(By Pastor Jean)

“Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth” (Col 3:2; NLT). We must program our minds to do this. In Col 3:1 we are told to “seek the things above”, the Greek word for “seek” is “zeteo” which means to strive after something or seek diligently. The Bible also tells us to look forward to heaven with expectation. We read in Heb 11:10 that Abraham “was (waiting expectantly and confidently) looking forward to the city that has foundations (an eternal, heavenly city)” (AMP). Verse 16 of that chapter also tells us that the descendants of Abraham were, “longing for a better country, that is a heavenly country.” Heaven is referred to as “paradise” by Jesus. He told the thief hanging next to Him on the cross, “today you will be with Me in paradise” (Luke 23:43). The Bible doesn’t say an awful lot about heaven but we all know what “paradise “means so this gives a good indication. The apostles Paul and John also used this word. When Paul Was describing a vision he had he said he was, “caught up into paradise and heard inexpressible words” (2 Cor 12:4; CSB). In the book of Revelation, John told the church at Ephesus that those who overcome will eat fruit from the tree of life which is in paradise. Regardless of what we do or don’t know about heaven there is one thing that is quite certain which is that Jesus will be there and we will see Him!! (Rev 1:17,19:4,6:1,4:2,3; Col 3:1).

(by Pastor Norman)

In the parable of the Sower (Luke 8:5-8, 11-15), seed was sown into 4 different soils. Some seed that landed on a path was trampled on and birds ate it. Seed sown on a rocky area germinated but died for lack of soil and moisture. Seed that fell among weeds which grew up and choked it but seed that fell on good soil, germinated and produced a great harvest. Jesus likened the seed to God’s word. Some people hear the word but satan quickly takes it from them so it can have no saving effect on their lives; this is the seed that fell on the path. The seed that fell on the rocks describes people who get excited by the word but have no depth, as they face the trials, trouble and temptations of life, the word is forgotten. The seed growing with weeds describes people who lose sight of the word amongst the cares, concerns and materialism in the world around them. The good soil refers to people with a real heart of love for God and who stick with the word, allowing it to change and grow them into all God has for them (2 Cor 3:18; Heb 4:12). God wants each of us to be good soil! We are called to grow beyond the foundations of our faith to become mature Christians and ambassadors for God (Heb 6:1-3; 2 Cor 5:20). The apostle Peter exhorted us to, “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18; NKJV). The early church is such a good example of good soil as they, “devoted themselves to the apostles teaching” (Acts 2:42; NLT). We should do the same.

(By Pastor Jean)

God’s love is everlasting. “I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore, I have continued to extend faithful love to you” (Jer 31:3; CSB). God’s love never fails (Psalm 109:26), (1 Cor 13:8). God’s love is wide, long, high and deep and it surpasses knowledge (Eph 3:19). God’s love is forgiving (Mark 2:5). God’s love is compassionate (Matt 9:36, 15:32, Luke 7:13). God’s love is without limits (Rom 8:39). God’s love is sacrificial, “Greater love has no man than this, than to lay down one’s life for His friends” (John 15:13; NKJV). 1 John 4:8 tells us that, “God is love. (He is the originator of love, and it is an enduring attribute of His nature”) (AMP). The Greek word used for God’s love is agape which means unconditional love which we see in the above verse, also John 3:16 and Rom 5:6-8. God died for all of us and we were all sinners but His love was so great that He endured a criminal’s death in order to save us from hell. God’s love has the power to change our lives and probably the best example of this in the Bible is Paul (Acts 9). After his encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus he became a Jesus fanatic and wrote a large portion of the New Testament. Finally, God’s love is inspirational! Because of God’s tremendous love for us we can love ourselves and others with the agape love of God.

(by Pastor Norman)

“I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak” (Matt 12:36; ESV). I am sure we have all at some time found ourselves in a conversation where we slipped into careless words about someone or something; perhaps those words were critical or judgmental comments? God’s word encourages us not to be judgmental (Rom 14:10-13, Matt 7:1-5, James 4:11-12) or speak evil of anyone (Titus 3:2). Those first 5 verses of Matthew 7 always catch my attention. We are exhorted to remove the plank from our own eyes before we concern ourselves with the speck in someone else’s eye. In summary that means let’s judge ourselves before we judge or criticize others. In scripture, we are encouraged to be quick to listen and hear and slow to speak (James 1:19), treating or talking of others as we would want them to treat and talk about us (Matt 7:12). Let’s make sure we have the facts or truth when we discuss issues (Eph 4:25) and let love be our motivating force (1 Cor 13:4-7, 1 Peter 4:8). “Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing” (1 Thess 5:11; ESV. See also Heb 10:25). “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouth, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear” (Eph 4:29; ESV). Wow! If we all entered our conversations with God’s word in mind, in His grace and love, what amazing, powerful places our churches would be!

(by Pastor Jean)

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroy and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matt 6:19-21; NKJV). Earthly treasures, meaning our worldly goods and possessions do not last forever; they break and deteriorate with age; however, eternal treasures last forever and never wear out. In other words, there is nothing more important than Jesus! We get more understanding of these verses if we read Luke 12:33; NLT, “Sell your possessions and give to those in need. This will store up for you treasure in heaven.” (See also Matt 19:21). When Paul was counselling Timothy, he told him the way to lay up earthly treasures was by giving and doing good works (1 Tim 6:17-19). We read an interesting verse in Matt 13:52 where the word “treasure” appears again, “Therefore every teacher of the law who has become a disciple of the King of heaven is like a head of a household, who brings out of his treasure new things and old” (NIV). This implies that the kingdom of heaven is our treasure which includes both Old and New Testament truths. In summary, we are not to make money and “stuff” more important than our relationship with God and we certainly shouldn’t put our trust in those things. Instead, we should be looking for opportunities to bless others. Most importantly, we lay up eternal treasures by spending time with God and in His word.