Religion Versus Grace! Mark 1:1

Jesus did not come to correct behavior! Jesus came to give us a new identity! We are all adopted into a family where we learn a new and better way to live! Religion tries to change us from the outside in! Religious Zealots only reward performance! God said this is my beloved Son who I am well pleased! Remember Jesus had not done any miracles yet! Do you love your son or daughter because they are a gift to you from God or will you only love them based on an expected performance? The Holy Spirit will empower you to live a better way! Real change is an inside job! You must be born again! Jesus said we must repent and believe! This if done will change everything! Pastor Brady Boyd, New Life Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado. For the complete message go to: NewLifeChurch.org View his Podcast.

Do Your Feet Sweat?

After retirement in 1994 I needed something to do? So we bought 30 rental properties! I became very busy! We purchased these in low rental area’s and I also made the renter’s a ministry! One of these properties was a shell duplex that was not completed. The walls were up and the roof but nothing else. We bought it for about $5K so I thought I could complete it by myself! Each day I would spend time working at the sight. All the neighbors would come over and visit me and what a neighborhood! Young children, drunks, criminals and even a Pastor ministering in that area. Next door was a young man named Gary. He was a nice man and a distraction because he would hang around and talk while I was working. I tried to focus on my work and would reply yes to everything Gary said not really listening to his talk. Then he caught me by surprise and said, “Jimmy do your feet sweat?” Without thinking I said yes and Gary asked me if he could sniff my feet? No Gary you cannot smell my feet! Gary left and I realized I could not complete this duplex myself because I was so busy with the other 29 units. I hired a plumber to help me. Jake the plumber showed up at the site so I left to attend to the other units. When I came back the next day Jake was very upset and used some very bad words! He told me he did not want to work in this neighborhood anymore! I assured him I would talk to Gary and the others! So I went to Gary and asked him about Jake? Gary told me Jake really used some bad words on me yesterday! He did not want to repeat the words but said Jimmy Jake called me a female dog! Gary did you talk to Jake about sweaty feet? Jimmy do your feet sweat? Jimmy does Jake’s feet sweat? Jake explained to me he was not going to turn his back on this neighborhood while on his knee’s soldering pipes together with a blow torch! Jake told me that if that queer ball comes over here again I will put my blow torch to his feet and then his feet will really sweat! Jake quit the next day and I hired another plumber. I thought how am I going to get people to stay in this unit? I finally figured out what to do with Gary! If you say no to his first question he will not ask the second question. I explained to the new plumber and things went better! Next episode I will talk about the drunk next door and the prostitute I invited to church! James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com

Wonderful Councilor! Isaiah 9:6

God chose to make His dwelling place with men! A councilor is one who fixes problems! My dad was my best councilor growing up as an adolescent! He rescued me many times! Kids should learn important lessons in life from their parents!  With all those close calls I had growing up God never took His eyes off me! Today many youth are exposed to a flawed view of God! There are four basic views how people view God. 1. God is a troubleshooter! We do not bother Him unless we get in a crisis! 2. God is a distant power! God is not really interested in us. This pro-active disengagement leads to many problems in marriages and home life. 3. God is a grandparent. God wants what I want! God is an ATM machine to give me my every desire! 4. God is Lord and center of my life! God is the source of all wisdom and I submit to His rule over my life! Is God a wonderful councilor to you? Are you busy and distracted by the cares of this life? I will ask God council over every area of my life! We live in cultural chaos! There are competing voices for your life! Slow down! Take time to be Holy! Pay attention to Christ! A sheep only responds to the voice of his shepherd! He will ignore all other voices! Take time to listen to the Master’s voice! People that hear from God wait on Him! John 14:26 The councilor, the Holy Spirit will teach you all things! He will remind you of everything He has taught you in His Word! Jesus was the original home schooler! Teaching requires patience, diligence, and staying with it everyday! Teaching is not a lucrative occupation! Jesus disciples were slow and rebellious! Teaching requires kindness and being intentional! The Holy Spirit teaches us and reminds us of all things! We as a church recite the Nicene Creed because it teaches us and reminds us of very important things! What do good parents do for us from the cradle to the grave? They teach us and remind us! As we take communion this morning Jesus taught us and reminded us to do this in remembrance of Him! God is personal and interested in you! That is why He came to earth! God came from Heaven wrapped in flesh! Fully God and fully man! He told us He would be born of a virgin, die on a Cross, be raised from the dead and ascend back to Heaven! He taught His disciples to wait for the Holy Spirit! The original Passover meals took hours to prepare! It was not fast food! God has taken great preparations for us! All we do is just receive the gift! Christ was broken for you yet His brokenness heals the world! At Passover in Jewish tradition the Messiah’s cup was always displayed meaning one day He would drink with us! At the Passover Jesus took the ceremonial cup and drank from it saying I am the long awaited Messiah! Jesus invites you to His table this morning! Jesus asked the Father if He could take this cup away from Him! Let thy will be done! God’s will was very costly to deliver us from our sin! Drink with Him this morning. He is a wonderful councilor and much more! No one can crash this party because everyone is invited! Source; Excerpt from Pastor Brady Boyd, New Life Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado. His complete messages can be seen on his Podcasts. Go to NewLifeChurch.org

Great Expectations! Isaiah 9:6

Our view of God will determine the challenges we are willing to accept! Whether David and Goliath or Mary the pregnant teenager in Bethlehem explaining to her husband Joseph how she got pregnant! We will be mobilized by Faith or paralyzed by fear! God is mighty and near us! If you are afraid you are believing a lie! Fear is an exaggerated view of the enemy! Faith replaces fear! Christ will replace your sin with His righteousness! The great exchange! Faith gives an accurate view of God! As we come to the communion table this morning what area of your life do you need God to be mighty in? Let Him be strong in your marriage, family, church, city, business and all else! Do not reserve any part of your life to the enemy! Abandon your sinking ship and get on the ark! Christ is King! Herod thought he was King but had a horrible end! God is our Everlasting Father! Mighty God! Shout it aloud! Say it! Confess it! Be bold! Be strong! Source; Excerpt of message given by Pastor Brady Boyd, New Life Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado. His message may be seen on the Podcast. NewLifeChurch.org

Groaning Inwardly Romans 8:22-24

We groan inwardly at the loss of life recently in Colorado Springs and California! We never solve problems through violence! We groan but yet we are hopeful! We are either consumed by fear or we are pregnant with hope! Our expectations and confidence is in a little baby carried in a pregnant mother named Mary who lived over 2000 years ago! Man’s plan for this baby was also violence! Yet on the 3rd day He rose from the dead! Our hope and faith is in Christ and our future is in Him! He will also raise you from the dead! But He wants to start today! He will never leave you nor forsake you! Your eternity has begun here on earth! Will close out your eternity without Him? If your reality is based on your mortality then you can only groan! Be pregnant with the promises He has made to you both now and forever! Source; Excerpt from message given by Pastor Brady Boyd, New Life Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado. His messages can be seen on the podcasts: NewLifeChurch.org

The Poor Man’s Tithe! Deuteronomy 26:12

I am sure when some Pastor’s read this scripture they think this represents the level of giving by their congregation! If they do not increase their level of giving I am going to end up as poor as they are! Here is what Tripp’s Complete Commentary says; “Thus does God not only plead the poor man’s cause, (Deuteronomy 15:10-11), but he allots a portion of the 3rd years tithe, not only to the Levite, who is never excluded, but to the stranger, fatherless and widow, as Jerome observed and called it the poor man’s tithe.” Comment: Our Pastor Brady Boyd adopted orphans and I married a widow with orphans. After 42 years of marriage I can say there is no greater Blessing than to do what God says to do! Merry Christmas! James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com

Human Love versus God’s Love!

Human love has little regard for truth! It makes the truth relative, since nothing, not even truth, must come between it and the beloved person. Pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906-1945) Assassinated by Adolf Hitler in 1945. Jesus said, “I am the truth, the way and the life and no man cometh to the Father but by me!”

Wisdom! Proverbs 9:10

Wisdom is the supernatural art of living skillfully in whatever actual conditions we find ourselves in. Pastor Brady Boyd, New Life Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado.  Comment; There are about 100 scriptures on wisdom in your Bible. There are about 12 root words that form these 100 scriptures in the Hebrew and the Greek. I will give you these root words for wisdom. Wisdom includes intelligence, discretion, understanding, knowledge, prudence and skillful ability. Wisdom includes substance, expertise, meaning and the center of anything including the will and the heart. Wisdom is the ability to separate mentally to perceive, discern, and distinguish. Wisdom means to make bare and use judgment. Wisdom is to make things clear with insight. Wisdom means to be of one mind and to set your affections on. Proverbs 9:10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.

American Decline

Offendedness is just about the last shared moral currency in our country! And, I’m sorry, but is really annoying. We don’t discuss idea’s or debate arguments, we try to figure out who is the most offended? Pastor Kevin DeYoung  Comment: My Bible says the fear of man is a snare but the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom. If we spend our time fearful about whether we offend this group or that group then the creativity God has deposited in us is blocked! When the creativity of a culture is reduced the nation declines! Thankyou. James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com

Glorified Free Speech!

Sermons remain one of the last forms of public discourse where it is culturally forbidden to talk back! Harvey Cox, Harvard Divinity School.  Comment: It is an opportunity for people to shut their mouths for about sixty minutes and actually learn something! If I were a Pastor today I would not have a E-mail address! Thankyou. James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com