Digging Deeper~ 7th Sunday ordinary time

Ex. 24:12-18: Here God is giving institutions to keep the sabbath day a day of rest and holy. He also instructs them on the 3 feasts that he wants to keep. These feasts are... unleavened bread, harvest, and ingathering. Three times a year the men are to go to the temple and give sacrifices of leaven bread, blood. Making sure that the fat of the sacrifice is all burnt up before morning.  Ps. 99: The Lord sits between the angels on the altar. He has been in the cloud pillar in the wilderness. He is strong. So let us go into the holy temple and praise and worship him.  2 Pet. 1:16-21: Be holy as God is holy. We were not saved by evil things of the world, but by the blood of Jesus Christ who was the lamb that was with out sin. If you believe you are saved and can call on the Father who does not favor one person over another. But judges righteously.  Mat. 17:1-9:Jesus takes Peter, James and John up on a mountain. While there were there Jesus met with Moses and Elias. Then a cloud came around them & a voice came from the cloud saying, "This is my son in which I am pleased. Listen to him." Peter, James and John saw and heard all of this. They fell on their faces in fear. Then the cloud went away & so did Moses & Elias. Afterward, Jesus touched them and told them to not be afraid and get up. Then Jesus told them to tell no one what they had witness.  When the people of God were getting ready to go into the promised land, God gave Moses instructions on how he wanted them to worship him. In the instructions he told them to keep the Sabbath holy by resting on that day. He also told them to celebrate 3 feasts a year & to have their men go to the temple to bring sacrifices to him & worship him (Ex. 24:12-18).  God's people are reminded of the time that God lead them in the wilderness as a pillar of cloud. And when he sat on the seat between the angels on the altar (Ps.99). All the while they were giving God sacrifices of animals, unladen bread & such. But When Jesus came that all changed. For he became the perfect and eternal lamb that takes away our sins (2 Peter 1:13-21). Even the disciples that were closest to Jesus was told that Jesus was God son when he was on the mountain with him Mat. 17:1-9). Challenge of the week: This week let us make sure that we take a day off to rest and worship God thanking him for Jesus and what he did on the cross for us.  Accomplishment of the week: How did you keep your Sabbath? Toni Kratochvil <tonikratochvil@gmail.com> 10:56 AM (1 minute ago) to Pastor, Michael, William, Heather Click here to Reply, Reply to all, or Forward 0.8 GB (5%) of 15 GB used Manage Terms - Privacy Last account activity: 2 hours ago Details

Digging Deeper~ 1st Sunday of Lent season

Gen. 12:1-4a: God told Abram to leave the land of his Fathers and to go to a land that would belong to his offspring. For God was going to make a nation out of his offspring. God also promised that he would be with Abram wherever he was and bless those who blessed him and cursed those who cursed him. Ps. 121: I will lift up my eyes unto the hills where God is, which is where my help comes from. He ever watches over us, protecting & caring  for us.  Rom. 4:1-5, 13-17: Just as Abraham was justified by faith, so are we. Which makes us heirs of God. This shows that Abraham is not only Father of many nations Physically, but spiritually.  John 3:1-17:  Nicodemus who was a Pharisee went to Jesus to ask him how to make sure he was right with God. Jesus told him that he needed to be born again. Nicodemus asked him how that could be done. Jesus explained that it was of the spirit not of the body. Then Jesus went on to explain that He came to save the world so that they would not be spiritually condemned anymore. But that all who believed in him could be saved.  Mat. 17:1-9:Jesus takes Peter, James and John up on a mountain. While there were there Jesus met with Moses and Elias. Then a cloud came around them & a voice came from the cloud saying, "This is my son in which I am pleased. Listen to him." Peter, James and John saw and heard all of this. They fell on their faces in fear. Then the cloud went away & so did Moses & Elias. Afterward, Jesus touched them and told them to not be afraid and get up. Then Jesus told them to tell no one what they had witness.  Where did following the only real God start? It started in Genesis with Adam and Eve. Then later God called a man named Abram to leave the land of his Fathers so that he could take Abram to a land that he would give to his offspring. Now this was a great promises as Abram was 75 years old and had no children yet (Gen. 12:1-4a). But Abram believed and trusted God and God did make him the Father of many nations.Paul tells the Romans that Because of Abraham's faith his not only was the Father of many nations physically , but spiritually also (Rom. 4:1-5, 13-17). In times past, many religions had their people worshiping their gods on the  Hills & mountains. Well, this made the only real God mad as he was the only one who should be worshiped on them. David knowing this said in the Psalms that he looked to the hills to get help from God (Ps. 121). I find it interesting that Jesus took some of his closes followers upon a mountain to revel something special to them that revealed that Jesus was the son of God (Mat. 17:1-9). I believe it to be a fitting place to have that happen. Later a Pharisee named Nicodemus came to Jesus because he understood who Jesus was. He asked him how one could be right with God. Jesus explained to him how Jesus had come to save mankind & that all who believed him him could be born again spiritually (John 3:1-17). Challenge of the week: Have you been saved? If not you can be! all you have to do is believe on Jesus,  then pray and ask God to forgive your sins and save you.   If you are already saved, make sure you look to God for all that you need this week. Strive to keep up the faith that God will take care of you even when you are going through a hard time.  Accomplishment of the week: So what did you do this week that brought you closer to trusting God? Click here to Reply, Reply to all, or Forward

Digging Deeper~ 6th Sunday ordinary time

Lev. 19:1-2,9-18:These are the instructions that God gave to Moses for the Israelites on how a holy person should act. 

Ps. 119:38-40: Lord, keep me from looking onto things that is not godly. Take away my shame, so I can live a godly life. Please keep your promises to me that is in your Word. Your law is good and I want to follow them. 

1 Cor. 3:10-11: You are a house that belongs to God. Jesus built the foundation of the house. Others have build on that foundation & does so even today. Be careful how you build on the house.  

Mat. 5:38-48: Jesus teaches his followers that as children of God they to not fight back when someone does evil to them. He goes on to say that they should love your enemy & pray for them. Why? Because it is the godly thing to do. For God does good things to the good & evil like giving them sunlight at the same time. You will be holy like God when you do these things.

In the verses of this week. We are told to be holy as God is holy. Then we are told how to be so. First, we are to keep our eyes in the Word of God, for it will help us know how God wants us to act. We need to keep our eyes on the Word for God has asked us to live & act differently then the world does. For example: we are told to NOT get revenge on those who does evil to us. Instead we are to pray for them and act in a good way towards them.

 Why? Because that is what God does. You see, God sent Jesus to die for us so that we could be saved long before we wanted to love and serve him. That is the foundation that he laid on the house & kingdom of God. Others who follow Jesus has built on that foundation ,so that we might see and come to Christ. Our souls are the stones that build the house of God. Now it is our turn to build on top of what godly men and women have built before us. We need to be careful how we do so. 

Why? Because others are watching our every move and how we live out our salvation will either draw people towards or away from God. 

Challenge of the week: 

This week, look at your life and figure out if your life is as godly as it should be. If you have an area of your life that isn't confess it to God asking for forgiveness. then strive to change it, so you will be a more godly person. This will help prepare you for lent season. 

Accomplishment of the week:

How did the change you made this week help you become a more godly person? 

Digging Deeper~ 5th week ordinary times

Deut. 30:15-20:God tells the Israelites that they need to love and obey him, even stay close to him when they cross over the river to take the land as your own. If you will have life and be blessed. But if you do not, you will have death and curses.  Ps. 119:1-8: Blessed is the man who lives holy lives & obeys God laws & Word all the time. I do not always do that. I wish I did. For your laws are fair. I praise you for that. I will work hard to obey your commands. So please don't leave me.  1 Cor. 3:1-9:Paul tells those from Corinth that he cannot talk to them about deep spiritual things because they are still babies in Christ. Why? Because they are like people of the world. How? They are jealous & argue among themselves. For example you say that you follow the person who baptized you. You are not to follow a person, you are to Follow Christ. Why? Because that person only planted the spiritual seed in you. God is the one who made the seed to grow. Yes, someone will plant the seed, someone will water the see and they will be rewarded for that.. But the seed will not grow until God makes it do so. You are like God's farm. We all must work with God to help that farm grow.  Mat. 5:21-37:Here Jesus is teaching. First, he teaches that it has been said that you should not murder someone or you will be judged. Then he says that you should not be angry with your brother will be judged by God. If you say bad things about your brother, that is worse. Lastly, if you call your brother a fool, you will be in danger of Hell's fire. With this in mind, if you remember that your brother is upset when you come to the altar. Leave your gift there and go and make up with him. Then come back to the altar. If your enemy is taking you to court become his friend fast. In fact, you should do that before you go to court. If you don't he may take you to court and you could end up in jail.  Jesus teaches about sin with sex. first, he teaches that it has been said not to have sex with someone with someone you are not married to. Then he says that if you look at a woman and want to have sex with her, you have already done that sin in your mind. If you sin with your eye take it out for it is better to not have the eye and go to Heaven then to have it and go to Hell. If your right hand leads you to sin, cut it off. It is better to not have it here on earth then to have your whole body goes to Hell. The devotional today tells us to not look to man to save us. Only look to God to save us. Once we have been saved we need to get real close to God and love him a lot. How? By reading and obeying his laws and Word. For it tells us how we are to live holy lives. Jesus taught on some of the sins we are to stay away from in Matthew. Paul also spoke of some of those sins in  1 Corinthians.   Now we do sin from time to time, but we are to get those things taken care of, before we worship God. That way we will come to him spiritually clean(Mat. 5:21-37). Strive to live that holy life and tell others about it.  When we love and obey God ,we will also be free of Hell's fire and receive the promise land from God.  Challenge of the week: This week, let us work to get closer to God. Let us work hard to obey God's laws and Word. For only then will we grow up in our spirit. If you are at odds with God or man go an make it right. So that you can come to God with a clean heart & mind.  Accomplishment of the week: What did you do to accomplish your goals this week? How has that brought you closer to God?  Click here to Reply, Reply to all, or Forward

Digging Deeper~ 4th Sunday ordinary times

Is. 58:1-9a (9b-12):God does not want a fast that is done without having your heart and soul into it. Instead he wants you to live holy lives. Then he will hear you when you cry to him. He will Guide you and take care of you.

Ps. 112:1-10: Praise the Lord you who fear the Lord & love his Word for He will give you peace and care for you. The wicked will see it and be upset. But do not think on them for they will be no more.

1 Cor. 2:1-12(13-16): Paul is saying that he came to the people of Corinth to preach Jesus Christ only in the power of the Holy Spirit. He spoke words of wisdom to the spiritually mature, for the deep spiritual wisdom can only be understood with the spirit. God judges all things and everyone through the spiritual eye, not the natural understanding. That is why we speak in words taught by the Spirit. Who can know the mind of the Lord? But we have been given the mind of Christ.

Mat. 5:13-20: Ye are the salt and the light of the earth. But  if your life is like salt that has lost its flavor & light that no one can see you are no good to God. So make sure that you stay close to God and live righteous lives. 

God does not want us to sing praises to him just because we have to. He wants us to read and live his Word. God has promised that when you do that he will hear your cries, give you peace and care for you (Is. 58; Ps. 112:1-10). As Christians, we are also encouraged to live out the word of God will godly lives. In doing so, we will be like salt & light to the world around us. But if we don't live godly lives we are any better to the world then salt that has lost its flavor and is thrown out on the streets or like a light that is not put in a place where it can help lead people out of the darkness (Mat.5:13-20). We would be like Paul when he spoke to people with spiritual words so that peoples spirits can hear and be lead to Jesus
Christ.Then they can have the mind of Christ (1 Cor. 2).

Challenge of the week:

What part of this message hits home with you? With that in mind, what will you do this week to put this lesson into your life this week?

Accomplishment of the week:

So how did you do? How did what you did help bring you closer to being more Christ minded?

Digging Deeper~New Year's Day

Ecc. 3:1-13: To everything there is a season and time. What good is it for someone to work hard? As you work remember that God will make all things beautiful in his time.When you remember this you can enjoy your work for you will be working with God. It is God's gift to us to let us enjoy what we have worked for.

Ps.8 Lord God, your name is above every name on earth. It brings you praises from heaven above. You have even taught our little ones how to sing praises unto you. When they do so, it silences your enemies. I look at the sky and see the moon and stars that you have made. Then I wonder, why mankind is so important to you? Why did you make us a little lower than the angels and crown us with glory and honor? How is it that you choice to put us in charge of all that you have made? 

Rev.21:1-6: John saw a new heaven and a new earth comes down to there the old earth was. The old earth passed away. There was also a new Jerusalem. A voice came from heaven saying, "see the temple of God has come to mankind. So God is now living with man and man with God. He will wipe all tears from their eyes for there shall be no more death, sorrow, or pain. Because all from the past will be gone, for God , who is on his throne will make them all  things new. He invites all who is thirsty to come and drink of the fountain of life freely. 

Mat.25:31-46:When Jesus comes back to the earth and sits on his throne to judge all the people from every nation. He will separate the people who followed him from those who did not.  Just like a shepherd would separate the sheep from the goats. Putting the sheep on the right and the goats on the left. To those on the right, he will say, "come into the Kingdom of God for you are blessed. Because when I was hungry, you fed me. When I was thirsty, you you gave me something to drink. When I was a stranger, you became my friend. When I was naked, you gave me clothes. When I was sick, you visited me. When I was in prison, you came to me." Those he was talking to asked him," Lord, when did we do these things?" He said,"when you did it to people in these situations, you did it to me." Then Jesus turns to the ones on his left and says, get out of my sight, you cursed and go into the fire that never ends. For you did none of these things for me. They asked him, "When did we not do these things. Lord?" He told them, "When you did not do these things to anyone in these situations, you did not do it for me.

God made the heavens and the earth. Then he put mankind on the earth to take care of all that he had made. Doesn't sound like much does it? But it is!  You see he made us to not only tend what he made. But he  also gave us his glory and honor, so that we could partner with him in ruling over what God made. We should sing praises to him for that (Ps. 8). God made the earth with seasons and times. This makes it easier for us, for each season and time has it's own work that needs to be done. When we work with him, we will work within those seasons and times. For example, where I live, Spring is the times of planting; Summer is the time of taking care of what has been planted, and Autumn is the time to harvest what has been planted. Winter is the time to rest from all of that. Now if we were to try to rest in the time of planting, we could go hungry. As as you can see, our work will be better and easier if we work with God within his seasons and times. Then we will be  more able to enjoy our work (Ecc. 3:1-13). 

You see, he put us in charge until Jesus comes back to earth. And He is coming back! We are told of his return in many places in the Bible. Let me share a couple of the places that speaks of this with you. In Revelation 21:1-6a. we read of how a new heaven and earth will come down and replace the old earth. And there will be a new Jerusalem where God will sit on his throne. In Matthew 25:31-46, we read about how Jesus will sit on the judgment seat and judge us for how well we tended to the people that he made. Then we read again in Revelation how he will reward those who were faithful in tending to the job that he gave them (Rev. 6).

Challenge of the year: 

As you start this new year, sit down and look at you life. Ask yourself, is my job and how I live helping God take care of his world and all who live in it? If not, choose to change that this year. If so, ask yourself, how can I better help God tend to all that he has made? Then do it. Have a blessed New Year!

Digging Deeper~ 3rd Sunday of ordinary times

Mic. 6:1-6:The Lord pleases his case against the people to the mountains and hills, because they had tired of him. The Lord tells of how he had freed the people from slavery in Egypt. He reminds the people of a conversation between Balak king of Moab & Ballaam son of Beor, and the conversation between God and Ballaam where God tells him that the people are blessed (Num. 22:1-14).

Ps. 15: Who shall dwell in God's house? He who is living a righteous life.

1 Cor. 1:18-31: The foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom. God has chosen to call people through the foolishness of preaching of Jesus Christ in whom we can be saved.

Mat. 5:1-12:Jesus preaches the people that being poor in spirit, mourn, hunger after righteousness, merciful, pure in heart, peacemakers, those persecuted for God's sake will be blessed by him. 

In the verses above, we see that God does not work as the wisdom of the world does.The world sees man's wisdom and strength as being good. God wants us to come to him in humbleness allowing ourselves to lean on him instead of our own strength. God says that we are blessed by him when he bow down to his will. Even when doing so will make people of the world do bad things to us. God wants us to want to follow after his righteousness so badly that it is like a man who is very hungry or thirsty wants food or drink. God has proven his faithfulness to his people many times when thy follow after him. God even talks of his faithfulness to his people when he took them out of their slavery in Egypt because he had blessed them (Num. 22:1-14). Jesus teaches the people what it takes for God to bless us (Mat. 5:1-12). Paul speaks of God's faithfulness to mankind when he sent Jesus Christ to save us from the slavery of sin (1 Cor. 1:18-31). Once we are saved from our slavery of sin, God wants us to live righteous lives and tell others how to become free from their slavery of sin. 

Challenge of the week:

This week, ask God what you need to do to please him. If you have not become saved from the slavery of sin, go to Jesus and ask him to forgive your sins, and save you from your slavery of sin. If you are already saved, humble yourself before God and ask him for help in becoming a more righteous person this week. Then go and tell anyone you know that is stuck in the slavery of sin how Jesus can free them from it. 

Accomplishment of the week: So what did you do this week that helped you accomplish your spiritual goal?