Pastor's Blog

This week’s Pastor to Person was written by Pastor Caleb Beller.
[2Th 2:1 NKJV] 1 Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, …
The phrase, “I’ll be back” has become a part of popular culture since the 1984 movie Terminator with Arnold Schwarzenegger. Many of us have tried to recreate the accent and demeanor while walking out the door for work or some random tasks. Paul, throughout his letters to the Thessalonians, uses the term “Parousia” to describe Jesus’ return. In Greek and Roman cultures this suggests the arrival of a ruler at a palace. Or the triumphal entry of a general returning from battle.
Chapter two not only reinforces this truth of the return of Jesus, but it gives us a glimpse of the events that will precede His arrival. Paul tells us he is writing to comfort those who thought they missed Jesus’ return! Next Paul lays out some significant signs that can’t be missed before Jesus comes back!
First is an “apostasy” a falling away, a moving away from truth. Next Paul says this will culminate in the rise of the anti-Christ. This false Jesus will be given power by Satan to do signs and wonders. Those who want to reject the truth will be drawn to this false Christ. They will be given over to a delusion. Paul implies that there will be a removing of the “restraining force” that is currently holding back these powers. This season will reveal the true motives of people’s allegiance, those who love Truth and hold to the gospel, and those who take pleasure in wickedness.
While many may want to guess who this anti-Christ will be, Paul says that he will be consumed and destroyed by Jesus’ breath and the glory of His arrival. Paul’s focus is not on who the antichrist is but on Jesus Christ! Let’s remember today, that His return is closer than it has ever been. The world is getting darker, and people’s hearts are getting harder. People are drifting away from truth. So, what should we do? (15) Stand fast, hold onto truth, and preach the gospel! Are you ready? Is your family ready? He will be back!

This week’s Pastor to Person is written by Pastor Franklin Garcia.

Jesus went into the synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there. 2 Some of them were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus…but he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. Mark 3:1-6 

This is the teaching of Jesus to his disciples and us; difficulties or opposition should not stop us from doing what is right, so we must keep doing what is right in spite of opposition. Criticism is one of the most challenging and uncomfortable situations that we face in our lives. Criticism makes us feel bad, make us feel guilty, and we stop wanting to do something for fear of being criticized. Many times, we had the desire to do things a little differently in our lives, but for fear that people might criticize us, we are left only with the intentions. Many times we have been compromised our relationship with God because we feared that we might be criticized, we have become silent when we saw something that we knew it was wrong, we remained silent and didn’t do anything for fear to be criticized, rejected or for fear that people will turn their back on us. Jesus teaches us that we must do what is right and stay firms, even if this costs us to become targets of criticism and opposition The lesson for us is this: don’t let criticism stop us from doing the right thing.

-Pastor Franklin

This week’s Pastor to Person is written by Pastor Caleb Beller.

[Isa 14:14 NKJV] 14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.’

Most of us when we hear the phrase “the fall” think of Genesis and the “fall of man.” While this is a critical part of the gospel story, Isaiah gives us a brief look into another fall, the fall of Lucifer. Jesus is Luke 10:18 says, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.” While not much is explicitly described about Satan and his kingdom, his effects can be seen from the beginning of Genesis to his ultimate end in Revelation.

Proverbs 16:18 tells us that “pride goes before destruction,” Paul tells Timothy to guard against pride (1 Tim 3:6) as it will lead to the “same condemnation as the devil.” The five “I will’s” of Satan described in vs. 13-14 record the cancerous growth of pride that precipitated his fall from an anointed cherub (Ez 28:12) to the defeated & destined prisoner of Hell (vs15).

 We live in a world that celebrates “pride” in so many ways. The constant pressure of this age is the magnification of “self.” “I,” becomes the standard for truth, “my feelings,” “my truth,” “my will,” etc. etc.  Like a malignant tumor pride turns my will against, “Thy Will.” Pride is the cancer of the soul. Satan wanted the attention of heaven, to be exalted over others, and ultimately lay claim to the worship that alone belongs to God. How many have the lie of pride caused to exchange the glory of heaven for the torment of hell?
A few closing thoughts, we must guard against pride. It is a battle of the heart and mind. It is a battle for the closest of saint’s and the farthest of sinners. Pride seeks to rob you of your eternal destiny. It promises heaven but delivers hell. The Gospel is the greatest cure for pride. It is a re-orienting of our hearts from “my will” to “thy will.” It is the path not just of emptying of self, but the indwelling of the Spirit of God. It is less of me and more of Him! If “pride” is the Cancer, then the gospel is the cure. 

Take some time to audit your life today? Are there any ways that pride is trying to distract you or destroy you? Humble yourself and get off the path that leads to destruction.  

-Pastor Caleb

This week’s Pastor to Person is written by Pastor Franklin Garcia.

Genesis 29:25-28 “What is this you have done to me? I served you for Rachel, didn’t I? Why have you deceived me?” Laban replied, “It is not our custom here to give the younger daughter in marriage before the older one. Finish this daughter’s bridal week; then we will give you the younger one also, in return for another seven years of work.” And Jacob did so…”

Often, we want to hide and forget about wrongdoings to others. This is the case with Jacob who escaped to a distant land after he usurped the oldest brother’s inheritance by deceiving his father.

Things started to go well for Jacob, so much so that the deception to his father was a thing of the past. Jacob fell in love and worked seven years to marry Rachel, but great was his surprise when he realized that he was deceived. Laban’s words; “We don’t do something for the youngest one before the oldest one” reminded Jacob of what he did to his father.

There was an area of sin in Jacob’s life that needed it to be dealt with, before he experienced God’s blessings. God used this difficult episode in Jacob’s life to confront him with his sin against his father.

Like Jacob, God will use difficult situations to confront us with hidden sins. The recognition of our sins should lead us to repent, so the broken areas of our lives can be fixed. Facing our wrongdoings will lead us to God’s blessings.

-Pastor Franklin

This week’s Pastor to person is written by Pastor Caleb Beller.

[Ecc 3:11 NIV] 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.
The word “time” is used more here than any other place in the Bible. Over 30x in 10 verses the author refers to “time,” what are some things we can learn from these verses?
First, we cannot control “time” ; it marches on through the good, the bad, the special and the mundane. Trying to hold onto time is like trying to hold onto the wind.
Next the bible describes times and events like cycles. There are rhythms, and patterns in time. Birth and death, weeping and laughing, planting, and harvesting. While we may not be able to control it, we can seek to make the most of it. When the darkness of the night seems so overwhelming, the promise of the sunrise reminds us, ‘this too shall pass.”
We also see that not only is God outside of time, but He alone is sovereign over it. All aspects of time, order, pattern, and design point to the one who started it, governs it, and will use it to accomplish His plans. How does the beauty and power of time point you back to the Creator? How does the Bible remove our fear of the future?
Lastly, God has placed the awareness of time into our hearts. The sense of its importance, this longing for more, the vastness of eternity, all these point us back to our savior. Our souls were created for eternity, these bodies remind us that our time here is short but valuable. What we do with it matters. As Christians we no longer need to live in fear of time. Time is counting down to a graduation not a defeat.
What are you doing with the time you have left? Are you running from eternity or too eternity? Are you living in fear or faith? How will you use this inherent weight of time to share the gospel this week?

-Pastor Caleb

This week’s Pastor to Person is written by Pastor Franklin Garcia.

…Be filled with the Spirit…And further, submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.  
                                                                                                               Ephesians 5:18; 21

Paul suggests that we should continually deny ourselves and focus our attention on others in the church, home, work. We must submit one and another and this should be as a reverence/fear to the Lord. Following his example is best. No institution could function without a system of authority and submission, the church, the home, the jobs. Could you imagine if everyone in the home would want to do their own will, even the kids? Could you imagine if everyone in the jobs would want to do their own will, even the workers? 
Every obedient Spirit Christian is a submitting Christian. Submission is a word used when we must submit to authorities, people over us in charge. This must be done voluntarily not by force. Submitting one to another is the will of Jesus and for respect to Christ and obedience to Him we must seek each other benefit by serving one another at home and at work but submission is only possible when we are filled with the Spirit. 
We can enjoy our lives at home, church and our jobs when we submit to one another as unto the Lord. We can have fun when we fill our roles given to us and understand that everything we do is for the Lord. The instructions of the Lord will bring joy and rewards when we obey them.

-Pastor Franklin

This week’s Pastor to Person is written by Pastor Caleb Beller.

“But as for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, and he will stand upon the earth at last. And after my body has decayed, yet in my body I will see God!” Job? ?19?:?25?-?26? ?NLT??????
Many of us wonder what was the secret that got Job through the pain, misery, confusion, and false accusations? If I had to point to one section of the book, I think it would be here.
Job uses the word “Redeemer,” in Hebrew it is the word “Goel.” This word brings a powerful picture of Hebrew life. In the OT he is one who has the reasonability to redeem, vindicate, advocate, or avenge. In the book of Ruth, it is Boaz who is the “Goel” to Ruth.
Job says, “I know,” there is a certainty that he has an advocate who will make the case for him. He believes that this person is real, and that “he lives” and “will stand on the earth.” This “Goel” was more than spiritual, He was physical, and He was duty bound to come! Yet Job also believed that somehow this vindication would be more than physical; it would be eternal. Job has this confidence that his ultimate vindication was not about this life, but that he would have a new body fit to stand in the presence of God.
Do you have the same confidence in your Redeemer? Do you “know” that He lives! That He came and is coming to make things, right? That no matter what happens on earth, that your “Goel” has made a way for you to be confident in the presence of God! My friends, our redeemer has a name, and it is Jesus!
This secret got Job through the worst the devil could throw at him. How will it help you, your family, your friends, right now?

-Pastor Caleb

This week’s Pastor to Person was written by Pastor Caleb Beller.

1 Cor 7:7 For I wish that all men were even as I myself. But each one has his own gift from God, one in this manner and another in that

“To be, or not to be” Shakespeare famously penned in Hamlet. Many today are struggling to find contentment in their lives. The “singles” contemplate marriage, the “married” at times envy the singles. It is easy to look at others and think, I wish my life was more like (fill in the blank).

Paul makes a powerful point that helps anchor our hearts from drifting into envy. Paul says that each has his, “own gift.” 

Are you looking at your marriage today as a gift from the Lord? Are you living in the light of God’s perfect love for you and your spouse? Do you recognize the call of being that gift to your spouse and the blessing of the gift that your spouse is?

Are you looking at your singleness as a gift from the Lord? People often feel like singleness is a curse and not a blessing. Paul challenges us to see our singleness as an opportunity not for self-enjoyment but for fulfillment in Christ.

The key point to Paul’s exhortation in chapter 7 is that whether married or single our primary goal is to point people to Jesus. If God’s design for your life is about holiness and not happiness than whether single or married, Jesus must be the object of your hearts affections.

May we seek today to cherish the gift we have been given and use it to honor the giver.

This week’s Pastor to Person is written by Pastor Franklin Garcia. Samuel also said to Saul, “The LORD sent me to anoint you king over His people, over Israel. Now therefore, listen the voice of the words of the LORD.” Thus says the LORD of hosts: ‘I punish Amalek for what he did to Israel, how he ambushed him on the way when he came up from Egypt. Now go and attack Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and do not spare them.” 1Samuel 15 Samuel makes it clear for Saul, God the one who chose you as king is giving you these instructions, now listen to THE VOICE OF THE LORD, go to Amalek and kill them all. But Saul left king Amalek and some animals alive. Samuel asked him; why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord? And Saul responded, because I fear the people and obeyed their voice. Saul was in the obligation to listen to God’s voice, not to anybody else. When Saul decided to ignore God’s voice, he sinned against him. God had rejected Saul for ignoring his voice and preferred to listen the voices of other people. Saul will not hear God’s voice anymore because God will not speak to him again. How many times God speak to us and we choose to ignore his voice and prefer to listen to other voices? Ignoring God’s voice will have consequences in our lives, if God is asking you to do something, do not fear what people might say, instead listen and obey his voice and leave the results at to him. -Pastor Franklin

This week’s Pastor to Person is written by Pastor Franklin Garcia. (1Th.4:13-18) I don’t know if you have lost a loved one, someone you love dearly. If you have, can you recall the times that you had a dream of them? I remember dreaming about my dad during the first months after he went home to the Lord. I used to wake up happy with tears in my eyes, because my dreams seemed so real. Hugging my dad and sharing with him was something that I cannot explain. I hated waking up from those dreams. One day it will not be a dream anymore. One day we don’t have to worry about waking up from our dream, because it will not be a dream anymore; it will be real, because Jesus made it possible on the cross for all who believe in Him. That’s our hope; we are going to be with our loved ones and our Lord forever, we should be encouraged with these words. These words will help us in our grieving and will help others in their grieving! This is some good news of hope, but Nobody keep good news to themselves. Good news is to be shared. We must share this good news of hope with others who think that they won’t see their loved ones again. We must encourage each other with the fact that we all are going to be reunited again, these words are to be shared with others in order to comfort those who are grieving the loss of a loved one. -Pastor Franklin