Baptist City Blog

Revelation 1:18

"I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death."

They often say that the man with the keys is the person who is in charge. Whenever I am at a church, I always know that the pastor will have the keys to every door because he is the person in charge. When the person in charge resigns or loses their position, they are always told they need to turn in their keys.

The verse above says that God has the keys. In other words, this verse is teaching us that God is ultimately in charge. When you got saved, you not only received salvation, but you also received access to the One Who is in charge of all things. I find there are several things to which God holds the keys.

First, God holds the keys to death. I don't know if you quite understand what this means, but God is ultimately the One Who determines when death will come your way. Psalm 116:15 says, "Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints." Christian, just like God made you to fill a position in this world, He also prepares your death to give Him glory. We often talk about God preparing our ways in life, but we often forget to remind people that God also prepares our death. You have nothing to fear about death, for God conquered death and will only allow it to come your way when He has prepared you. That is why you often see those whom God has prepared not afraid when they are at death's doorstep. God prepared them for that time. When the shadow of death comes your way, you have nothing to fear for God holds the keys of death.

Second, God holds the key of knowledge. In Luke 11:52, Jesus rebuked the lawyers because they rejected the key of knowledge. Jesus is the key of knowledge. One of the biggest travesties we see today is how our education system has kicked Jesus out of the public school system. They wonder why grades are dropping, and the answer is they kicked the key of knowledge out. You will never gain the knowledge you need in any area without including God in your life. Yes, you may acquire some knowledge, but God holds the keys to unlock all knowledge.

Third, God holds the key to the house of David. This sounds strange, but it is important that you understand what these keys hold. This represents that Jesus is the royal possessor. In other words, Jesus will take the throne of David someday and will rule the world. Because He has the key to the house of David, it means that He is the stronghold against the enemy. It means that He is the One who can unlock the closed doors in your life. It means that He has the keys to the treasure house. In other words, God has the resources to supply all your needs. No matter what you face in your daily life, God has the keys to supply those needs.

One thing you can rejoice about today is that God is the One Who has the keys. He is in charge of everything in life, and when He chooses, He can unlock the doors to your needs. Whatever your need is today, you can talk to the One Who holds the keys to unlocking the resources to supply your need. Prayer is the key to unlocking the resources for your needs. Don't let there be a day when you forsake your opportunity to talk to the One Who holds the keys for your day.

The 6/09/13 bulletin from FBC Hammond is now up at www.baptist-city.com.

Galatians 6:8

"For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting."

There are laws that cannot be changed no matter what you do. For instance, you will not change the law of gravity. What goes up must come down. There is the law of life. What is born must die. Then there is the law of breathing that mandates that after you breathe in you must breathe out.

Yet, there is one law that we must never forget and that is the law of sowing and reaping. The verse above teaches that whatever you sow, you will eventually reap. When you plant an apple seed, you will get an apple tree. Whenever you place a seed of corn in the ground, you will eventually get corn. The law of sowing and reaping cannot be changed.

One of the hardest things for a person to do is overcome a besetting sin. There are many Christians who become frustrated with themselves because they want to do right, but they find themselves doing the opposite of what they set out to do in overcoming sin. God says the only way you will overcome sin is that you must sow to the Spirit. The problem comes when we don't immediately reap what we have sown to the Spirit we become impatient and find ourselves yielding to the flesh. Waiting for the due date of sowing to the Spirit can become frustrating. Let me give you some thoughts that will help you while you wait for the due date of reaping what you've sown to the Spirit.

First, don't become weary with doing good. It is interesting that right after God talks about sowing to the Spirit He says in verse 9, "And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not." God is trying to encourage you not to become weary with doing good. When you feel like there is no progress from doing good, you must keep on doing good. You must not let the delay of the due date cause you to become weary with sowing to the Spirit.

Second, keep records of your progress. One of the reasons we become weary with doing good is because we don't see the progress. We want the fruit of sowing to the Spirit, but you must understand that it will not come immediately; however, there is still progress that could be seen if you were keeping records. Keep records of how you are overcoming the sins of the flesh and you will find that sowing to the Spirit is indeed paying off.

Third, set reminders to continually yield to the Spirit. It may be that you set your watch to beep every hour, and when you hear the beep you take a minute to yield yourself to the Holy Spirit. Little reminders of yielding to the Spirit so you don't become discouraged will help you as the Spirit of God helps you overcome your flesh.

Finally, remind yourself that the due date will come. You must realize that when you sowed to the flesh you weren't anticipating its due date, and that's why you didn't become weary with the due date of sin. Now that you want to do right, you can become discouraged when the due date of sowing to the Spirit when it doesn't come as quickly as you desire. Always remind yourself that the law of sowing and reaping is an unchangeable law, and you will reap good for sowing to the Spirit.

Don't let what seems to be a delay in the due date of doing right discourage you. Just keep on sowing to the Spirit and you will find that you will reap the harvest of conquering sin. The only way you will overcome the sins of the flesh is to keep sowing to the Spirit, and eventually the seeds of the flesh will die. Don't quit in your fight against the flesh. Your due date for doing right is near.

The song of the week now at www.baptist-city.com is "Lord, I Believe in You"

Music from the 6/02/13 services at FBC Hammond is now up at www.baptist-city.com

2 Corinthians 10:12

"For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise."

When I was in high school, I worked at a paper factory that often used scales to weigh the bundles of paper to determine whether we had enough paper in each bundle. On the scale was a certificate that certified the accuracy of the scales. Once a year a government agency would come in with their weights to be sure the scales were accurate so that customers were getting for what they paid.

In my childhood home, we had a piano that my mother would play. I remember watching a man tune our piano. He used an instrument that measured the pitch of each key to make sure that the piano was in tune. It would be easy to try and tune the piano by ear, but the comparison would not be an accurate comparison.

In the verse above, we are told that there are some things that are unwise for us to do to determine our spirituality. He said there were some who compared themselves to others to determine their spirituality. Then there were others who commended themselves for their spirituality because they used others to determine their accomplishments. In both cases the determination of these things were false measurements.

You cannot measure spirituality by comparing yourself to others. First, you don't know how much others have grown. Just because you may be more separated from the world than another person does not mean that you are more spiritual than they. For instance, I grew up in a Christian home. When I got saved, I was not living in a home where vices were present and where worldly living was a way of life. I grew up in a home where we went to church every service. When I got saved I didn't have to go far to "look" like a good Christian, whereas someone saved out of a wicked life would have to grow tremendously to get to the same level. Yet, for one to be saved out of a wicked life and to be close to where I was when I got saved means they had to grow more than I did just to get to where I started. In all reality they are the better Christian than I am because they've grown more than I have. This is why it's unwise to measure yourself with others.

Likewise, it's unwise to measure your accomplishments with the accomplishments of others. A younger person should accomplish more than an older person because they have more energy. God has blessed some people with more talents than others, and to measure your accomplishments with someone who has less talents is unwise, for you should accomplish more than they.

This sermon by Dr. Jack Hyles is still as relevant today as it was when he preached it. Listen and apply, it will really help you!

Romans 12:9

"Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good."

Love should not be a performance, but it should be that which you truly feel. Often people will watch actors in a show or play, and the better they act, the more real they portray themselves to be that person. Yet, actors are merely representing a character this is nothing like them. How often have you heard of an actor who gets in trouble with the law and you are shocked because of who they portrayed themselves to be on some show? You are shocked because the character they portrayed is the opposite of their true representation.

God says, "Let love be without dissimulation." The word "dissimulation" means, "without pretense." In other words, love should not be a performance, but love should be transparent. There should be no ulterior motives behind love. Love should come from the heart. Love should be expressed in actions. It should not have any hypocrisy in it. It should not be given with a deceiving motive. It should always be transparent.

God continues to show His feeling towards dissimulated love by saying we should "Abhor that which is evil;..." God is saying that it is evil to have ulterior motives behind your love. True love is the greatest picture of God's love towards mankind. The reason it is so evil is because you are teaching that all love always has ulterior motives. God has no ulterior motives with His love. He truly loves the world, and He truly wants the best for everyone. We must be careful that we don't paint a picture that love always has some motivation behind it.

In the home, you must always make sure that love is transparent. There should never be motives behind the love inside the home. For instance, you should not allow children to show affection towards you for the sole purpose of getting something from you. This is deceitful and wrong! Love is not given to get something in return. Likewise, married couples must be careful about showing love for the purpose to gaining something in the end. Your love towards your spouse should be transparent. If you want your marriage to grow and become sweeter, then don't allow yourself to show love with motives. Let your love towards your spouse be pure love. Let it be a love that has no motive other than you want them to know your truly care for them.

Moreover, love needs to be transparent in the church. We must not allow our churches to be filled with deceitful accolades for the sole purpose of getting closer to the leader. A pastor must be careful that he doesn't allow the praise of followers to influence whether he promotes someone. This only leads to dissimulated love. If you are not careful, a church can be filled with deceit because everything has a motive behind what they do. This will destroy your church.

Simply put, don't ever show love with ulterior motives. Let your love be pure. Let it come from your heart. Always refrain yourself when tempted to show love so you can gain something. Let your love be a transparent love. When people see that you love transparently, then they will never wonder what your motive is for loving them. This is the type of love that God has for us, and this is the type of love we should show to others.

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Acts 20:24

"But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God."

The Apostle Paul made an impact for Christ with his life. There is no doubt that we are influenced today by Paul's ministry. I would imagine every Christian would want to make the same type of impact with their life that the Apostle Paul did. I find in the verse above the characteristics needed to make an impact with your life.

First, Paul wasn't easily moved from serving Christ. He said, "But none of these things move me,..." He was talking about his bonds and afflictions. Though he endured many hardships, they didn't move him to quit. You will never make an impact with your life if you allow hardships to move you to quit. Hardships are going to come, but you must determine to keep on going. When pain compels you to quit, you must keep on going. When disappointment in leadership calls for compromise, you must keep on going. When death tells you there is no more purpose, you must keep on going. When heartache pressures you to abandon your cause, you must keep on going. You will never make an impact if you are easily moved.

Second, Paul wasn't concerned with what happened to him. He said, "...neither count I my life dear unto myself,..." Paul had no restrictions on God's will for His life. He served God with every fiber of his being. You will never make an impact if you hold back effort. If you act with a concern about avoiding battles, then you will not make an impact. You can't live your life with a concern of burning out if you want to make an impact. If you are going to make an impact, you cannot put physical restrictions on your life. You must go all out if you are going to make an impact.

Third, Paul stayed focused on having a good attitude while finishing his course. He said he wanted to finish his course "with joy." You won't make an impact in your world if you allow the battles and heartaches of life to influence your attitude. Those who make an impact with their life keep a good attitude in spite of what they face.

Fourth, Paul made sure nothing sidetracked him from the ministry. He said that he wanted to finish his course in the ministry. You will find there will be many things that will try to sidetrack you from what God wants you to do, but you must not allow these things to pull you off course. Many times the things that can pull you off course are worthy of attention, but you must realize that the ministry God's called you to is of more importance.

Fifth, Paul stayed focused on Jesus Christ. You will never make an impact with your life if you get wrapped up in personalities. The only personality you should wrap your life around is the personality of Jesus Christ. He is Who we serve, and He alone is the only One Whom you should lift up.

Finally, Paul made an impact with his life because he never lost focus of the purpose of spreading the Gospel. You must realize that your purpose for being on this Earth is to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It doesn't matter if you are a full-time servant of the LORD or if you are a layman, your purpose in this world is to spread the Gospel.

Christian, this world needs people who will make an impact with their life. Do you see an area where you lack in these characteristics? I challenge you to work on that area so that you can make an impact for Christ with your life.