In His Service

  Exhortations to Encourage one another Part 2 Phil. 4:5b-9 As Paul is exhorting the church in Philippi, he keys on the issues of the church: the Blessed Hope of the Church, the importance of prayer, the peace of God, to fix our eyes on the Truth, and to the act of putting all this into practice in our lives.    Now Paul in verse five B, He exhorts the church that Jesus could come back for His church very soon.  “Remember, the Lord is coming soon.”  Paul presses the truth that this is Jesus’ promise to the Church in John 14:1-3 “ Let not your hearts be troubled; believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house there are many rooms; if it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And when I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.” But he places importance on the timing of Jesus coming. Paul understood Jesus would come as a thief in the night, (1 Thes. 5...

  Knowing the Enemy’s Schemes James 1:13-15; 2 Cor. 2:11 In the absence of being able to fellowship and study the word, the enemy can come stealthily in to tempt us and use many other methods and strategies such as: Fiery darts (short range weapons), business (keeping us from prayer and reading his Word), distracting us, working undercover (angel of light), and blind us to the truth (Deceit from Fake Truth).  In our study of James 1, Pastor James warns his disciples about the danger of temptation. “ When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.” vv.13-15 Paul also gave the Corinthians word of warning as well,   “ in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.” So we a...

                                               Wisdom in Dealing with Life’s Trials James 1:2-8,12 Reflecting back at life’s trials, I am encouraged by God’s wisdom, and He tells us to consider it with all joy. If ever there was a time of trials in our lives that bring us down, it definitely would be during this pandemic. We as Christians are given the Holy Spirit in order to empower us to be able to stand (persevere) during these trials. The word ‘consider’ in the Aramaic means ”to lead the way”. Under the direction of the Holy Spirit, we as believers are given the direction by the Holy Spirit who is leading the way. It is not easy staying in isolation, but we have been given a comforter ( “ I will ask the Father and he will give you another Comforter, and he will never leave you.” John 14:16 LB ) in whom we receive joy as a fruit (evidence) of hi...

   Exhortations to Encourage Each Other (Part 1) Phil.4:1-5a In the book of Acts, a man named Barnabus was known for his encouragement. (Acts 4:36) He was instrumental in encouraging the disciples to accept Paul in Jerusalem (Acts 9:27), and it was Barnabus that went to get Paul in Tarsus (Acts 11:19-26), and Barnabus went with Paul on his first missions trips to the gentiles (Acts 13-14). Paul learned to encourage others as Barnabus had encouraged him.  Now Paul is exhorting the church in Philippi to encourage others with the truth of God’s Word. In verse one, Paul exhorts the church to stay true to the Lord, “ Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stay true to the Lord. I love you and long to see you, dear friends, for you are my joy and the crown I receive for my work.” If there was ever a phrase for this church, it was to give themselves fully to trust and faith in the Lord, not to waiver but stand steadfast in the truth of God’s Word in the midst of all their life...