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PASTOR'S WEEKLY PONDERING
Why would one turn from Thanksgiving to 'Black Friday' unless it be to turn one's attention from gratefulness to God to Satan's distractions with materialism, greed, and any evil desires. All I purchased on black Friday was a quarter inch nut driver I needed for a job i was working on and a draw bolt for my tractor to pull a trailer for the manure I was trying to get spread on the garden and fields.
I read II Thessalonians this morning. It speaks of two persons who resist each other. They are Satan resisting God, and the Holy Spirit resisting Satan. Satan uses all kinds of pleasures, vices, temporal and material means to distract us from God and eternal things 'to oppose and exalt himself against God.' Our human desires are easily fed by the multitude of wares in the markets, luring us to buy, buy, buy.
The other person seeking to control those urges in us is the Holy Spirit. The old English word 'let" has transitioned to 'hinder' in the 300 years since the KJV was written. When God ushers his church to heaven, the Holy Spirit's restraining Presence in us will be absent, for a short time of 7 years. Then Satan's chief ally, the Anti-Christ will attempt to rule the world and remove all faith of God in people. His deception will seek to convince all people to follow Satan lest they 'be saved.' Jesus will destroy Satan, his anti-Christ and false Prophet, the un-holy triumvirate in one triumphant return to earth with His second coming!
God's command to us is to believe the truth (Bible), stand fast, and hold to what was taught us in the traditions of the New Testament. In these we have good hope, comfort and are established in the grace of God. What better blessings than these have we for this season of the year; it's not black Friday, but our blessed hope.
Pastor Hartwig.
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Sunday mornings @ 10:45am
1130 Castle Creek Road, Castle Creek, NY, 13744
1130 Castle Creek Road, Castle Creek, NY, 13744