FIRST LIGHT - Real Hope and Change

Read: 1 Peter 1:3-9

     “Do you think our economy will pick up next year?”

     “Well I certainly hope so.”

     “Do you believe our next president will help America get back to the roots of what our founding fathers intended and envisioned for this great nation?  A nation with freedom which is strong, moral and prosperous who loves God, family, neighbors and I add supports Israel?”

     We would have tremendous hope that he or she could.”

     But please listen to me – The average man’s working definition of hope is “an optimistic outlook that things will turn out okay.” However, because such a view is founded on the ever-shifting sands of time, circumstances, people, and money, he has absolutely no foundation for genuine hope.

     The bible says: “ That at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world:” (Ephesians 2:12)

     “Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not high-minded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy;” (1 Timothy 6:17)

     Listen: Anything the world offers as hopeful allurements – peace, success, enrichment – are mere illusions because they have no lasting power to fulfill their promises. The hope of the world is, in the end, hopeless.

     So what’s the Answer: It is only the person (nation) who has accepted the dynamic message of the abiding hope in the Gospel of Jesus Christ and His finished work at Calvary’s Cross? Upon Him all true hope rests.

     “Do you know Him today?”

FIRST LIGHT - Spiritual Growth

“My voice shall You hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto You, and will look up”. (Psalm 5:3) 

     Remember, there are two places where men will spend eternity: One is heaven with the Lord; the other is the lake of fire with - well you know.

     Two principles apply to our spiritual growth. First, It is important to understand where we are in our relationship to Christ; and Secondly, Where He wants to lead us.

     The following seven stages of spiritual development may help you discover where your current walk with Christ is and His plan for your future walk:

1.      Unbelief – God is not a part of our lives.

2.      Salvation – Christ enters our lives through faith in His atoning cross.

3.      Service – We work for God b because of what He did for us.

4.      Frustrated inadequacy – Our service is not fulfilling but frustrating.

5.      Spiritual dependency – We come to trusts in His power to work through us.

6.      Emotional surgery – We open up our minds, emotions, and thoughts for God to heal and restore.

7.      Complete in Christ – He is our life – regardless of circumstances. We are content, satisfied in His indwelling presence. Our frail life exchanged for His all-sufficient life.

     Where would you place yourself? God’s goal is that you become complete in Him – trusting and relying on Christ to impart all that you will ever need. Anchor yourself in Christ.

FIRST LIGHT - The Power of the Cross

“My voice shall You hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto You, and will look up”. (Psalm 5:3)

     There are two places where men will spend eternity: One is heaven with the Lord; the other is the lake of fire with - well you know.

     The power of the cross is twofold. Supremely, it is the reconciliation of God and man.

     But it is more. The cross of Christ and His finished work there is also the only basis for a radical change in our relationship with one another. Let’s face it! It is our encounters with other folk that stirs up most of our anxieties. Tension with family, coworkers, friends, neighbors, or an acquaintance can occupy much of our time and thought.

     For sin not only created conflict and alienation with God, it also exalted self to the throne of every man’s life. Only the cross, where we receive the new nature of Christ, can provide the power to relate harmoniously to one another. We are called and enabled supernaturally to: “Serve one another” (Galatians 5:13). “Comfort one another” (1 Thessalonians 4:18). “Bear one another’s burdens” (Galatians 6:2). “Accept one another” (Romans 15:7). “Admonish one another” (Romans 15:14).

     If you are at odds with a Christian Brother or friend, go to the cross and ask our Lord Jesus Christ for His power through the Holy Spirit to demonstrate the reality of His love through you. Becoming a peacemaker will bring “the peace which surpasses comprehension” (Philippians 4:7).