Volume 2024: Edition 26
Food for thought: All Sin is Sin
Hello everyone. We would like to thank you for your love and support during this difficult time in our Church and in our family. It has been very hard, but it is also a time of growth in our church and the strengthening of our faith. We strive to bring encouragement and connection through this newsletter that we will be continuing to post every 1st of the month, so we hope you will continue to learn and grow in God's word with us.
“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who, by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So, they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. Therefore, God gave them up in the lust of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchange the truth about God for a lie and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen. For this reason, God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature: and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving themselves the due penalty for their error. And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanders, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.”
(Romans 1:18-32)
Tonight, as I sit here and try to write about a topic that I would only assume is discussed, preached, and taught in every church, and every bible study, I ask myself this simple question; is sin truly talked about openly? Or am I just assuming it is?
Growing up in a family that went to church every Sunday and growing up with my father being a pastor of a church who taught us about sin, and taught us who saved us from that sin, I automatically assumed that this was a common practice throughout every church that believed in the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. You might be wondering why I would even question sin as a topic openly discussed in the Christian church today. Especially after all these years later; why now?
Because June 1st is the beginning of a month that celebrates the pride movement for the gay community that is currently highly influencing our entire country legally and socially. A celebration that started in 1969 in New York City stemming from a series of riots known as the Stonewall uprising, due to that uprising, the homosexual community decided on the morning of June 28th that they would fight back against the government that was prosecuting sexual minorities. Which we know today as the LGBTQ pride movement. You might be wondering, why am I singling out this one group. There are many different organizations, groups, and even holidays I can choose from. Why this one?
Our world today is a world that is willing to forget God and openly love and celebrate sin. A world that encourages sexual sin and all sin and teaches that it is openly okay in modern-day society. Even a large number of "churches" in the U.S. are catering to sins such as sexual immorality to "modernize" the word of God and bring in more members or are even building around sin such as the House of Rainbow. We are living in a world where everyone believes you can do whatever you want because if it makes you feel good, then how can it be wrong?
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of Gods mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God – this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.”
(Romans 12:1-2)
And like the one sin that led to mankind’s downfall, sexual sin, which is what the pride movement encourages and is a model of, has led to a gateway of immoral behaviors. We have legislation coming out or already made in certain states that makes it illegal for you to not use someone's preferred pronouns. We have children being taught in their schools that you can choose whether you’re a male or a female, and we give them the resources at a young age to act on that choice through gender surgeries and hormone blockers. We celebrate that a man can be a woman and a woman can be a man. We've enacted laws that allow a male to share a restroom and a locker room with females and vice versa. There is widespread belief that biological men can have children just like a woman, and a woman can transform into a biological man.
Our society cannot see how immoral and corrupt we have become. As a society now, we accept all sin and celebrate our sin as acts of love, compassion, and acts of mercy. We don’t see it as sin, because we have compromised and rejected the word of God so much to the point that we accept all types of love as the love described in the Bible. Now love is love. But the fact is that God is love and He alone defines and demonstrates what Love is. We as people have corrupted the word "love" because of our selfish sin and selfish desires, but God's love for us remains. Unlike the "love", we practice as imperfect and sinful beings, which could never amount to the type of love God has for us, God's love is poured out onto us regardless of our sin and regardless of how we have corrupted the love He gave us to share among one another and to direct towards Him and Him alone. His Love for us is perfect and completely unshakeable.
“For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus, our Lord.”
(Romans 8:38-39)
Don’t mistake His unshakeable love for acceptance of our sin though. We all think that our sin is ok as long as we believe that there is a God and that we believe in His love, but God hates sin and will bring justice upon those who sin. We all will have to answer for what we have done and have allowed.
"Let those who love the LORD hate evil, for he guards the lives of his faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked. Light is shed upon the righteous and joy on the upright in heart. Rejoice in the LORD, you who are righteous, and praise his holy name."
(Psalm 97:10-12)
"At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior. So that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life."
(Titus 3: 3-7)
We all know someone who lives and struggles with sin, you won’t have to look far, take a minute to stare in a mirror and you will find them. So why doesn’t the Christian church talk about not only pride month, but all groups, holidays, and organizations that don’t follow the values of being a follower of Christ?
Why do we shy away from discussing what it truly means to be a believer in Christ? Is it because we are scared to acknowledge our own sins? (Whatever that sin or sins may be?) is the answer because we know we are all condemned and are all sinners?
I believe the answer is: That we believe that “my sin is not as bad as your sin” because we live in a society that thinks that certain sins are worse than others. We may think that our sin isn't as bad as something like murder, rape, trafficking, or other high-level crimes we read about. But Sin is Sin, all sin destroys the sinner and everything around them regardless of the type of sin, and only God is the judge of our sins.
“When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, ‘If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.’”
(John 8:7)
"Surely there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and never sins."
(Ecclesiastes 7:20)
"Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God."
(1 Corinthians 6:9-11)
"Hear the word of the Lord, you Israelites, because the Lord has a charge to bring against you who live in the land: “There is no faithfulness, no love, no acknowledgment of God in the land. There is only cursing, lying and murder, stealing and adultery; they break all bounds, and bloodshed follows bloodshed. Because of this the land dries up, and all who live in it waste away; the beasts of the field, the birds in the sky and the fish in the sea are swept away."
(Hosea 4:1-3)
We no longer as a society can stand back and watch our children and future fall because of our failures, we can’t as people, and as followers of Christ, let sin be openly praised and accepted. We have to stand on what we believe and stand for what is true. Because if we don’t, we as individuals will have to answer for why we did not stand and protect each other, our children, and future generations from our awful decisions. And yes, one day we will all have to answer for all our sins, but we will also have to answer for why we didn’t stand up together against all wrongdoings. That is why as Christians, it is important to have fellowship with one another, fight for one another, show love and kindness to one another, and let our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ lead our ways…
because in the end, all sin leads to separation from God and destruction of our life and the lives of others.
“When I say to a wicked man, ‘you will surely die,’ and you do not warn him or speak out to dissuade him from his evil ways in order to save his life, that wicked man will die for his sin, and I will hold you accountable for his blood. but if you do warn the wicked man and he does not turn from his wickedness or from his evil ways, he will die for his sin; but you will have saved yourself. ‘Again, when a righteous man turns from his righteousness, and does evil, and I put a stumbling block before him, he will die. Since you did not warn him, he will die for his sin. The righteous things he did will not be remembered, and I will hold you accountable for his blood. But if you do warn the righteous man not to sin, and he does not sin, he will surely live because he took warning, and he will have saved yourself.’”
(Ezekiel 3:18-21)
Yes, I singled out this group for me. I have struggled with it most of my life because I was that person who believed that my sins weren’t as bad as the sexual immorality of the gay community, and their movement, and I believed that I was better. But the fact is, we are both on the same path, the path without our God leading our ways. When we let ourselves and the influences of this world guide our path, we live a life of lies and a path of destruction. The fact is, we will all be judged for our actions and the decisions we have made, and if I and you want to walk in our Lord's kingdom one day, we have to completely let God lead our ways. He is the only one who can make us new and free us from our sins.
"And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.
But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them"
(Ephesians 2:1-10)
These past few years, you have read and heard my testimony played out through these newsletters. I know that the God of the heavens and earth has shown me through all my trials, failures, heartaches, and pain, that He is continually doing His work on me so that I may stay on the right path so that I don’t take the path of destruction. It is a hard road to follow, But God never said it was gonna be easy.
I pray that as followers of Christ, we will all pray for each other, have fellowship with one another, and share God's love wherever we go regardless of the individual sins we each carry.
I end with this, read these passages and ask God to soften your heart and lead the way. Do not think we can rely on ourselves for redemption or that we can save ourselves by works or by doing good things. If we could, we would not have evil and selfish intent. We must all acknowledge Our Creator and what He has done for us. Thank God that He sent His Son Jesus, who came and died on the cross for our sins and rose in three days to show us who He was: Our Savior.
1 John 3:8-10
2 Peter 3:7-11
Galatians 2:17-21
John 14:6
John 10:14
Mark 7:21-23
“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”
(Romans 3:23-24)
We are grateful to have you with us as readers, church members, and interested guests and we are always open to any suggestions and volunteers for our website, newsletter, and future activities. We hope to see you at our Sunday services and stay tuned for our coming newsletters and updates at church, at bible study, on Facebook, on the Wix-App, and on the website.
Upcoming Events:
Special Prayers:
Pray for the Salazar family and the congregation during this very difficult transition.
Pray for Dave for healing and strength and for His family for the comfort of the Lord as he goes through rehabilitation.
Pray for Armando and His family that the Lord watches over them and guides the people who taking care of Him.
Pray for the Bibles we are trying to send to Kenyan Children and Youth that the lord provides a way for them to be sent.
Pray for our Newsletter that we can continue to write through the Holy Spirit
Pray for our Pastor and our church that we may be blessed to continue to grow and share the word of God.
Weekly Devotional: Sin
"When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it."
(Genesis 3:6)
Many of us are familiar with the fall of Adam and Eve as described in Genesis 3. As we ponder their choice to disobey God, have we ever stopped to examine our own hearts? Do we ever engage in mental conversation with our adversary? Do we add to God's word? What temptations are satisfying to our flesh, pleasing to our eyes, or will make us feel important?
Sin is a disease, not a weakness. It is rebellion against God - that simple. Our theology of sin needs to be in line with what the bible teaches. The world tries desperately to ignore, suppress, or erase the concept of sin. To admit "I have sinned" is very difficult. And yet this is exactly what we must confess if we are to have a right relationship with God. We are not unlike Adam and Eve. We all have sinned and fallen short. God is ready to forgive and restore. Let's be quick to confess our rebellion.
Prayer:
Dear Lord, help me see my rebellion as sin. Help me admit and confess that sin. Restore me to a right relationship with you. Amen.
Rayburn, Julie. Be Still and Know. . . Barbour Publishing, 2014.
Verse of the Week:
"Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry."
(Colossians 3:2-5)
Announcements:
Don't forget that Father's Day is coming up June 15th! The church would like to honor the dads in our Church this day with a special time after the sermon to give appreciation and a gift card to each Father. We hope to see you there!
We would love to send out the newsletter personally to every member as well as pray for and celebrate birthdays and anniversaries together as a church family. We are asking for all of our members to send their birth date, anniversary date, and their email to 303-916-3950 or to the church email. You could also write it down on our paper before or after services.
We will be building a little free library in the church yard to encourage community and engagement. If anyone would like to donate children's books, young adult books, or any adult novels we would love the assistance in filling up the little library. If anyone would like to participate in the construction and decoration of the little library, please contact Taylor Lambrecht.
Questions?
For any questions or suggestions regarding our newsletter please email berthoudfoursquarechurch@gmail.com or call (720)466-0951
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