BOTH LORD AND CHRIST
“Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made the same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.”– Acts 2:36
Of all things we need to know this is at the top of the list. Jesus is ” both Lord and Christ”. He is both Master and Messiah. He has both the authority and the anointing. He is our Ruler and Redeemer.
We often hear people talk about “making Jesus Lord”, but they are a little late to the party– that has already been done, in fact it has always been so! He is Lord of all whether you acknowledge it or not. The Word of God proclaims it is so and proves it is so. The only question is whether or not you will surrender to His Lordship. Most don’t and won’t. Judas refused. Pilate refused. Countless others refuse. But what about you? Have you submitted to His authority and trusted His saving grace? Where is the evidence?
He has been given a name above every name and invested with absolute authority ( Phil. 2:9 ) and every person must eventually answer to Him because “Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.” (Acts 17:31). As someone said, “He is the ‘ Inevitable Man’. There is no way you can avoid Him”. Indeed it is true! He is Lord of all and all who refuse to acknowledge that fact are living in rebellion against Him. Acts 17:30 says He “commandeth all men every where to repent:”. Have you? Will you? You can reject Him now, but you will recognize Him later. The time is coming, “That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Phil. 2:10-11)– HDS
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346
A PRICELESS PROMISE
A PRICELESS PROMISE
“But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you” – Matt. 6:33
I recently started a message by asking “Are you concerned about your future?” Then the next week I alluded to that question again. Well, I’m not through yet – “Are you concerned about your future?” If we’re honest we will all answer in the affirmative. While we might not be looking miles down the road, we are probably wondering about tomorrow – or maybe ever later today. Thankfully this is a subject our Lord addresses in Matt. 6:34, “Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.“. That gives us good reason to not be anxious.
Here we find one of our Lord’s most precious promises. It’s a promise that will calm those who are distraught, cheer those who are depressed, and give courage to those who feel defeated. It is a promise that nobody but God could make. But it is conditional.
Before we can claim the promise we must meet the condition, which is – “seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness.” Do that and everything else falls into place. We can rest assured that God, who cannot lie, will keep His commitments to those who meet His conditions. Those who care for the things of God will be cared for by God who gives them the things they need. This is a priceless promise in that it can produce perfect peace for perplexed people. If we ever discovered that God’s will is best, even if there was no promise of a reward for obedience, we would gladly comply. So, knowing that we will be rewarded for submitting to His will should make us all the more willing to do so. As the old song says, “It pays to serve Jesus”. It really does! – HDS
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346
Roughed Up To Grow Up
Roughed Up To Grow Up
“My son, despise not the chastening of the LORD; neither be weary of his correction:”Prov. 3:11
Scientists tell us that the seeds of certain types of desert bushes must be damaged by a storm before they will germinate. Covered by hard shells that keep out water, these seeds can lie dormant on the sand for several seasons until conditions are right for growth. When heavy rains finally bring flash floods, the little seeds are banged against sand, gravel, and rocks as they rush down the slopes. Eventually they settle in a depression where the soil is damp several feet deep. Able to absorb water through the nicks and scratches they acquired on their downhill plunge, they finally begin to grow.
Sometimes Christians are like those seeds. We need bad weather to stimulate our spiritual development. We do not take life seriously until something drastic happens. Although the heavenly Father never allows His children to suffer needlessly, sometimes He lets us experience nicks and scratches that let the water of His Word seep in and soften our hearts.
An unexpected stay in the hospital, stacks of unpaid bills, or family disruption can quickly awaken a sleeping saint. Such difficulties hurt for a while, but if we yield to the Lord we will find that life’s bruises can mark the beginning of spiritual advances. Occasionally God will let us be roughed up to grow up. We may prefer to remain seeds, but He wants us to become fruitful trees. —M. R. De Haan II
There are no gains without pains.
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346
YOUR REWARD IN HEAVEN
YOUR REWARD IN HEAVEN
“Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.”- Matt. 5:11-12
In December of 1944, 18 members of a reconnaissance platoon held off a battalion of German troops in the Belgian village of Lanzerath. Their brave stand against the onslaught gave the Allied forces time to begin mounting a defense that eventually won the famous Battle of the Bulge.
Will James, one of the 18 platoon members, was severely injured in the battle and went through numerous surgeries as a result. His heroism went mostly unrecognized for almost 40 years until 1981, when he was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for extraordinary heroism.
In life and in faith, heroism can go largely unrewarded for years. Throughout the history of the church, there are countless faithful saints who’ve been obedient, even to the point of death, whose stories aren’t recorded anywhere on earth. But we know one place they’ll never be forgotten is in eternity, where those who’ve been faithful to death will receive their eternal rewards.
The point is this: your faithfulness may never be rewarded in this world. But you can rest assured your faithfulness will be remembered forever in eternity. So don’t look to the world to reward your faith. Await your eternal reward in heaven, which will be far greater!
Pray and ask God to keep you faithful even when it goes unrecognized, knowing that your ultimate reward will be in heaven. – Senior Living
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346
SKELETON COAST
SKELETON COAST
There is a place in Namibia called Skeleton Coast. When we think of a skeleton, we think of something eerie. We think of death. When we say the word graveyard, we associate the word with death. Skelton Coast is a place of death. It the graveyard for hundreds of ships. The reason for all these shipwrecks is a combination of the Atlantic’s cold current colliding with the warm dry air of the Namib Desert. This results in a cold dense fog that extends out into the sea. The sea currents and the wind combined cause a force that pushes ships and anything else toward the 976 miles of the Skelton Coast. Through the years, hundreds of ships and many lives have been lost on this Coast. In 1907, the Edward Bohlen was shipwrecked. It is now 1640 feet from the coast line as the desert has encroached on the sea. There are hundreds of stories as well as hundreds of shipwrecks. If the ocean doesn’t get you, then the desert most likely will.
Just as there are shipwrecks at sea, there are shipwrecks spiritually. Through the years, there have been those who thought that they were immune to spiritual shipwreck. But that is a lie of the Devil. No one is immune! Do you think that those who have shipwrecked spiritually said: “I think I’ll get out of the will of God, throw away my testimony and my influence.” I do not know of any Christian who would say such a thing. Yet, there are spiritually shipwrecked people. Some have loved the world and lost their testimony as is seen in 2Timothy 4:10: “For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica…” To avoid shipwreck, we must stay the course and not put away our conscience. “Holding faith, and a good conscience; which some having put away concerning faith have made shipwreck…” 1 Timothy 1:19. It is my desire to be a good seafarer and sail the sea of life faith that I may say with Paul: “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith…” –Cecil Fayard
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346
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