Making a Differencewith Pastor Phil Erickson

Nov 3rd Stay Busy for the Lord

Today’s Reading – Luke 19 & 20

And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come. (Luke 19:13)

The word “occupy” literally means to stay busy. In this parable the Lord gave each of his servants a unit of money called a pound and instructed them to occupy – to stay busy – to do something with the money that the He had given them so that when He returned He would receive a profit. Two of the servants had been diligent to invest the money wisely and when the Lord returned he received from both a substantial increase. However, one of the servants took the money and buried it, and gave it back to the Lord with no increase. The Lord rebuked him sharply and took the pound from him and gave it to the man who reaped the most profit.

The Lord has given each of us many things. He has given us talents and abilities; and He has also blessed us with material possession. We are to “occupy” with all of the gifts that the Lord has given us, meaning we are to stay busy, using them for His glory. We are not to waste the gifts he gives; we are not to keep them for ourselves; we are to bring them back to Him with an increase, a profit.

Christians today are very busy; they are “occupying”, but are they busy with the things that really matter. Soon the Lord is going to come back for His Bride, and the time for being busy here on the Earth will be over. I believe at that time we will regret what we were not busy doing with our gifts. Let’s get busy using the talents and tangibles that the Lord has given us. He’ll be back soon!

Nov 2nd “Attaboy”

Today’s Reading – Luke 17 & 18

So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do. (Luke 17:10)

For many years I have misunderstood the verse above, thinking that it was a kind of a commendation from the Lord for the servant who obeys the will of God completely. However, after chewing on the verse for many years, I have come to realize that this passage is teaching something altogether different. Our human nature cries out for acknowledgement. We want to be acknowledged for every little thing that we do. We want to get an “attaboy” every time that we obey something that we were commanded to do. We love to receive the recognition, the public praise, that we are doing good, even when we have only met the minimum requirements. God’s people need to be taught that they should do all that they do for the glory of God, not the praise of men. It is true that God is pleased with our obedience; but should we be rewarded and recognized for mere obedience. Should not rewards begin with those who are willing to go the second mile; those who go beyond that which is merely commanded. Should I get a pat on the back for attending a church service when I have been commanded to “not forsake the assembling of ourselves together”. Should I be rewarded for putting a tenth in the offering plate when giving really begins beyond the tithe. Should I be put up on a pedestal for sharing the gospel with someone when it is my duty to do so. These are all part of my “reasonable service”, and I should not be looking for an “attaboy” for obeying what God commands. Besides what could I possibly do for Him that would compare to what He has done for me?

Having said that, let me now shift gears and say a word to those of us who are in positions of leadership. I believe the Lord would want us to encourage, especially, new believers. Babes and children need to be praised for the doing of right. Look for opportunities to recognize and appreciate someone for their obedience, especially if they are going the second mile. However, if you sense that the person is looking for recognition, and seeking not the approval of God, but the praise of men, be careful. That person needs to be taught to do their alms in secret, and to be content with knowing that God is pleased with them. Eventually we all need to grow up and seek through faith the approval of God. If He is pleased with us, then it should not matter whether men recognize it or not.

Nov 1st Soul Winning

Today’s Reading – Luke 14 – 16

I must have soul winning on my mind this morning, because in all three of the chapters that we have read this morning, I see a soul winning illustration. I understand that the proper interpretations of theses passages that I will discuss here is not primarily involving the church and winning people to Christ, but I think you will be able to see the practical application.

1  In chapter 14 I see the Compelling of the soul winner.

And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled. (Luke 14:23)

I have noticed that we have gotten to the point in our soul winning presentations that we are almost apologizing for bothering people. If you got word that there was an explosive device about to detonate in your neighbors house, would you apologize for bothering them? No, you would compel them to leave the house immediately. We need to take our soul winning presentations up another notch: we need to go beyond mere bidding (inviting) and start compelling people to trust Christ. I think our problem is that we deep down inside really don’t believe it all, or we really don’t believe time is running out.

2  In Chapter 15, I see the Compassion of the soul winner.

And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him. (Luke 15:20)

The father had the right attitude. He was longing for the return of the son. He was ready to receive him whenever he “came to himself”. The older brother, on the other hand, had the wrong attitude. He was not too excited about the reconciling of the younger brother to the father. He was perfectly content keeping the situation as it was. After all, the younger brother didn’t deserve another chance. He made his bed, and now he should have to sleep in it. Is that your attitude toward the lost soul that desperately needs Christ, or the wandering saint that needs to come back. We need to have compassion on people. We need to love them as Jesus loves them.

3  In chapter 16, I see the Consequences of not soul winning.

And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father’s house–for I have five brothers–so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.’ (Luke 16:27 & 28)

Now I cannot to be sure that the rich man had no man in his lifetime that attempted to reach him, but let’s assume that he did not. What a shame that not only this man, but also his five brothers will spend eternity in Hell because of a lack of soul winning. Let me remind you, they are without excuse. God’s law was written in their hearts; they could see God in creation; and there were synagogues on every corner just as there are churches on every corner today. But how much better were his chances for salvation had somebody had compassion on him and attempted to compel him to be saved.

Oct 31st Thou Fool

Today’s Reading – Luke 12 & 13

And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. (Luke 12:19)

On Sundays I like to just post a quick thought from the Word of God for those of you hearty souls who are faithful in keeping your devotions even though you will be in church services throughout the day. Or it may be that you are unable to attend a worship service today due to illness or some other reason, but you still keep up on the reading.

In our passage today the Lord tells about a man that would appear to be very successful to the eyes of the world. He had nothing that he needed, in fact he had far more than was needed. He decided that his production days were over. He would simply store up and live off of his abundance, and party for the rest of his life. Sounds almost like retirement to me. The problem was, however, that in all of the accumulating he had done in his lifetime, he never accumulated anything for the Kingdom of God. Every work that he accomplished, and every asset that he accumulated was for self. And unfortunately he was not given more time to get things right.

I hope that when my life is over that there will be something of eternal value stored up for me in the coffers of Heaven. I hope there will be some people that are there that I had at least a small part in their coming to salvation. This life is very short. If all I have is what I accumulated here on the earth, I don’t have very much at all. The man in our story thought he was very rich; the world thought he was rich, but eternity will reveal his utter poverty.

Oct 30th The Saturday Morning Post by Pastor Ted Stahl

Today’s Reading: Luke 10 & 11.

Good morning, and it’s always good to start your morning with prayer. In Luke chapter 11 we find the Lord praying…

And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples. And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth. Give us day by day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. (Luke 11:1-4)

In this passage we see that when we go to the Lord in prayer we ask for something: we want God to do something.Lord, teach us to pray.Lord, make you name Holy. Lord, let your kingdom come, and your will be done. Lord, give us what we need today. Lord, forgive our sins. Lord, lead us not into temptation. Lord, deliver us from evil. This is a prayer asking God to act: to do something. And notice that this prayer is not wavering, but specifically asks.

In Matthew 21, Jesus curses a fig tree…

And when the disciples saw it, they marvelled, saying, How soon is the fig tree withered away! Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done. And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive. (Matt. 21:20-22)

In the October 2010 issue of In Touch magazine from Dr. Charles Stanley there is an excellent article by Allen Harris. The artical was titled: “(All About Me) Two Prayers That Can Hold You Back.” I want to pass on these two nuggets of truth to you. These will more than likely ring a bell; we all have used them at one time or another.

The first is, “Lord, but if…”

My daughter Melissa has cancer. I would pray, “Lord, please heal my daughter from this cancer, but if not, help her to deal with all the pain and suffering.” My belief wavers: I don’t seem to believe that God can actually heal her, so I give Him an way out. God is fully capable of healing my daughter: He does not need a way out. “But if” just shows my lack of faith and trust. Now I just pray, “Lord, heal my daughter from the cancer, and giver her relief from the pain.” I’m not giving God an out, I’m trusting Him to answer my prayer. As Christians, we should be mature enough to allow God to answer: yes, no, or not right now. We need to keep asking until we get an answer. That’s what Paul did about the thorn in his side. After asking three times, God gave Paul the answer: My grace is sufficient.

The second hinderance that Mister Harris mentioned is “Lord, let me…”

I want to see God work in my life. How can I if I’m in the way. “Lord, let me be the kind of father I need to be to Melissa.” I can do it, let me. No I can’t. Jesus said, “Without me ye can do nothing.” How about, “Lord, give me the wisdom and understanding to raise your child as you would want.” I’m relying on God to do something, and that includes giving me what I need to do the work that He has prepared for me to do.

We should all want to see God’s work in our lives. Allowing Him to work is a great start. And when we see God work, He gets all the praise. Thank the Lord for other believers who are willing to share what the Holy Spirit has taught them so the church can be edified.

Peace (John 14:27)

Oct 29th Did You Ever Want To Call Down Fire From Heaven?

Today’s Reading – Luke 8 & 9

And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did? (Luke 9:54)

As I was writing the article this morning for the blog, and was all finished with it, the internet went down, and I lost all that I had written. I guarantee you that I wanted to call down fire on my computer when it happened. Oh well, let’s try again.

The context of the above verse is found in Luke 9:51 – 56. Jesus is traveling from Galilee to Jerusalem in order to attend the Feat of Tabernacles in the last year of His earthly ministry. It is getting close to the time of His crucifixion, and His ministry will now be primarily in Jerusalem rather than in Galilee. On the way, He wants to stop and rest overnight in Samaria. This was something that most Jews would not even consider, but you may remember that Jesus had a good history with the people of Samaria. Very early in His public ministry when Jesus was on His way to Galilee, He insisted on going through Samaria. It was there that He had the encounter with “the woman at the well” which ultimately lead to her salvation and a great revival in her village. Jesus spent a couple of days there ministering to the people of Samaria.

However, on this trip, the Samaritans are not too receptive to the idea of Jesus lodging with them. They seem to be offended because Jesus is just passing through them on His way to Jerusalem. The Samaritans and the Jews still despised each other, and the Samaritans did not believe that anybody had to go to Jerusalem to observe one of their rituals. If they weren’t going to be the primary focus of Jesus’ visit, then they would rather not have Him come at all. This did not sit tool well with the Jewish disciples of Jesus. They decided that these Samaritans should be done away with for “snubbing” the Lord, and they ask Jesus if they could call down fire from Heaven like Elijah did to the prophets of Baal. Jesus recognizes that these disciples were reacting “in the flesh” to the Samaritans, and rebukes them for their attitude. He tells them that by reacting in a fleshly manner to the Samaritans’ unkindness they were playing right into the hand of the Satan.

Did you ever want to call down fire from Heaven to destroy someone? Did you ever want to get even with someone for something they did to you? If you did, you must understand that those thoughts do not come from God’s Spirit, they originate in your “old man”, your carnal, sinful flesh. We all have an “old man” to contend with, and it does not matter how long you have been saved or how much you have grown in the Lord; the flesh will still be a problem. The apostle Paul recognized this plague within himself when he said, “for I know that in me, that is in my flesh, dwelleth no good thing”. He knew that his flesh was a real problem. We must recognize when our flesh is resurrecting itself. We must realize that the thoughts and feelings of lust, hatred, etc. from within us are not of God. And we must yield to the Spirit of God within us as He directs us to conform to the image of Christ. We are not to be in the business of destroying men’s lives, but bringing men closer to the Lord.

Oct 28th The Prison of Pleasing People

Today’s Reading – Luke 6 & 7

They are like unto children sitting in the marketplace, and calling one to another, and saying, We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned to you, and ye have not wept. (Luke 7:32)

John the Baptist was not what the people wanted or expected him to be and they accused him of being devil-possessed. Jesus was not what the people wanted or expected Him to be and they accused him of being a drunkard and a glutton. The world expected them to fit into their mold, and when they did not meet their expectations, they turned on them. Yet, no matter what pressure the people put on either of these men, they continued being who they were, and they continued fulfilling the will of God.

Christians today are too worried about meeting the expectations of the world around them, instead of just trying to please God. We often dance when the world tells us to dance, and cry when they want us to cry. We even have the same problem with our peers within the household of faith. Every decision we make, we make with careful consideration of what our friends are going to think. At some point, we had better grab hold of the fact that it really only matters that we are submitting to the will of God, not the wishes and whims of the people around us. Pleasing people is like a prison and as long as you are locked up there you are not free to live your life as God would have you to live it. Stop trying to please people. Please God. Forget about the crowds reaction and consider only Christ and His will for your life.

I had better put a little disclaimer on the bottom of this thought, however. Children, you still need to please your parents, and you ought to be very concerned about what they think about your life. The same is true for all of us who are under some type of authority in our lives. If you have a boss, you also need to be considerate of what he expects from you on the job.

Oct 27th A Hospital for Sinners

Today’s Reading – Luke 4 & 5

And Jesus answering said unto them, They that are whole need not a physician; but they that are sick. (Luke 5:31)

Jesus was eating at the house of Matthew (Levi) the publican (tax collector), and there were also many other publicans there. These were not the type of people you wanted your children to run with. Though the term publican simply means tax collector, these people were not just your everyday, ordinary IRS agents. They were traditionally thought of as thugs, the mobsters of the day; extorting from people whatever they could. They were despised by the honorable citizens of Judaea; but Jesus loved them and wanted to reach them. He went to a place where no respectable Jew would have gone: a party where there were a bunch of publicans and other “sinners”. But please don’t misunderstand His motivation and purpose for being there. He was not there to participate in any sinful activity. He was there to love and reach people with the gospel.

Our churches should be full of people with problems. Every once in a while I will sense that some of our folks are not too thrilled with some of the people we are trying to reach. Their pharisaic disdain for “sinners” almost seeps out of their pores. It’s a shame really that Christians will develop that kind of attitude. I remember years ago when I was attending church in South Tomes River. We had a lady there who referred to the people that we were bringing in on our busses as “scummers”. She really thought that because she had been saved at a young age and raised in a good home that she was better than these folks who we were trying to reach for Christ.

Our church will always have a good number of people in it who have not “arrived yet”. There will be people with financial problems, moral problems, family problems, all kinds of problems. Now this does not mean that we will stop preaching against their sin. We will always preach the Book; but we will love them through the preaching. I love the diversity in our church. We have a great mix of cultures, races, educational backgrounds, and income levels; but I am also glad about the fact that we have people at all different spiritual levels here. Some are not saved yet; others are brand new babes in Christ; and still many others have been saved for years. But they are all welcome and should be accepted and loved by all others in the church. Jesus loved people with problems. He loves me, and I want to do my best to see to it that our church continues to love the people He loves.

Oct 26th What Shall We Do?

Today’s Reading – Luke 2 & 3

Bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance, and begin not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, That God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. (Luke 3:8)

John the Baptist was preaching and baptizing in the wilderness of Judea, and was attracting quite a crowd. There were no doubt many there that were there simply out of curiosity, just wanting to get a glimpse of this very strange man that was preaching a very different message than they were accustomed to hearing. There were also some there that were there to keep their eye on John. The religious leaders were very concerned about this man that was seen by them as a threat to their leadership. John wasn’t the slightest bit afraid of them, and when he saw them in the crowd, he preached against them.

John’s statement above from verse eight is a bold, yet appropriate announcement regarding the hearts of some that were coming to his baptism. “Bring therefore fruits worthy of repentance”. He was not telling them that in order to be saved they had to change their lives, but he was saying that if they were coming for baptism, they had better have had a true conversion which comes with repentance. In other words if they were truly sincere about their faith in God, it would naturally result in some type of outward change. The Bible teaches very plainly that we are new creatures; we now have Someone on the inside that is working His way to our outside.

The people wanted to know what they should do. The tax collectors wanted to know what they should do; and even some of the soldiers were looking for instructions as to how they should live now that they were saved. I remember when I trusted Christ as my Savior at the age of 25. I wanted to know all I could know about the Lord; and I wanted to do whatever I could in order to serve Him. There was definitely something radically different on the inside that was trying to break free to the surface. Don’t misunderstand, I wasn’t perfect; nor am I now, but my desires had changed. I wanted God, and I wanted to do whatever He wanted me to do. There was fruit coming from the inside that resulted from a genuine repentance. I won’t quibble with you about your specific definition of repentance; but I know this: a genuine repentance results in a genuine salvation; and a genuine salvation will radically change the way you think and the way you live your life. At least, I know that is what happened to me.

When the great Apostle Paul was saved, he immediately asked the Lord, “what shalt thou have me to do?”. I don’t think that was too different from what these people, publicans, and soldiers asked at John’s baptism. Has your life changed since you trusted Christ as your Savior? What’s new about you? What’s different? Is there in your life the fruits of genuine repentance? I am not trying to get you doubt your salvation, and I am not trying to say that if you are struggling with sin you are not saved. We all struggle with sin. The presence of sin in our life becomes more apparent and real to us as we mature in our Christian life. But is there inside of you a desire for the things of God, and a remorse for the things that God is displeased with? Do you yearn to be closer to him? Is He chipping away daily at your flesh? I want to know Him, and be more like Him; and I want Him to be revealed in my life and ministry.

Oct 25th Certainty

Today’s Reading – Luke 1

That thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein thou hast been instructed. (Luke 1:4)

I have always been fascinated by these first few verses in Luke’s gospel. He is writing to an individual by the name of Theophilus who we know very little about; and he is explaining to him, under the inspiration of the Spirit of God, in detail all that he knows about the life of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is interesting when you think about it that Luke appears to be writing this entire book to one man. Now we know that God had other plans for the book; but on a human level, it seems to be the most comprehensive gospel tract ever written. All for one man, Theophilus. The first thought that hits me is the concern that Luke must of had for this one man in order to go through this arduous task just so that Theophilus could be certain about what he already knew about the Lord. Luke is possibly the most diligent soul winner there ever was.

The second thought I have from this Scripture comes from the word “certainty”.  Luke penned the Word of God so that the hearer could be certain about the Lord Jesus Christ. That reminds me of another verse that tells us that …faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God. (Romans 10:17) Practical application of this principle tells us that the more time we spend in the Word of God, the more we will be certain about the things of God; and the more certain we are in our faith, the greater our life and ministries will be also. We will be able to boldly plow forward through this dark and cold world with the gospel simply because we are sure of what we believe about God.

If you look at the faithless condition of America today, and consider how that Satan has been effective at both distorting the Word of God in most of our churches, and removing the Word of God from schools and most other public venues of our society; it is no wonder that the country is rapidly moving away from God. The answer is the Word. We in the church need to get strengthened ourselves through the certainty that comes through time in the Book; and then flood our churches, communities, families, neighborhoods, and workplaces with the Word of God. The more they hear the Word, the more they can be certain about the Lord.