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#GodisGood

Friday, September 29th, 2023

Victory

It is hard for us, when we consider the incredible testing some people go through, to see how they remain faithful. To many people’s way of thinking, being thankful for adversity goes against their grain. “It’s not normal,” they will say. Then the questions start: “How can you be thankful for the death of a loved one, or a baby, or the diagnosis of ALS or MS?” That question looms larger when the person was a perfectly healthy individual and then BAM!  Or here is another one: “How can I be thankful for this financial downturn?”

Honestly, I’m not thankful for the adversity; I am thankful for the God who walks with me through the adversity.

The goodness of God is a sensitive topic, if for no other reason that the examples I just gave. Knowing and believing in the goodness of God is so important to our view of God.  Goodness, defined by J.I. Packer is “something admirable, attractive, and praiseworthy.” Pastor Chip Ingram in his book The Real God, defines the goodness of God as kind, cordial, benevolent, and full of good will toward men.”

God’s goodness is not conditional. He feels that way about us all the time. God is infinite in His goodness. His goodness does not run out. He doesn’t give us a timeline to operate under.

As you can gather, my sermon Sunday is on the goodness of God. I’ve entitled it God is Great…God is Good?  I look forward to having you join us at 9:00 and 10:45 in person or via live stream.

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#OneTrueGod

Friday, September 22nd, 2023

Victory

Proverbs 23:7 says, “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he.” (NASB2020).  To go along with that verse is a quote from A.W. Tozer in his book, Knowledge of the Holy: “What comes to our mind when we think about God is the most important thing about us.”  To combine the two: what we focus on when we think about God will define us.

The buzz saw we run into as we form our thoughts is a teeny, tiny influence called “culture.” (Remove tongue from cheek).  Much is said these days that we all worship the same God and that all roads lead to the same place. Is this true? Is it egotistical? Is it sectarian to say that? Is it judgmental?

This Sunday my sermon is going to confront these accusations head on. For the purpose of information the first part of the message is going to show how different faiths represent God. Deism. Mormonism. JW. Scientology. Islam. Hinduism. New Age. And more.  I think folks will be rather surprised to see what other faiths believe.

The second half of the message will be a look at Deuteronomy 4:15-40 and see what God thinks of our “idol” worship. One high point I will be bringing out is that Religion is spelled “DO.” Christianity is spelled “DONE.” Religion is based on people doing something; Christianity is based on what Christ has done.

I would love to have you join us in person at 9:00 or 10:45. If you are unable to do so, then please join us online at the same time. We have a Facebook Page and also a YouTube channel. You can access either by going to the church’s website and clicking on the link.

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#Unchangeable

Friday, September 15th, 2023

Victory

The high-brow “religious” word for this week’s sermon thought is IMMUTABILITY. Simply put: the word means “Unchangeable.”

With our ever-changing world it is easy to get confused. It is also easy to begin thinking God changes as well. That is especially true when we consider our culture.  God established a covenant with His people. Noah. Abraham. The people of Israel. With us. The word covenant means binding agreement. The “owner” of the covenant agrees to certain things if the one signing the agreement sticks with his/her end of the bargain.

But, no matter how you shake it, it still comes down to the unchanging nature of God. J.I. Packer wrote a book back in the ’70s called Knowing God. I’m going to be sharing some thoughts from that book and I thought I would put them here for you:

God’s life does not change.

God’s character does not change.

God’s truth does not change.

God’s ways do not change.

God’s purposes do not change.

God’s Son does not change.

If you would like to hear more then please join us in person or via live stream. You can find the link to our FB page and YouTube page on the church’s website. We offer two services at 9:00 and 10:45.

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