Category: Bible Teaching

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Bible Teaching

Are You Ready?

Athlete standing at arena railing above a boxing ring
An athlete stands alone in an empty arena, surrounded by warm sunrise light and quiet anticipation.

Text: Luke 8:43-48 , “(43) And a woman having an issue of blood twelve years, which had spent all her living upon physicians, neither could be healed of any,  (44)  Came behind him, and touched the border of his garment: and immediately her issue of blood stanched.  (45)  And Jesus said, Who touched me? When all denied, Peter and they that were with him said, Master, the multitude throng thee and press thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me?  (46)  And Jesus said, Somebody hath touched me: for I perceive that virtue is gone out of me.  (47)  And when the woman saw that she was not hid, she came trembling, and falling down before him, she declared unto him before all the people for what cause she had touched him, and how she was healed immediately.  (48)  And he said unto her, Daughter, be of good comfort: thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace.”

12 long years – Have you ever gone through a long trial?

Are You Ready?

In 1910, a young boxer named Jim Jeffries came out of retirement to fight the heavyweight champion Jack Johnson.

Once an undefeated legend in the ring, Jeffries had been years away from competition, and he was out of shape, unconditioned, and unprepared for the intensity of the fight ahead.

He trained harder for that comeback fight than he ever had in his life. He ran many miles every day. He lifted weights. He sparred until he could barely stand.

Why? Because he knew that stepping into the ring without preparation meant certain defeat, but when the bell rang, it became clear:

He had not conditioned himself enough for the fight.

Round after round, Johnson’s blows landed. Jeffries staggered. He fell. He got back up. He fell again. He got back up again. But eventually, he could no longer continue. The fight was stopped.

Afterward, Jeffries said, “I couldn’t have beaten him even if I had been at my best.”

Why? Because the fight demanded more than he had prepared for.

Jeffries was not ready. Are You Ready? GET READY.[1]

1 Timothy 6:11-12, “(11) But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.  (12)  Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.”

  • Paul is instructing Timothy on how to be ready…conditioned for the good fight of faith.
  • There are some things you need to flee
    • The “love of money” and all that comes with it – temptations, snares, traps, harmful desires – leading to ruin and destruction
  • There are things you need to follow
    • “…righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.”
  • There are things you need to fight
    • The Good Fight of Faith
  • Reward – Eternal Life!

Jude 1:3, “Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.”

Contend upon, for, or about[2] — Struggle for it!

If you are going to “fight the good fight,” you cannot be spiritually out of shape. You must be ready.

If you are going to “earnestly contend for the faith,” you must be conditioned for the struggle. You must prepare yourself to be ready.

This is not a casual contest. This is not a hobby.

This is a fight that requires discipline, training, and endurance.

The Good Fight of faith is not a spectator sport. It is a fight. A struggle. A contest for an incorruptible crown.[3]

Are You Ready?

The audience watch as two contestants at Olympia wrestle and box in their pursuit of an earthly crown. Only one will stand with the olive crown on his head.

Hear the roar of the crowd as the runner crosses the finish line in victory. Only one will wear the wreath of apple at Delphi.

A pine crown awaits the victor at the Isthmian games,

And at the Nemean games, all you get for your struggle to contend with others is a garland of parsley…and bragging rights.

No lasting achievement, because in 2 or 3 or 4 years we will do it again and someone else will be faster, stronger, quicker, more perseverant.

It’s just an earthly corruptible crown and only one receiveth the prize.

Our Preparation is for The Good Fight of Faith, and our reward is for an incorruptible crown, which is why Paul wrote to the Corinthians:

(26) I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air:  (27)  But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.[4]

The ESV: “I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.”

Have you ever watched an Olympian be disqualified? The look of shock, disbelief, and instant regret.

Questions in the mind: “What will I do now?” – “I just wasted four years of my life training, sacrificing, giving and now this?”

Paul was making sure that he was ready – he did not want to be Disqualified, castaway, rejected.

If you are going to “earnestly contend for the faith” then you better be conditioned for the struggle, and it is a struggle.

To obtain the incorruptible crown:

You must deny yourself – You strive for temperance and moderation You need to actually be guilty of being a Christian.

You could lose this crown at any moment.

There are threats, hazards, opposition on every hand

John 10:10, “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”

Your enemy, the devil, would gladly have you trade an incorruptible crown for eternal hell and torment.

Billy Graham was famous for never having had one mark against his character, and he prayed this prayer often: “Lord, let me not today ruin in anything what You have taken all these years to do in my heart and provide for my life.”

This fight of faith requires you to be conditioned. What is “Faith?”[5]

  • “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good report. Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear” (Hebrews 11:1-3).
  • The source of “Faith” is God’s Word.
    • Romans 10:17, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” 
    • God’s Word conditions and prepares us:
      • “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.”[6]
  • THE FAITH ARE THE COLLECTIVE TEACHINGS OF JESUS CHRIST, INCLUDING HIS PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICES WHICH HE “MODELED” FOR US, AND “ALL THINGS” THAT HE COMMANDEDHISAPOSTLES TO TEACH US.
    • There are Four Practices that prepare us in this fight of faith:
      • “And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers” (Acts 2:42).
  • THE FAITH is NOT just somethingwe“know”; it is also something “we do.”
    • James 2:17-18, “(17) Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.  (18)  Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.”
    • James 2:22 (NLT), “You see, his [Abraham’s] faith and his actions worked together. His actions made his faith complete.”
  • FAITH IS ACTIVE —IT ISSOMETHING TO BE OBEYED. It is not passive —notjust something to know or “mentally acknowledge!”
    • Romans 1:5, “By whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name.”
    • Acts 6:7, “And the word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.”
    • Hebrews 11:8, “By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.”
  • The Conditioning Point of Contact for Faith is Prayer:
    • “Pray without ceasing.”[7]
    • I have come with a call from the Holy One:
      • “But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost,” (Jude 1:20).

Paul said, “I have kept the faith.” 

He didn’t mean he was storing it away, or hanging it on the wall like some type of trophy.

It was an active pursuit of his life: “I have kept the faith.” 

He conditioned himself.

You and I are engaged in a great contest.

  • “My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing” (James 1:2-4).
  • “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; And patience, experience; and experience, hope: And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us” (Romans 5:1-5).

When we say someone is a man or woman of faith what we really mean is that they have done something with that faith.

They were conditioned for the trying of their faith.

James said, “Show me your faith without your work, and I’ll show you mine with it. Because faith without works is dead being alone.

The Woman with the Issue of Blood

She had been fighting this battle for 12 long years.

She had evidently been a wealthy woman at one time, but now the money was gone, the doctors’ options exhausted and her only hope now lay in this man named Jesus.

Faith doesn’t always look like what you think it looks like.

She was conditioned and prepared by her struggle for this moment. She was finally ready!

Your current struggle is conditioning you, preparing you and getting you ready.

At the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, Tanzanian runner John Stephen Akhwari cemented his legacy not by winning, but by finishing last.

Despite falling, injuring his knee and shoulder, and suffering from altitude cramps, he kept contending.

By the time he entered the stadium, the sun had set, the medal ceremony was over, and only a small crowd remained.

He was the 57th and final competitor to finish the marathon, out of 75 who started.

Battered, bruised, injured and bandaged he was asked why he didn’t just quit. He replied,

“My country did not send me 5,000 miles to start the race; they sent me 5,000 miles to finish it.”[8]

He was ready. Are You Ready?

(1) I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom;  (2)  Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.  (3)  For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;  (4)  And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.  (5)  But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.  (6)  For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.  (7)  I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:  (8)  Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.[9]

Are Your Ready? Keep contending. Continue struggling.

Don’t let up – Don’t Quit! Fight The Good Fight of Faith.

“Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13-14).

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Johnson_vs._James_J._Jeffries

[2] Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible.

[3] SOURCE: Italicized. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Johnson_vs._James_J._Jeffries

[4] 1 Corinthians 9:26-27 

[5] Chester Wright. (2022). Contending for the Faith (Part 1-The Call to Contend). Self-Published.

[6] 2 Timothy 3:16-17

[7] 1 Thess. 5:17

[8] Source: https://www.olympics.com/en/news/marathon-man-akhwari-demonstrates-superhuman-spirit

[9] 2 Timothy 4:1-8 

Categories
Bible Teaching

The Power of Pentecost and Apostolic Identity

Electricity pylons crossing a misty valley beneath a colorful sunset
Electricity pylons stretch across a misty valley toward a distant city at sunset.

Text: Acts 1:8, “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”

The Power of Pentecost and Apostolic Identity

Have you been in a new home that is under construction?

Bare studs and the smell of pine fill the space.

Then the electricians come in and they start running electrical lines for lights, outlets, HVAC, hot tubs, etc.

However, all those lines will be useless if the Lineman does not come and connect that house to the power grid.

The potential for power is there, but that house has to receive power.

The Power Lines in your neighborhood sometimes go out.

It might be windstorm, ice on the lines, a car wreck taking out an electric pole, or a blown transformer.

The need is still the same – you need a Lineman.

The Power Lineman is a skilled line installer and repairer, who is trained to construct, maintain, and repair electrical power systems.

They work with high-voltage lines, often at great heights in varying weather conditions, to keep electricity flowing to homes and businesses.

Their main job is to make sure that all the residential and commercial buildings in the area receive the electrical power they need to operate to their full potential.

Acts 2:38-39, “Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.  (39)  For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.

The late Robert Bayer, known as “The Walking Bible” said, “Bethlehem was God with us, Calvary was God for us, and Pentecost is God in us.”

Statistics regarding Pentecostals today (5/23/2026)

There are 130 million Pentecostals globally, which represents 1.63% of 8 billion.

There are 2.66 billion Christians globally, which is 32.3% of the 2025 population.

Christianity is growing at a rate of roughly 0.98% annually.

As of 2025, the global number of Oneness Pentecostals is estimated to be approximately 30 million (.375% of population).

This figure represents about 1% of total global Christianity and roughly 4% to 5% of the broader Pentecostal-Charismatic movement, which includes over 644 million people (8.05%).

If Christianity grows at .98% annually while the global population grows at a rate of .88%, it would take approximately 1,027 years for the faith to represent 90% of the world population. 

Based on current demographics and growth projections, it would take Oneness Pentecostals anywhere from 70 to over 500 years to reach 25% of the global population, depending on which growth rate persists.

While the broader Pentecostal movement already makes up about 25% of global Christianity (roughly 644 million people), Oneness Pentecostalism is a specific subset with approximately 30 million adherents.

Using a 2026 global population estimate of 8.1 billion and a world population growth rate of 0.8% annually, here is how long it would take at different sustained annual growth rates for Oneness Pentecostals to make up 25% of the global poplutation:

  • At 7.0% Growth (High Estimate): Approximately 71 years. This rate is seen in some specific high-growth regions or individual denominations but is difficult to sustain globally over decades.
  • At 4.0% Growth (Moderate Estimate): Approximately 135 years.
  • At 1.58% Growth (Conservative Estimate): Approximately 546 years. This rate is closer to the current average for the broader movement.

Before the Lord Comes for His Church/Bride There She Will Fill the Earth

Daniel 2:31-35, “(31)  Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was terrible. (32)  This image’s head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass, (33)  His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay. (34)  Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. (35)  Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.“

Isaiah 2:1-3, “(1)  The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem. (2)  And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD’S house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. (3)  And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.”

Jesus speaking: “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come” (Matthew 24:14).

Are You Connected?

“Who could ever forget those hours when we were hunting for the Baptism with the Holy Ghost? Days and nights were spent in seeking God and nothing else mattered. Then came that climactic day when we spoke in tongues and glory filled our soul. We had arrived-and most of us are never again so earnest in waiting on God, so the tragedy of modern Pentecostalism is that most of the saints are more spiritual just before they get the Baptism than they ever are again! One is reminded of giant powerhouses. The river of God is moving the turbines in the unseen realm, feeding the generators with prodigious potential power, but there are no lines to get the power out to a lost and needy humanity.”[1]

Apostolic Linemen

We Apostolics have done ourselves a great disservice.

Regardless of how or where it originated, we have sent the message to our people that the operation of the Spirit is limited to service times.

We have the power, but our power lines have been cut, disconnected or never installed.

We have forgotten that any believer, anywhere and anytime has the potential for miraculous and evident signs of salvation and deliverance following them.

The Old Testament was potential, but the New Testament is power.

Two Types of Power in the New Testament:

  • Dunamis = Power (energetic, explosive, demonstrative)
  • Exousia= Authority (delegated right, privilege – it’s about position)
    • His authority to exercise His power comes from His position as the Christ.
    • Our authority to exercise that same power is given to us by Jesus Christ:
      • Mark 16:14-20, “(14) Afterward he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen.  (15)  And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.  (16)  He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.  (17)  And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;  (18)  They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.  (19)  So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.  (20)  And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.
        • They had humbly received the rebuke of Christ.
        • They preached every where = They Proclaimed the Gospel.
        • Propelled by a faith strengthened through the power of the Holy Ghost that they received in Acts 2.
        • Signs followed as the Lord promised they would.
      • Acts 1:7-8, “(7) And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power [exousia = authority].  (8)  But ye shall receive power [dunamis = power], after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”
      • 2 Corinthians 13:10, “Therefore I write these things being absent, lest being present I should use sharpness, according to the power [exousia = authority] which the Lord hath given me to edification, and not to destruction.”
        • NLT, “…I want to use the authority the Lord has given me to strengthen you, not to tear you down.”
    • I do not have the power to stop an automobile, but that police officer driving behind me in the car with the lights flashing has something that will stop me – authority.

Apostolic Authority Abandons Apathy – Pentecostal Power Perpetuates Passion

There are twin powers, two sides of one coin, are the very means through which the Church will fulfill its purpose of reaching the world as it manifests its Identity.

Some alliterative statements:

  • Apostolic Authority Abandons Apathy
  • Pentecostal Power Perpetuates Passion

What will happen to our world when Oneness Pentecostals actually become concerned for the world?

People today are obsessed with AI (Artificial Intelligence), but what this world needs is for the Church to allow the Power of the Holy Ghost to produce the real AI – Apostolic Identity.

The real AI (Apostolic Identity) that we need today is:

  • Apostolic Intercession
  • Apostolic Influence
  • Apostolic Impact

Apathy (Indifference) is the sin of our age, and for true worldwide growth, renewal and revival to occur the Church needs to reconnect to the power of its Apostolic Identity.

Elie Wiesel, holocaust survivor, author, and Nobel Laureate wrote:

“The opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference.”

As a movement, we have a present day Pentecostal problem:

  • Feeling over Faith
  • Excitement over Evangelism
  • Entertainment over Introspection

We need to learn to follow the line to where it meets and connects to Jesus.

It’s a “Follow me” faith that we have. We follow Jesus.

Nowhere in the Bible does it tell you to be Apostolic, or Pentecostal.

All Jesus ever said was, “Follow me,”

Paul simply wrote, “Follow me as I follow Christ.”

That’s our injunction. That’s our directive: to be born again of water and spirit and follow Jesus.”

When you follow Jesus in that fashion, you will be full of Power and you will take on that Apostlic Identity.

You first need to make sure the power lines are connected and the current of God’s Power is flowing to and through you.

You have the potential for power and authority, but are you connected?

Do you have an Apostolic Identity?

  • Apostolic Intercession – Are you burdened for the world?
  • Apostolic Influence – Are you reaching your family, friends, peers?

Apostolic Impact – Are you effecting you w

[1] Lennard Darbee. (1959?). Tongues: the Dynamite of God.

Categories
Bible Teaching

Lengthen Your Cords, Strengthen Your Stakes

Sanctuary of Praise (Culloden, WV)

Numbers 4:29-33, “(29) As for the sons of Merari, thou shalt number them after their families, by the house of their fathers; (30) From thirty years old and upward even unto fifty years old shalt thou number them, every one that entereth into the service, to do the work of the tabernacle of the congregation. (31) And this is the charge of their burden, according to all their service in the tabernacle of the congregation; the boards of the tabernacle, and the bars thereof, and the pillars thereof, and sockets thereof, (32) And the pillars of the court round about, and their sockets, and their pins, and their cords, with all their instruments, and with all their service: and by name ye shall reckon the instruments of the charge of their burden. (33) This is the service of the families of the sons of Merari, according to all their service, in the tabernacle of the congregation, under the hand of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.”

  • The sons of Merari were tasked with doing what we now have the privilege to do.
  • Merari = can mean “bitter, sad” –OR- “strong, fierce” (as in a bitter taste that has a strong flavor).

Isaiah 54:2-3, “(2) Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes; (3) For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited.”

  • “Curtains” are a canopy or cloth used in a tent. The boundaries of the church have been enlarged in order to accommodate the vast conversion of the Gentiles.[1]
  • Where once only Gentiles lived, now the Gospel of Christ has been carried, preached, and believed and millions of souls have been born again.[2]
  • Now, because of God’s grace, a spiritual seed, the seed of the church, inhabits those formerly desolate places, until the fulness of the Gentiles.[3]
  • The desolate cities here we empty of the knowledge of Christ and the Gospel of salvation. In fact, all divine and spiritual things have now been made accessible all who will believe in Christ, profess his name, and obey the Gospel.[4]

Isaiah 33:20, “Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities: thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tabernacle that shall not be taken down; not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken.”

  • Zion refers to the Church: God dwells, inhabits, her.
  • Zion is a strong city, it is the perfection of beauty, and the joy of the whole earth (Ps. 50:2; Lam. 2:15).
  • It is here where the saints gather to worship their Lord.
  • Rev. 21:3, “…the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.”
  • Every true believer is a “stake” or pillar in the church of God, which shall never be removed (Rev. 3:12) from the heart, hands and love of God.[5]
  • No born again Christian can be removed from the family of God. You can’t be “un-born again,” and so all the privileges and blessings of being part of the Body of Christ belong the believer.
  • The “cords,” which represent the everlasting love of God, will never be broken and so they are always firm and sure, secure and stable, eternal and unending.[6]
  • Jesus’ cords of love on one side and your cords of love on the other create a safe boundary, a bulwark of salvation, a wall of integrity.

Brass Pins/Stakes were used in the Tabernacle in the wilderness to secure the gold pillars of the Outer Court upright. 

These pins were driven in the ground at one end and fine twined linen was attached to the pins and to the top of the wooden pillars overlaid with gold to which sheets of fine linen were attached.

This created a type of fence and there was only one entrance into the outer court.

The Ark had one entrance, one gate to the sheepfold, and one way to the Father.

Jesus saith unto him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”[7]

The wood of the pillar represents Christ’s humanity.

The gold of the pillar represents Christ’s divinity.

Humanity wrapped in deity.

God manifest in the flesh.

Fine twined linen was drawn tightly and fastened with the pins.

They speak to us of the drawing power of God and His love for men and women:

“I drew them with cords of a man, with bands of love…” (Hosea 11:4).

We also have a part in the drawing power of love in our relationship with Jesus: “Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you.”[8]

Without the cords, the pins and stakes would be useless.

It is God’s love that constrains us, that holds us together: “For the love of Christ constraineth [to hold together] us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead:  And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again” (2 Corinthians 5:14-15).

Unfortunately, there are times when we speak love, but do not demonstrate love, or as Jesus said, “This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.  But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.”[9]

  • It seems that when our hearts harden, or become distant, we choose man’s rules, commands, and sacred cows over relationship.

Our text tells you to, “lengthen your cords, and strengthen your stakes.”

STORY: I went camping one night when the wind began to blow and a strong storm blew in. Someone forgot to fasten the tent to the ground with the provided stakes.

A stake, a pin, will do you no good if left on the ground and not driven into the earth. 

The strength of the stake refers to it being secured into the ground, not whether it is steel, iron, or brass.

There are some stakes we need to secure firmly into the ground, and keep coming back to them in order to make sure they remain strengthened.

There are four pins of our faith that will keep us attached to the love of God, if we are vigilant in strengthening them regularly:[10]

  • Dogma = One God
    • Gen. 1:1, “In the beginning God created…” God here is the transliterated form of Elohim, which means “plenitude of might,” or more simply, “one God whose characteristics are many.”Dogma = “a principle or set of principles laid down by an authority as unquestionably true.”[11] The source of the pin of our dogma is God’s Word.Deut. 6:4, “Hear, O Israel: the LORD our God is one LORD.”In Colossians 2:9 we are told that in Jesus dwells all the fullness of the Godhead (all the characteristics of God) bodily, and we (the Church) are complete in Him (Jesus).Paul did say that the Godhead was a mystery, but then he went on to explain what the mystery was, “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.”[12]
    • Only Jesus Christ fulfilled those six points. Therefore, Jesus Christ of the New Testament is Jehovah of the Old Testament
  • Duty = Love (to God and to one another)
    • Jesus & People
      • “Master, which is the great commandment in the law?  Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.  This is the first and great commandment.  And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.  On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”[13]“A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.  By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”[14]
      • A pin and a cord
  • Discipline = Study of Scriptures
    • John 5:39, “Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.”2 Timothy 2:15, “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”
    • 2 Timothy 3:16-17, “(16) All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:  (17)  That the man of God may be perfect [complete], throughly furnished unto all good works.
      • Doctrine  = What is right
      • Reproof = What is not right
      • Correction  = How to get right
      • Instruction = How to stay right
  • Method = Union (Balance) of the Spirit and the Word
    • John 1:17, “For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.”2 Corinthians 3:2-6, “(2) Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men:  (3)  Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.  (4)  And such trust have we through Christ to God-ward:  (5)  Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God;  (6)  Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.
    • Philippians 4:5, “Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.”
    • Modesty, Humility, Gentle, Patient = Balance

A word of warning:

“(19) Woe is me for my hurt! my wound is grievous: but I said, Truly this is a grief, and I must bear it.  (20)  My tabernacle is spoiled, and all my cords are broken: my children are gone forth of me, and they are not: there is none to stretch forth my tent any more, and to set up my curtains.”[15]

Instability in the Church, in our lives, occurs when we do not strengthen our stakes and lengthen our cords by drawing closer to God.

James 4:7-8, “(7) Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.  (8)  Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.”

Psalms 73:28, “But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works.”

Psalms 145:18, “The LORD is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.”

He’s as close as the mention of His name. Jesus. Jesus.

Lengthen your cords, and strengthen your stakes

[1] Albert Barnes

[2] F. B. Meyer

[3] Ibid.

[4] Ibid.

[5] John Gill

[6] Ibid.

[7] John 14:6

[8] James 4:8a

[9] Matthew 5:8-9

[10] Source: Dr. Joe Nelson. (n.d.) Four Fundamentals of Faith Necessary for New Testament Living. Parkersburg Bible College.

[11] https://www.dictionary.com/browse/dogma

[12] 1 Timothy 3:16

[13] Matthew 22:36-40 

[14] John 13:34-35 

[15] Jeremiah 10:19-20

Categories
Bible Teaching

The Sin Bucket -Harold Hoffman

Categories
Bible Teaching

Taking Away Services – Tim Dilena

I agree with Tim Dilena’s comments here. We don’t need less time together in the Body of Christ, but more, or as Paul wrote:

“Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near” (Hebrews 10:24-25, NLT).

Categories
Bible Teaching

The Chosen Struggle

Categories
Bible Teaching

The Truth is a Person – Harold Hoffman

Another nugget from Harold Hoffman…

Categories
Bible Teaching

The Explosive Nature of God’s Word – Harold Hoffman

Harold Hoffman teaching on the explosive nature of the Word of God when mixed with faith.

Categories
Bible Teaching

Trust in God’s Will

Stephen Kuntzman | 9/28/2025 | 10am

Text: Genesis 12:1-3, “(1)  Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: (2)  And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: (3)  And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.”

Trust In God’s Will[1]

“All things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28).

Genesis 11:4, “Let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.”

“Now the Lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee” (Genesis 12:1).

“So Abram departed, as the Lord had spoken unto him” (Genesis 12:4).

We can be eternally grateful God does not give us what we deserve. Truthfully, we deserve judgment; He gives us mercy. We deserve death; He gives us life. Like a judge allowing a guilty person to go free, the mercy of God allows us to escape the death penalty of sin.

But since God is holy, He cannot just ignore sin; someone has to pay the penalty and suffer the sentence we deserve. The gospel—the beautiful covenant God’s Word keeps pointing toward—teaches us that God Himself took our sins and our sorrows on Himself. He paid our penalty; He suffered our sentence. The covenant blessings of God go beyond a spiritual pardon. Not only do we not get what we deserve because of His mercy, but we get what we do not deserve because of His grace. Jesus announced: “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly” (John 10:10).

“And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: and I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed” (Genesis 12:2–3).

Abraham Believed and Obeyed

Believe and obey are action words. Like Noah, Abraham put feet on his faith. When God told Abraham to go, Abraham went. As Abraham walked with God, God continued to reiterate and refine His covenant. Not surprisingly, Abraham battled fear and doubt throughout this long journey. He even sired a son named Ishmael when God did not answer as quickly as Abraham had hoped. During one moment of doubt, God instructed Abraham to look up toward heaven and count the stars. This was enough reassurance for Abraham. “He believed in the Lord; and he counted it to him for righteousness” (Genesis 15:5–6).

The sign of the covenant for Noah was a rainbow in the sky; for Abraham and his descendants, it was circumcision. God commanded: “And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of the covenant betwixt me and you” (Genesis 17:11). Then, God unfolded another prophetic page in His great master plan: “But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year” (Genesis 17:21).

The New Testament opens with these words: “The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham” (Matthew 1:1). When Abraham looked up at the night sky to count the stars, little did he know that one of his descendants would be Jesus Christ, God manifested in flesh, the “bright and morning star” (Revelation 22:16).

“My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering” (Genesis 22:8).

“By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead” (Hebrews 11:17–19).

“Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, and in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed. Unto you first God, having raised up his Son Jesus, sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities” (Acts 3:25–26).

“And again, I will put my trust in him” (Hebrews 2:13).

“Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths” (Proverbs 3:5–6).

[1] SOURCE: God’s Word for Life. Covenant. Fall 2025 Lesson Guide. Lesson 4 – Abraham and Isaac. Pentecostal Publishing House.

Categories
Bible Teaching

Anointed & Sent

Stephen Kuntzman | Nov. 9, 2025 | 10am

Text: John 20:21-23, “(21) Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.  (22)  And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost:  (23)  Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained.”

2 Corinthians 5:17-21, “(17) Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.  (18)  And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;  (19)  To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.  (20)  Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God.  (21)  For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”

“…I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves…” (Matthew 10:16).

Anointed and Sent

Ancillary Text:

  • Matthew 28:18-20, “(18) And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.  (19)  Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:  (20)  Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”
  • Acts 1:8, “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”
  • Isaiah 6:8, “Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.”

In 2025, churchtrac shared the latest survey from Gallup (2023) and the Pew Research Center regarding the percentage of regular church attendance. The survey was both eye-opening and astounding:[1]

  • 20% of Americans attend church every week
  • 41% of Americans are in monthly church attendance or more
  • 57% of Americans are seldom or never in religious service attendance
  • Regular church attendance has steadily declined since the turn of the century[2] [3]

When Paul and Silas were in Thessalonica their detractors made an interesting statement: “These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also.”[4]

How did they turn the world upside down?

They had a purposeful focus (spreading the Gospel, making disciples, and serving Jesus)

How did they accomplish that?

The early Church was focused on two things:

Jesus & People

That focus embodies the approach we must have if we want to see the growth of the early church.

Furthermore, when we get our focus on Jesus & People, we fulfil God’s Law:

(37) Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.  (38)  This is the first and great commandment.  (39)  And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.  (40)  On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.[5]

God is the Creator and Sustainer of all things, and He desires relationship with His Creation.

In the Old Testament, the LORD told Moses, “And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will be their God. And they shall know that I am the LORD their God, that brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, that I may dwell among them: I am the LORD their God.”[6]

In the New Testament, Paul quotes Moses’ words in Exodus, but emphasizes a deeper communion:

“(16) And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.  (17)  Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,  (18)  And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.”[7]

Dwelling “among” the people now becomes dwelling “in” His people.

1 Corinthians 6:19-20, “What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.”

To do this, “God became a missionary”:[8]

  • John 1:1-5, 10-14, “(1) In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (2) The same was in the beginning with God. (3) All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. (4) In him was life; and the life was the light of men. (5) And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not….(10) He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.  (11) He came unto his own, and his own received him not.  (12) But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:  (13) Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.  (14) And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.”

The Father – in the person of Jesus Christ – descends to the earth for the work of redeeming Men and Women and creating the Church.

Jesus then commissioned and sent the Church into the world with the mission of reaching lost humanity with the Gospel message of salvation:

  • John 3:16-17, “(16) For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.  (17)  For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.”
  • “Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you” (John 20:21).
    • We have been Anointed and Sent.

The Church is sent as a continuation of God’s mission, which is to be with and in His people!

What we call “The Great Commission” is God’s plan to fulfil through His Church His purpose for the world.

God has Anointed and Sent you and I to be missionaries and ministers of reconciliation uniting Jesus with people.

The Great Commission[9]

Four Great Commission Passages:

  • Matthew 28:18-20, “(18) And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.  (19)  Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:  (20)  Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”
  • Mark 16:15-18, “(15) And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.  (16)  He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.  (17)  And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;  (18)  They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.”
  • Luke 24:44-49, “(44) And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.  (45)  Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures,  (46)  And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day:  (47)  And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.  (48)  And ye are witnesses of these things.  (49)  And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.”
  • Acts 1:8, “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”

Six Elements of the Great Commission:[10]

  1. Belief
  2. Repentance
  3. Water Baptism in the name of Jesus Christ
  4. Holy Ghost baptism and supernatural signs
  5. Teaching
  6. Healing

For the Church to grow and be successful as the embodied ambassadors of Jesus Christ – relationship with His creation – we need to have a proper balance:

  1. Right Doctrine (orthodoxy) – Head
    • Having a right understanding of the Bible – a biblical worldview.John 17:15-19, “(15) I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.  (16)  They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.  (17)  Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.  (18)  As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.  (19)  And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.”
    • Right Thinking confuses the world:
      • (21) For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.  (22)  For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom:  (23)  But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness;  (24)  But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.[11]
  2. Right Heart (Orthopathy) – Heart
    • Your will, affections, feelings, understanding and human spirit.A right heart is necessary for spiritual development and growth of personal character.When out of balance selfish ambitions arise.
    • Galatians 4:4-6, “(4) But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,  (5)  To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.  (6)  And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.
      • Jesus was born of a woman, under the law to redeem humanity so that we could receive the adoption of sons and daughters.
      • The result of adoption is that the Son is sent into our hearts – the purpose of the mission – and we cry out “Abba, Father,”
  3. Right Practice (orthopraxy) – Hands
    • Truth in action.Action that moves forward the ultimate purpose of God.Unclean hands undermines God’s intent: faith dies, humanity is harmed, and our head and heart is affected.If there is no balance then a superficial faith rises, self-righteousness through works increases, false doctrine is propagated and the mission is compromised.2 Corinthians 5:18-21, “(18) And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;  (19)  To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.  (20)  Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God.  (21)  For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”
      • The Mission of Jesus Christ continues in the Church each time we are involved in the ministry of reconciliation.Reconciliation required the incarnation: “he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”
      • The entire Mission of the Church is about reconciliation.

Four Missional Principles

The psalmist wrote, “He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him” (Ps. 126:6). In this verse we find Four Missional Principles of Perpetual Growth:

  1. Prayer (weepeth)

    Prayer sets the stage for the miraculous. Prayer is inextricably tied to spiritual growth, whether it is in the individual’s life or in the Church. People who pray consistently and persistently with passion will see results from their time with the Lord. Prayer takes discipline and consecration (not to be confused with concentration) but it is the conduit through which Heaven is reached. When we pray we not only speak to God, but He speaks to us. Prayer sets the stage for the miraculous.

    2. Praise (rejoicing)

    Praise sets the atmosphere for the miraculous. Those who have learned to praise God in everything eventually attain a level of spiritual maturity found only in praise. There are various methods of praise but only one way to praise. We must praise God with our whole heart. A whole heart is one that’s affections are not divided. True praise is authentic and sold out to Christ alone.

    3. Preaching (bearing precious seed)

    Preaching is the anointed message of the miraculous Gospel of Jesus Christ.

    Truly anointed preaching presents Jesus in such a way that people ask the same question asked so long ago on the day of Pentecost and they receive that same anointed answer:

    “Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost” (Acts 2:37-38).

    The difference between preaching and teaching:

    “Preaching is the anointed declaration of Truth. Teaching is the anointed explanation of Truth.” -Raymond Woodward

    4. Personal Evangelism (goeth forth)

    Personal evangelism is passion for the miraculous work of salvation.

    Personal evangelism is that element of inner passion and expectation that propels people to go and tell others about Jesus and what He’s doing today.

    It is spiritually mature and excellent practice to be a witness of the oneness of God. It is not something that only new converts should be doing.

    The longer one is in the Church the more they should be going forth to bring in a harvest of souls.

    Remember: Jesus touched others.[12]

    (16)  And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read. (17)  And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, (18)  The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, (19)  To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.

    We are sent to continue this mission – His Mission.

    When your head is right (doctrine), your heart is true (spirit), and your practices are correct (right hands) you will see growth in your congregation.

    When you’re on the mission in prayer, praise, preaching and personal evangelism then you will see the harvest God had intended for you.

    Max Lucado wrote, “The tongue that called forth the dead was a human one. That hand that touched the leper had dirt under its nails. The feet upon which the woman wept were calloused and dusty—and his tears—oh, don’t miss the tears-they came from a heart as broken as yours or mine has ever been. So people came to Him-my, how they came to Him. They came at night. They touched Him as He walked down the street. They followed Him around the sea. They invited Him into their homes and placed their children at His feet. Why? Because He refused to be a statue in a cathedral or a priest in an elevated pulpit. He chose rather to be touchable, approachable, and reachable. He was Jesus and I love Him!”

    Jesus is here right now.

    We have been anointed, sent and commissioned to fulfil His Mission. How can we do any less?

    [1] churchtrac. (2025). The State of Church Attendance: Trends and Statistics [2025]. Accessed: 10/24.2025. https://www.churchtrac.com/articles/the-state-of-church-attendance-trends-and-statistics-2023.

    [2] Ibid.

    [3] Pew Research Center. (2025). In U.S., Decline of Christianity Continues at Rapid Pace. Accessed: 10/24/2025. https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2019/10/17/in-u-s-decline-of-christianity-continues-at-rapid-pace/.

    [4] Acts 17:1-9

    [5] Matthew 22:37-40 

    [6] Exodus 29:45-46

    [7] 2 Corinthians 6:16-18

    [8] James Littles, Jr., Ph.D. (9/21/2012). Balancing Truth for the 21st Century.

    [9] Commissions = “an instruction, command, or duty given to a person or group of people.” –Oxford Languages

    [10] Exploring God’s Word Home Bible Study

    [11] 1 Corinthians 1:21-24

    [12] Littles.