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"Come follow me and I will make you fishers of men." Matthew 4:19

Category: Truth (Page 5 of 5)

The Choice Is Yours.

July 2, 2022 /

MaryEllen Montville

“This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him” –Deuteronomy 30:19-20.

Last Sunday, our congregation witnessed six souls openly profess their eternal allegiance to Christ Jesus when they stepped into the baptismal pool—joyfully taking the next step in their most sacred of relationships: their relationship with God. Their old man left at the bottom of that pool. A new man rose up, breaking that watery surface, stepping out. “and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him” –1 Peter 3:21-22.

These six souls, some walking with the Lord longer than others, one of them for literally one day, decided in their hearts to follow the “narrow path.”

“But small is the gate and narrow and difficult to travel is the path that leads the way to [everlasting] life, and there are few who find it” –Mathew 7:14. Yet despite its difficulties, each chose to take this path with its winding way, its mountain top highs and valley lows, its sacrifice and loss, partly because of the “Pearl of Great Price” awaiting them at its end. “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it” –Matthew 13:45-46. But before we all gathered around the pool to celebrate with our brothers and sisters, we heard a powerful sermon preached. One intentionally stitched together with words like sin, forgiveness, and free will, a sermon brimming with the love of God for a sinful world. It was a map of sorts, no, not of sorts, it was a map. One whose X was clearly marked.

It was a sermon packed with hope, making clear that we must choose between life and death.

“In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead” Acts 17:30-31.

This teaching, though not the easiest to hear, made clear that Jesus, knowing only a Pure, Spotless sacrifice could ever restore the intimate relationship broken back in the garden, determined to wrap His Godly Perfection in human flesh and be born among us. Choosing obedience to the Father, He came into this world. In like fashion, when His work was completed, Jesus chose to lay down on His Cross, leaving this life behind and returning to the Father. “No one can take my life from me. I sacrifice it voluntarily. For I have the authority to lay it down when I want to and also to take it up again. For this is what my Father has commanded” –John 10:18.

It made clear the wages of sin are death.

Reminding us of what Romans 3:23 makes plain: “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” It detailed that salvation is a gift from God, freely given, yet each man must open his heart and choose to accept what God has offered him. Men are saved only by accepting Jesus. Not by works, so none of us can brag or boast. “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him” –Hebrews 11:6.

There is only One way to God, and His name is Jesus. “ Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.” –Acts 4:12.

According to Scripture, the sinner’s basic problem is unbelief. “And when He comes, He will convict the world in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment: in regard to sin, because they do not believe in Me” –John 16:9. This teaching reminded us that anyone who refuses to believe, despite proofs, is rejecting Jesus and, if rejecting Jesus, is rejecting the Father and Holy Spirit in kind. Speaking to His disciples, Jesus made this plain: “Then he said to the disciples, “Anyone who accepts your message is also accepting me. And Anyone who rejects you is rejecting me. And Anyone who rejects me is rejecting God, who sent me” –Luke 10:16.

“Unbelief is saying to God, “thanks, but no thanks, Jesus. I’ve heard all you had to say, but you go your way, and I’ll go mine. You’re not worthy of my faith, trust, or love. I don’t want or need you in my life.” –Pastor Lino Braga.

Crickets…

You could have heard a pin drop in the church. We were reminded that the sin of unbelief is alive and well in the church today. Witnessed weekly whenever God’s Word is shared, yet rejected—an ongoing proof of man’s wickedness. “For we also have had the good news proclaimed to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because they did not share the faith of those who obeyed” –Hebrews 4:2.

In conclusion, I’ll add this: The parent of all sin, unbelief, was employed by God’s enemy in the garden.

Satan’s ability to sow seeds of doubt, division, unbelief, even spiritual death in the hearts and minds of others is no new thing. We read of it in Genesis 3:1 when Satan deceived Eve. “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” And we all know what happened next. Now hear what Jesus says of those who foolishly choose to follow after the one who desires to keep you eternally separated from God. Keep you dead in your sin, in this life, and the next. “For you are the children of your Father the devil, and you love to do the evil things he does. He was a murderer from the beginning. He has always hated the Truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the Father of lies” –John 8:44.

Now you may be saying, “wow, MaryEllen, this teaching is harsh. And to that, I’d answer, “Truth is not always pleasant or easy to hear, yet love compels me to share it with you. “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” –John 8:32. Know this: God’s heart is that none perish—God loves you. Jesus is long-suffering, full of grace and love and mercy. But His Word assures us He will not tolerate our intentionally rejecting His love forever. Sadly, one day, He will turn away. Quit pursuing you. Quit sending people like me to get your attention. He’ll let you have your own way—remember, you get to choose. God will not force Himself on you.

So, friend, you need not live in unbelief for one more minute.

But if this has been you, please know God loves you and desires a loving relationship with you, regardless of your sin or past; I can personally attest to this Truth. Christ pulled me out of the hotbed of my sins, changing me from the inside out. Not overnight, but steadily, day by day—still. Know that Jesus is offering you another chance today. Choose Him, please. Ask Jesus into your life as Lord and Savior. Repent of your unbelief and be saved. Your unbelief is no match for God’s Love for you. God is not a man that He can lie. Take to heart God’s promise to you found in Isaiah 45:25. “I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more.”  

Vantage Points.

June 18, 2022 /
MaryEllen Montville

“So we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now!” –2 Corinthians 5:16.

So many factors shape your understanding of the world around you. The highs and lows of life, your ethnicity, where and how you grew up, your level of education—or lack of, and economics, to name a few. Did two loving parents raise you in a peace-filled home? Or were you raised in a single-parent household by a mom or dad who did what they knew to do to provide for you, whether peacefully or not?

As witnessed in the life of the Apostle Paul—and our own; faith, or its absence, directly shapes how we perceive the world and those in it.

The Apostle Paul raised Saul from Tarsus, a city in Cilicia in the Province of Asia Minor, was a Greek-speaking Jew born around the time of, or just after, Jesus. Saul of Tarsus was no average Hebrew boy. Clearly, he displayed above-average intelligence and nimbleness of mind. Though he did not hail from a wealthy, aristocratic family, Saul’s ability to read and retain Hebrew Scriptures afforded him an encyclopedic knowledge of the Torah. Saul’s intellectual prowess and unswerving belief in nonbiblical traditions positioned him to become a student of the renowned Rabban Gamaliel eventually. “I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people and was extremely zealous for the traditions of my fathers” –Galatians 1:14.

Saul spent much of his early years living as a resolute Pharisee, yet we know that Saul was also a tent maker, skilled with his hands (1 Cor.4:12; Acts 18:3; Acts 20:34). This tidbit of knowledge allows us to know with certainty that Saul did not come from an affluent background—he was not economically privileged. Little is known about Saul’s parentage or early childhood. Still, it’s not a stretch to imagine that Saul was raised in a traditional two-parent Jewish household by devote, God-fearing parents who regularly went to the Temple.

Now you may be asking yourself, “why are you telling me all about Saul’s life, and what does he have to do with today’s Scripture verse or your opening sentences, for that matter?”

My answer? Telling you about Saul’s life has everything to do with today’s Scripture and my opening verses. How? As I said earlier, so many factors shape your understanding of the world around you. Faith, or its absence, directly shapes how you perceive the world and those in it. And Saul was no exception. So the way Saul was raised, what he was raised to believe in, more his eventually life-changing encounter with Jesus directly affected not only his life and ministry but so many countless thousands of other Christian lives and ministries.

Saul of Tarsus became Paul, The Apostle, this fervent, dedicated lover of the same Christ and His followers he once despised, persecuted unto death. No longer interested in rites and rituals. Now Paul’s focus was on saving souls, sharing the Gospel message, and seeing men freed from the death-like grip of their sins. Having once seen God as little more than a means to a religious end, now, Jesus lived and burned vibrant and alive in Paul’s heart. And this because Paul’s vantage point was changed in a flash—of God’s Pure Light, that is. Perhaps that’s why in today’s passage, Paul encourages you to see people in your day-to-day life differently. He is challenging you to see them and the world around you anew, through spiritual eyes—through a different lens, maybe, than what you grew up wearing?

Here Paul acknowledges that, like many of us, he, too, once viewed the world through dogmatic “earthly lenses.” Perhaps, like so many of us that have been given new sight—spiritual eyes, Paul was reflecting on his once profound blindness as he stood, lending his reflexive consent, his zealous approval of Stephen’s stoning? As Paul penned this verse, I wonder if he thought back to being blinded by the Pure brilliance of the Lord? Knocked clear from his proverbial “high-horse,” humbled. His sight temporarily taken so that he might gain a new vision?

“If someone else thinks they have reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for righteousness based on the law, faultless. But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ” –Philippians 3:4-8.

Whether directly or indirectly, knowingly or unawares, so much of what we’ve been taught, have perceived—whether real or imagined, shaped our willingness to welcome God into our hearts and lives. Or, conversely, it closed Him out.

What we were taught about faith in God, if anything at all, helped determine if we’d view God as a loving, merciful Father or as just some guy who exists “out there somewhere” who threatens and challenges our worldview. Or, perhaps, it led us to question whether God even exists? We see this plainly in Saul’s life. His learned, rigid, legalistic view of God made it virtually impossible for him to experience God outside the fixed rules and rites that governed and protected his faith. Saul’s “this is how God is and moves” stance prohibited him from experiencing God relationally, beyond the ritual that had become his religious default—that is, until his life-changing encounter with Jesus on a dusty Damascus road.

Saul’s Damascus Road encounter with Christ became the birthplace of Paul, the Apostle.

That’s what happens when God “calls us out of darkness and into His wonderful Light” –1 Peter 2:9.

We are transformed, made new. Blind eyes, seeing clearly. We’re given a new vantage point from which to view the world and those in it. Yes, it was Saul who fell to the ground. Saul, whom God blinded. And it was Saul who, inspired by the Holy Spirit, fasted for three days, seeing Ananias in a vision. But it would be Paul, God’s Apostle, having had an encounter with the Living God, who would leave that room on Straight Street with new sight.

Surely, what our parents teach us, influences us. Our culture, education, and socioeconomic means each play a role in shaping our thinking concerning our faith or belief in God. But, as with Saul, none of these external influences will ever have the power to stay the hand or will of the Most High God, King of the Universe, Sovereign Lord. Somewhere in eternity past, God had written Saul’s name in The Lamb’s Book of Life, and no earthy circumstance, no rite or ritual, no religion, or conviction would ever be powerful enough to change that.

Take comfort in that fact, friend. If God has chosen you for Himself, nothing and no one can keep Him from you.

No religion, lack of education, abusive parents, being raised poor or in the hood, or even your addiction or self-loathing can keep God away. As with Saul, God knows the exact moment He has destined to remove the scales from your eyes, enabling you to see beyond the confines of this world, changing your vantage point forever more. No longer seeing Him or those, He’s created with the same tired eyes—Jesus makes all things new, starting with you.

Friend, you can have a personal relationship with Jesus now if you choose to. It’s so simple a child can do it. You just need to repent of your sins, tell God you’re genuinely sorry for all you’ve done—no matter what it is, and ask Him to come into your life as Lord and Savior, and He will. And just like Saul and countless others, you too will be given eyes to see beyond the confines of this world; eyes that will see and recognize the Truth—Christ Jesus. “Yeshua said to him, “I AM THE LIVING GOD, The Way and The Truth and The Life; no man comes to my Father but by me alone” –John 14:6.

The God of Suddenly.

May 21, 2022 /
MaryEllen Montville

Hagar called Him El Roi, The God who sees me. He is the God of those who feel insignificant or forgotten. God of the one who has drifted—gone astray, that wanderer, the pride-full one, the rebel, the backslider. He is the God of the one who has not picked up their bible in weeks. Jesus is “I Am,” the Triune God who has always been. “Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day. He saw it and was glad.” So the Jews said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?” Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.”  He is God of the “suddenly.” Calling, reshaping, pruning, refining, purifying those that are His, called by His name, chosen in Him before the foundation of the world.

Personally, I take great comfort in knowing that God is both Alpha and Omega, knowing my end from my beginning. There is great comfort in the knowledge that God cannot change. He is steadfast, my Anchor. Holding me fast through the violent winds of adversity and trials, when “suddenly” winds threaten to uproot me from the very place I stand. He is my Rock, my Firm Foundation. Even though, whether intentionally or permissively, He sends these winds of change, reminders to loosen my grip on, not get too comfortable in, a world I’m just passing through.

God alone ensures we do not fall, that no enemy trap or snare overtakes us.

This great, vast, unplumbed God who refuses to fit into our small, finite imaginings of Him; this God we cannot fully comprehend, “I Am Who I Am,” has, inconceivably, deigned to take up residence within us. The burning Fire of His Spirit, groaning within! And, that He remains fully God, holy, pure, and Sovereign, still, while living in our fallen vessels makes my head swoon! It leaves me in slack-jawed, stupefied awe of the One who so loved us that He offered His only Son, Jesus, savagely beaten within inches of His Spotless life, nailed to His Cross—He hung there and died in our place.

Our God is so far beyond my ability to fully take Him in, and I am grateful for this. As God’s children, how blessed we are to rest the full weight of our trust, all of our hope in Him—in His every promise.

Friends, remember, we are the only ones caught by surprise when the “suddenly” of life happens. Every “suddenly” that changes the familiar trajectory of our lives, God saw coming.

Nothing ever catches our God off guard. In truth, He built these twists and turns into His plan for our lives somewhere in eternity past. Using them to build our faith and trust in Him, make it stronger. Being Sovereign, God certainly allowed them. “Then the LORD asked Satan, “Have you noticed my servant Job? He is the finest man in all the earth. He is blameless—a man of complete integrity. He fears God and stays away from evil” –Job 1:8. Yet as willy nilly, as random and wholly disruptive as “suddenly” as they may appear, be reminded today: these unexpected tests and trials are intentional, Beloved. Remember too: “…we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” –Romans 8:58.

Your loving Father has allowed each “suddenly” into your life, being used to help bring about your purpose—to mold you into the image and likeness of His Son. Romans 8:29 makes plain this Truth, listen: “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son.” And in 1 Corinthians 15:49, we read this promise: “Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall, also bear the image of the man of heaven.” Beloved, God has a plan for your life. Like every brother and sister before you, you came into the world to be used by God. The very moment you gave your life to Jesus, you gave Him carte blanche to do with you whatever He sees fit. This, long before you had any idea what He may ask of you. Long before your first, “suddenly” appeared. “Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!” –Isaiah 6:8. Read how Molly Law explains this complete surrender to God:

The use of “Here I am Lord” reveals purpose. Isaiah was saying he was here on earth for a specific purpose, and he wanted that purpose to be the Lord’s. As he immediately followed it with “send me,” he didn’t wait to hear what the Lord would say but wrote a blank check to the Lord, a universal yes to God’s plan for him.

Jesus says it this way in Luke 9:23: “Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.”  

This denying self and taking up whatever cross our Father requires of us, part of “counting the cost” Jesus spoke of in Luke 14. “Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.”  Many who had followed Jesus because of the miracles they’d witnessed or the power-filled Words of Life they’d heard left Him when He spoke this.

From the beginning, well before Christ wrapped Himself in flesh and lived among us, Jesus knew those who would surrender all and those who would think the price of following Him too great, walking away. Only God knows whether they’ll ever reconsider their foolish choice. I pray they did and do return to God. This life is but a vapor. And eternity, a long time to be separated from Jesus.

So here’s the question each child of God must answer: Do you truly trust your Father? Are you willing to lay down your life and take up your cross?

When that whiplash-like suddenly comes, and it will surely come, will you trust God when you can’t see a conceivable way the pieces of your well-ordered life will ever fit back together now that God just upended it? Fitting you in where He’d have you go, doing what He’d have you to do, for a season or a lifetime—whether or not it makes any sense?

I mean, will you really trust God? Abraham, trust Him?  Ready to plunge that knife kind of trust Him? “And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son” – Genesis 22:10. Leave everything familiar behind to go wherever God leads you, trust Him? “The LORD had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you” –Genesis 12:1. I know; it makes you a little nervous to think that God might ask any of this of you. Jesus understands that. “Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine” –Luke 22:42.

Yet, Beloved, these are the terms and conditions you agreed to.

The price you said you’d pay to belong to Jesus. This Truth is a hard thing, I know. I’m there myself right now. Standing, toes on the line of my next “suddenly” with God. Thankfully, because of His great mercy and grace, I know my Father well enough to know that, contrary to how I may feel about this, God is faithful—I’ve been here before.

So, since He has permitted this “suddenly” to touch my life, though uncomfortable and trying certainly, I am confident it is for my good and God’s glory. Equally, God is faithful and, by faith, has already given me the grace, strength, wisdom, time, and all else I may need to carry out His latest plot twist. I’ve banked my life on this Truth. And if you’re saying, “me too, I’m also in the throes of a suddenly,” I pray your strength for this same certainty. I encourage you to re-mind yourself of God’s faithfulness in your last “suddenly.”

“I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit” –Romans 15:13. “Suddenly” will come, brothers and sisters. That’s a guarantee. The question is, will you still pick up your cross and follow Him when it does?

Friend, if you have read this far yet have not asked this God I’ve spoken of, the Only True God, Jesus, into your heart and life as Lord and Savior, I pray you’ll do that now—understanding you are not here by accident, there is no such thing. Instead, this Loving, Sovereign God is calling you to Himself. He loves you. “Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts. Let them turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will freely pardon” –Isaiah 55: 6-8.

Don’t Sleep On This.

April 30, 2022 /
Kendra Santilli

Live every day as if Jesus can come back right now, but plan as if you still have another hundred years on this earth. –unknown

Certain moments in life mark you. Moments that latch on to your heart, periodically making their way back to memory. One of those moments came to me in a high school Bible class as my teacher gave us the quote mentioned above. As I wrestle with the mystery of the second coming of Christ spoken of in the scriptures, I often remember what he said. Live every day as if Jesus can come back right now…

While it is not gospel, its depth of meaning challenges me each time I think about it. The Bible is clear that Jesus is coming back, but it is also clear that not one person knows the day nor the hour of His return. “Now concerning that day and hour no one knows—neither the angels of heaven nor the Son —except the Father alone”– Matt 24:36. Jesus, Himself doesn’t know when the Father will send Him. What makes anyone think they could make such an arrogant prediction? Some believers blindly believe the false teachers who claim to know one of the very things the Bible says we cannot know. Now, I am not here to berate the person who believes their words; instead, I hope to send out a call to action in this hour of waiting for our Lord’s second coming.

When I think of the coming of Christ, I am reminded of the parable of the ten virgins found in Matthew 25.

“At that time the kingdom of Heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep. At midnight the cry rang out: “Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!” Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, “Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.” “No,” they replied, “there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.” But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut. Later the others also came. “Lord, Lord,” they said, “open the door for us!” But he replied, “Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.” Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour” – Matt 25:1-14

The “virgins” in this passage possibly refer to members of a bridal party waiting to greet the groom as he arrives; these represent followers of Jesus, while the bridegroom represents Jesus. In this parable, Jesus is cautioning people to prepare themselves while they await His coming. Do you identify with the foolish virgins who slept while they should have been preparing for the bridegroom? These are people who know Jesus is coming. They can be believers who say they love Jesus or know of Jesus but do not live righteous lives. The scary thing about this is that they are part of the bridal party – they prepared for this wedding with the bride, who is the church, but in those last hours, they slept instead of preparing their lamps (or hearts) for the coming of the bridegroom. I have heard believers say, “what’s the point of working or being ambitious? Jesus is about to come”. I’m not making this up. I have heard these words fr*om people who are believers. Jesus never called us to be lazy; in fact, the Bible refers to laziness as foolish. These lazy virgins who slept instead of preparing their lamps with oil are referred to as foolish. Instead, it is wise to continue to prepare both in body and spirit. First, you must prepare your heart. Jesus is more concerned about your heart than anything else, but He does not stop there. You must, secondly, continue to be good stewards of what the Lord has given you. Has He given you a home? Care for it. A family? Provide for them and leave them an inheritance. A business? Steward that well and continue to care for it as He blesses the work of your hands.

Continue to put God first, spend time with Him, and care for what He has given you. “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” – Matthew 6:33. God created this earth for us to enjoy and to care for as we reside here until the day that He calls us home.

Maybe you identify with the wise virgins instead? Those who were vigilant in filling their lamps with oil before the bridegroom’s arrival. They, too, fell asleep. However, they could rest knowing that they were prepared for the wedding (or the kingdom of Heaven). These are people who prepare themselves by learning God’s word, even when their peers tell them it doesn’t matter. They go against the grain and prepare themselves for the groom’s coming. When He arrives, they can light their lamps with the oil they already have and join the wedding party while the others are locked out because they slept instead of being prepared.

… plan as if you still have another hundred years on this earth.

What are you doing with your time? Have you given up on any ambition? Have you lost hope? Have you given yourself to procrastination, saying you have time to figure it out? Or do you spend time filling your -*lamp with oil? The oil of the Holy Spirit and the Word that gives you that fills you with purpose, hope, and vision. As you fill your lamp with oil, you live with your eyes wide open, searching for the opportunity to obey God’s Word and live rightly. The word of God is hidden in your heart so that you can use it when you need it. Spending time with God in His Word and prayer fills your lamp with oil and gives you the passion for preparing yourself physically and spiritually for His coming.

This message is not one of sadness; this is a call to action!

If you have been following Jesus yet feel that you identify with the foolish virgins, it is not too late. Wake up, get up, and fill your lamps with oil. Seek Jesus with all your heart, and you will find Him. And if you don’t yet know Jesus as Lord, ask Him to come into your heart, to be your Savior. Repent of your sins, and God will lead you in the way you were created to go in. He is faithful and wants to have a relationship with you! “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart” –Jeremiah 29:11-13.

The Bible is clear that Jesus is coming again, but no one knows when, so I will echo the words I heard over ten years ago…

Live every day like He’s coming now, but plan as if you have another hundred years.

Run, Don’t Walk.

April 2, 2022 /
MaryEllen Montville

“Though my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will receive me. Teach me your way, Lord; lead me in a straight path because of my oppressors. Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes, for false witnesses rise against me, spouting malicious accusations” –Psalm 27:10-12.

David knew firsthand the sudden, waspish sting of betrayal. That gut-punch instant when the enemy of your soul lands some unexpected blow straight to your solar plexus, leaving you disoriented, stunned, silent—air-less. As Christians, we expect this from our enemy. After all, Scripture has taught us that he comes to steal, kill, and destroy (John 10:10). But what about when our “enemy” comes wrapped in the flesh of a friend? Worst yet, a trusted family member. A mother or father, sister, brother, that beloved grandparent?

What do we do in that instant?

How do we respond to such an attack?

As always, God’s Word holds our answer. God’s Word alone the guardrails that prevent us from going over the edge when pain, fear, betrayal, or some other “suddenly” blindsides us.

Recently, I faced this very situation. Satan used the one person I naturally expected to love and comfort me to bring me to my knees—I was left air-less by their vicious verbal assault—stunned, silent. Yet God brought beauty from my ashes. He used this experience—dare I say permitted it (think Job), to refine me, mature me, draw me closer. In this most painful of times, God re-minded me of the most straightforward, most basic Truth; He alone is more than enough. He is all I need. “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble” –Psalm 46:1.

At that moment, and for some days following, I didn’t want to talk with anyone. Not my beloved pastors, though I know they care for and cover me in prayer. I didn’t need to call my dearest sister or brother in the faith. I just needed my Father. I just needed to be still. In that most painful of times, only God would do. “The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still” –Exodus 14:14. At that moment, I was reminded that there are instances in life where we need specialized help. One doesn’t call 911 when they get a flat; they call 911 when there’s been an accident. When someone is in imminent danger, is injured, or has been harmed. God used the crushing weight of my betrayal to remind me He wants to be my first call. The One I call on in my hour of need—period. He alone upholds me.

Yes, God has grafted me into a loving, supportive Body of brothers and sisters. Yes, God’s blessed me with loving, caring, hands-on shepherds, and I am grateful to Him for these blessings.

But not one of these can take God’s place in my life.

No one can love me as Jesus can. Not one person possesses the precise Words of life I need to hear at that moment I need to hear them. Because what I need, only God can provide. He alone is my Lord; no one knows me as my Father does. “The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower” –Psalm 18:2.

Ed Jarret says this about God’s abiding presence: God, in the person of the Holy Spirit, is with us in a very personal and intimate way. The God of all creation lives within me. He comforts me in challenging times. He teaches me his ways. Ed’s simple words encapsulate the bigger Truth Jesus shared with His disciples on the last night He would dine with them, this side of eternity. “And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate to be with you forever— the Spirit of truth” –John 14:16-17.

And though that bitter sting of betrayal may last for a season, the Holy Spirit of God is alive within us—always. Empowering us to overcome, forgive and heal, to pray for the very one who betrayed us. Christ alone is eternal and Mighty to save. “The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid? For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock” –Psalm 27:1;5.

And while scholars cannot pinpoint a specific time in David’s life when He may have penned this Psalm, they seemingly agree on this one point: David knew precisely from whom his strength, comfort, and ability to forgive and move forward flowed.

Right now, many of God’s children are standing on the very edge of their breakthrough. Yet fear, or some impending threat from the enemy they see in the natural, that unexpected betrayal, has caused them to lose sight of their true position, that of being smack-dab in the centre of God’s will. Beloved, don’t let this temporary pain, the fear of what you see happening around you, blind you to what God is doing in your midst, regardless its severity.

Child of God, I know how hard it is for you not to run as fast as your legs will take you from the pain of the moment you’re standing in right now, to not fold before the giants staring you down. Yet, amid the pain, while you’re still smarting over that betrayal, allow me to lead you back to Truth. Back to Who it is that will mend your broken heart, restore your troubled peace, speak Life-affirming Words of love over you. “For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock.” –Psalm 27:5

I, too, have experienced that same blindsided stupor you’re experiencing. That “suddenly” when the air was sucked out of the room. When some news or someone’s bitter words, that diagnosis, or that trusted someone’s startling betrayal hits you so deeply, everything inside goes numb. I get it; I do. But please, just breathe for a moment. Because there are times, we need someone else to speak into our situation—our fear or pain. To redirect our focus—we’ve momentarily lost our footing. “As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend” –Proverbs 27:17.

Dear friend, I’m not suggesting it will all be okay by Tuesday. I have no idea about your situation—the scope of your loss or pain. I was simply sent here today to share God’s promise to bind up your broken places and to encourage you. To remind you of God’s Sovereign timing, His eagle-eyed ability to swoop in at the very second our enemy’s talons are about to inflict some fatal blow, taking him out, causing him to fall. “When the wicked advance against me to devour me, it is my enemies and my foes who will stumble and fall. Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then I will be confident” –Psalm 27:2-3.

Be encouraged, child of God, and don’t find it strange these trials—this pain or betrayal, have come to visit you. “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that is taking place among you to test you, as though some strange thing happened to you. But rejoice insofar as you share in Christ’s sufferings so that you may rejoice and be glad also in the revelation of His glory. If you are reproached because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you” –1 Peter 4:12-14. Instead, put the full weight of your trust in the God you profess. And know this: for as long as our Spirit is wrapped up in this flesh, there will be moments in each believer’s life when God will allow some adversity to test us—God is maturing us, refining our character.

Answering that prayer, we whispered at midnight, Shape me and mold me, Lord. Make me look more like you. Let Thy perfect will be done in and through my life. “But let patience perfect its work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing” –James 1:4.

Child of God, if you are staggering under the sting of some recent trial, some pain inflicted at the hands of another, some betrayal, I encourage you to run—not walk, to your Lord. Pour out your heart before Jesus. Invite Him into your very raw and wounded place that He might minister healing and restore you—lest some root of bitterness takes root in your heart, poisoning you.

And if this is you, and you’ve yet to ask Jesus into your heart, please, do it today. Let Him into your every wounded place. Ask Him to wash away your every sin, restoring newness of life to you and fresh hope into your dry places.

“I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; Be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord” –Psalm 27: 13-14.

The Truth Is…

March 12, 2022 /
Kendra Santilli

“For where I found Truth, there found I my God, the Truth itself; which since I learnt, I have not forgotten.” – Saint Augustine.

Like many of us, Saint Augustine had an entire life of inquisition and soul searching before he found God. While his mother was a devout Christian, he did not share her values. She prayed for his salvation, and although she did not see the fruits of this prayer, his salvation came after her death. He accepted Jesus and became a prominent figure in church history. Augustine’s revelation on truth is reminiscent of King Solomon’s realizations after searching high and low for the meaning of life. Solomon concluded, “everything is meaningless” –Ecclesiastes 1:2.

https://www.christianitytoday.com/history/people/theologians/augustine-of-hippo.html

What is truth? This question is not new. It has been a question that has shaped generations for thousands of years. The definition of truth may change as each generation passes. For example, one generation may be religious, finding truth in sacred texts. The next generation may define truth as relative, coming from within oneself. I do not have a seminary dissertation for you on the answer to this question, but I can share, in part, what I have found in the scriptures regarding what God, our Creator, says about Truth.

Let’s start with the dictionary. Truth (as defined by Miriam-Webster dictionary) is conformity to fact or reality; correct opinion; honesty; purity from falsehood. We can refer to truth as “the truth,” meaning the opposite of a lie, or “truth” as a noun meaning a moral position. The former is a factual statement or account; the latter can become an abstract idea, requiring a gauge for measurement. We cannot count our mere perceptions or emotions as truth because they change daily. What we feel today may not be the same tomorrow. We must have a standard that is unshakable by which we measure our position.

That standard is the Word of God.

While the world constantly changes its definition of what is morally right, the Word of God continues to stand the test of time, being uninfluenced by the shifting shadows of this world. During His ministry, Jesus boldly addressed this question of Truth by giving a simple answer for those who pursued truth. In John 14, Jesus was describing the kingdom of heaven to His disciples. “Don’t let your heart be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? If I go away and prepare a place for you, I will come again and take you to myself, so that where I am you may be also. You know the Way to where I am going.” “Lord,” Thomas said, “we don’t know where you’re going. How can we know the Way?” Jesus told him, “I am the Way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you know me, you will also know my Father. From now on you do know him and have seen him” – John 14:1-7.

There is far more to our lives than meets the eye. Jesus is God in the flesh. And by telling His disciples that they knew the Way, Jesus introduced Himself to them yet again, by this new name—Truth. He follows it up again with an incredibly profound statement. I am the Way, the truth, and the life. You see, in those days, the Jewish people knew “I Am” as one name for God. God introduced Himself to Moses at the burning bush as “I Am.” Jesus said, “before Abraham was, I AM”– John 8:58. What Jesus claimed could have been taken as a blasphemous statement; Jesus was saying He was God! But understand this: “I Am” is just one of His many names! And by saying, “I am the way,” I also read this passage as Jesus describing Himself as:

I Am (the infinite one) who is the way to the Father, the [everlasting] truth that outlasts generations, and the life that gives vigor and makes you move and breathe.

Truth is not what we say, and it cannot exist independent of the standard by which we gauge it. The world says, “live your truth,” but they are really saying, “stay comfortable in your ideology.” Just because we think or believe something to be true doesn’t make it a truth; believing the sky is green doesn’t make it true. Your reality allows you to take the easy route, remaining in your old or current patterns that may or may not be healthy, while God’s Truth—His Word, requires sacrifice and change.

Biblical Truth requires you to be uncomfortable, making changes that reflect God’s character and result in blessings in your life.

Reading just a few chapters earlier, in John 8, Jesus instructs His followers how to live, walk out, Biblical Truth. The world has always been a confusing place, but God has not left us alone to figure it out. Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you continue in my word, you are really my disciples. You will know the truth and the truth will set you free” – John 8:31-32. So now we know Jesus as The Truth. Jesus is The Truth. He tells his followers here in John 8 to know the Truth, and in John 14, He reveals that He is the Truth! The One they have talked and walked with, known as Jesus, reveals Himself by this new name—I Am the Truth!

The first step in learning the Truth is to continue in The Word of God. Read your Bible and know what it says. Let it be your gauge, your compass, as you commit yourself to understand it, living it, not just being a harbor for its Words. Ask God to help you to know what the scriptures mean. The more you know His Word, the more you will know Him (The Truth), and Jesus (The Truth) will set you free!

If you’re anything like the people of that day, you’ll say you’re not a slave and have nothing from which to be “set free.” But according to Jesus, everyone who sins is a slave of sin. Yet if the Son sets you free, you indeed be, free. –John 8:34, 36. Sin has you in bondage, whether you realize it or not. The good news is that while Jesus exposes this harsh Truth, He also provides a way out. He can set you free, and you will begin to see things so differently. The lens of a sinful lifestyle is focused afresh that you might now see yourself living in sonship with God—being part of His family.

And while the world will tell you that you can live and thrive in “whatever truth works for you,” the eternal Word of God says otherwise. It assures us only Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Only He can fulfill you; everything else will leave you hungering for increasingly more. Like Saint Augustine and King Solomon, I pray that just as the Holy Spirit has led you here today, He will lead you into the understanding that Jesus, Yahweh, is the Truth you need for fulfillment and freedom. If you don’t yet know Him, I invite you to ask Jesus into your heart. Ask Jesus to reveal Himself to you as the Truth today. Why wait another day? Repent of your sins, ask Jesus to set you free and bring you into sonship with the Father.

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