Tag Archives: serving christ

No Participation Trophies

I remember several years ago Sherry and I were in Georgia watching our oldest grandson play soccer. When we got to the soccer field I noticed a large, long table, with about 50 little trophies on it. I wondered why there were so many trophies. After watching the children play – and being young, none were very good – one team finally made a goal after about two hours. I remember one team made a goal before that, but the little boy kicked the ball into his own team’s goal, so it didn’t count. After what seemed like an eternity the two teams lined up and everyone got a trophy. Everyone.

Welcome to American confusion.

The child who never touched the ball got a trophy, along with the one child who scored the goal. The child who kicked the ball in his own team’s goal got a trophy. The child who got hot, and walked off the field got a trophy. The child who got distracted and chased a butterfly rather than the ball got a trophy. Everyone got a “Participation Trophy”.

Life is not like that.

People complain that the male players in the NBA get paid more than female players in the WNBA. The NBA generates $10 billion in revenue each year. The WNBA generates around $200 million in revenue each year, about fifty times LESS revenue than the NBA. Women are paid less because, dear friends, there’s no “Participation Trophies” in sports. Where more money is generated, more money is paid.

Life does not give out “Participation Trophies”. Those who work harder are rewarded with better pay and better status. Children who grow up believing in “Participation Trophies” become adults who believe that they should be rewarded just for showing up. Continue reading

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Follow Your Leader

Sin is a transgression against the clear commandment of God. The Apostle wrote:

1 John 3:4 Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.

Sin begins with the question, “Has God really said?”, and then moves from there to partaking of what is forbidden. Those who minimize sin are not Christian, though they may claim to be so. The person who blatantly and without regard to God sin is the enemy of God, and the partner of Satan. The Scripture tells us:

1 John 3:8 (ESV) Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.
To “sin and grin” is to prove that you are not God’s child, but a lost person in need of the Savior. The Christian is called to willingly separate from anything that is “of the flesh” or sinful. God told the Old Covenant priest: Continue reading

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The Joy Of Faith

We see toward the end of verse 25, “Joy of Faith”. When you live for Jesus, you will often find yourself in bad spots. The Apostle Paul had more than his share of bad spots. Saul met Jesus on the Damascus Road, and heeding His call became Paul the Apostle. When Ananias was told to go to Saul and lay hands on him, Ananias was initially hesitant. After all, the Saul had been terrorizing the Church. But Jesus told Ananias:

Acts 9:15-16 (ESV) “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel. 16 For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.”

As Saul caused others to suffer for Satan’s sake, now Paul himself will suffer “for the sake of {Jesus}”. Oh, how Paul would suffer! Paul told the Church at Corinth:

2 Corinthians 1:8-10 (ESV) For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. 9 Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. 10 He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again.

The brighter and more flamboyant the LIGHT, the greater the DARKNESS will hate it.

Paul said that he was so distressed that “we despaired of life itself”. That is a profound statement. This means that Paul got so discouraged that he and those with him welcomed death. This is a state of advanced depression, where life has lost its savor. Paul was like that poor old Saint Job who cried out:… Continue reading

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One Greater Than The Temple!

When Nehemiah led the refugees of the children of Israel back to rebuild Jerusalem he caught the Israelites buying and selling on the Shabbâth. Nehemiah chastised them, saying (Nehemiah 13:18) “Did not your fathers thus, and did not our God bring all this evil upon us, and upon this city? yet ye bring more wrath upon Israel by profaning the Shabbâth..”, From that point on the gates of the city of Jerusalem were locked, and guards posted, so that there would be no buying and selling on the Sabbath. God promised Jerusalem if they kept the Shabbâth holy and unto the Lord that there would be blessing on all (Jeremiah 17:21-27). If they failed to keep the Shabbâth, there would be a curse brought on them. Continue reading

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Happy New Year!

Many people stayed up late last night to “Ring in the New Year”. Bro. Jim Linam told us at Church Sunday that he usually stays up pretty late on New Year’s Eve – sometimes as late as 8 or 8:30 pm! I agree with him. Some people stay up until… Continue reading

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Christ Lifted Up

As Jesus discussed salvation with this “master teacher of Judaism” He began to reveal that Christianity is not just another religion among many. Those who are true Christians are “born again of the Spirit of God” (John 3:3, 5, 8). A Christian becomes a Christian because that person calls on Jesus to be saved. The Genuine Call from the lost person creates what you might call a chain effect which is described in … Continue reading

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The Unworthy Servant

It pays to read the Scripture in context. I have heard preachers speak on the Parable of the Unworthy Servant but never look at the text around that parable. Context makes all the difference.

First of all let’s make note that this parable is only found in the Gospel of Luke. … Continue reading

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Serving God Wholeheartedly

A few weeks ago we talked about a great man of God named Caleb (Joshua 14:6-15). I loved that sermon! I love that man! Though 85 years young Caleb stood in front of Joshua and looked back over a life of victory from following the Lord Jesus. Caleb’s testimony was: Continue reading

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I-Phones, I-Dols, Or I Serve (A Communion Message)

Those cast into the Lake of Fire have never done THE work of God. They have not believed on Jesus. So God shows them that their names are NOT written in the Book of Life. They are the DEAD who DIED IN THEMSELVES. They are not blessed, but cursed. Oh Beloved … Continue reading

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Who Is The Servant Anyway?

In a recent address to the 2019 graduates of Liberty University Vice President Mike Pence spoke about religious liberty. He said:

“throughout most of American history, it’s been pretty easy to call yourself Christian. It didn’t even occur to people that you might be shunned or ridiculed… Continue reading

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