Living in Light of His Coming

Peter urged the church to live in light of the coming of the Lord...

The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.

Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn! But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.
(2 Peter 3:9-13)

I'm not sure that many Christians today believe in the second coming of Christ. They profess it with their lips, but their actions reveal a different theology--a theology of denial. Christians live as if they will never give an account for what they have done. They live as though everything they have to look forward to is to be found in this life. Even churches are pandering to these ideas. At the heart of the health and wealth, prosperity gospel that has become so popular is the desire to make heaven on earth. Contrary to what some churches are teaching, "my best life" is in the world to come, not in the here and now.

So how should we live in light of His coming? I believe there are some common fruits of belief in the second coming that all Christians should bear.

First, we should be motivated to righteous living. Peter writes: "Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness" (2 Peter 3:11). There is a direct link between faith in God and righteous living. Even atheists seem to understand this link. Currently, the British Humanist Association have launched an ad campaign on London buses that reads: "There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life." I find it ironic that two of the things atheists are seeking, "joy" and "life," are things which God has promised His followers. Jesus said: "I came that they may have life and have it abundantly" (John 10:10). And their use of the word "probably" makes them look ridiculous. Would you not want to be certain about some as serious as eternal damnation?

Second, we should be more concerned about our treasures in heaven than about our treasure on earth. Jesus said: "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal" (Matt 6:19-20). If we really believe that the Lord is returning and that we will be rewarded based upon our deeds, then why would we invest all of our energy into homes and cars that will not even last our lifetime, let alone in the life to come?

Finally, we should have a passion to see others saved from the wrath of God. If we believe the gospel, then we must believe that an eternal hell is a reality, and that Jesus Christ is the only means of escape. Christians with little desire to see others saved are living with their own form of denial. Proverbs tells us: "The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and whoever captures souls is wise" (11:30).

May we each live our lives in light of His coming, so that we can say with John: "Come, Lord Jesus!" (Rev 22:20)

Things I Am Thankful For

"Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
and his courts with praise!
Give thanks to him; bless his name!" (Psalm 100:4)

No matter how dire our present circumstances may seem, we all have so much to thank the Lord for. As I thought about the thanksgiving season, I challenged myself to be thankful for things I have taken for granted and to name some blessings I don't think I have named before. I hope this list will challenge you to do the same.

1. I am thankful that God created me. (Psalm 139:14) How ever realized that if God had not created you, you wouldn't be here. This simple truth should be enough to made us realize how much we owe God and to be thankful for His grace to us.

2. I am thankful that God delayed His wrath so that I could have time to repent of my sins and be saved. (2 Peter 3:9) At the moment I sinned, I deserved the wrath of God. Yet, because of His grace and compassion, He waited for me to come to Him.

3. I am thankful that God created an orderly universe. (Psalm 136:5-9) I plan my life around the rising of the sun and the changing of the seasons, but how often do I thank God for this consistency in nature?

4. I am thankful that God made me an eternal being. (Matt. 25:46) Although I will die physically die one day, my spirit will never die. And one day upon His return, my spirit will be reunited with my resurrected body. Praise the Lord that my life has no end. (1 John 5:13)

5. I am thankful that God has a purpose for my life. (Jer. 29:11) How empty life would be without a purpose and meaning for my existence.

I have many more things for which I am thankful, (my wife, my children, my parents, my church family, my health, my friends, the list goes on and on) but I wanted to list some that are rarely mentioned to hopefully make us all think of the many things for which we so often take for granted.

May you experience the joy of salvation and have a new realisation this Thanksgiving season of all that you have to be thankful for.

The Peril of Forgetting

God has commanded us to remember what He has done (Ps. 105:5). The Israelites who were delivered out of Egypt saw first hand the works of the Lord, but they had a short memory. Consequently, they questioned the character of God (Ex. 14:10-12) and they doubted the provision of God (Ex. 17:1-7). Ultimately, their disobedience and rebellion cost them entrance into the promised land--what a high price to pay for forgetfulness!

We need to beware, so that we do not make the same mistake and suffer the same consequences. The Bible is clear that God has given us all that we have, both materially and spiritually (cf. Matt. 6:26). Yet, in our state of blessedness, pride can cause us to forget the source of our blessings. We begin to take credit for our blessings and forget that it is our creator who has given us all that we have (Deu. 8:11-17). The only way to avoid this pitfall is to remember that the Lord is our provider.

We not only have to beware of pride, but forgetting what God has done will also cause us to doubt Him. It seems almost unbelievable that the Israelites could watch God part the sea and drown the pursuing Egyptian army, and yet fear the Canaanites, but that is exactly what happened. If you have ever experienced the hand of God in your life, then rely on it. Meditate on it. Let your past experience with God give you a reason to trust Him for your future. If the Lord has saved you, why would He later abandon you?

Forgetting what the Lord has done will cost you dearly, but remembering His works will lead to rejoicing. "Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples! Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wondrous works! Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!" (Psalms 105:1-3)

May you experience the joy of remembering.

God's Formula For Revival

2 Chronicles 7:14 has rightly been called God’s formula for revival. “If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” Here God lays our four things that His people must do if they are to experience forgiveness and healing.

First, they are to humble themselves. True humility is not thinking less of yourself than you should. It is recognizing how poor you are in relation to God and the standard of holiness which He requires. It is recognizing that you are a sinner in need of forgiveness.

Second, the Lord tells them to pray. If revival comes from God, why would we talk to everyone but Him about it? We need to go to God in pray and ask for forgiveness. We need to ask God to reveal any areas of our life that need to be conformed to the image of His Son.

Third, we need to seek the face of God. To seek His face is to seek to know Him intimately. When we get an ID made, it is not our elbow or foot that is photographed, but our face. Our face is the one feature that completely distinguishes us from other human beings. If you know someone’s face you can recognize them. So to experience revival we need to seek to know the face of God. Finally, we need to turn from our sin. You can’t be in fellowship with God and continue to constantly sin as a lifestyle.

If we do these things we can expect to experience revival.

In Christ We Are Free

As Paul preached in the synagogue, he shared the good news that in Christ we are free. "Let it be known to you therefore, brothers, that through this man forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, and by him everyone who believes is freed from everything from which you could not be freed by the law of Moses" (Acts 13:38-39). So what are we free from? Here are just a couple of things from which Christ has freed us.

First, we are free from the power of death. Yes, we will all die unless Christ returns first. However, we will one day be raised, just as He was raised. Paul wrote to the Corinthians: "Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory?O death, where is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Cor. 15:51-57).

Second, we are from the wages of sin. Paul preached: "through this man forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you" (Acts 13:38). Romans 3:23 tells us: "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." And John 1:9 promises: "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

Praise the Lord that we are free in Christ! Let me encourage you today to thank the Lord for the freedom that we have as believers. Moreover, let us serve the Lord because of the gratitude we have in our heart for what He has done for us.

An Early View of Redemption

Many people mistakenly have the idea that God has changed His plans for man throughout history. He dealt with man in a certain way in the Old Testament, but when that didn't work out he changed His plans and sent Jesus to the cross to redeem mankind. Nothing could be farther from the truth. God has been planning the redemption of man since before man existed. He has always had a heart of love and compassion that longed to see His children come home.

In the book of Exodus, we see God at work redeeming His people from the slavery of Egypt. Exodus 14:30-31 reads: "Thus the Lord saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. 31 Israel saw the great power that the Lord used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in his servant Moses."

Israel saw the redeeming work of the Lord and believed in Him. How much more have we seen of the redeeming work of God? Daniel in the lion's den; Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the fiery furnace; and Israel's return from exile all point to the redeeming hand of God. But the greatest work of redemption was the death of Christ on the cross.

And so we have hope. If God has redeemed His people from the beginning of time, then we can believe that He will not forsake us if we only trust in Him. Don't be mislead to think that your redemption was an afterthought. God loves you and He has been planning to redeem you from your sin from the very beginning. Trust in Him and you will never be disappointed.

A Contagious Zeal

The Psalmist wrote: "For zeal for your house has consumed me" (Psalms 69:9). The disciples remembered this verse as they saw Jesus' response to the profiteering that had taken the place of worship in the temple (John 2:13-22). What they saw that day was a holy zeal for the work of the Father.

Sadly, we rarely see the level of passion and zeal in the church today. I emphasize in the church today, because we see plenty of zeal for other things. People are zealous about their sports teams, zealous about making money, and even zealous about hobbies, but when it comes to the work of the Lord, we are often bland--a mere flicker of light in a dark world.

I believe it was D.L. Moody who told preachers: "Set yourself on fire, and the world will come to watch you burn." What great advice for all believers. Passion is contagious. Live for Jesus with a passion and a zeal and you will be sure to attract others.

This week, let me encourage you to examine your life for areas where you can be more passionate for the Lord.

The Heart of God

Acts tells us that after Herod refused to give God glory an angel of the Lord struck him and killed him. If you or I were in control, Herod would have probably been struck dead the moment he thought about murdering James. But God is on a different time table. He has a master plan that exceeds our comprehension. So when we look at the world, we are often confused because we don't understand what God is doing. "Why doesn't God do something about the evil in the world?," people ask. Don't worry. According to God's word, He will.

Yet, His justice will not take place according to our schedule. For although He is just and righteous, He is also merciful. And His greatest desire is not to see people suffer the just punishment for their sin, but to see them come to repentance and receive forgiveness. His word tells us: "The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance," (2 Peter 3:9).

The story of Jonah powerfully illustrates the difference between the heart of God and the heart of man. Jonah refused to go to Nineveh and preach. Then, when he was forced to go and was used by God to bring a pagan city to repentance, he went up on a hillside and pouted because he wanted to see Nineveh destroyed like Sodom and Gomorrah. But God did not destroy the city, because as Jonah said: "for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster" (Jonah 4:2). And so He is.

Is there any justice in the world? Yes, there will be. For those who receive Christ, their sins will be justified through Christ's death on the cross. For all who reject Him, they will one day bear the penalty for their sin. One day, but not yet, because God's desire is that they repent and believe. That is the heart of God.

Angels Watching Over Me

Amy Grant performed a song back in the early 90's about angels watching over us. The second verse went...

God only knows the times my life was threatened just today.
A reckless car ran out of gas before it ran my way.
Near misses all around me, accidents unknown,
Though I never see with human eyes the hands that lead me home.
But I know they're all around me all day and through the night.
When the enemy is closing in, I know sometimes they fight
To keep my fight from falling, I'll never turn away.
If you're asking whats protecting me then you're gonna hear me say:
Got his angels watching over me, every move I make,
Angles watching over me!

I have often thought about those lyrics. How many times has God spared us from tragedy that we were completely unaware of? Through out the Bible, God has used his angels to protect His people. The same is true today. So the next time that you call out to God for help, remember that His angels are already watching over you.

God is in Control

When all hope seems to be lost, take comfort that God is in control. When Joseph was in prison in Egypt, no one would have looked at his life and called him blessed, but he was. In fact, he was directly in the center of God's will and plan for his life. When Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were facing the fiery furnace, they didn't appear to be under the shelter and protection of God, but they were. Maybe you are in the midst of a discouraging situation in your life. If so, then know that God is in control and He works all thing together for good for those that love Him (Rom. 8:28).

But what about those times when the fire does consume and the prison has no release? You need to know two things. First, God's lack of intervention is no indication of a lack of power. When the soldiers came to arrest Jesus, Peter pulled out a sword to defend him, but Jesus said: "Put your sword back into its place. For all who take the sword will perish by the sword. Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me more than twelve legions of angels? But how then should the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must be so?" (Matt 26:52-54) (ESV) God the Father had the power to protect Jesus. Jesus had the ability to call on the Father. Yet, Jesus went to the cross and suffered and died. Why? Because through His death He could reconcile the world to the Father. God could have intervened, but His will was for Jesus to go to the cross.

Second, like Joseph, the trouble in your life may not have been allowed by God. Instead, He may have orchestrated it for His purpose and for His glory. Slavery and imprisonment were just stepping stones to power for Joseph. And it may be that the difficulty you are presently facing is something that God is using to shape you into a new person or to move you to a new place.

As the old hymn says: "Have faith in God, He's on His throne. Have faith in God, He watches or' His own." I hope that you will be encouraged today, regardless of your circumstances, by the knowledge that God is on His throne and He is in control of your life.

The Urgency of Intercessory Prayer

We must pray for one another. Do not take this lightly! Many of us are naive concerning prayer, but the Bible teaches: "The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working" (James 5:16). A few verses earlier James instructed us: "You do not have, because you do not ask" (James 4:2) I believe that most churches today are a mere shadow of what they could be, if all of their members would dedicate themselves to regularly praying for their church. In short, God answers prayers.

Paul was constantly praying for other believers and appealing to other believers to pray for him. His letter to the church at Colosse shows us his commitment to prayer. At the front of the letter he writes: "And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you" (Col 1:9). As he closes the letter he writes: "Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. 3 At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ"(Col 4:2-3). If Paul, one of the greatest missionaries and theologians of the first century, needed the prayers of others how much more do we need the prayers of other believers.

I promise you that your friends and family have far greater needs than you realize. They need your prayers. If one of our family members broke a bone or lost a job, you and I would not fail to pray for them. I assure you that there is a spiritual war taking place in the lives of everyone around us and their present need is just as urgent as if they had experienced some unexpected tragedy.

If you will pray you will see God do amazing things. He is still in control. He still loves us. And He still answers prayers.

Let me invite you to post a story of an answered prayer that you have experienced. Your testimony may encourage someone else to pray.

Most importantly, would you pray for me? I desperately need your prayers to be the man that God has called me to be. And if you will post your name or send me an email, I will pray for you. And let's be honest for a moment, if you are not willing to pray for me or to let me pray for you, you have wasted your time reading this blog, so please respond. God bless you. I can't wait to hear from you.

Depend on the Lord

Listen to the Word of the Lord in Psalm 127:1-2...

Unless the Lord builds the house,
those who build it labor in vain.
Unless the Lord watches over the city,
the watchman stays awake in vain.
It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest,
eating the bread of anxious toil;
for he gives to his beloved sleep.

Each day I live I become more aware of how utterly dependent I am upon God. I truly can do nothing apart from Him. The things I thought I did in the past were just God working through me.

I know because of reason. Why would the God who simply spoke the world into existence need my help? Second, I know this because of experience. I have failed repeatedly to accomplish anything in ministry. Only when I become completely dependant upon the Lord and seek His working through prayer have I seen great things happen in ministry. Third, I know because of scripture. Psalm 127 clearly describes the vanity of working apart from the Lord.

Wherever God as called you to serve in the church, humble yourself and ask the Lord to work through you. It is only when we become completely dependent upon Him that we are able to experience His blessing. Jesus told the disciples to wait until they received power from Holy Spirit, then they were to be His witnesses. Just as they were not to go out and try to serve apart from the enabling of the Holy Spirit, you and I are not to try to serve God apart from His enabling through the Holy Spirit.

A common saying is: "pray like everything depends on God, work like everything depends on you." This is a good saying so long as we keep it in order and we pray before we work. This week why not commit to pray earnestly before attempting to do anything for the Lord?

Seeking Revival

The Bible tells us in Acts about a prayer meeting in the early church: "And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness." Acts 4:31 (ESV) I long to experience the movement of the Holy Spirit just as the early church did. And this past Sunday, our church experienced the power of the Holy Spirit at work. The building was not shaken, but I would be no more amazed if it had been. Christians sat with tears of joy streaming down their face as they heard again of how Jesus died for them. Sinners were convicted of their sin and repented. Two people rededicated their life to the Lord. Another two were saved! Truly, how great is our God!

We read accounts of revivals that took place in the past in which God moved entire cities and nations to repentance. If God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, why do we not see these revivals in our own day? Friends, if God has not changed perhaps the problem is us. Let me urge you as brothers and sisters in Christ to pray for your church this Sunday. Pray urgently for your pastor that God would anoint him afresh with the Spirit that he might preach with a boldness and clarity he has never before experienced. And pray for every listener that God would open their heart to receive the gospel and to find forgiveness through repentance. And I ask every Christian that is reading this blog, would you stop right now and pray for me that God would fill me with His Spirit and empower me to preach the Word with the boldness and clarity of the early church.

To all who read my blog you are a great blessing to me. You are the reason I write each week. And especially to the churches in India who read this, you cannot know what joy and fulfillment you give me by using these articles. I long to come and see you soon. God bless you all.

Sink or Swim (Sermon: Acts 11:23-26)

A few years ago I was at a friend's birthday party. It was a pool party and the birthday boy was about 4 and had not yet learned how to swim. His parents had made him wear floats on his arms to keep him safe, but while they were distracted getting the cake and drinks ready he kept begging his grandfather to let him in the pool without the floats. "Sure, jump on in," said his grandfather. And so with eyes wide open in eager anticipation and excitement the young boy ran straight for the deep end of the pool and jumped in. He came to the surface, but only for a few seconds. Not knowing how to swim or even float, he immediately began to sink. I was the only other person in the water so I swam over and pulled him up and sat him on the edge of the pool.

When I think about that experience, it reminds me of how the church often treats new believers. They come to the church with an excitement and energy and they dive into the Christian life. What do we do as believers? Well, usually we just stand back and watch to see if they will sink or swim, but this should not be so. We are just as called to help make them disciples as they are called to be disciples.

Barnabas and Saul (also known as Paul) fully understood this and were committed to it. When they learned of the new believers in Antioch, they went and spent a year there instructing them and encouraging them to press on. If people join our church and then fade away, instead of doubting whether they were sincere, maybe we should ask ourselves what did we do to foster their growth. What did we do to encourage them? How did we instruct them and equip them?

The Christian life is too hard for anyone to try to live it apart from the help of the local church. When people are born again, they are babes spiritually and babes need our care. I want to encourage you today to invest your life in helping the new believers in your church to grow and mature. I believe ultimately that God will hold us accountable not only for whether we have shared the gospel with the lost, but also for whether or not we helped new believers to grow in Christ. May we each live our life so that on the day that we have to give an account we will not be ashamed.

Incognito Christians (Sermon: Acts 11:22-24)

When Barnabas went to Antioch to investigate what was happening among the Gentiles, he literally saw the grace of God. I believe what he saw was the work of God's grace in the lives of those Gentile believers. So here's the question we should ask ourselves now: "If Barnabas came to our workplace or to our home today what would he see?"

Many Christians today are what I call "incognito Christians." There is simply nothing in their lives that clearly communicates their faith and their salvation. If persecution breaks out today, they are in no danger of being singled out.

If the people that you live with and work with do not know beyond all doubt what God has done in your life, something is sorely wrong with your Christian walk. Let me challenge you today to live your life so that people look at you and see the grace of God!

God at Work (Sermon: Acts 11:19-21)

The church at Antioch is just one more example of God at work in the church and in the world. Who would have thought that the stoning of Stephen would cause a church to be born among a group of Gentiles, but that is exactly what took place. God used the persecution to get believers in place to serve as missionaries in Antioch and throughout the world. Out of the faithful witness of the believers from Cyprus and Cyrene, a Gentile church was born.

Not only is it amazing that a Gentile church was born, but this church grew rapidly and would soon be more than Barnabas alone could disciple. Further, the church grew to the point that they were financially helping the mother church in Jerusalem. Isn't it amazing how God works.

Could it be that God is working in our churches and in our communities in the same unexpected and unforeseen manner? Why not pray and ask God to move in your life and in your church? But be careful...you may get what you ask for!

The Pathway to Life (Sermon: Acts 10:44-11:18)

The church was amazed that "repentance that leads to life" had been granted by God to the Gentiles as well. Most people today would be amazed to know that it is repentance that leads to life. A quick glance at American culture today reveals a culture chasing all types of illusions in order to achieve life and happiness.

We hear statements like: "If only I had one more 'thing' my life would be better," or "If I made more money, I wouldn't have any problems." People who think or say these things are looking in the wrong direction for life. Our problem is not external, it is a problem of the heart. What we need is repentance. Our greatest problem, separation from God because of sin, has already been cured through Jesus' death on the cross. All we need to do is repent and accept God's forgiveness.

Yes, repentance that leads to life has been granted, but it is up to us to accept it. Is there any sin you could not trade for eternity in heaven? If not, repent and receive the life that God freely offers.

A Humble and Faithful Witness (Sermon: Acts 10:34-43)

In Acts 10, Peter goes to the Gentiles and delivers the good news of salvation through Jesus. As Peter arrives Cornelius actually falls to the ground and worships him. How easy it would have been for Peter to lose perspective, get caught up in the moment, and get off track. But he does none of these things. Instead, Peter instructs Cornelius that he himself is only a mere man and is not to be worshiped.


Peter had preached at Pentecost and thousands responded. It demonstrates true character on his part that such a response did not puff him up. Peter stayed the course. When he went to the Gentiles, he faithfully and humbly shared the good news that had been entrusted to him.

Peter gives us an excellent example of being a faithful witness. As believers we are called by God to be messengers not authors. And any glory that comes from delivering this message belongs to God not to us. We all need to follow Peter's example and faithfully and humbly pass along the gospel that has been entrusted to us.

How Do You Come To God? (Sermon: Acts 10:9-33

The Bible tells of a man named Cornelius. He was a devout man who was seeking God, but he was a Gentile. For Peter and the other Jews of this time, Gentiles had no place in the church. But thanks be to God, we don't come into the church based upon our ancestry, but based upon our response to hearing the Gospel. So when Cornelius sought God, God sent Peter to preach to him. And so Cornelius became a part of the early church, not because he was born into the right family, but because he listened with the right heart.

How do you come to God? The same way that Cornelius did. You seek Him and you receive His Word. You must believe with a child-like faith that has no doubts. The Bible promises: "if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. 11 For the Scripture says, "Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame." 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. 13 For "everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." Romans 10:9-13

May you embrace the promise of His word today and come to God.

A Servant's Heart (Sermon: Acts 9:32-43)

After the ascension of Jesus, Peter became a man of great power. He was unquestionably the leader of the twelve. He preached and thousands responded. Peter had the power to heal the sick and lame. And finally, he even raised Dorcas from the dead. With such power comes an amazing responsibility. Many people would be overcome with pride and arrogance, but Peter remained a servant to the church.

While we will never experience the same opportunities that Peter had of establishing the church for the first time in history, we will certainly be given great responsibilities if we make ourselves available to the Lord. Be careful that you do not loose sight of why you are where you are. It is easy to lose a servant's heart.

I believe that one of the reasons, we think too much of ourselves is because we compare ourselves with other people. But do you know that the standard against which we are measured is not other people, but against the righteousness of Christ. If we will remember who He is, it will be easier to remember who we are. Let me encourage you this week to take every gift, every skill, and every resource and use them with a servant's heart.