The annual Community Easter Sunrise Service will be held at 7 a.m. Easter Sunday, March 31, at the Early Visitors and Events Center, 419 Garmon Drive in Early, TX. The service will foster a spirit of serenity and hope as we worship the Lord while the sun rises. This annual event is held for all who wish to commemorate the resurrection of Jesus Christ and remember the hope that He gives. For more information, call Pastor Leland Acker at (325) 200-8531.
Ancient Scrolling is a podcast that examines the books of the Bible in light of their historical contexts. We examine why the books were written, who wrote them, and the messages they conveyed.
The Psalms are songs of praise to God, some written on certain occasions, and others written just to proclaim His glory. The context of Psalm 46 is debated. Some attribute it to King David after a battle was won. Some attribute it to the deliverance of Jerusalem from Assyria during the reign of King Hezekiah, in which the Assyrian army was miraculously wiped out by God. But, Psalm 46 is a Psalm of praise, praising God for His deliverance and the hope He gives.
In this world, we will face trouble. There’s the geo-political and economic troubles we see on the news. But then there’s our personal troubles. Jesus said in John 16:33, “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”
In Psalm 46, we are remined that God is our refuge, that He is our hope, And we are invited to remember His marvelous works.
GOD IS OUR REFUGE AND STRENGTH.
Verse 1 – God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
God is our refuge. He is where we can go to escape the trials and tribulations of life.We can look to Him for peace and comfort.We can lift up our concerns to Him in prayer, and know He hears and He does good for us (Romans 8:28).
God is our strength. He is the source of life.He is the force that gives us life and keeps us going.We press onward, not by our own strength, and not because we have to, but because He enables us, and powers us forward. Greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world.
He is our refuge and strength because He has redeemed us, given us new life through Christ, and an eternal hope in His Kingdom. Everything in this life is temporary, and soon we will be rescued from the trouble of this life.
Verses 2-3 Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; 3 Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah.
Therefore, since God is our refuge and strength, we will not fear. We will not be overcome with anxiety. We will not entertain the thought that our ruin and demise has come.
Though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea. Though the things that we felt were unmovable moved… Though the things we relied upon have failed. Though our security blankets have unraveled, we will not fear. We will not tremble before this world. And we will not lose hope.
Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled… Though things in this life rise up and intimidate us…Though our fears become reality…
Job said in Job 3:25, “For the thing which I greatly feared is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come unto me.”
Maybe your worst fear is coming upon you… Yet, you shouldn’t fear, because God is your refuge and strength.
In remembering God as our refuge and strength, we need to remember the hope He has given us.
THE HOPE GOD HAS GIVEN US.
Verse 4- There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High.
The psalmist has stated that we will not fear, because God is our refuge and strength.He then lists some of the most cataclysmic things that could strike fear in our hearts (the mountains being carried into the sea…)
Then, He redirects us to the hope by painting a picture of the city of God… and He starts this picture with a river. There is just something peaceful about sitting next to a river. But for a city, a river is a source of life, provision of water, and possibly commerce. When the writer references the City of God, He isn’t talking about Jerusalem, because there is no river in Jerusalem. The writer is referencing the Heavenly City… New Jerusalem. And the river… the river of life. The writer is referencing our eternal home, God’s house with many rooms. The place Christ said He was going to prepare for us.
Heaven will be a place of eternal peace and rest. No anxiety, No trauma, no triggers, no painful memories haunting us. No problems, no turbulence, no tribulation.
Verse 5 – God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early.
The best part of Heaven will be the presence of God, and dwelling with our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus said in John 14:3 – And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.
The most comforting words the disciples heard in Jesus’ comments in John 14… “That where I am, there ye may be also.”
If your faith and hope is in Christ, then the hope that you have in Heaven is seeing and living with Jesus. The Lord’s presence in Heaven will make it what we expect it to be.
Verses 6-7 The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved: he uttered his voice, the earth melted. 7 The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.
The Lord will have ended sin and iniquity on earth. He will have set everything at peace. And He is with us, and will be our refuge.
BEHOLD THE WORKS OF THE LORD.
Verses 8-9 Come, behold the works of the Lord, what desolations he hath made in the earth. 9 He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth; he breaketh the bow, and cutteth the spear in sunder; he burneth the chariot in the fire.
Look at what God has done.
He’s ended wars and defeated the fiercest of enemies.He delivered Israel from Egypt, from the Amalekites, Philistines, Assyrians, Babylonians, Hittites and others. He has brought us through the worst life has thrown at us. He has raised up our nation, and given us His word.
God, who gave His Son to redeem us, will not withhold that which is good from us.
Romans 8:32 – He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?
Knowing what God did for us in the Gospel, what makes us think that He won’t carry us the rest of the way through?
Psalm 46:10-11 Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. 11 The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.
Be still and know that He is God. Trust God. Trust His timing. Wait for His perfect timing. He will be exalted. He will be victorious. And, He is with us. (If God be for us, who can be against us?)
FINAL – There’s a lot of turbulence in the world today. Praise be to God that we can look to Him and find peace.
The story of Lazarus and the rich man comes at the end of a series of parables Jesus gave in response to the Pharisees who had criticized Him for dining with sinners and publicans. In this parable, Jesus describes the rich man as an ideal Pharisee, while describing Lazarus as a most-reviled beggar. But when they enter into eternity, it’s Lazarus that is welcomed into Heaven, and the rich man who finds himself in Hell.
The story of Lazarus and the Rich Man should wake us from our slumber. It should remind us that our salvation is not tied to our culture, accomplishments or expectations, but rather by God’s grace through our faith.
Listen as Pastor Leland Acker discusses this passage, describing what God wants for us, contrasting the rich man from Lazarus, and telling us how to apply this message to our lives.
Have you ever thought about how deeply Noah must have trusted God?
God warned Noah that He would bring a flood to destroy all flesh from the earth. Up until this point, it had never even rained, let alone flooded. So, what God was describing to Noah was something that had never happened in the history of mankind up until that point.
Furthermore, to be saved from the flood, God instructed Noah to build an ark, detailing the specifications, dimensions and construction type. To our knowledge, man had yet to even build a boat.
So, God told Noah that something that had never before happened was going to happen, therefore he must build a vessel that has never been built. Unprecedented weather patterns were on the way, and Noah must employ untested technology to survive the flood.
But, Noah trusted God. So, when God warned Noah of the flood, Noah believed God. And when God told Noah to build the ark, and how to build the ark, Noah built the ark according to God’s designs. Why? Because Noah trusted God.
Hebrews 11:7 states, “By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.”
Noah’s faith was the reason he believed God, and it was also the reason he moved quickly (moved with fear) to do what God instructed. Since Noah had this faith, God withheld the flood until the ark was finished.
Noah had faith, and that faith saved Noah, but that faith also motivated action. What does your faith motivate you to do?
The Lord Jesus Christ, the only Begotten Son of God, the embodiment of God Himself, the Word that became flesh and dwelt among us, Who created all things and gave us life, took on the role of the lowest ranking servant in the household, and washed His disciples feet.
In this one act of humble service, the Lord not only demonstrated His indescribable humility, but sent a message that pride, self-centered ambition and promotion, and the establishment of rank and pecking order have no place in God’s Kingdom.
Think about it. If washing the feet of the disciples is not beneath Jesus, then nothing is beneath Jesus. And if nothing is beneath Jesus, how can we think that anything is beneath us, for the servant is not greater than the Master.
In this message, Pastor Leland Acker exhorts us to love one another, and humbly serve one another, taking time to understand each others’ needs and viewpoints. If we do so, we will find true happiness.
In Genesis 32, Jacob is following God’s direction to return to the Promised Land, however, there’s just one problem… Esau. The last time Jacob heard from Esau, Esau wanted to kill him. No doubt Esau still lived there, but the question was whether Esau was still angry. Despite God showing his favor upon Jacob in a very favorable way, Jacob still acts as if he is doomed once he sees Esau. That struggle in his faith sparked an epic wrestling match that continues to have implications today. Listen to our latest episode of The Gospel Expedition, on YouTube, or on Soundcloud.
Esau was a cunning hunter, a barbecue pitmaster, his father’s pride and joy, and a man who could get things done. He saw himself as a winner, was powerful and strong.
Jacob was a plain man, dwelt in the tents, and was an accomplished chef, administrator, and an excellent marketer.
Though they were brothers, and were very skilled in their vocations, their rivalry was one of the bitterest this world has ever seen. This rivalry would see Jacob deceiving their father Isaac, and swindling Esau in an underhanded trade agreement over lunch. And this rivalry would see Esau set out to murder Jacob in revenge for his antics.
In Genesis 25:27-34, Esau returns home after a day in the fields. Esau, the older brother, holds the birthright to his father’s estate by default. Being the holder of the birthright, the assumption is that he would also inherit the promises God made to Abraham, which had in turn been handed down to Isaac.
Jacob, the younger brother, knew that God’s promise would be handed down to him. This was a promise God made to Rebekah, his mother. Jacob understood that God’s favor and blessing was upon him, but for some reason, Jacob still felt that he had to be the one to make things happen.
So, when an exhausted Esau returns home after a tough day in the field, Jacob saw an opportunity. This occasion would see Esau denounce his birthright and God’s blessing, and would see Jacob put forth a dubious sales pitch in order to scam Esau out of the birthright.
Listen to The Gospel Expedition’s Episode 25, “Selling the Birthright,” on YouTube or Soundcloud.
Religion has so diluted Christianity that we struggle to understand a simple word like “faith.” This is nothing new. The first century Christians faced the same problem, which is why the writer of Hebrews spent the entire 11th chapter explaining what faith is.
The problem is that religion demands adherence, obedience, and loyalty. Religion demands purity in actions, and creed. In its demand for these things, the relationship between God and man, and God’s amazing grace that has been bestowed upon man, get relegated to merely being an introductory paragraph.
Attend any seminary, and you’ll learn that there is historical faith, saving faith, and true faith. Talk to some religious leaders, and you’ll learn that there is a living faith and a dead faith. Some will even define faith as a system or a doctrine to be followed.
All of this ignores the fact that God gave us His word… and words have meanings and definitions.
Language is a gift from God. We speak in language and understand each other every day, most of the time without really thinking about it. When you tell me that you believe me, I don’t parse your statement to determine if the fact that you believe me will accompany obedience to me, or whether your belief in me is living or dead. I simply understand that, when you say you believe me, you are taking me at my word.
So it is with faith. The biblical dictionary definition of faith (this is a combination of the Strongs and Thayer’s definitions) is a deep-rooted trust, or a conviction of the truth. Simply put, faith means trust.
Hebrews 11:6 describes what it means to have a deep-rooted trust in God, and a conviction of His truth. Hebrews 11:6 says, “But without faith, it is impossible to please Him, for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.”
Faith in God means believing that He is, and that He is Who He says He is. It also means to trust that God is good, and that He will respond to your faith. He will reward your diligent search for Him and His truth.
Faith means believing God is, and that God is good.
Faith really is that simple. And that simple faith is the faith that saves.
Genesis 5 says Enoch walked with God… how did he do that?
When scripture discusses our walk, it is referring to our lifestyle. So, when scripture says Enoch walked with God, it means that Enoch lived a lifestyle of faith in the Lord. He took time to learn who God is, what God wanted, and he had an active prayer life.
What made Enoch special was a simple willingness to trust God. While that sounds simple, it’s something few are willing to do.
Walking with God is not something reserved for the super spiritual. Anyone can do it, so long as they are willing to build their life around their faith in the Lord.
The Point... 