Truth Exposed

Don't Give Up

2010-11-28T16:17:00.001-06:00

New message on discouragement, check it out above on the sermon player. It is based on Haggai 2.

Come Back to God Haggai 1:1-14

2010-11-14T18:29:00.001-06:00

Please take a listen to the sermon above, Come Back to God. It is not very long but I believe God may have a word for you.

If You Can

2009-04-24T13:58:00.002-05:00

Mark 9:17-27

Here is the story of a man in a desperate situation. His son had a spirit that had taken away his ability to speak. This son would foam at the mouth and fall on the ground. The spirit had tried to kill the son by casting him into the fire or water. The son had been this way since he was a child.

This man had brought his son to the disciples for help but they could not cast the spirit out. They told Jesus about it and Jesus said bring him to me. Jesus questioned the man about his son and the man told his case.

The man then spoke these words, “If you can do anything, have compassion on us, and help us.” Jesus said if you can believe, all things are possible to him that believes. Jesus then spoke to the spirit and told him to come out of the boy. The spirit cried and tore the boy as he came out of him and left him as dead. Jesus then took the boy by the hand and lifted him up and he arose.

Now, I know I have quickly told this story. Now what can it mean for me, what can it mean for you?

Perhaps you are in a desperate situation today. It might not seem as bad as this man’s son but to you it is just as desperate. Maybe it is your marriage, your children , or loss of job.
Maybe it is your health or financial trouble. You see it is not about your problem but about the problem solver, Jesus.
Maybe you have gone to other believers for help and nothing. Perhaps they have been miserable comforters like those of Job. I can tell you there is no comforter like the Holy Spirit.

I want to encourage you to bring that situation to Jesus. That is what the man in the story did. Can you imagine him coming to Jesus and saying if you can? Bring it to the Lord even with your doubts. Not only can Jesus do something, He will.

Jesus told the man that if he could believe all thing were possible. You see we all have situations and circumstances that come into our life. I don’t understand why and neither do you. But I know God understands.

Here it looks like after Jesus cast out the spirit the boy was dead. Sometimes we pray and fast about something and it gets worse. Sometimes the enemy does not leave without a fight.

Maybe the enemy has convinced you your situation is hopeless, maybe even dead.
My friend bring it to the Master and let Him take you by the hand and bring you back to life. I just want to encourage you to go into your closet and plead your case before God. I know He will help you. Just when you think it is over and nothing else can be done is when Jesus steps in.

Comfort For Sinner and Saint

2009-04-15T04:41:00.002-05:00

Heb 7:25 Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.
Heb 7:26 For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens;.
Heb 7:27 Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people's: for this he did once, when he offered up himself.
Heb 7:28 For the law maketh men high priests which have infirmity; but the word of the oath, which was since the law, maketh the Son, who is consecrated for evermore.

What comfort I find here today. The writer has been revealing Jesus as our High Priest and oh, what a picture it is. Not only is He high Priest but also our savior.

Today, let us look at vs. 25. Here I am told that He is able to save. If I am going to trust someone to do something, I need to know that they can complete what they start. Only Jesus is able to save. No other religion has a plan of salvation except the Christian faith.
This is because no other religion deals with sin. Jesus is able to save because we need saving. He is presented as holy, harmless, undefiled, and separate from sinners. In other words He is the Lamb of God. The problems in the world flow out of the same fountain called sin. Mankind needs saving and He is able. Glory to God!

He is able to save to the uttermost. You cannot be so far from God that He can’t save you. You can’t outrun the arm of grace and mercy. I don’t care what you have done; He is able to save you. This is the comfort for the sinner. You can turn at any moment and He is there waiting on you. You must come to God by Jesus. There is no other way but the way of Faith. Don’t let others fool you. There are some churches today that teach that Jesus is not the only way to God. “Be ye not deceived.”

Is there not comfort for the saint here also? Oh, you tried believer do not despair for He has promised to save you. Remember, He saves to the uttermost. You might be struggling or slipping but He will save you yet. You might be in the fire or storm, He will not fail you. He has not brought you this far to leave you now. Peter walked on the water for a bit and began to sink. It was then He called out for help. Perhaps you feel like you are sinking, call out to Jesus, He is there.

The priest in the Old Testament would die and another take his place. Jesus is alive forevermore. The Old Testament priest had to offer a sacrifice for his sins as well as the sins of the people. Jesus was our sacrifice. He was the perfect Lamb of God.

Now for the shouting part. Do you realize that Jesus is always pleading with His Father for you? Can you see the picture? I am having a tough time, might be in trouble and Jesus is asking His Father to send me help. That ought to help you get through the day, Just knowing that He is watching you and pleading on your behalf.

I hope you find the comfort here today. If you don’t know Jesus, today you can change that fact. I know that God is calling, you have heard Him. I encourage you to stop and ask Him to save you. He loves you more than you know. Call out to Him, He is near.

Remember believer, there is comfort for you here also. No matter what you face today, you don’t face it alone. He is ever watching over you leading and guiding. He is ever pleading your case before God. He is able to keep you from falling. If you need help call out to your mighty Savior. He will save to the uttermost.

Many Shall Come - Matthew 24:11

2009-03-20T08:25:00.002-05:00

We live in a day when many are being deceived. This should not surprise us as Jesus said this would be a sign of His coming. There are many false teachers, prophets, apostles and others who are leading many away from biblical truth. As the people of God, we must stay in the Word and listen to the Holy Spirit if we are not to be deceived. We must continue to follow the old path no matter what others might say.(Jeremiah 6:16) It is the old path that will lead us home.
Jesus also warned us in Matthew 7:13-15 about these false prophets. Broad is the way that leads to destruction. Strait and narrow is the way that leads to life. Then He says beware of false prophets. I believe Jesus is telling us that the false prophets stand at the two ways to turn us onto the broad way. The broad way is the popular way. The broad way is the exiting way. The broad way is where everyone else is going.
For us who are following hard after God, it is the narrow way that we must follow. It may not be popular, it may not be exiting by the world's standard but it is the joyous path. It may be a path of hardship, trial and trouble but our Lord has promised to go with us.
The old path is the path of Abraham Jacob and David. It is the path of Peter, Paul and John.
Let us continue to walk this path and speak and do all that God has called us to do.

Worship

2009-03-15T16:39:00.001-05:00

What is worship? We know that the word means to bow down. But it must mean more than just physically prostrating one's self.
The word itself denotes a surrender or acknowledging that another is superior. To worship means to yield to one who is greater than you.
In the old testament, when a king conquered a nation, they would bow down to the king. This simply said that they were helpless and hopeless.
They were dependent upon the mercy of the conquering king.

Let us look at Abraham in regard to worship. The first time we see the word worship is in Gen 22:5 when Abraham was to offer Isaac as a
burnt offering. Abraham told those that were with him to wait while he and Isaac went to worship God. Now Abraham knew he was going
to that mount to kill Isaac but he told the men that he and the lad would come back. How did Abraham come to have such total trust in God?

God had been building that trust ever since He called Abraham out of Ur. Do you realize that everywhere that God took Abraham every test
that God put him through, God was proving Himself to Abraham. Do you know that God desires to prove Himself to you. This high and holy God wants to show you He can be trusted. If He can be trusted, He is worthy of my worship. He is worthy of my surrender, He is worthy of my yielding, He is worthy of my submission, He is worthy of my trust. As my conquering King, I can put my life is His hands. Anything He asks me to do, I can do knowing He only means me good.

I do not know where you are at right now. I don't know what you are struggling with. But I want you to listen for that still small voice saying
trust Me. God will prove Himself to you. Isaac was everything to Abraham. He was willing to give his everything to God. Will you at this moment give everything to God? Will you surrender and put your total trust in Him? Will you let Him lead no matter what? Oh, if you will He will show Himself strong on your behalf.
Whatever your care, whatever your trouble, release it to God and truly worship Him. Depend upon His grace, depend upon His mercy, depend upon His love. May God richly bless you

Leading or Following

2009-03-15T16:37:00.001-05:00

Are you leading or following? I am talking about your walk with God in this life. Are you allowing God to lead or are you trying to lead Him? We can attempt great things for God and be completely out of His will. We can get in His way by trying to help His plan along. You remember Abram and Hagar. Let us go to the Word.

Exodus 40: 36-38: And when the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the children of Israel went onward in all their journeys. But if the cloud were not taken up, then they journeyed not till the day that it was taken up. For the cloud of the Lord was upon the tabernacle by day, and fire was on it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel, throughout all their journeys.

God had promised to go with Israel in their journey. He would lead them by a cloud in the day and fire in the night. When the cloud or fire stopped, they pitched camp. When the cloud or fire moved they broke camp and followed. It mattered not whether the place was comfortable or uncomfortable; they rested or moved according to the cloud.

A few years ago, The Lord showed us not to plant our tent stakes too deep. I did not understand what he meant. I do now. When God begins to move, you need to break camp quickly. We must be sensitive to the Spirit so we can go where He wants us to go and do what He wants us to do.

The problem is we get ahead of the Lord and try to do things our way. His ways are not our ways. (Is.55:8) He desires to teach us His ways so we can walk in His path. (Is.2:3)
God teaches not in a classroom. He teaches in the wilderness, the desert, on the mountain and in the valley. He teaches if we will hearken.

Now for all of you that are saying that is Old Testament, let’s move to the new. Jesus told Matthew to follow Him. Matthew arose and followed. (Matt.9:9) By the way Matthew never collected another tax. He did not become a Christian tax collector. Jesus called Phillip and said follow Me. (John 1:43) I could give many examples But Jesus does the leading, we do the following.

How do we follow Him today? We follow Him like sheep. The sheep know the voice of the Shepherd. It is ours to listen and His to speak. I believe the Lord speaks to us in different ways, but He does speak. When He speaks, do you listen or do you debate? He will not debate with you. He will give the command and wait for your obedience. By the way, He has all the time in the world, you do not.

Sometimes, God leads with shut doors. In The book of Acts, Paul was on a missionary journey. He tried to go north and the Spirit would not permit. He tried to go south and the Spirit would not let him. So, he continued west as for as he could go without a ship. It was there he had the vision of the man from Macedonia. So you see, sometimes God lets us reach a dead end before we get further instructions. (Acts 16:6&7) That’s why we call it faith.

There is a way that looks right but it leads to death. (Proverbs 14:12) We cannot assume that because the way looks smooth and comfortable, it is the right way. We must get the mind of the Spirit. God will speak through our circumstances. If he is allowing the same thing over and over, He is probably trying to tell you something.

So, I ask you again. Are you leading or following? Stop today and ask God to confirm that you are on His path. If you find that you are not, then confess to Him and ask Him to return you to the right path. May we all continue to go where He sends.

From Emptiness to Fullness

2009-03-15T15:59:00.001-05:00

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. (Gen 1:1-2)

Every time I read these verses I can’t help but think about the Gospel. You see, the word translated form can mean empty. The word darkness means blackness. So, I see a picture of man’s condition before salvation. I see my own condition before I met Jesus.

If we have not Jesus, we are without hope and without God. (Eph 2:12) God is light and without Him we are in darkness. Our lives are empty apart from Jesus. We don’t think we are empty but we are. That is why we are always trying to fill the emptiness. We try to fill it with drink, drugs,sex or maybe fame and power. These things never satisfy but keep us coming back for more. The enemy (devil) tries to keep us in darkness so we will not come to the light.
This thing he keeps before us keeps us in darkness. (Psalms 143:3)

Therefore as we stay in the darkness we will remain empty. The problem is we love the darkness. Man started out right. Then he left the path of uprightness to walk in darkness. (Prov.2:13) We make wrong choices, bad decisions and don’t realize it until it’s too late.
This is how we get into addictions. (Prov. 4:19)

Thank God, that He does not leave us in that place. We would never come to Him if He did not take the first step. Men love the darkness and do not want the light. (John 3:19)
The psalmist tells us we are like candles that are not lit. A candle can’t light itself. Only God can bring light into darkness. (Psalms 18:26) Jesus has come to give us light and to fill our emptiness. (Luke 1:79)

So, you see our lives are like the earth in the beginning. We are empty and in great darkness.
It is only as the Holy Spirit hovers over us and begins to work on our heart that we will be able to come to Jesus. I thank God for the day that through His Spirit, He began to draw me to Him.

Perhaps the Spirit is drawing you today. I want to encourage you to yield to Him. Let Him reveal Jesus to you. Do not push Him away for today is the day of salvation. Maybe He has brought someone into your life to lead you to Jesus. Bow the knee to God and receive Him today. I can assure you, you will go from emptiness to fullness. May God bless you.

Paul the Apostle

2009-03-15T15:55:00.000-05:00

Have you ever given much thought to the man Paul? We read his letters to the church which contains all truth. I want to take a little time to look at his life.

Paul begins almost every epistle with this statement “Paul an apostle called by God.” Paul’s apostleship was a calling. He did not attend the University of Apostles. He was taught by revelation of our Lord. (Galatians 1:12) This is what caused Paul to run for Jesus!

However, Paul was not always on fire for the Gospel. When we first meet Paul, we find him known as Saul of Tarsus. He was consenting to the death of Stephen. We find him making havoc of the church. We find him going into homes and dragging believers to prison. (Acts 8:1-3) Saul hated this movement called The Way. Saul knew the word of God. He could probably quote it backward and forward. He could write commentary about it. Saul had a zeal for God but he did not know God.

There are many today who know the word of God, But not the God of the word. They write books, give lectures, and hold seminars. They know the letter of the law but not the Spirit.

So, what happened to this general of the devil’s army? He was on his way to Damascus to wreak havoc on the church that was there. Then is when Jesus stepped into the path of his life! Jesus knocked Saul off his horse and there revealed Himself to Saul. He told Saul that he was persecuting Him and not the church. (Acts 9:4)

You see, when we make fun of the church, or mock the church, and put down the church we are doing it against Jesus. The church is His building. The church is His bride.

We know it was this event that changed Saul into Paul. This is what caused him to become the great defender of the faith. He endured beatings, stoning, shipwrecks, all for the Gospel of Jesus Christ! He went everywhere telling everyone about this Jesus he met on the Damascus road!

Let me ask you, have you had a then is when experience in your life? Can you remember the time when Jesus revealed Himself to you? You were like Saul, going in the wrong direction and doing the wrong things. Maybe you thought you were a pretty good person and so, everything was okay.
Then you met the Master and knew the truth.

Perhaps you don’t have a then is when in your life. You can today! Jesus is just a cry or a sigh away. You know your life is not right. You know you are missing something. That something is a relationship with Jesus. I want to encourage you to think on these things today. There is really no set way in which you might be saved. There is no certain prayer to recite. You must come by faith. If you will confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved. (Romans 10:9) If you do this, I want you to tell someone. When we confess Him before men, He will confess us before the Father. May God bless you by revealing Himself to you.