James 2:14-17Notes from the Pastor's Desk #notesfromthepastorsdesk
📖James 2:14-17 (ESV) 14 What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? 17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. 📘Pastor's Note: Consider this quote from George Swinnock: "He that seems righteous towards men, and irreligious towards God, is but an honest heathen; and he that seem religious towards God, and is unrighteousness towards men, is but a dissembling Christian." 🙏I'm praying for you always. ❤️ Pastor Jamie Read the Chapter: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=james+2&version=ESV Learn More About Us: www.mygpchurch.com/whoweare #notesfromthepastorsdesk #thegpchurch #Truth #seek #study #serve #mygpchurch Romans 12:12Notes from the Pastor's Desk #notesfromthepastorsdesk
📖Romans 12:12 (ESV) 12 Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. 📘Pastor's Note: Consider this quote by Thomas Adams: "Patience to the soul is bread to the body…we eat bread with all our meats, both for health and relish; bread with flesh, bread with fish, bread with broth and fruits. Such is patience to every virtue; we must hope with patience, and pray in patience, and love with patience, and whatever good thing we do, let it be done in patience." 🙏I'm praying for you always. ❤️ Pastor Jamie Read the Chapter: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans%2012&version=ESV Learn more about us: www.mygpchurch.com/whoweare #notesfromthepastorsdesk #thegpchurch #Truth #seek #study #serve #mygpchurch James 1:22-25Notes from the Pastor's Desk #notesfromthepastorsdesk
📖James 1:22-25 (ESV) Be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing. 📘Pastor's Note: George Gifford put it like this: For what a miserable thing it is when Christ has given us warning so plainly, for a man to be zealous for the Gospel, not only willing to hear, but possessing an earnest desire, taking pleasure and delight when he hears, yet because he does not take heed to do according to what he hears, his hearing only further increases his damnation." 🙏I'm praying for you always. ❤️ Pastor Jamie Read the Chapter: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=James%201&version=ESV Learn more about us: www.mygpchurch.com/whoweare #notesfromthepastorsdesk #thegpchurch #Truth #seek #study #serve #mygpchurch Mark 1:14-15Notes from the Pastor's Desk #notesfromthepastorsdesk
📖Mark 1:14--15 (ESV) 14 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, 15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” 📘Pastor's Note: From the beginning of Jesus’ earthly ministry, he preached repentance and belief. Two sides of the same coin of salvation. Repent means to “change one’s mind.” It is turning from self and sin and turning to God. The other side is belief in the good news. The good news is that Jesus, the Messiah, came, died upon the cross to pay the penalty for our sin, to be the substitute for us, and to rise on the third day, conquering death and the grave. This is the good news of Jesus Christ. This is the same message that we need to be preaching today to a lost world. Stay faithful, let your light shine, and proclaim from the mountain top all that Jesus has done to save sinners, whom, as Paul said, I am the foremost! 🙏I'm praying for you always. ❤️ Pastor Jamie Read the Chapter: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%201&version=ESV Learn more about us: www.mygpchurch.com/whoweare #notesfromthepastorsdesk #thegpchurch #Truth #seek #study #serve #mygpchurch 1 Peter 4:8-10Notes from the Pastor's Desk #notesfromthepastorsdesk
📖1 Peter 4:8-10 (ESV) 8 Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. 9 Show hospitality to one another without grumbling. 10 As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace: 📘Pastor's Note: This morning, as I read this epistle from Peter instructing the Church, I'm reminded of the immense love that genuine Christians should have for one another. Peter says, "keep loving one another earnestly." The Greek word for "keep" comes with the understanding of "possession, to have, to own." It's something that, as born-again believers in Christ, we should possess and retain hold of. It's like a garment that we are to continually wear. Love is to be a Christian's clothing. Without it, we're just a bunch of clanging cymbals. And it is to be poured upon each other "earnestly," meaning "continuously, without ceasing, without interruption." This is to be not only our mindset but who we are if we are truly in the faith. If the Lord has made us a new creature in Christ, if our old self has passed away and we are walking in the Spirit, our love is a demonstration to everyone of the miracle that we have been saved by the grace of God through faith in Jesus. When we assess our walk in Christ, do they (the world, the unsaved) recognize us by our love for one another? Or do they see slander, gossip, division, backbiting, discord, or ungodliness? The latter demonstrates to the world that we're no different from them and they ask, "Why do I need that? I already have that!" Can it at times be a challenge to show love, even to a brother or sister who has sinned against you? Sure. Are we commanded to love them anyway, even in our rebuke of wrongful actions? Absolutely. We are not called to love only when it's easy. We are called to love regardless, even towards our enemies. Anyone can love those who love them back. But the sacrificial love Jesus calls us to is a dying to self, an unconditional love, especially toward other believers. How do we do at this? Do people know you're a Christian based on your love for one another? Do you use your giftedness to serve one another? I pray they do. 🙏I'm praying for you always. ❤️ Pastor Jamie Read the Chapter: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Peter%204&version=ESV Learn more about us: www.mygpchurch.com/whoweare #notesfromthepastorsdesk #thegpchurch #Truth #seek #study #serve #mygpchurch Ephesians 2:8-9Notes from the Pastor's Desk #notesfromthepastorsdesk
📖Ephesians 2:8-9 (ESV) 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 📘Pastor's Note: Read the quote below by Martyn Lloyd-Jones: To make it quite practical I have a very simple test. After I have explained the way of Christ to somebody I say “Now, are you ready to say that you are a Christian?” And they hesitate. And then I say, “What’s the matter? Why are you hesitating?” And so often people say, “I don’t feel like I’m good enough yet. I don’t think I’m ready to say I’m a Christian now.” And at once I know that I have been wasting my breath. They are still thinking in terms of themselves. They have to do it. It sounds very modest to say, “Well, I don’t think I’m good enough,” but it’s a very denial of the faith. The very essence of the Christian faith is to say that He is good enough and I am in Him. As long as you go on thinking about yourself like that and saying, “I’m not good enough; Oh, I’m not good enough,” you are denying God – you are denying the gospel – you are denying the very essence of the faith and you will never be happy. You think you’re better at times and then again you will find you are not as good at other times than you thought you were. You will be up and down forever. How can I put it plainly? It doesn’t matter if you have almost entered into the depths of hell. It does not matter if you are guilty of murder as well as every other vile sin. It does not matter from the standpoint of being justified before God at all. You are no more hopeless than the most moral and respectable person in the world. Martyn Lloyd-Jones 🙏I'm praying for you always. ❤️ Pastor Jamie Read the Chapter: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ephesians%202&version=ESV Learn more about us: www.mygpchurch.com/whoweare #notesfromthepastorsdesk #thegpchurch #Truth #seek #study #serve #mygpchurch 1 Corinthians 6:20Notes from the Pastor's Desk #notesfromthepastorsdesk
📖1 Corinthians 6:20 (ESV) 20 for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. 📘Pastor's Note: Here is what we need to know about God and our relationship with Him: He is the Master. We are the servants. He is the Shepherd. We are the sheep. He is the Potter. We are the clay. This means that the day we believed in Jesus, we became His personal property to do with as He chooses. I know that sounds radical to some, but it is biblical. As Christians, we are now the "purchased property" of Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 6:20 reminds us, "For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body." We have been redeemed and reconciled to God through His Son Jesus. We are His personal, precious possession. But we must also know that this Master who owns us is also a friend who loves us. He is the Potter who molds us. He is the Father who adores us. He is our Rock and Shield. That makes it all the easier to be His servant. Being a bondslave, Paul would at times introduce himself as such in his epistles: "Paul, a bondslave of Jesus Christ." So, what did that mean? This refers to the ancient custom in which a freed slave could declare that he did not want to leave his master. A slave who had been set free but wanted to stay on and serve his master voluntarily was known as a "bondslave." This goes back to Paul's statement to the Lord on the Damascus road, "Lord, what will You have me do?" There was no quibbling or negotiating in this area. He just wanted to do his duty and please his Master. A genuine follower of Jesus wants to do His will, and as soon as he knows what it is, he gladly jumps in and does it! He does this because his desire and love are bent toward pleasing his Master. It's not for self-preservation or self-righteousness. He, and everything he is and does, is to honor and glorify his Master. The steward, the bondslave, the Christ-follower must one day give an account of his ministry, and Paul was ready for that day. Are we ready to give an account of our lives to God? I pray that we are. May you have a blessed day serving our wonderful Master and Savior. 🙏I'm praying for you always. ❤️ Pastor Jamie Read the Chapter: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%206&version=ESV Learn more about us: www.mygpchurch.com/whoweare #notesfromthepastorsdesk #thegpchurch #Truth #seek #study #serve #mygpchurch Matthew 24:7–14 (ESV)Notes from the Pastor's Desk #notesfromthepastorsdesk
📖Matthew 24:7–14 (ESV) 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are but the beginning of the birth pains. 9 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name's sake. 10 And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. 11 And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. 12 And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But the one who endures to the end will be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. 📘Pastor's Note: The beginning of birth pains. We are closer today to the end than we were yesterday. Reading these words from Jesus to His disciples and observing the gross sinfulness in the world, we can’t help but know that the time is nearer. Come, Lord Jesus, come. 🙏I'm praying for you always. ❤️ Pastor Jamie Read the Chapter: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2024&version=ESV Learn more about us: www.mygpchurch.com/whoweare #notesfromthepastorsdesk #thegpchurch #Truth #seek #study #serve #mygpchurch Notes from the Pastor's Desk #notesfromthepastorsdesk
📖1 Thessalonians 4:9-10 (ESV) 9 Now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another, 10 for that indeed is what you are doing to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers, to do this more and more, 📘Pastor's Note: What a powerful statement from Paul to the Thessalonian church. When it came to brotherly love, no one needed to instruct them on how to treat one another. They had been taught by God and were clearly loving one another as they ought to. Their demonstration of love was so great that it extended to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. This is an amazing testimony from this church, which stands as an example for all churches as the divine standard of love exercised by the body. The church should be known for its love. As a matter of fact, our love for one another stands as a powerful testimony to the lost world. We should love our Lord with all our heart, mind, and soul, and love our neighbor.1 Corinthians 13:1–8 says, “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends.” Church, how are we doing in this area of our lives? Are we known for our love? Do we love our brothers and sisters in Christ? Are we patient and kind? Do we envy or boast? Are we arrogant or rude? Do we insist on getting our way? Are we irritable or resentful? Do we rejoice with the truth? Do you think your fellow brothers and sisters see love demonstrated in your life? Never underestimate the importance of love!!1 Corinthians 13:13 says, “So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.” 🙏I'm praying for you always. ❤️ Pastor Jamie Read the Chapter: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Thessalonians%204&version=ESV Learn more about us: www.mygpchurch.com/whoweare #notesfromthepastorsdesk #thegpchurch #Truth #seek #study #serve #mygpchurch James 1:2-4 (ESV)Notes from the Pastor's Desk #notesfromthepastorsdesk
📖James 1:2-4 (ESV) 2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. 📘Pastor's Note: Trials and tribulations are not going to be uncommon in this life. As believers, we are to recognize that. As a matter of fact, when we trust in Jesus, we need to understand that there’s an enemy bent on trying to steal our joy. He wants to use whatever he can to limit our effectiveness for the sake of the gospel. But it’s equally important to know that God sovereignly allows trials in our lives to refine us in the faith. Gold is made more pure by intense fire. So, as you experience these things in various ways, consider that. Have your armor on and know that even in middle of the fire that the Lord is there walking with you and that He has a purpose for your good and for His glory. Find joy in it. I know that is easier said than done at times. But that is the encouragement that James gives to us. Endurance and perseverance through trials, when we see it biblically, helps us in keeping our focus right and allows us to find joy because we know that our Lord is at work perfecting us in the faith. 🙏I'm praying for you always. ❤️ Pastor Jamie Read the Chapter: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=James%201&version=ESV Learn more about us: www.mygpchurch.com/whoweare #notesfromthepastorsdesk #thegpchurch #Truth #seek #study #serve #mygpchurch |
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