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The Censorship of Christians By Retired Pastor Lee Hemen December 13, 2022 In our cancel culture today, there are those who desire to censor anyone who disagrees with their perceived proclivity or progressive ideals. Socialism loves censorship, and it is the fuel that fans the flames of oppression. Christians should be on the forefront of opposing any censorship of speech. It is at the core of what we believe. When Jesus stood before the religious and political leaders of his day, they hated him because of the message he brought. It would upset their political and spiritual power over the population they were supposed to be leading. They wanted to keep their positions. Many Jews when they “had seen what Jesus did, put their faith in him.” (John 11:45 NIV84) Some of those who were concerned about what Jesus was teaching, went to the Pharisees, and told them what was happening. They were the “Karens” of their day. John relates that “Then the chief priests and the Pharisees called a meeti...

It is time to stand up, speak up, sit down, and shut up! By Lee Hemen August 16, 2022 When I was younger, I was taught in a speech class to stand up, speak up, sit down, and shut up. It was a simple way to relate that we should know what we were going to speak on before we stood in front of the class to do so. Also, it showed that speech is important, and that freedom should not be taken lightly. I find it extremely interesting that for decades the left screamed that rascally Republicans would use their power to make America into a police state, and yet we see the exact opposite happening. It is the Socialist left that has used the FBI as a secret police force against anyone who is against the left and its ideologies. From parents to protestors, we find average Americans marked as “enemies” of the state. Now we find that the left is not ashamed to empower another branch of government under their control to be used as a means to strike fear and abuse the American people, the IRS. Doubli...

Ramblings from Retirement – Jesus and Freedom of Speech By Pastor (retired) Lee Hemen April 14, 2022 My father would remind us that “Words mean things”, usually when my brother and I were in the midst of calling one another morons or some other teenage moniker. Words are important. Many in today’s America have forgotten a fundamental right that is guaranteed by our Constitution: Freedom of speech. This is a core right that should be protected at all costs. You may not like or agree with what someone else says, writes, or films but you can turn it off, not read it, or respond to it. It is your freedom to do so. Lease we forget this is why Jesus was persecuted as he was. He openly proclaimed the truth of God which stood in stark contrast to the false narrative of the religious leaders of his day. Over and over, we hear Jesus telling his detractors, “You say” and then telling them the truth. Using his free speech eventually cost him his life. In Matthew’s gospel we find a perfect example ...

Ramblings from Retirement – Unity and Peace By Retired Pastor Lee Hemen May 27, 2021 I watched the movie Mortal Engines the other day. It is a post-apocalyptic movie about a mysterious young woman, Hester Shaw who emerges as the only one who can stop the giant predator city London on wheels devouring everything in its path. Feral, and fiercely driven by the memory of her mother, Hester joins forces with an outcast from London along with a dangerous outlaw with a bounty on her head. Thousands of years after civilization was destroyed by a cataclysmic event, humankind has adapted and a new way of living has evolved. Gigantic moving cities now roam the Earth, ruthlessly preying upon smaller traction towns. It is a Chinese-backed film that was supposed to be a condemnation of corporate society but fails miserably on this score and instead is a perfect example of a socialistic society headed by a dictatorship. You know, just like communist China. Surprisingly there are those who actually th...

Ramblings from Retirement – Freedom! By Pastor Lee Hemen (Retired) March 22, 2021 Don't you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey--whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness. (Romans 6:16-18 NIV) At what point do believers “submit themselves to the governing authorities”? Paul would write the Roman Christians, who were under severe persecution, that they were to honor God and that those “who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves” (Romans 13:2 NIV). However there does come a time when the Christian must follow the Lord and not man because man can do evil and ...

Reflections on 2 Corinthians 9:6-15 - Thanks--giving By Lee Hemen (Retired Pastor) November 26, 2020 "Since the "Mayflower" had left England nine weeks behind schedule, the New World's harsh weather threatened their very survival... Winter took its toll. Journal entries feature the same melancholy theme week after week, for months on end: "... Aboute noone, it began to raine ... at night, it did freeze & snow ... still the cold weather continued ... very wet and rainy, with the greatest gusts of wind ever we saw ... frost and foule weather hindered us much; this time of the yeare seldom could we worke half the week." That winter more than half the heads of households perished. Aboard ship only five of eighteen wives lived through the ravages of scurvy, pneumonia, and tuberculosis. An entry for March 24th reads: "This month thirteen of our number die. And in three months past dies halfe our company ... Of a hundred persons, scarce fifty remain, the ...

Christ’s church is not confused! – Galatians 5:6-16 By Pastor Lee Hemen March 8, 2020 Have you ever thought you were doing the right thing but in reality it was for the wrong reasons? We can fool ourselves into thinking that God’s will is what we like or what we want and when we do we might be guilty of trying to do the right thing for the wrong reasons. As we search for a new pastor we want to make sure that we are not trying to get our way instead of seeking the Lord’s will for our church. We should not be confused in doing what God desires. The church in Galatia had gotten itself all tied up in what they thought was the correct way of living for the Lord but in reality it was from the wrong reasons. They were confused and not doing what the Lord desired. Paul wanted them to come together in the Lord to do the will of God, let’s see how Paul clarified their confusion… READ: Galatians 5:6-16 Paul understood that all believers were God’s children “through faith in Jesus Christ” (Galati...

1st Sunday of Advent - Our expectation and hope! - Isaiah 9:2-7 December 1, 2019 Pastor Lee Hemen We should not allow outside circumstance to dictate how we respond to life. Recently however the political and social climate of our nation has caused many to become full of gloom and despair. There are those in the political arena that encourage their constituents to be despaired by their opposition simply because things are not going the way they want. Life hardly ever does, yet on the 1st Sunday of Advent we light the candle of hope. Hope is more than wishful thinking; it is the outcry of the human heart and the certainty of God's promise. We as his children hope in him because we know who he is and what he has done. The Israelites of Isaiah's day had no such experience. They should have been able to trust God and the promises he made from knowing their own history, but in the midst of war, famine, and the threat of enslavement it can be tough to see God or his promises. Perhaps...

1st Sunday of Advent - Our expectation and hope! - Isaiah 9:1-7 By Pastor Lee Hemen December 2, 2018 We should not allow outside circumstance to dictate how we respond to life. Recently however the political and social climate of our nation has caused many to become full of gloom and despair. There are those in the political arena that encourage their constituents to be despaired by their opposition simply because things are not going the way they want. Life hardly ever does, yet on the 1st Sunday of Advent we light the candle of hope. Hope is more than wishful thinking; it is the outcry of the human heart and the certainty of God's promise. We as his children hope in him because we know who he is and what he has done. The Israelites of Isaiah's day had no such experience. They should have been able to trust God and the promises he made from knowing their own history, but in the midst of war, famine, and the threat of enslavement it can be tough to see God or his promises...

2nd Sunday of Advent - Peace! - Isaiah 52:6-10 By Pastor Lee Hemen December 10, 2017 Last week we spoke of how the Messiah would be called by the names of Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace. There were those who incorrectly thought that the Messiah would bring about the end of war or that everyone would find bliss. Interestingly, there are those in our day who still have misconceptions of who the Messiah is and the peace he brings. Isaiah introduces us to a Messiah who would bring peace to all mankind. He begins these verses by calling the nation of Israel to “Awake, awake, O Zion, clothe yourself with strength. Put on your garments of splendor, O Jerusalem, the holy city. The uncircumcised (ungodly) and defiled will not enter you again.” Jerusalem’s pagan conquerors — the uncircumcised and defiled — would never again invade and pollute the holy city after the Messiah came. This is part of the peace he would bring when he came. Let’s discover t...

Those who fear God live! -- Psalm 49 By Pastor Lee Hemen July 2, 2017 Wikipedia relates that “‘Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness’ is a well-known phrase in the United States Declaration of Independence. The phrase gives three examples of the ‘inalienable rights’ which the Declaration says has been given to all human beings by their Creator, and for which governments are created to protect.” The writers, the signers, and those who fought for our freedoms believed passionately in these inalienable rights for all people. At the core of this belief was their reasoning that God created mankind for more than servitude and it came from the notion that even nations ruled by kings should fear God. Today’s America has taken the notion of personal freedom to the extreme that it is a free ticket to do any ungodly or immoral act and excuse it as a personal right. They would do well to remember the spiritual law involved that you reap what you sow in life. The Psalmist here teaches us t...

Be free! - Galatians 5:1-13 By Pastor Lee Hemen September 4, 2016 It is interesting to see how many hospitals have become aggressive advocates for certain things regarding pregnancy, birthing, and the care of newborns. So much so it sometimes borders more on being politically correct rather than the actual health of the child or the concerns of the parents. For some hospitals and how they handle circumcision is a good case in point. In our day and age where circumcision is a personal choice and does not have any actual health benefit due to greater medical research and societal cleanliness. However, whether one wants to try and make the theological argument that it is healthier or not it is no longer spiritually necessary. Jesus put an absolute end to anyone having to follow the law in order to be saved and to go back into the law one is willingly enslaving themselves to a system that will eternally condemn them. Paul knew this to be true and desperately wanted the Galatians to u...