New Hope Church

COME TO JESUS— EVEN IN YOUR DOUBTS AND DISBELIEF! But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us.  “If you can?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for one who believes.”  Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!”—Mark 9:22-24             A child in dire straits with demon possession!  It is parent’s worst nightmare.  But this parent was wise in bringing his child to Jesus.  Did he have doubts?  Sure he did!  Actually he was having a hard time believing Jesus could do anything.  But he also asked Jesus to help him overcome his unbelief.  Oh yea, Jesus would do that as He drove…

A DISCIPLE DENIES SELF Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? —Mark 8:34-37             Being a disciple of Jesus and following Him includes self-denial.  There is much that the flesh wants in this life— comfort surely being high on the list— but the…

BELIEVING THE TRUTH OR THE LIAR  God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. —Numbers 23:19   in the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time… —Titus 1:2   God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie… —Hebrews 6:18             People lie, God never lies— He cannot lie.  He does not change His mind.  When He says something He will do it.  He may change His actions, or so it appears to us, but He does not change His mind.  God is Sovereign. …

VAIN WORSHIP IS HOLDING TO MAN’S COMMANDS/TRADITIONS And he said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, “ ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.” And he said to them, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition! —Mark 7:6-9              Do I hold the Word of God as the highest standard for life or do I have other added traditions of man that I regard…

COMPASSION ACTS When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. And he began to teach them many things. —Mark 6:34             When was the last time you looked on a crowd and had compassion on them?  Have you ever sat in a sports stadium and looked at the crowd?   Did you consider that the vast majority of people in the crowd were lost and on their way to hell?  Do you understand that they are “are like sheep without a shepherd?  Did your heart go out to them?             How about the person you work…

GO AND NOT GRUMBLE! So the men Moses had sent to explore the land, who returned and made the whole community grumble against him by spreading a bad report about it— these men who were responsible for spreading the bad report about the land were struck down and died of a plague before the Lord. Of the men who went to explore the land, only Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh survived. —Numbers 14:36-38             Influencing a people away from our Lord’s desires is a dangerous course to take.  Twelve men were sent to explore the land and when they returned there were ten of them that made the whole…

HIS WORD IS ABSOLUTELY DEPENDABLE! And the LORD said to Moses, “Is the LORD’s hand shortened? Now you shall see whether my word will come true for you or not.” —Numbers 11:23             Do I trust our Lord God Almighty for the impossible?  Can I expect Him to work in ways that are well beyond me?  When a situation is far out of my control do I trust Him for it?  How much do I trust what He has to say?  Do I trust His Word to be true?             When our Lord said He would provide meat for all the Israelites “Moses said, “Here I am among six hundred…

YOUR STORY OF HIS WORK As he was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed with demons begged him that he might be with him. And he did not permit him but said to him, “Go home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.” —Mark 5:18-19             As we read the context of the verses above we find out that this demon possessed man: lived among the tombs, could not be restrained with a chain, had broken chains and shackles, nobody could subdue him because of his strength, cried out night and day…

TRUST HIM IN THE STORM And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him. And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” And they…

ONLY GOOD SOIL PEOPLE ARE FRUITFUL Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable? The farmer sows the word. Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; but the worries of this life,…