![]() ![]() ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- † Acts 21:27-29 ... My spirit has always been pricked by that statement “and forthwith the doors were shut” and intuitively knew that one day I would speak to that issue, which is today. That phrase has been in my notebook for a long time—and being moved to address it now is an indication to me that as a warning by the Holy Spirit, now is the time for all that have ears to hear need to prepare for and to act on what I have to share today. Perhaps you’ve never noticed it but the form of this phrase has been used several times under different circumstances in the Gospels. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- Have you ever pulled on a string on a shirt or blouse or on a strand of yarn on a sweater or a knitted cap or a comforter? If you have, you know what can happen—either it doesn’t let go but pulls an unsightly snag into the item or worse, it begins an unraveling of that sweater or comforter. Such a result left unrepaired can cause the thing to continue to come undone and eventually be damaged perhaps beyond help. Loose ends need to be tended to or they will one day cause at least regret. Actually, I have found the best way to deal with such a loose end is not to ignore it, or pull it—but to cut-it-off. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- † Revelation 19:5-8 (KJV) Over the last three weeks I have given you enough to understand that in the grand plan of God there will be a very special subset of the whole Church called out (“chosen”) to become something unique in all of eternity future—the Bride and the Helpmeet of Christ. All members of the Church are “called” (invited) but “few” (a puny number) will be “chosen” (selected) to be members of the Bride. You should have come to understand that those that are selected out-of the Body of Christ (the Church—in the same fashion as Eve was taken out of the body of Adam) are ones that by their individual choice and follow-through dedication came to love God more that all others and their own lives while having been submitted to the needed transformation from having a sinful nature, idolatries, and all unclean ways to being holy as He is holy. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- If you are a student of the Word, then as you can, you read through all the books of the Bible from Genesis through Revelation. If you have a Bible that does so, whenever the Old Testament has a verse that is a direct prophecy about Jesus (His birth, its location, His life and mission and death) it puts a hollow star next to that verse. In the Gospels where that is then prophecy fulfilled, my Bible puts a solid star next to that verse indicating its fulfillment by that event. The thing about His prophetic verses in the Old Testament is that they are usually obscure one-liners (just one or maybe two verses except of Isaiah 53) in the middle of some larger narrative and can be easily missed as prophetic even by those that might know it is prophetic about Jesus fulfilled in His earthly life 2000 years ago. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- Why did God do it? Why did Elohim create the archangel Lucifer knowing that he would at some point become prideful and lead a major rebellion against God? Why then later did Elohim create man upon the earth about 6,000 years ago knowing that he, too, would disobey God’s Word, fall to sin, and produce an entire race of sinners? Why do it in the first place or why not at least set Adam and Eve aside in some remote location until they died a natural death and recreate another man and woman that would love God and walk in obedience to His Word and His ways? Have you ever wondered about these kinds of things? I have and over the years have come to understand a broad answer to such questions ... ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- I have never had the privilege of flying in the first class cabin of an aircraft but would have liked to. I have never owned a Mercedes or a Porsche or even driven a Porsche but would have liked to at least once. I am not a member of the Mensa International society, although invited to apply more than once—I didn’t think I would qualify and considered it to be a vain pursuit but thought it was cool to be asked. I didn’t get to fulfill my adolescent hope for a career in the military but left the Army due to the politics of the armed services (and as I later understood, it was not God’s plan for my life) and that was a great disappointment. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- † Matthew 28:18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. † Matthew 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: † Matthew 28:20 Teaching them to observe (a watch, to guard, keep an eye on, fulfill) all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world (age) Amen. I have been speaking to you under the banner of “Taken for Granted: The Word of Jesus.” Defined again: ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- The broad theme that we are addressing in these few weeks is this: What are the words of Jesus that we are “taking for granted”? What does that term mean? Taking for granted: To believe that someone or something will always be the same or remain available or a benefit like it is today. To act like you can do whatever you like without any consequences of what has been stated. Failing to appreciate someone or something, especially as a result of over-familiarity. To underestimate the value or the importance of some counsel, advice, or a thing expected of you. [Giving little or no thought to things that are really important to our lives, our relationships, and especially our eternity. /SR] ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- In what is the general theme that we are working under (Taken for Granted: the Words of Jesus), last week I spoke on making “the Case for Forgiveness”. For anyone that cannot find it in their heart to forgive, that person should know this: Such a man or woman is in outright rebellion and disobedience to the will of God and His command to forgive and is still a slave to their old nature’s prideful independence from God, which without sincere repentance will be very, very costly. [† Genesis 3:4] And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: 5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- This last week I began preparing an exhortation called “Taken for Granted: the Words of Jesus” and as I began moving through some of the things Jesus taught it became clear that by that theme I was today to reinforce in your minds and hearts (again, it never hurts to over-learn a subject) how very important forgiveness is to our thorough redemption; which is forgiveness received from God and forgiveness given by men, two sides to the same coin. The words of Jesus make it clear, “Forgive and you shall be forgiven”. I don’t know how that strikes you but for me it is a very ominous and frightening declaration from Jesus, Who is God; it is a statement that also includes a sure outcome: Don’t forgive and you will not be forgiven. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- I have not been able to get past two related thoughts that have stayed with me now for several weeks: “Heaven” and “I am sorry”. Multitudes people alive today believe they will go to a place called Heaven when they die; many believe this that are not even Bible-believing Christians. And, just about anyone that believes there is a Heaven after this life also assumes that it will be perfect and blissful (it will be), and that Heaven will offer all who enter there equal delights, rewards and benefits (it will not). Jesus said that He alone is the way, the truth and the life and no man (lit. “not even one man or woman”) comes to the Father (whose realm is Heaven) but by Him, Jesus (John 14:6). ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- † Romans 12:1 One of the several aspects of becoming a Christian and disciple of Jesus that is almost always neglected to be informed of and understood to be part of one’s commitment before God as part of being forgiven and born again is the requirement of being transformed into the likeness of Jesus Himself. Being “saved” is not just coming to believe on Jesus Christ, being forgiven and washed from one’s sins by the shed blood of Christ, promised eternal life—and then resuming your former life with no thought of what all that is supposed to mean and help the believer become. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- If you are paying attention to life, you have at least a faint sense that the things of your life are noticeably moving in a bad direction. In case you honestly haven’t recognized these things, let me mention some examples that I am aware of ... • Food prices are higher by 25-50% while incomes have not increased • For most, housing, some utility costs and insurances have climbed • Many places of business have closed their doors; others have raised prices • Major banks and financial institutions are on the precipice of failure • There are more homeless people walking the streets than ever before • Unexpected weather has become itself a mass murderer ... ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- In part 1 we covered what the meaning of “it” is to be understood as by many examples of what He had accomplished (“finished”). In part 2 the meaning of “is”, as it is to be understood by His followers throughout the ages, is that all that He “accomplished” (said “is finished”) is real-time-relevant and second-by-second powerful from the very moment of His death on the cross and through the end His 1,000 year reign upon the earth, which is to come. What Jesus did for us is always present-tense and never to be allowed to slip in the past tense of the yester-years of history and its relevance forgotten by us. We see this ever so clearly in the statement “Jesus Christ is come in the flesh” and ... ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- In part one we began to dissect these last three words that Jesus spoke before He died by examining the word “It” and what that word represented. What was “it” that Jesus had finished? When the Lord uttered the words “It is finished” from the cross just before His last breath and giving up the ghost, the meaning of “it” is to be understood by these examples of what He had accomplished (finished): • Jesus was born, lived and died sinless (a requirement to be the Savior) • He upheld the Word • He fulfilled the Law and the what the prophets had said about Him • He undertook and completed a work that no mere man could have done • Jesus had outsmarted and defeated the devil ... ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- We are going to look at three words in English and indeed the last three words uttered by Jesus before He released His physical life to death. They are three words that we have read for ourselves many times or at least heard others read them in the context of the story of the Lord’s brutal time on the cross. It is usually the case that the words are heard but generally are not given any thought or study. Every word that Jesus spoke is important and worthy of careful thought and to be added to our spiritual understanding because He said that His Words are life—life-giving and life-sustaining. In a quick review in sequence of what Jesus said about what He says we read this: ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- It is normal for us humans to usually take the easy way or resort to shortcuts—whether it is on a hike, in a relationship with conflict issues, a shortcut regarding repairs or the building of something, the easiest way to solve a problem involving money, or a thousand other situations that come up in our lives that demand our attention. Some time back I worked part time for a man who had a saying when something inconvenient happened that needed to be dealt with or fixed quickly; he would say with a smirk, “It may not be right but it’s right now!” The problem with that often enough was that that quick-fix was usually not revisited and fixed long-term or the repair job done in haste would not be later addressed in the best way. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- I have become increasingly aware of something over the last several years, which is something needful for you as a Christian to know and do also. Too few believers today do not pray (or pray enough), and that will prove to be the undoing of their physical health, and unfortunately for some the undoing of their faith in God during the times ahead of us. Personal fellowship with God is a huge part of coming to trust what His Word promises and to have confidence in God to do what He says He will do. With that being said, the main point of what I will be sharing with you today puts an even finer point on the critical need for your prayers unto God, and that is this ... ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- When we lose someone close to us (as we just did here in our church family), or someone that we had known for a significant amount of time, it causes us to reflect on several things. We think about the person we lost; his or her life, contributions, hardships, and accomplishments, where they are now in the eternity that began when they died, what their absence will mean, and about those they left behind. For some people, there are the thoughts of “Did I treat that person right” or “Should I have done more for him or her,” and perhaps even deeper regrets about something between you and that person that you wish you could change. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- What I share with you today is the conclusion of what has been to me over the years an impressive passage of the Scriptures. At 1 Chronicles 16, King David has written a psalm and given it to his chief praise and worship leader to be presented to the nation. As you now know, it has at least twelve expressions by God’s people instructed to be made unto the Lord our God and Savior. We are taught that as a people of God, and we as the most blessed of the three 2,000-year periods since Adam, and a people that should be the most spiritually advanced among all the peoples of God over 6,000 years, we are to: Give thanks unto the Lord, make known His deeds ... ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- 1 Chronicles 16:28-36 It takes three consecutive breaths for David to make the point that we are to “give unto the Lord”. In similar terms, you can think of giving to the Lord like this: “Hand over to God those things which He wants from us and the things He deserves from us”. The Hebrew word that is used by the psalmist simply means “give” or to “put before” Him. A more definitive definition for our 21st century understanding today would include “to freely transfer the possession of something to someone [else]; to hand over to. To provide or supply with. To present without expecting compensation. To make a gift of.” ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- This term “glory ye” is the Hebrew word halal, and is translated into English throughout the Old Testament as: Praise, to glory in, boast, shine, commend, and celebrate our God and Redeemer. How many of you have ever thought within your heart or said or sung out loud “Hallelujah”? That single English word in its original language is “Halal, Oh Jah!”; it means “Praise ye, Jah”, which [Jah] is an abbreviated version of Jehovah. Its Greek counterpart “alleluia” is used 4 times in the New Testament with all four found in Revelation 19. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- I surmise that we have alive in America today two generations of men and women of all ages that profess to be followers of Jesus that have not been taught much at all about living each day as one redeemed from sin and its bondage; that would be Christians alive today that have been born in the last eighty years or so. Why do I believe that? Because many believers have no fear of God (no alarm bells ringing at how they still live yet will face His judgment seat or reverence of Him as the all mighty and eternal God) ... ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- The life of the shepherd boy who became Israel’s greatest earthy king has been to me a blessing, and should be to all Christians. He came to know the God of Israel early in his life and devoted his life to Him, learned the value of often praise and worship of God, was not shy in testifying to others about Him, and boldly defended Him against the armies that defiled Israel’s Divine King. And although David would make mistakes, he also knew well of the need for humility and repentance before his God. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- I haven’t been able to escape a recurring phrase in my heart—and that is “appointed time”. As Christians, we are each and every one of us at a ‘Y’ in the road of our lives, which will result in either enduring to the end of our appointed time and being saved when we die, or not being prepared (by good spiritual disciplines) and as a result not being able to endure to the end of our appointed time but physically dying sooner than God’s plan for our life has always been. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- I am fond of many of our Bible’s heroes and their stories, and one of those is the man Joshua. From about the time that Moses began leading the children of Israel out of their bondage in Egypt, as a much younger man Joshua was never far from Moses’ side. In Exodus 17 he was commissioned as the captain of the army of Israel for their first battle, which was against the Amalekites. In Exodus 24 he is called Moses’ minister and accompanied Moses up the mountain of God. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- I begin today in a gruesome manner by giving you a picture of what the memories of sins that haunt us are like or how continuing habitual sin looks like as Heaven observes our lives—the lives of born again ones that are supposed to be free of sin and its nature. The following is a fact of Roman criminal punishment and one that perhaps the Apostle Paul had in mind at † Romans 7:24. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- In the recent message called “What Evidences Will Convict You?”, I mentioned personal secrets and that one thing that we cannot keep secret is our relationship with God as the followers of Jesus. But what if those closely kept secrets are affecting a believer’s life? Whether the secrets are about present sinful habits or they are secrets about things in one’s past that haunt and condemn a Christian, there is a solution; the solution to both these things (present sin and past sins that still whisper to us) is the cross that Jesus died on. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- Many people have secrets, secrets that no one else knows except God, of course. Some of the secrets people hold, if known, would cause shame and embarrassment, some would lead to emotional pain and suffering in others, some secrets if known would bring an end to relationships, and some secrets would even cause imprisonment. Your secrets are yours to keep but there is something about your life that cannot be kept a secret, and that is (if it is true) that you have been born again from Heaven by a confession of faith in the only begotten Son of God, Jesus Christ. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- Under this title we are talking about two important facets of faith in God; your faith in God. Faith in God that itself must be made strong by a tempering process of heat (tribulations, hardships) described by James 1:2-3 and 1 Peter 1:3-9, which is to understand that our faith must be exercised, tested, and strengthened. But then how and when are we to apply our faith—that is to say when, where, and how do we “mix”-our-faith into your and my everyday lives to give us the supernatural ability to stand in the face of the myriad of things that come up in our lives. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- My last discussion was under the title, “Stale Christian, Stale Faith” and in it, I addressed how that faith in God and in His Word in our present culture has for many become stale in their lives (and most do not even realize it or care). Stale faith is a serious problem for anyone that thinks that all is at least spiritually adequate (good enough) between him or her and God. In a fashion, such a thin veneer of faith is not unlike having the sword of Damocles hanging over the head of one with stale faith. Let Me Relate The Story About That Sword. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- For you that have listened to me for years, you know that I have a very low opinion of the formal church system in our country, which by-and-large does nothing to train and equip Christians to be strong in their faith in God and obedient to His Word. In general terms, the institutional church system involving seminaries, credentials, denominations, church politics, and the division of members between the laity and the clergy has failed the Lord. I have no doubt that the corrupt state of our country as it is today with the judgment of God now becoming apparent upon the United States of America lies at the feet of the Christian church ... ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- If I were to inform you today that I have been told by the doctor that I only have just one more month to live—how would you feel? I suspect that as ones that have known me for many years that you would be stunned, filled with sadness and sorrow and groaning. At some point your thoughts would turn to my wife of now 43 years, and my daughter and grandsons, and then you would think of what my absence would mean to you. If I indeed reveal this to you today, I in-turn would hope to comfort you by my calmness and peace, in spite of such news, by my knowing that all is well between my God and me. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- I remember a discussion in my 10th grade English studies class that was posed by our teacher, Mrs. Nelms. As she wrote three words on the board (This-is-fun), she asked the question, “How many ways can you say these three words?” These were the responses: This is fun!, This is fun!, and This is fun! When no other ways were suggested, I raised my hand and said, “This is fun?”, to which Mrs. Nelms signaled her approval as she and the whole class giggled. And therein lays the point of what I want to share with you today. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- The background of what we are about to read is this: After 400 years of living in Egypt (with at least the last 50-75 years or so being slaves), the descendants of Jacob (who became Israel) were led out of Egypt by Moses and had spent the next 40 years wandering in the land between the Red Sea and Canaan, their Promised Land. They spent about 38 years in their Wilderness walk because of disobedience, faithlessness, and continued rebellion against God. For much of that time, they were pagan-Israelites, more Egyptians in their beliefs and pagan practices then they were God-fearing children of Israel. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- In part one, I paired what the Apostle Paul said to the Galatians with what (in our time) Dr. George Barna revealed about those in America that profess to be Christians. I made and continue to make the point in this segment that our Christian culture has in large-part customized the pure Gospel of Jesus Christ, which is the only Gospel able to save one’s soul; huge numbers of those believing they are born again and will go to Heaven one day are believing things that are “another gospel”, which will not save a man or woman’s soul. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- For two segments I hope to incite you to very carefully (and with a magnifying glass) look at what you have allowed yourself to believe—the magnifying class that is the Word of God and only the Word of God. This is also counsel from on High for everything in the future that you are presented as truth! For many years now I have been interested in the work of Christian researcher Dr. George Barna of the Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University. No one is better at keeping a thumb on the spiritual pulse and respiration of the people of our country then Dr. Barna has been doing for 3 decades. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- If you are otherwise familiar with my work as a teacher of God’s Word and ways then perhaps you have noticed a term that I have used in the past, and now more frequently: A True Christian. I use it intentionally as an occasional and perhaps almost a subliminal challenge to anyone listening to me intending it to cause everyone that claims to be or even believes they are a Christian to consider the very tragic ending if they are not a true Christian. If a man or woman saying they are a Christian is not a true Christian what might be the case? ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- Today’s message is a distinct word from the Lord to those that will listen. This story is one that I have always found intriguing and been blessed by in my own life. The name “Rechabites” is only used 4 times in the entire Bible and it is in this one chapter in Jeremiah. It has some very good instructive points in it that I want to share with you today. This entire family-line for several generations lived without compromise according to a command made by an Israelite forefather named Jonadab, the son of Rechab. There obedience to that command again was this: We will drink no wine: for Jonadab the son of Rechab our father commanded us, saying, Ye shall drink no wine, neither ye, nor your sons for ever: ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- I remember sitting in a high school classroom with a black man as my teacher, a man that I recall respecting, and he said this: “If we all woke up one morning and shared the same skin color—by the end of the day we would find another reason to be prejudice.” Think of that—where would new prejudices come from? Eye color? Height? Hair color? Education, political affiliation, type of career, some perceived class of people? Religious beliefs? A difference of opinion? What kind of car we drive? That teacher’s statement made an impact on me at the age of 16 that was eye-opening and helpful. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- Do you like mind-teasers? Today’s discussion is one that if you like to be challenged in your mind you will probably spend some considerable time mulling over what you will hear today. What I will be talking about will involve you and me and everyone else on the planet, including the spiritual beings that are busy on the earth, those for good purposes and those others for evil. See if what you read here isn’t going to be a little mind-boggling/warping/twisting experience for you courtesy of the Word of God. The Bible makes it clear something very unusual and strange to us is going to happen in these last days and that Jesus also said something else that must be considered with it when He declared “the Scriptures cannot be broken”. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- I have little doubt that in this regard you have been like I have been from time-to-time: When we do not do what we were supposed to or we did something that we should not have done, and in either case we are legitimately confronted about it—we often are quick to make excuses. In some cases, we might be forgiven (although warned) but in other cases of our wrong-doing there will be consequences, ranging from unpleasant to seriously negative and in some way maybe painful—perhaps even long-lasting. Do you know what I mean from personal experience? The Holy Spirit put that one word on my heart: Excuses! ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- Before moving into the last analysis of what we can learn from what Paul wrote in this passage, I want to point out as an important review two things that we discovered in this passage that have been mentioned so far. From part one, we learned that the word "sufficient" used by the Holy Spirit infers a two-fold participation that is to happen between God and the believer. What He gives us as grace in our trials is to be recognized by definition as enough for the need and our benefit, it is just the right amount of help by God's wisdom, it will suffice and is just the correct dose of help for the purposes of God in our life regarding that problem area. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- What I shared with you in part one of this short series on the subject of God’s grace was an important first step in walking in the benefits of that grace. There is no question that you and I have been given His grace or we would not be able to consider ourselves ones born again from Heaven. To put a finer point on what you heard in part 1, you might want to consider grace this way: There is every day grace that you and I are not even aware of and there is what we might consider as emergency grace or the favor and help of God’s grace needed when unexpected and serious things arise in our lives. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- Dear friends in Christ, On the heels of talking to you under the title How Can We Know, an important 3-part look at one’s genuine faith in God as a Person, including what His Word says, and about one’s love for God, today I want to tag onto what you should have taken to heart this subject today. It falls nicely in place as both a review for some of what we should know and live by, and for others, it will be instruction and an encouragement on how to live having strong faith in God and what His Word teaches us, as well as for one that loves God passionately and knows that He loves us even more than that! ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- As my wife and I were watching a Christian movie recently one of the main characters in it asked someone that claimed to be a Christian a great question that went something like this: “Regarding your life and Jesus—is it by addition or submission?” That’s what I am addressing today about your life and our God and Savior Jesus Christ. What does that question mean? Is your relationship with Jesus one of addition or one of submission? Straight to the point it means ... ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- As Christians we are children of light and of the day—living in an ever-more-darkening world—but if we walk about with our eyes closed, light does us no good at all. Our country has not seen war on its lands since the terrible Civil War in the mid-1800s. There were reports of a Japanese submarine spotted off the Los Angeles County, San Pedro coastline during the WWII timeframe, and supposedly sunk, but we have not had foreign military invaders on U.S. soil since the British were expelled during the Revolutionary War. But this is soon to change—you need to know that, believe it as true, and make plans and preparations to live through it as a Christian. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- The topics that I bring weekly are usually developed from the title that the Lord drops into my heart. A few weeks back the term “Tribulation Wealth” just popped up in my mind and I immediately understood what it was to be about—it is this: The world, our country, and our households are sliding more swiftly by the week toward what the Bible calls “great tribulation.” It will be a time of civil chaos, the collapse of our financial systems (to include both our income sources and nearly all commerce in our land), an extreme scarcity of the needed things of life, (sadly) the physical destruction and the death of multiplied millions by natural calamities and by wars, and eventually the imposition of the antichrist system of buying, selling, and the demanded worship of false gods. ![]() PORTERVILLE, CA -- In recent months there have been news reports to the effect that as a result of the conflict going on between Russia and Ukraine several countries have gone from a peacetime, “life is normal” mode, to a declared and almost frenzied “war footing”. A few have openly publicized it while others by their actions have implied that that is the state of their defensive mood. Specifically—Russia is preparing for a war with NATO and the U.S. and China is preparing to invade Taiwan with a resulting war with the U.S. and perhaps 3 or 4 of its neighbors (including nuclear India) when it moves against Taiwan. For more Information - editor@portervillepost.com All Right Reserved ![]()
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