Pastor’s Blog
28
Jan '19
The meaning of the word redemption…
28
Jan '19
You know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. (1 Peter 1:18-19)
The meaning of the word redemption would have been much clearer to the apostle Peter’s readers than it is to us today. Back in his time, there were millions of slaves who could have been redeemed from slavery if someone had been willing to pay the stipulated price to buy their freedom. Then, if they had been redeemed, they could have not only have been brought out of the slave market, but they would also have been free to serve their new owner.
Just the same, we are born into the slave market of sin, and as we grow up we prove our sinfulness by personally sinning, and we compound our guilt by justifying our sin to ourselves and to others. We cannot pay our own purchase price of redemption, for, spiritually speaking, we are bankrupt, hopelessly indebted and unable to change our current standing.
Praise Jesus who came to do what we could not. Listen to His own job description: “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). He paid a price that we could not, and He did it to set us free from our slavery to sin and Satan. Redemption, then, is the means by which salvation is achieved—namely, by the payment of a ransom. To redeem is to “buy out of a marketplace.”
In the above passage Peter (1:18-19) stresses two facts:
1. He details our need to be bought out of the slavery of sin, which he describes as an “empty way of life” handed down from our forefathers. Our predicament is that we cannot redeem ourselves because we do not have a perfect payment that God would accept.
2. Peter stresses the awesome nature of the payment made for us. Silver and gold are usually thought to be among the safest investments for preserving our money. Peter calls even these valued assets “perishable things” in contrast to the incomparable value of “the precious blood of Christ.” Which also means we are indeed valuable, for we have been bought at high cost.
What are the implications of our redemption? Most importantly we now belong to God and are no longer subject to our former masters—namely sin and the devil. In the words of Paul, “He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (Colossians 1:13-14). Thanks to Jesus, who paid the ransom, we have now officially switched owners, and both our identities and destinies have been forever changed. Redemption means that someone loved us enough to buy our freedom. To Him we should gladly give our deepest loyalty and praise.
In His Service,
Eric Barnes
22
Jan '19
But now the Lord says
22
Jan '19
But now the Lord says: Far be it from Me; for those who honor Me I will honor, and those who despise Me shall be lightly esteemed. (1 Sam. 2:30)
The question is how can I be the kind of faithful person God honors? If you are a person who desires the favor of God Hebrews 6:11-12 has some advice: “show the same diligence to the full assurance of hope until the end, that you do not become sluggish, but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.”
In order to understand this we need to look at a guy like Abraham. He displayed great faith and patience. Remember when God called Abram to leave his homeland for a place unknown Abraham displayed great faith and diligence: “So Abram went forth as the Lord had spoken to him.” (Gen 12:4)
Remember when God told Abraham that he would have a son, even though his wife Sarah was already 90yrs. old. (Gen. 17:17-19) Abraham believed and God rewarded his trust and displayed his own faithfulness a year later by giving Isaac to Abraham and Sarah.
Remember when Abraham heard God tell him to sacrifice the son for whom he had waited? Abraham faithfully obeyed God and was blessed for his devotion (Gen. 22:1-18)
If we desire God’s favor and blessing we need to mirror Abraham’s patience, faithfulness, and diligence. God desires to bless us and looks for reasons to do so— so let’s give Him ample reason.
In His Service,
Eric Barnes
15
Jan '19
Therefore, holy brothers and sisters…
15
Jan '19
Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, whom we acknowledge as our apostle and high priest. (Hebrews 3:1)
This verse is so great for our assurance as a believer.
1.Holy brethren= Anyone who has trusted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. “Holy” signifies that believers have been set apart for God. God sees you as unique not because of salary, profession, appearance, or nationality but because of your status as a child of God. This is your identity.
2.Partakers of a heavenly calling= your destination is heaven. Your heart resides where the home is with Christ. You no longer search for satisfaction from your temporary dwelling (earth). No matter the circumstance you find yourself in, you can rejoice because this life doesn’t hold you- God does. You don’t have to listen to the world for approval to be “good enough”, it is your identity in Christ that completes you. You or no one else can add to or take away from this.
3.Jesus as apostle and high priest= As apostle he represents God to man. When wanting to know what God is like or would do all we need to do is look at Jesus. As High priest he represents man to God. God sees us children through the lens of His blameless and Holy son. This verse has a command “consider Christ Jesus.” The word consider means to observe or to think. We are to observe Christ, meditate on Him, and imitate Him. Let the assurance of your identity, home, and Lord inspire you to explore new depths of God and serve Him with all your heart.
In His Service,
Eric Barnes
08
Jan '19
Don’t get caught up!
08
Jan '19
I remember being in college and climbing the hill behind my house with God’s word and a sack of lunch. I used to spend a lot of time this way just being in God’s presence, spending time in His Word, and thinking about life. I remember one day looking down off the hill and seeing the traffic on the highway and then looking out over this whole end of town seeing cars and people going like crazy. I remember praying to God asking to never let me get caught up in the rat race of life– let me keep it in perspective and keep me free of it all. That was about 26 years ago and I’d love to say I never got caught up in it all, I could rationalize and say I have done better than most, but that doesn’t change the fact that I’ve been occasionally caught up in it all. We all can be!
The rat race as a Christian by definition is the conflict between who I am created to be (2 Corinthians 5:7, 17) and who I am tempted to be (1 Timothy 6:9). I am a new creation and I was created to live by faith, not by sight, to be at home with God away from the body. As long as I am here I am to live to please Him by allowing my life to be all about my relationship with Him.
However I, and all of us, are being tempted to make life about something different. See we are being ‘cut in on’ by the temptations and teachings of the world as Paul says in Galatians 5:7-9, it is like yeast that works it’s way into the whole batch of dough. We get caught up chasing the riches and pleasures of the world rather than the riches of God available to us through Jesus Christ. Paul explained to Timothy how it works in 1 Tim. 6:9 “Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction” You see men who get success sickness fall into temptation! A trap! A rat trap that plunges themselves into many harmful things. This is the man you are tempted to be. This verse and other verses like it (ie. Romans 1:21-25) tell us that we exchange the truth of God for a lie and the glory of God for idols. This is the man you and I are tempted to be.
This year lets become more aware of our lives, have we fallen in the trappings of the world or is life about the glory of and relationship with God. Let us not run the rat race but– “let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us” Hebrews 12:1. This year let’s be found faithfully running the right race!
In His Service,
Eric Barnes
10
Dec '18
Blessed are the Poor!
10
Dec '18
Isaiah prophesied the words eight centuries before Christ coming: “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the afflicted. He has sent me to bind up the broken hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners” (Isa. 61:1) How amazing when Jesus later read this and proclaimed its fulfillment. How much more amazing was it that when Jesus did come to earth it was the poor shepherds, the rustic field hands that first received and proclaimed this news to others.
Isn’t it great when the poor or downtrodden get good news? Good news more often finds the rich or well to do. On this divine night the poor or simple got the news first. The rich or higher ups had no idea of its happening.
The shepherds response was amazement, wonder, joy, and proclamation. We sing of it still today in songs like “Good Christian Men Rejoice”. This was news made especially for the poor! This Jesus/Savior the angels proclaimed would take away their sins. Good news for all with sins be you rich or poor, yet it seems to me the humble and poor in physical state are less school in smugness so they are more honest about their sins – making them more open to receive the good news.
This Christmas no matter what your physical surrounding or your financial standing is, let us all realize we are spiritually bankrupt before a Pure and Holy God. We are all poor and in great need of a Savior King born to free us. So let us think about the words of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5:3) as He shares that “God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.” Let us all respond like the Shepherds in amazement, let’s gather around the manger of our LORD and worship Him, then let us go and proclaim His saving power to all the other poor people in need of salvation.
In His Service,
Eric Barnes
04
Dec '18
God with us!
04
Dec '18
The word Immanuel is right up their with the word Lord in Christian worship. Incarnation or enfleshment is the way a theologian would explain it. It is literally when God became flesh and dwelt among us. The Incarnation is the greatest and most noble idea in any world religion. That God did not watch human despair from afar but instead clothed himself in humanity and came near, to enter our problem existence and be the solution. He ceased watching the human war …and became a soldier, experiencing all of life as we do. Think of what Jesus experienced: blistering in sun, shivering in rain and cold, hunger, bereavements heartache, loneliness, betrayal, pain, agony, shame, sorrow…
All these things the God of all mercy took upon himself, this is why God with us, Jesus, is now our perfect high priest. He experienced life as we did yet remained Holy God without sin.
The greatest question is why? He had to be man to pay the penalty for man, he also had to step into our darkness to lead us to the light and life (like rescue divers for the soccer team trapped in a cave– they had to go in to lead them out). God has done the same– He proved his love and salvation by sending His presence to us. God knew after “the fall” man would face pain and trials, heartache, and despair. Immanuel is God saying, “I won’t allow you to face it alone, I will come help you and redeem you from all this.”
What is greater still is when we place our faith in Christ, He comes to live in us through His Holy Spirit. Not only to help and empower our lives for His glory and our good but also for the good of others. God is still incarnate, in the flesh, He is in us. So in and through us He is still stepping into peoples conflict and pain helping and redeeming a world in need. When you enter into others’ despair with the love and presence of Christ, others will see Him at work and also proclaim what we know to be true in the birth of Christ— “Immanuel” = God is with us!
In His Service,
Eric Barnes
06
Nov '18
Every One Can Make A Difference!
06
Nov '18
REMINDER: THIS WEEK IS SHOEBOX COLLECTION WEEK
I hope this story helps remind us why we should pack a shoebox this year.
GOD USES OPERATION CHRISTMAS CHILD SHOEBOX GIFTS TO OPEN DOORS FOR CHURCHPLANTING EFFORTS IN UNREACHED AREAS.
Bible school graduates Raja Asirvatham and Ramya Rajarathinam, a husband and wife team, moved to an area of South Asia with no known Christians with the intent of planting a church. For three years they labored with little visible response from the people— until they delivered Operation Christmas Child shoebox gifts.
These tangible expressions of God’s love proved to be a building block for them in the community. The shoeboxes opened the hearts of villagers—and their own daughter—to the Gospel. Over an eight year term, they had established a thriving church of 75 people that continues to grow today.
Ramya and Raja poured their hearts and lives into Hindu and Muslim people who worked on little farms and in leather and fabric factories. Traveling weekly to a handful of locations, they started by gathering children to tell them Bible stories and sing songs together. They met under trees, on porches, even in streets, diverting bicycle traffic around them.
Week after week, they faithfully shared from the Bible truths in different locations without seeing much fruit. However when they came to each of these places with cartons full of gift-filled shoeboxes the momentum shifted.
“It was such a great tool,” Ramya said. “It paved the way for more relationship” Since the Hindus rarely allow their children to participate in Bible based activities, the missionaries were able to encourage them about the Operation Christmas Child outreach events by saying “We are having something special just to show love.” While at the events in each village, they would share the Gospel and pray with children, while parents watched and listened in. “The box was like an anchor to go back more times and build relationships, teaching the children through accompanying Bible studies. Through this the people, even adults, started coming to Christ and it was with this foundation the church was started.”
Today the missionary family has one simple message. “Definitely pack a shoebox! Every one can make a difference.” As a church family let’s be a part of blessing children around the world by prayerfully packing shoeboxes full of love and the Gospel. National Collection Week is coming up Nov. 11-19. Bring yours this Sunday!
In His Service,
Eric Barnes
29
Oct '18
Take account of what you have and what you should do with it!
29
Oct '18
For the past couple of weeks on Sunday Morning we have acknowledged through God’s Word that God loves all people and desires all to know His ways and know His salvation that all people will praise Him. We have also recognized God’s plan for this is to be gracious and bless us, “His people”, so that all will be blessed. We recognize it is our Job to bless others through His blessing.
As a nation we are truly the most blessed people on earth spiritually and physically. I just wanted to string together some of God’s words about our wealth (spiritually and physically) and about sharing (spiritually and physically).
Wealth: Honor GOD with your wealth, with the first of what you have. Do this and you will be blessed to overflowing. Be careful not to put your trust in money or possessions, but place your trust in GOD. In the day of wrath it is righteousness and not money that will save you. It is better to be poor and fear the LORD than to be rich with turmoil. Wealth brings many friends but they leave when the money is gone. The LORD is the maker of the rich and poor man alike. The rich rule over the poor and the borrower is slave to the lender. Don’t wear yourself out to become rich. Riches are temporary and they will make themselves wings like eagles and fly away.
Giving: A generous man will prosper and he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed. A good man leaves an inheritance for his grandchildren, but a sinner’s wealth is stored up for the righteous. He who is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and He will reward him for what he has done. If a man refuses to hear the cry of the poor, then he too will cry out and not be answered. A man who boasts about giving gifts and never gives them is like dark clouds and wind with no rain. He who gives to the poor will lack nothing, but he who closes his eyes to them receives many curses.
Make sure to be aware of God’s blessings toward you (spiritually and physically) and be sure to share it with those who are poor (spiritually and physically). God will continue to supply those who are aware of what he has given and generous with what he has supplied.
In His Service,
Eric Barnes
15
Oct '18
Praying for B.O.B. Daily!
15
Oct '18
Yesterday in the service we spoke of our “simple duty” to share the truth with others that God loves them and gave His son to prove that love. We talked about sharing the good news with the world and fulfilling the “great commission” of our King Jesus. We should do all we can to prepare ourselves to witness to others as often as possible.
There is an evangelist, speaker, and disciple trainer named Mark Cahill and he helps equip Christians to share their faith with the world. One thing I heard him say made a lot of since to me and I believe we should put it into practice. He said before he leaves his house he always prays for BOB! When someone asked who is Bob, he responded “it is not a person it is an acronym ”. Mark explained it is a prayer to God for what I need to be an effective witness each day based out of 3 things Paul, the greatest missionary in history, said to the early church.
B = A Burden for all people. We must remember every person who has not confessed to be a sinner, repented of sin, and placed belief or trust in the completed work of Jesus Christ is still dead in their transgressions and the wrath of God is upon them. This should burden our hearts, so ask God daily to give you a burden for the lost. Philippians 2:4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.
O = An Opportunity for witnessing. Colossians 4:2-6 Paul is asking the people to pray for open doors for the message, so they can proclaim the message of Jesus clearly with others. He also tells them to be wise and make the most of every opportunity they have to witness. So ask for opportunities for yourself and others before your day starts.
B = A Boldness to seize the opportunities given. Ephesians 6:18-20 Twice Paul asks the people of Ephesus to pray for him to be able to proclaim the truth of God’s Word boldly as he should. We too should be bold in proclaiming the truth so always remember to ask God to help you stay bold.
So I hope this little acronym helps you as a witness for Jesus Christ. Be sure each morning when you rise, thank God for your blessings but then pray for B.O.B. = a burden for the lost, an opportunity to witness, and a boldness to match that opportunity. Tell someone about God’s love for them this week.
In His Service,
Eric Barnes
09
Oct '18
What’s in it for Me?
09
Oct '18
For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe on Him. But also to suffer for Him.
(Phil. 1:29)
“What’s in it for me?” You may not actually say these words but we all have asked them from time to time. In our human nature this actually can drive or alter our decisions. It’s just part of our sinful nature. We want to know what we stand to gain before we commit to something. While it is a common part of the way we think, it is not the right way to go about decision making.
What if ‘what was in it for you’ was suffering? Would you still decide to follow or serve Christ? Philippians is one of the letters recorded in the Bible from Paul to the church. Paul was writing from prison near the end of his life. He had a close relationship with the church in Philippi, and he wanted to encourage these friends in the midst of the persecution they were experiencing because of their faith in Jesus. His message of encouragement was, you are suffering because of being a faithful follower– keep up the good work.
Think of a time you needed encouragement in a tough time. You felt like you were following God and doing right and things were just tough. What if a friend sent you this verse above (Phil. 1:29). At first it doesn’t seem encouraging however, at longer look, we realize our belief can’t be based on all good times, victories, and easy going (everyone would or could believe). Only when we are tested in life, when hardship comes and we still trust– that is when our life really becomes a witness. Our faith is seen by others as real and worth having when we hold on tight to it in suffering and struggles. So God has not only granted the faith to believe but he also allows the testing ground for that faith to be seen as real and true.
So next time you are living right, just serving your king, and trials come your way remember you have not only been granted the ability to believe but also the ability to believe through suffering. So hang in there, this is just another witnessing opportunity allowed by God for His greater glory, for your growth, and for the advancement of His Kingdom. Soldier On!!!
In His Service,
Eric Barnes
