Posted by Pastor Bruce on May 20, 2010
How many things do you love? Or better yet, how many things do you ”SAY” that you love?
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is (springs) from God; and he who loves [his fellowmen] is begotten (born) of God and is coming [progressively] to know and understand God [to perceive and recognize and get a better and clearer knowledge of Him]. 1 John 4:7 AMP
God is love and love comes from (or springs from) God. Without God there is no love. These are absolutes, this is THE TRUTH from the Word of God.
We have weakened the power of love by our nonchalant and overuse use of the word “LOVE”. We love chocolate, cars, vacation, starbuck’s coffee, walking on the beach, sunsets, ice cream, sports teams, (and the list goes on and on)…
We say that we love things that do not have the ability to love us back. Because we use the word love so much we do not have a handle on what we really do love.
The Word of God says that we should love the Lord with all of our heart, soul and strength! (every part of our being!) He is to be Lord and Master of our universe. Then He tells us that we should love people (our neighbor, our brothers, spouse, children, family, friends, co-workers and everyone). People have the ability to love us back. (sidenote: we do not love those that only love us back but everyone that we come in contact with)
We should check up on the way that we use the word LOVE and make sure that we are not overusing it. Instead we should say “like” when we are speaking of an object that we appreciate. Guard your affections and make sure that you are only loving God and people. Begin to use the word love with a new sensitivity of the power in love and new awareness that only God and other people are worth your full affection, attention and admiration!
Posted by Pastor Bruce on April 29, 2010
What do you think will transform the church?
Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance. – 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 NLT
The love of God manifested through the children of God will transform the Church of God!
“It (love) should be preached from the pulpit until every member of the congregation becomes love conscious, until it would be impossible for them to quarrel or say unkind things to one another.” – E.W. Kenyon
We are ordered to obey the love command by the Head of the Church, Jesus Christ. It is not an option but a holy command that when Jesus obeyed it, it allowed God the Father to restore the relationship between Himself and His most prized possession: mankind.
The Church is in the restoration business. Our job is to restore man to God. But we must be living a life of extreme love in order to accomplish the task that we have been given. We must obey the “love command” to a greater extent in order to see the Harvest come in. The Harvest that Jesus spoke about in Matthew 9:38 will only come in to the degree that the Church is living according to the commandment to love each other AS Jesus has loved us. We must get busy focusing on the love command and quit focusing on the things that do not matter.
Posted by Pastor Bruce on March 18, 2010
“I did it my way…” (what a song to live your life by…)
(1Peter 5:5b) Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for “GOD RESISTS THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE.”
Is it any wonder why the subject of submission gets a bad rap? In today’s society of MY rights, MY likes, MY dislikes, me, me, I, I… we still do not understand that life is not all about the big “ME”! God did not create us to be self-seeking and self-serving…these are attributes of Satan. Thinking only about yourself and considering everything that everybody has done to you or not done for you will lead you to a life of loneliness and bitterness.
The more that you perform constant self-examinations on all your hurts, pains and fears, the more that you draw into yourself and put up walls between you and everyone else. Like the Word says “God Himself resists the proud”.
To submit to God means to quit looking at what God can do for you and begin doing what God has told you to do by obeying His leadership. Pride is the opposite of submission. “I deserve better”, “if only they cared about me…”, “after all that I have done for you…” – these phrases reveal the heart of someone that is in pride. It is not recognized as pride because it is masqueraded with hurt and “weakness”. God cannot help someone in the middle of a “pity party”. He can only give grace to someone that submits themselves to Him and His Word to the point that they are willing to admit fault, receive instruction and then change.
Have you noticed how easy it is for everyone in the world to blame everyone else in the world for their problems? Indications of a proud heart…
The humble and submitted heart is the one that is doing the Word in every way. Obeying God, loving people (and not demanding from them). Love is not touchy, fretful, rude…it does not take any account of any wrong done to it…it doesn’t try to get it’s way.
Submission is not bondage, but true freedom!
Posted by Pastor Bruce on March 16, 2010
Is it really all about you?!
For the others all seek [to advance] their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ (the Messiah). – Phillipians 2:21 (AMP)
How obvious is it that we live in a self-seeking, self-absorbed society? People are racing at the speed of sound to “get all they can out of life” under the guise of enjoyment and working desperately to make a name for themselves. Ever think about the phrase “name for yourself”? We are called by His Name to lift up His Name!
Jesus must become greater in our lives than we are. He must become the central focus in our lives and when He does the people that are looking at us will see Him shining so brightly that they will glorify our Heavenly Father (Matt. 5:16) … (not glorify us!).
Marketing has become the way of life in this generation. We market absolutely everything! (including water and oxygen!) We market ourselves and are in competition with ourselves to our own detriment. Whatever happened to “preferring one another before ourselves”? Or have we taken that out of “our version” of the Bible…? (Just a thought…)
Who are you promoting today? Do people glorify you or do they glorify God because of you? Our Father is expecting us to act like Jesus and when we do our interests become secondary and His interests become primary. We begin to look more like Him and in turn we are able to accomplish more of His will than our own. After all, isn’t that what it is all about? Not our will but His will be done in our lives? How are we measuring up?
Posted by Pastor Bruce on March 3, 2010
How do you know when you have changed?
Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him – Col. 3:9-10 NKJV
OLD MAN vs. NEW MAN…you choose.
We have the responsibility to walk (live) according to the Word of God and act like Jesus. We can say that we are “trying”…but how hard are we trying?
To grow up into Jesus is to change the way that we act, think and speak. We have the power (and the responsibility) to change for ourselves. No one can make you change and no one can change for you. You decide when and if you are going to change.
Our disadvantage is that we live in a society of convenience where we do the least amount possible and expect the greatest result. We want all the shortcuts and we want them right now!
Real and lasting change is not based on convenience, it is based on the how much of the Word of God we are putting to practice in our lives. We must determine that we will do whatever the Word says for us to do as quickly as we see it in the Word! To change we have to change, period. How much have you changed lately?
Posted by Pastor Bruce on March 2, 2010
Eating your words is not a fun thing to do.
Proverbs 29:20
(AMP) Do you see a man who is hasty in his words? There is more hope for a [self-confident] fool than for him.
(BBE) Have you seen a man who is quick with his tongue? There is more hope for a foolish man than for him.
(CEV) There is more hope for a fool than for someone who speaks without thinking.
(GW) Have you met a person who is quick to answer? There is more hope for a fool than for him.
(NKJV) Do you see a man hasty in his words? There is more hope for a fool than for him.
One problem that everyone of us deals with is OUR TONGUE. The book of James talks a lot about the power of the tongue and the fact that what we say will direct our lives. (Read James for a great source of help in this area!)
We should practice the discipline of thinking before speaking but in a lot of instances we are way too quick to speak without thinking. Someone said, “make sure that your words are sweet because you will eat them”, and this is true.
If you have been too hasty to speak in the past just determine today that you will begin to “bite your tongue” (for the count of 10) before you say anything. Instead of talking so much learn how to ask other people questions and listen to what they say. Learning how to listen is the cure for talking too much. Don’t be a fool, hold your peace, bite your tongue and enjoy the results.
Posted by Pastor Bruce on February 24, 2010
Ever felt like giving up?
And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. – Acts 2:42 (KJV)
We all have the opportunity everyday to quit, run and hide. BUT we must continue steadfastly!
Continue in: 1) The Word – Read, study and meditate the Word of God as much as you can daily. 2) Fellowship – Get involved in a local church where iron sharpens iron and your church family can exhort you. 3) Breaking of bread – Receive communion – the Lord’s Supper – regularly, at home and at church. 4) Pray – without ceasing and before you do anything. Give yourself to prayer, listen to the voice of God.
It is our job to continue. To continue steadfastly means to make a choice to do what you know to do. God can only give you the strength to do what you have determined in your heart to do and then begin to move toward it. Don’t sit down in the mully grubs and whine and complain, get up, dust yourself off and get moving! Re-focus, re-fuel and get moving towards all that God has for you! Jer. 29:11 You can do more than you ever thought you could do but you must CONTINUE!
Posted by Pastor Bruce on February 19, 2010
Study must become a habit.
“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” – 2 Tim 2:15 (KJV)
Growing up spiritually does not happen naturally, it requires a great deal of time and attention. The responsibility of knowing Him and growing up in Him is ours. We have been given His Word and He took great effort to get it to us. If we completely comprehend how much value there is in the Word of God each of us would become totally devoted to the study of God’s Word. (This responsibility is not just for people who are in the ministry)
“These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so. Therefore many of them believed…” – Acts 17:11-12
Giving yourself to the Word of God produces a faith in God that is necessary to accomplish the will of God. Daily is key. Feeding from the Word daily, searching and pouring over the Word brings you face to face with the Author, the Holy Spirit. He is the One that takes us by the hand and leads us into a deeper understanding of the truth. He opens our eyes to show us things that we have never seen before.
We become approved by God by studying the Word enough that we handle the Word with confidence and boldness. Get deeper in the Word and watch it transform your life.
Posted by Pastor Bruce on February 11, 2010
Examine your words…it is the best self examination that we can perform.
Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit. O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things. – Matt 12:33-35
The old saying that “you are what you eat” is true in the natural sense but also in the soul and spiritual sense. The things that you are consuming all day long with your eyes and ears are forming what you believe in your heart and will eventually come out of your mouth.
If you want to locate where someone is spiritually just listen to them speak for about 5 minutes. Your words tell where your heart is. Take a whole day and do half the amount of talking and just listen to the words that you use. Are they filled with faith or with doubt? Are they filled with fear and criticism and love and kindness?
If you find that you are not speaking what you should be speaking then change what you are feeding on. Turn off the negative news and put more of the Word of God in you. Dwell in His Word and let His Words dwell in you…then you will begin to hear great things proceed from your heart and mouth! Words that will bless and heal…words that will attract people to Jesus and not to yourself. Good in, good out…
Posted by Pastor Bruce on February 3, 2010
The Church is waking up!
Therefore He says, Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall shine (make day dawn) upon you and give you light. [Isa. 26:19; 60:1, 2.] Look carefully then how you walk! Live purposefully and worthily and accurately, not as the unwise and witless, but as wise (sensible, intelligent people), – Ephesians 5:14-15 AMP
We must realize what time it is and wake up! Quit hitting the “snooze button” and get out of the bed.
Jesus is depending on us to do our part as His Body and begin to move toward the sick and lost. Have compassion on people and stretch out our hands to give help, healing and hope!
As these verses state we need to examine the way that we are living so that we are living with purpose. Also, we need to make sure that we are doing the Word and not just hearing it. Allow the Word to purge us and cleanse us in order to bear more fruit. We must put a premium on doing the Word in these days. But in order to do the Word you must first know the Word. Be students of the Word as 2 Timothy 2:15 says in order that we be not ashamed so that we can do the Word (James 1:22 and Joshua 1:8)
Let’s not let the Lord find us sleeping on the job (as He did when He asked a few of His disciples to pray just outside the garden of Gethsemane)…we need to wake up, look at the clock, stir up the gift in us and be about our Father’s business!
