January 4, 2022

All Things Will Not Continue As They Are

There are two potential mistakes that can be made when we view every day based on the present. First, we can mistakenly think that the present is the key to understanding the past. This error leads to the erroneous philosophy of uniformitarianism, which denies God’s catastrophic judgment of the world through the worldwide flood. The uniformitarianist thinks every day in the past was just like today as they proclaim, “all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation” (2 Peter 3:4b).

Those who hold to uniformitarianism are also guilty of the second mistake, that the present is the key to understanding the future – “All things continue as they were.” But sometimes even believers can be guilty of buying into that philosophy when we live as if all things continue as they are. Consider the following truths from the Scriptures that teach us not only that all things will not continue as they are, but these future events ought to impact our lives today:

First, things will not continue as they are for us personally. There is coming a day when we will depart from this earth. We don’t know when, but the Scriptures clearly teach that our lives are “a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away” (James 4:14b). Only the Lord knows the number of our days and therefore we ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that” (James 4:15). Furthermore the Scriptures tell us that “It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment”(Hebrews 9:27). All things will not continue as they are for us personally! Are you ready to stand before the Lord? I’m thankful that the Scriptures not only tell us what to be prepared for in the future, but also how to be prepared. The Scriptures are able to make us wise unto salvation through faith in Jesus Christ (2 Timothy 3:15). The only way to be prepared for the judgment is to believe on Jesus Christ who died on the cross for our sins and rose victoriously from the dead. Salvation from judgment is found by faith alone in Christ alone! Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ today and you will be prepared for that coming day!

Second, things will not continue as they are for the church of Jesus Christ. There is coming a day when the trumpet will sound and Jesus Christ will come and receive His bride to Himself (John 14:1-3). There is coming a day when those who are dead in Christ will rise and those in Christ who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. (1 Thess. 4:13-18). That coming day will be completely different than any other day in human history! Believers ought to live in anticipation of this future day known as the rapture. We don’t know the day or the hour, but we do know that He will come again. All things will not continue as they are! Again this truth has ramifications for our lives today: “But we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him (Christ) purifies himself, just as He is pure” (1 John 3:2b-3).

Finally, things will not continue as they are for the nations of this world. After the church of Jesus Christ is caught up to be with the Lord, the nations of the world will be deceived (Rev. 18:23). They will form a one-world government under the control of the anti-Christ, not allowing people to buy or sell unless they worship the anti-Christ and receive his mark (Rev. 13). The nations will say, “Peace and safety,” yet sudden destruction will come upon them (1 Thess. 5:3). They will experience the day of the Lord’s wrath and judgment which will culminate in the Great Tribulation. All things will certainly not continue as they are, as Jesus speaks concerning this future day with these words, “Then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be” (Matthew 24:21). This future judgment of the nations ought to cause all unbelievers to repent and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ! It ought to cause every believer to warn people to flee from the wrath to come! All things will not continue as they are! This could be the year!

December 1, 2021

A City Full of Idols

There is a fascinating adjective that Paul uses to describe the city of Athens. In Acts 17:16 as he saw the city he described it with this transliterated Greek word, “kateidols.” The last five letters, “idols” point us to the main focus of this word. The word begins with the preposition, “kata” which serves as an intensifier. This one word is translated with a variety of phrases in our English translations such as, “wholly given to idolatry” or “given over to idols” or “full of idols.” When Paul saw the city of Athens, he observed an idolatrous city. What makes a community, city, or nation idolatrous? What adjective would Paul use to describe our local region? Why did he describe Athens as “kateidols”?

Athens had a synagogue, was inhabited by religious people, was economically prosperous, and was marked by human philosophy (Acts 17:17-18). Paul later describes them as very religious (Acts 17:22). Yet, he describes them as fully given to idolatry. What brings him to the conclusion that this city is “kateidols”? The answer can be summarized by the reality that the city didn’t know or recognize the true God. When Paul preached to them Jesus and the resurrection, they knew nothing of that truth. To them, Paul was preaching a “foreign god” (vs. 18). Later as Paul comes across a statue to the unknown God (vs. 23), he makes it known that the city doesn’t know the true God. They had gods, but they didn’t know the true God. And the gods that they worshipped had replaced the true God! They devised their own gods (vs. 29) through their educational systems, business adventures, art and entertainment platforms, political establishments, and philosophical systems to the point where the true God was no longer acknowledged or recognized.

Because the true God was replaced with gods that the people of Athens devised, Paul was able to easily tell that the city was wholly given to idolatry. Idolatrous beliefs affect the policies, the principles, and the practices of the city. Ideas and beliefs have consequences. They worshipped the earth and the sun and the moon and the stars instead of the Creator of the heavens and the earth (vs. 24). They had gods that they worshipped that would provide health and fertility instead of worshipping God who gives life and breath and all things to us (vs. 25). Yes, they had stone idols dedicated to those gods, but those gods permeated from their religious and philosophical institutions into everyday life in the marketplace. It is good for us to ask, who is worshipped in our day and age when it comes to giving us breath or life? Do we recognize the true God as our sustainer? Or is He not even recognized? For example, our bodies are fearfully and wonderfully made by our Creator God. He therefore made our immune system! For years scientist have acknowledged something called “natural immunity.” It should not surprise God-fearing believers when we hear studies showing how effective “natural immunity” is against COVID! Sadly, what should be a reason to worship our Creator God, the one in whom we live and move and have our being (vs. 28), is often times not even acknowledged because of philosophies that devise an idolatrous god as the supreme god for our life and health.

Another consequence of idolatry is the usurping of power and authority that ultimately belongs to the Lord of heaven and earth (vs. 24). Idolatry doesn’t acknowledge that someday Jesus Christ will judge the world in righteousness (vs. 32). The majority of the people mocked (vs. 32) Paul when he preached about Jesus and the resurrection. Mockery is a form of persecution that wants people to suffer for their religious beliefs. Mockery doesn’t allow for religious liberty, but rather it usurps the Lord’s authority and sets itself up as the final authority.

Thankfully in Athens there were some who wanted to hear the gospel message again. And some who were marked by “kateidols”, yet they repented and believed (vs. 32). Let us, like Paul, take opportunity to daily testify of Jesus Christ and the resurrection in a context that is increasingly marked by “kateidols” and not knowing or acknowledging the true God.

November 5, 2021

Pastor’s Ponderings on Thankful Thinking

Article by Pastor Thomas Hamblen

As the leaves are changing and the air starts to become rather crisp, we look forward to many celebrations and plans during the holiday season. Celebration is a Biblical con-cept. The scriptures are loaded with details on how God’s people are to celebrate and re-member His goodness and faithfulness. For example, celebrations were utilized to remember His character—that He is holy, that He is just, that He is the provider, that He is the One who satisfies us, etc.

In fact, God commanded the people of Israel to celebrate regularly. After spending many years in the wilderness, Israel did not have a common practice of celebrating and resting because they had been slaves for several generations. But then, God commanded them to routinely remember His character through celebrations (Deuteronomy 16:1-17).
Because the United States had a godly heritage, it has been engrained in our culture to celebrate Thanksgiving once a year. What makes this holiday so important? Most would rightfully say that giving thanks is a regular command in the Scriptures for believers. Christians are right to assert that. However, there are often two precepts that people might forget when it comes to giving thanks.

The first precept is the purpose of giving thanks. A regular practice for many families is to say something that they are thankful for before stuffing themselves with mashed potatoes and turkey. We thank God for different things on this earth, but we tend not to go further to recognize the attributes of His character while thanking Him for the practical things in life. Having a balance of both the practical and the characteristics of His nature should be evident in our thanking Him. This can be seen in Psalm 136 where the psalmist gives thanks to the LORD for the things he has done and then going further in thanking Him for His character on display in what He did (“His mercy endures forever”). The ultimate direction and purpose of giving thanks should be to God for the purpose of acknowledging His character and giving Him glory. My hope and prayer is that we would make this our purpose during this season of celebrating Thanksgiving.

The second precept that we need to recognize is the consequence of failing to give thanks. Over the past two months we have been studying rocks and fossils in one of our Wednesday night classes. In this class we have been delving into scripture and seeing how holding to a Biblical worldview is extremely important in the Christian life. One of the passages that we examined during our study is Romans 1:18-23 where unbelievers willfully forget His power and divine nature that is made evident in creation. The consequence for not recognizing that He is God and for not giving thanks is that they are given up to go deeper in their sinful ways. As believers, we must take heed to the weight of this passage. When we fail to give thanks, we operate our lives as if we are like unbelievers who are destined to wrath. Thankfully, we who have trusted in Christ as the foundation of our salvation will not be given up to our sinful ways. But are we operating in the new manner of life that we have in Christ? Are we living in thanksgiving, recognizing that God is truly the Creator and Sustainer of life? We owe Him thanks for every good thing…so why not thank Him?

As we enter this season of giving thanks, let us remember that the purpose is to worship His character. And let us remember the great significance and consequence of not giving thanks to our Heavenly Father. May we be encouraged to thank our Heavenly Father for all that we have, and may we enter this season with grateful hearts for His abundant mercy through the gospel of Jesus Christ.

October 1, 2021

Biblical Success in Outreach Opportunities

Article by Pastor Cory Messerschmidt

We undoubtedly live in a world where our perception of success is driven by numbers. A business is only seen as successful if it generates value for its stakeholders. An event is seen as successful if it draws a large crowd. A social media page is successful if its number of followers grows.

Is this business-oriented model applicable to the church? More specifically, what does success look like in our evangelism and apologetics?

Luke provides us with a focal point to consider in Acts 17 when he describes for us, in narrative form, the apologetic methodology of the Apostle Paul. Paul comes on his second missionary journey to the city of Athens and is conversing with the philosophers of the day – Epicureans and Stoics (17:18). Paul is brought to the Areopagus to be heard on this teaching. Standing before two key philosophical schools of his era, does he present a carefully constructed evidential argument, reasoning to the existence of God? Does he seek to present a Christianity that is palatable to the sensibilities of these schools of philosophy in order to get as many possible decisions for Christ as he can?

Paul, entering into the situation, unashamedly declares the truth of Scripture. He declares that God made the world and everything in it. He declares God’s sovereignty over nations. He declares our contingency on God. He declares their need to repent. He declares the resurrection of Christ, evidencing that Christ is the One sent by the Father. In his defense of the faith, Paul starts with the presupposition of Christ as Yahweh (1 Peter 3:15, Isaiah 8:13) and the truthfulness of Scripture, and proclaims Christian truth.

The reception of Paul’s truth proclamation might be deemed by some as less than a success. Some wanted to hear him again, but others mocked Paul (17:32). By secular standards, his approach largely seems to have failed. There was not a flood of new converts.

Fortunately, faithfulness for the Christian is not found in pragmatic, numerical concerns. Our measure of success is seen in Galatians 1:10 – “For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ.” Our success is determined first and foremost by our faithful service to Christ – we seek to please God, not man. Our proclamation of the Christian faith must be rooted in the veracity of Scripture and the Christian worldview.|1

In light of this, we will be beginning a five-week elective class called Transformation on Wednesday, October 13th. This class is a biblical overview highlighting five key elements of the Christian faith from creation to consummation. This class is designed specifically for outreach – it is a great opportunity to invite unbelieving friends and family members! The class is based on the truthfulness of Scripture and proclaims the gospel through the realities of creation, fall, and redemption. This class is also an opportunity for those who would like to learn the material and pass it on to others evangelistically.

We plant and water with biblical faithfulness, trusting God to give the increase. Success is measured not numerically, but by our work being pleasing in the sight of the Lord. Soli Deo Gloria.

Article by Pastor Cory Messerschmidt

1|Contrast this with other apologetic methods such as classical apologetics, which set aside the certainty of Christianity to reason with the unbeliever as to the possibility of God’s existence. This ignores the reality that logic and reason exist because the triune God exists.

August 27, 2021

What Would You Expect to Find?

If there really was a worldwide catastrophic flood, what would you expect to find today? Genesis 6-8 describes a year-long event that not only had a catastrophic impact on the earth, but also on the life on the earth. Regarding the catastrophic impact on the earth, we read that the fountains of the deep were broken up and the windows of heaven were opened (Genesis 7:11). The waters increased greatly on the earth for 150 days, covering the highest mountains by approximately 22.5 feet. The impact on the living creatures on the earth was also catastrophic; “all in whose nostrils was the breath of the spirit of life, all that was on the dry land, died. Only Noah and those who were with him in the ark remained alive (Genesis 7:21-23).

In recent weeks, there has been flooding associated with Hurricane Henri and also in Tennessee. When you look at pictures of those flood events you can see evidence of the flood: sand deposited on roads, great erosion of soil, trees uprooted and sadly, even the loss of life. If small local floods leave evidence behind, we ought to expect to find evidence of a worldwide flood even though it happened approximately 5,000 years ago.

The scope of the evidence for the Genesis flood is too large for this article, so I will focus on just a few pieces of evidence that I was able to observe last month as I spent a few days on the Colorado River. You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to discover that most of the visible rock layers that make up the Grand Canyon are sedimentary rock layers. In case you forgot from Earth Science days, sedimentary rock is rock that has formed through the deposition and solidification of sediment, especially sediment transported by water. The walls of the Grand Canyon contain up to a mile high deposit of sedimentary rock. While it is true that sedimentary rock can be deposited by other means such as wind, the layers of the Grand Canyon including the angles that are found in the various rock layers are consistent with rock that has been laid down by water. Many secular scientists now agree that the rock layers seen in the Grand Canyon were laid down by water. Of course if there really was a worldwide flood that destroyed the earth, we would expect to find sedimentary rock layers all over this earth!

Another interesting observation that can be seen throughout the canyon is that the sedimentary rock layers are not the deepest rock layers observed. In other words, there is a different type of rock layer below the sedimentary rock layers. This rock layer is commonly identified as PreCambrian rocks. The boundary between these two rock layers shows evidence of a great erosion event. Where these two different types of rock meet and this erosion event takes place is called the Great Unconformity. Ironically, it can be found all across this globe. For those that hold to a literal interpretation of Genesis 6-8, we would expect to find a “great unconformity” distinguishing the rock layers that were left intact from before the flood and those that were laid down by the prevailing and receding waters during the year long flood event.

Furthermore in the Cambrian layers or the Sedimentary rocks is where all sorts of fossils “suddenly” appear. In other words, the fossil record is abundant and prolific above the Great Unconformity. Again if there was a catastrophic event that not only destroyed the earth but at the same time destroyed every living creature we would expect to find a significant fossil record in the sedimentary rock.

Because God’s Word is true, believers can be confident that what we see in the geological record of the earth will be consistent with the truth of Scripture. God’s Word is true and the geological and fossil records provide evidence of its trustworthiness. True science will never conflict with the truth of God’s Word. However, beware as God’s Word warns us of scoffers that will reject the Word of God and replace it with empty deception, so-called “scientific” theories, and blatant lies that attempt to explain reality without allowing for the supernatural work and judgment of God (Colossians 2:8; 2 Peter 3:1-10; Romans 1:18-24). Even though what one would expect to find is consistent with the Scriptures, they cannot accept it because their heart is opposed to the truth of God and His Word.