The Pastor's Pocket

  Why isn’t every Christian “on fire” for God? I ask myself this question all the time. When you study the life of Christ and consider the price He paid to redeem us. How He left heaven and came down to earth, humbled Himself, suffered and died on a cruel cross, made it possible for us to escape the flames of hell and go to heaven when we die. Consider how God gives us all things richly to enjoy and gives us all the tools we need to live in victory over sin and Satan, and how the Lord provides for our needs and looks after us. It makes you wonder why every Christian isn’t “sold-out” to the Lord. I can promise you this; it will be the red-hot, passionate, dedicated, spiritual believers that will move the Kingdom of God forward in the last days! God has always had a remnant that He can count on to get the job done. Are you in that number, if not, why? Now is not the time to be a lukewarm, carnal Christian. Ask the Lord to stir your soul. Become a passionate believer! Live a life that is

  Remove Your Stumbling Blocks (Isaiah 57:14) If we are going to have any chance of reaching people who need the Lord, we must deal with things in our life that might be a “stumbling block” to them. A stumbling block is anything that someone may trip over, or see in us that turns them off to our witness. None of us are perfect. However, that is no excuse for not dealing with things that might make people avoid us. What might be some of those stumbling blocks: 1) Pride: spiritual pride, social pride, racial pride. God detests any form of pride. It’s the attitude that says we are better than someone else. 2) Moodiness: moody people are like the wind, you never know which way they’ll blow! They are fickle and unpredictable. Unbelievers seldom respond to those who are one way one day and the next time they see them, they are totally different. 3) Perfectionism: perfectionists are seldom as loving, kind, or compassionate as they need to be, because they are obsessed with being flawless. The

  Jesus taught us to “love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind” (Matthew 22:37). This concept was nothing new, it was taught in the Old Testament as well, in Deuteronomy 10:12. As believers, we so need to obey this command in our generation. Jesus was talking about a love beyond the ordinary, that’s what “radical” means. God requires this of His people, it’s not a suggestion. We are to love God supremely, above all others and to love Him fervently.  Then notice, it is to love “the Lord thy God”. This deals with the issue of “loyalty”. Again, the basis for this is found in the Old Testament, the first of the Ten Commandments; “Thou shalt have no other gods before me”. Loyalty of this kind is rare in today’s world. You remember the sin of the golden calf in Exodus 32? Not long after the Israelites had witnessed countless miracles, they made an idol, another god for themselves. They violated the covenant between them and God. How perverse and

  Are you engaged in the will of God? The secret for success in Christian ministry is knowing that “...it is God which worketh in you, both to will and to do of His good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13). In other words, whenever we are actively involved in doing what pleases Him, we will find success and favor. So how can we know we are engaged in the will of God? I’ve been asked this question many times by many sincere Christians who are passionate about serving God. Maybe you have asked the same question. Jesus said in John 10:27, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them and they follow me”. I urge you to do a study on the “voice of God”. You’ll be surprised by what you discover the Bible says about this subject. God does speak, the issue is, are we listening? God always speaks directly to our spirit. His voice is one you simply cannot ignore. When it’s God, you’ll know it. It’s distinctly different from all other voices. God wants to use you my friend. His desire is to work through you.

  Jesus is “the people’s Savior” Remember the angel that announced the birth of Christ and the message of “good tidings of great joy”? That angel also said, “which shall be to all people” (Luke 2:10). God sent His Son into the world to benefit the entire human race–all races, all creeds, tribes and tongues–including people just like you and me. Jesus came to all people, not to condemn, but to save people from all continents, from every direction, from all backgrounds, and from all ages. To reach all people, He had to become one of the people, yet without sin. This is the essence of the redemption story. Jesus truly is the people’s Savior. Jesus died for all people (I John 2:2). The cross reaches out to all! The empty tomb offers hope, salvation, restoration and eternal life for all people. Provision has been made for all, but of course all do not come to Him! Why not? Unbelief; many simply will not believe. They will not receive the gift that Jesus offers. However, the scripture declar