Marriage Is The Mirror Of The Soul

A New neighborhood opened and people were excited to see how quickly the development had filled up. It was beautiful. Mowed lawns, and fresh paint, it was a dream for all the new neighbors. A few years go by and a few problems spring up. The roads began to show signs of premature aging. The asphalt buckled in places, sidewalks cracked, and occasionally you could see signs of block beginning to shift and cause the houses to shift. After a lot of complaints, the city did research on the development. They found that the buildings were all built to code, and there was no problem with the materials that built the infrastructure. So they started checking the history of the property that this neighborhood was built on and found that the location was once a landfill.  As they put more and more weight on the property, it began to shift, because the stress of living there was too much to withstand the pressure of the development. The poor ground and foundation on which these homes were built could not withstand the pressures of living. In our world today, families live in broken homes. Not because they were bad people, but because they build their lives on foundations sitting on the trash of their lives; and when pressure comes, the foundations crack and after a while will no longer stand the weight of a family, and the foundations split, and the walls begin to crack, and the once beautiful home they had always dreamed of, has now been reduced to a crumbling structure that can become unsafe, and no one wants to live there.

Genesis 2:20-24

But for Adam [f]  no suitable helper was found.  21  So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and then closed up the place with flesh.  22  Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. (not from his head that she would reign over him, not from his feet that he would reign over her, but from his side so they would live as co-workers, partners together, in this adventure called life.) 23  The man said, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,’ for she was taken out of man.” 24  That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.

Here scripture points to the fact that we are better together than alone in life. God himself said It is not good for a man to be alone. Not that He can’t, but that he is better with a partner. So, God created woman. Why? because he looked all over and there was no suitable companion for man. We were created for relationship. Why was that? Because God himself lives in relationship of the holy trinity, and we were created in His image. You and I are to live in the spiritual marriage of man,  woman, and God. Not to be confused that they themselves are gods. (But people often do.) But for us to remember the God who made us and that He made us to live in relationship with our spouses and God himself. A picture of the holy Trinity, of the God we serve.

God created in the heart of man to live in relationship. Everyone who has ever lived has sought out these two relationships… 

(1) a relationship with God … 

(2) a relationship with another individual who is similar but different. 

The Bible says that He created male and female. God performed the first wedding, and Adam and Eve became husband and wife. And the earthly representative of God came into being. It's what we call family. The father, the mother, and the child. We are made in God’s image. This is why the desecration of marriage is so significant. When we break the covenant of marriage, it becomes a false narrative of God. Scripture tells us that God hates divorce. Couples hate divorce. Children hate divorce. Everybody loses. Now, are there times when divorce might be the right thing to do? Sadly, yes. Scripture tells us if a partner is untrue, they can be divorced. If it becomes physically threatening, divorce might be the only remedy. Scripture tells us that “God hates divorce and a man who clothes himself in violence.” Occasionally you hear of an “amicable“ divorce. Somehow, I doubt that. That’s where both people had little intention of honoring their vows, so when life got tough, and it does, let’s just quit and be friends. Marriage is more than that. It is an oath we take to God. As believers, you need to do everything you can possibly do to restore this relationship. Just like God did for you. If you are an unbeliever, I suppose you can do whatever you want. But understand this, divorce breaks down the fiber of a culture. We are less than we were as a culture, every time a divorce is granted. You may be asking what then should we do…

(1) Marriage is not a ceremony or about planning a great reception. This is the greatest commitment of life next to your relationship with Christ.

(2) Quitting in a marriage is not an option. Find a new way to approach the problems of life.

(3) Choose carefully who you seek marital advice from.

(4) Life will always have problems, whether married or a family of one, quitting (divorce) is never an option.

If you don’t manage money well now, you won’t be any better single. This is the number 1 stated problem in American marriages. Our affluence has given us a false idea that if we see it and we like it; then we want it because we need it. If we need it, then we buy it. If we can truly afford it or not. Then the cycle continues. There is one more thing I need to make life complete. I like it, I need it, I’ll take it. Finances are stated as the number 1 cause of divorce. Let me go back… The most significant relationship we have, outside our relationship with Christ, is our relationship with our spouse. I heard of a young lady speaking to her mother over the phone. She was telling her all the reasons she was upset was her husband. Life wasn’t very good and she wanted to come home and move back in with her mom and dad to which her mom replied, “This is not your home. Your home is with your husband.” Parents, do not allow your children to be quitters no matter how much of a hero that child may think you are. When your parents tell you NO it doesn’t mean they don’t love you, it means they do! Be committed to your spouse… not to the boys you hang out with…and ladies not to your girlfriends. Always and only be committed to your spouse. Chose to love your spouse … Love is a choice, not an emotion. There are lots of things I have done over 43 years of marriage that my wife probably didn’t think was the right thing to do, and there were one or two things she did that I didn’t think were quite right. But because we chose a long time ago that we would commit to one another that no matter what we would be together.

Three most important words in marriage “You’re probably right.”

I want you to know I understand that life is hard. You are going to have to forgive a lot of things that you think your spouse did wrong. They probably have no idea. But you felt the pain. But you must forgive. Swallow your words of hurt. Forget trying to be right. What you are arguing about is not as important as your relationship. If you ask, why do you have to be the one always forgiving… because Christ taught us to pray…Father forgive them, they don’t know what they are doing. And the second reason…They are praying the same prayer for you. Father forgive them, they don’t know what they are doing. Let me shape a well-lived life for you…

Love God with everything you’ve got.

Love your spouse with everything you’ve got.

Love your kids, and treat them like God’s kids, because they are.

Love the world around you,

If you live this way, I promise you a life that the richest man who ever lived would envy. It won’t be easy. People don’t always do the right thing. But you might make a couple of mistakes along your way.

Join us Sunday morning at 10am as we Worship God together 

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The Life of Faith You Bet Your Life

Hebrews 11: 1-12 The Message

1-2  The fundamental fact of existence is that this trust in God, this faith, is the firm foundation under everything that makes life worth living. It’s our handle on what we can’t see. The act of faith is what distinguished our ancestors, set them above the crowd. 3 By faith, we see the world called into existence by God’s word, what we see created by what we don’t see. 4 By an act of faith, Abel brought a better sacrifice to God than Cain. It was what he believed, not what he brought, that made the difference. That’s what God noticed and approved as righteous. After all these centuries, that belief continues to catch our notice. 5-6 By an act of faith, Enoch skipped death completely. “They looked all over and couldn’t find him because God had taken him.” We know on the basis of reliable testimony that before he was taken “he pleased God.” It’s impossible to please God apart from faith. And why? Because anyone who wants to approach God must believe both that he exists and that he cares enough to respond to those who seek him. 7 By faith, Noah built a ship in the middle of dry land. He was warned about something he couldn’t see, and acted on what he was told. The result? His family was saved. His act of faith drew a sharp line between the evil of the unbelieving world and the rightness of the believing world. As a result, Noah became intimate with God. 8-10  By an act of faith, Abraham said yes to God’s call to travel to an unknown place that would become his home. When he left he had no idea where he was going. By an act of faith he lived in the country promised him, lived as a stranger camping in tents. Isaac and Jacob did the same, living under the same promise. Abraham did it by keeping his eye on an unseen city with real, eternal foundations—the City designed and built by God. 11-12 By faith, barren Sarah was able to become pregnant, old woman as she was at the time, because she believed the One who made a promise would do what he said.

 A simple question often asked, Do you believe in God? Many people would quickly answer , “yes”. And then, when asked this follow up question…why do you believe in God? The answers don’t come quite so quickly. Deeper questioning leads to some of the following groups… Some believe there are no such things as gods. They believe that nothing really matters, whatever happens, just happens. Some believe life is just a game, some people seem to win and others seem to lose. Whatever your belief system, it is all the same game… a game in which “you bet your life” . Not just your life here, but your life eternal. A famous poet wrote…NO sadder words of tongue or pen, than are those words, what might have been. God is faithful. He says he won’t turn anyone away. He said if we asked for forgiveness, we would have it. But humankind never seems to be able to take or give, an absolute answer. If you ask someone about the sin in their life , they will generally respond with something akin to…well, nobody’s perfect.

 And of course everyone knows you are just being smart or judgmental, when you remind them of the scripture ’’Be perfect, as your Heavenly Father is perfect.” Are you kidding me, everybody knows nobody is perfect. The question then arises, what is God saying to us? Is he holding some impossible challenge over our heads? How cruel must he be if He holds an unattainable goal in front of us, knowing we can never reach it. It's unobtainable. What a cruel joke. But we know all too well this is not the compassionate, loving God that we read of in scripture… So where is He? Isaiah the prophet wrote this if Him… Who believes what we’ve heard and seen? Who would have thought GOD’s saving power would look like this? 2-6  The servant grew up before God—a scrawny seedling, a scrubby plant in a parched field. There was nothing attractive about him,  nothing to cause us to take a second look. He was looked down on and passed over, a man who suffered, who knew pain firsthand. One look at him and people turned away. We looked down on him, thought he was scum. But the fact is, it was our pains he carried—our disfigurements, all the things wrong with us. We thought he brought it on himself, that God was punishing him for his own failures. But it was our sins that did that to him, that ripped and tore and crushed him—our sins! He took the punishment, and that made us whole. Through his bruises we get healed. We’re all like sheep who’ve wandered off and gotten lost.

 We’ve all done our own thing, gone our own way. And GOD has piled all our sins, everything we’ve done wrong, on him, on him. 7-9  He was beaten, he was tortured, but he didn’t say a word. Like a lamb taken to be slaughtered and like a sheep being sheared, he took it all in silence. Justice miscarried, and he was led off—and did anyone really know what was happening? He died without a thought for his own welfare, beaten bloody for the sins of my people. They buried him with the wicked, threw him in a grave with a rich man, Even though he’d never hurt a soul or said one word that wasn’t true. 10 Still, it’s what GOD had in mind all along, to crush him with pain. The plan was that he gave himself as an offering for sin so that he’d see life come from it—life, life, and more life. And GOD’s plan will deeply prosper through him. 11-12  Out of that terrible travail of the soul, he’ll see that it’s worth it and be glad he did it. Through what he experienced, my righteous one, my servant, will make many “righteous ones,” as he himself carries the burden of their sins. Therefore I’ll reward him extravagantly— the best of everything, the highest honors. Because he looked death in the face and didn’t flinch, because he embraced the company of the lowest. He took on his own shoulders the sin of the many,he took up the cause of all the black sheep.

What does that mean to you?

If you will confess your sins, He will cleanse you

from your evil ways, and completely forgive you.

Why would He do it for you?

He did it for the whole world of which you are a part.

How could He do it?

All the sin of the world was laid on His back

What does it mean for you and me?

It means salvation.

Being a part of God’s plan.

Being pardoned for our own sins.

Here is the final question… Do you know Him?

It's one thing that Christ died for you, but are you living for Him?

Join us Sunday morning at 10am as we Worship God together 

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Faith, Friends and Family

1 Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. 2 This is what the ancients were commended for. 3 By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.  Hebrews 11:1-3

By faith we understand

There are two popular assumptions concerning faith, both are false but both are held in our society…The first one is this: that in matters of religion we have to deal with faith, but in all the other realms and activities of life we base our decisions and our actions on knowledge. The matter-of-fact practicalities of life are faced not theoretically, or philosophically, or theologically, but they are faced really and actually—just the same as we do in the realm of religion and the Christian faith.  Whether the man is a religionist or not, their lives are alike, the believer and the unbeliever. Both of them live by faith, and without faith it is impossible to live this life. We meet it in every day, in every matter, in every road.  It is a common thing in common life that faith is the basis upon which all life is lived.

There is a great insurance company that every time they advertise, and every picture they publish of their company has a tremendous rock in it and on it, the Rock of Gibraltar.  And they use that great rock as a persuasive sign that their company is one in which you can have illimitable trust. You can have great trust in the steadfastness of this insurance company that uses a picture of the Rock of Gibraltar. There is not a bank of any consequence but that has in it a “trust department.”  In fact, when you go to looking at a bank, you will find in it the same nomenclature, the same language, that you will find in a church; they are exactly alike, a trust department—and the words they use to describe what they do. 

You don’t live without faith. 

You cash a check by faith;

You make a deposit by faith;

You pay an insurance premium by faith;

You undergo an operation at the hospital by faith. 

You hire a babysitter by faith. 

The farmer sows his seed in the hope and the persuasion that somebody up there will make it sprout and grow.  All trades, all business, all government, and all life is built upon faith.  And any time you assume that in religion we are dealing with faith, but in practical life we are dealing with knowledge, you have fallen into a most cleverly employed assumption that is untrue—far, far from the truth. One of the great, brilliant astronomers of our generation is professor A. S. Eddington of England.  And in his book, The Nature Of The Physical World, he insists that it takes faith even to walk through a door.  Now he’s an astronomer and a scientist, and he’s going to talk about atoms and the speed of this world around the sun and all.  So you watch him now as he talks about it, that it takes faith just to walk through a door. Now I quote from him:  “I am standing on the threshold about to enter a room.  It is a complicated business.  In the first place, I must shove against an atmospheric pressure of a force of fourteen pounds on every square inch of my body.  I must make sure of landing on a plank, traveling at twenty miles a second around the sun.  I must do this while hanging from a round planet, headed outward into space, and with a wind of ether waves blowing at no-one- knows-how-many miles a second.  The plank has no solidity of substance.  It is a veritable hurricane of moving atoms.  To step on it is like stepping on a swarm of flies.  Surely I could fall through.”

Just better take it by faith, open the door and step on the plank, rather than wait to solve all of the scientific difficulties involved.  You don’t live a life of faith in religion as though that were different from any other kind of a life that you live.  Both of them, whether religious or irreligious, are lived by faith. The second popular idea is this: that in religion you live according to a creed, and you have faith in a creed, but in science you don’t have any faith, and you don’t have any statement of faith.  It takes great faith for a man to believe that dead, inert matter could create mind, and soul, and personality; that out of the deadness of the rocks, you were born in frame and walk in the earth.  I say, you have a great capacity for faith to believe that. And you have great, infinite capacities for faith to believe that there is no meaning to life.  It’s a story told by an idiot: it didn’t come from anywhere; it doesn’t mean anything now; and it’s not going anywhere.  It takes faith to believe in the creed of an infidel, just as it takes faith to believe in the creed of a Christian. I copied from Bertrand Russell, the famous English philosopher of atheism and infidelity—he expresses the creed more eloquently than any man I ever read after.  In his A Free Man’s Worship, Bertrand Russell says, and I quote:  “That man is the product of causes which had no provision of the end they were achieving; that his origin, his growth, his hopes and fears, his loves and beliefs are but the outcome of the accidental collocation of atoms; that no fire, no heroism, no antipathy of thought and feeling can preserve an individual life beyond the grave; that all the labors of the ages, all the noon-day brightness of human genius, are destined to extinction in the vast death of the solar system, and that the whole temple of man’s achievement must inevitably be buried beneath the debris of a universe in ruins; all these things, if not beyond dispute, are yet so nearly certain that no philosophy which rejects them can hope to stand.  Only within the scaffolding of despair can the soul’s habitation henceforth be built.”

Or to say with the apostle John in 1 John 3:2: Brethren, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is.

 It’s just which group of assumptions you want to receive, but it takes faith to believe in either one of them: the creed of the infidel or the creed of the Christian. You listen to me: don’t you ever fear, and don’t you ever be timid about standing up and giving the answer of a Christian to the facts of life.  For to me—and to my ability to reason and to think—to me, there’s only one answer that can confront all of the facts of life, and that is the answer of the Christian religion.

The apostle Paul said in the closing verse of the fourth chapter of the second Corinthian letter, “For the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal” [2 Corinthians 4:18].  We come to know God and have communion with God with the eyes of the soul, without which we are blind.  We come to take from God with the hands of faith, without which we have no grasp for eternal things: to deny faith is to be blind; to deny faith is to live impoverished.  The man that has no faith has no hope, he has no communion, he has no fellowship, he has no destiny, he has no answer.  He is like a stone!  The only thing that differentiates man is his capacity to know God. And we know God through faith [Hebrews 11:1-3], and to destroy that faith is to destroy the soul.  And every answer that we seek, that really matters in this earth, through faith we understand.  All of the meaning of this universe and its intricacies, where did it come from?  Through faith we understand the genius, and the power, and the hand of God.   But through faith we come into a relationship with Jesus, known to the trusting and the believing heart.  And to turn aside from that trust and from that faith, to turn aside is to live a life of despair and of deceit: we weave nets for our own entanglement. A crowd on a city street had gathered, and the fellow down the way, looking, asked a man in a nearby building what the excitement was about.  And the man said, “A man just jumped off of that tall building and committed suicide.”  And then the man replied, as if thinking to himself, “Well, you know,” he says, “when you lose God, there ain’t nothing left but to jump.” Now this faith that is described so eloquently here in the Bible, and presented so beautifully, that faith through which we understand—faith is not inoperative.  It’s not theoretical; it’s not philosophical; it’s not intangible; it is not ephemeral, but faith is very positive, and very active, and very dynamic.  Faith is a tremendous, actual motion and power in human life.

Faith is conviction grown courageous; faith is vision plus valor.  Faith moves, faith does, faith acts, faith inspires, faith lives.  Faith walks, it talks, it grows, it moves. “By faith, Noah, warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear” [Hebrews 11:7].  He says that’s faith. When God said, “One hundred twenty years and I am going to destroy this world” [Genesis 6:3, 7], Noah believed God, and he built an ark [Genesis 6:12-22].  All the rest of the people laughed at the judgment day of God, but Noah was afraid because he believed God.  That’s faith! [Hebrews 11:7] Then he illustrates it again, “By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out, obeyed.  And he went out, not knowing.  He went out not knowing” [Hebrews 11:8-9]. 

That’s faith!  He moved out! He went out, he obeyed, “not knowing whither he went.”  By faith, he moved [Hebrews 11:8-9].  He illustrates it again and again.  Here in the life of Moses, he says, “Moses chose rather to be with the people of God” [Hebrews 11:24-25], with the people of God!  It’s association that makes this demonstration of his faith.  It makes the church, it makes the congregation.  “Choosing rather to be with the people of God”; that’s faith! [Hebrews 11:25]. But it is a dynamic, moving, challenging, calling thing to which a man that’s got it responds.  “Here I am.” Phillips Brooks defined it, “Faith, forsaking all, I take Him”: F-A-I-T-H—Forsaking All, I Take Him. “Obtained promises, out of weakness was made strong” [Hebrews 11:34]; That’s faith! Faith moves!  Faith lives!  Faith glorifies God!  Faith fills the church.  Faith runs to Christ.  Faith is the faculty by which we come into the understanding of the great presence and purposes of God.  “Without faith, it is impossible” to know Him, to come unto Him.  “For he that cometh unto God must believe that He is” [Hebrews 11:6].  All of this we understand through faith. And God asks no other thing of you than what you give to the common causes of the world.  I believe in the bank, I believe in the insurance company, I believe in the pharmaceutical product, I believe in the doctor.  “I believe, I believe, I believe” and all of life is lived in that faith. I also believe in that upper, and spiritual, and better life in heaven.  I believe in God, I believe in the Book, I believe in Jesus.  I believe in the holy congregation.  I believe in the destiny and purpose of God’s people in the earth.  I believe that He loves me. I believe that He knows my name.  I believe that He can speak to my heart and that I can answer Him.  By faith, we understand [Hebrews 11:3].

You and I are people of faith…believe in Jesus or not , we all act on what we believe. There are beliefs that lead to death and hopelessness. Nothing to live or die for. But there is a faith, not empty of reason, that leads to life everlasting. Today each one of us, if there is any value in our lives, are living with faith. Some of us maybe so confused and torn with a decision to have God come into your life because He might ask you to do something you don’t want to do. Fear causes you to retreat into a meaningless life.

But if you are looking for a fulfilling, meaningful life, you can only find it in him.

Today, by faith you may know him.

Join us Sunday mornings at 10am as we Worship God together 

53 South Dean Rd. Orlando, FL 32825

You can find us on Facebook

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“It’s A Wonderful Life” “Trust It”

Matthew 1:18-20

18  This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit.  19  Because Joseph, her husband was faithful to the law, and yet  did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. 20  But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.”

How many times have you seen the movie “It’s a wonderful Life”? Everyone who lives in Bedford Falls are enjoying a relatively peaceful life. Sure they have their problems but nothing like the day that is opening today. Its October 29,1929. It was remembered as Black Tuesday. The stock markets were crashing and everyone was panicking. There was a run at Bailey Building and Loan. George used his honeymoon money to save the family business.

If I were to ask you about your relationship with God, what would you say? In a survey, some said that they were angry with God. Some would ask, what God are you talking about? Do you mean the one who said he would return to earth but didn’t? Or is it the god that terrorists pray to as they blow themselves up as well as other innocent people? Others try to ignore the existence of God. For them He is just a fable for the uneducated or unenlightened. Some have described it this way…when I was a kid I had an imaginary friend, but when I grew up I forgot about Him. Now, I am an atheist. A third group wants God to be a part of their lives. These people say things like…He is my Lord and Savior and lives in my heart, I choose to give my life to Him. What kind of relationship do you have with God?

Today we have looked again at the birth of Christ but this time there are no wise men from the east. This passage by Matthew also never mentions the shepherds or a star. Matthew is only concerned with Mary and Joseph. He tells about Joseph’s dream. He, like Mary, would have a part in God’s plan for the salvation of the world. We see Joseph as one of the hand tools who God uses for His purposes. Joseph would be placed in difficult and humiliating circumstances. He would be responsible for someone else’s child. Yet that child is the long awaited Messiah. Jesus is the Incarnation of God, and Joseph was a part of God’s eternal plan. That reveals the kind of relationship God wants to have with us. First …God wants to have a human relationship with us, that is, God wants to know us personally. That is why “He became flesh and dwelt among us.”

Napoleon is credited with being one of the greatest military minds in the history of mankind. Obviously, he could not know every soldier who fought for him in his campaigns. So he had his colonels give him the names of these soldiers. Then he sat about his research to find out everything he could about those men: their names, where they were from, and the like. When he would do his reviewing of the troops as he passed each one, the colonel would make a small signal so Napoleon would know which man he was looking for. When he reached them, he would single them out, call them by name, speak of their families and tell the stories of their valor in battle. It worked. They would say he knows me. He calls me by my name.

What kind of relationship does God want with you? First a human relationship. He wants you to know Him and that He will be with you, and that you know that He understands. So that you know He hears and feels in the challenges you face on a daily basis, that is why, He became flesh and dwelt among us. God has a plan to give you life, though there might be some suffering, but a life of meaning and fulfillment, and a life that reveals who He is.

Second…. God wants us to have a holy relationship with Him. That means God wants to be the top priority of our lives. God wants to affect the way we live and He wants to be involved with us on a daily basis. It’s not about the way you look, the color of your hair, or how pronounced your wrinkles are. Though he knows every detail of your being, he knows that relationships aren’t built on the way you look. They are built by knowing one another and He wants you to know Him as well as He knows you. We often try to hide those things about ourselves that are different from Him, but in reality, He already knows. He is patient with us and leads us through life in a way so that we can see who we are and what we need. We learn that the part of us that is different from Him is called sin. Sin separates us from God, but if we confess and ask for forgiveness, God willingly forgives us, changes our thinking and our actions. All of this is because of the Christ of Christmas, who gave Himself as a sacrifice so that we would be made whole.

The word HOLY means separate. Separated from a life without God and separated to a life with God: Holistic Relationships.

D.L. Moody once said…” A holy life will make the deepest impression. Lighthouses blow no horns, they just shine.” Christianity was never intended just to be a Sunday morning experience. Your faith should be altering every facet of your life. Jesus reshapes your values, attitudes, and use of everything God has put into your life. He might change your friends, your spending habits, or your entertainments. God loves you so much that He won’t allow you to remain stagnant.

Abraham Lincoln once said, “;My concern is not whether God is on our side; my greatest concern is to be on God’s side, for God is always right.” As we walk into the week of Christmas, are we allowing God to be the God of our Lives? Or have you decided to be the God of your life? Some try to do both, but selfishness will not share. Some asked Jesus about this very thing…he responded… A man cannot serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon (yourself).

You may ask…If I let go of my life, how do I know I’m going to be ok? If you don’t let go, how do you know you’re going to be ok?

Who do you trust? Will you put your trust in God? Or do you only trust yourself…do you want to be your own God? Scripture reads…Trust in the Lord with all your heart. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths.

The song writer said it well…”My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness. I dare not trust the sweetest frame but wholly lean on Jesus name. On Christ the solid rock I stand , all other ground is sinking sand; all other ground is sinking sand. When darkness seems to hide his face, I rest on his unchanging grace. Dressed in His righteousness alone; spotless to stand before the throne.”

Can I ask you this , who or what are you trusting in?

Join us Sunday morning at 10am as we Worship God together 

53 South Dean Rd. Orlando, FL 32825

You can find us on Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/FriendsCommunityChurchOrlando

The link to this past Sundays sermon is below

https://www.facebook.com/FriendsCommunityChurchOrlando/videos/2775282412606978

It’s A Wonderful Life : Believe It

“I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”  John 10:10

Jesus actually wants you to have an overflowing life. This is the first thing I want to encourage you with today. The text said, “I came that you may have life to the full!” So it is clear that God in heaven is not satisfied that we are satisfied with so many unsatisfying attempts at satisfaction. That’s really amazing. I mean, why should He care that my life feels empty? But the message of the Bible is that He does. There is a God, He made your life, and He earnestly desires that you feel His joy! For your insides to be sunny. For there to be a bounce in your step. “God wants to share His joys with me!” When Jesus was born in Bethlehem that first Christmas, it was to inject into humanity the antibiotic of joy. Remember the carol? “Joy to the world, the Lord is born!” It comes out of the angel song in “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.” (Luke 2:14)

I used the term “antibiotic” intentionally a moment ago to indicate that to experience joy or abundance requires the killing off of other life hampering, unsatisfying things. We call them sin. That is also at the core of why Jesus came that first Christmas. “She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:21). To have an abundant life, I need to stop singing the wrong songs. The sin songs. The Bible has a lot to say about the music of human life. God in his grace addresses all the songs we tend to sing in our search for an abundant life. In a message on this topic Rick Ezell points out a number of them. Let’s run through a few.

1) The song of pleasure:

If you haven’t sung it yourself, you’ve certainly heard other’s sing it. If I could retire early and spend my days in hot tubs and bars I would be full! If I could take a cruise, or have a yacht full of bikini clad women... If I could win a boat or load of cash. People try these things every day. Their hearts race for an hour or two and then it’s over. The next time they try it will take a little bit more to arrive at the same low level of pleasure. “All things are wearisome, more than one can say. The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing.” (Ecclesiastes 1:8)

2) The song of performance:

The workaholic sings this song. He is out for the satisfaction of the job complete. When you meet him on the street he tells you all his latest accomplishments. In fact you know very little about the person standing in front of you. You only know all about his job. He can’t sit still. He doesn’t enjoy anything unless he’s working. “There was a man all alone; he had neither son nor brother. There was no end to his toil, yet his eyes were not content with his wealth. “For whom am I toiling,” he asked, “and why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?” This too is meaningless a miserable business! (Ecclesiastes 1:8) Don’t miss this: not even good, humanitarian performance fills up the soul! Bob Geldof was a British rock musician who decided to do something about the famine in Ethiopia during the early 1980’s. He put his own career on the back-burner and spent an entire year of his life organizing fund-raising events for dozens of famine relief organizations. He was the inspiration behind the song “We Are The World” and & Live Aid event. His efforts helped raise more than 100,000,000 dollars toward famine relief. Later, Geldof wrote a book that sums up this experience. The book is called, “Is That It?” Geldof recognized that even though his accomplishments were significant, after all was said and done he couldn’t escape a feeling of unfulfillment. For more than a year the famine in Ethiopia had been his “reason for living” and after all he had accomplished, he realized that hardly a dent had been made in the problem of world hunger, and his efforts hadn’t brought him peace of mind.

3) The Song of possessions:

“Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless.” (Ecclesiastes 5:10) Money will buy a bed but not sleep; books but not brains; food but not appetite; finery but not beauty; a house but not a home; medicine but not health; luxuries but not culture; amusements but not happiness; religion but not salvation-- It is a passport to everywhere but heaven. Have you ever had moments when you realize that you have more stuff and money now than you’ve ever had in your life, but you don’t feel any more content? You may be singing the wrong song.

4) The song of position:

Many people make this assumption: If I were famous, I would have a full life. There are other variations on the tune: If I got that promotion... If I was elected to that... Actor Jim Carrey once said, “I think everybody should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that it’s not the answer.” God is saying these don’t work. All the things we immediately believe, and daily pursue thinking they will give us the abundant life. Abundant living comes from something else.

 Lasting fulfillment is the gift of Christ.

Now here’s an outrageous claim. “I have come to give you life, and not just average life, abundant life!” You mean my personal contentment, my inner satisfaction, my fulfillment as a person, my experience of “real living” is tied up in a person. One person. This person, Jesus! And yes, that is in fact the teaching of God’s word.

So here’s the logical conclusion, friends. If you really want to live, either in eternity or now for that matter – if you really want to live, you need the person Jesus in your day, this day, and every day. You need to talk to Him about the goings-on at work. You need to ask His advice. You need to take your children to Him. You need to follow Him through your day, and talk to Him repeatedly, and listen for His answers, and signs.

1. Do you know what you’ve placed front and center in your life? Do you know what song you habitually sing in your pursuit of joy?

2. When you wake up in the morning, what is the first thing you think about?

3. During the day, what do you spend most of your time thinking about?

4. As you fall asleep at night, what tends to dominate your thoughts?

More than likely, the answer to all these questions is the same, and THAT is your reason for living. A football coach might say that all day long he thinks about winning a championship—that is his reason for living. A novelist might say that all day she thinks about finishing her book—that is her reason for living. A parent might say that all day long he or she thinks of how to take care of the children—that is their reason for living. Others might have more immodest goals: some may say they think about food all day long, or money, or their

problems, or their career. Whatever you think about all day long—that is your reason for living.

 [Next you need to ask], Is it a good reason? Here’s an easy way to tell. Ask yourself: is it worth dying for?

Is your job worth dying for?

Is a little money worth dying for?

Is conquering a video game worth dying for?

Is what you’re living for worth dying for?”

If what your living for isn’t worth dying for, it’s also probably not worth living for.

Now the answer to the question of why Jesus is the one essential ingredient for your happiness in your business life, your family life, your physical life, etc. Jesus is eternal. He is God himself. Your soul is also eternal, in the sense that it was created to endure on into eternity. To fill an eternal item, you need an eternal supply. You need an eternal song to sing. You need to know the eternal purpose for which you as an individual were created. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life...” (John 1:1-4) The enjoyment of [God] is the only happiness with which our souls can be satisfied... “Fathers and mothers, husbands, wives, or children, or the company of earthly friends are but shadows, but enjoyment of God is the substance. These are but scattered beams, but God is the sun. These are but streams, but God is the fountain. These are but drops, but God is the ocean.” (-Jonathan Edwards) It is our reattachment to God that fills this life with meaning and makes it wonderful. Christmas is so important because Christ is quite literally the answer to everything. Jesus doesn’t require that you forget all the goals, and beauties of life and live in a monastery in order to find joy. He just requires that you arrange all those things around Him. He is after all, your God. And it is He that makes it a Wonderful Life.

Join us Sunday morning at 10am as we Worship God together 

53 South Dean Rd. Orlando, FL 32825

You can find us on Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/FriendsCommunityChurchOrlando

The link to this past Sundays sermon is below

https://www.facebook.com/FriendsCommunityChurchOrlando/videos/695715848851789