Sunday January 27, 2019

Speaker: Pastor Diego Rodriguez
Message Title: Losing Control
Scriptures: 2Kings 5:1-6; 5:9-12; Isa.64:8; Gal.2:20; Heb.11:1; Rom.8:28.
 

Losing control rarely has a good sound to it. We usually associated losing control as something we should never do. We practice not losing control. We teach not losing control. We frown on those who do lose control. Society praise’s us we don’t lose control especially in tough situations. Not being able to lose control or give up control can also hinder us.

2 Kings 5:1-6 nkjv

Now Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great and honorable man in the eyes of his master, because by him the Lord had given victory to Syria. He was also a mighty man of valor, but a leper. ² And the Syrians had gone out on^[a] raids, and had brought back captive a young girl from the land of Israel. She ^[b]waited on Naaman’s wife. ³ Then she said to her mistress, “If only my master were with the prophet who is in Samaria! For he would heal him of his leprosy.” ⁴ And Naaman went in and told his master, saying, “Thus and thus said the girl who is from the land of Israel.” ⁵ Then the king of Syria said, “Go now, and I will send a letter to the king of Israel.” So he departed and took with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold, and ten changes of clothing. ⁶ Then he brought the letter to the king of Israel, which said, Now be advised, when this letter comes to you, that I have sent Naaman my servant to you, that you may heal him of his leprosy.

Hear we have a powerful man in his community, who is in desperate need of help. He hears he can receive help for his condition through a man of God and starts to make arrangements to visit him. As the story continues, he meets with the man of God but gets angry on what he is told to do to receive his healing. We pick up the story in verse nine.

2 Kings 5:9-12 nkjv

⁹ Then Naaman went with his horses and chariot, and he stood at the door of Elisha’s house. ¹⁰ And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored to you, and you shall be clean.” ¹¹ But Naaman became furious, and went away and said, “Indeed, I said to myself, ‘He will surely come out to me, and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, and wave his hand over the place, and heal the leprosy.’ ¹² Are not the ^[c]Abanah and the Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them and be clean?” So he turned and went away in a rage.

Let’s pay close attention to verse eleven. Naaman had preplanned how his healing was going to happen. How many of us do this? We pray or do something for the Lord with it already worked out how God is going to answer our prayers. We must understand God may have other plans for the situation we are in. Nevertheless, his plan is always better than ours. Therefore, we give up control, or surrender to his plan.

  Isaiah 64:8 nkjv

⁸ But now, O Lord, You are our Father; We are the clay, and You our potter;
And all we are the work of Your hand. He must be allowed to be our potter. If, he is that means we give up control.

Galatians 2:20 nkjv

²⁰ I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.

We no longer live for ourselves but for God and his will in faith.

          Hebrews 11:1 nkjv

Now faith is the   substance of things hoped for, the ^[b]evidence of things not seen.

Meaning I may not always see how this is going to out for me but my faith says it is. We stand on the word of God not by our own strength or sight. Knowing this…

Romans 8:28

²⁸ And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.

Give up control. Give control to God. Then you can receive from God more than you could have ever hoped for.

Be Blessed in Jesus name.

Music Worship Leaders:
JW & Sharon Peck


 

Sunday January 20, 2019

Speaker: Pastor Diego Rodriguez
Message Title: Repairing The Alter
Scriptures:  1Kings 18:20-21; 18:30-39; Matt.3:13-15.

There is one huge mistake that people make while praying or waiting on the Lord for an answered prayer.

Is their heart. Their heart is not prepared to really ask of anything therefore they don’t receive anything. Yes, I am very well aware that the Bible says we need to have faith. This faith also causes us to ask properly and with the right heart.

                Nowhere in the Bible does God bless without there being some type of repentance. Look at these scripture’s with me.

1 Kings 18:20-21

²⁰ So Ahab sent for all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together on Mount Carmel. ²¹ And Elijah came to all the people, and said, “How long will you falter between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.” But the people answered him not a word.

Here we have a people that are dying due to a drought in the land and they cannot decide if they are going to serve God or not. Therefore Elijah says let’s build an altar and see who’s god can rain down fire. The false prophets spend all day trying to do it without success.

Now it’s Elijah’s turn.

1 Kings 18:30-39

³⁰ Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come near to me.” So all the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the Lord that was broken down. ³¹ And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord had come, saying, “Israel shall be your name.” ³² Then with the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord; and he made a trench around the altar large enough to hold two seahs of seed. ³³ And he put the wood in order, cut the bull in pieces, and laid it on the wood, and said, “Fill four waterpots with water, and pour it on the burnt sacrifice and on the wood.” ³⁴ Then he said, “Do it a second time,” and they did it a second time; and he said, “Do it a third time,” and they did it a third time. ³⁵ So the water ran all around the altar; and he also filled the trench with water.

³⁶ And it came to pass, at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near and said, “Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel and I am Your servant, and that I have done all these things at Your word. ³⁷ Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that You are the Lord God, and that You have turned their hearts back to You again.”

³⁸ Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood and the stones and the dust, and it licked up the water that was in the trench. ³⁹ Now when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces; and they said, “The Lord, He is God! The Lord, He is God!”

 Notice the first thing Elijah does is repair the “Broken Altar.” The altar represents our heart. The water, represents the word of God. The pouring of the water three times is how many days Jesus was in the tomb. The bull is a type of Christ. Now the fire is the Holy Spirit.

Right after the altar is repaired the fire comes down.

In other words our hearts have been told through the word of God that we need a savior we are unworthy and we receive everything through God’s grace. We than say it is Jesus and him only that we receive this Grace and not anything we have done or can do. Now God hears our prayers and we are able to receive from Him.

We see this same thing in the story of Noah. Where God floods the Earth. Noah builds an altar sacrifices to God and the Rainbow appears as a promise to never destroy the Earth like that again.

When Jesus went to John, John did not want to baptize him at first until Jesus says permit it to be so…

Matt 3:13-15

¹³ Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. ¹⁴ And John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?”

¹⁵ But Jesus answered and said to him, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he allowed Him.

Even Jesus showed prepare your heart with the right sacrifice and receive from God.

In short as you go into prayer start by making sure that your faith is in Jesus Christ and his finished work on the cross. If, there is something in your heart that you know should not be there give it to God and if you’re not sure. Do what David did and ask God to give you a clean heart. As a matter of fact ask that anyway. Only he can give us a clean heart to start with.

Be Blessed in the name of Jesus.

Music Worship Leaders:

JW & Sharon Peck

Songs:

 

Sunday January 13, 2019

Speaker: Pastor Diego Rodriguez
Messages Title: Living Out Season Well
Scriptures: Matt.16:24-25; Deut.31:6. 

I was talking to a young business owner the other day and he asked why God favors some people. He was very upset. He is currently struggling with the some business, family and personal problems. I invited to our Saturday Men’s Bible study. There I introduced him to our worship leader. Two Pastor who have recently retired. There were also two other guys there that run their own business.

When we left he was upset and asked the question. Why did God favor these men and yet has his hand against him? He went on to for fifteen minutes about how he lost money in this transaction and how his wife and he aren’t seeing eye to eye. How he’s struggling with his son doing the right thing. On top of all that he’s doing everything possible to be a man of God. He couldn’t figure out how the men he just met were being blessed and he was being attacked and God was just standing back and watching. At times maybe he laughing him.  

After fifteen minutes or so, I asked what men he was talking about because I don’t remember anyone like he was describing at the meeting. He looked at me dumbfounded.

“What are you talking about?” he asked trying not to come out of his seat.

“The worship leader guy,” he continued to say, “Gods, bless him like crazy.”

I looked at him said. That gentleman just hand heart surgery. His son just moved back in with him due to a divorce and his wife has lost most of her hearing.

The retired Pastor you met only retired due to his own heart problems along with some other very painful medical issues. The gentleman you were sitting next to has lung disease that will make him bed ridden for days at a time. There was another gentleman there who lost his wife due to cancer. I went around the room and told him how each person at that meeting had something they really needed God to help them walk out.

Matt 16:24-25

²⁴ Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. ²⁵ For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.

We all have our own walk to go through. The trick is to walk that walk out well.

Here is a scripture that helps me.

Deut 31:6

⁶ be strong and courageous, fear not, nor be terrified because of them, for Jehovah thy God [is] He who is going with thee; He doth not fail thee nor forsake thee.' ylt

Jehovah means this: “The Existing One” or “Lord.” The chief meaning of Jehovah is derived from the Hebrew word Havah meaning “to be” or “to exist.” It also suggests “to become” or specifically “to become known” – this denotes a God who reveals Himself unceasingly. Rapha (râpâ’) means “to restore”, “to heal” or “to make healthful” in Hebrew. http://blogs.blueletterbible.org/blb/2012/07/27/the-names-of-god-jehovah-rapha/ 

Now if we look at that scripture with the direct translation along with the Hebrew meaning of Jehovah it means this. That as we go through the things in life we are going to go through. That the God we know now, won’t leave us in our troubles but through our troubles reveal himself in a new way. Giving us the opportunity to forever praise him with confidence that he is truly a good God.

Whatever season you are in live it out well. Pick up your cross and follow God, you will not regret it.

Be blessed in Jesus name.

Music Worship Leaders:

JW & Sharon Peck

Songs:

  

Sunday December 30, 2018

Speaker: Pastor Diego Rodriguez
Message Title: Being Right the Right Way
Scriptures: Matt.1:19-20; 1Peter 1:13-19.

Being a Pastor I am always encouraging others to share their faith with someone. One if the saddest things I hear or see is when someone does this the way.

            I’m not talking about explaining a certain topic wrongly. Giving some person the wrong meaning of a about, forgetting that we are saved by the Grace of God in the first place.

            We may have the right answer, we may be correct in any given situation and have the scripture to prove we are right but, where is the Grace and Love is in our words.

Matt 1:19 - 20

¹⁹ Then Joseph her husband, being ^[f]a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. ²⁰ But while he thought about these things,

Notice two things here

1.      He had every right to expose her

2.      He waited and thought about all of these things before reacting.

And it was this waiting that God was able to come and speak to him.

Are we doing this when it comes to our family or friends our neighbors?

Or are we so interested in being right that we lose them in the process?

            Joseph showed us before it was written how to walk out Grace. We don’t have to condone sin or bad behavior. God is not asking that of us. What he is asking us to do is remember we are saved by His Grace and walk in that humbleness.

1 Peter 1:13-19

¹³ Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;

Remember we are all saved by His Grace.

¹⁴ as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance;

We can do it the way we used to or the way we may want to.

¹⁵ but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct,

¹⁶ because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.”

We are only holy if stay under the umbrella of his Grace

¹⁷ And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear; ¹⁸ knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, ¹⁹ but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.

We are saved by his blood and so, is the rest of the world.

Be right the right way. When we speak to one another especially when bring correction to it with grace, gentleness, and love never forgetting that how it was given to us.

Be blessed in Jesus name.

Music Worship Leaders:
JW & Sharon Peck
Songs: