Walk It Out                                                                     1-3-14

Mark 4:26-29 (NASB)

²⁶  And He was saying, "The kingdom of God is like a man who casts seed upon the soil;
²⁷  and he goes to bed at night and gets up by day, and the seed sprouts and grows—how, he himself does not know.
²⁸  "The soil produces crops by itself; first the blade, then the head, then the mature grain in the head.
²⁹  "But when the crop permits, he immediately puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come."

Ever feel that you are walking down a dead end street? You know don't you? Nothing has changed and it doesn't appear it is going to. You are marking time, treading water..it's a DEAD END.... Or so you think. Here's a personal story. A few months ago I had come to a decision that I was at a dead end. This decision had not been made hastily; nor, had it been made lightly or without much prayer. But, all I could see was a dead end and I had decided to turn the corner. So, as I was doing my daily walk, I asked the Lord about a new direction. Well, He didn't answer my prayer that day. I asked again and again.....nothing. Days went by, then weeks, nada. Can I get a witness? And they ALL said AMEN!  After a considerable amount of time,I decided to take matters in my  own hands. I was going to make a move that would get the ball rolling. Just at that point my spirit was stirred within me and I believed the Lord was about to answer my petition. You know how you get when you feel like God is going to move in your life don't you? It's a feeling. A certain feeling of expectancy. Well, a couple days  later I was going through my daily routine and I was down at the track where I did my daily walk, and the Lord spoke to me. Now understand I needed some direction about what I was to do; where I was to go, now that I had decided to turn the corner. I needed some wisdom. I needed some revelation. And then the Lord spoke..................."walk it out"What? "walk it out" What do you mean 'walk it out?' " You mean stay where I'm at? Keep walking down this same road? " "Yep. That's exactly what I mean." " But, wait a minute God. This is a dead end. There's no light at the end of this road. I need to do this. I'm going to end up getting smoked here. It's a dead end!" "Walk it out."

Another translation of the above story reads like this"Stay where you are and sit steady in the boat." Oftentimes it is tough to sit steady in the boat. Your own rational mind and everything about you is telling you to jump ship and all you have to go on is a "word" from God. And to top it off, the "word" is saying don't do anything. Keep doing what you're doing. Keep walking where you're walking. You see many times we have to be like the man in the above parable. He throws that seed out in TRUST. He doesn't have a clue about how that seed grows. He goes to sleep, he wakes up. Nothing happens. He goes to bed, he wakes up..still nothing. BUT, one day he wakes up and voila! That seed has broken the ground and is growing. He doesn't know how, but, it keeps growing until one day it is mature and producing fruit. Ask the man how it happened and you will get a deer in the headlights stare and a uhhh...I dunno.
All he did was TRUST that the seed would produce. He didn't do anything to hinder the growth and he didn't dig it up when he didn't see immediate results. Isn't that the way it is with God sometimes?
We don't understand how He works, but if we trust Him, if we can just trust Him, we will enjoy the harvest. Look at this.

  Isaiah 55:10-11 (NASB) ¹⁰  "For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, And do not return there without watering the earth And making it bear and sprout, And furnishing seed to the sower and bread to the eater;
¹¹  So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.

Look at that promise brothers and sisters.My Word will not return empty. Accomplishing what I desire. And SUCCEEDING in the matter for which I sent it. Oh yeah. That's good stuff. No, it's not out of context, look at the first verse.

Isaiah 55:1 (NASB) ¹  "Ho! Every one who thirsts, come to the waters; And you who have no money come, buy and eat. Come, buy wine and milk Without money and without cost.

"..EVERYONE"(Caps mine) That's you and me brothers and sisters.It's free and it works every time. All we need do is trust and obey.

Remember that old hymn?
Trust and obey, for there's no other way. To be happy in Jesus, just trust and obey. Plant that word that God spoke to you in your heart and leave it alone. Trust God to cause it to grow however and wherever He wants it to grow. If we can do this, we will be way ahead of the game.

 Brothers and sisters it may look dark. It may look like the road you are on is leading you over the cliff. But, if we can't trust God, who can we trust? The philosophers, the economists, the politicians? I don't know about you but I'm hedging my bet on the Lord. Remember this. He's got our back. Amen? AMEN!!

Psalm 119:89 (NASB) ⁸⁹

 Forever, O LORD, Your word is settled in heaven.



God Bless

A News Year's Resolution...?                                                          12-27-13

I don't make New Year's resolutions anymore. The RESOLVE in my resolution to lose 20 pounds quickly melts as the visions of  Penn Station cheesesteaks or  Firehouse Sub meatball marinaras dance wildly about in my head. As someone once told me" they call me by name." Oh well...I will trod down to the gym and do my penance on the treadmill as if it will do me any good. Unfortunately those 20 pounds aren't coming off without a dose of self control and discipline. Amen?  As I was thinking about what to write today, this passage rolled by my eyes.

1 Timothy 4:7-8 (NASB) ⁷  But have nothing to do with worldly fables fit only for old women. On the other hand, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness;
⁸  for bodily discipline is only of little profit, but godliness is profitable for all things, since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.

The Apostle Paul is encouraging Timothy, his pupil in the faith to train himself to attain to godliness. Why? Because it holds promise not only for the next life, but, for THIS LIFE as well. I thought to myself"hmmm... that sounds like a good New Year's resolution. Let's see here.. Godliness..hmm oh here it is. According to Mounce's Expository Dictionary, it is defined as "a manner of life that is devoted to God." Also, Paul exhorts Timothy (and by default you and me of course) pursue godliness strenuously. 

1 Timothy 6:11 (NASB) ¹¹  But flee from these things, you man of God, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness.
But, I need a little more help here ..it's just not... wait a minute there it is. Look at this.
Godliness is a life DEVOTED to God. O.K lets see here...devoted, that's it. there it is.

Devoted-" to attend to or devote oneself to in a regular and steadfast manner." To be around or commune with in a consistent and persistent manner. You see, I had the wrong idea about Godliness.
Godliness isn't about being "spiritual," I can't find Godliness in a set of rules of conduct or behavior; whether they have been set by me or someone else. No, that in and of itself is nothing more than mere religion. Godliness eludes me when I attempt to tie it to some doctrine or creed. You know what I mean don't you? You have to believe a certain way(usually the way I believe) to be "Godly." Allow me this aside on doctrine. While there are some fundamental truths about the Christian faith, once we go beyond Christ, the Cross and His Resurrection, it's ALL DOCTRINE. Remember this brothers and sisters, God is the Judge and the Justifier. He is the author and FINISHER of our faith, and only when we stand before the Lord Jesus will we be called to account for our doctrines and our works. Jesus and JESUS ALONE will decide whether our works will stand or fall before Him.

1 Corinthians 3:12-13 (NASB) ¹²  Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw,
¹³  each man's work will become evident; for the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man's work.

You see folks being Godly isn't about rules or conduct. It isn't about saying the right things or acting the right way. It's not about outward appearance. Being Godly is about being with and around God. It's about letting Him free your heart from hatred. It's about letting Him free your mind from worry.(something I saw on Facebook today) It's about you and me ceasing from our attempts at "being spiritual" and attending to God; letting HIM make us spiritual from the inside out. Do we want a "Godly" new year? Then let us spend time meditating on His Word. Let us spend time with Him alone in His presence and allow the Holy Spirit to direct our lives. Let us pursue TRUE righteousness and godliness.

Happy New Year All.

Psalm 139:23-24 (NASB) ²³  Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me and know my anxious thoughts;
²⁴  And see if there be any hurtful way in me, And lead me in the everlasting way.


God Bless

Enough Is Enough                                                             12-20-13

Proverbs 19:3 (NASB) ³  The foolishness of man ruins his way, And his heart rages against the LORD.


Merry Christmas All! It won't be long until the big fat man pays us a visit. Hope everyone is having a great holiday season.

That verse above is one of my favorite verses in all the Bible. I remember what my stepfather, years ago when I was a teenager, used to tell me, " there's nothing but trouble out there past 11 o'clock." The clock crept up every year until I became a senior. Then it went like this, " there's nothing out there but trouble after 12 o'clock." The time had changed but the message had not. After a certain time there was nothing out there but trouble. As I grew up and stepped out on my own, much to my chagrin, I found something else out. It didn't matter what time it was, trouble was always out there! As a matter of fact, I didn't even have to look for trouble, it would find me!! Can I get a witness from anyone out there? 

Understand this, everybody has limits. The patience of even the most cool and level headed among us can be pushed to the breaking point. Parents with children, employers with employees, police and judges with lawbreakers..everyone reaches a point where ENOUGH IS ENOUGH. Can I get an amen please?

 The wisdom of the above verse rings in my ears on almost a daily basis. It has
been an eye opener to me in my own life more times than I care to remember. Here's how it goes. We will get out there and test the limits of God's Word. God in His mercy will protect us in our stupidity time and time again. We'll keep pushing the envelope until one of two things happen.1) All Hades comes crashing down as a natural response to ignoring what God's Word says. OR 2) All Hades comes crashing down because God has had enough and it's time for a trip to the woodshed. Either way....well you get the picture. So when we are sitting in the middle of the road trying to get the number of the truck that just clocked us, what do we do? We take it out on the Lord. That's the message of that verse. OUR FOOLISHNESS ruins our life but we rage against God. All God has been doing all along is protecting us from ourselves; yet we are calling Him on the carpet for our demise. 

   Proverbs 20:2 (NASB) ²  The terror of a king is like the growling of a lion; He who provokes him to anger forfeits his own life.

I never was a Bob Dylan fan, but he wrote a song "..Gotta Serve Somebody."
In the song he says that we may be somebody or nobody, rich or poor, famous, infamous, or unknown BUT we ARE going to serve somebody. If we don't bow to mama and daddy, we will bow to the police. If we don't bow to the police, we will bow to the judge. If we don't bow to the judge, we will bow to BIG BUBBA in the jail, BUT, we are going to bow to someone. You, me, the next door neighbor...we are going to serve someone. As Bob Dylan says,"it might be the devil, it might be the Lord, but you gotta serve somebody."

I will leave you with this. No matter how far you or I have fallen, God is there. No matter how bad we have been, God has forgiven us. If you need to feel His love, His touch, His forgiveness all you need do is ask. If you will take one step toward God, He will come running to you and gather you up in His arms. He's holding NOTHING against you or me.

 Romans 8:38-39 (NASB) ³⁸  For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers,
³⁹  nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Psalm 130:3-4 (NASB) ³  If You, LORD, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand?
⁴  But there is forgiveness with You, That You may be feared.



God Bless



  

Only In The Next Life                                                                  12-13-13

1 Corinthians 13:12 (NASB) ¹²  For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known.

Pastor Doug's son Joshua wrote me a note this week. In it he wondered aloud if the messages were impacting people's lives. He then made this comment "We will know for sure in the next life.." That set me to thinking. There are things that happen in this life that are ..well...strange. Or as one fast food company advertises "outside the box."  They are dissonant(my new word for the week) out of harmony. You see it all the time. An evangelist will have a healing ministry and some people get healed and some don't. Others are called to prophesy and some of their prophecies come to pass and some don't. There are ministries that we would label as shallow and self-serving; yet, God prospers and uses them mightily for His purposes. While others that we consider far more insightful and in depth, labor in obscurity,seemingly forgotten by God. Personal theologies are adjusted and overhauled to harmonize with reality. Just recently a nationally prominent Pastor wrote a scathing rebuke of a prominent theological position. It didn't work, it didn't fit. It wasn't in harmony with his belief system. He was left with no other avenue save to attack it.

During a conversation this week I was reminded of a popular saying from the movie "Rudy." In response to a question posed to him by Rudy,the priest in the movie said that in 30 something years of ministry he(the priest) had learned two incontrovertible facts, "...there is a God and I ain't Him!" Brothers and sisters that basically sums it up.


Isaiah 55:8-9 (NASB) ⁸  "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways," declares the LORD.
⁹  "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways And My thoughts than your thoughts.

Allow me to present you with a profound and even scary concept.I hesitate to even speak about it because my understanding of it is infantile at best. But, it is on my heart so I'll go with it.

God Is Sovereign. Again. God Is Sovereign

That's it Ronnie !?? God is sovereign?? Sheesshh Jenkins...everybody knows that!

Maybe.

Sovereign
1) a monarch; a king, queen, or other supreme ruler
2)a person who has supreme power or authority

Those words make good sense...sometimes. Supreme power, unquestioned and unchallenged authority, supreme authority. Truths about the God that you and I serve. These are lofty and well received words when all is well.When there is enough money in the bank, when we have good health, WHEN ALL IS WELL.

But, and let me state emphatically here that I am preaching to me at this point. BUT,when our lives are outside the box, when ALL IS NOT WELL, when our current and long held theology ISN'T working... God is STILL SOVEREIGN. When all hell is breaking loose in our lives, when there is nothing but affliction and suffering, He is still working His purpose. Listen brothers and sisters, consider those words CAREFULLY. I assure you that I will. We are frail creatures folks. I can unashamedly confess that I WILL crumble under the SLIGHTEST AFFLICTION without God's grace to see me through. No amount of personal piety, repentance, prayer etc., etc., will strengthen me sufficiently. All of my "spirituality" lay in a dirty heap at the foot of the savior. I stand, no that is wrong, He UPHOLDS me in the power of His grace and His grace alone. I am helpless on my own accord. All of our theologies are just that. Theologies. Our knowledge of the one true God. And as the scripture says, it is at best partial and incomplete. Our confidence, knowledge, power and WHATEVER else we claim to be is wrapped up in one word JESUS.

Hebrews 12:1-2 (NASB) ²  fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

The beginner and finisher of our faith. Grace plus absolutely nothing. That's all our hope. 

God Is Sovereign.

Psalm 107:1-2 (NASB) ¹

 Oh give thanks to the LORD, for He is good, For His lovingkindness is everlasting.
²  Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the adversary


God Bless

In Times Like These                                                              12-06-13

Psalm 31:15 (NASB) ¹⁵  My times are in Your hand;

Times..the events that make up our lives on this earth. The Psalmist David learned to trust the Lord with the events and circumstances, good and bad of his "times." In times like these there are no words that comfort, no scripture that alleviates the pain, no prayer that lightens the burden. In times like these all we want to do is crawl up into God's hands and find a place with Him. All we want is to feel His arms around us and to hear Him tell us that it will be O.K. Please remember Pastor Doug, Wanda and all their family in these times.

Psalm 23:1-6 (NASB) ¹

 The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want.
²  He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters.
³  He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness For His name's sake.
⁴  Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
⁵  You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You have anointed my head with oil; My cup overflows.
⁶  Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life, And I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.


God Bless

Nothing But The Blood                                                                           11-29-13

Romans 5:9 (NASB) ⁹  Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him.

Man, I am stuffed. Can I get an amen? I got the night off and decided to write my message tonight. It's 2 o'clock in the morning and the peace and quiet is nice as I can hardly move after the gorging I did today. Hope you had a nice Thanksgiving and now let the shopping begin!!

I heard that old gospel hymn this week. It was on one of those Bill Gaither specials that come on from time to time and it touched my heart.

                                        What can wash away my sin?
                                         Nothing but the blood of Jesus;
                                         What can make me whole again?
                                         Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
                                        
                                         Oh! Precious is the flow
                                          That makes me white as snow;
                                          No other fount I know,
                                          Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

The stain of sin. We can't wash it off. We can't go to church enough, can't read our Bible enough, can't pray enough. All the holy living and good works that you and I can muster have no effect; and all the money in the world can't buy it off. As a matter of fact there is NOTHING that YOU or I can do to make it go away. No human merit or work of righteousness is sufficient. Oh, but listen. All anyone need do is get under the flow. Nothing but the blood. Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

It appears that we have started a new holiday tradition..black Thursday night. A lot of the stores opened tonight trying to get a head start on the competition for the holiday sales dollar. Even both of our local malls opened early this evening. Listen, I like all the holiday hustle and bustle.It brings back childhood memories and the almost unbearable countdown to the day that the big fat man made his yearly trek to my living room. Those were some good times for sure. Understand however, that this world is in a mad dash for every last dollar that it can squeeze out of us;and Jesus, and His Blood probably don't figure too prominently into the equation

Having said that, the hymn song this week made me think about the upcoming season and provoked me to consider the man Jesus. You know something? we don't serve and worship a babe in the manger any longer. Yes, I love the songs of Christmas and the baby Jesus. The sweetness of spirit that surrounds Christmas and all the rest that goes along with it. But, let me repeat..we no longer serve that babe. No, no.  We serve a crucified and risen savior; a soon coming warrior-king. The world wants to keep Jesus in that Bethlehem manger or on Calvary's cross; but He's no longer in either place. He sits on a throne in unapproachable light and glory. He's coming back to execute His vengeance upon this earth and all the inhabitants that don't know Him as Savior. He is going to set up His kingdom with all the answers to man's feeble attempts to govern the world that God gave him.  Not only does He have all the answers that men are seeking on this earth; but, He has all the answers for the sin sick soul and the weary ones that have lost their way. As they say today, He's the real deal.

Matthew 11:28-30 (NASB) ²⁸  "Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.
²⁹  "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.
³⁰  "For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."


 Even better than all that is that He loves you and me and wants to make us a part of His grand design. An important part! Find some one on one time with Him today. He knows what you are going through. Whether it is a secret sin that is weighing you down or crushing circumstances beyond your control, He has a healing Word for You and You alone. His Word says it's a sustaining word. As the song says, His Blood will wash away your sin AND make you WHOLE again.

Isaiah 50:4 (NASB) ⁴  The Lord GOD has given Me the tongue of disciples, That I may know how to sustain the weary one with a word. He awakens Me morning by morning, He awakens My ear to listen as a disciple.


 His blood still works. It can, no, it WILL save you from your sin. It will restore and refresh your soul. It will encourage and strengthen you to keep on going against the odds and will give you victory in the end. It is the only true reality in this world that we live in. And to top it off it won't cost you a dime. No standing in line and you get instant approval. Seek Him out.

NOTHING BUT THE BLOOD OF JESUS!

Psalm 34:22 (NASB) ²²  The LORD redeems the soul of His servants, And none of those who take refuge in Him will be condemned.


God Bless            

Garbage Cans                                                                                 11-22-13

Proverbs 18:21 (KJV) ²¹  Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.

I can remember exactly where I was when President Kennedy was shot 50 years ago today. I was sitting in Mr. Morris' 8th grade English class. I will never forget it. Fifty years ago! Just another reminder of how quickly this life passes. Well, this message may get out today and it may not. I have been teaching myself to type and this is the first time that I am trying to do it all by the book. So, look for the message either today or tomorrow!lol

I had the truth of the above verse played out in front of my eyes yesterday. I have heard many sermons on the above verse. Most of them have the speaker in view as their subject; but, I want to talk today with the listener in mind. Someone once said(I can't remember who) this," My ears ain't no garbage cans." The wisdom of that statement became painfully evident to me yesterday. Allow me to elaborate.

My mother, who is ?4 years old. She would kill me if I actually revealed how young she is. (smile.)
She is somewhat frail, but manages to putter around reasonably well. Yesterday she was having a good day,busying herself with various tasks that she wanted to do. She had recently missed a phone call from a long time friend and decided that she would return that call yesterday. I was sitting at the kitchen table within earshot of Memaw when she called. It began like any other call,"hey, how you doin?" and all that; but, then something changed and Memaw became silent. After a few seconds of silence my ears perked up to hear anything. I heard her say" oh that's too bad" then after some back and forth I heard "let's talk about something else." Well, this back and forth went on and I overheard "this is depressing me, it is reminding me of what all is wrong with me, let's talk about something positive." This banter went on for about ten minutes back and forth and then I heard my mother say "I've got to go, I'm feeling funny." She wasn't kidding. I didn't think too much about it believing that she had had enough and was trying to politely say good-bye. No big deal until she called for me a couple of minutes later. I went to see what was up and saw her trying to balance herself. I asked her what was the matter and she said the room was spinning. As I went to her side she started gagging; needless to say, I became concerned. For the next few minutes it was very hectic, trying to figure out why the sudden onset of illness and what was the matter. So much so that I called my sister to come over and have a look.

O.K. The rest of the story. When mother finally calmed down, before falling asleep for the rest of the day and night she told me that the phone call had made her sick. She said that ------ had made her very nervous talking about how bad things were. It had upset her so bad that she had gotten violently ill. I asked her again today if she felt better and what had happened. She repeated that the phone call had made her sick. Words had upset her so bad that she made herself sick.

I thought of the above verse and that comment about not turning our ears into garbage cans. You see if we aren't careful, all the negative that surrounds us will affect us the hearers. Sometimes we have to zone it out. No, that doesn't mean that we get all high and mighty. I've had people tell me that they weren't going to let me bring them down AFTER asking me about a circumstance in my life. No, remember that the Bible also says that we should bear one another's burdens. But, sometimes we can't bear anymore. Amen? What is it that they say? One negative comment offsets five positives?  It's something like that. The tongue can be destructive or it can be healing.

Proverbs 12:18 (KJV) ¹⁸  There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword: but the tongue of the wise is health.



Proverbs 10:20 (KJV) ²⁰  The tongue of the just is as choice silver: the heart of the wicked is little worth.
Listen, there are times that we can't take anymore. We have to get away and get alone with God. We have to allow Him to heal our wounds and encourage us. We have to allow Him to work it out. We are all guilty from time to time.But we have to clean out the garbage that we allow to get on the inside of us. When the hopelessness of this world poisons our spirits, there is only one antidote. You have to open up that Bible and let IT talk to you. You have to take it to the Lord and let Him heal your heart.  

Well, it took me 45 minutes to type this. It would appear that I have some work to do!
Happy Thanksgiving! Talk to you on black Friday.

  Psalm 52:2 (KJV) ²  Thy tongue deviseth mischiefs; like a sharp razor, working deceitfully.

God Bless