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Peniel

2/26/2018

Peniel. It isn’t the name of a person. It’s the name of a place. The word means, “face of God.” Located on the banks of the Jabbok River on the eastern side of the Jordan, this place was named by Jacob because it was where he saw God face-to-face, and his life was spared.

There are certain places you will never forget because they are forever associated with some significant event. For Jacob it was Peniel because that’s where God changed his life.

Jacob had been on the run for years. He had spent his life scheming and manipulating. But now his back was against the wall and there was no way out. It’s been said that people change when they hurt enough they have to. That describes Jacob in Genesis chapter thirty-two. With nowhere else to turn, Jacob decided it was time to look to the Lord. So he did, and God showed up!

Have you ever wrestled with the Lord? Jacob did, all night long. Dying to self isn’t always easy. For Jacob it was a real battle. But when the battle was over he emerged from Peniel broken and blessed.

Brokenness before the Lord is not a bad thing. David said, “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed” (Psalm 34:18 NLT). Oftentimes, it isn’t until we are broken that we turn to God.

If Jacob had any misgivings about turning to God, he shouldn’t have. The result of his encounter at Peniel was that he walked away blessed. Jacob the manipulator was now Jacob the man of God.

While sin will destroy your relationship with God, suffering can deepen it if you handle it right. If you find yourself with Jacob in the middle of some painful, even frightening circumstances, look to the Lord now. Surrender your life to Him. Let God do what only He can do. In this way, the place of brokenness will become the place of blessing.

Like Jacob, may you experience your personal Peniel. Have a face-to-face encounter with the living God, and as a result, your life will be saved.

Pastor Todd Weston

tongues

2/19/2018

The second chapter of Acts records the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost. Luke, the author of the Book of Acts, records that the one-hundred-and-twenty believers gathered in the upper room, “were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance” (Acts 2:4).

Hearing the sound of all these Christians speaking in tongues and recognizing several distinct languages being spoken caused many in the multitude gathered to ask, “What can this mean?” That’s when Peter, “standing up with the eleven, raised his voice and said to them, ‘Men of Judea, and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and heed my words” (Acts 2:14). And with that, Peter preached an anointed message that resulted in the salvations of three-thousand people.

You will notice that I underlined two words: “utterance” in 2:4, and “said” in 2:14. I underlined these two words because they translate one Greek word that appears only one other time in the New Testament (Acts 26:25). The Greek word used in 2:4 and 2:14 means more than just ordinary speaking. It means to speak forth by inspiration. The context of all three passages where this word is used makes it clear that the inspiration is that of the Holy Spirit.

The believers in the upper room spoke in tongues by the inspiration (divine enabling) of the Holy Spirit. Just a few verses later, Peter preached to the multitude gathered in Jerusalem by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit who empowered Peter to speak in a tongue he did not know (2:4) also empowered him to speak in a tongue he did know (2:14).

While the Book of Acts is categorized as an historical book in the New Testament, it’s much more than that. In Acts, Luke doesn’t just present the history of the Early Church. He presents the model for the entire Church. God still desires to baptize believers in the Holy Spirit. The initial physical evidence is speaking in tongues under the empowerment of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:4: 10:46; 19:6).

But it doesn’t stop there because the purpose of the baptism is power to be a witness for Jesus Christ (Acts 1:8). The ongoing evidence will be the empowerment of the Holy Spirit to speak to others about Jesus in the language you know. Either way, whether it’s the tongue you don’t know or the one you do know, the inspiration to speak comes from the Holy Spirit.

Pastor Todd Weston

Enduring faith

2/12/2018

Are you watching the Winter Olympics? Sheri and I have enjoyed watching the events from Pyeongchang, South Korea. However, I did doze off during the event known as curling. It’s like shuffleboard on ice (yawn). All of the other events have been extremely interesting.

I especially enjoyed watching the men’s and women’s cross-country skiing. What impressed me about this event was the endurance of the athletes. To give you an idea of the fitness required for cross-country skiing, go to your local gym, get on an Elliptical Bike, and hit it hard for over one hour. That’s about how long it took most men to complete the 30 kilometer freestyle. The 50 kilometer will take over one-hour-and-forty-five minutes.

Endurance is necessary in all areas of life. Finishing a race, succeeding in business, graduating from college, finishing that project, or continuing to celebrate wedding anniversaries all require endurance. I’m talking about sticking with it until the job is done. Hanging in there when the fun and excitement have faded in the distance. Not losing heart when the going gets tough. To succeed in any venture in life, we must endure.

Endurance is especially important when it comes to our faith. Obviously, starting well is a must. But the prize doesn’t go to those who start the race. The prize is given to those who finish (2 Timothy 4:7-8).

So how can we endure as believers? First, by receiving daily spiritual renewal (2 Cor. 4:6). A sign that appeared on a pastor’s desk read as follows: “God and I make a great team. He supplies the strength. I supply the weakness.” Waiting upon the Lord results in spiritual renewal (Isaiah 40:31), and spiritual renewal results in enduring faith.

Secondly, we endure as seeing Him who is invisible (Hebrews 11:27). That’s how Moses made it. He succeeded in faith because he paid more attention to the invisible King of Kings than to the visible king of Egypt. Whether or not we endure in faith depends greatly on who we look to in this life. Keep your eyes and Jesus and you will make it!

Finally, we endure because of the joy set before us (Hebrews 12:1-2). It was the joy set before Him that enabled Jesus to endure the sufferings of the cross. The spiritual principle is that there is no crown without a cross. When things are crashing around you, when hope is fading and you feel like giving up, just remember what is waiting for you at the finish line!

During the making of the movie classic, Ben Hur, Charleton Heston had trouble learning to drive a chariot for the famous chariot race scene. With a lot of practice he was finally able to control the chariot, but still had doubts about the race. So he shared his concerns with the director, Cecil B. DeMille, saying, “I think I can drive the chariot, but I’m not sure I can win the race.” DeMille replied, “You just stay in the race and I will make sure you win.”
The Christian life is a long race that requires endurance. Just stay in the race and God will see to it that you win. “The one who endures to the end will be saved” (Matthew 24:13).

Pastor Todd Weston

An Old Testament Story

2/5/2018

Have you ever wondered where all the languages came from? We know that there are over seven-thousand languages today, but they can all be traced back to about twenty original languages. So where did they come from? And what about the different nations?

The answer is found in an ancient story recorded in Genesis 11. It’s the story of the Tower of Babel. It all started with a man whose name meant, the rebel. The Bible identifies him as Nimrod. Believe it or not, Nimrod was Noah’s great-grandson. Where Noah excelled in righteousness, Nimrod excelled in wickedness. Among other things, here is what we know about Nimrod --

   1.   He was the first world ruler
   2.   He may have been a giant like Goliath
   3.   He was a tyrant or a dictator
   4.   He led people in rebellion against God

After the flood, God commanded Noah and his sons to scatter and fill the earth. But Nimrod rebelled against God and convinced the people stay together and build the City of Babel (Babylon), “with a tower that reaches to the heavens” (Genesis 11:4).

The Tower of Babel was not a Jack-and-the-Beanstalk construction where people were actually trying to reach heaven. Rather, it was a Ziggurat - a tower with a temple on top dedicated to the worship of the heavens (the stars). Astrology and the occult all got their start in Babylon, and this just a matter of years after the flood!

God saw what was happening and the danger involved. So in an act of mercy He stopped the people by confusing their language. At that time the whole world spoke one language. God knew if He confused their language He could defeat their plan. So that is exactly what God did. This is how the place was named Babel (confusion).

Some believe the languages evolved over millions of years just like people. But according to the Bible, God created mankind in a day and the languages in just a moment. Unable to understand each other, the project of the Tower of Babel came to an end as the people scattered according to their languages. Genesis 10:32 says this was the beginning of the nations.

This Old Testament story does more than tell us about the origin of the languages and nations. It also serves to remind us that when we go our own way it leads to confusion. On the other hand, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding” (Proverbs 9:10).

Pastor Todd Weston

RLA Pastor's blog

Peniel

tongues

Enduring faith

An Old Testament Story

Pastor Todd

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