In consideration of current culture juxtaposed with the words of Jesus, it is evident that our understanding of the Lord is far from the scripture. Jesus spoke terms difficult for the American church to accept. Jesus said, Mat 19:30 But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first. This doesn’t sound very inviting, especially for an ever advancing American society built on gain and ambition. There are no corporate ladders in God’s Kingdom.

When Jesus called for a man to follow Him, the man replied, Mat 8:21 “Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.” Jesus said, “Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead.” Jesus was declaring Himself as a higher priority over the burial of family members. This is a hard pill for many to swallow. Instead of receiving the Word, people adjust it to fit into their modern thought. Even Pentecostals strain to adapt to the Word.

At one point the Lord was teaching and someone interrupted Him by saying that His family was waiting outside. Jesus answered: Mat 12:48 “Who is my mother? and who are my brethren?” Pointing to his disciples, He answered His own question: Mat 12:49-50 “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”

We cannot and must not alter the words of this Jesus of Nazareth. He is the incarnate God and His Word is forever settled in Heaven. So how can we reconcile our cultural preferences of money, family, funerals, and religious pursuits with the Bible? If we read about Him, it is impossible to fit Him into our culture. Jesus just doesn’t fit. He’s encompassing. If He is to be in our lives, everything else must conform to Him.

He did not tell us to seek out a good job or a notable career. He did not offer space for us to gather a retirement and then give him the few remaining days of our life. He called for our entire lives, not the end of our days. Jesus said, Mat 6:33-34 “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.”

The Bible is challenging and Jesus is calling. True Christianity never adjusts the Word to the culture. Followers of Jesus Christ are always adjusting themselves to His command. The Cross looks out of focus to a nation of “believers” who consider church attendance a duty rather than a privilege; serving as a struggle rather than an opportunity; and giving as an obligation rather than an honor.

The mission of this house is to reunite us with the Real Jesus. This is our life; To Know Him and to Make Him Known!

Pastor Jeffrey Harpole

Cutting to the chase… Adhering to the scripture, which means obeying the Word, makes a demand on the way we speak to another. It presses us into banner subjects such as Honor, Respect, and Recognition. I am often reluctant to speak such things as it can be seen as self-serving. However, the lack of kindness through language is a damage not soon repaired by omission. If pulpits withhold scripture out of concern with how the Word is received, the hearer will be led by a secular culture devoid of righteous instruction.

To be clear, Respect and Honor have fallen on hard times. Open criticisms, personal opinions, innuendos, and gossip have all been encouraged by social media. The end result is hatred, indifference, and disorder.

On multiple occasions, Solomon wrote of those who were right in their own mind. Prov 12:15 The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: but he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise. When Judges 21 was written, it referred to the absence of authority: Judg 21:25 In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes.

According to the Bible, honoring our fathers and mothers is one of the 10 commandments. Paul wrote: Eph 6:2 Honour thy father and mother; which is the first commandment with promise; But as we know, this command has been forgotten. The issue is that when there is no respect at home, there is no respect at church, school, work, or community.

The Bible says, that we should honor one another (Rom 12:10). Peter wrote that every husband should honor their own wife (1 Pet 3:7). Honor all people (1 Pet 2:17). Paul wrote: 1 Tim 5:3 Honour widows that are widows indeed. Paul was speaking about action and care. Furthermore, he taught: 1 Tim 5:17 Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour, especially they who labour in the word and doctrine. This verse has been virtually removed from congregations all over our country. Preachers act like hirelings and people treat them like employees.

Finally, the Bible instructs us to care for our bodies: 1 Th 4:4 That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour; This is God’s command. It is speaking to drugs, alcohol, overeating, lack of exercise, lack of sleep and rest, and so much more. We must respect the temple that God gave us!

The enemy of our soul is fighting against us on every front. However, if we embrace patience, kindness, recognition for authority and one another, we will build an impenetrable wall against the flagrancy of the world. Lastly, we are not of this world. We are of God and we must live accordingly.

Pastor Jeffrey Harpole

The psalmist once wrote about the reality of this life. He said that those who are both “high and low, rich and poor” will all face death. This is an inevitable fact. It is appointed once for a person to die and this is an appointment that everyone will keep. Yet, so little emphasis is put on that day. Many consider the temporal things they own greater than their eternal soul. People often value their possessions greater than the intangible blessings of the Lord. This is true for all status; both rich and poor and everyone in-between. All are subject to ignore the day when nothing will matter but their never dying soul.

The people of God are not exempt from these failings. Many are caught up, walking through the emotional landmine of gain and loss, bewildered by the prosperity of wicked men. However, God said: Psa 49:16-17 Do not be in awe when a man grows rich, when the splendor of his house increases; for he will take nothing with him when he dies, his splendor will not descend with him.

Hear the words of Jesus: Mat 6:20-21 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. The lead indicator of the location of your heart is where your treasure lies.

While we are commanded to be good stewards of what we have; to keep ourselves in subjection through self-constraint and contentment, we also know that our investments must be made for the Kingdom, and that sacrificially. We are blessed when we give and cursed when we withhold. We plant seeds of faith when we make sacrifices and seeds to the flesh when we covet.

In this life we are given the opportunity to be joined to something much greater than ourselves. However, unless we guide our passions and manage our emotions, we will easily miss the moment. Paul wrote: Col 3:2 Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. Paul was inspired by the Creator to send this most pivotal message to His creation. It is the message of guided affection and purposeful living. “Things above” are more important than anything beneath. The work of the House of God is a weighty matter and that rightly so. We are making commitments today according to His Word, our faith, and the level of our personal harvest. I submit that we seek the Lord and center our lives around the church, the mission, and the salvation of our families. For we know that our heart and our treasure will be known in the day of our appointment.

In the same chapter in which blind Bartimaeus asked Jesus for a healing, a few of the Lord’s disciples sought for a future prominence as they perceived a natural kingdom to come.

James and John were young and obviously foolish in their request. It only seems reasonable for us to consider their new found pride in this powerful, Jesus of Nazareth. They were convinced of His authority; for no one had performed such miracles as He. To James and John, Jesus was destined to become the ruling, physical King of Israel. They could sense the progress of His power and His fame. So they approached the Lord with an inquiry. Jesus asked them: Mark 10:36 “What would ye that I should do for you?”

Consider the Lord’s response. The English translation puts it so well: “What shall I do for you?” Their response was, Mark 10:37 “Grant unto us that we may sit, one on thy right hand, and the other on thy left hand, in thy glory.” James and John were yet immature disciples; not knowing what they asked. They were far from the Kingdom.

Ten verses later, a blind man was crying for mercy. Jesus called for him to come and asked him, Mark 10:51 “What wilt thou that I should do unto thee?”

Jesus asked the blind man a very different question than the one He asked the disciples. James and John wanted position. The blind man desired vision. The young men wanted the Lord to do something “for them” while Bartimaeus sought for a life change.

The modern Christian often seems transfixed on the Lord’s temporary provisions, while the Lord is offering a change of spirit and direction. Many have fallen into the trap of temporal elevation, while Jesus is desiring to heal our mind. Jesus is seeking for faithful laborers who will serve one another, not people rising up some spiritual kingdom ladder, which by the way, does not exist.

To be clear, James and John will grow up. They will one day abandon their temporal thinking and offer their life for the cause of Christ and the Gospel. They will become men of purpose, spreading the Apostolic doctrine. However, the lesson endures: the desire of the Lord is not a momentary placement. He wants to give us “vision” and a deliverance from our fleshly ambition if we will abandon our personal desires and surrender our lives to His cause.

Pastor Jeffrey Harpole

Mark 5:17 And they began to pray him to depart out of their coasts.

The opening line of Mark 5 depicts a demon possessed man who lived in the country of the Gadarenes. The Bible spares no detail of the horrid conditions of his existence or the havoc he caused among the people. The men of the city had often bound him, but the scripture says that he “tore the chains apart and broke the irons on his feet. No one was strong enough to subdue him.”

The lot of them lived in fear as the demons cried out. He cut himself with sharpened stones and lived among the graves. In reality, the man was not the only one tormented; the entire city was also.

Jesus stepped onto the shore of that oppressed place and immediately the man came running to Him. The legion begged Jesus not to torture them, even recognizing Jesus as “Son of the Most High God.” Jesus cast them out and they entered into about 2,000 swine, which in turn ran down a steep hill and drowned themselves in the sea. This deliverance finds the man sitting, clothed, and in his right mind. It was a miracle of supernatural proportions. Nevertheless, the men of the city considered their loss. Their herd of swine were dead.

Verse 17 tells the story of the modern day church and the cost of revival. To have Jesus in all of His power and authority, comes at a personal cost. To see people delivered from demonic oppression and the chains of a world society always comes at a price. To be certain, there is no salvation without suffering. To see a family saved or a person delivered or a revival break out . . . there is a price to pay.

While no one would openly speak, many have begged Jesus to leave their “coasts.” The men of that city asked Jesus to leave because the healing of the maniac from Gadara came at the cost of their lives. Deliverance and revival still makes a demand of us. It will cost us time, prayer, money, energy, and personal pursuits.

My prayer is that we will not consider the cost, but we will consider the difference of an eternal destination. Our prayer is for Jesus to come and not to leave. We pray that Jesus will use us to reach the lost; that He will restore lives given into our hands. Regardless of the cost, our city is worth saving.

Pastor Jeffrey Harpole

The moment occurred many years ago. As it was told, a tornado warning was issued for the plains of Kansas. The people knew it was approaching. The swirling clouds gathering in their familiar darkened colors. However, one family was in the middle of an argument and said that they would find shelter after they had “ironed out their dispute.” The report was that a handful of them survived the storm, but most perished for lack of safety.

They knew it was coming, but for whatever reason, the dispute was more important than the 150 mph winds. By the time the storm came, they were ill-equipped to find safety. Some might have won the argument, but it came at the cost of their lives.

Things seem so important at the time: debates, ambitions, pursuits of all kinds. However, juxtaposed against the coming “storm” none of it will matter. John opened up his book with these words: Rev 1:3 Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.

Look closely at the last line: The time is at hand, or “the time is near.” He wrote his book 2,000 years ago. I wonder, if John thought the time was near in his day? How close are we in ours? Jesus is coming! The clouds are gathering and the pressure has increased. Jesus said, Matt 24:22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.

My admonition is for those who have ears to hear what the Spirit is saying. Put aside the trivial. Moreover, anything that does not concern itself with the Kingdom, the Gospel, Prayer, the Church, soul-winning, or discipleship should be minimized to the point of obscurity. In Kansas, the wind destroyed the house and all those who were bent on making their point. They failed to heed the warning sirens. It lifted the roof and scattered the furnishings five miles in every direction. Those that remained, mourned the fact that they were too busy making their case that they ignored the storm. All they could hear was their own voice.

Today is the day of Salvation. We will hear the Word and we must align our lives accordingly. Our city must know of the Name of Jesus and the Gospel much be preached. His praise must be heard and His Truth must be proclaimed.

Pastor Jeffrey Harpole

Crossroads. In the more literal sense, a crossroad is simply an intersection of two or more joining roads. The definition does not limit the place to just two roads, but is open-ended. In a spiritual sense, perhaps life and future, this crossroad boasts of many roads that a person could take. This is the place that has far-reaching consequences; far beyond the moment of decision.

It does take an awareness to measure the outlining path before us. Most make decisions not knowing where they will lead. The greatest majority of believers will make self-inflicting wounds that lead them away from a life of holiness and commitment, but at the time their choices do not appear detrimental.

King Saul did as much. He began humble and ended prideful. Decisions happened in the moment and for the moment. He never asked, “What Then?” Christians from every era have done the same. An offense comes; hurt feelings lead to anger or resentment and then suddenly they are standing at a crossroads choosing a path that leads them away from the Call of Christ. The next road is called Self-Justification, which erodes all prior teaching and doctrine.

It is my belief that everyone will come to a Crossroad. The prophet said it, “Choose you this day who you will serve.” From ancient times to this very day a choice is being made, maybe even subconsciously. The rich ruler left Jesus sorrowful because he counted the cost to follow the Lord. The cost was his crossroad and he walked away. Who knows if he even made it back to the knowledge of Jesus Christ. Most never make it back.

I admonish you in no uncertain terms: Do not allow offenses to lead you away from the church. The hour is far too late and day is far spent. Don’t make concessions within your walk with God. Your future cannot handle your lack of total commitment today.

We might all be facing a crossroad today; even as a church body. Shall we grow? Will we give our all, both emotionally and financially? Will we be committed to the Apostolic doctrine handed down to us from the Lord Himself? Will we become soul-winners, Bible study teachers; witnesses of the Gospel? Many churches have lost themselves at this crossroad. They took the path of convenience, passivity, and half-halfheartedness. They deviated from the demands of the Kingdom. I cannot make the decision for you. As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

Pastor Jeffrey Harpole

Micah 7:8 Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall
arise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD shall be a light unto me.
Micah is speaking in future tense as recorded by the King James
Bible. There are other versions which indicate that he was writing
in past tense. The context helps us as the prophet has cried over
the sinful state of the nation. He is now considering the mercy of
God in reference to their sins already committed. This means that
in some sense Micah is saying, “though I have fallen” i.e., it has
already happened, “I shall arise.” Regardless of the timing, past or
future, the promise is that the Lord will raise them up and the Lord
will be their light. Thus the nation is literally relying on the promise
of the Lord and that blessing was not contingent on the goodness of
the congregation of Israel, but rather it rested on the nature of their
merciful God.

The moment is reminiscent of the country of Peru which boasts of
the great Huachina Desert. The sand and dunes are cast across the
landscape as the prohibitive heat burns away any would-be foliage.
It is a desert boasting of all the commonalities of its own kind.
However, in the middle of that desert is an oasis, the likes of which
are a mystery. A little town has sprung up there where vendors and
tourists frequent. All that sand, heat, and dry air, and then suddenly
water and trees.

The horticulturist reported it this way: “It only takes a small, but
constant water base to change the environment.” The pool of
sustaining water has brought life to the desert. They call it The
Oasis of the Huachina Desert. Its image is beyond compare. Death
surrounds it, but within its circle there is abundance of life.
This is the image of God’s provision in the hardship of life. The Lord
raises us up when we fall. He gives light in the night of our self-imposed
peril. He is the Immutable Savior. When we fail and our sin
ravages the good of life; taking our natural blessing, God is merciful
and provides a place of refuge. He is the everlasting water; the river
without beginning or end.

So rejoice not against me. When I fail, though I have failed, I will rise
again. God’s grace will appear in the middle of my peril.

Pastor Jeffrey Harpole

This may be hard to swallow. According to the Bible, anyone preaching a different gospel than what Paul preached will be cursed. Furthermore, false teachers and prophets are included in this final judgment, which means that people we know will be lost because they have changed the salvation message.

By the time John wrote his first letter, false preachers had already appeared. He called them out: 1 John 4:1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. Jesus said: Mark 13:22 For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall show signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect.

Paul preached Baptism in Jesus’ name and the infilling of the Holy Ghost. Paul himself was baptized in the name of Jesus. He thought it was so necessary that he even re-baptized believers in Jesus’ name. Acts 19:1-7. Peter preached on the day of Pentecost saying that everyone should repent and be baptized in Jesus’ name. He said that they would receive the Promise of the Father, which was the infilling of the Holy Ghost. They all spoke with other tongues as the Spirit gave them the utterance.

The controversy of salvation is not a Bible problem. There are ample scriptures declaring His death, burial, and resurrection. The issue is that the modern-day church does not really believe baptism to be a Heaven or Hell issue. I say, if there was ever a Heaven or Hell issue, this is it!

Many equate being a “good person” with salvation. However, the Bible does not hold to this philosophy. Nice people with pleasant dispositions will not enter Heaven if they are not Born Again of the Water and the Spirit. Jesus said so! John 3:1-8. Shall we argue with the Savior? Shall we dilute His written Word?

There is an urgency as the Last Day approaches. This is the not time to be timid. The early believers thought it was essential that everyone was baptized and filled with the Holy Ghost. Ours is not a “private faith” which in itself is an oxymoron. My burden is for lost souls to be saved. My concern is that too many believers are satisfied just attending church, but will not spread the Gospel. Whatever the cost, it is time for us to reach the lost!

Pastor Jeffrey Harpole

Mark 13:14 But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not, (let him that readeth understand,) then let them that be in Judaea flee to the mountains:
Mark 13:15 And let him that is on the housetop not go down into the house, neither enter therein, to take any thing out of his house:
Mark 13:16 And let him that is in the field not turn back again for to take up his garment.

There will come a day when nothing else will matter, but escaping the wrath of the antichrist. Jesus repeated the vision of the prophet Daniel who described the final wickedness. Jesus warned them not to return “into the house” and not to turn back for a garment, meaning that no material possession or comfort will have any use.

The Lord’s prophecy was exampled in the house of Mary and Martha. While Mary sat at the feet of Jesus, Martha was busy doing necessary chores, but not the one thing of consequence. Jesus said, “Mary has chosen the one needful thing which will not be taken from her.” The scene displays the vast, but often cloaked difference between what is necessary and what is needful. They look similar, but they are far removed in substance. Necessary things are the cares of the this life, but the one needful thing is our time with Jesus.

If your first instinct is to protect possessions or comfort, or to do the necessary things, you must reevaluate the One Needful thing. The scripture calls the final moment of time as “that great and terrible day of the Lord.” Jesus addressed the matter when He spoke of people who work for the temporal things. The “Barn Builder” is anyone who lays treasures up on this earth. Luke 12:20 But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?

I write with a sober spirit as I see the day approaching. Put away from you all trivial conversations, complaints, petty pursuits and minimal ambitions. Seek the Kingdom of God. Ask what you can do for the Lord and then reach for the lost. Give yourself completely toward worship and make your investment in the church. Finally, make a personal declaration that there is no turning back now! Jesus is coming and we must be about the Father’s business.

Pastor Jeffrey Harpole