Church guide

“Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation. “For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same: For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil. “Wherefore ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience sake. For for this cause pay ye tribute also: for they are God's ministers, attending continually upon this very thing. “Render therefore to all their dues: tribute to whom tribute is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honour to whom honour. Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law” (Romans 13:1-8). As Christians it is important that we submit ourselves to the law of the land. Yes there is a higher law, which is God's. But unless the law of the land specifically commands us to directly violate one of the tenants of God's law, we are to follow the law laid down by our earthly rulers. We may disagree with it on a personal level. In a society like ours, were we all have a voice in what becomes law, we may even campaign against it and seek to change it in the future. But until that change occurs we should follow the laws of the land in which we live, for the Bible tells us to do this. I cannot state the roll that our leaders play in our lives better than the way the apostle Paul already stated it in the above verses. And if our leaders are evil instead of good, then they will face their own reckoning with God. It is not our place to oppose them (except in cases where their laws ask us SPECIFICALLY and PERSONALLY to violate a commandment of God). As God's stewards here on Earth, our leaders will account to Him for how they have managed their stewardships. But this accounting is paid to God and not to us. We are to follow their commands and seek as much as possible to live at peace with all those around us. Knowing that this world is temporary and a better world awaits us, we should be able to accept even social injustices we may face with grace. For it is not this world in which we have staked our claim. It is not this world in which we seek our reward or our justice. God is the judge between us. We need not seek to avenge ourselves. “Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord” (Romans 12:19). Let us look at the example of those who came before us. In 1 Samuel 24, David came upon a sleeping Saul in a cave, and David's men wanted him to slay the sleeping Saul. “And he said unto his men, The LORD forbid that I should do this thing unto my master, the LORD's anointed, to stretch forth mine hand against him, seeing he is the anointed of the LORD. So David stayed his servants with these words, and suffered them not to rise against Saul. But Saul rose up out of the cave, and went on his way” (1 Samuel 24: 6&7). Saul was seeking to kill David, though David had done nothing wrong. But David, finding Saul helpless before him, refused to harm the one God had anointed king. Even though David had been anointed to replace Saul, David did not seek to bring this about himself. Instead he trusted in God and made way for the Lord's timing and judgement and justice. And God reward him for this by saving him from the hand of Saul and bringing about His promises. Now, if a leader commands you to do something that you know violates the law of God, you can and should refuse to do it. Here we can follow the example of Shadrach Meshach and Abednego. Here we see a model of how we can resist our leaders if it is absolutely necessary to do so. “Nebuchadnezzar spake and said unto them, Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, do not ye serve my gods, nor worship the golden image which I have set up? “Now if ye be ready that at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, ye fall down and worship the image which I have made; well: but if ye worship not, ye shall be cast the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace; and who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands? “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter. If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up” (Daniel 3:14-17). Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego did not rise up in violence against the king. They did not seek to overthrow him. Instead they simply refused to do that evil thing that he was asking of them, citing the Higher Power which they served. They submitted themselves to the king's punishment for their disobedience to his ungodly law and once again allowed God His rightful place to judge. And once again God protected those who served Him. Though they went into the fiery furnace, they emerged unharmed from it, and the power of God was demonstrated through this. Even the worldly king who made the graven image was forced to confront his folly when he saw how God stepped in. Nebuchadnezzar repented of his previous proclamation. “Therefore I make a decree, That every people, nation, and language, which speak any thing amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made a dunghill: because there is no other God that can deliver after this sort. Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, in the province of Babylon” (Daniel 3:29&30). In all things we are to leave space for God to step in and not attempt to deliver nor avenge ourselves. We are not judges. God is the judge between man and king, and He will see His justice down. Our place is to submit when possible and peacefully resist when absolutely necessary. In all things, we are to trust in God's power to deliver and His right to judge. https://chestnuthillchapel.com/

“For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him” (2 Chronicles 16:9). Jesus is always seeking ways He can bless us and show Himself merciful, faithful and generous towards us. With this in mind, I would like to share something with you that happened to me the other day. I have been planning my next trip to Disney World, and I decided to bring an outfit modeled after Sora, the hero of a Disney based video game series. I have been gathering different items for about a month now, shoes, shirt, sweatshirts, shorts, ect. Well, the other day I was walking into work and it was a rainy day. That got me thinking about how the weather in Disney World is very unpredictable and how it's best to carry an umbrella with you. I thought how perfect it would be to have an umbrella reminiscent of a keyblade (the main weapon wielded by Sora). My mind started pondering if I could buy a toy keyblade and an umbrella and somehow mix the two together, replacing the handle of the umbrella with the distinctive keyblade handle. Eventually, I determined that, as I am not very handy or good with tools, this was probably beyond me. If I could do it, it would not look right or would not hold up well. So I dismissed the idea, though I did still want a device like this and thought it would be cool. Several hours later, when I was going to Cold Stone Creamery to get a milkshake for one of my co-workers, one of the employees I know at Gamestop actually popped out from the store holding the very item I'd been wishing for that morning. It was an umbrella with a keyblade handle! It was even officially licensed, with a little Mickey Mouse emblem. “John!” the Gamestop employee exclaimed, “you’ve got to get one of these keyblade umbrellas.” Beaming from ear to ear, I agreed and quickly popped in and purchased the item. There was no line, so I was able to get right in and out and back to getting that milkshake for my co-worker. I consider this particularly amazing because the item I received was not a needed one. It was one I did not even know existed. And it was not anything that I actually asked Jesus for. He just knew that I wanted a keyblade umbrella, and He brought one to me. I consider this miraculous, that such an item existed and that Jesus brought it to me on the same day I thought I would want it, without my having to do anything, even ask Him for it. I believe this to be evidence of the verse above, that the eyes of the Lord run the entire earth, looking for those who's heart is for Him and whom He may bless. Has anyone reading this had a similar, unexpected showing of God's goodness and generosity in their everyday life? https://chestnuthillchapel.com/

"Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved" (Acts 4:12). At our service this morning a member of our congregation discussed a vison of the end times. Jesus was returning and some were rising up to meet Him in the sky. Others who knew these people seemed confused that they were not rising up as well. “My brother told me about this.” “My mom took me to church every Sunday when I was young.” “My friends told me about Jesus,” they thought to themselves. They even tried to jump up in the air, sometimes launching themselves from great heights like the tops of buildings, to start the rise themselves. But their faith was all in the wrong place. It was in people they knew, things they'd heard, stuff they thought they could do themselves to get going. But none of it worked. There was a third group as well. This group started to rise up when Jesus returned. But their ascent was slow and eventually stalled, and they were in danger of being pulled back down by the things of this world. But this third group called out, “Jesus! Jesus! Jesus!” They cried out His name with all their heart and soul and everything within them. And their ascent renewed until they met the Lord in the sky, as the first group had. I believe this vision was given as a warning. There is only one name given by which we must be saved and that is the name of Jesus! Our faith must be placed in Him, not in others or what we have heard or done. Jesus alone died for us, paying the price for our sins and purchasing the salvation for use we can not earn ourselves. He is the only path to Heaven. It is best to follow him always. But if we ARE weighed down by the things of this world, we can still call on Him. We can make the choice to follow Him, to know Him. And even if our struggle with the flesh sometimes seems overwhelming after this choice is made, we can call upon the name of the Lord Jesus and He will deliver us. The third group got the same reward as the first, even if it did take a little longer. We just want to make sure that we and our loved ones, never fall into the second group. We must remember that Jesus saves, and He alone. https://chestnuthillchapel.com/

“This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalms 118:24). Every day is a gift from God. Our Lord has crafted each and every day, and it is His desire that we have joy and happiness in it. The devil hates us and will try to steal this joy from us and make us, if at all possible, despise the gift our Lord has given us. Do not let him. Being glad is a choice, and no matter how the devil may try to buffet us, we can choose to be glad. Let the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding guard our hearts and minds, through Christ Jesus, our Savior (Philippians 4:7). Trust in the Lord our God who has given us the gift of each day. Choose happiness and joy. Rejoice and praise God each morning for He is good and His mercies begin afresh each morning and endure forever. God has created such beauty that even the curse this world is under cannot cover it up. There is beauty everywhere, if only we keep our eyes open for it, and each of them is a gift from God. We are the children of God. We are not to be sorrowful and downtrodden. We are to be joyful, for we know where our salvation comes from and we have faith in God. He will not abandon us. Let us keep our eyes focused on Him and His good works and blessings. If we do this we can be happy and joyful each day. And others will see this and ask us about the source of our joy, and then this will open the door for us to tell them about Jesus and how they can be joyful too. https://chestnuthillchapel.com

Let us remember what our Lord Has done for us. He suffered the pain of the cross, taking the burden of our sins upon Him. He who had never known sin Himself, absorbed our sin, taking it all upon Him, that we may enter into His righteousness. Jesus Christ died in our place. He lived the life we should've lived, but didn't, and He died the death our sinful lives earned, that through acceptance of Him we might be spared. And then on the third day, Jesus Christ arose again, demonstrating His power over death and that death itself has no hold over those who are called by His name. Through Jesus we have new life, and life more abundantly, and a life which no one can take from us, for it is no longer our life that we live but rather we live the life of Christ. And as He said, no man can take His life from Him. “Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father” (John 10:17-18). But it is important to note that the life we now live is not our own. It is God's and we must strive to follow the commandments we received from Him. We will not always be successful, as we still struggle with our flesh. But the overarching aim of our lives in Christ must be to use them to serve Him and His kingdom. For we do not live for ourselves. Through acceptance of Jesus, we have not only entered into His life, but also into His death. The lives we lived for ourselves, in slavery and bondage to the pursuits of our flesh were crucified with Him upon that cross. That is why His Word says that we are new creatures in Christ. “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17). http://chestnuthillchapel.com

“Easter’s Miracle of Love” On the day the Son of God laid His life down, Throngs of people gathered round. Still, Golgotha was lonely ground. When they struck the Shepherd His friends all fled. No crown of gold, but one of thorns upon His head. His back was battered by bits of bone. The Lamb of God, He stood alone. The throng had hammered out the guilty cry, To crucify, crucify, crucify. When their evil deed was done, In the tomb they laid God the Son. “That’s the end of Him.”, was thought when they laid Him in the ground. But on the third day, an empty tomb was found. God so loved that He gave His Son to die, And then three days later to arise. From generation to generation, God’s love is the Easter celebration. It is the everlasting story, Of our Savior and His glory. “Tis finished” cried the Lamb of God As He died upon that tree. He paid the price; we couldn’t pay, To set the captives free. Willingly surrendering all, He saved mankind from the fall. By crushing Satan and taking death’s key, He completely defeated our enemy. Jesus’ death became our victory. And Easter’s celebration our triumphant story. Death, oh death where is thy sting. No longer on mankind to cling. Once you ruled man’s misery. Now you're swallowed up in Christ, our Savior's victory. Up from the grave Jesus arose, Forever to reign in Heaven and earth below. Since death couldn’t hold Him in the ground, We’ll rise also at the last trump’s sound. Easter's miracle causes us to lift our voice and sing “All power, honor, and glory to Jesus Christ, our risen King.” Job19:25-27 in paraphrase: it is the miracle of Easter, that lets us know "OUR REDEEMER LIVES" and shows us that even after we are DEAD AND BURIED, IN OUR FLESH (our glorified bodies) WE SHALL SEE GOD! *An Easter Poem by BLW

I'd like to take a moment to discuss the moral implications of Creationism Vs Evolutionism. Many people have debated both theories from a scientific standpoint, each side trying to provide more scientific backing for or debunk theories which ultimately can not be proven using the scientific method. In the end many people seem to accept whichever theory they've been exposed to more as the correct one. Whichever side that may be, the belief we have accepted is just that, a belief. The origin of our world is not something observable or repeatable (at least not at this current time) and thus cannot be proven scientifically, only theorized about. As I said, it is a belief. So I'd like to take a bit to examine how this belief, if truly held and followed to its natural end, would effect a person's morality and world view. The theory of evolution teaches that over time survival will breed out negative tendencies (as in those characteristics less beneficial for survival and advancement) through the concept of survival of the fittest. Briefly those who are superior breed and pass on their genes to future generations while the inferior die out, and over many generations this process actually leads to the development of whole new and overall superior species. On the surface the above sounds positive. Our state is improving over time, and the human race is constantly marching on to something better. Indeed one could say that eventually all human defects would be bred out and everything that holds us back will eventually be overcome. It is not difficult to see why people may latch unto this philosophy. But let's take a deeper look. How do lifeforms evolve? According to the theory, they evolve through survival of the fittest. The weak must be allowed to die off and be prevented from breeding in order to weed out their bloodlines from the gene pool. Suddenly this theory is sounding less idealistic. Let's delve deeper. If humanity is in a constant state of evolution then of course some people would have to be more evolved than others. And how would we observe this, what cursory inspection could be used to provide an educated guess as to how evolved a particular person is? Well, as evolution is based completely around genes and bloodlines, the most logical place to begin assessing someone's evolutionary status would be by looking at their bloodlines, their race. As virtually no one would want to believe themselves less evolved than someone else, naturally this view would lead to an excuse for viewing those like ourselves, members of our own race and nationality, as superior to others and thus more worthy of the best things in life. For if we do not view ourselves as inferior, but we believe that people are constantly evolving and thus can not be equal, then we must view ourselves and those like us as superior while those unlike us must be inferior. A belief in evolution provides an excuse to oppress and keep people down. After all, helping someone else, giving of yourself to lift them up, flies in the face of survival of the fittest. And it provides an excuse for racism, as those races which are more advanced, more evolved, should clearly continue on, and those who are less evolved should be left to die out or else utilized as tools (like animal beasts of burden) in the service of the more advanced races. This belief, if truly followed, would undue all aspects of human charity on an individual level and all efforts at racial equality on a societal scale. Now I'm not claiming that everyone who believes in evolution is racist or devoid of a desire to help others. I know that in many cases this is not the case. Many socialists and people who strive and labor towards racial harmony believe in evolution. What I'm trying to do is point out the inherent conflict between these principles and possibly get some to reevaluate the implications of their belief in evolution in order to expose that this belief does not agree with their larger world view. As an alternative, let us briefly examine creationism. God created man and woman in perfection and although we did fall, it is still in us to strive towards what we once were. Yes, there is a dark side to our nature, and we are capable of evil, but there is still a spark of the Devine within us from when God first breathed life into us. We must resist the darkness and do our best to embrace the light. And all of humanity are descended from one man and one woman. We are all connected, all brothers and sisters. All of humanity is simply one, giant extended family. We do not evolve and advance our bloodlines by keeping others down to propel us forward. Instead we are truly all created equal. We all have the capacity for both good and evil, and we should choose good. When we help to cloth or feed someone, we are aiding our brothers and sisters. And by the same measure if we oppress someone, no matter their bloodline or race, we are harming our own family. If a group of people is allowed to die out an entire branch of our family tree has been lost. Of these two theories, which do you believe the more moral, the more in keeping with your world view? If applied universally and lived out, which would create more peace and harmony? Which will inspire people to help each other out? Of these two belief systems, which do you believe has the potential to create a world you would be happier to live in? As I said in the beginning, Creationism and Evolutionism are both beliefs, which do you believe IN? chestnuthillchapel.com

This past Sunday, Evan gave a great message. One of the pivotal points in it was that we are not to follow our heart, but to lead it! For: “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” (Jeremiah 17:9). If we follow our heart it will only lead us to destruction because our hearts are flawed. They are a part of our flesh, which is cursed, selfish and mortal. Our heart will desire things which are not good for us, which will entrap us and enslave us. Our hearts can be tempted, manipulated and turned towards adultery, idolatry, gluttony, theft, murder and all manner of perversion. We are not to follow our hearts. We are to follow God, and our hearts are to follow us in following God. If we ask, God will change our hearts. “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me” (Psalm 51:10). For all things are new in Christ. “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17). And this includes our hearts. Just like the rest of our life and body, Jesus can take our hearts and change them. And when Jesus Christ creates in us a new heart, we will no longer want to commit sin, no longer want to hurt people. When God places within us a new heart, we will want to be good as God is good. We will come to place others above ourselves and help them not out of duty but out of love. For that is the example given by Christ. “So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done to you? Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you. Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him. If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them” (John 13:12-17). If we have a new heart, a clean heart from Jesus Christ, we will desire the things which are godly, rather than those which are worldly. We will want to help others. We will not esteem ourselves highly. But we will be humble and able to derive joy from serving God in whatever capacity He calls us too. We will not think ourselves too great to help those under us, nor will we boast about ourselves. We will reflect the light of Christ wherever we are and serve as good representatives of Christianity and Christ's love. https://chestnuthillchapel.com

There is more. There is more depth to explore. No matter how deep and personal your relationship is with Christ, there is more that your heart can’t even imagine. “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him”— these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. 1 Corinthians 2:9-10

“And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul” (Genesis 2:7). I was thinking the other day about why God chose to have Jesus born of Mary, by which I mean why have Him born at all. I mean Jesus certainly could have been formed from the dust of the earth as was Adam, the first man. Jesus is even commonly referred to as the Second Adam which is likely because, as the first Adam, Jesus was fathered directly by God. “Which was the son of Enos, which was the son of Seth, which was the son of Adam, which was the son of God” (Luke 3:38). Of course in Adam's case it is a lower case “S" for son. This is because, although God was his father, he was not God. Adam was a created being, formed from the dust of the earth, with the breath of God granting him life, but he was not an embodiment of God and part of the Holy trinity as is Jesus. That being said, God could've chosen to form Jesus in a similar way to how He did Adam. Jesus could've been formed as an infant and delivered to Mary and Joseph or as a full grown man, as Adam was, bypassing the need for any human parentage altogether if that had been God's plan. But we know that wasn't God's plan. God's plan was for Jesus to be born of Mary, formed in her womb. I believe there was a good reason for this. To redeem mankind Jesus had to live a life - a human life - free from sin and then die upon the cross, suffering the death that our sin warranted and paying the price for it. This is what satisfies the justice demanded by a perfect God. Sin must be punished. He chose to bear that punishment in our place, that the price of sin already having been paid, all those who accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior may enter into the salvation He purchased. Jesus had to live as a man, live without sin, but die the death of the guilty (a death He hadn't earned) that it would pay the price for the sinful lives we have led. And I have come to believe that this is the very reason God had Jesus born of Mary instead of simply forming His Son from the dust of the earth as He did Adam. It is because Jesus had to live a FULL human life, and life begins at conception. In order for Jesus to live a human life without sin and be the perfect sacrifice for us, He had to begin His life at the same point we all began ours. If Jesus had not been born of Mary He would not have lived a full human life up to the point of His crucifixion. Formed as an adult, or even as an infant, He would've skipped over stages. And I believe that to be the prefect sacrifice for us, He had to pass through each of the developmental stages that we do to our adulthood. He couldn't skip over any of them. And the very fact that Jesus was conceived and born of Mary shows us that human life does not begin at birth, but rather at the point of conception. https://chestnuthillchapel.com

We are the sheep of His pasture; Alive to Christ and Dead indeed to Sin We come to Jesus with our sin nature and believe His sacrifice covers our sins. As long as we continue in this faith by acknowledging that at times (sometimes often) we do what we don't want to do, we acknowledge that we are a sinner in need of Jesus' sacrifice. We give ourselves over to Him. This is confession and it covers our sins, even those we are unaware of. The stain of sin is forgiven and washed away through the power of His blood sacrifice. We are alive to Christ and dead indeed to sin. As the apostle Paul wrote, "Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me" (Romans 7:20). Our hope, trust and faith are in Jesus (what He did on the cross and how His Spirit works in us making us more like Him). We place no hope in the flesh, for the flesh can not be saved. The flesh must die and will be burned up with this world. That is why we are promised a new, glorified body after the second coming. We are not our flesh anymore than we are the clothes we wear. We are spirit and soul, and this is what is saved through Jesus. When our flesh does what the flesh wants, we sin. That's why we are told to walk by our spirit to put the deeds of our flesh to death. Those who have given themselves over to Jesus need to remember that salvation is not something we earn or achieve. It is something Jesus gives us, in return for giving ourselves to Him. It is all about Him and not about us. http://chestnuthillchapel.com/

“The earth is the LORD's, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. For he hath founded it upon the seas, and established it upon the floods. Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place?” (Psalm 24:1-3). God has everything. He made it. It's already His. There is nothing we can offer Him that means anything to Him, except for our own selves. He makes no distinction between the rich and poor; the beautiful and the homely; the strong and the weak; the wise and the fool. In fact the wisdom of mankind is foolishness in the eyes of God. His favor cannot be bought with gold, land, nor political clout. He made the gold. What is one who has a house on a mountain top to the One who formed the mountain, or a seaside mansion to the One who commanded the borders of the ocean? Men and women may be impressed by what you have achieved in this world, but to God it holds no more value than a dust collection would to you or I. Likewise God will never look down on those who come to Him with little or nothing at all. He won't judge you for holes in your shoes, the ten year old car you may drive to church or the ramen noodles you may have for dinner each night. God wants nothing from you, other than simply you. He's not impressed by how much you can put in the offering plate. He's not impressed if you can act, sing, dance, see or speak with the tounges of angels and of men. He made the whole earth. He created everyone's talents for His purposes. Everything there is and was and ever will be was created by Him and for Him. And He can absolutely give you whatever you need to accomplish the calling He has for you, and will do so if that calling is truly His will. The only thing you need to bring to a relationship with God is you. The Lord treats us all the same, for really we are all the same. We are all His children who have sinned. We are all imperfect. And all the wealth we have in this world will perish with this world. All we need to do to come to God is simply that, come to Him. Accept the sacrifice and forgiveness of Jesus Christ. Let Him wash you and be made clean. And then think no better of yourself than you do of any other. There is little benefit to thinking worse either. In God's eyes we are all equal. He will choose those who love Him and favor them, not because they are more worthy but because they have chosen Him and love Him. He will direct the lives of those who give themselves over to Him. That doesn't mean that when you follow God you will be wealthy in this world, although that could be the place He brings you too. As previously mentioned God cares nothing for the wealth of this world. That's not to say that He looks down on those who are worldly wealthy; He simply doesn't care one way or the other. “The rich and poor meet together: the LORD is the maker of them all” (Proverbs 22:2). David and Mary were both highly favored by God. One was made king and the other remained a poor member of an oppressed and subjugated people. God loved them both, favored them both, yet they each had different callings, and God gave them what was needed for those callings. But whatever He has called you for, simply choose Him, and He will accept you. Follow Him and He will give you what you need to accomplish His will for your life and the calling He has placed upon it. https://chestnuthillchapel.com

“And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses … For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the LORD. “And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt” (Exodus 12:7-13). The lamb's blood which the Israelites were to strike upon their door post was a symbol of the blood of Christ yet to be shed. Actually much of the exodus recount is symbolic of Jesus. Just as the Israelites were held captive in the land of Egypt so we were held captive by our sins. Just as God delivered them, so Jesus has delivered us. Just as the Israelites wandered in the wilderness for forty years before entering the promised land, so we too wander this world after our Salvation, the captivity of our sin in our past but still waiting for the promised land of Heaven. But today, I want to focus on the blood upon the door post. The door post is the threshold of house. It is the point where what is public and communal becomes private and intimate. As we pass by the door post we have very little control over what goes on and what we see and hear. We are, to a large extent, at the mercy of the public. We are in the world, whether we are of it or not. But within the home, behind the door post, we are in our own space. We control what is allowed in. We either invite in, or keep out. Just as death walked the land of Egypt in the time of Moses, so does spiritual death stalk our world to this day. It will claim whatever it can, enter anywhere it is not bared from. And just as then, only blood will stop death, specifically the Blood of Christ will stop spiritual death from claiming us. But to enjoy this protection we must seal what is private from what is public. We must seal our hearts with the Blood of Christ. We must strike it upon the door post of our inner-man. The home is our heart, where we truly dwell and the point at which we can stop the flow of sin and degradation from entering in. We must continue to wander in this world until we enter the promised land. And so long as we are in this world we must deal with its sin. This sin seeks to enslave us and ultimately bring about death. But though we can not escape from sin, we can prevent it from seeping into our hearts, or rather Christ Jesus can prevent it from seeping in. When we see sin, we are not to entertain it. We are to reject it. Maybe the timing or situation isn't right for us to do so publicly, but we can always reject it internally. When we see it, we are to remember that we are bought with a price. When it comes for us, we are to strike the blood of Christ upon the door post of our heart. With this blood, we can stop sin and death from entering in. We cannot drive out all the sin in the world, but through Jesus we can seal and protect ourselves from it. https://chestnuthillchapel.com

“Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life” (Acts 11:18). Life comes from God, and He withholds it from no one who seeks it. Apart from God there is no life. Life begins and is sustained through our connection to God. If separated we begin to decay just as when you cut a branch off from a tree. God is the source and sustainer of our life, both spiritual and physical. “And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul” (Genesis 2:7). We know how important our lives are to God not just in that He created us but even more so that He died to redeem us. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). As previously mentioned separation from God brings about decay and death. Sin creates separation from God and the natural result of that separation is death. “Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death” (James 1:15). But that does not mean that the death comes from God. Only life comes from Him because God is life. But the absence of life is death. That is why Christ came and died for us. So great is His love that He took our sin – the cause of our separation from God, from Life – upon Himself and bore it at the cross. He suffered the death brought about by our sin, that we may be free of our sin and live the life He has earned. When we come to Jesus and lay our sin upon His cross we are reconciled to God. We exchange our death for His life. “I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live” (Deuteronomy 30:19). We have a choice; we've always had a choice. We can abide in our separation from God as we wither away like a severed branch, dying slowly until that death and that separation becomes complete and irreversible. Or we can be reconciled to God through the atonement offered by Jesus Christ, through His sacrifice. Every moment of every day we can choose to die on our own or to live with Christ Jesus. The choice is ours; but, like Joshua, for me and my family, I choose life. “And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD” (Joshua 24:15). https://chestnuthillchapel.com

Despite what could be the most depressing verse in the Bible, “I the Lord search the heart and test the mind, to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds” (Jeremiah17:10), good news was planned and given to us six hundred years hence.

“This Moses whom they refused, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge? the same did God send to be a ruler and a deliverer by the hand of the angel which appeared to him in the bush. He brought them out, after that he had shewed wonders and signs in the land of Egypt, and in the Red sea, and in the wilderness forty years. This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear. This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us: To whom our fathers would not obey, but thrust him from them, and in their hearts turned back again into Egypt, Saying unto Aaron, Make us gods to go before us: for as for this Moses, which brought us out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him” (Acts 7:35-40). The above section of Scripture uses events from Moses’ life as a parallel for Jesus. Both were rejected by their people only to be raised up by God to be their leader. Both relayed the messages and Word of God, often having it fall on hardened hearts. And both delivered God's people from bondage, Moses delivering the Israelites from the Egyptians while Jesus has delivered Christians from the bondage of sin. However there is another potential parallel here, one which I believe was intended as a warning to Christians. After God used Moses to lead the Israelites out from Egypt, Moses went to mount Sina to receive the Ten Commandments. During this time, he was physically separated from the Israelites for many days, so many in fact that they were worried what had happened to him. During this time of worry, they turned to Aaron and, looking for something else to put their trust in, compelled him to make them a graven image like the false gods of the Egyptians. There are times in our lives where it can seem like God is staying silent for quite awhile, times where we may question what has become of our deliverance. And during these times there is great temptation to turn back to the things of this world, things we knew previously and placed our trust in before coming to Jesus. But this temptation must be resisted. The Israelites were in no real danger, and their leader had neither abandoned them nor perished. He was still working for them, getting them the Law of God, written by God's own hand. And the Israelites were safe, still delivered from the evils of Egypt and resting securely in the shadow of God's holy mountain. But in the absence of direct contact and constant reassurance, fear snuck in. And satan used that fear to turn their hearts away from God. This is a great reason to read God's Word daily and do everything we can to stay close to Him and feel enveloped in His love, for His love is perfect and perfect love casts out fear. But although we can minimize times we may not feel God's presence or sense His hand at work in our lives, we can not completely eliminate these. The Bible tells us that we will be tested. And when we are tested, as the Israelites were tested at the foot of Sina, it is important – nay, crucial – that we keep our eyes focused on Jesus and maintain our faith in Him. Just as Moses was still laboring for the Israelites, Jesus has not forgoten us and is still working for us, even when we can't see or feel Him. If we don't we will fall back into the sinful traps of our past, and then we will need to be delivered from them all over again. We must remain vigilant and endure, trusting in the promises, goodness, love, and mercy of Jesus Christ. For His Word says: “And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved” (Matthew 24:11-13). https://chestnuthillchapel.com

If you get an email from me looking for donations or looking for help—it is criminal activity! Do not respond! Randy Loubier.

“But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand” (Isaiah 64:8). Never think that God can't use you or that there is some obstacle in your life which prevents you from bearing good fruit for Him. He is the potter, the creator, molding us in the right way to accomplish His purpose for our lives. And although we may make mistakes, He never does. There is nothing, apart from our own unwillingness, which can stop us from accomplishing what God wants us to accomplish. There is no sin, failing, weakness or situation which is greater than God. To give some examples of this, let’s take a look at some of the people God used in the Bible to accomplish His purposes. Sarah was 90 years old. Joseph was a slave and later a prisoner. Moses was 80 and could barely speak. David was an adulterer and a murderer, yet he was also a man after God's own heart because, despite the failings of his flesh, the desire of his heart was to serve God. Peter denied Christ. Thomas doubted. Paul was a persecutor of the Church of Christ. And Lazarus was dead! As much as we may love a good redemption story, God loves one more. As much as we may favor an underdog, God does more. And everything we are going through, everything we have experienced, is just molding. If we're willing God can turn all of it for our good and His kingdom. “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28). Jesus loves us. He forgive us, if we ask for it. And He wants to use us. We are all valuable to Him. And He has placed a unique calling on each of our lives and has given us all we need to accomplish that unique and special purposes. We only have to be willing to serve Him and open to the guidance of the Holy Spirit, which will direct us to God's purpose for us. If you're struggling. If you don't know how to manage, or you simply “don't get" what God wants from you, ask Him. Pray. Give yourself over to Jesus, and take your cares, fears and stresses to Him. And once you've done this, or if you've already done this, then wait upon the Lord and His guidance. For He will renew your strength. “But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint” (Isaiah 40:31). https://chestnuthillchapel.com

For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. John 6:40