The Christians are the only light for culture. There is no other hope to brighten up a dark world than for the redeemed of the Lord to rise up and shine. But what does that look like exactly? How does the heat and light of the gospel flood into a cold and dark world?
When the believers prayed for boldness in Acts 4, it wasn’t a simple prayer for a little more courage than they had before. It was a desperate plea to God to help them keep their flame lit. They were faced with a serious problem - Peter and John (their leaders) were threatened by those in power. So they turned to God with one accord and prayed that he might strengthen them to continue to obey and preach the gospel. The result was two-fold. They (1) boldly proclaimed the word of God to the outside world, and they (2) built a vibrant Christian community.
In other words, they cultivated a blazing fire around which they gathered with their brothers and sisters in Christ, and they lit a blazing torch which they carried to the outside world. There was a fire to warm them and a torch they shone on the world. When the smoldering embers of their spiritual light were threatened, the Holy Spirit fanned their community and evangelism into a ferocious flame. They had a strong base and a strong attack. They lit themselves and the world.
This community was no ordinary social group. It was characterized by a radical selflessness and profound sense of unity. We find these same words - “selflessness” and “unity” - used in the secular world. But when they are used (or rather, simply mused) in those circles, they are thought of in a much lower grade. An ancient hieroglyphic compared to the vivid picture of an overpriced TV from Best Buy. The selflessness and unity of this Acts 4 community would send shockwaves through the world today. Much like how a caveman might respond to seeing the glimmer of a new 60-inch Samsung. A Christian community, properly set ablaze, will shine with stunning distinction against the bleak communities that the world offers.
In the US Army survival manual, there is a chapter on building a fire. The last sentence of the intro to that chapter says this, “Remember, weigh your need for fire against your need to avoid enemy detection.” Fires provide all sorts of benefits to those who are around them, but they also draw the attention of the enemy. The stronger the fire, the easier the target for the enemy. Thus, the plea for boldness and power, of necessity, accompanies a people who have a well-flamed community. That’s how the light works. It repels the wolves and attracts the sheep. And there are yet many “other sheep that are not of this fold” and Jesus will “bring them also and they will listen to His voice”. So let us inflame ourselves by the Holy Spirit, so as to bring in as many who are fleeing from the darkness as possible.
The Only Light for Culture
November 10, 2024 • Dylan Ocorr • Matthew 5:14–16
With the 2024 election over, you may feel that you have your ‘man’ in the White House. You may feel thrilled at the possibility of the US government over the next 2-4 years. You may feel that a major victory was just won for the sake of the pro-life movement and the Biblical sexual ethic. But don’t rest on your laurels! It is a grave mistake to feel that a political victory is a complete victory. Even if all the right laws were to be passed, Christian Supreme Court Justices appointed, state constitutions re-written for the glory of God, and the Chick-fil-a sauce recipe was leaked… there would still be work to be done. The laurels are not yet complete. They are yet to fully blossom. Don’t rest on a rose bud, you’ll crush it before it blooms and snuff out its glory.
Jesus said that the Christian people, those who have been born again and filled with the Holy Spirit, are the light of the world. The only hope for a dark world is light. And the only light that exists is that which the Christian carries in his spirit. Too often we forget this glorious truth and think the “light” of God to be housed in some ideal or doctrine. We consume ourselves with talk of laws and policy, as if those legal statutes carry the light of God in them. They do not. They may point to the light, but they are not the light themselves. WE are the light. Those who are born again by the Spirit of God, are alone the light of the world.
Shall we fight and advocate for righteous legislation in our land? A thousand times ‘Yes!’ For when the laws of a nation reflect the glory of God, they clear the skies for the sun to shine. They weed out the garden for the rose to bloom. Any Rochesterian knows the daily slog produced by those long and cloudy wintry months. Our moods swing low, seasonal depression rises as the sun hides. But those occasional February days, when the clouds part and the sun gleams off the perfect white snow - they remind us that there is a sun, that it is warm, and the dreary days will soon end. Righteous laws have the same effect. They clear away the moral and social fog. They warm up the soul and remind us of God - that there is a real moral standard. But they only clear the way for the light to shine clearly. And what is that light which righteous laws make room for? It is the light of the transformed soul. It is the light of the “glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” to which a person has been totally awakened to. If that light does not shine like a “city on a hill”, then what good are the laws? What good is the clearing of the skies if the true light is but a dim whimper of a single candle.
LET YOUR LIGHT SHINE! You are the light of the world. No doctrine or law can light up the dark world, but only you! Only the soul that has been transferred from the “kingdom of darkness” and “brought into the light” can emit the light that the world needs. The laws may clear the skies, but you must shine the light. You are the light of the world.
Rise Up, O Man of God!
June 16, 2024 • Pastor Ray Viola • Titus 2:6–7
On this Father’s Day 2024, listen to this promise from Scripture regarding the man who fears the Lord. “Praise ye the LORD. Blessed is the man that feareth the LORD, that delighteth greatly in his commandments” (Psalm 112:1).
There is a ubiquitous story told in prison ministry circles that speaks to the state of fatherhood in our day. One year, a group decided to provide cards for inmates on Mother’s Day. The response was overwhelming, as nearly all the inmates showed up to sign and send cards to their mothers. The event was so successful that the group decided to do it again on Father’s Day. Almost no one participated.
The point of this story? Well, it depends on who you ask. However, at the heart of the discrepancy is fatherlessness, both in terms of the men who are absent from their children’s lives (a major indicator of future incarceration, and a whole host of other maladies), and in terms of the culture’s slow, steady slide into the abyss of radical feminism and anti-masculinity.
It’s a two-edged sword; (1) fathers are not there, and (2) the culture argues increasingly that they are not necessary.
The Biblical laws of design, like the laws of God in nature, are timeless. The law of gravity that “began” when God created the universe are arsenal today as they were then. One of the greatest and most damaging aspects in today’s culture is the subtle (or not so subtle) undermining of the biblical teaching of manhood and fatherhood, and we are seeing the deadly consequences it is having in our society. I believe that our Heavenly Father is calling ALL men of God, and in particular fathers to rise up and hold up the biblical standard of being a husband and father.
The Christian marriage, family structure and design as is seen in Genesis was created by God. This creational order was established according to the infinite wisdom of God at the beginning of the creation of the world and is fundamental to the order of both the state and the church. When this order is violated or rebelled against, the outcome is confusion and chaos. In God's creation order He has made man to be the head of the Christian home for functional purposes. Headship does not mean that God values man more than a woman, and it most certainly does not mean that husbands should be a dictator.
I have put together an acronym for the name Father. F- He Fears God. A- He Adores his Wife. T- He Teaches his children by example and precept. H- He Chooses to be a vessel of Honor inside and outside of the home for the glory of God. E- He Exercises himself unto godliness. R- He Reflects the character of the Lord Jesus Christ in word and deed.
My prayer and heart’s desire for every father is that God’s Spirit would ignite within each of our hearts a renewed passion for Jesus Christ, with the overflow of that passion being the fruit that manifests the biblical design for a husband and father as a man if God that brings glory to the name of Jesus Christ. SELAH
Biblical Motherhood 101
May 12, 2024 • Pastor Ray Viola • Titus 2:3–5
If you were told to cut 50 8 foot 2x4”s, and you only measured the first one, and then proceeded to cut the rest of them from the previous unmeasured 2x4, you would not have 50 8 foot 2x4’s. The moral of the story is this…the further that you drift from the original, things are not going to “measure up.” Likewise, whenever we choose to “cut our own” 2x4’s in life independent of God’s original design, things are not going to measure up. Our culture is based upon fallen man’s ideas instead of God’s Holy Word.
But man’s ideas are constantly evolving with the mores of society, whereas God’s Word transcends society and is as relevant today as it always has been. We are going to look at the Apostle Paul’s exhortation to Pastor Titus regarding the biblical perspective of motherhood and womanhood. It is not suprising that what we are going to be looking into does not “measure up” to today’s views of what a liberated mother or woman looks like. Paul told Titus to “speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no man despise thee” (Titus 2:15). But have you noticed that “biblical spirituality” is considered today to be archaic, puritanical and not to be taken seriously. Blinded by the god of this world, they do so at their own demise. My precious sisters in Jesus, society loves to marginalize your love for Christ, and your devotion to Him as your Lord. The Spirit-filled wisdom that Paul passes on to Titus and to you today are coming from your loving Creator who knows human nature far better than any psychologist or anthropologist on the planet. Wise is the woman who, like Mary, sits at the feet of Jesus and hears what He has to say about marriage. How to love your husband and children according to His design. We give God thanks for loving us and giving us His timeless truth upon which we can build our marriages and homes in a way that brings glory and honor to Him. SELAH
But Thou O Man of God
June 18, 2023 • Pastor Ray Viola • 1 Timothy 6:11–12
The apostle Paul writes these words in 1 Timothy 6:11, "but thou oh man of God” to his son in the faith, Timothy. These words are so necessary today for all men claiming to be followers of Jesus Christ. They are so pertinent to every father reading this devotional. Being a man of God in our modern culture had come under attack, especially if you are a father who takes his walk with Jesus and role in the home as the spiritual head seriously.
The casualty rate of men of God in the church today is alarming. Pressures to conform to this fallen world system's ideology and worldly standards has caused many Christian men to cave in, with the consequences felt not only in the home, but in the church as well. Not all men who profess faith in Christ are men of God. Men of God are men who are confronted with the common temptations and trials of other men, but, by the grace of God, they choose to stand and fight the good fight of faith.
Fathers, dads (and I’m speaking to myself as well), what are you teaching your children about loving your wife, their mother? What are you teaching them about the importance of reading the Scriptures and prayer? What are you teaching them about the importance of assembling together with the saints at church? Is your home Christ centered and driven or culture centered and driven?
I believe that Jesus is calling ALL men of God, and in particular fathers to rise up and hold up biblical standards of marriage, gender and biblical fatherhood. It has been said that any generation of the church is only one generation removed from extinction. Yes, the gates of hell cannot prevail against the church, but the church can indeed implode if men of God fail to heed the clarion call of Joshua, but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD. May that cry of Joshua be the cry of our hearts, my fellow man.
And may it be the prayer of every man’s heart to be men of God not only for our life and children's sake, but most importantly for the glory and honor of the Name of Jesus Christ, to whom all praise and glory belongs. Our heavenly Father, who is the only perfect Father and husband, is our role model, brothers. May the Holy Ghost grant unto each one of us the power, passion and desire to be a man of God. And may the love and grace of the Lord Jesus Christ enable us to rise up and be the kind of father and husband that is a witness of Jesus Christ in an ungodly and unholy world. Love you brothers. Rise up oh man of God!! Selah
Portrait of a Virtuous Woman
May 14, 2023 • Pastor Ray Viola • Proverbs 31:10–31
Today is a day that our nation has set aside to honor mothers. Scripture exhorts children to honor their mothers and fathers in The Lord. So, let’s look at a biblical portrait of a woman who honors and fears The Lord God.
In this case, a mother, a wife, who fears God and lives a life totally devoted to Him. Even a casual glance at this mothers lifestyle would reveal how womanhood today has drifted far from the biblical pattern, which is self driven. Beauty driven. Career driven. As you read these verses today, would you not love to have this kind of a woman for your mother? Your wife? Sadly, the consensus of our culture would look at such a devout and dedicated wife or mother as someone who was being trapped by some archaic religious mold that smothered her from freely expressing herself.
On the contrary, this woman is the wise woman who builds her house because she defines freedom as serving God and pleasing Him. She is the godly mother who teachers her children by precept and example what it means to be a lover of Jesus Christ. She is the kind of wife that a husband boasts about because of her tireless expression of Christ like loyalty to him and their children. Her tongue is filled with the law of kindness. Not cutting. Condemning. She is industrious. Hard working. Others minded. She is frugal. She is a true homemaker in the truest sense of the word. She would fit the description of the godly woman in Titus 2.3-5.
Motherhood is a high and holy calling. Biologically, women can have children, but only a virtuous woman can make a home that produces GOD fearing children and support a God fearing husband. The Holy Spirit declares, Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the LORD, she shall be praised.
So today, I want to thank my Lord and Saviour for a GOD fearing wife, daughter, and the many of you dear mothers and wives who make your homes a place where Christ is honored and His love and heavenly hospitality is put on display 24/7. Fellow husbands and children, Give her of the fruit of her hands; and let her own works praise her in the gates. Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies. Amen and Amen. SELAH
The Resurrection Changes Everything!
April 9, 2023 • Pastor Ray Viola • 1 Corinthians 15
There are six English words recorded in the bible that changed everything not only on planet earth, but throughout the entire creation of God. Those words are “It Is Finished” and “He is Risen”.
Therein lies the gospel of Jesus Christ! Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins, He has risen from the dead, and has ascended to the right hand of The Father where He now dwells as our Advocate and High Priest. But the work of redemption accomplished by Jesus Christ is not applied to anyone until they repent and believe in Him as Lord and Savior.
The hinge upon which the gospel rests is the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. The bodily resurrection of the Jesus Christ from the dead means that He is a Living Savior. The bodily resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ from the dead means that The Holy Spirit now dwells within and is poured out upon all those who call upon His Name. Faith in the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead changes everything.
Because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead we too shall one day rise from the dead (John 11:25, 26).
Because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, we are justified in the sight of God (Rom 4:25).
Because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead we have access to the throne of grace and mercy for help in time of need (Heb 4:14-16).
Because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, we are new creatures (2 Cor 5:7) and can walk in newness of life (Rom 6:4).
Because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, we can walk in the power of The Holy Ghost (Acts 1:8).
Because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, we have been delivered from the fear and power of death (Heb 2:14, 15).
Because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, we have been delivered from the power of darkness (Col 1:13).
Because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, we will one day be given a new body (1 Cor 15:49-54).
Because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead we have assurance of His presence (Matt 28:20; Heb 13:5, 6) and peace (John 14:27) in this fallen world.
Because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, we have victory and can abound in the work of The Lord (1 Cor 15:57, 58).
Reader, do you believe that It Is Finished and that Jesus Is Risen? Repent and believe on The Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved. SELAH
Understanding the Ministry of the Holy Spirit
October 16, 2022 • Pastor Ben Hiwale • John 7:37–39, Ephesians 5:18, Galatians 5:16–25
The Understanding of the Holy Spirit is critical to the life of a believer. It is the oxygen to our souls. John 14:16-18 primarily gives us the Ministry of the Holy Spirit, that after Jesus’ departure, the Holy Spirit would come in His place. The Holy Spirit brings conviction of sin. John 16:8 says, “And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment:” Not only to convict of sin but to also guide the believer into all truth (John 16:13). We need to learn to walk in the Holy Spirit, to establish that same personal relationship as is had with God the Father and with Jesus. When we receive Christ, we are baptized by the Holy Spirit into the body of Christ.
I would like you to meditate on these questions: Do you understand who the Holy Spirit is? Do you view the Holy Spirit as some force or energy alone? Do you associate the Holy Spirit only with manifestations? Would you describe Him as an impersonal force? Or some sort of power? The Spirit is the third Person of the Holy Trinity and is eternal God, worthy of our worship and service. The same honor, glory, and majesty we give to God the Father and God the Son, we must give to God the Holy Spirit. All three are one divine Being, having one essence and existing in three Persons. Each possesses all of the divine attributes and is fully God.
It is essential to understand that the Holy Spirit as a Person because it impacts our relationship with Him. Since the Holy Spirit is a Person, you either have a relationship with Him or you don’t. The Spirit teaches us the truth, guides us in truth, sanctifies, produces righteous fruit, and equips us for His work, until we are eternally united in Christ and take possession of all that Christ has prepared for us. It is impossible to live a Christ-like life without one’s life fully surrendered to the Holy Spirit.
Here’s an important question for you to consider: How much of YOU does the Holy Spirit have?
The Case for Jesus
October 9, 2022 • Pastor Ben Hiwale • Hebrews 4:14–16
Most of us desire a BFF (Best Friend Forever). Few of us have a BFF close by who understands the challenges we encounter. You may be looking within the family or among friends, and you have folks around who are compassionate and give great counsel, but not anyone with whom you can be wide open with your thoughts, emotions and feelings. You desire to have someone you can pour out your heart to and know that you will be cared for and not judged, looked down upon, or considered a burden.
Ministry can be a lonely place and at times a lonely walk. I am fortunate and blessed to have a few people whom God has brought into my life who, over the years, have invested in this relationship with me. The reason this relationship becomes increasingly difficult to navigate is that, really, who can understand fully what someone else is going through?
The passage we will study gives us an outstretched hand of a guaranteed relationship with Someone, who not only understands and relates to you, but has experienced what you have or are experiencing. He lived it; therefore He understands when you come to His throne with your temptations, trials, hurts, anxieties, or worry. What is needed is perseverance in the midst of your loneliness to put your confidence in God and not return to your default coping mechanism or inadequate human relationship, which is what you have always done. Even though it is only a temporary relief, you are comfortable with it because it is familiar and you don’t know what else to do. But as believers, we have a great High Priest with continual access to Almighty God because of what Christ has accomplished on the Cross. THAT is what we hold fast to.
It is possible you are hurting and disappointed and find yourself in a valley. Maybe you don’t see a way out. The good news is there is One Who is able to help! He is available to strengthen you, restore hope, and give you confidence in your circumstances. Confess what you are feeling or experiencing to Jesus. Acknowledge it. Desire His healing and be willing to walk through the process needed to receive it. No matter how painful that leading of God may be, at the end of it you will find healing. You may need to forgive someone, or end an ungodly relationship, or do some other hard thing, but just do it! Obey! Choose to trust God and allow Him to work. He is available and waiting for you to ask for His help.
Faith
October 2, 2022 • Pastor Ben Hiwale • Hebrews 11
Faith is talked about quite frequently but it is also often misunderstood. It is hard to put our arms around what faith truly is, how we experience it or acquire it. If what we believe is to make any difference, then it has to change the way we live. However, at times we don’t take faith seriously but take it for granted.
Just the thought of what must be believed for one to become a Christian is a tall order. We believe that we are created by God, but we sinned (offended Him). God is holy, and therefore sin must be punished. Jesus Christ came into this world to atone for our sin. His righteousness was imputed to us, and the condemnation of sin and guilt was swept away so now we are counted righteous in God’s sight. This results in the glorious truth that to be absent from this body is to be present with the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:5-8), and death is not an end to the believer but the beginning of a new reality of spending eternity with Christ. We cannot see any of this. None of our physical senses can apprehend or measure any of this. We simply have to believe it.
In Hebrews 11:3 we are told the universe bears evidence of God’s formation, that He commanded it into existence, and the current conclusions cannot explain the origins of the universe away. Without Christ, everyone is morally, spiritually, and scientifically blind to the truth of God the Creator. To put your faith in the power of reason is a dead end. Therefore, without faith, one cannot be accepted by God, nor can one know or please God (v 6). The story of Cain and Abel is mentioned in verse 4. There are many questions that are unanswered. For example, what are their ages? What was their upbringing like? Why did one become a shepherd and one a farmer? However, what we can surmise is that the difference between the two offerings was in the heart. Abel had faith (he believed God) and Cain did not. God is always first interested in the man or woman and then in the offering. God always looks at the heart first. When he looked at Abel’s heart, he found faith and rewarded it.
Pascal said there is a God-shaped vacuum inside every heart. That vacuum, when not filled with God, will fill itself with trash. It is the trash of the world that has made us unhappy, unfulfilled, unstable, divisive, and uncommitted. That is why Augustine said: “O Lord, you have made us for yourself. Our hearts are restless until they find rest in you.”
What's Your Temperature?
September 25, 2022 • Pastor Ray Viola • Revelation 3
Taking our physical temperature has been a common practice in society over the past few years. In the natural realm, an elevated temperature indicates that there is something going on that needs medical attention. Twice we find the phrase “stir up” in the New Testament. “Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands.” (2 Timothy 1:6) “This second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you; in both which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance:” (2 Peter 3:1) In both of these cases, the objective of urging the people of God to stir something up indicates a cause of concern over the apparent lack or absence of fire in the usage of either a spiritual gift or the application of gospel truth. In either case, there would be in medical terms an issue that needed to be given immediate attention to avoid any further loss of health spiritually.
In our study this morning, The Risen Jesus is addressing the church at Laodicea, and He point blank declares unto them as The Great Physician, “I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew thee out of my mouth.” (Revelation 3:15,16) If you were to ask the church at Laodicea how they felt spiritually, they would have said, “I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing;” to which Jesus replied, “knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked” (v 17). Obviously, there was a great difference in the evaluation between Jesus and the Laodiceans over their spiritual condition. What this compels each of us to ask ourselves is this: What is your spiritual temperature? Hot? Cold? Lukewarm? Those are the only three temperatures indicated in this letter, and only one is acceptable in the eyes of The Lord Jesus.
Having given this blistering account of their spiritual condition, does Jesus just write them off? On the contrary, listen to His appeal to them: “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.” (Revelation 3:19) In other words, stir up the gift that is in you. Return to your first love. Reignite the passion that you once held for Me. Amazingly, it is possible for someone to be in the church and unaware that they are wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked. David prayed, “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” (Psalm 139:23,24)
The devil can have a heyday when a message as such is given, and we certainly should be aware of his desire to condemn or guilt us as we evaluate where we are with Jesus today. Let the Great Physician probe your soul today. Let His Spirit reveal anything in you that is “sick” or out of order. May each one of us open the door to our hearts to The Lord in a fresh way today and pray as the old hymnal said, “Have Thine own way Lord” Change me. Correct Me. But please do not allow any of us to remain cold or lukewarm in our fellowship with You. Selah
Life App: Not For Sale
September 18, 2022 • Pastor Ben Hiwale • Daniel 5
When the account in Daniel 5 was written, it was 539 BC. Nearly 70 years had passed since Daniel and his friends were brought to Babylon as slaves. Daniel is most likely around 80 years old. King Nebuchadnezzar is dead and now his grandson Belshazzar is on the throne. Belshazzar is not wise but prideful. He was arrogant and took for granted everything that was handed to him. As this account begins we see him partying, but this was not just any party. This was a party that had every perverse activity being celebrated. Who throws a party when you know that your enemy is camped right outside of your walls? What picture is he trying to paint? Does he want everyone to have courage? Is he drowning his own fears with alcohol? Or he is so full of pride that he thinks no one has the ability to fight and defeat Babylon?
Similar questions can be asked to us when we are faced with overwhelming circumstances. How did you react in the past and what would you do now? How do you feel about power grids failing? Supply chains breaking down? Finances getting restricted? Fuel shortages? Would you stockpile?
Pascal (a 17th century French mathematician, physicist, inventor, philosopher, writer, and Catholic theologian) says we have a difficult time dealing with death, and usually people will turn to jokes or some humor to take the sting out of that conversation. Pascal used several analogies but one stood out, that of a car heading off the road into a steep valley with no way of stopping it or getting out. He said you would find people distracting themselves by observing the natural scenery or by trying to engage in a light conversation instead of thinking about the coming death.
The question this account poses may not be that obvious. Are you prepared for the end? The difference between Belshazzar and you and me is that he found out when he would die, but we don’t know that exact day, although we know it is coming. We only have one life that is given to us. How are you doing with yours? Eternity is all that matters at the very end. You have an opportunity to choose now and have unquestioned confidence that you will thrive and not just survive through all the seasons of life, and when that final day comes, that you will be welcomed home by your Creator into eternity.
Life App: Idols
September 11, 2022 • Pastor Ben Hiwale • Daniel 3
Humans are at their core incurably religious. We come with a hole in our spiritual being and that is how we know that we were created to worship God and to know Him. Worship is an essential just as oxygen and food. The fall and sin corrupted God’s creation. Every day you see blogs and Ted talks that tell us how to find meaning and value in our lives. They tell us what things we are supposed to regard as precious and what to live for.
When you speak with people who have bought into an idol you wonder if it’s working for them. Do they look at peace? Are they truly satisfied? Does it answer those life questions of eternal security? Any time we revere something as god it costs us something. Is that cost worth it? In other words, if their god is money, they sacrifice family, integrity, etc – is this worth it? One might be serving the god of food, education, or healthcare. Their god may be a cause for humanity. Does it have the ultimate cure? Can one put their hope and trust in it?
For some people it is their dogma of evolution that is their god. But will nature naturally work itself into higher and higher levels of complexity? How did nature get this power? Some believe that every religion ultimately leads to god. Some think that all morality is equal. The bottom line is that when your life is submitted to an idol in place of the true and living God, you have shrunk everything down to something you can explain. The God of the Bible is unexplainable. Evelyn Underhill said, “If God were small enough to be understood, He would not be big enough to be worshipped.”
The God of the Bible is not received simply through explanation but requires revelation. We are surrounded by idols. Are you provoked when you see people in bondage to idols? Jesus was provoked when he saw idols in us. He did not give up on us or write us off, but instead revealed His great unconditional love to us by going to the cross and dying for your sins and mine. That revelation of the death, burial and resurrection has given us eternal hope, and it now compels us to share with those who are in bondage to the idols and idolatry of the devil.
Go!
September 4, 2022 • Pastor Ray Viola • Matthew 28
The last words of Jesus before He ascended up into heaven are the marching orders of the church. After 3 years of His Spirit anointed teaching, preaching and miracle-working signs and wonders, what was the singular command that Jesus Christ gave to His church before He ascended up into heaven?
Matthew tells us, “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen” (Matt 28:19-20). Mark tells us, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature” (Mark 16:15). Luke tells us, “Repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem” (Luke 24:47). John tells us, “but these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name” (John 20:31).
Lastly, Jesus tells us just before His ascension, “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 1:8). Jesus came into this world on a redemptive mission. He came to seek and to save the lost. He came to redeem the fallen sons of Adam. “Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day” (Luke 24:46).
When we read these final words of Jesus before He returns to the right hand of His Father, we are hearing Him pour out His heart’s desire to His bride, the church. Jesus said, “The harvest truly is plenteous, but the laborers are few” (Matthew 9:37). The Lord is looking for laborers to reach the harvest of souls. As we observe The Lord’s Supper this morning, may we never forget that as followers of The Lord Jesus Christ, our primary mission here on earth is to be a witness for Jesus Christ.
As you go about your daily lives, look for any and every opportunity to proclaim the truth that Jesus Christ has died, was buried, and has risen from the dead. And that for all those who turn to Him for the salvation of their souls, they will receive the gift of eternal life now. “And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son” (John 5.11). Selah
A Living Sacrifice
August 28, 2022 • Pastor Ray Viola • Romans 12:1–2
Sound doctrine and theology is a vitally important and necessary element in the life of a Christian. But a careful observation of Scripture reveals that the ultimate purpose or goal of learning theology is that it would be applied to our lives. In other words, every Christian is called to live out what he or she professes to believe.
But we begin this living out of our faith by making an unreserved decision to offer our lives up unto God as living sacrifices. That is the gist of Paul’s exhortation to the Romans in chapter 12, verses 1 and 2. J.B. Phillips has an outstanding and memorable translation of Romans 12:1,2: “With eyes wide open to the mercies of God, I beg you, my brothers, as an act of intelligent worship, to give Him your bodies, as a living sacrifice, consecrated to Him and acceptable by Him. Don't let the world around you squeeze you into its own mould, but let God re-mould your minds from within, so that you may prove in practice that the Plan of God for you is good, meets all His demands and moves towards the goal of true maturity.” Those words sum up what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ.
Think of all the mercies of God Paul has explained to us thus far: justification (Romans 3:24); adoption in Jesus and identification with Christ (Romans 8:15-17); set under grace not law (Romans 6:14); the gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit (Romans 8:11); help in all affliction; standing in God’s election; the certainty of coming glory; the confidence of no separation from the love of God (Romans 8:38-39); total confidence in God’s continued faithfulness. In light of all this mercy - past, present, and future - Paul begs us to present our bodies a living sacrifice.
When Jesus was preaching to the multitudes, He oftentimes would see many walk away after He made the appeal for a full commitment unto Him (John 6:66). A proper understanding of the gospel compels us to devote our lives fully unto God as living sacrifices. Having been redeemed or bought with the precious blood of Jesus Christ, we are no longer our own. We belong to Him (1 Corinthians 6:19,20). The question is not if your life is surrendered to someone or something, but who or what is that? If you are not living for Jesus Christ, who or what are you living for? You were created by God to know Him, live in fellowship with Him, and serve Him. SELAH
