Pastor Norman

In Psalm 5:11 King David exhorts people who trust God to be joyful because God protects them. God is our fortress (Ps 91:2; Ps 62:2), our stronghold (Nahum 1:7), our strong tower (Prov 18:16), our shield (Ps 3:3; 91:4b) and our refuge (Ps 91:2; 46:1). Jesus defeated satan by His death and resurrection and stripped him of all power and authority (Col 2:15). As Christians, we walk in Christ’s victory and have authority over satan (1 Cor 15:57). Satan will bring us tribulation (John 16:33; Ps 31:19) but God delivers us (Ps 34:19) and protects us from all satan’s attacks (1 John 5:18; 2 Thess 3:3). In his epistle James wrote that as we submit to God, we can resist satan and he has to run from us (James 4:7a). We resist satan by using the armour God has given us: Read Ephesians 6:14-17. We have the belt of God’s truth, for shoes the readiness of the gospel of peace, the breastplate of righteousness, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit which is God’s word. God sends His angels to protect us (Ps 34:7). God said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Heb 13:5; NKJV) and in John’s gospel Jesus said, “Neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand” (John 10:28b; NKJV). It’s great to know that God is working on our behalf 24/7 because He never sleeps (Ps 121:4b). God truly protects us! “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me” (Ps 23:4; NKJV).

Pastor Jean

Hosea 6:3 “Lat us know, let us pursue the knowledge of the Lord” (NKJV). Hosea 6:6 “For I desire mercy and not sacrifice, and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings” (NKJV). The word for “know” in both the Old and New testaments can definitely mean acquiring knowledge and information about a person but it also implies acquiring knowledge by personal experience. It is the same word that is used in Genesis 4:1 where it says that Adam “knew” Eve and, “she conceived.” This is obviously referring to intimacy and so in order to know God a very close relationship is needed. Hosea 6:6 above shows us that this close relationship is more important to God than religious rituals. In Jesus’ prayer for His disciples in John 17:3, He prayed that they would know God. The apostle Paul said that everything in his life was rubbish compared to knowing Jesus (Phil 3:8) and his goal was to “know Him and the power of His resurrection” (Phil 3:10). The Amplified Bible translates that verse like this, “That I may progressively become more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him, perceiving and recognizing and understanding the wonders of His person more strongly and more clearly.” This translation makes it clear that getting to know God is a continual ongoing process. May that be our goal today as we seek to know Him more and more, through His word, prayer, worship and fellowship.