PastorBlastor

Condemned by conformity! -- 2 Kings 14:8-14; 15:10, 13-14, 16 By Pastor Lee Hemen October 28, 2018 I used to go fishing for crawdads. As we caught them we would put them in a bucket of water. As the bucket got full of crawdads they would try to crawl out but the ones trying to get out were pulled back in by others trying to get out. As parents we warn are children about the influence of peer pressure. Peer pressure can be just like those crawdads that pulled others back into the bucket. I have learned however that peer pressure does not end in childhood, it continues into our adult life. There are those in our Christian lives who try to pull us back into conformity rather than live the lives God desires. 2 Kings 14–15 contains a brief history of the reigns of 3 kings over Judah and 6 kings over Israel. Their reigns were characteristic of life in Judah and in Israel. The reigns of the kings of Judah did okay but they compromised God’s requirements. They allowed people to offer sac...

Go the distance! -- 2 Kings 13:4-6, 14-19, 24-25 By Pastor Lee Hemen October 21, 2018 During an elementary school track meet a young boy ran three of the laps in a race very fast and was out among the leaders. But on the last lap, instead of staying on the track and rounding the end to get to the finish line, he left the track, cut across the football field to the track on the other side, and then finished. Someone asked him why he cut across, he simply said, “I got tired.” Though he ran well, he did not finish well and was disqualified. He failed to go the distance. There is a definite need in America today for God’s people to serve the Lord with all one’s heart. Some of Northern Israel’s kings rendered admirable service to the Lord for a while, but in time their obedience was well rather incomplete. They sinned and did what they wanted rather than following the Lord. Their examples illustrate the importance of serving God with wholehearted consistency and persistence. Today we will t...

Line up with God’s purposes! -- 2 Kings 11:1-3, 12, 15-20 By Pastor Lee Hemen October 14, 2018 Sam was the president of the bank in his town. He and his wife enjoyed the excitement and popularity of their community positions. In the eyes of many he was a successful husband, father, and community leader. However, almost every time Sam passed a church on his way to and from work, he felt a twinge of guilt. He knew he and his family were not living up to the standards his father and mother had taught him. Though he and his wife were nominal church members, they were not actively working in the church to accomplish the Lord’s will in their community. Each year, that fact weighed more heavily on his conscience. Believers are called to yield to and act in line with God’s purposes in the world and in their lives. The verses we will look at this morning we will discover two women, one of whom pursued an agenda directly opposed to the purposes of God. The second woman determined to act in line ...

Respond to God’s direction! -- 2 Kings 8:1-2; 9:1-6, 10b-13 By Pastor Lee Hemen October 7, 2018 On March 23, 1775, the second Virginia convention met in Saint John’s Church in Richmond, Virginia. This convention moved that the colony be armed. In defense Patrick Henry spoke these passionate words: “Gentlemen may cry, ‘Peace! Peace!’ But there is no peace! The war is actually begun! ... Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death!” Patrick Henry expressed publicly the thoughts of many that God was concerned about what happened to the colonies. Because of the courageous decisions and actions of Henry and others, we enjoy freedom in our nation. These verses are about how a Shunammite woman responded to a command from Elisha, how an unnamed prophet obeyed Elisha and carried out a dangerous mission, and how some military leade...