Aug 22 2009

Draw Close To God

Posted by Anthony Crumley

The key to experiencing God is to draw near to Him.  If we are aloof and standoffish then He will be too.

Draw close to God, and God will draw close to you. (James 4:8)

If we believe on Jesus then we should not be shy about approaching God.  We can confidently approach Him, knowing that He desires to be close to us.  When we are close to Him we will experience His mercy and grace.  We will find that there is nothing else we need.

Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.  (Heb. 4:16, ESV)

When we call upon the Lord, seeking to be close to Him, we know that He will not reject us.  He will come close to us if we seek Him sincerely.

The LORD is near to all who call upon Him, To all who call upon Him in truth.  (Ps. 145:18)


Aug 21 2009

Romans 1:16

Posted by Anthony Crumley

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.

Paul preached the gospel of Christ to people where ever he traveled because he was not ashamed of Jesus.  We should not be ashamed either since “God is not ashamed to be called [our] God”  (Heb. 11:16)  Jesus had chilling words to say about those who are ashamed of Him.

If a person is ashamed of me and my message in these adulterous and sinful days, I, the Son of Man, will be ashamed of that person when I return in the glory of my Father with the holy angels.  (Mark 8:38)

The good news that Jesus died on the cross for our sins is a powerful message.  It is so powerful that it can transform a sinner into a saint, an enemy of God into a child of God, and the spiritually dead into the living body of Christ.  There is nothing else in all of creation that can save us from the wrath of God against our sin.

Although the gospel message is powerful enough to save every person in the world, only those who believe the message will be saved by it.  “For by grace you have been saved through faith.”  (Eph. 2:8)

God gave His chosen nation Israel the first chance at the Gospel.  His intention was to bring salvation to the world though them.  When they rejected Jesus, God brought the gospel to the rest of us through the small group of Jews who did believe.  It is interesting to note that Paul always went to the synagogue and preached to the Jewish people in a city before he preached to the gentiles, even though he was the apostle to the gentiles.  The Jewish people are still special to God.

Romans 1:15Romans 1:17


Aug 20 2009

Ask And Receive

Posted by Anthony Crumley

Jesus made it clear that if we will ask Him for what we want then we will receive it.  This is a very simple principle that is twisted and abused today by false teachers.  To be able to ask God for things and receive them, we have to meet the following requirements.

When we ask, we must ask in faith, believing that God can and will provide for us. Otherwise, we will not receive anything from Him.

If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.  (Matt 21:22)

But when you ask him, be sure that you really expect him to answer, for a doubtful mind is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.  People like that should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.  (James 1:6, 7)

We must ask in Jesus’ name.  This does not mean that we add “In Jesus’ name we pray” to the end of our prayers.  To ask in someone else’s name is to act as their representative.  As a result, we have to ask for what they would ask for themselves.  To pray in Jesus’ name means to ask what He would ask Himself.

Ask, using my name, and you will receive, and you will have abundant joy.  (John 16:24)

We must live our lives in total dependence on Jesus, filling our hearts and minds with His teaching.  Only when we live this way will we know how to ask in His name.

But if you stay joined to me and my words remain in you, you may ask any request you like, and it will be granted!  (John 15:7)

We actually have to ask.  If we don’t ask, God is not going to give us many things He wants us to have.  (James 4:2)

We have to ask unselfishly.  God is under no obligation to give us our sinful, self-centered desires.

What is causing the quarrels and fights among you? Isn’t it the whole army of evil desires at war within you?  You want what you don’t have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous for what others have, and you can’t possess it, so you fight and quarrel to take it away from them. And yet the reason you don’t have what you want is that you don’t ask God for it.  And even when you do ask, you don’t get it because your whole motive is wrong–you want only what will give you pleasure.  You adulterers! Don’t you realize that friendship with this world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again, that if your aim is to enjoy this world, you can’t be a friend of God.  What do you think the Scriptures mean when they say that the Holy Spirit, whom God has placed within us, jealously longs for us to be faithful?  He gives us more and more strength to stand against such evil desires. As the Scriptures say, “God sets himself against the proud, but he shows favor to the humble.”  So humble yourselves before God. Resist the Devil, and he will flee from you.  Draw close to God, and God will draw close to you.  (James 4:1-8a, NLT)


Aug 19 2009

Romans 1:15

Posted by Anthony Crumley

So, as much as is in me, I am ready to preach the gospel to you who are in Rome also.

With all of his being, Paul was eager to preach the gospel to the Romans.  He was ready, prepared and willing to tell them the good news about Jesus dying for their sin.  How eager, ready, prepared, and willing are we to tell people they can have life through Jesus?  Are we always ready to speak to people God has prepared and brought into our life?  Can God trust us with people He wants to save from their sin?

Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.  But do this with gentleness and respect  (1 Peter 3:15, NIV)

Romans 1:14Romans 1:16


Aug 18 2009

The Helper

Posted by Anthony Crumley

As believers, God wants us to know Him and to understand spiritual truth.  The problem is that we are not capable of knowing those things on our own.  Even the disciples, who spent so much time being taught by Jesus, really didn’t understand much of what He said.  So, as Jesus was about to be crucified, He told the disciples He would send them a Helper who would reteach them everything He told them.  “The Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.”  (John 14:26)  We have the same Helper living inside us today, willing to teach us the most incredible things.

“No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.”  But we know these things because God has revealed them to us by his Spirit, and his Spirit searches out everything and shows us even God’s deep secrets.  No one can know what anyone else is really thinking except that person alone, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit.  And God has actually given us his Spirit (not the world’s spirit) so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us.  When we tell you this, we do not use words of human wisdom. We speak words given to us by the Spirit, using the Spirit’s words to explain spiritual truths.  But people who aren’t Christians can’t understand these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them because only those who have the Spirit can understand what the Spirit means.  (1 Cor. 2:9-14, NLT)

The Holy Spirit is always with us and willing to help us understand what God wants us to know.  Are we listening to our Helper?  Are we depending upon Him to reveal to us what God wants us to know?  Or, do we live as if He does not even exist?


Aug 17 2009

Building Restoration Planning Meeting

Posted by Anthony Crumley

This will be our first discussion about the restoration of the Church Building. If you are interested in being involved, this meeting is the place to start.

Click here to go to our Facebook page for more information.


Aug 17 2009

Romans 1:14

Posted by Anthony Crumley

I am a debtor both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to wise and to unwise.

Paul felt an obligation and duty to preach the good news of Jesus to all kinds of people.  Just like God (Acts 10:34), he did not show favoritism, partiality or prejudice.  Paul knew that “in every nation, whoever fears [God] and works righteousness is accepted by Him.” (Acts 10:35)

Greeks represent the more civilized people of the world.  Even today ancient Greece stands out as one of the great societies of human history.  Barbarians represent the less civilized people of the world.  They would be the third world countries of today as well as the lower social classes in all countries.  Paul feels the same obligation to preach the gospel to civilized peoples as well as uncivilized, to the high class as well as the low class, and to the cultured as well as the unsophisticated.

Wise refers to educated people and unwise to the uneducated and ignorant.  Education is always a dividing point among people.  Paul would not be too impressed by the educated or too put off by the ignorant to preach Jesus to them.  Regardless of our education, every person stands before God as a sinner in need of a savior.  Knowledge of Jesus and His death on the cross for our sins is true wisdom.  All who know Him are wise and everyone who rejects Him is a fool, no matter how much education we have.

Romans 1:13Romans 1:15


Aug 16 2009

Dying To Self

Posted by Anthony Crumley

Sermon by Joe Clark on Sunday, August 16, 2009.

* We apologize for some technical difficulties in the recording of this sermon.


Aug 16 2009

World Ruler

Posted by Anthony Crumley

This world is controlled by one world leader.  He is not the president of the United States of America.  He is not the Secretary General of the United Nations.  Nor is he the head of the “Illuminati”.  This one world leader is non other than Satan.  He governs a vast number of fallen angels and people alike.  His government seeks to steal, kill, and destroy God’s creation.

Satan is a hands on leader and plays a very active role in his government.  He keeps up with everything that is going on in his jurisdiction.

“Where have you come from?” the LORD asked Satan. And Satan answered the LORD, “I have been going back and forth across the earth, watching everything that’s going on.”  (Job 1:7, NLT)

He has a thorough intelligence gathering network and uses the information to make accusations against believers “day and night.”  (Rev. 12:10)

Satan’s government policy has only one directive, disobedience to God.  Everyone has followed it to the letter at one time or another.

You used to live just like the rest of the world, full of sin, obeying Satan, the mighty prince of the power of the air. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God.  (Eph 2:2, NLT)

Satan has only one government program which seeks to keep people from recognizing who Jesus is.  He wants to hide the good news from everyone.

If the Good News we preach is veiled from anyone, it is a sign that they are perishing.  Satan, the god of this evil world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe, so they are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News that is shining upon them. They don’t understand the message we preach about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God.  (2 cor 4:3, 4, NLT)

Christians are the spiritual freedom fighters of the world.  We are the resistance against the government of Satan.  To fight well, each one of us must “Resist the Devil, and he will flee from [us].”  (James 4:7)  This is a dangerous war we are in, so  “Be careful! Watch out for attacks from the Devil, your great enemy. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for some victim to devour.”  (1 Peter 5:8, NLT)

Our mission, as spiritual freedom fighters, is to free others from the control of Satan.  We need to be sure and carry out this mission in the Lord’s way.

The Lord’s servants must not quarrel but must be kind to everyone. They must be able to teach effectively and be patient with difficult people.  They should gently teach those who oppose the truth. Perhaps God will change those people’s hearts, and they will believe the truth.  Then they will come to their senses and escape from the Devil’s trap. For they have been held captive by him to do whatever he wants.  (2 Tim. 2:24-26, NLT)

It is important that we understand the situation clearly.  God protects every believer and Satan cannot do anything to us that God does not allow.  Unfortunately, all unbelievers are under the complete power and control of Satan.

We know that those who have become part of God’s family do not make a practice of sinning, for God’s Son holds them securely, and the evil one cannot get his hands on them.  We know that we are children of God and that the world around us is under the power and control of the evil one.  (1 John 5:18, 19, NLT)

Satan may be the current ruler of this world but God is the ruler of all creation.  One day God will remove Satan and his government.  He will throw him and all his subjects, both angels and humans, into the lake of fire where they will be punished for all eternity.  (Rev. 20:10-15)


Aug 15 2009

Romans 1:13

Posted by Anthony Crumley

Now I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that I often planned to come to you (but was hindered until now), that I might have some fruit among you also, just as among the other Gentiles.

Paul wanted the Romans to know that he not only desired to visit them but had already made plans to do so several times.  For some reason he was prevented from going to them.  We don’t know why because he does not explain it.  For His reasons, that we may never know, God will allow us to be hindered from serving Him in ways that we plan.  When this happens we should simply continue to seek and serve Him, making other plans as we go.  We must keep in mind that “A man’s heart plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps.”  (Prov. 19:9)

Paul’s motive for going to Rome was to produce “fruit” among them.  This “fruit” would be increased spirituality among the current believers and new believers converted by his preaching of the gospel.

A gentile is anyone who is not of Israeli birth.  Paul was the apostle to the gentiles.  (Rom. 11:13)  The other Apostles primary ministry was among the Jewish people.  Paul’s ministry among the gentiles had already been fruitful and he desired to minister to the gentiles in Rome as well.

It is good to look for the way God works through us specifically and focus on serving Him in that way.  “Unless the LORD builds a house, the work of the builders is useless.”  (Ps. 127:1, NLT)

Romans 1:12Romans 1:14