The Right Fellowship

Introduction: Will it hurt anything to fellowship with unbelievers? That does not mean talk and reach out to them. It means support and sometimes incorporate their practices which are contrary to a believer in Jesus Christ.

1. Unequally Yoked (2Cor 6:14-16)

“Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”

The words “unequally yoked” is the word ἑτεροζυγέω: (het-er-od-zoog-eh’-o), which means to be yoked up differently. If you’ve ever seen a yoke which is an instrument that connects two animals together, you know that they must be together, pull together, and work together. 

2. Equally Yoked (2Cor 6:14-17)
 

“Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you.”

The word “fellowship” is μετοχή,(met-okh-ay’), which means sharing, or partnership. Our Lord is protecting us from bad decisions which leads to compromises and then ultimately consequences. Are you choosing your friendships wisely? 

Conclusion: There is a balance between these two. Witnessing to unbelievers is one thing. But to approve and participate in their practices is quite another. Jesus was around unbelievers but only for the purpose of sharing with them to trust in Him. 

Are we doing the same? 

Love y’all,
Pastor Randy Reese
 


Dealing with Things Out of Our Control

Introduction: Listen. We are all facing “things OUT of our control.” What should we do? How can we honor our Lord when things are OUT of our CONTROL?

“Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved” (Psa 55:22).

The word “cast” is שָׁלַךְ (shaw-lak), which means to throw, to fling, or to cast.
The word “burden” is יְהָב (ye-hawb’), which means a lot, or what is given.
The word “sustain” is כּוּלis (kool). I guess it is pronounced COOL! It means to comprehend, or to contain.
The word “moved” is מוֹט, which means to totter, or to shake. It can mean to slip.
 

1. First, we must “LET GO” of trying to be in CONTROL! (RELEASE) 

  • By recognizing we can’t control.
  • By realizing we are not in control 
  • By releasing the control
LAY it DOWN! Have you laid it down?
 

2. Second, we must “TAKE CONTROL” of only what we can CONTROL! (REGAIN)

  • Our mind 
  • Our will 
  • Our emotions
Like a race horse that runs away, our emotions can run away from us. Are your emotions running? Let the Holy Spirit catch them.
 

3. Third, we must “LET JESUS take CONTROL”! (REDEDICATE)

  • Yield control into His hands 
  • Refuse to try to take it back UP
This is an act of the will. Purpose in your heart to obey the Lord.
 

4. Fourth, we need to REMEMBER JESUS is in CONTROL! (RECALL)

  • Have His PEACE & REST 
  • Have His PURPOSE 

Can our Lord use things that are out of our control for His purpose and plan?

Conclusion: When things get out of our control, remember these steps. Then, we can let go of control because Jesus is in control.

Love y’all,
Pastor Randy Reese
 


What’s Bothering You?

Introduction: It’s not what we are eating that’s bothering us, but instead it’s what is eating us that’s bothering us. What’s eating you? Please go over this list honestly and deal with each one accordingly.

1. Resentment (Col 3:8,9) – “But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds.”

Being angry and living with resentment will eat away at any relationship with Jesus or with others.

2. Remorse (Col 3:8,9) – “But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds.”

Guilt will eat away your happiness.

3. Restlessness, impatience (Col 3:12) – “Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering…” 
 

Are you impatient? Unfortunately, under the right circumstances, anyone can experience being impatient. Do you agree?

4. Remember (Col 3:13,14) – “Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye. And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness.”

Please don’t ever forget Jesus forgave us! Therefore, we can forgive others because of His grace.

Conclusion: The key to not allowing things to bother us is found in Colossians 3:15-16. “And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.”
Is anything bothering you?
 
Love y’all,
Pastor Randy Reese


Dealing with Difficulties

Introduction: How can we use wisdom in dealing with people both in the Church and outside the Church? Here are three principles that may help in this discussion.

1. Love (Matt 22:36-38) – “Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” 

Would you agree that there is a difference in God’s love and man’s love? For example, the writer to Hebrews expresses some incredible insight to our Lord’s love. 

“My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth” (Heb 12:5-6).

This is proof that we are children of God; i.e. we are disciplined when we get out of line. Therefore, we can conclude that our love for others ought to be based on God’s love for us. Sometimes, we need to exercise discipline to those we love. Not because we are “judgmental” or “legalistic” but because the Truth of God’s Word must supercede our feelings.

2. Legalism (Matt 23:1-3) – “Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples, Saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat: All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not. For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their finger.”

The Pharisees were legalistic. They made the outside clean, but the inside was left dirty. But they tried to impose their 613 commandments – plus – on every body else. Basically, Jesus called them hypocritical. Both before becoming a CHRISTIAN and afterwards, we can easily get caught in the trap of legalism; i.e. trying to enforce our “rules and regulations” on everybody we know.

3. Liberty (Gal 5:13) – “For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.”

Here again, these Galatian believers as well as us today were prone to use their “liberty” once they had been gloriously saved to do whatever they wanted to – not necessarily sinful in itself. But, if it caused others to “stumble,” then it would be wrong. A certain example was in regards to eating meat that had been offered to idols (Rom 14-15). Stronger CHRISTians said it did not bother them to eat the meat since there was only one God; however, the weaker CHRISTians didn’t think it was right. Therefore, Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit declares it would be wrong to eat it because of the stumbling block effect even though they had liberty to do it.

Are you using your liberty and causing others to stumble?

Conclusion: These three biblical principles should be used when dealing with difficulties in the Church and in relationships.

Love y’all,
Pastor Randy Reese

 

 

 



A Prayer for Every Church

Introduction: What is our MISSION? What is our VISION? The book of Acts records the experience of the early Church. Whereas, it is not necessarily a total model for every single event in the book, it is an historical record of what the Holy Spirit did thru the disciples. There are patterns that are applicable for today. Let’s glean several truths that will transform any Church.

1. Edified! (Acts 9:31) – “Then had the churches rest throughout all Judaea and Galilee and Samaria, and were edified; and walking in the fear of the Lord, and in the comfort of the Holy Ghost, were multiplied.”

Interesting to note, the word “edified” is οἰκοδομέω: (oy-kod-om-eh’-o), which has to do with the building up of character. It also means to encourage. Wow! This is greatly needed!! Encouragement is not the same thing as flattery. Today there is a lot of flattery along with encouragement. To edify means to lift up, or to build up. Are you building up those around you? So often in Churches people are tearing down each other because of jealousy. Instead, we need
to be led by the Spirit in edifying.

Lord help us!!

2. Multiplied! (Acts 9:31) – “Then had the churches rest throughout all Judaea and Galilee and Samaria, and were edified; and walking in the fear of the Lord, and in the comfort of the Holy Ghost, were multiplied.”

The word “multiplied” is πληθύνω: (play-thoo’-no). Its definition is to increase, to be increased, or to multiply. This should be both spiritually as well as numerically. A Church can be growing numerically but not spiritually, but it cannot grow spiritually without growing numerically. Are you reaching others?

3. Unified! (Acts 9:31) – “Then had the churches rest throughout all Judaea and Galilee and Samaria, and were edified; and walking in the fear of the Lord, and in the comfort of the Holy Ghost, were multiplied.”

Did you notice two other key words? “Rest” and “Peace.” That speaks of being UNIFIED! The fear of God kept them walking together.

Conclusion: These three areas are crucial when it comes to God’s blessings on the Church. Furthermore, this is a prescription for a Church-wide revival.

Love y’all,

Pastor Randy Reese

 



Take Back the Borders

Introduction: Have you heard? Truckers are forming Convoy Rallies all over the place for the purpose of securing our “Borders.” Over ten million migrants have crossed our border since President Biden has been in office. A news spokesperson noted that the Chinese are paying $35,000.00 to $50,000.00 a head for terrorists to enter our country from the southern border with Mexico. This spokesperson also mentioned that our country has been infiltrated by military-age men from China. In fact, the number of infiltrations has increased by a whopping 1,100 percent. Needless to say, we are in deep trouble.
 
Do the Scriptures offer any guidance on this matter?
 

1) Israel was instructed to OPEN its borders! —“Thou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress him: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt” (Exodus 22:21). The Hebrew word for “stranger” is ger (גֵּר), which means a sojourner. God wanted His people to remember that at one time they were strangers. “And if thy brother be waxen poor, and fallen in decay with thee; then thou shalt relieve him: yea, though he be a stranger, or a sojourner; that he may live with thee” (Leviticus 25:35).

Many point to the words of our Lord in Matthew 25:35, “For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in.” However, the technical interpretation is that this is during the tribulation—namely at the end when Jesus Christ returns in His second coming. Both the sheep and goats will stand before the King. The “strangers” will be the Jews during the tribulation, and how they are treated by the Gentiles.

These passages in both the Old and New Testaments reveal that God has pity on the widows, orphans, and strangers. But keep in mind, these strangers (resident aliens) would be law-abiding citizens who incorporated the Jewish way of life into their families. That is a “huge” difference than what is going on in our land today.

Even cities of refuge were established by God for refugees (Numbers 35:15).

2) Israel was instructed to CLOSE their borders!—“Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye are passed over Jordan into the land of Canaan; Then ye shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you, and destroy all their pictures, and destroy all their molten images, and quite pluck down all their high places: And ye shall dispossess the inhabitants of the land, and dwell therein: for I have given you the land to possess it” (Numbers 33:51-56). God knew that the illegal strangers in the land would turn His people’s hearts away from His Will. Therefore, they were not to allow them in the land. Looking back in retrospect, they did not fully obey the Lord and consequently, they sinned against God and were eventually taken into captivity.

Conclusion: There seems to be a biblical balance on the subject of allowing strangers (resident aliens) into the land. On the one hand, legal aliens were permitted as long as they obeyed the laws of the land and incorporated the Jewish practices into their lives. Does this sound familiar? The Word of God encourages believers to have fellowship with other believers. But it forbids to fellowship with unbelievers.

How are you doing? Are you praying?



The Kind of Faith that Moves Mountains

Introduction: Mountain Moving Faith… have you got it? Seen it? Heard about it? But where? And how? Jesus Christ rewards FAITH in Him.
 
Listen to this text:
 
1. Mustard Seed Faith! (Matt 17:20) – “And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.”
 
Did you hear about the lady that heard about this verse and began to pray every day for a small hill to be removed in her front yard. So day after day, week after week, and month after month, she earnestly prayed. Until finally, one day she looked out the window in the direction of the hill and saw it standing in the same place. She blurted out, “I didn’t think it would move”!
That’s not really FAITH!!
 

2. Fig Tree Faith! (Mark 11:22,23) – “And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.”

Did you hear about the Church that called a prayer meeting in order to pray for rain? Only one little girl brought an umbrella! She had FAITH in God!! Do you?

Conclusion: It only takes the FAITH of a small seed to be able to move gigantic mountains. Don’t you desire that kind of FAITH?
 
Love y’all,
Pastor Randy Reese


Love in the First Degree

Introduction: Oh the Love of God! To be loved by our Creator and Redeemer is very rewarding. Do you feel loved? Regardless of how we feel, the Word of God assures us that we are greatly loved. Let these Scriptures encourage your heart today.
 
Will you let God’s love envelop you? It is a happy day when we can just bask in His Love!
 
Check these verses out:
 
1. God’s great Love! (Eph 2:4) – “But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us.”
 

2. God’s out of this world kind of Love! (1John 3:1-2) – “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.”

3. God’s sacrificial Love for us! (1John 3:16) – “Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.”

4. God’s disciplinary Love! (Heb 12:5) – “Have ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him.”

5. The wonderful Love of God should motivate us! (2Cor 5:14,15) – “For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead: And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.”

Conclusion: Not only does God love us, but we are to love Him. “We love him, because he first loved us” (1John 4:19).

Why? Because we are loved in the 1st degree.

Love y’all,
Pastor Randy Reese


Faith Mixed with Obedience

Introduction: Faith must be mixed with Obedience. To say we have FAITH in God without OBEDIENCE is a misnomer.
James, the half brother of our Lord Jesus makes this distinction. 
 
Check it out.
 

1. FAITH (Heb 11:1,6) – “…faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen….. But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.”

Remember: Prayer is the door to heaven – FAITH unlocks the door! Go unlock the door.

2. FAITH with OBEDIENCE! (James 2:24,26) – “Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only….. as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.”

Where are your works? Obedience proves one’s faith!

3. FAITH mixed with OBEDIENCE comes thru the Word of God! (Rom 10:17) – “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”

Do you want to build your faith? Get in the Word! Then obey it!! Next, will come blessings from the Lord.

4. FAITH mixed with OBEDIENCE comes thru the Word of God by the Power of the Holy Spirit! (Rom 8:14) – “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.”

Faith does not work apart from the Holy Spirit; instead, it is a byproduct of the fruit of the Spirit. Keep the fruit coming.

Conclusion: FAITH is multifaceted. It must be joined with OBEDIENCE. But the OBEDIENCE is accompanied because of the power of the Holy Spirit. “Trust & Obey for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus but to trust and obey.”
 
Love y’all,
Pastor Randy Reese


Money in the Fish’s Mouth

Introduction: Have you ever heard of this saying, “Put your money where your mouth is”? This devotion is going to explore that thought, but in alittle different way. The setting is found In Matthew’s gospel. Jesus Christ has traveled, taught, and healed all the way from the Mount of Transfiguration (Mt Hermon – northern Israel) to the area called Galilee. Next, after being approached concerning his taxes, Peter is going to witness a miracle in the making. Yet, in this narrative, there are several practical lessons we can learn. Take note:

1. Confirmation for our Provisions! (Matt 17:24-26) – “And when they were come to Capernaum, they that received tribute money came to Peter, and said, Doth not your master pay tribute? 25 He saith, Yes. And when he was come into the house, Jesus prevented him, saying, What thinkest thou, Simon? of whom do the kings of the earth take custom or tribute? of their own children, or of strangers? 26 Peter saith unto him, Of strangers. Jesus saith unto him, Then are the children free.”

Do you remember “Where Jesus GUIDES, He PROVIDES”?

Get the picture. Peter is questioned about paying not only his temple tax but also our Lord’s. What is a “tribute”?

The word “tribute” is δίδραχμον, (did’-rakh-mon), which is a double-drachma, two drachmae, or a Greek silver coin.

This “tax” was an annual fee that was required for the Jewish temple. It would be equal to 1/2 shekel or 8 grams of silver or 160 grains of barley. Someone has calculated it to be about $5.00 today if silver was around $17.00 per ounce.

The point is that the crowd was trying to trap Jesus again. Yet, He will not be put into a BOX! So He already had “Provisions” for Peter’s taxes as well as his. But in response to our Lord’s interesting request, Peter must not rely upon his “FEELINGS,” instead his “FAITH” in Jesus must govern his decision, which it did. Do you need to exercise FAITH in Jesus’s Word?

2. Vision for our Mission! (Matt 17:27) – “Notwithstanding, lest we should offend them, go thou to the sea, and cast an hook, and take up the fish that first cometh up; and when thou hast opened his mouth, thou shalt find a piece of money: that take, and give unto them for me and thee.”

Based on his past experience when it comes to fishing (Luke 5), Peter knew in his heart Jesus knew “where” and “what” the fish were biting, not to mention “how” to catch them! Subsequently, Peter OBEYED! Blessings resulted!! By the way, Blessings always follow OBEDIENCE. Are you OBEYING?
 
Conclusion: It was indeed a miracle! But after all Jesus Christ is a miracle-working God!! Therefore, we can fully rely upon Him.
 
Will you today?
 
Love y’all,
Pastor Randy Reese