Mountain View Bible Church of Eagle Lake, Maine - Sermons

Wasted years under the sun is what Solomon is warning the reader about.  Gold - glamour- Solomon had it all, but he called those things vanity and challenged the reader to "remember now his Creator in the days of his youth." Things under the sun perish; things stored up in heaven where moth and rust do not corrupt are eternal.

This is Paul's last communication, that we know of, with Timothy, a servant of the Lord, and the church. Timothy was to help the believers in Ephesus grow in the faith and meet the challenge of abiding in truth when false teachers did their best to bring in fables.  Paul knows Timothy's tears and reminds him to renew his commitment and free himself of entanglements that weigh one down.

Proverbs 3:5-6 says, Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. Proverbs contains wisdom which can keep us on the straight and narrow and away from danger.  Dig in and meditate on these ageless truths.

Paul left Timothy in Ephesus to remind the church there of its real mission.  In this letter, Paul emphasized the truth that each believer is only a sinner saved by grace and, as such, he or she should be concerned about rescuing other sinners.  Losing sight of that mission can lead to shipwreck.  What a tragedy! 

The psalms are about the history of the Jews, about handling trials, about worship, and about what the future holds.  As Psalm One succinctly explains, we have the choice of being a blessed man who searches the Scripture for counsel or we can choose to remain ignorant of the Word and be blown about like chaff.

With eternity's values in view, we desire to glean from the lessons in Job. Job loved God, and His Word assures us that for those who do so that all things will work out for good.  It does not say that all things are good.  May God help us be all we can be as we ask for His guidance, not trusting in our own wisdom when we don't have all the information.

Like an employer doing a year-end review, Paul starts with his commendations: those things the Thessalonians could brag about.  Because this church, like all churches, was made up of people, there were issues that he needed to address.  The priority for all should be growing in Christ.  Let's glean from this book and go forth as His workers at this time.

This book gives us a view of our Guide who works in the background through all the chapters of our lives.  There are no coincidences; God has a divine purpose and plan as revealed over and over again in His Word.

Paul made a missionary journey to Thessalonica, visited a synagogue there, and established a church in that location.  The record in Acts 17 documents Paul’s work teaching foundational truth over a three-week period. Could a letter reinforce the good and steer these believers away from the wrong?  Faithful Paul, enabled by God the Father, labored to correct error that was creeping in along with the challenges to his authority.  Whatever we’ve been called to do, are we serving in spite of the challenges or looking to be served?

Nehemiah asked about the work, he was affected by what he learned, he appealed to God in prayer, he admitted his and his nation's guilt, then he acted.  Am I willing to follow his example?