Hosea 8

Hos 8:2-7
2 Israel shall cry unto me, My God, we know thee.
3 Israel hath cast off the thing that is good: the enemy shall pursue him.
4 They have set up kings, but not by me: they have made princes, and I knew it not: of their silver and their gold have they made them idols, that they may be cut off.
5 Thy calf, O Samaria, hath cast thee off; mine anger is kindled against them: how long will it be ere they attain to innocency?
6 For from Israel was it also: the workman made it; therefore it is not God: but the calf of Samaria shall be broken in pieces.
7 For they have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind: it hath no stalk: the bud shall yield no meal: if so be it yield, the strangers shall swallow it up.
KJV

As I was reading this passage of scripture, verse 2-7 really grabbed my attention.
It states, in verse 2, that Israel will cry unto the Lord, and that they know Him.
Israel then cast of the thing that is good. We as men of good must take the whole counsel of God. We can not afford to pick and choose what we like in living for God. Proverbs states in Chapter 3, "My son despise not the chastening of the Lord... For whom the Lord loveth He corrects."

Israel also began to set up kings and princes to have the rule over them. We must be on guard that we do not let the culture and the things of this world set up their kingdoms and agendas in our hearts and home. It is a scary place when we get to the house of God and we can't even engage in a service because there are ungodly kingdoms and strongholds in our hearts and minds.

You find out what you value by how you spend your time, treasure and talent. You will discover who or what you are really serving. We sometimes can become so involved in working for God that we do not take the time to live for God. It's not so important what you are doing for God, than what are you becoming in God.

Israel was sowing to the wind and reaping storms. Men, we must always remind ourselves that whatever we sow, we will also reap. Let's make sure we praying and spending quality time with our families so that, in the end, we reap the benefits and the blessing of God in our lives.

It always pays to live for God. No, we may not be the richest people on this earth, but we are storing up treasure in a heavenly home.

Rev. Chad Mooney

Hosea 7

16They return, but not to the most High: they are like a deceitful bow: their princes shall fall by the sword for the rage of their tongue: this shall be their derision in the land of Egypt. (KJV)

16 They do not turn to the Most High; they are like a faulty bow. Their leaders will fall by the sword because of their insolent words. For this they will be ridiculed in the land of Egypt. (NIV)

Imagine with me, if you will, a crisp November morning. You are awake and dressed in warm, camouflage clothing long before dawn and have found your way to your favorite hunting spot and await, in ambush, for the trophy buck all the signs indicate frequents the area. You've taken all provision to ensure the hunted is unaware of your presence. Dawn finally arrives, and with it that magical moment you have been waiting for when the trophy of a lifetime appears in front of you 50 yards or so. With your heart beating so loud in your ears you fear the deer hears it, you begin to gingerly bring your bow to the ready position as the deer cautiously makes its way toward you. With the deer a mere 20 yards away, you draw back the bow in an action that converts the energy in your arms to potential energy contained in the bowstrings. Silently, you release the bowstrings and the potential energy in converted into kinetic energy (action). Unfortunately, the only result of that energy is the "twang" of the bowstring and a slight shiver up your lead arm because you forgot to put an arrow in the bow.

That was rather anticlimactic was it not? But, it did get some of you guys' attention.

While my story was silly, allow me to attempt to use it as an analogy of how many times we spiritually have done this exact thing. We've all taken spiritual action to guard our hearts of sin X and Y and then, when we are set to release the work God wants us to do, nothing happens because hidden sin Z becomes our faulty bow. How many times have we worked diligently to better our own lives in some way only to have our efforts rebuffed at every turn because we did not seek the will of the Most High in the direction of our lives (the arrow was missing)? In all facets of our lives we have stood with good intentions, anticipation of results, full of potential energy (the bow drawn), only to find our efforts amount to nothing when we attempt to convert that potential energy to kinetic energy because we have failed to include God in our efforts. Instead, we have relied our humanity and not on the Most High.

Gentlemen, let us be so careful to ensure that in all areas of our life we have sought the will of God, that we have been spiritually diligent, and that we have stood still long enough to hear that still, small voice that will lead us in His ways. When we do this, our energy will be directed in ways that are pleasing to the Most High and our individual areas of ministry will flourish. And, for you deer hunters out there, maybe you will remember the arrows and actually kill more deer. 

Thom Creel

Hosea 6

6:1  Come, and let us return unto the LORD: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up.
2  After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight.
3  Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the LORD: his going forth is prepared as the morning; and he shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain unto the earth.

This chapter starts out with men giving men instructions to themselves.  These are not men of inspiration with words from the LORD.  They are men that have a PMA (Positive Mental Attitude.)  They are the forerunner of the current "Name It and Claim It" group. 

Can you hear the voice of a father pleading with his children in this verse?
6:4  O Ephraim, what shall I do unto thee? O Judah, what shall I do unto thee? for your goodness is as a morning cloud, and as the early dew it goeth away.

The morning clouds seem to dissipate as the days go on.  The early morning dew is heavy when we go out to get the morning paper, but by 10:00 am there is no evidence of the dew.  That is what "Our Goodness" is in the sight of the Lord. 

It reminds me of the days when my sons and daughters were in the teenage years.  No matter how much I tried to persuade them that the path that they were on would harm them, they stopped their ears and ran on until they fell and got hurt.  Hurt enough to come home to dad and say, "fix it daddy."  The problem was there were times when "IT" was beyond repair.  But the Lord is not beyond resources or answers.  Whereas I am human and run our of solutions to life's situations

Hosea 6:5  Therefore have I hewed them by the prophets; I have slain them by the words of my mouth: and thy judgments are as the light that goeth forth.
6  For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.
7  But they like men have transgressed the covenant: there have they dealt treacherously against me.

The word hewed here means that the Lord had to split to engrave, much like carving an indelible mark in wood or stone; something that would not go away except after a long time of erosion or deterioration.  Look at what the Lord used to do this horrible and painful work; The Prophets.  This is exactly why it is so important that we have someone that we are accountable to; someone whom we SUBMIT ourselves to.

The God Almighty is not interested in a sacrifice that is done by habit; or because someone else did it so we wanted to do it and get the same results.  Jesus wants us to bring a clean and pure sacrifice. 

Read what we are instructed to do here:
Heb 10:1  For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect.
2  For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins.
3  But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year.
4  For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.
5  Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me:
6  In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure.

David had a beautiful insight into how the judgment and mercy of the Lord worked, even at the point of one of his greatest sins
Psalms 51: 16  For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering.
17  The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.

From what I read throughout the Bible, the thing that the Lord Jesus Christ wants is not the form of giving, or formality of prayer, or the dutiful habit of offerings or sacrifices.  He wants us to be sincere, be honest, and to have an open and pure heart.  He has prepared us for better things.  The final reward is ours to choose.  The Lord is a gentleman and will force no one to do what their will would not allow them to do.  We have a free will and it is entirely our choice.

Let us as REAL men realize that when we are instructed and corrected, it is just evidence that our God and Creator is truly interested in our welfare and well being both now and for eternity.

David DeTar

Hosea 5

A spurned God is promising vengeance in the lives of His once beloved people, with a special dose of retribution for the leaders who lead the way.  The Scriptures lead me to the conclusion that the rulers of Israel willfully spurned the principals that had been taught them as children.  They whole heartedly pursued wickedness.

How did they arrive at that destination?  I doubt that they started out willfully ignoring His commandments.  As a boulder rolling down a hill, the path of disobedience most often begins with the little things.  The boulder needs only a little suggestion of movement, a little energy imparted to it, and it begins its descent.  As it descends, it gathers energy and momentum and crushes everything in its way.

Our flesh is the same way.  Mark 7 21-23 says "For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person."  We do not need much of a push to begin our descent. 

Our nature is craven.  We have to purposefully wage a war, daily, against our flesh.   We as men, priests and leaders of our homes but develop the disciplines that will cultivate our spirit and suppress our flesh.  Each day must be lived with a purpose, a focus on God and His values, otherwise we, too, will begin to drift.  We must make deliberate decisions about how we lead our families.  We must constantly self-assess our lives.   Are we striding forward in the Kingdom or have we allowed our selves to get distracted.  Are we purposefully leading or are we drifting casually?

Let it not be said that we have dealt treacherously with the Lord and have raised strange children.

Keith G. Mathews

Hosea 4

After establishing the ground work of what God did in his personal life, Hosea now turns his prophecy to Israel (during the divided kingdom)   How beautiful that twice in this chapter of God's judgment He still calls Israel "My people."  The priests and prophets were leading the nation in sin.  The men who should have been the Watchmen on the Wall or the Prophet in the Pulpit were foxes in the desert.  The very sin with which Gomer tore out Hosea's heart was practiced in their churches and God was not well pleased.

 

When the prophet warned "they shall be no priest to me" he was foretelling an impending judgment of Israel as well as foreshadowing the inclusion of the Gentiles.  The pattern was established.  When God's chosen people ignore His plan and the priests profane the Word the people are "destroyed for lack of knowledge."

 

Notice that God said He wouldn't punish their harlot daughters and adulterous wives since the people who do not understand will fall (v 14).

 

It reminds me of Lot, who though he was "vexed daily" with the wickedness of Sodom & Gomorrah (1 Peter 2:8), he remained in the city.  Refusing to leave, Lot paved the way for his wife to face the judgment of God (Luke 17:32) and his daughters to burn for iniquity (Gen 19:32).

 

There are many men in this world who would worship idols they make with the wood from their own sheds (v 12).  They would cover them with gold not realizing the irony that they must nail it down lest it falls over (Jeremiah 10:4).  But "as for me and my house we will serve the Lord (Josh 24:15)" and "This book of life shall not depart out of my mouth (Josh 1:8)"

 

Men of Euless Bro McLaughlin is a Prophet in the Pulpit proclaiming the Word of the Lord.  We must be the head of our household.  Our families will follow us if we will be good priests of our homes and follow the Godly leadership in our lives as they follow Christ.

 

Jason Ouellette

Hosea 3

3:1 The LORD said to me, "Go, show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another and is an adulteress. Love her as the LORD loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes." (NIV)

With the quick lash of the whip, the breaking skin as the nails were driven into His hands, and feet. The sharp twinge of pain as the spear was thrust into His side. In crimson streams the blood of Jesus flowed down the splintery tree, and ran from the cross. Who could understand such love, sacrifice, forgiveness, and mercy? The very people that He came to save, to redeem were the ones who drove the nails into his hands and feet.

Jesus was perfect, flawless, yet He became sin that we might be free from its curse. While sin gripped our very soul, while it ate away at our hearts. As sin feasted upon the pleasure of holding us captive, Jesus Christ took upon Himself the curse of the law. Gal 3:13 "Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law; being made a curse for us; for it is written cursed is everyone that hangeth on a tree."  

Though we turned our backs on Him, He still died for us. When we knew we were wrong, and yet we still continued in our sin; His mercy was waiting all the while. Just as Hosea went back and took his wife and loved her despite her sinful past. God does the same for us. He has taken all our iniquities and cast them into the sea. His blood has covered our past. We are no longer a slave to yesterday's mistakes, but we are free. Do not let your past dictate who you are today. Do not let it blind you from what God wants you to do. It has been covered by the blood!

Ryan Denard

Hosea 2

14  Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto her. 15. And I will give her her vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope: and she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt.

There are so many places I could go with this chapter, but I would like to focus on a small part of verse 15.

15 And I will give her her vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope:

The valley of Achor received its name after Achan was stoned for disobeying God's orders. This story is found in Joshua 7:24-26:

24 And Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the garment, and the wedge of gold, and his sons, and his daughters, and his oxen, and his asses, and his sheep, and his tent, and all that he had: and they brought them unto the valley of Achor.  25 And Joshua said, Why hast thou troubled us? the LORD shall trouble thee this day. And all Israel stoned him with stones, and burned them with fire, after they had stoned them with stones. 26 And they raised over him a great heap of stones unto this day. So the LORD turned from the fierceness of his anger. Wherefore the name of that place was called, The valley of Achor, unto this day.

Achor literally means trouble. After reading this story, you might be feeling sad and depressed. After all, when's the last time you rejoiced over reading about a gruesome death? So how could there be a door of hope in the valley of Achor?

The interesting thing about this story is that Israel had to stone Achan before they could destroy Ai. When you came to God, you had a valley of Achor experience. You were guilty of sin and you stood before God in the valley of judgment. There, your sinful nature was stoned to death.

Notice that even after they had stoned Achan and his family, they buried them under a pile of stones. In the same way, we were buried with Christ in Baptism. Our sins were buried once and for all in the valley of Achor.

When we read this story in the book of Joshua, we can either focus on the gruesome death of Achan, or we can rejoice when we read about Israel's victory over Ai. Some people want to keep wallowing in the mire of Achor. They keep trying to dig up the bones of sin that were meant to be buried forever. While it's important for us to never forget about Achor (our new birth experience) we mustn't dwell on the buried sin. Instead, we need to remember the door of hope that God opened for us in this valley. I'm sure that the people of Israel would walk past the valley of Achor often. It would always serve as a reminder of painful death, but it would also remind them of their victory over Ai.

All of us should remember the chains that once bound our hands and feet, but we should also rejoice in the fact that those chains are gone. Steven Curtis Chapman wrote a song years ago that contained the following lyric:

Remember your chains

Remember the prison that once held you before the love of God broke through

Remember the place you were without grace and see where you are now

So remember your chains and remember that your chains are gone

1 Corinthians 6:9-11:
9. Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, 10 Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.

(3.) It is good for Christians to look back on what they once were. It will produce
(*) humility,
 (*) gratitude,
 (*) a deep sense of the sovereign mercy of God,
 (*) an earnest desire that others may be recovered and saved in like manner.

You don't have to regret your past any longer. If you turn your regret into testimony, this world will sit up and pay attention. People can argue with doctrine, scripture, and your personal convictions, but they can't argue with your testimony.

Acts 4:13-15
13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marveled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus. 14 And beholding the man which was healed standing with them, they could say nothing against it.

Go out and tell those around you about your valley of Achor experience, but more importantly, tell them about the door of hope that you found in that valley.

Jordan Mills

Hosea 1

2 The beginning of the word of the LORD by Hosea. And the LORD said to Hosea, Go, take unto thee a wife of whoredoms and children of whoredoms: for the land hath committed great whoredom, departing from the LORD.
KJV

It is mind boggling enough that God would call a prophet to marry an unclean, immoral single woman who gave herself on the streets of the city. Perhaps this is the strangest painting in scripture, yet the most indescribable portrait of God's love ever seen. A faithful groom committed to an unfaithful bride. There is not a man I know that would tolerate his wife turning into an unclean mistress of the night and violating the marriage covenant, not once, but on numerous occasions. Yet, the Groom, Jesus Christ, does just that for each of us. Every lie, evil thought, wicked scheme, dishonest gain. The times He has sought our exclusive affection and we were running after spiritual mirages that left us wanting. There He is Faithful, Waiting, Forgiving, Patient, and Loving. What a picture of His affection and love for His bride, the church. This is the snapshot of the book of Hosea. Israel was backslidden and turned a cold shoulder to the Lord of glory and all He wanted was to be loved back. Let's render unto God that which belongs to Him.

May our love for Him be as loyal, devout, committed, and faithful as His love is for us.

R.E.A.L. men practice Semper Fi! It means forever faithful. Not just when it is easy, but when it seems hard…be faithful!  Not just when you are strongest, but when you are the weakest…be faithful! Not just when everyone is around, but when you are all alone…be faithful. Not just when you are around Christians, but when you are the only Christian…be faithful.

Semper Fi,
Pastor McLaughlin

Jude

3 Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints. 4 For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.

12 These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds they are without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots;

Hypocrites: there's some in every fellowship. Jude wrote a lot in this letter about these individuals, being very careful to label them correctly. In this labeling process, he uses an interesting description that I would like to focus on for a while.

"These are spots in your feasts of charity". The first thing I want you to notice about this descriptive term is, "your feasts". In other words, there were some people in this church that had turned away from the truth, but were still "feeding themselves without fear". 

The NLT translates verse 12 this way: 12 When these people join you in fellowship meals celebrating the love of the Lord, they are like dangerous reefs that can shipwreck you. They are shameless in the way they care only about themselves.

I recently found out that some very influential people whom I used to respect and honor are now preaching false doctrine. However, they still claim to be Pentecostals. I have to admit that this disturbs me.  Jude went on to compare these hypocrites to the wicked people of Sodom and Gomorrah.

 7   Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.

If you recall, the men of Sodom and Gomorrah were so wicked that God struck them with blindness, but even in their blindness, they still longed to do sinful things. Go back and read this story again and see if you can find anywhere in scripture where God ever gave them their sight back. I believe that these men were still blind when God sent fire from heaven to consume them.

There are many people that are as blind.  Study the story of Balaam and you will find that Balaam desired the rewards that Balak had offered him, but when he set out to meet Balak, an angel of the Lord appeared and stood in his way. When that didn't stop him, the Angel stood in front of him in a narrow path with a wall on either side. When even this didn't detour him, the Angel stood before him in a place that was so narrow that there was no way for him to turn to the right or to the left. God deals with us when there's plenty of time to turn around, but the longer that we refuse to listen to Him, the narrower the pathway becomes. If Balaam would've just turned around the second time, the outcome of this story could be completely different, but he kept going until he reached a place where it was impossible for him to turn around.

Perhaps you have an individual on your mind right now as you're reading this. Maybe it's someone you used to admire and their downfall has had a tremendous affect on you. While it's very easy for us to focus on the fallen brethren who still claim to be part of the church, we must pay close attention to another part of verse 12.

"These are spots in your feasts of charity". While Jude discuses the apostate Christians throughout most of his letter, he merely refers to them as "spots in your feasts of charity". Why would we stop a perfectly good feast to examine a few spots here and there? Let's spend our time focusing on the things that are most important. If these "spots" don't want to repent, that may cause us to be shocked and hurt, but it shouldn't affect our walk with God. Notice the way that Jude ended this letter.

20  But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost, 21 Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

Instead of moping and worrying about those that have fallen, let's build ourselves up in the faith. I like verses 24 and 25:

24 Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, 25 To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.

Forget about the person that is spiritually blind and place your hope in the One that is able to keep you from falling. There's an old song that says, "I've got no reason to quit, but one hundred reasons why I should go on. I may get low and sometimes fail. I'm not proud of it, but I've got no reason to quit."

Don't spend your time focusing on spots; instead, focus on the spotless Lamb, because He's worthy of our attention!!!

Jordan Mills

3 John

4 I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.

In a society that is seemingly slipping away, and departing from the truth of God's word it is refreshing to see that there are parents that will still stand up for truth. Parents that will teach their children what is right and wrong. I know that I am blessed to have been brought up and taught that there is ONE GOD! I remember that one of the first passages of scripture that my dad taught me was from Ephesians 4:5, 6 "One Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all." Sure, there were times when I questioned what was true. There were times that I wanted to be doing other things than memorizing scripture, or listening to my parents read the Bible. It wasn't always the coolest or most fun thing, but it was the BEST thing. The BEST thing that my parents have ever done for me was raise me in the truth! The BEST thing they have ever given me was the Word of God!

I am just a young man, but I do believe that the greatest thing that we can ever do is raise or children in the Truth! I pray that when I have a family someday that I will always stand up for what is right, and teach them that there is ONLY ONE WAY!

Prov 22:6
 Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

Ryan Denard

2 John

9 Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son.
10 If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed:
11 For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds.
KJV

We the REAL Men of Euless are very blessed to have a blessed church to go to, and excellent leadership in Bro. Benson, and Bro McLaughlin.  The teaching and preaching come from the Bible, and are aligned with sound doctrine.  As such, these are the men that we should look to when we have questions, and situations we need answers to.  These scriptures tell us to be careful of whom we associate with and who we look to for guidance.
    
If someone is not teaching the whole truth, we should not look to them for guidance, nor wish them God speed (do not wish them success in their endeavors).  We are all aware of men teaching views that are in line with the Bible, but we in Euless are blessed to be in a church where the teaching and actions of our pastors are in tune with the word of God, and the people want to learn about, and please Jesus Christ.  What an awesome feeling it is to know each and every service will be an opportunity to be in the presence of God. 
       
This is not mathematics, two negatives equal a negative, also a positive and a negative equal a negative. One must teach and practice the whole truth to be right. 

Ralph Cain

1 John 5

4: For Whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world:
and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.

5: Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?

12: He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life

These verses in John 5 point out two important things for a Christian; a purpose and a definition.

The Purpose: Christians are to be overcomers and New creatures through Christ.

The Definition: Who is a overcomer? He that has the Son of God living inside their hearts. For they have put themselves above this world and have gained eternal life .

Thank God for his overcoming power

Taylor Dutton

1 John 4

One of the words that jumped out at me, after reading this passage was "know".

verse 2   ".... know the Spirit of God..."
verse 6   "...  he that knoweth God heareth us.."
verse 7  "... everyone that loveth is born of God and knoweth God"
verse 8  " He that loveth not, knoweth not God..."
verse 16  "And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth  in God, and God in him.

Then I read verse 20.

verse 20  "If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?

In short, we must love our brother and sister, or we cannot love Him.  If we cannot love Him, we can never know Him.

Bron Dutton

1 John 3

Verse 18 says, "let us not love in words or tongue but actions and in truth."

The world is going to hate us the more we try to become like Jesus. As I grow up I am grateful to be in a great church with men who know how to "talk the talk, and walk the walk."

For example. I went fishing with brother Steve Mooney and he acted just as he does in church. Jesus told us that He loved us and then showed it by dieing on the cross for our salvation. We should all want that kind of passion and live that kind of life.

Erik MacPhee

STAND Youth

1 John 2

There is much meat in this chapter that is rich in imagery, anointing and truth. Penned in John's "straight up" style of talking, this chapter uses love as it's ink and sandpaper as it's parchment. John does not mince words as he boldly asks us the question that every disciple had to answer.  "Do you know about God or do you know God?"

John gives us the answer in verse three as he states, "hearby we do know Him, if we keep His commandments". But if you look back at the moment of truth in every disciples life, you will see what John was trying to convey.

In Matthew 4:18-21; 8:22; 19:15-21; 9:9.  Mark 2:14.  Luke 5:24-27.  John 1:45.  You see grown men in the middle of their normal daily routine.  Some say that the disciples already knew Jesus prior to their calling so they had a working knowledge of what kind of a person He was. They had heard Him speak and obviously had a deep respect for Him but when that moment came what did Jesus say to them?

Did Jesus say , " Only do what I say? " No, Jesus said, "Follow me." In other words don't just do what I say but do what I do. It was the walk of Jesus that people loved. When the woman anointed and kissed the feet of Jesus, she was saying, " Hey, I've seen this man not only does He have power in word but He backs it up everyday with the utmost integrity."

Every step that Jesus took was filled with prophecy and purpose. He walked in love, humility, joy, patience, kindness, gentleness, goodness and faith. That's exactly what we have been called to. If we memorized every scripture in the Bible and became the most revered scholar, yet we could not walk as Jesus did, we would be a liar. Although I agree, John said it, not me.

This chapter ends with regeneration and I praise His name for that chance to regain the favor of the only wise, living God. While there is much in this chapter that could be explored deeper by men more qualified than myself, for me, I never really made it past verse six. "He that saith he abideth in Him ought himself also so to walk, even as He walked."

I am very grateful that God placed me in a truth teaching church, with such great pastors and leaders to learn from and all I really desire is to learn from the Master as I walk with Him and learn to walk as He did.

Robert MacPhee Jr

1 John 1

1 John ch.1:5-7

This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: but if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son  cleanseth us from all sin.

So many times have people professed themselves to me to be christians and I would see them live their lives in sin. It would make me wonder how a person who "loves" God would go to such great lengths to defy his very word and have fellowship with this world of darkness. Even in the Apostle John's time this was happening, and he knew that he would have to address this growing problem of situational Christianity.

The Christian who was only a Christian when they were at the right place to be one. But it was John who called them out and spoke truth to their hearts, proclaiming the fact, God is light. If God is light and if man is filled with God, then the light will shine within that man, making it impossible for there to be any fellowship of darkness. And anyone who said different was called out as a liar.

Harsh words it seems John had spoken; but it was out of love he was speaking this, making sure that no man would fall to the deception that there is such a thing as a situational Christian.  And through this caring love for the church of his time, he tells us that through truly walking in the light of God we can have fellowship with one another.

I'm thankful for the fellowship that we have in our church, and I know it comes from men who live in the light, not following the deeds of darkness. And in the fellowship we have in the church we can freely come and experience the blood of Jesus cleansing us from all sin, that we may continue in his light.

Mike Creel

2 Peter 2

Even after Peter finishes his opening remarks in chapter 1, reminding us that "the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost", he has to address false doctrine.

Peter tells us there will always be those who spread false doctrine, but as we learned from chapter 1, "Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust."

False doctrines and turning from the truth is running rampant among us today as vs 12 describes them-"natural brute beasts…speak evil of the things that they understand not". They are turning their ears from the truth and being turned unto fables. Just as Paul told the Thessalonians in 2 Thess chapter 2, "with all deceivableness of unrighteousness, they received not the love of the truth that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:"

 Peter wraps up the chapter by telling us that "it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them."

Because we have hope in Jesus Christ let us cling to that. 2 Peter 2:9 "The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations." We will be tempted, but we will not be persuaded. Let's be REAL MEN who "watch and pray", "pray without ceasing", "search the Scriptures", "buy the truth AND SELL IT NOT!"

Tim Jacobs

2 Peter 1

The Race to Eternity... One step at a time!

My heart is so encouraged as I read this treasure map of sorts… ultimately leading to a chest full of vast riches. Verse 4 tells us that the riches include a new and Divine nature. To be like Jesus!

Some may say, well, how do I get started on this quest of TRUE christianity? How do I reach this Nature that is so Divine and so unlike my human nature?…our first step is FAITH!

Heb 11:1 – Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things NOT seen.

It all starts with faith. We are told add to our faith Virtue(moral excellence)

With Virtue we are to seek Knowledge.(study)

With Knowledge we are to add Temperance(self-control)

With temperance we are to ask for Patience

With Patience we need to strive towards Godliness

With Godliness we then need display Brotherly Kindness

and With Brotherly Kindness comes Charity.

The journey starts out dealing within ourselves. As we progress the inward manifests itself on the outside and has no choice but to influence those around us. If we will let God work on us on the inside, His spirit will fill us and the effects will be like a cup that can not hold all the treasure poured into it. The riches begin to over flow to the people around us in our sphere of influence. Those who are looking to us for Direction.

Wow! Thats a lot of ground to cover. You might be saying " I am not even close to my treasure," but I would then tell you to read again the beginning of verse 4 where it says the words "exceeding great and precious promises." We were promised this treasure! God never said how long it would take or if one person may get to their treasure before another. He never said that it would be easy or that it might be hard. On this journey,we were never told that it would come overnight... but we were given a Promise!

Matt 6:33 But seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

This race is not to the swift but to he who endures to the end! God, let us be REAL Men who have not lost sight of our goal. Let us remember what the finish line looks like in our minds. Let us Not forget that we have been called out of darkness and into his marvelous light! We have a goal. We have a prize. Let's continue on this journey One step at a time!

Chase Potter

1 Peter 5

In the closing of his book, Peter addresses the leaders and elders encouraging them to lead well and to follow Christ as their example of leadership. We as REAL men are called to minister to others, serving them before being served.. We should eagerly invest in others not as lords, but as examples.

Peter is issuing a motive check in this chapter for us to lead not for selfish gain but to serve voluntarily and humbly. He asks us a question, "Are you motivated by the will of God or by personal gain?" When the pastor recognizes you from the pulpit, does it fill you with personal pride or thankfulness to God that His influence speaks clearly through your life's example of humility.

We have all been given talents and we should use them for God's glory and allow His Spirit to radiate through our lives as we unite together as REAL Men.

Billy Potter

1 Peter 4

12 Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; 13 but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ's sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy.

Firms spend trillions of dollars employing ad agencies and marketing firms to entice you to purchase their goods or services.  Much of this activity is geared to cause us to think about ourselves; to feed our wants.  Truly, the most effective marketers make our wants appear as our needs. 

Bombarded minute by minute with images and ads with the intent to sharpen our appetite for product, we forget His purpose.  To robe Himself in flesh and become the ultimate sacrifice was to purchase our salvation.  We become dulled to our purpose; which is to worship the creator.

The fiery trials referenced in this chapter are not for our comfort.  Rather they are for the perfecting of our spirit.  (Heb. 12:2-15)  They sharpen our focus on what really matters.  They try or purify our spirits and burn away the excess.

Let us rejoice when we find ourselves in the depths of great tribulation.  They are often strategically placed to shore up our weakness.   Embrace the process so that when the last trumpet sounds we can lead our family, friends and church to that heavenly place. 

Keith G. Mathews

1 Peter 3

"Likewise, ye husbands dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honor unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered"

 

This chapter has given me so much to strive for in my young marriage.  I like to begin at the end.  "That your prayers be not hindered."  The way that we husbands deal with our wives is going to directly affect the way God deals with us.  So what do you say we get this right?

 

"Being heirs together of the grace of life" Peter reminds us often through his epistles that our motivation to show grace was met at Calvary.  The fact that we are partakers of Christ's redemptive plan is reason enough for us to show grace to all.  OK, so I show grace but in relation to what?

 

"As unto the weaker vessel" Some commentaries feel this statement replies only to the physical difference between women and men.  I dare say not.  The meaning of this statement is found in the previous statement and in the verses following.  Peter is reminding us that we must behave in a way that is not as easy for our wives.  That is why Peter reminds us to show grace and that God will hold us accountable.  In other words God holds us responsible to do that which He has given us the strength to do.  So let's get to it…

 

"Husbands deal with them (your wives) according to knowledge."  There are two main contributors to our actions: what we know and what we feel.  Women are emotional beings and men are rational beings.  As men we have a greater ability to separate our emotion from what we say and do, literally to act on what we know.  Peter is calling us to do just that.

 

We cannot allow undisciplined behavior to affect the prayers that we pray during this season of revival.  As men we must rule our home with the love and grace.  We must "seek peace and pursue it."  REAL men must "not render railing for railing, but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called."

 

Jason Ouellette

1 Peter 2

Peter tells us that Jesus Christ is the chief cornerstone in our lives.  When we are baptized in His name  He took away all the sins that was in our lives.  We believe in Jesus as our Lord & Savior.  We are so blessed that God looked down from the cross,  saw & choose us to live and serve him.

There are some people that rejected his mercy & love.  To them (the cornerstone, Jesus Christ) is but a stumbling block.  How blind they are.  I think God every day that he opened my eyes and saved such a sinner that I was.  Now we can fully trust him for everything that we need.

Kirk Fults

1 Peter 1

Our Father is giving some insight into our walk with Him. He is telling us that we have something that the angels desire and that the prophets prophesied about and kept waiting to receive but never received. We have a living hope that can never spoil, perish, or fade - the Holy Ghost. He tells us that trials will come that we must go through so that others will see that our faith is genuine and will result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus is revealed. The first part will lead us wanting to be holy and live a holy life as Christ did.

Christ was the spotless and blameless Lamb that died for us. When we fully commit our lives to being holy as He was, we will have not a problem living for Him. Nothing in this world would be able to keep us from being sold out and being the example He really wants us to be.

Randal Sheppard

James 5

In this world there is nothing in riches but misery and corruption, but the race is not to the swift.  We must have patience and endure.

God is faithful and any fault you have will be forgiven you. Be a REAL Man and have a strong prayer life

Robert McDonald

James 4

How many times have we heard someone quote a portion of vs 7, "resist the devil, and he will flee from you".  We do have power over satan and satanic influences, but that power does not come without discipline.

Only one verse in this chapter references us resisting and the fleeing of the devil.  However, there are sixteen additional verses that rebuke and instruct us to pursue humility.  The first part of vs 7 says to submit ourselves to God.

Submission is not possible without humility.  Humility is not possible when we entertain wrong motives (vs 1-3) and pursue our own desires (vs 13 – 17).  Keep it real, and stay humble. 

Jeff McGee

James 3

Have you ever said anything you regretted? Silly question, I know. Have you ever hurt someone's feelings with something you said? To make it a little less painful but a little more impactful, have you ever known anyone who has been hurt and turned away from the church because of something someone said to them? Sure, we don't serve God or attend church for other people, but the words we say can have tremendously devastating effects on a person. The third chapter of James shows how passionate the author is about the way we speak. Shamefully, we can speak beautifully at times (well not me but some people) and yet tear down someone at other times, both from the same mouth. The tongue, our words, can't be tamed. James felt it such a major issue that he said you can't even compare it to a beast, because all beasts have been tamed by man. But there's not a man alive or gone that can tame the tongue.

James addresses the teachers at the beginning of the chapter, because if anyone's going to be heard by groups of people, they're at even more risk to "stumble in word". If anyone never stumbled in word, they must be perfect in every other way, according to James, because this is just that difficult a task to accomplish. Speech comes from the inward character. Therefore, we must have our words coming from the Holy Ghost, because "no spring yields both salt water and fresh."

In Verse 13 the writer instructs that any knowledge we have, any ability, any good thing we do, should not be professed. He says here that the truth will lead us to conduct ourselves in meekness of wisdom, or purely for the benefit of the kingdom. By contrast, if our conduct is self-seeking, confusion and every evil thing are there. Why do I do the things I do? What are my motivations? Do I insist that I be the one to get credit? If I wash the church windows, do I put my hand out for payment? Not if I'm conducting myself with the wisdom from above. Another bit of down-to-earth good soul searching truth to help make sure what I say and what I do are careful, with meekness and wisdom from God.

Joey Hart

James 2

James 2 talks about faith.  Not so-called faith but genuine faith.  I have a friend that says he would rather witness to unbelievers with questionable life styles and dress than to those who have a form of Godliness.   He thinks the "unbelievers" are easier to talk to.

Now I think most of us look at some people and automatically judge them.  In our society people are trying to stand out, be different.  For some standing out is expensive clothes, cars etc. and for others it's piercing and tattooing.  But what happens when these societal "unbelievers" come into our church services?  Do we pretend they are not there maybe?  If so we have just exercised respect of persons which according to James is not genuine faith.

Jesus did not only give his life for those who can look the part, but  "God so loved the world..." the entire world.  So why not show our genuine faith by our works?  Anytime we meet someone hurting can we show them the love we would show a statesman?  Can we find them a good seat in church; maybe next to our family? 
 
Douglas Dunn

James 1

The author of James is generally accepted as James, the half-brother of Jesus Christ.  Now, why would he be the half-brother of Jesus?  They had the same mother but James was born of Joseph and Jesus was of the Holy Ghost.  James was the leader of the Jerusalem church born on the Day of Pentecost.  Due to persecution of the church, the saints were scattered abroad as James in verse one addresses the book to the twelve tribes, thus a general epistle.  

The book written approximately 40 A.D. was to encourage the Jewish believers who were suffering various trials that were testing their faith.  He also addresses the nature of saving faith.

The last verse of chapter one pretty well sums up the purpose of enduring temptations and holding to the saving faith.

27Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

We hear the word "temptations" and we immediately think of enticements but the Greek word "peirasmoi" refers to trials, persecutions, and afflictions from the world or from Satan. 

James said to count it all joy when we face temptations as the end result is a pure religion as in verse 27.  Religion is man's giving back to God for the precious gift of the Holy Ghost and salvation.  These temptations that are faced do a perfect work in us.  Through trials and persecutions we gain patience, wisdom and a stable mind. 

God wants man to not be double-minded thus man will stand in time of temptation.  True faith obeys the Word of God therefore man is not just a hearer of the word but also a doer of the word.  Being a doer of the word is where religion comes in play in an individual's life. 

Men, we are God's workmanship therefore let us count it all joy when we fall into divers temptations for through them we will have "true" religion.

Side note:  Verse 17 says that in God, the source of light, there is no variableness nor shadow of turning.  If we are standing directly under the source of light there are not shadows cast and no change in the amount of light shed on us.  No matter which way you turn if you stay directly under the light, no shadows will be cast.  Men, let us stay directly under the light of the word of God and the direction of the Holy Ghost.

Bob Gougler

John 21

This is the final chapter of the book of John. Jesus has risen yet the chapter begins with the disciples fishing. They are still without direction from the Lord. They do not yet understand what their purpose will be after Jesus returns to heaven.

But immediately we see that through their fishing expedition Jesus illustrates an important principle to them. Without the Lord's guidance, the disciples are unfruitful; they catch no fish despite fishing all night long. And yet with the following of a simple command from the Master, they net more fish than they can carry. These branches learn that without the vine they can do nothing. Only by living in obedience to the Lord can they, and we, bear righteous fruit.

Not only did the Lord furnish the disciples with fish, but he also prepared a meal for them. He still showed his compassion and concern for them; even though they should be serving their saviour, he knew they were exhausted from the all-night effort to catch fish and prepared a cooked meal for them. As always, the Lord provided for their needs. He also illustrated a spiritual concept for them. While he fed them physical food, he would use this to segue into their future roles in building the Kingdom.

He repeatedly emphasized to the one holding the keys to the kingdom of heaven to feed his sheep. This was to also lay to rest Peter's thrice denial of the Lord before the crucifixion, and to reassert his role as the primary leader of the disciples.

In this final chapter of John, Jesus puts everything in order and provides direction to the ones who will establish his church. He reminds them all that without completely relying on him they will be unsuccessful. He also showed that even in his new role and King of kings and Lord of lords, he will still take care of their needs. And finally, he demonstrated forgiveness and reconciliation with Peter, while at the same time giving them their mission.
We men need to always depend on the Lord for everything, seek out his guidance and mercy, and trust that he will take care of our earthly needs.

Paul Pixley

John 20

What better chapter for any Christian in the New Testament than this one? After the brief sorrow of seeing THE SAVIOR get treated the way HE was, here we come upon 'The Third Day'.

It's the morning when Mary goes to the tomb and finds it empty. Peter and John come and check it out and find her story to be true. They went back home, but "Mary stood outside by the tomb weeping." Then she saw who she thought was the gardener. After a quick conversation with Him, she realized who He was after He spoke her name.

Later that evening, Jesus appeared unto the disciples also. 8 days later, the disciples were gathered together again and this time 'doubting Thomas' was there with them. Here Jesus tells Thomas that those who don't doubt and believe when they don't see are blessed.

REAL men, let's not be guilty of having to see Jesus work before we believe—like Thomas. Let's not be guilty of looking at Jesus and not knowing his face—like Mary. Let's be the sheep that know His voice and let's believe on Him even though we haven't seen with our eyes His wounds. Let's believe on Him because He is the I AM!

Verse 31 says "These are written that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through His name."

God is Jesus and in the name of Jesus we have life and life more abundantly!

Tim Jacobs