Here are some things to consider on unclean meats, as it came up in our discussion today. One awesome thing about our fellowship is our desire to provide an environment that points to the grace of Christ, His holy word, and allow each of us to grow in convictions according to the work of the Holy Spirit without the pressure of any … Continue reading →
In the elections here in America, I hope you will give your attention to voting biblically. When you are deciding your vote in terms of voting biblically, you will relieve yourself of the stress and defense of standing by a political party. Noah Webster said this best when in 1823 he admonished students “In selecting men for office, let principle … Continue reading →
Last Sunday, July 15, 2018, we opened to 1 Corinthians 14 and discussed two hot potato topics: speaking in tongues and women teaching in church. Thanks Paul. I could have gone the rest of my life in ministry not having to discuss these topics in church from the pulpit, but we are committed to a verse-by-verse approach to teaching God’s … Continue reading →
I realize that some Christians don’t get very excited when it comes to sermons about the end-time events, books about tribulation timelines, or even Bible Prophecy Conferences. However, there are biblical reasons to watch and recognize the signs of our times, and I want to share with you seven of those reasons here: First, in Luke 21:25-28 Jesus makes mention … Continue reading →
Continue reading →Facing the giants in life is easy, or at least we could admit that the giants in a man’s life are plentiful. We are often forced to face our giants when we leave work on Friday wondering we’ll return to job loss on Monday, or when we walk into the kitchen and see the pile of unpaid bills on counter, … Continue reading →
In 1994 I had assumed the pastorate of a church where I had the opportunity to sit down with the outgoing pastor to discuss various issues of that congregation. As I was sitting with him in his office talking, he handed me his keys and said, “Oh, I almost forgot, each Wednesday at 11:00 AM you have a counseling session, … Continue reading →
Many years ago a sincere church member once asked me, Is Jesus really God? They went on to explain that they see where the Bible says Jesus prayed to God the Father, was called the Son of God, and they even pointed to the account of Jesus saying he didn’t know when he was coming back, only God knew that. Well, … Continue reading →
We commonly conclude our prayers by saying “In Jesus’ Name” and rightly so. When you say, “Lord, in the name of Jesus I pray, Amen” you are sharing in His power by claiming His character, life, atonement, and righteousness – not yours! When you say, “In Jesus’ Name,” you are saying… “Lord, I am asking you to answer and fulfill … Continue reading →
There is a lot of chaos in our society and it is an intentional strategy of Satan, because we know from John 10:10 that he “comes only to steal and kill and destroy” (ESV) and Ephesians 6:12 reminds us that we “wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against … Continue reading →
Satan is happy to incite anger among all that will yield to it, because anger can quickly and easily be inflamed into his mission “to steal and kill and destroy” (John 10:10). But I say to you, forsake anger so you become part of Jesus’ mission of “have life and have it abundantly” (John 10:10). Now I realize we are human and society’s … Continue reading →
We had a conversation Sunday during our study of James about what to do when we have sinned, and I want to share those Bible promises that I referenced again here. First, I mentioned a verse that I couldn’t locate right away, but the verse is Jeremiah 17:9 and it says, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: … Continue reading →
Q: So when we get into heaven, will we have to literally eat of the tree of life to keep living forever, or is the tree of life a metaphorical object meaning we already have eternal life? A: In Genesis 2:9 and Genesis 3:22 we see that the tree of life seems to offer Adam and Eve a perpetual sustenance … Continue reading →
Last Sunday at CrossHope Chapel we spent a little more time on 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4 and the subject of “the man of lawlessness” and who this man could be. I shared a thought I had, but I couldn’t recall if it was from the book of Daniel or a commentator, but the thought I shared was that there is a … Continue reading →
Continue reading →Today at CrossHope Chapel we took a cross-reference jump from 2 Thessalonians 2:5 to 2 Timothy 3:1-5 and read this: “But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, … Continue reading →
Here is a 15-point sequence of events as taught by the pre-tribulation rapture belief, sometimes called dispensationalism in eschatology… The Lord Jesus Himself descends from His Father’s House where He has been preparing a place for His bride, the church. John 14:1-3 • 1 Thessalonians 4:16 He will come to receive us to Himself. John 14:1-3 He will resurrect those who have … Continue reading →
As we get into 2 Thessalonians 2 in our teaching series at CrossHope Chapel, we’ll see that Paul is trying to explain to the believers there that they have not missed the rapture and they are not now in “the day of the Lord” (2 Thessalonians 2:2 ESV). These next weeks as we look at 2 Thessalonians 2 and 3 … Continue reading →
Continue reading →What should be our attitude toward the return of Jesus? Well here are five Bible verses and my thoughts about that… 1 Thessalonians 1:10 – We are to eagerly be waiting and looking for our Lord’s return. As a child I remember days of anticipation in our house as my mom and my siblings waited for my dad to arrive home … Continue reading →
This morning, as my Thursday custom is, I was studying for this Sunday’s teaching at CrossHope Chapel and sensed a need to share some thoughts on this verse: “And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as … Continue reading →
In our study of John 20 on Sunday, I didn’t have all the answers to the questions being posed about verse 22-23 which says, “And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it … Continue reading →
In yesterday’s teaching we looked at the four requests of Jesus in His prayer as recorded in John 17. We saw that Jesus prayed that He would be glorified, that we would be kept from Satan, that we would be sanctified, and that we would be one. We had some distractions to contend with yesterday, so I want to back … Continue reading →
Last night at Midweek Fellowship we had a discussion about being confronted with the belief that if one has enough faith they can be healed. When I hear the phrase “enough faith” I cringe. It is a subtle error of presumption that disregards biblical truth, although an individual who may advocate it may be absolutely sincere. Faith is the “substance … Continue reading →
Yesterday, Sunday, October 2, 2016 we looked at John’s mention of seven specific ministries of the Holy Spirit throughout John 14 – 16 and I want to share that with you here… In Scripture, Jesus spoke most about the endowment of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the gift of God’s power for our lives. When we pray for … Continue reading →
Don’t settle for for a mediocre prayer life. If you will commit to praying with the very promises of God in your prayers, you will experience a breakthrough that will move heaven to answer in a fulfilling way. Here is a three point guide for praying with God’s Bible promises, using the letters ABC… Ask – Begin by actually asking God for … Continue reading →
Last week at CrossHope Chapel we looked at John 4:1-45 and afterwards I found myself wishing I had invested more time on Jesus’ words “true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth” (John 4:23, ESV). I have been feeling that I may have given it too much of a simplistic spin when I tried to illustrate the issue … Continue reading →
The political issue of bathrooms and gender identity is far more than meets the eye. Individuals who are crying foul on laws that protect American citizens from predators and perverts seem to be advertising their absence of biblical morals, common sense, and is playing into the plans of Satan’s attack on God’s creation of distinction between male and female. Satan … Continue reading →
Yesterday at CrossHope Chapel we looked at John 2:13-25 “Jesus Cleanses the Temple” and we discussed God’s grace in the Passover, being angry without sinning (Ephesians 4:26) the Temple and it’s message of transference to Jesus Christ, those who want a “sign” rather than a scripture, the hard truth that every man has a heart intent on evil (Jeremiah 17:9), and … Continue reading →
In John 2:1-12 we read the story of Jesus’ first public miracle, turning water into wine. You don’t have to be a faithful church member to be familiar with this account because it’s frequently cited in the secular world. John 2:11 states “What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed … Continue reading →
I would like to share with you a recently posted article at www.calvarychapel.com that goes with our current teaching series on the Gospel of John: “6 Reasons Why I Believe Jesus is God” by John Hwang. The above article is an easier read, because it is a bullet point type of layout of proof texts listed according to six categories, thus … Continue reading →
Continue reading →Two things I’d like to mention by way of follow-up on our introduction to the book of John on Sunday, March 6, 2016… • The Got Questions? website has a great reply to the question “What does it mean that Jesus is the Son of God?” at http://www.gotquestions.org/Jesus-Son-of-God.html and I want to share an important great thought from that article: “Another example can … Continue reading →
In our discussion tonight I made reference to 2 Corinthians 12:9 but realized on my drive home that I didn’t fully quote it, and I should have because I missed the part that was most pertinent to our conversation, so here it is in its entirety: “But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made … Continue reading →
Let me begin by saying, I don’t believe the seventh-day Sabbath has been terminated, only in the sense that Jesus came to fulfill it (Matthew 5:21-22) and all the laws, and I don’t believe the keeping of the seventh-day Sabbath is an intended practice for those who claim the righteousness of Christ through faith for their salvation. I believe the Sabbath … Continue reading →
Here are some things to consider on unclean meats, as it came up in our discussion today. One awesome thing about our fellowship is our desire to provide an environment that points to the grace of Christ, His holy word, and allow each of us to grow in convictions according to the work of the Holy Spirit without the pressure of any … Continue reading →