Bringing Scripture to Life

The Book of First John was written by Jesus' beloved disciple, the apostle John. The apostle  John was one of four men whom Jesus first called to follow Him, and of course one of the twelve apostles that Jesus appointed to lead the church into the utter ends of the earth. I am sure in that in those early days, some 60 years earlier before John wrote this epistle, that he could have never imagined that he would be the last living Apostle, and the only one that would be miraculously delivered from martyrdom.  John was the last living apostle, and as we begin our journey through the epistle of First John, we are going to see that he has been appointed by God to defend the Christian Faith, and primarily the truth of the Gospel and the true identity of Jesus Christ.  In this epistle John was writing to the churches of Asia Minor to combat a false doctrine that would later be known as Gnosticism, while at the same time John would seek to inspire  assurance into t...

We have all heard the Christmas Song, Deck the Halls.  You know how it goes; "Deck the halls with boughs of holly, Fa la la la la, la la la la. Tis the season to be jolly, Fa la la la la, la la la la." This is the season where most of the world is celebrating. For many, this celebration is driven by an evil monster named Materialism, and a jolly fictional-character named Santa Clause, who is all-knowing (he knows when we have been naughty or nice), and who flies around the entire world with his special Rain Deer. He visits each and every house that chooses to participate in Christmas with gifts, without waking a single person up, setting a single home-invasion alarm off, nor causing a single dog to bark. And he does this in less than 24 hours! You have to agree, that this is truly an amazing Christmas miracle. For some of us, we do our best to keep the real reason for Christmas at the forefront of our hearts and minds. We know that Christmas is truly about the One whom i...

Are you tired of having trouble filling that empty void inside your heart? If so, maybe you are reading this article because you are a person who is trying to find a way to fill that void, while at the same time, find your real purpose in life? Let me ask you, are there times when you just know deep-down inside your heart that there is more to life than what you are currently experiencing? You know that you were created for something more that you should be living for? If this is you, I believe that this article can help you find the answers to why you feel this way, if you are willing to consider what is being presented. I also want to assure you, that what is written in this article is not simply a theory to think upon, but an actual experience to be had for anyone and everyone who wholeheartedly commits to it’s prescription. So if you are ready and willing to not only make a change in your life, but also to experience a total transformation of heart and mind, t...

When Falling at 120 MPH, from 13000 feet above the earth, you better have equipment you can trust! The thrill that comes from jumping out of a perfectly good airplane from 13,000 feet above the earth is one of the most incredible thrills a person can ever experience in life. However, without the right working equipment, the thrill of freefalling can become the most horrifying and deadly experience a person can ever face. Once they have jumped out of the airplane there is no going back. Their equipment had better work, or they are in grave danger that is irreversible. When we die it is much like freefalling out of a perfectly good airplane. If we have the right equipment, equipment we can fully trust, the afterlife becomes the most thrilling experience a person can ever have. The Bible tells us that there are no human words that can express what  amazing things God has prepared in heaven for those of us who have trusted in Jesus and put God first in our life (1 Cor. 2:9). However...

Would you Sell your Eyes for 10 Million Dollars? Before answering "yes" too quickly, you might want to consider the fact that you would not be able to enjoy the 10 Million Dollars, due to the fact that you would not be able to see any of the places you would want to visit, or any of the things you might want to purchase. What's worse is you would no longer be able to see your family, friends, or even a reflection of yourself in the mirror for that matter. In other words, without your eyes you would live in complete darkness, and you would not be able to enjoy the 10 Million Dollars.  Now that you have probably decided that 10 Million dollars is not enough money to live the rest of your life in darkness for, let's consider what Jesus once said. Jesus said: "If your eye causes you to lust, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell" (Matthew 5:29). J...

You are probably a really nice person. Did you know that God doesn't evaluate our lives by how nice we are to others? Instead, He's given us a tool by which He evaluates our actions and life with, called the 10 Commandments. This is what God uses to expose our true inner-being, much like the way we use a mirror to expose our outer-being. Just as we wouldn't leave our house without looking as good as we could, we shouldn't leave this life we are living without making sure we are in good spiritual-condition with God. Let's see how you are looking right now:  (1) Have you ever told a lie? (2) Have you ever taken something that doesn't belong to you? (3) Have you ever used God's name in vain? Did you know that Jesus says if you've ever lusted after someone you're guilty of committing adultery in your heart. If you're honest with yourself, you can see that in God's eyes you have not been able to live up to these perfect standards. The ...

When you really think about it this is one of the most important questions that you can ever answer in life. We only live once, and it is up to us to decide what we will live for. When we come to the end of our life this question will probably mean a lot more to all of us. In fact, if we are given the opportunity to think about what we lived for at the end of our life we will probably hope that we didn't waste our life living for the wrong things.  In the days when eastern Emperors were crowned at Constantinople, it is said to have been a custom to set before the Emperor a certain number of marble slabs, one of which he was to choose to be his tombstone. It was considered good for him to remember his funeral at his coronation. They believed that life should be lived in order to prepare for eternity. Much like the eastern Emperors used to imagine their future as being grand and meaningful, and with the hopes of leaving a positive influence on their ge...

If you are feeling as if your life has no meaning and that you are all alone, there is help for you. The reason you are feeling like this is because you have been created for a purpose in life, and right now you are not living for that purpose. The bible tells us that God created you for His glory. "Bring all who claim Me as their God, for I have made them for my glory. It was I who created them" (Isaiah 43:7).  The fact that God tells us that you were created for His glory shows us that your life is important and significant to God Himself! The Bible tells us that the reason we feel alone is because God has made us for the primary purpose to have a relationship with Him, and when we are not making our relationship with God the most important part of our life, we will feel empty and alone inside. Think about this; How has your life been so far without living for God? The Bible tells us that there is only one way to begin a relationship with God and that is by having faith i...

What was the Hardest Mountain Ever Climbed? If you are like most people you have probably guessed Mt. Everest, which has errantly been dubbed the "hardest mountain" to ever be conquered. However, this is not the correct answer. The correct answer is Mt. Calvary. This is a mountain that only one person has ever been able to conquer in the history of the world. Mt. Calvary is located in the country of Israel. Yes, Israel! The only time this mountain has ever been conquered was some 2,000 years ago. Who was its conqueror? Its conqueror was Jesus Christ. You see, the reason Mt. Calvary was the hardest mountain to ever be climbed is because prior to climbing this mountain, the scriptures tell us that Jesus was severely beaten for you and for me. The scriptures tell us, "when they saw him (climbing up Mt. Calvary), he was beaten and bloodied, so disfigured one would scarcely know he was a person" (Isaiah 52:12). As Jesus began His ascent up Mt. Calvary, he had alrea...

Yes it is true, All Roads Lead to God. There is not one person that could argue this fact. God's word tells us that ALL ROADS LEAD TO GOD. It says, "At the name of Jesus every knee will bow... and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord" (Philippians 2:10-11). As you can see the Bible tells us that every person will one day kneel befor e God and then confess that He is Lord, but not all will get to go to heaven. What is so interesting to think about is that there are many people who will read this and say, Jesus is not God, and therefore I will not bow down to him. However, that will not stop this inevitable event from taking place. You see, Jesus said He was God, and He was the only person to ever die for our sins, and then prove He was God by rising from the dead. Jesus told his followers in many places that He is God. He said to them, "He who has seen Me has seen the Father" (John 14:9). The Bible also tells us "in Him (Jesus) dwel...

In this 3-minute clip Francis Chan is teaching on the new "middle road" that many Christians want to travel on. If you find yourself on that road Francis is describing, I hope that as you watch this video, you are challenged to make a change. God will bless you for it! Our Young Adult Group at The Church at Promenade went through the Crazy Love book/DVD series together this past summer, and they were very blessed by all that Francis challenged them to do. If you haven't read Crazy Lov e yet, and were inspired by this video, please make sure to pick it up soon.

Below is the powerful testimony given by a young 18 year-old North Korean girl in November of this year, at the Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization in Capetown, South Africa. Please keep this young lady in your prayers, and that God will use her to bring Him glory. Listen to her story here: "Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life" (Revelation 2:10).

Yesterday I had the honor of sharing the pulpit with Greg Laurie at Harvest Christian Fellowship. Okay, Greg wasn't actually there with me, but I did get to speak at a believers "Going Away Party", that was held at Harvest C.F. The going away party was for my friend Steve Esaki. Steve was a man who spent 54 years of his life rejecting God, until September 5th of this year, when he surrendered his life to Jesus, by confessing his sins to God, and placing his trust in Jesus alone for salvation. Steve's salvation was due to the steadfast prayers of his wife and her faithful walk with Jesus over the past 30 years, as well as the prayers of many believers throughout the years, and of course, the incredible mercy and tender heart of God to open up Steve's heart and give him understanding about Jesus. While at Steve's going away party, I shared an incredible event that took place between he and I, while visiting him at the hospital less than 24-hours before he wo...

The Bible says, "If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation;  old things have passed away, behold, all things become new" (2 Corinthians 5:17). What does being a new Creation in Christ really mean to a Christian, and what type of effect should this have upon our lives? Hopefully, the following video will shed some light on this subject.

This past week I visited our Jr. High Ministry. What a great night it was! We ate pizza, cookies, cupcakes, and drank lots of soda! We spent time in God's word, and then headed outside to play an advanced game of hide-and-seek, called "Night-Crossing". Pizza, cookies, cupcakes, and soda? I totally thought that Youth Pastors had it made, up until the point in time when we headed out to play games. That is where God then showed me that I am way too out of shape to keep up with the kids and their games. Thank You Jesus for Youth Pastors! They are my new heroes! As the night continued on, the kids were having a blast fellowshipping and playing "Night-Crossing" together, and I was really enjoying the opportunity to get to know the kids, as well as watch our Youth Pastor shine for Jesus. Before the night was over one of the newer members of the group named Mark, whose family has recently called Temecula Creek CF their home church, said that his mom had arrived so ...

This 3-minute video discusses the importance of how to bring God into the picture of your daily life.

Dear Friend, I am not sure what brought you to this particular post, but if it is for the purpose of wanting to understand how to “know” God, then I pray that this will be most helpful for you. Let me start off by saying every one of us has been born with the internal desire to live forever. In fact, the Bible tells us that “God has placed the desire to live forever” in each of our hearts (Ecclesiastes 3:11). This is the reason so many of us oftentimes think about what will happen when we die. In our day and age, many people have tried to push God out of the way, and will dogmatically defend their belief that there is no God, and there is no life after death. However, that does not change the fact that God is real, death is certain, and a persons eternity must be decided before they pass over to the other side. With that being said, I would like to help you with your spiritual journey, by doing the following; Help you to discover how you can know God. Help you unders...

Have you ever seen the bumper-sticker, or heard the expression that inspired the bumper sticker, "Christians are not perfect, just forgiven"? Do you think that this is a biblical way to approach our Christian faith? Do you think that this is an attitude that inspires others to follow? You can hear my thoughts about this subject in the following 2-minute video. As you are thinking over the things that I have said in this video, I want to encourage you to meditate upon what Jesus said in Matthew 5:14-16, "You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven." In this passage, it sure sounds like Jesus wants us to "show off" for God before the world, by letting our lights shine, so that we can give glory to God,...

Does your faith resemble that of a bright and burning fire, or does it resemble that of dying embers in a fading flame? This video will encourage you to fan the flame and begin burning again for God. "Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you... For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind." (2 Timothy 1:6-7).

Why do we do baby dedications? First off, baby dedications are not a commandment in Scripture, although they are practiced in the Bible. Baby dedications do not save the child, that comes when they get to an age where they trust Jesus as their Savior. The reason we do baby dedications though, is because of the precedence we see set in Scripture for us. For example, we know in the Old Testament, that Hannah dedicated young Samuel, who would grow up to be the prophet of God, and would eventually anoint David as Israel's king. In 1 Samuel 1:26-28 Hannah says to Eli the priest, "O my lord! As your soul lives, my lord, I am the woman who stood by you here, praying to the LORD. For this child I prayed, and the LORD has granted me my petition which I asked of Him. Therefore I also have lent him to the LORD: as long as he lives he shall be lent to the LORD." So they worshiped the LORD there." So we see here that Hannah dedicated her first born son, Samuel to the...