Light of the Word Radio
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Sin is sin. Culture leads you to believe that certain moral issues are worse than others. While it is true that murder is probably more serious than telling a lie, it is still a sin no matter the circumstance. Everybody sins, so don’t compare yourself to others. Today, Pastor Ray is going to remind you that God doesn’t grade on a curve. If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and that He was raised from the dead your sin is forgiven, no matter how serious. Rejoice in the fact that God heals all sin.
Today, Pastor Ray will remind you that God sees the heart behind your acts of service. Maybe you serve on the worship team, but your heart is to serve yourself. Or maybe you greet people with a smile, but on the inside, you could care less about what you’re doing. God wants you to serve with joy. He wants you to first pursue Him so that you can show others the joy that He brings. Serve confidently, but most importantly remember that Jesus is the real reason why you can use the gifts He’s given you.
Do you feel like you’re chasing something or someone that will fulfill you? Maybe you are single and you think that once you find a husband or a wife, you’ll finally feel content. Or maybe you’re just waiting for the perfect job, the perfect house, the perfect car. Many of those things might bring you happiness, but it’s only temporary. Today, Pastor Ray will remind you that the true source of contentment only comes from Jesus. Everything in the world is temporary, but Jesus’ love for you is eternal.
God forgives even the most horrible sins you commit. Maybe you feel like you’re too far gone to be forgiven. Well, you’re not! God’s grace extends far beyond our understanding. He’s gifted you with mercy and forgiveness, and the best thing that you can do is extend that grace to those around you. Today, Pastor Ray will encourage you to reach out with grace. Tell someone that they aren’t alone. Remind them that God is for them, and they can experience amazing healing with Jesus.
Jesus was homeless. That’s right, Jesus had no place to call His home. He was always on the move, always preaching the gospel, but He was always content while doing it. Does this speak to you? How are you supposed to be content when you feel like you have nothing in life? Today, Pastor Ray is going to remind you that your happiness isn’t rooted in anything on this earth. Only Jesus can give you true peace. He was an example of being content even when He had no possessions during his life.
What a statement from Pastor Ray! We are not perfect, and we frequently do things we are not supposed to do. As a result, we become victims of sin. After committing a sin, the enemy always makes us feel better, and as a result, we are not guilty of what we do. As a consequence, our flesh dies day by day! In today's message, Pastor Ray tells you how you can be free from the grip of sin and overcome all the flaws that are holding you back. God desires to forgive you. Are you ready to repent for your sins?
Every day, we meet new people, whether at work or at church. We meet them and form friendships with them. But how often do we know what's going on inside their heads? People frequently do not express how they truly feel on the inside. They may be in pain on the inside, but they are as happy as they have ever been on the outside. How can you assist them? In today's message, Pastor Ray explains how you can help those you care about by releasing them from their prison. Don't let your love become icy!
We all have someone in our lives whom we love and want to be with at all times, and we also expect that person to love us in return. Love, be it from us or from the people we love is always limited, no matter how hard we try. But does it always work out? Is it true that love is always conditional? In today’s message, Pastor Ray tells you what Agape love is. The love you share with others will eventually die, but God's love for you is unconditional and will never die. Do you long to be loved and cherished by God?
Have you ever built a Lego set as big as a tower while hoping, that it never ever breaks or falls apart? We all have expectations in various things in our lives that we hope that it doesn’t fall apart, it can be your career or your relationships. But not everything falls in our favor. In today’s message, Pastor Ray tells you how God is on your side when you face difficulties in your life. The enemy may plan against you and put you under trials, but God is your refuge and your strength at all times.
Forgiveness is something that we all struggle to deal with. People in our lives can be mean to us to a degree that it becomes near impossible to forgive that person. It also results in us being broken from the inside and not recovering from it. In today’s message, Pastor Ray tells you how You can forgive the person that hurts you. You may be broken today but God wants to fully restore you. Are you willing to listen to what God wants to say?
In our daily lives, we have all felt resentment toward someone or something. Whatever the reason, bitterness has an impact on our lives. It exhibits negativity in us, resulting in a shift in our personalities. What can you do to change this? In today’s message, Pastor Ray tells you what are the consequences of having a bitter heart and how it affects you. God desires to free you from all bitterness in your heart. Are you willing to hand over control of your life to God? Are you ready to let go of all your negativity?
Starting out on a long road trip to the beach can be exciting! It’s something you’ve been looking forward to and you just can’t wait to get there. And then as Pastor Ray describes you hit the mid-point. With no beach in sight yet all you can see is a long stretch of highway. Your Christian faith can be much like this…you’re looking forward to that exciting ministry destination or spiritual breakthrough and it seems like a long, long way off. So, how do you keep going? Through Him who lives inside of you.
Imagine running a marathon with a heavy weighted vest and ankle weights. Do you think you will finish? Well, Pastor Ray shares the weight of the world can be much like those weights as you try to run the marathon of life. And then you realize that somehow the longer you run, the lighter your load seems to be. As if someone is helping you carry your burden and get you across the finish line. Well, someone is…and He lives inside of you to help you, guide you, and protect you.
Do you wonder why God has you in certain battles? Especially battles that you can see no way of winning? Well, Pastor Ray shares that often that’s exactly where God wants you. In that place of total dependence on Him. That circumstance where there is no explanation for how you survived other than the saving grace of God. So, when you need a miracle turn to the miracle worker. When you need provision, turn to THE Provider of everything you could ask or hope for.
Imagine being in a dark cave and you can’t even see your hand in front of your face let alone know the way out. What do you do? Well, hopefully, there is someone there with you to show you the way. Someone who can light your path. Well as Pastor Ray shares God through His word is light on your path in life. Even at your darkest moments, He is always there with you…guiding, directing, and leading you into His plans and purposes. He’ll lead if you’ll follow.
Have you ever been homesick? You’ve been away on vacation or business, and you just want to go home! Well, Pastor Ray shares that’s how it can be in our relationship with God. You just want to be with Him in His presence…and you long for the comfort and peace that brings. But as you walk in faith through your days, months, and years of being “homesick” for God, remember that one day you will be home with Him forever…and the wait will be worth it.
What’s that one gift you just couldn’t wait to get? You thought about it day and night until it was in your hands! And then a year or two later it was collecting dust in the garage. Well, Pastor Ray shares that when walking in faith with God there can be a lot of waiting…and waiting…and waiting. And your faith is proved most genuine by how patiently and God honoring you do wait on God to move. But rest assured He will move on your behalf, and He is never too late and never too early to meet your need.
Imagine walking into the ocean and you see a shark headed in your direction. What do you do? Well, hopefully, you turn away from the shark and run in the other direction! Maybe even arms flailing as you scream…help! As Pastor Ray shares this is much like what repentance is like. You, running away from the dangers of sin. And not just running away into something but TO someone. THE someone who came to rescue you in your times of trouble. Yesterday. Today. And forever. Jesus Christ.
Have you ever seen those long suspension bridges that stretch over a huge canyon? Talk about steps of faith as people walk on a man-made bridge dangling hundreds of feet above the canyon floor! Does your faith walk as a Christian feel like that? One wrong step and you come crashing down? Well, Pastor Ray shares that while we can feel like that, God is ready, willing, and able to help us to the other side. Your job is to just keep faithfully putting one foot in front of the other…He’ll do the rest.
You may have heard the phrase “first things first”. Or how about this line from a movie “If you’re not first you’re last”? Well, whatever the case may be, Pastor Ray shares that as a Christian the first and last thing you need to remember is that Christ paid your sin debt in full. Complete. Finished. End of subject. And when you can approach life and all of its challenges from that perspective…that the battle has been won…you can see that even your setbacks don’t change the outcome.
There are a lot of movies about underdogs who achieve greatness. Whether it be about a sports team, an army winning a battle, or a rags-to-riches story, we are all inspired by those who don’t quit against all odds. Well, Pastor Ray shares that as a Christian you’re an inspiration. You may not feel like an inspiration…but you are. You are an inspiration to the heroes of the faith who have gone before you and are now cheering you on! And one day you’ll hear well done faithful servant!
If you have ever tried to untangle something like a strand of lights or extension cords, you know it can be hard to tell where it starts and ends…how frustrating! Well as Pastor Ray shares our walk with God in faith can be much more frustrating and impact our lives in much greater ways than a tangled mess of cords. And fortunately, God knows this and steps in to help us along the way. But you have to start. You have to start your faith walk by putting one foot in front of the other as He guides and directs.
As humans, we’re so eager to fix things ourselves. And it can be very difficult to put full trust in another to fix something for us. Maybe we even feel guilty when we receive help. But Pastor Ray reminds us today that, when it comes to our relationship with God, there is only one Person who can redeem us – Jesus Christ. To follow Jesus requires that we put our full trust in Him. And this trust doesn’t stop after we first believe. To truly live as a Christian in this world requires that we continuously trust in Christ.
Pastor Ray challenges us today to see people with Jesus’ eyes. When we see people walking in darkness – people who are lost – do we have compassion on them, desiring that they would come to know Jesus? Or, do we become angry and bitter, or simply reject them? When Jesus interacted with sinners and outcasts, He showed supernatural compassion. He invited them to be made well, to be redeemed by God. He didn’t reject them as society did. Instead, He was eager to show them love and grace.
As Pastor Ray takes us through a passage from the book of Hebrews today, he reminds us that Jesus’ work is finished. We don’t need to try and accomplish with our empty religion what Jesus has already done – this is not what God wants for us. But at the time when Hebrews was written, there were people who began following Jesus, but then turned back to their old religion. And this pattern continues to this day; it’s difficult for us to accept that Jesus doesn’t ask us to do anything besides trust in Him.
Today, Pastor Ray speaks about the importance of Christian fellowship. In a society of individualism, we need to remember that we’re not called to be isolated from our brothers and sisters in Christ. As Christians, we have to recognize that we need the church. And Pastor Ray illustrates this point by talking about mountain climbers, who shamelessly acknowledge that they can’t do it alone. They climb tethered with other climbers so that in the worst moments of the journey they can rely on each other.
The Bible tells us that God has actually forgotten the sins of His children. But as Pastor Ray points out today, our world takes issue with this truth. So often, people choose to hold grudges and live in the past, rather than acknowledging that our Creator is a forgiving God. But we can choose to rest in God’s grace instead, and this changes the way we live. Not only are we set free from shame as a result of God’s forgiveness, but we can also choose to forgive those who have hurt us, and be free from resentment.
As Pastor Ray teaches from the book of Hebrews today, he notes what the author instructs as a culmination of everything that has been written up to this point. While we might expect the author to tell us to go preach the Gospel to people and be a witness, he instead commands us to be in prayer, to persevere, and to provoke one another to do good works. This may seem surprising, but it’s important for us to pay attention to what the Holy Spirit is telling us through the writer of Hebrews in this passage of Scripture.
Through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross, all are forgiven who put their trust in Him. But as Pastor Ray points out today, trusting that we truly are forgiven requires great faith. It makes much more sense to believe that we have to earn forgiveness from God, but this isn’t what the Bible says. Scripture tells us that God chooses to remember our sins no more. This kind of grace is almost incomprehensible. Yet it’s true, and as believers, we need to remind ourselves of this whenever we doubt God’s forgiveness.
Today, Pastor Ray explains an Old Testament law that is demonstrated in Jesus’ life. This law stated that a slave, as he approached the end of his time of service, could choose to continue serving his master for life. If he so chose this, the slave would have his ear pierced. In the same way, Jesus chose to “pierce His ear” in a sense and commit His life to the Father. And as Christians, we are called to do the same. We have a good Master, and the best thing we can do in this life is fully committed to Him.
