Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.
According to Judges, Tola did not do very much in his life. Yes, he ruled Israel for 23 years, but other than we are given no information. He is remembered as a ruler, that is all. Not a good ruler, not a bad ruler. His life seems to have little or no significance whatsoever. No one, it seems, had too much to say about Tola when he died. What will people say of us when we go to our Lord? Will they say we lived a life faith which reflected the life of Jesus? Or will they say we lived for so many years and nothing more? Obviously, our goal should be to God's glory, but there is a human concern of how we want to be remembered. Give yourselves more than 2 scripture verses' worth of remembrance by living the kind of life Jesus wants you to live. God bless you.
Pastor Josh
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Sunday, November 22, 2009
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Pastor Josh on Vacation
Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.
I will be on vacation next week, beginning after the worship service on Sunday November 22, 2009 through November 28. I will not be posting while I am on vacation. Posting will resume on November 29, 2009. If you need anything while I am away please contact one of the Elders. God bless you.
Pastor Josh
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I will be on vacation next week, beginning after the worship service on Sunday November 22, 2009 through November 28. I will not be posting while I am on vacation. Posting will resume on November 29, 2009. If you need anything while I am away please contact one of the Elders. God bless you.
Pastor Josh
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Judges 9: 1-57; Abimelech
Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.
The Old Covenant had a 'clause' in it which made clear that God would punish, sometimes with death, sin. The Israelites had to continually make sure they were living well, making sacrifices, etc. in order that they would be spared from God's divine punishment. In some cases, even that was not enough, as many Israelites were punished for their sins. The New Covenant has the 'Jesus Clause.' And the Jesus Clause states that Jesus took the punishment that should have been ours. If we accept Jesus and live a life that reflects that acceptance, then we have no need to worry about punishment. Jesus took the punishment upon his own shoulders, he saved us from that fate. Now we are free from sin, punishment, and even death. We are blessed to be members of the New Covenant, a covenant in which we are perfectly saved. God bless you.
Pastor Josh
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The Old Covenant had a 'clause' in it which made clear that God would punish, sometimes with death, sin. The Israelites had to continually make sure they were living well, making sacrifices, etc. in order that they would be spared from God's divine punishment. In some cases, even that was not enough, as many Israelites were punished for their sins. The New Covenant has the 'Jesus Clause.' And the Jesus Clause states that Jesus took the punishment that should have been ours. If we accept Jesus and live a life that reflects that acceptance, then we have no need to worry about punishment. Jesus took the punishment upon his own shoulders, he saved us from that fate. Now we are free from sin, punishment, and even death. We are blessed to be members of the New Covenant, a covenant in which we are perfectly saved. God bless you.
Pastor Josh
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Friday, November 20, 2009
Judges 8: 28-35; Gideon's Death
Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.
Forty years of peace. I wonder what that would feel like. As Christians we are not only called to have peace, we are also called to make peace. Not all of us are in a position to make world peace, but we can peace in our own neighborhoods. There may not be a war being fought here in Mt. Lebanon, but we do not always get along with all those around us. We can, though, and we should. We can make forty years of peace for ourselves right here, in our little corner of God's creation. This begins with love. We should, as Jesus commands us, love our neighbors as we love ourselves. Forgiveness is also important. We should, as Jesus commands, forgive our neighbors for any sin they commit against us. We can make forty years of peace. And we can do that through love and mercy. God bless you.
Pastor Josh
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Forty years of peace. I wonder what that would feel like. As Christians we are not only called to have peace, we are also called to make peace. Not all of us are in a position to make world peace, but we can peace in our own neighborhoods. There may not be a war being fought here in Mt. Lebanon, but we do not always get along with all those around us. We can, though, and we should. We can make forty years of peace for ourselves right here, in our little corner of God's creation. This begins with love. We should, as Jesus commands us, love our neighbors as we love ourselves. Forgiveness is also important. We should, as Jesus commands, forgive our neighbors for any sin they commit against us. We can make forty years of peace. And we can do that through love and mercy. God bless you.
Pastor Josh
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Thursday, November 19, 2009
Sunday Scripture and Sermon for November 22, 2009
Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.
The Scripture passage for this Sunday is from Genesis 2: 1-3, in which God takes a rest from his labors. The sermon is titled 'The Seventh Day' and will focus on the blessings we have of the Sabbath day. I hope you are all able to join us for worship. God bless you.
Pastor Josh
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The Scripture passage for this Sunday is from Genesis 2: 1-3, in which God takes a rest from his labors. The sermon is titled 'The Seventh Day' and will focus on the blessings we have of the Sabbath day. I hope you are all able to join us for worship. God bless you.
Pastor Josh
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Judges 8: 22-27; Gideon's Ephod
Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.
What a great confession from Gideon: 'The Lord will rule over you.' Having a king is something that is going to cause Israel problems later on. They desire a king so they can be like 'other nations,' forgetting they are supposed to be a nation set apart. Once they do get a king they begin to follow the king rather than God. Once that happens Israel's troubles begin to grow exponentially. The Lord is our king, he is our ruler. Everything we do should be brought before him. God is not just our friend, he is our king. As such we should allow him to rule over us, to lead us and guide us, to help us. The Lord is our king, we should treat him like it. God bless you.
Pastor Josh
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What a great confession from Gideon: 'The Lord will rule over you.' Having a king is something that is going to cause Israel problems later on. They desire a king so they can be like 'other nations,' forgetting they are supposed to be a nation set apart. Once they do get a king they begin to follow the king rather than God. Once that happens Israel's troubles begin to grow exponentially. The Lord is our king, he is our ruler. Everything we do should be brought before him. God is not just our friend, he is our king. As such we should allow him to rule over us, to lead us and guide us, to help us. The Lord is our king, we should treat him like it. God bless you.
Pastor Josh
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Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Judges 8: 1-21; Zebah and Zalmunna
Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.
Jesus says, 'You have heard that it was said, an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth. But I say to you if someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.' Gideon practices vengeance in this passage, the kind of vengeance Jesus forbids us, as Christians, to practice. Reading stories like this can sometimes be difficult, but this story does give us an idea of what our lives would be like without Jesus. Gideon does not have Jesus in his life, and so his life is a little more difficult. Sometimes his anger and other emotions get the better of him. We have Jesus, who makes our lives better, who enables us to live the kind of life he wants us to live, a life filled with love, not vengeance. God bless you.
Pastor Josh
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Jesus says, 'You have heard that it was said, an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth. But I say to you if someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.' Gideon practices vengeance in this passage, the kind of vengeance Jesus forbids us, as Christians, to practice. Reading stories like this can sometimes be difficult, but this story does give us an idea of what our lives would be like without Jesus. Gideon does not have Jesus in his life, and so his life is a little more difficult. Sometimes his anger and other emotions get the better of him. We have Jesus, who makes our lives better, who enables us to live the kind of life he wants us to live, a life filled with love, not vengeance. God bless you.
Pastor Josh
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