Pastor Scott's Blog

A TIME TO SAY GOODBYE

2011-07-15T08:37:00.000-07:00

Ecclesiastes chapter three informs us, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck it up; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to win, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to throw away; a time to speak, and a time to be silent; a time to hate, and a time to love; a time for war, and a time of peace.” Today, my dear friends I would also add there is a time to say good-bye.
These words were written thousands of years ago by the wisest man who ever lived, King Solomon. In the Book of Kings the heavenly visit of God to Solomon is recorded whereby He had granted to Solomon one request. The request was that God would give him all wisdom in order to know how to best lead the people God had given him charge over. While there will never be another Solomon, I can sincerely tell you I too have made that request of God often over the past 5 years as your pastor. I can also say God has faithfully granted wisdom in many areas of my ministry to First Baptist and to your service.
There is much to celebrate in recounting some of the successes we have shared together over these recent years in order to build God’s Kingdom and bring Him glory. There have been men, women, children, and families who have experienced the life changing event of acceptance of Jesus as their Lord and Savior. To God be the glory. There are also many folks who have gone through the exercise of believer’s baptism making their profession of faith in Jesus public in our midst. I believe that we have tried very hard to show this community of Travelers Rest the love of Christ through visitation nights and walking nearby neighborhoods as well as through numerous outreach events both inside and outside of our walls including children’s events such as Bible schools, baking goods for our businesses, providing food and supplies for our local schools and shelters, and our infamous “back to school bash.” Yes, there have been lives and families who have been changed over the last 5 years because of this church.
Now I wish to challenge you, my friends, to never give up in striving to bring joy to your surrounding area in fulfilling our great God’s command. Make disciples, Jesus would say as He ascended back to heaven after the cross, Go, and Make disciples. Even though the wisdom that God has granted has now brought us to this time of parting, my prayer for Travelers Rest is that you would always seek to glorify God in building His kingdom. I would ask you, in the words of a popular song, “Pray for me, and I will pray for you!” I love you and it has been my family’s privilege to serve you for these past five years.

Pastor Scott

WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO BE A FATHER?

2011-06-21T12:02:00.000-07:00

Almost any man can father a child, but that certainly does not make him a FATHER. Just ask the nearly 13 million single mothers trying to raise their children on their own according to 2009 U.S. Census Bureau statistics. If you are still not convinced, ask the 21.8 million children (approximately 26% of children under 21 in the U.S. today) who belong to those single mothers. The taboo subject of out of wedlock pregnancy of the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s, and certain ostracism in the schoolroom, is now often celebrated and heralded as glorious with a feeling of liberation by today’s society. This is especially true of the family and peers of the young men involved; however, this alarmingly offensive trend comes at a great cost to all of those associated and society at large. Men, God’s Holy Word tells us quite clearly that this is NOT what it means to be a FATHER!

God informs us, “For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and shall be joined to his wife, and then the two shall become one flesh!” (Italics mine). What God as the creator of all life has established from Genesis on is the rightly blessed family unit. It begins with a man and a woman marrying for the purpose of, then and only then, having children who will in turn populate the earth. Not only is marriage God’s necessary and blessed plan for men to become husbands and fathers, but also for us to raise godly children. Thus, the cycle continues not only of procreation, but the continuation of children who will become adults who love the Lord and want nothing more than to live for Him and His glory!

Men, in order to become real FATHERS, we must first love our wives just as Jesus loves His church, and show our children this model as God intended in our homes. Secondly, we must raise our children in the training and admonition of the Lord; just as the wisdom literature of Proverbs tells us that if we train up our children this way, when they are old they will not depart from it. The training is demanding and none of us are perfect, but we must spend our whole lives to this end. It doesn’t stop when our children reach 18 and/or leave our homes. We are fathers, should we choose to undertake such a tremendous task, for our whole lives. It continues from our children to our grandchildren and even our great grandchildren. This training the Bible refers to is simply that as we are teaching our children and loving and nurturing them in all their physical needs, we also teach them that there is a God who loves them and expects them to return that love with all their hearts, mind, soul, and strength. The only way we can instill in our children that kind of love for the Lord, an attitude of serving Him with all that they are and bringing glory to Him, is for them to see it continuously lived out by example in the lives of godly men. Then and only then can we truly be called FATHERS!

Pastor Scott

WITHOUT FAITH IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO PLEASE GOD!

2011-04-11T08:16:00.000-07:00

Without question this is the most sacred month of the year for all Evangelical Christians. Why, you might ask? It is because the crux of our faith is celebrated in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ our Savior and Lord. The Bible tells us that if in this life we have hope in a Christ who is not raised from the dead then we are the most pitiable men in all the world. “But now CHRIST IS RISEN from the dead, and has become the first fruits of those who are dead…for as in Adam we (all humanity) die, even so in Jesus Christ all shall be made alive; Christ the firstfruits and afterwards, those who are His!” 1 Corinthians 15:20-22
Jesus is indeed ALIVE, and therein affords great news of hope that you and I might also defeat death and be resurrected to eternal life with God the Father in heaven. Jesus has given us the means of being saved, but what I would like to focus on for a few minutes is the fact that He also showed us ‘The Way.” Have you ever thought about Jesus’ faith? What did He believe to be true with regard to God His Father? What did He do about it? These are great questions that will help us to be confident with our own faith in God’s promises. We can follow Jesus’ example.
The prophet Moses in Gen. 3:15 and Isaiah in Isaiah 53:4,10 give us the fact that it was all part of God’s master plan for His Son Jesus to die for our sins on the cross. Jesus took our place and died and was buried on our behalf. You see God is a holy God which means that sin cannot dwell in His presence. Therefore, if you and I as sinners were ever going to have a restored relationship with God, then someone would have to take away our sin. Enter Jesus, God’s only Son, who not only agreed to take our sin voluntarily allowing it to put Him to death on the cross and be buried, but Jesus also had to have faith that God would not leave Him in that state but raise Him back to life. Jesus had to have tremendous faith!
I’m sure they had talked about it many times in His short 33 years of life. I know that Jesus agonized over it in the garden on the night He was arrested. The gospel of Mark describes that scene as he says that Jesus was troubled and distressed saying, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to the point of death…Father, will you take this cup from Me if it is possible, nevertheless, not My will, but Your will!” On the cross Jesus cried out again, “My God, My God why have you forsaken Me,” as He was within His final breaths of dying. Nevertheless, even in the darkest moments of His entire life on earth Jesus had faith in God His Father!
Now, the question of the hour becomes not what would Jesus do, but would you have done what Jesus did? Have you ever placed your life in God’s hands by faith completely trusting Him with your life? If not today should be the day. If he raised His Son from the dead and He did, now Jesus is the firstfruits of the harvest meaning that others are to follow. Will you be part of the rest of the fruit metaphorically speaking? The meaning is clear. Will you ask Jesus to forgive your sin by faith believing that HE died on the cross to take your sin from you and by faith believe that God will also raise you from the fate of an earthly physical death one day just as He raised Jesus? Without FAITH it is impossible to please God, to have a restored relationship with Him!

WHAT PART OF “ALL” DON’T WE UNDERSTAND?

2011-03-09T15:01:00.000-08:00

In a recent sermon we were discussing the magnitude of God’s kingdom which is “all” encompassing. Psalm 24 tells us that the earth and the whole universe belong to the Lord. Not only in substance, but also everything that dwells in the universe, “all the fullness,” is God’s. There are numerous texts in Scripture that affirm this same truth such as Colossians 1 which states not only that God created us and that we belong to Him, but that in Him we consist. In other words we are physically held together in bodily form because of our great God’s design. Therefore, our understanding of life MUST take into account that “I” belong to God!
Herein is our greatest problem because we mostly believe that “I” belong to me and I can do with myself whatever I want to do with myself whenever I want to do it because I only answer to me. Now I know that most of us would never articulate such a statement regarding how we live, but in reality, sadly, this is exactly how we make daily decisions, and how we live. God mercifully cautions us repeatedly against the sin of pride in how we govern ourselves without regard for Him, but His compassionate pleas far too often go unheeded.
I’m reminded of the narrative found in Daniel concerning the son of the infamous Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar. His son’s name was Belshazzar and he had thrown an elaborate party with some friends one night when all of the sudden, out of thin air, a hand just appeared and began to write on a wall. The phrase written in Hebrew read, “Mene, Mene. Tekel, Upharsin” which translated means “you have been weighed on the scales and have been found lacking!” Belshazzar had lived his whole life unto himself with little or no thought for the God who created him and the fact that this whole earth is God’s kingdom not his and not ours! Sadly, the message was that Belshazzar’s whole short life did not measure up when weighed by God on God’s scales, and that very night his life was taken from him.
I pray that this thought captures your heart today. When Daniel interpreted the handwriting for Belshazzar he made this comment, “you have lifted YOURSELF up against the Lord of heaven. You have praised the gods which do not see or hear or know; and The God who holds your breath in His hand and owns all your ways, you have not glorified.” My friend, don’t let this happen to you! Understand today, that all of this world, including you, belongs to the Lord. He expects that by faith you repent of pride and sin in your life trusting Him as your Savior and Lord. He is gracious, merciful, compassionate and will forgive you. Today, will you acknowledge Him as sovereign in your life and give yourself and the rest of your days to Him? If not, what part of “all” the earth don’t you understand?

THE SEASON FOR LOVE

2011-02-09T13:24:00.001-08:00

Americans are just about as ‘loving’ a people as you will find anywhere on the planet. If you doubt this statement just be quiet and listen to the average conversion over lunch at work, school, or home. What you’ll find in our everyday conversation is the word ‘love’ used at an alarming rate of frequency. For example, we love our shoes and all the different styles. We love our clothes and all the favorite stores that sell them. We love our hair and our one of a kind hair stylists\salons. We love our nails, spas, and boutiques. We love our homes and decorating them, the furniture and all the stores that stock the furniture, our art and the antique dealers, our yards, trees, flowers, and gardens and those big stores that sell everything we need to maintain them. We love our cars and favorite dealerships, our motor homes, our motor cycles, campers, boats, 4-wheelers, and anything else that moves with a motor. We also love our electronics and don’t forget the stores that sell them; we love our cell phones, flat screen televisions, computers, stereos, i-pods, i-pads, i-phones, i-tunes and all our other music. We love our food, and don’t forget the 1000’s of different favorite restaurants, our donuts, our chocolate, our pastries, pies, and cakes, oh yeah, and we love our coffee. Most of us also love our country, our churches, our families, friends, our sports, our recreation\vacations, and even our jobs. Let’s face it, we ‘LOVE’ everything, but do we really ‘love’ anything?
Our conversation reveals the term ‘love’ has lost all sense of meaning and definition as we use it for everything, with little to no thought given before it is tritely thrown out. Our fascination with all afore mentioned things reveals that we have little to no concept of the sacredness or the value love holds. Still, the most alarming and saddest fact remains. Not only do we not understand love’s true meaning or it’s genuine worth, but we also have no idea what it looks like or to whom it truly belongs. Case and point: according to business news media outlets February, affectionately known as ‘the month of love,’ home of the Valentine’s holiday posts retail sales receipts of around 14 BILLION dollars annually. This second only to Christmas and often rivals Mother’s day for the 2nd or 3rd biggest retail season of the year. The point is that we think we can somehow buy something that never was or ever will be for sale, ‘love.’
You see, we do not have a clue what real love is because we were all born with a love deficiency which can be imagined as a huge hole in our heart. It is a void incapable of being filled with anything or by anyone other than the One true God who created us. When you come to Him by faith and ask God to fill your broken heart, He will hear your cry and instill His love into you. This is the love of a renewed relationship that was broken between you and God but now has been restored. Only then can you understand what real love is and ready to demonstrate and give true love to others. Jesus put it this way in His Word, the Bible, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” Then He said, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Our love from Him and our ability to love is a special gift from God, let’s treat it SPECIAL this month as well as all the others.

LET GOD BE YOUR BARNABUS THIS YEAR

2011-01-06T09:19:00.000-08:00

New beginnings are always a great opportunity to reflect on the mistakes of the past in order not to repeat them in the future. Now we are on the brink of entering a brand new year and it is time to make some positive changes in our lives. I’m not talking about New Year’s resolutions that last until about mid January, even if you are half-way motivated. What I am speaking of is wholesome lifestyle changes that will bring you closer to the one who made you, loves you, and has work for you to do every day. It is why you are here on planet earth, that is, to bring God glory by living in a manner that is both pleasing to Him and productive in accomplishing His goals for you. The problem is that we need plenty of help, and we usually look for it in all the wrong places. The good news is that it is not too late, and not only that, but it is a great opportunity to begin again at the start of this brand new year.
I am reminded of the story in the Book of Acts of a young man named John Mark. It was the initiation of the career of the great apostle Paul, who had been commissioned to go on his first missionary trip. There was also a man, by the name of Barnabus, who was set apart to go with Paul. John Mark was chosen by Paul and Barnabus to accompany them on their journey. The Bible tells us that sometime after they had departed, not too long into the trip, John Mark left them and headed back home. The story resumes after Paul and Barnabus had returned home and some time had passed. When they were ready to embark on their second missionary journey, Barnabus wanted to take John Mark along with them again. Wait a minute. Stop! Did you catch that? Barnabus wanted to give John Mark another chance, a NEW BEGINNING! Even though he had been a presumable screw-up, let down, and disappointment; even though he had quit on them and gone back to the reliable, safe outlet; Barnabus wanted him to succeed! Well, Paul and Barnabus argued and parted ways. Paul went on his second missionary journey, and took Silas with him. Barnabus went on his second missionary journey, and took John Mark with him. At the end of Paul’s life he had become a John Mark fan, and even stated that John Mark was someone he could trust, and was useful to him, when others had abandoned him.
Here’s the point. You and I are guilty of doing many things that need improvement. We have left, so to speak, our Father’s side and His mission, or will, for us on this earth. Quite honestly, and too often, perhaps we have tried to clean up our act, on our own, only to go back very quickly to old ‘safe or reliable’ sinful habits. Well, there is no better time than on the start of this new year for us to begin a fresh and anew. God is our Barnabus, He is our encourager, and He is saying to us that we can do it! We can accomplish living the life that He wants for us for His glory, if we let Him lead and strengthen us. He has not given up on you yet! Know that, no matter how much you think that you have messed up, He still loves you! The question is, will you be encouraged, will you ask for and accept His forgiveness, and will you try anew to live for Him, and with Him in this New Year?

HAPPY HOLIDAYS WON’T GET RID OF ‘IT,’ CHRISTMAS CAN !

2010-12-03T07:28:00.000-08:00

What is the ‘it’ factor for you? You know… that nagging ever present harassingly depressing thing that you have tried to put out of your mind until after the holidays. You can do it. Just put on a friendly faced front. You must do it at least for a month for the sake of all that is tradition, and good in the world, and for family. After all it is time for joy and peace right? It is the time for going along, and getting along regardless of whether or not you can stand that obnoxious family member you have purposely avoided since last December. After all, the Hallmark holiday movies have started, and everyone just loves one another, and it snows on Christmas Eve. Be merry, smile, turn on those gas logs, decorate your tree and your whole house while you’re at it. Go shopping, eat with family, go to all the parties, sing those songs along with the radio or better yet in church, it counts for more points doesn’t it, and by all means give and get those presents, that’s where all the happiness comes from right!
Wrong, that’s where the term ‘January blues’ comes from, because a manufactured holiday FEELING for a month is NOT going to get rid of whatever ‘IT’ is in your life. The holidays will come and go for you, my friend, if you are not careful, just like they have so many times before, and it will soon be January and your difficulties will still be right where you tried to leave them. You see, the problem is that doing all of those great and fun holiday activities can only bring momentary or brief periods of happiness into your life, but not real or lasting joy. Most likely, you have experienced these times enough in your life that you know I’m speaking truth. Alright then, the question now is if the holidays by themselves, and all the surrounding fan fare are not enough to deal with the real tough issues in my life, what is?
The answer is simple, it is CHRISTmas. It is what the world is so desperately trying to leave out of all December festivities, but also what God Himself has revealed to us in His Word (the Bible). He Himself gave Christ to us in order to answer all of our greatest needs. It truly is the gift that brings all the real peace and joy anyone could ever hope for. You see, the biggest ‘it’ for all of humanity is our rebellious attitude and action toward a loving God, a God who loves us in spite of all our deficiencies, hang-ups, and bad habits. A God who tells us that the true meaning of Christmas is that He showed us His great love on that one special night. God sent His one and only unique Son, Jesus, to this earth on that night so long ago in the little town of Bethlehem in Israel. It was truly as the angels sang that night to some local shepherds, “Peace come down to earth as God’s favor had been shown to all men.”
Why did God send Jesus from heaven to earth, why did you and I need Him to come? We needed a Savior to place our hope and trust in, a Savior who can restore the relationship that is broken between us and a perfect God. That Saviors name is Jesus, who is Christ the Lord. Have you by faith ever asked Jesus to forgive your sins, the rebellious things that we have done in our lives towards God and others? You can do it right now, and God in heaven will hear you and forgive you. If you will accept the gift of Christmas that God is offering you, then He through your faith in Jesus will take away the “it” in your life and replace it with sheer joy!

FOR WHO HE IS!

2010-11-05T08:43:00.000-07:00

I have just returned to my desk from a trip with our seniors up to the mountains in Hendersonville, NC. It has been an annual Fall event in the life of our church for a number of years, and one which I especially look forward to. We take the scenic trip up highway 25 from Travelers Rest into North Carolina, and then merge onto highway 26 towards Asheville. From our route, we then take Highway 64 toward Chimney Rock, which allows us to pick from several well stocked apple orchard barns. The places we carefully choose to stop at are the ones with the best apple varieties, the biggest pumpkins and gourds, the most sweet potatoes and other vegetables, and oh yes, provides the freshest mountain cabbage. I must confess that I did not know there was a difference between cabbages, but I have been quickly informed that these mountain cabbages are surely the greatest cabbages in the world. While I don’t know if that is true or not, I do know that it is highly possible because this day has been one of the best in the world!
Along the route we are in awe of the majestic mountain skyline that is getting ever closer, until we seem to begin blending in with it, as we proceed up the ever steeping grade. The contrast between the large rock formations and trees only add to the wonder of our spectacular view. From the steepest peaks now we begin to see clearings with autumn foliage vistas, for what seems like miles, and it is absolutely breathing taking. There really are no words to describe it! Deep vibrant reds, brilliant yellows and oranges in the midst of some green background and blue sky, can you see it? When we arrived at some of the stops upon getting off of the bus the air was pure up there and it made you just want to take a deep breath. The smells of fresh apples being cut open, jams and jellies, salsa’s and chow-chow, apple ciders, apple breads, and fresh apple fritters being baked filled the air with a heavenly smell that could only have come from God and grandmothers. Are you the least bit jealous yet, that you didn’t get to go? Sorry, perhaps at some point you too will be able to take such a trip to the mountains and experience our great God’s awesome artwork on display that delights all the senses. As I reflect on our trip today, I just want to PRAISE God and THANK Him for who He is. Period!
After all, it is November you know, the thanksgiving month. I wonder how often we simply say thank you to Him, just for who He is, and not just for what He has done for us. Do you think He might like to hear us come to Him sometime, not asking for a thing, but just having a prayer or a meditation of God YOU ARE AWESOME? I LOVE YOU, just for WHO YOU ARE! Being a father I understand that it sure makes a difference to me, when one of my girls just out of the blue says I love you dad, or thank you for being my dad, when I haven’t done anything specifically to merit such comments. I can tell you that it melts DAD’s heart! Therefore, I am inclined to believe that when we just out of the blue tell our heavenly Father, we love you, and thank you for being our DAD, that it just might melt His too.
Get up to the mountains, if you have an opportunity to over the next few weeks, or from wherever you are sing a few lines of “HOW GREAT is our GOD”, or “HOW GREAT THOU ART” and thank Him just for WHO HE IS!

ARE YOU READY FOR SOME CHRISTIANS ?

2010-09-23T11:28:00.000-07:00

Well it’s that time of the year again when sports enthusiasts far and wide begin to beam with excitement over their favorite football teams and the airwaves are abuzz from commentators giving all their expert analysis. The air is just a little cooler, high school bands can be heard practicing from across the way, and the numerous tailgating rituals have begun. Topping off all of the above is the ever familiar infamous Monday night football mantra, “Are you ready for some footballllllll!” This seasonal signal indicates that once again all is well with world of football fans across the globe. And so it has begun, some teams have already tasted the height of victory while others the agony of defeat. What is it that makes the difference?
This past Sunday night the game was advertized as the continuation of the Manning Bowl as Peyton Manning of the Indianapolis Colts set to face off against his younger brother Eli of the New York Giants. For one week and a weekend all the ESPN commentators and other broadcasters could talk about were these two brothers. All the internet sports news clips and photos could show was these two Manning brothers. The only problem with that type of coverage was where was the rest of the team? You understand that there are 11 men on the field of play at any given time for each team or it is a penalty. So, I ask again what about the rest of the team? As it turns out that was the question that really should have been ask as the Giants and Eli Manning were trounced miserably during the game. The Giants who were beaten 38 -14 soon discovered the problem was not in the talent of quarterback Eli, but in the inability at the offensive line positions, particularly with the ends, blocking out their respective defensive opponents. Eli was hurried, knocked down, and sacked throughout the entire game. The running backs could not run the ball and the wide receivers never saw the ball, because Eli didn’t have time to throw it to them!
What is it that makes the difference between winning and losing? It begins with the word and the concept of TEAM. You see it’s not about any one player, but all the players. Each and every one on the team has specific tasks to perform and differing responsibilities that they and they alone MUST fulfill. If not, what you wind up with is a fiasco, a mess. It’s certainly that way with a football team, and it is also that way with the church, God’s team made up of Christians. 1 Corinthians 12:4-ff tells us, “There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit . . . Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. Now the body is not made up of one part but of many. If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body…Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it!”
We are ready for some Christians, the world is asking, and God Himself is asking for us to go into a lost world and play our position on His team. This is not a game as real lives and families hang in the balance. If we as Christians (team members) will serve Him with our individual callings and gifts through the power of His Holy Spirit victory is assured and we will make a difference!

I love you and pray for you, Pastor Scott

WHAT ARE YOU HERE FOR ANYWAY?

2010-08-02T12:19:00.000-07:00

It’s a great question everyone will have to answer, no exceptions and no excuses. Today, I’m simply suggesting you answer the question honestly within yourself while you still have time to change your answer and go for it! You see, the only correct answer is that you are here (on this earth) to “Make a Difference” for the kingdom or the cause of Jesus Christ! This leads naturally to another great question. Have you or are you making a difference? God of the universe has called YOU, to be a part of something that’s bigger than your self, family, job, career, home, hobbies, and interests… bigger than just your little neck of the woods! He is a BIG GOD and He expects you to be serving Him and His purposes and living each and every day for His Glory. It is the only way you can “Make a Difference” in this life, in this world; and, as if I have to remind you, you are running out of time!
As I write to you, I believe, as I am sure you are well aware, our church has just been “marking time” or standing still for too long. I am convinced that most, if not all, the reasoning behind our current state of affairs is because we have, all, to some extent or another, lost focus on why we are here and why the church of Jesus exists. Would you please commit to pray right now before reading any further? Pray that as we read together the following truth from our Great God’s Holy Word, that it will pierce our hearts. What does God want to say to you and our church through this passage? Ezekiel 37:1-14
The hand of the Lord was upon ME, and he brought ME out by the Spirit of the Lord and set ME in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led ME back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. He asked ME, "Can these bones live?"
I said, "O Sovereign Lord, you alone know." Then he said to me, "Prophesy to these bones and say to them, 'Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.'"
So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them. Then he said to me, "Prophesy to the breath; 'This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe into these slain, that they may live.'" So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet — a vast army. Then he said to me: "These bones are the whole house of Israel (the church). They say, 'Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.' Therefore prophesy and say to them: 'This is what the Sovereign Lord says: O my people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel. Then you, my people, will know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken, and I have done it, declares the Lord.'"
The bottom line is this, you are the church! Collectively, as the church, when our focus is off, individually and corporately, from serving the Kingdom of Jesus Christ; we are no more than DEAD dry bones. The real question is can the church live again? Answer, YES, if and only if we allow the Holy Spirit of God, His breath to well up inside of us and revive us again. It looks like getting on our knees and humbly repenting and asking His Spirit to fill us. Answer, YES, God can do it if and only if you will personally allow Him to be the LORD of your life. Then, that which was dead can live and not only live, but go from very dry, to a vast army by the grace and the power of our mighty God! IT’S WHY YOU ARE HERE!

A THIMBLE OR A TANKER?

2010-05-17T12:30:00.000-07:00

Doesn’t everyone want to get the most out of life that this earthly existence has to offer? In his book of illustrations Dr. Tony Evans gives a great analogy for realizing the full potential of your life. Imagine that you are standing beside the Atlantic Ocean at Myrtle Beach and that you have a thimble in your hand. How much of the splendor and power of the ocean could you obtain? What if you dropped the thimble realizing its uselessness and grabbed a bucket. Now how much capacity for using the sea would you have? At best, just a little bit more. What if you threw down the bucket and were able to get a 55 gallon barrel. Now how much potential capacity of the ocean would you be able to acquire? What if you were able to drive a tanker onto the beach, what about your potential capacity to use the ocean now? You get the point: the greater the vessel offered, the greater amount of potential to store up, or better yet, to be filled by the Atlantic.
Similarly, when we are near to the one true creator God of the universe we are standing beside the ALL POWERFUL. Our potential capacity for being filled by Him is going to depend on what size vessel we offer to be filled. Can you begin to realize how silly it is to offer God only a thimble’s worth of your life and expect that His power is going to be with you when you need it. Yet, for most of us that’s exactly how we choose to live and then wonder why in the world things are going so poorly in our lives and the lives of our families. God demands that we offer Him our entire body, i.e. all of you, your whole self or your whole life! By offering God all of you, in effect, what you are doing is giving Him a huge vessel with which He can now pour out more of His Spirit into you. When He does this you can be assured that here and now in your everyday life you can experience life to its fullest. There is no greater achievement or reward that this world can give you than what God can do through you if you would only give yourself to Him! He is even more magnificent, majestic, splendid, beautiful, powerful, and vast than all of the seas combined because He created them.
Would you by faith in His Word give all of you to God today if you have never made this choice? It is a decision that will change your life here and now, and forever. Ask Him to forgive you for living according to your way and accept His Son Jesus’ forgiveness. Next, ask Him to be your Lord, accept His mastery over your life, and let His Spirit fill you up with strength and power for living. Romans 8:1-14 tells us that, “There is now no condemnation awaiting those who belong to Christ Jesus. For the power of the life-giving Spirit-and this power is mine through Christ Jesus-has freed me from the vicious circle of sin and death . . .Those who let themselves be controlled by their own natures live only to please themselves, but those who follow after the Holy Spirit find themselves doing those things that please God. Following after the Holy Spirit leads to life and peace, but following after our old nature leads to death. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.”
The Message paraphrases it like this, “With the arrival of Jesus, the Messiah, that fateful dilemma is resolved. Those who enter into Christ's being-here-for-us no longer have to live under a continuous, low-lying black cloud. A new power is in operation. The Spirit of life in Christ, like a strong wind, has magnificently cleared the air, freeing you from a fated lifetime of brutal tyranny at the hands of sin and death. So I ask you my friend, a thimble or tanker, which best describes what you are offering to God?
I love you and I am praying for you, Pastor Scott

YOU ASK ME HOW I KNOW?

2010-04-20T11:36:00.000-07:00

With resurrection day looming right around the corner most Christians will be celebrating the resurrected Christ by traditional means. There are always the family gatherings usually with a big feast and egg hunts. There are the special church services with familiar lessons and sermons detailing the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. Then too, there is the special music with soloists and choirs. Ah, but there we also find ourselves too singing those old familiar hymns that resonate with our hearts heralding and praising the risen Lord. One of those old hymns that often swells my eyes and tugs on my insides is “He lives!” The words go something like this:
I serve a risen Saviour, He's in the world today;
I know that He is living, Whatever men may say;
I see His hand of mercy, I hear His voice of cheer,
And just the time I need Him, He's always near.

He lives, He lives, Christ Jesus lives today!
He walks with me and He talks with me Along life's narrow way.
He lives, He live, salvation to impart!
You ask me how I know He lives: He lives within my heart.

Rejoice, rejoice, O Christian, Lift up your voice and sing
Eternal hallelujahs To Jesus Christ the King!
The hope of all who seek Him, The help of all who find,
None other is so loving, So good and kind.

He lives, He lives, Christ Jesus lives today!
He walks with me and He talks with me Along life's narrow way.
He lives, He live, salvation to impart!
You ask me how I know He lives: He lives within my heart.

I would just like to ask if you can sing that song with assurance that the heart line is true for you. You see it won’t matter how many family gatherings you ever go to, or how much candy you might collect over the years. It won’t even matter how many resurrection day services you attend or how many songs you have sung or heard. There’s only one thing that will truly matter to God when you meet Him; does Jesus Christ live within your heart. The truth of the matter is this, it’s not enough that Jesus did rise from the dead in order to take the place of our sin. You must personally by faith ask Him to forgive you of your sin believing that in His death, He buried all your sin, and when He rose He defeated your sin and gained eternal victory over death and sin for you securing you a rightful place in the Kingdom of God His father making you a son or a daughter of the KING!
I don’t celebrate the resurrection because my parents or my family has told me that Jesus is alive. I don’t celebrate the resurrection because some teacher has taught me that Jesus is alive. I don’t celebrate the resurrection because some preacher has preached to me that Jesus is alive or because some choir sings about His being alive. You ask me why I celebrate that Jesus is alive, BECAUSE HE LIVES WITHIN MY HEART!! What about you, why do you celebrate?

WHAT YOU SAY YOU BELIEVE

2010-02-22T08:58:00.000-08:00

The story goes of a preacher who got on a bus one day and he gave the bus driver the fare. The bus driver in return gave him his change, but the driver gave him too much money. The preacher went and sat down until his stop arrived. When the preacher had come back down the aisle to where the bus driver was he stopped and said, “You gave me too much change back earlier,” and gave the driver the extra back. The driver in return replied, “Pastor, I really appreciate this, because I was in your church yesterday, and I heard your sermon on honesty. I intentionally gave you too much change to see whether or not you live according to what you preach.”
I am convinced that one of the key reasons that more people are not coming to our churches today is because they have been put off by the speech and actions of those who are “members.” Far too often those who claim to be followers of Jesus exhibit a lifestyle before the eyes of the lost and impressionable around us that is anything but the way that Jesus would want us to act. Our society today, especially older children and teens are looking for something that’s real. They are tired of being lied to and sold the mantra of, “this works (the Christian life); trust me,” and then not seeing us living it out in a real day by day manner. It is as old, tired, and worthless as the ‘do as I say, NOT as I do’ jargon. When they see us with joy when it’s not a joyful time in the midst of pain, when they see us at peace when it’s anything but peaceful, and love when the object of our affection is anything but deserving; that’s when they’ll start believing our rhetoric and come to see what it is that we claim is so great about being a Christian.
Therefore, I’m excited to be starting a brand new series through the book of James. It has often been remarked by its readers as the most practical book of the Bible. While that is true, the underlying theme throughout this letter implores its readers to STOP compromising and practice what is it that you say you believe! There’s not a more crucial wakeup call for the church at large today if we want seriously to reach those around us who don’t know Christ. Again they are looking for something that is REAL! Perhaps you will recall the summarizing verse in James 2:17, “Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” He would also say just a few chapters later, “Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins!”
This is a new year, and now is the time that our church has committed to serve Him as we never have before. This is the day that we have been preparing for with our joy teams in order that there WILL BE joy in Travelers Rest, SC because our church is fleshing out, being real, living what we say we BELIEVE! Come join us on Sunday mornings as we embark on a journey through James.

With A Blank Slate The Possibilities Are Limitless

2010-01-06T07:36:00.000-08:00

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No you don’t have to adjust your eyes, there is really nothing in the first part of my article this month. That’s exactly where you and I find ourselves at the outset of this brand new year. If we will allow the Holy Spirit to work in our hearts and minds He will chart a new course of action for us, and the possibilities are truly limitless. I want you to know that I have been praying for you individually and for our church that we would set Travelers Rest on fire this coming year with a renewed attitude and passion for serving our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ as we have never done before! See, HE is doing a new thing among us! Are you going to be a part of it, starting right now? You decide if you are going to surrender YOU to Him. It is just that simple, we try to make it harder and more complicated than it really is!
Would that we would have the attitude of the Apostle Paul this new year as he writes in Philippians 3:7-4:1, “Whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him…I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings. Not that I have already obtained all this,…Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. All of us who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body. Therefore, my brothers, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, that is how you should stand firm in the Lord, dear friends!” NIV
What will God do with us this new year? I can’t wait to be a part of finding out!
I love you and I am praying for you, Pastor Scott

THANKFUL ON THE INSIDE

2009-11-03T12:50:00.000-08:00

The story goes of a father traveling in the car with his young son who was about 5 years old. They were just going a short distance and so the boy who was in the back seat decided that he wanted to take off his seat belt and stand up. As you might imagine the father then immediately began to correct his son and tried to encourage him to sit down and fasten his seat belt. The conversation went something like this, “Sit down son and put your seat belt on.” “I don’t want to.” “I didn’t ask you, Sit Down, Now.” “But I don’t want to.” “Son, don’t make me count to three!” “But daddy, I don’t want toooo.” “Son! If you don’t sit down right now I’m going to Spank you.” The boy finally sits down and there is a long silence. All of a sudden the boy exclaims from the back seat, “I may be sitting down on the outside, but I’m STANDING UP on the INSIDE!”
We are entering into my most favorite time of the year as the weather takes a turn on the cooler side and the smell of fall is in the air. The autumn beauty is all around us now, as we are blessed to live with these majestic and vibrant mountainous views at every turn. We are also entering into the month and the day that we have set aside for giving thanks. Therein lays a huge problem for some folks, because they have made an altogether different statement with their lives for the other eleven months of the year. You cannot simply come to a day and even attempt to start to tell God thank you for all of His benefits. The reason obviously being that it would take one far longer than a day to just begin because we serve an awesome God whose benefits, that is His grace, mercy and blessings on our lives, is NEW EVERY MORNING!
I want to encourage you today to set aside some time each day in your own individual prayer time to pour out lavishly on God, praise, adoration, honor, and gratitude for all of His Blessings on and in your life. If you are reading this article I want to ask you to do something right now. Very slowly, breathe in and then breathe out, now think about the fact that you are not promised even one more breath. If you have one it is only by the grace of our great God. It’s just that simple, God is great, and things or circumstances in our lives could always be much worse. Would you join the psalmist in affirming, “I will go about Your altar, O Lord, that I may proclaim with the voice of thanksgiving, and tell of all Your wondrous works. I will offer to God thanksgiving, and pay my vows to the Most High. I will enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise, be thankful to Him, and bless His name. For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures to all generations.” Scripture would also admonish us today that, “As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving.”
Don’t be caught this Thanksgiving Day thanking God on the outside putting on the façade for friends and family for a day while standing up on the inside. Begin now if you’ve not already by thanking Him everyday on the inside! You might be surprised at the difference it will make in your life!

Taking It To The Streets

2009-10-14T07:05:00.000-07:00

If you were to reach in your pocket right now, or your pocketbook, most of us could pull out a well worn metal ring known simply as our key chain. On this ring we would find a plethora of different keys. The reasoning behind the ring is to hold the vast number of keys that we carry. I think you’ll agree that each one is uniquely crafted to open only a certain lock. We have a key to open our car door, one to turn the ignition, one to open our house door, and other keys that go to various other locks. We have keys that open our offices and keys that we need at work. If that’s not enough, we even carry keys to other people’s locks. Why do we need so many keys? Even though several keys may look similar, being the same color or length, each one has been intricately cut to fit a specific lock set in order to gain access into a particular place.
Now, what I have just described is a picture of precisely how God intended His church to function. Even though many of us may be similar in a lot of ways, God has uniquely created you, shaped you, gifted you, and purposed you to fit a specific lock set in order to gain access to a particular place that only you can open! There are folks who are lost outside of our walls and neither the pastor, nor your teacher, nor your friend can reach them because God wants to use you to reach them. He wants to use you to gain access in to their heart because you may just be the only one who can! That’s the reason that God assembled His church, not just to hang out together. Although that is a huge benefit of belonging to a church it is NOT the primary function of church!
I believe today, church, that God is asking us to change our focus from “DOing church” to “BEing the church!” In my recent studies through various books and journal articles He has brought to the forefront of my thoughts a lone question that begs for an answer. “IF First Baptist Travelers Rest was to close its doors today and shut down as a church, would anyone in our community really care? Would it make a difference?” One pastor asked the question this way based on Acts 8:8, “Is there any great JOY in the city because our church is here?” The question is not, would the congregation care, but is there a presence of joy felt in Travelers Rest because our church is serving the community in such a way that folks would know right off if our church were absent?
Thinking on these ideas must lead us as a congregation to begin asking some great questions of businesses, and organizations, and entities in our town. Questions such as how can our church serve you? What is a current need that you have that we could help meet? These are the questions that are going to help inform us as to how we can be the church that God has called us to be. These are the questions that will enable us to become the keys that God has designed to open thus far locked doors in the hearts of lost people surrounding our building. There WILL be joy in Travelers Rest because our church is in the initial stages of forming teams called ( J.I.T.R. teams) in order to serve our community for Jesus. As you might have guessed it stands for Joy In Travelers Rest. It has always been the church scattered, hitting the streets, which produced a church to be gathered.

TREADING WATER IS BETTER THAN DROWNING

2009-08-12T11:57:00.000-07:00

As I am writing to you, I am looking through the window in my office at one of God’s many magnificent wonders in all of nature, a giant oak tree. The circumference of its trunk is unknown, but I do know that no mere human could possibly put his arms around it. Its height as well has never been measured, but it towers above our office space. Its spread is massive, casting a huge engulfing shadow on the ground every afternoon. For all of these reasons and more I’m sure that we could all agree that it is simply amazing to gaze upon a grand old oak tree. The point is this, how long did God take to grow that tree to the splendid beautiful object that it has become and we behold today? Let’s just say it took more than a day, a month, or even a year. Hm-hm-hm, could there be a lesson here?
Have you ever heard the old story about a cracked water jug in which the jug thought that it was useless? As a Chinese villager went each day from the village to the watering hole he carried two water jugs attached to a bamboo pole across his shoulders. While one of the jugs was whole, the other had a small crack and leaked about half of its contents with each trip from the watering hole to the village. The whole jug boasted about his superiority making the broken jug feel ashamed and worthless. Each day the complaining got worse and worse as the broken jug was humiliated and counted itself as a total failure. Just then the water carrier said to the broken jug, “When we return to the village today look along the path.” When he did he saw a beautifully lined flower path all the way home! What the broken jug hadn’t realized is that even though it was flawed and felt that the circumstances were hopeless, in actuality it was still being used for something beautiful by its owner. Hm-hm-hm, could there be a lesson here?
As summer grows closer to an end for another year, I have vivid memories of days spent splashing around in our local pool with my daughters. While they are now avid swimmers, it hasn’t always been that way. In the beginning, it was quite an accomplishment for them just to tread water. Then little by little, day by day, week by weeks, very slowly, and even year to year they have learned to dive into the deep end and swim! They too complained all along the way, Daddy I can’t do anything, I’m not doing anything, it’s taking too long, but look at them now and they are not done yet!
I just wanted to encourage you today, church, that even though we are struggling along and it seems sometimes like we are backing up or that we’re not accomplishing much. Even though we might even like to give up, just have faith and know that God is working. We, like the oak tree, are growing into something magnificent, and it does take a long time. We are also like the broken water jug and if we had the right perspective through the eyes of faith in our great God, we would see that we are a part of making something even more beautiful than flowers. Finally, if you feel like these days that we are barely treading water, know that it is something, and that it is BETTER than drowning!

I love you and pray for you,
Pastor Scott

Baseball, Apple pie, and Chevrolet

2009-07-02T13:02:00.001-07:00

Hopefully as you read the title of this article your mind immediately raced to one overwhelming thought, AMERICAN. Why do you suppose that is? Could it be that these things, baseball games, apple pies, and Chevrolet have been entrenched and engrained in our minds since we were born as being American? In fact, we would even go so far as say that anyone who doesn’t like these things quite possibly is not American. Advertisers have made a very lucrative career on these perceptions for decades by placing these particular items along side their products. All known forms of media also have included these icons in their movies, shows, papers, books, etc. Why? They want to be associated with being American. There is great patriotism and pride in being an American and in America itself. Thus, these particular images shout that whatever or whoever is doing them is American. We like that, we relish in that, and we want to be associated with that classification.
As the nation stands poised to celebrate our annual July 4th holiday commemorating America’s independence from Great Britain, get ready for a barrage of red, white, and blue ads, featuring apple pie, Chevrolets, and baseball games. It’s the greatest time of the year to be proud of being an American. We’ll also celebrate by remembering that our freedom was never free and that it cost many their very lives. It was a price that they were willing to pay because they were proud to be Americans, and proud to wave the stars and stripes! During this month, as you enjoy eating your apple pie and playing or watching a baseball game or riding in a vehicle with the blue bowtie just know that you are testifying to the world that you are proud to be an American.
It has occurred to me through years of observation that while we have no problem with the previously described associations of being American, it’s not quite the same way with being associated as a Christian. What icons might be considered as associated with Christianity? Perhaps, the top of the list might include a Bible, a cross, prayers, and of course church. While most of us have no problem carrying our bible to church, or praying in church, why does it seem so difficult to carry it throughout the rest of the week any where we go. Why is it so difficult to pray outside of the church within the public arena, perhaps at restaurants or work places just to name a few? Why does it seem so difficult for us even to be faithful to attend church more than once a week? What are we communicating to the watching world? Are we ashamed of being associated with Christ?
You see just as the privilege of being an American isn’t free, so also being a Christian is not free. Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ who was God’s Son came to this earth, died on a cross to take our place, to atone for the sin in our lives, and rose from the grave victoriously in defeating sin and death for the whole world including Americans. Just food for thought, the next time you attend or watch a baseball game pray over the teams and for the Christian witness of some of the players to shine. Pray over that chocolate chip cookie dough blizzard you just ordered right there in front of folks at Dairy Queen. The next time you ride in that old Chevrolet let it be on your way to church and be proud not only to be an American, but more importantly to be a Christian.

GOD’S NOT INTO TEXTING

2009-06-01T12:00:00.000-07:00

I admit upfront that I am most technologically challenged. Often, I am the last to be in the know with regard to the latest electronic gadgets. However, there is one latest societal techno craze that needs to be canned. The fad to which I am referring is called “texting.” More specifically, it is the craft of using one’s cellular telephone to type messages to other folks. It seems rather silly that we need to be reminded that it is a telephone, an invention for the sole purpose of talking to others. Ah, therein lays the problem. In our fast paced and ever changing culture we are rapidly loosing our ability to carry on normal interpersonal relationships with one another primarily because we don’t know how to talk with each other. Not only are we losing the social etiquette of conversation, but taking it a step further we certainly don’t have the time, nor will we put forth the effort, or concern to spend TIME with others face to face any longer. It is a foregone reality that a generation has emerged that could be labeled as those behind the mask because when they logon, sign-in, or power up their laptops or cell phones they can be ANYONE they want to be! It’s intriguing, it’s mysterious, it’s fun, it’s the latest and everyone’s doing it. It is also a LIE! There are numerous psychological studies that report that people who live behind the mask lose all inhibitions to say or do anything that they “feel” like doing. Why? Because they are not actually in the presence of the other party in which they are “talking.” As a result, what you and I used to refer to as people skills are deteriorating at an alarming rate.
From the beginning it was not so. What we need to be reminded of is that God as the maker of all life created us to be interpersonal or relational beings. We know this because God Himself is a triune God relating perfectly with the Son and the Holy Spirit. He therefore created us also to personally and intimately relate to Him in order that we might know how HE would have us relate to others. In other words, God intended that we relate to one another personally, i.e. face to face interaction and communication. One of the primary means by which we communicate in our society is obviously the telephone the way it was used before texting. While not as effective as being there, it is an acceptable form of communication, because you can still hear the other person’s voice. You can sense their emotions by listening to their tone, volume, and speed including pauses, sighs, or excitedness. With typed words on a screen you lose relational contact, so let’s go back to the beginning.
Where do we start? I believe that God would have us put our keypads down on our cell phones and go find a closet to spend some quality time in PRAYER. Remember that our primary reason of existing on this earth is to bring glory to God our creator. How in the world can we do that if we don’t spend time talking with Him. May we never get too busy to talk to the Lord and most likely afterward you will find that He has laid on your heart the names of others that He would have you to talk to in order that we might be used by Him to influence their lives and encourage them toward their purpose in life which is also to bring glory to God. God wants to hear you and so do others!

WILL YOU BE A PART OF UPSIDE DOWN?

2009-04-29T13:12:00.000-07:00

Do you remember the original commercials advertising the latest ice cream wonder of its day from Dairy Queen? It was called the Blizzard, and it was nothing short of a genius creative work consisting of two elements. Those building blocks were your choice of ice cream flavor and your choice of candy assortments. The carefully chosen ingredients would then be marvelously blended together for an out of this world ice cream experience. …..Where was I, oh yeah, back to the commercials. A Dairy queen employee after mixing a patron’s newly created Blizzard, would then do the unthinkable right before the very eyes of a watching world. They would turn the Blizzard upside down, can you believe it, not one drop was spilt and then they handed it to the bedazzled customer. Getting past the amazement for a moment, have you ever wondered or thought about WHY they turned the ice cream upside down? It was for one sole purpose, to show the world that there was rich genuine desirable substance in the cup and not cheap imitation fluff!
I’ve been taken back of recent days by a phrase that I read in Scripture while studying for an upcoming sermon. The phrase was spoken by an angry society who, while they did not understand what was being offered, still had the capacity to appreciate and label the substance as genuinely life altering. They cried out in staunch defiance of the substance of the good news of the gospel. They rejected the proclamation of Jesus Christ as God’s Son, the One who came to save men like them and us from that which separates us from a holy God, that is sin and death. They screamed for all they were worth at the men who were employees/servants of the Heavenly King, the ones who were heralding the message of Jesus. They yelled this phrase, “These who have turned the world UPSIDE DOWN have come here too!”
Question, would anyone make or has anyone ever made the same accusation against you or our church for that matter? Are you, or we as His church, walking with Jesus in such a close personal relationship that your daily experience in His presence and your subsequent obedient service to Him would cause the people around you to take note? Is a lost world seeing something so amazingly different about your life than the common variety garbage pile of ideology so prevalent around us today? Would they or could they shout about you that you’re turning the world upside down? I want to encourage you today, if that is not true of your life or of the life of our church it is not too late! God has blessed us with another day and He commands that we give Him our all in making a difference for the cause of Christ and the Kingdom of God. If we belong to Him it is our privilege to serve Him with all that we are letting others see Jesus in action. Well, isn’t it certainly getting hotter outside as summer approaches? Go have a Blizzard, turn it upside down before you eat it, and think about it. Am I of such genuine sold out substance to be an impact player for Jesus? God, please help First Baptist this day to be part of turning Travelers Rest upside down for You!

REVIVAL HINGES UPON THE RESSURECTION

2009-03-26T09:46:00.000-07:00

It is fascinating to watch the resurrection of nature as the dead of winter is springing to life during this very time of the year. Already in my neighborhood I have witnessed seemingly dead and dreary looking sticks miraculously burst forth with brand new buds. These buds have over the last few days shed forth exquisitely beautiful flowers and leaves. All that splendor, all that brilliance, and vast array of vibrant life comes from something that was bleak, barren, and dead shall we even say ‘ugly.’ Now added to the drama of what we are witnessing there is also sound and smell. There has certainly come out of the cold dead silence a flurry of brash and majestic sounds. Birds of various kinds are singing so sweetly, butterflies are fluttering, bees are buzzing, frogs are croaking, fish are splashing, and crickets are ……well you get the point, whatever crickets do. The sun is beginning to shine brighter it seems, the days feel warmer, and who can escape the fragrant smell of it all. That which was dead is now ALIVE!
The wonder of it all is revealed as it points us to the heavenly Father’s plan. Surely all of God’s creation is trying desperately to point you and me back to a very special event. In fact, this event brought life from that which was pronounced lifeless, dead. This magnanimous event was none other than the resurrection of His Son Jesus who was slain on an old rugged cross and pronounced dead as He had indeed died, but also rose again to life on the third day. Glory hallelujah praise be to God! You see, we know that there were eyewitnesses that went to the grave on a certain Sunday morning and when they got there they were astonished to be greeted not by the tomb as usual, but by angels with a message. It was a message unlike any other ever told. It was a message of joy, hope, and new life. “Jesus is NOT HERE He is RISEN, come see where He did lay. Go quickly and tell His disciples that He is risen from the dead!”
Now, we may not understand it all. That is “the how” He did it, but we certainly can understand “the why” Jesus died and rose and ascended back to heaven to His Father. Hebrews 9 begins to shed some light stating, “Jesus has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many.” Scripture also tells us in Ephesians 1 - 2, “You He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins. God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved). In Jesus we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.”
Finally, we have come to question of personal revival. Just as we can see from nature the transformation from death to life comes only from the power of God. As we have seen through the scriptures the resurrection of Jesus Himself from death to life also came through the power of God. Therefore, what you and I must realize is that if we have any hope in this world of being revived from death to life it can only come through our faith in the resurrection power of God. Have you ever placed your faith in Jesus’ death and resurrection, understanding that His shed blood can cover your sins? The eternal significance is this. “Just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, for the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Good Intentions Are Really No Good

2009-03-04T12:00:00.000-08:00

If you were to take a survey of the general population in any given town in America you would find that over 95% of folks surveyed would have good intentions about everything. Good intentions about being faithful to their spouses, good intentions about keeping their word, good intentions about paying their bills, spending time with their children, being a loyal employee, not stealing, not suing, not fighting, and just being a better person in general. Ok, how are all the good intentions of those people working? My point is that it takes more than good intentions and warm fuzzy feelings and thoughts. It takes COMMITMENT! In any area of life, if you want to achieve a certain goal you must first be willing to sign your name on the dotted line, you must draw a line in the sand, you’ve got to stand up and let your word be counted and not ashamed for the world to know it. It will cost you something, mark it down. The question will then become is it worth it to go from just being a good intention in my life to something that I will commit to?
You see all throughout God’s Word there were times through the course of history when God called His people out, the ones that followed, served, and obeyed Him, the ones that truly at the end of the day loved Him. He called them to come out from among all the rest of the people and commit their lives to Him in a renewed and significant way. It was often a very public way in order that there was no confusing those who were committing to Him. Do you remember Joshua’s famous plea from his death bed to the church who still had much land conquering to do? “I’m not going to be here to lead you any longer, so this day make your mark, draw your line, sign up. Choose you this day whom you will serve whether it be the One true God, or whatever society tells you that you need, (idols of your own making.)” Do you remember several hundred years latter a showdown of Olympic proportion that could only be described as “Fire on the Mountain?” The church had by in large defected because of a ruling president and first lady that hated God. Then along comes a man of God named Elijah who calls the people of God to make a commitment right on the spot, to sign up, draw a line, in front of everybody, now! “How long will you waiver between two opposite opinions? If you love the Lord and want to be indentified with Him line up right here, otherwise stay where you are.” If you remember that narrative by the end of the day God had brought down fire on Mount Carmel and all those who did not align themselves with Christ lost their very lives.
Fast-forwarding to the first century when the Lord Jesus Christ Himself walked on this earth He also called men who would be His disciples to make a commitment to Him. "Follow Me," He would say, "Leave everything you have, and come follow ME!" On the first Sunday of this month, March 1, that is exactly what you and I are going to have the privilege of doing symbolically, to recommit ourselves to Jesus and His work. Leave everything that we think we have and put our mark down, draw our line in the sand, sign our name to following Jesus with ourselves, our families, and all that we own. These areas should sound familiar to you as we have been for the past few weeks studying about refreshing our individual faith, our families, and our resources. This Sunday will be the culmination of our efforts, as we all will be asked to join together and commit on the altar all we are to Jesus as His church body in Travelers Rest. God would say to us today that it is time for our good intentions to become more than just good intentions!

I love you and pray for you, Pastor Scott