TO BE SLAUGHTERED.” But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Genesis 3:8-10 — “Now they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden. Then the LORD God called to the man, and said to him, “Where are you?” He said, “I heard the sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid myself.”

It is a curious thing to behold, in the garden of Eden, Adam, newly created, recently fallen, hiding from his Maker. He had just been given all of creation, a beautiful wife and yet, there he was, hiding from an all omnipresent and omnipotent God. What a picture we get to see, the first man, cowering in shame after doing the one thing he wasn’t supposed to do. It would be all too easy for us, thousands of years later, to point the proverbial finger at Adam with the harshest of judgements for not following the only rule that he was given; one must ask however, would we have done any better?

Looking around at our world today, I would gleam that we would not do any better, we have done far worse and with more instruction than Adam had. The serpent in the garden, far from being the slithering monster, was crafty, probably provoking much thought in the minds of the newly minted man and woman. It wasn’t so much that the serpent was able to convince the couple that the fruit of the forbidden tree was good, it is worse than that, he caused them to doubt the word of God.

It all seems simple and clear until a real shadow of doubt is cast. The question “did God really say,” is a question that resonates through the ages, which is quite something for us who have the written scriptures. With all the commentaries, translations, manuscripts and interpretations that we have access to today, the question of the serpent still haunts, taunts and misdirects; casting a cloud of confusion over the ever feeble man.

If our adversary can have us believe that the words that God has spoken to us is at all unreliable or that we have misunderstood it, he can lead us into opposition of that very word. The serpent didn’t have to do much but cause confusion and stir up doubt.

King David in Psalms 119:11 writes, “I have treasured Your word in my heart,
So that I may not sin against You.” This is the way that we can walk confidently in the word of God, know it! We need to hide or treasure God’s word in our hearts and keep ourselves pure. Knowing the truth and being confident in what God says will keep us away from the slithering lies and deceptions of the enemy.

In 2 Timothy 2:15, Paul writes to a young Timothy — “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a worker who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.” The shame that Adam felt in the garden, when he suddenly was confronted with right and wrong, knowing his own nakedness, that is the shame we feel when we are not clothed in righteousness and hidden in Christ. Hiding in the bushes was useless for Adam, God never lost Adam, though there was a new gulf between Adam and God as a result of man’s first sin.

Isaiah writes this word from God in Isaiah 66:2— “For My hand made all these things,
So all these things came into being,” declares the LORD. “But I will look to this one,
At one who is humble and contrite in spirit, and who trembles at My word.” Never forget the Lord in what you do, always be praying and worshipping His holy name. We are in the fight and like good soldiers we need to ensure we are working diligently before the Lord, rightly dividing the word of Truth; we can only do that by living Spirit-led lives. Stand firm in the Faith and walk humbly before God!

Micah 6:8 — “He has told you, mortal one, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God?

Much Love,
Jeremy

"Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and for which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses." - 1 Timothy 6:12

Welcome to the fight; if you haven't already noticed, we are in a fight and when you're in fight you generally want to, well, win. The apostle Paul, in his letter to Timothy, a young man who was a disciple of Paul, encouraged Timothy to fight the 'good fight of faith,' and be a man of his word, not going back on the confessions that he had made in front of many. While our Christian walk & faith that we are invited into are to point to Christ, our reputation and witness does matter. We should be full of faith and be people of our word, not unreliable and forever changing our minds on important subjects.

We will face difficulties, of that we can be sure, but Christ has encouraged us to stand firm to the end and not give up! The situations and circumstances that we face aren't so different than what others are experiencing and we need to rely on strength that comes from the Holy Spirit to persevere through trials in our lives. 

"Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though something strange were happening to you; 13 but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that at the revelation of His glory you may also rejoice and be overjoyed." - 1 Peter 4:12-13

There is no doubt trouble will occasionally catch us in moments of weakness. In those times we need to remember that we are called to live our lives in the Spirit, we don't walk alone and when we feel alone, we should push even harder in our prayer lives and seek the Lord all the more. Learning to lean on God and not our own understanding and put our trust in the Lord and this requires us to have incredible faith.

Many of us are taught, even from a young age, to rely on our experience and knowledge and there is some value in knowledge and experiences; but if we are to live and experience what God has for us then we need to listen, trust and obey what God is saying to us. How can we do that if we aren't listening, if we aren't asking, if we aren't looking to Him? We can't. If we are to live the full life that God has for us, we need to think and live differently and learn to trust and lean fully on God.

So herein lies the fight, that we are waring against the body of flesh that we find ourselves in. Go to war with sin, especially the sin that easily entangles you, don't tolerate mediocrity in your life, you were made to be alive in the Spirit and not merely exist to get by with whatever we know in our own understanding. The good fight of faith is something we are always engaged in and we win when we recognize our weakness and ultimately that we desperately need the strength that we only find in Christ.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight." - Proverbs 3:5-6

"Come, let’s sing for joy to the Lord, Let’s shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation. Let’s come before His presence with a song of thanksgiving, Let’s shout joyfully to Him in songs with instruments. For the Lord is a great God And a great King above all gods,..." - Psalms 95:1-3

On this, Independence Day weekend, we regale the long fought battles that brought about the birth of our nation. While things aren't always as good as we would like them to be, we get to enjoy a relatively good existence here in the USA. We live in a polarizing time, where we have become more sectarian and it has brought about rougher relations and divisiveness amongst neighbors, friends and even family. While I am grateful to be here in the United States and have a long heritage here in this country, this isn't my home.

Now, I am not saying that I don't live here and I am not saying that my family and those before us aren't also from here; I mean this isn't my home. We were meant for so much more and I look forward to an eternity with Jesus. While on the earth we are to live for Christ; be salt and light every where we go, demonstrating the love of Christ with our whole lives, and yet, this earth isn't our home.

We have this freedom, not because we are Americans, but because we are in Christ. When we look at the scriptures, we see that the early church recognized their freedom in Christ, despite living under oppressive regimes and empires. In fact, some of those who suffered the most were the most content and filled with life. Instead of looking at our plight here on the earth and complaining because things aren't as easy as we'd hoped or as extravagant as we'd like, let us look toward heaven and be filled with gratitude for the life God has given to us.

"Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let’s show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe; for our God is a consuming fire." - Hebrews 12:28-29

We have far more than we could ever ask for or imagine. Let's not be consumed by the materialism that plagues our age, look to heaven, live in awe and wonder of God! We are invited into a life of freedom in Christ, therefore let's live praising His name for who He is and all He has done. 

"Through Him then, let’s continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips praising His name. And do not neglect doing good and sharing, for with such sacrifices God is pleased." - Hebrews 13:15-16

"Who is a God like You, who pardons wrongdoing And passes over a rebellious act of the remnant of His possession? He does not retain His anger forever, Because He delights in mercy. He will again take pity on us; He will trample on our wrongdoings. Yes, You will cast all their sins Into the depths of the sea." - Micah 7:18-19

There was a road, broken and difficult, and we were all on it; in fact we frequently find ourselves on this road. This road isn't the same for everyone, but for each of us, this road brings us to the undeniable realization that we don't deserve the goodness of God. Utterly in need of mercy, mankind is lost without our savior. It is quite easy to look upon the history of God's people, recounted through the scriptures, and have a strong critique of the those stubborn, stiff-necked people; how easy it is to forget our own moments of weakness and failure.

Welcome to our existence, it is mired with all sorts of chaotic circumstances and troubles; equally filled with some of the most beautiful moments and sights to behold. It so easy to identify all the wrong in another; so difficult to measure our own wrongdoing most of the time. When we realize how easy it is to wander off onto the path of gratifying the flesh and indulging in lust, it is there we see our own depravity and utter need for the mercy of God. Isaiah noticed this when he famously exclaimed before the Lord in Isaiah 6:
 "Then I said, “Woe to me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of armies.”" - Isaiah 6:5

While we should certainly recognize the weight of our transgressions and how precious and costly the blood of Jesus that was shed to atone for our sins, we can also rejoice because our sins have been forgiven. When we find ourselves on the broken road, we need not despair, we have born unto a living hope, and that is Jesus Christ. Paul writes in his first letter to the Corinthians:
"But when this perishable puts on the imperishable, and this mortal puts on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written: “Death has been swallowed up in victory. Where, O Death, is your victory? Where, O Death, is your sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the Law; but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." - 1 Corinthians 15:54-57

Christ has won a victory for us that we could never achieve, every time we attempt to do it on our own we come up short. God is rich in mercy and that gives us hope and joy that in this life, though we are imperfect, we are perfected through Christ. Our aim should be to glorify Christ with our whole life; that we decrease and Christ increase in our lives as we put to death the sinful flesh by denying our flesh gratification. Through life's twists and turns, hold fast to Christ, watch your life and doctrine and be hidden in Christ to stand against all the plots of our adversary. 

"But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our wrongdoings, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)..." - Ephesians 2:4-5
 

There are many things being said these days about identity and the state of affairs we find ourselves in today. While there is much to make of the identity crisis of our age; there is also a need for fathers. From the very beginning, Adam, as the first man, was tasked with naming all the animals and then when woman was made, he didn't hesitate but to name her [Eve] as well.

We have all different examples of fathers throughout scripture, some were decent, some weren't, some were quite good and some just terrible; of course we also have The Father, lest we compare Him to any earthly man.

There are many things that have clouded our view of fathers, and on this day, when we celebrate fathers, I have no delusions that there are plenty of those out there who have had bad experiences, absentee fathers or worse. Not to make light of those situations, there is a something to be said of what happens when someone has a good father. I grew up with hard working parents who have been married for nearly 37 years. My dad was with the EMS in New York City and eventually an NYPD officer and Sergeant, I am quite proud of him. He isn't perfect, but then again, no one is; he did a pretty good job, along with my mom, raising two boys in NYC and I am blessed to have a dad like him.

"A righteous person who walks in his integrity— How blessed are his sons after him." - Proverbs 20:7 

Not everyone has an experience like me; even in my own family there are so many different scenarios with family dynamics. For generations now, many have grown up in homes where the wasn't a good dad figure or dad at all. We should never conflate our relationships with our earthly fathers with that of our Heavenly Father, so what is fatherhood to look like, what is the design that God intended?

Fathers care for their children and guide them in the way they should go. Take every opportunity to encourage your children to go further and pursue after God with their whole life. Fathers also are guardians, providers and strong. 

Not everyone who is a father has his own children, though, every man who has children is a father. In Proverbs, we see that a righteous person is to walk in integrity, this is a blessing to his children. We need men to stand up and be full of courage and integrity. Life will always have challenges and tests for us, but we need to be above reproach walking in righteousness. In the Gospel according to Matthew Jesus tells us:
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied." - Matthew 5:6

This should be a relief for many, we don't have to conjure up our own righteousness, if we hunger and thirst for it, God will fill us and satisfy us. That is a good thing because our righteousness is as filthy rags anyhow. "For all of us have become like one who is unclean, And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment; And all of us wither like a leaf, And our wrongdoings, like the wind, take us away." - Isaiah 64:6. So if we are looking for a good example of fatherhood, we should look to the Father and also walk in righteousness.

The road will not always be easy, but it is certainly rewarding and worth it. Children are a heritage from the Lord and God blesses those who have them. Parents need wisdom and strength to lead children properly into adulthood.

"Children are a heritage from the LORD, offspring a reward from him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are children born in one’s youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. They will not be put to shame when they contend with their opponents in court." - Psalm 127:3-5

I'm not new at this, but I am new at this. A kid, from New York City, I never thought I would move to Seattle and stay there for 12 years and yet that is exactly what happened. It was an incredible ride with twists and turns I could have never anticipated. If that was a serendipitous experience then what am I to expect of the next chapter in my life?

I just drove across the Northwestern United States all the way to Wisconsin; Marshfield, WI to be exact. On January 3rd, when I received an unexpected call about Marshfield, I, in my heart began to feel like there may be something to this. Alas, after much prayer and visiting the town in March, I suddenly had the rug pulled from underneath me in Seattle and began the process of moving to Wisconsin. To be quite frank, I never thought I would be moving anywhere but back to New York. That being said, I was very happy in Seattle, and would have been fine staying there with all my friends that I have spent the past decade with. I would have never been satisfied with that; God has been tugging on my heart and preparing me for a change, I just didn't know what it would be.

Driving away from Philadelphia Church in Seattle was quite an emotional experience, and I am so thankful to have been there as long as I was, I am better for it. I am thankful for Pastor Derek & Krista, the elders, board and the many friends who have been there for me through the years.

I have never lived in the Midwest; I've frequently mentioned in jest that Seattle is the smallest city I have ever lived in; a true statement, until now that is. There will be lots of things that I need to learn and get acquainted with, and in time I will, hopefully.

Accepting the call to be the lead pastor at Redeemer Christian Church in Marshfield is something that has had me excited, a little terrified and filled with wonder. I know there will be challenges, good times and unexpected things; but I am thankful that Jesus is the head of the Church and I am following after Him and I will find everything I need in Him.

A good friend gave me this verse at my going away party and it has so resonated with me:

"Then he said to Him, “If Your presence does not go with us, do not lead us up from here." - Exodus 33:15

I don't want to go anywhere where God isn't leading. Unless the presence of God goes with us, we dare not go. The unfurling of a new chapter, the new pin on my journey is here and I don't want to miss what God is saying or what He is doing. May we all live in awe and wonder of our Lord and Savior and stand firm until the end!

Dear Marshfield, I am so excited to be here. Let's run together into all God has for us!

Much Love,
Pastor Jeremy