Category: Sin

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Forgiveness Memory Relief Sin

Selective Memory

“For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.” Psalms 51:3 (NIV) How’s your memory? Can you remember your favorite vacation from your childhood? Can you remember learning how to swim or braving the high diving board for the first time? Do you remember the day you got your driver’s license? There’s power in memory. Memory can paralyze us with fear or mobilize us to persevere. Memory can blockade us like a brick wall or project us forward like a smooth water slide. It depends on how you utilize your memory. Satan uses memory to ridicule and demean us. He uses our memory to stifle our growth and to discredit our progress. Satan will bring to our minds the darkness of our past in order to cripple us. Yet, where Satan seeks to bring death and destruction, God can bring life and victory! God uses memory to remind us where we would be without His abundant grace and abiding peace. God allows us to remember our sin so that we will know where He brought us from. David acknowledged his sin. David affirmed the reality of sin always being before him in his memory. The question is not: Why do I remember my sin? The question is: What will I do in response to my ability to remember my sin? God wants us to remember that He rescued us from our sin so that we can live the abundant life. So, when Satan reminds you of your past just remind him of God’s provision of cleansing through the shed blood of His Son and our Savior, the Lord Jesus! Yes! Now that’s using memory in victory! Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor

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Conflict Resolution Devil Family Pride Selfishness Sin

Family Spats (1)

“You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’ But you are brought down to the grave, to the depths of the pit.” Isaiah 14:13-15 (NIV) Every conflict has pride at its root. Before God created man in His own image, God had to resolve conflict that erupted in heaven. Pride infused Lucifer (Satan, the devil), the angel of God. In pride, Lucifer sought to lead a rebellion against God and thought he could dethrone God. However, God is holy and does not tolerate sin. Thus, God “de-heavened” Lucifer. Jesus spoke of this fall and John recorded the fall of Satan in Revelation 12:9. “He replied, ‘I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.’” Luke 10:18 (NIV) “The great dragon was hurled down–that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.” Rev 12:9 (NIV) Pride causes us to think of ourselves before thinking of others. Pride causes us to embrace selfishness and self-centeredness. In pride, we forfeit God’s agenda and become absorbed in our own personal agenda. Pride is evidenced by our pursuit of gratifying our sinful nature (Gal. 5:16). If pride seeps into your home, your family will experience major conflict. Pride corrupts and erodes relationships. Satan is the mascot of pride. He does not want your family to operate in peace, unity, and trust. Examine the weeds inside your home. Don’t try to cut the weeds off at ground level by dealing with the symptoms of pride. Get to the root of the conflict within your home. As you trace the origin of conflict, you will find the root of pride. Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor

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Discrimination Favoritism Judging Sin

God’s Perspective (2)

“Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in shabby clothes also comes in. If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, ‘Here’s a good seat for you,’ but say to the poor man, ‘You stand there’ or ‘Sit on the floor by my feet,’ have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?” James 2:2-4 (NIV) The corporate worship setting is sacred. When we gather with fellow believers to express our love to God in corporate worship, we are obeying God and demonstrating a reverence for His glory. The worship environment is conducive to encouraging each other and edifying the body of Christ. However, the corporate setting for worship can also be an environment where discrimination seeps in. Making a judgment about one’s appearance based on their attire is condescending to the very one Christ died for. For us to give preferential treatment to those endowed with financial prowess would be tragic in the eyes of God. For us to consider withholding our love, affirmation, acceptance, and inclusion of those less fortunate would break the heart of God. We become the judges when we start ranking human beings and attaching varying levels of worth based on externals. Preferential treatment misrepresents the character of God. We need to embrace God’s perspective on those He created and sent His Son to die for. God took the initiative to establish our value through the atoning work of Jesus on the cross. Every person matters to God. As followers of Jesus Christ, we are to place the same value on others that God does. We are to see others through the saving work of Jesus on the cross. Is there anyone you are currently looking down on? Have you minimized the value God places on others? Let’s be reminded of where we were when God found us in our sin. Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor

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Receptivity Sin Word of God Worship

Bringing Your Worship (6)

The condition of your heart before God affects your private and public worship. If you want to have a high level of receptivity to God’s Word, your heart must be right before God. Sin will harden your heart towards God. Sin will hinder your capacity to hear from God. “Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.” James 4:8 (NIV) “The Lord says: ‘These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is made up only of rules taught by men.’” Isaiah 29:13 (NIV) Keep your heart clean before God. Stay tender. Be teachable. Maintain purity in your thought life. Consistently confess known sin and live a life of moral purity. Surrender daily to the Lordship of Christ and do not give the devil a foothold in your life. At all costs, do not grieve or quench the Holy Spirit. Ask God to enable you to demonstrate a life of character and integrity. Crucify the flesh. Make no provision for the flesh. Keep your life in check. Weed the flowerbed of your life. Sounds like a commitment to perpetual care doesn’t it? Sin will create an immense deficit in bringing your worship to God. In fact, sin can easily become your worship. Guard your heart! Consecrate yourself before God and allow the light of His holiness to identify areas of your life that need to be surrendered. Bring your worship of God to God with a heart of purity! Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor

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Depression Desperation Sin Susceptible Victory

Growing Through Depression (1)

“At the time of sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stepped forward and prayed: ‘O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command. Answer me, O LORD, answer me, so these people will know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again.’” 1 Kings 18:36-37 (NIV) When you hear the name Elijah, your first inclination is to think of the major victory he experienced on Mt. Carmel. Elijah took on the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who ate at Jezebel’s table. Elijah is kind of like the “Rocky Balboa” of the Old Testament. He was not about to back down from the featured match between good and evil. “Then the fire of the LORD fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench.” 1 Kings 18:38 (NIV) “When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, ‘The LORD–he is God! The LORD–he is God!’” 1 Kings 18:39 (NIV) What a major demonstration of God’s power! What a miraculous response to Elijah’s prayer! God allowed Elijah to see and experience God’s favor. Elijah truly had a mountain top experience on Mt. Carmel. How could Elijah ever doubt God or deny God’s power after such a magnificent encounter? You are most susceptible to sin after a major victory. More to come… Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor

Categories
Consequences Death Glory Life Sickness Sin

Living the Life (3)

“When he heard this, Jesus said, ‘This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.’” John 11:4 (NIV) God has a purpose behind every problem. Living the life in a fallen world includes unfavorable circumstances. The sin factor affects both the cause and the solution to problems in this life. You can trace sin, sickness, and death back to the garden when man fell. The residual effect of sin permeates every generation. We live our lives in a world that straddles daily the consequences of sin. As Steve Farrar writes in his book, Finishing Strong, “Sin will take your farther than you want to go, keep you longer that you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay.” God does not originate our problems, but He orchestrates the solution to our problems. The origin of our sin is linked through our family tree back to Adam and Eve. The solution to our sin is linked to God’s provision of forgiveness through the atoning work of Jesus on the cross. “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.” Gen 50:20 (NIV) “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.” Romans 8:28-29 (NIV) Martha and Mary grieved the death of their brother, Lazarus. They also grieved the fact that Jesus did not come to their rescue according to their personal preference of time. Jesus identified a higher purpose behind their problem. Jesus declared that it was for God’s glory.   Watch to see how God reveals Himself and His glory through your circumstances. God’s glory can radiate in your present circumstances and in the midst of your perplexing problems. God has a purpose behind every problem. Allow God’s glory to shine even when the solution to your problems is delayed from your standpoint. God purpose will always prevail. Nothing can derail God’s glory.   Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor