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Priorities
Sermonette by Ryan McClureWe must screen out the allure of Babylon and make sure that God is always number one on our list of priorities.
Put God First
CGG Weekly by John ReissIn His letter to the church in Laodicea, Jesus Christ rebukes the members for failing to prioritize their calling and warns them of the consequences of their neglect. Our Savior provides the solution: Repent and make God and His way of life a priority. The things of this world come and go, but our God is eternal, and His Kingdom will last forever, which is why we should ensure that our relationship with Him comes first in everything we do. We must give God the very best of our time and efforts. Our calling demands that we pay attention, prioritize, and put our focused and dedicated concentration on God and living His way of life. He has great plans for our future, knows our needs and dreams, and will ensure our spiritual success if we put Him first.
Weeds!
Article by Mike FordSpiritual priorities must be diligently maintained, much like a gardener tends to a plot to prevent the overgrowth of weeds. In the Parable of the Sower and the Seed, Christ illustrates how the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the pleasures of this life act as thorns that choke the Word, rendering the hearer unfruitful. These worldly distractions are aggressive, stealing time and attention from spiritual growth, just as weeds rob nutrients and sunlight from desirable plants. If not addressed, they can crowd out spiritual progress, hindering the maturation of fruit. To manage these spiritual weeds, constant vigilance is required. Missing a day of prayer or Bible study allows entanglements to take root, which must be plucked out before they become entrenched habits. The difference between fruitful and unfruitful ground lies in the hearer's response—action versus inaction. Spiritual laziness can lead to a state akin to being Laodicean, where lethargy permits weeds to overrun one's spiritual garden. Daily effort is essential to hoe this garden, rooting out distractions like excessive focus on entertainment or material pursuits that sidetrack from higher priorities. One must regularly assess whether they are spiritually asleep or merely coasting, allowing other pursuits to overshadow spiritual needs. If distractions are found, they must be addressed immediately, pulling out these weeds by the fistful to prevent them from choking out the potential for quality spiritual fruit. Summer, as a growing season, demands daily checks to ensure that weeds are not springing up, crowding out the useful plants of faith and devotion.
Simplify Your Life!
'Personal' from John W. RitenbaughJesus clearly established the highest-priority goal for His disciples in Matthew 6:33, "But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you." He did this because He knows that the main goal, our highest priority, determines the preparations, efforts, and zeal for reaching it. Jesus is giving a warning to people with too many interests, as the most important interests, the spiritual ones, almost invariably get crowded out. Much of the time, our chief problem is a lack of commitment to the highest priority; we allow the secondary priorities to steal time from the primary one. Jesus urges single-mindedness, showing we must focus our attention on our highest priority, indicating devotion to purpose and undivided loyalty to the object of that purpose. A single-minded person who pursues God's Kingdom and His righteousness will have moral healthiness and simple, unaffected goodness. Eternity is purchased by how we spend our time in the present, making time priceless and not to be wasted.
In Focus or Out?
CGG Weekly by Gary MontgomeryWhat do an astronomer, a microbiologist, and a photographer have in common? They each use a lensed instrument to see God's physical creation in detail.
Simplifying Life (Part Two)
Sermon by David F. MaasWe are obligated to conserve and redeem time by prioritizing daily communion with the Father and Jesus Christ, dedicating time to spiritual practices.
Avoiding Prayer? Consider Carefully
CGG Weekly by Richard T. RitenbaughThe whole world is in hurry-up mode. What have often suffered are prayer and its companion, Bible study—and ultimately, the individual's relationship with God.
Make Sure of Your Focus!
Sermon by John W. RitenbaughDistractions produce a movement toward randomness and confusion, seriously endangering one's calling. We must sharpen our focus on God and His purpose.
In Search of a Clear World View (Part One)
Feast of Tabernacles Sermon by John W. Ritenbaugh (1932-2023)A Christian worldview includes the importance of our calling and the reality of God and His laws. Our worldview determines how we spend our time.
Acting the Fool
Sermon by Richard T. RitenbaughThe Hebrew words for 'fool' describe a person living his life without considering the consequences of his deeds—a moral deficiency, grounded in insolence.
Worry and Seeking the Kingdom
Sermon by Richard T. RitenbaughWorry is a wired-in proclivity of carnal human nature, a response that Satan has programmed in a perpetual state of discontent and distrust in God.
The Christian and the World (Part Eight)
Sermon by John W. RitenbaughHaving anxiety, foreboding and fretting about food, clothing, and shelter, or being distressed about the future, demonstrates a gross lack of faith.
Deadlines
Sermonette by Joseph B. BaityIn a recent study, scientists declared that, regardless of lifestyle or environmental factors, each human being has a clock with its own expiration date.
Intimacy with Christ (Part Three)
Sermon by John W. RitenbaughWe must fight against the world's pulls (including advertising), simplifying our lives, seeking quiet to meditate and build a relationship with God.
A Government to Fear (Part Four): Apathy
Commentary by John W. Ritenbaugh (1932-2023)Americans are apathetic to religion, politics, morality, and civic responsibility, while devoted to hedonism, sports, entertainment, and narcissism.
Be Strong and Work
Feast of Tabernacles Sermon by David C. GrabbeWhile the returned Judean exiles prioritized their own houses over building the temple, we should understand that it is always time to work on God's house.
Why Hebrews Was Written (Part Five)
'Personal' from John W. RitenbaughIf church members are to grow in grace and knowledge and be zealous in producing fruit to God's glory, they need to have their priorities in the right place.
Strategies for Interfacing with Babylon Without Becoming Assimilated (Part Three)
Sermon by David F. MaasThe current stormy cultural headwinds consist of noise, hurry, and party spirit. We must replace the gentile style of leadership and elevating leaders.
Seeking God (Part Two): A Foundation
'Personal' from John W. RitenbaughChristians need to have a conscious plan in seeking God. Here are several essential qualities that must be included in any successful course of action.
Ecclesiastes Resumed (Part Four)
Sermon by John W. Ritenbaugh (1932-2023)Profit from life is produced by work, requiring sacrifices of time and energy. We have been created for the very purpose of doing good works.
Don't Be Indifferent (2010)
Sermon by John W. Ritenbaugh (1932-2023)Labor-saving technology seems to have had the effect of separating us from each other and making us indifferent to things that should be important to us.
Widows' Mites
Sermonette by James BeaubelleWhatever the future held, the widow's life with God would always show her love for God, no matter what the circumstances.
Are We Redeeming the Time?
Sermon by Richard T. RitenbaughTime is fleeting; any of us could perish tomorrow. Procrastination in matters of godliness can be fatal, as the parable of the rich fool teaches.
Don't Be Indifferent
Sermon by John W. RitenbaughThe frightful Trumpet Plagues are coming on the world because of the breaking of covenants on the part of people who should have known better.
The Mark of the Beast
Sermon by John W. RitenbaughWill we trust God in the basic areas of life—food, clothing, and water—or compromise, accepting the mark of the beast to save our physical lives?
My House or God's?
'Prophecy Watch' by David C. GrabbeIn a revealing passage (John 7:53-8:1), the apostle John contrasts Jesus Christ to the Jews. God wants His people to prioritize Him above themselves.
Christianity Is a Fight! (Part 4)
Sermon by John W. RitenbaughThe sanctification process requires us to cooperate with God in order to produce Christian works and character, preparing us for the Kingdom of God.
Our Core Business
Feast of Tabernacles Sermon by John O. ReidWhen corporations get rid of their core business, they become less effective. Likewise when we deviate from our core job, we risk returning to the world.
What Do We Do at the End of an Age?
Sermon by David C. GrabbeIn this unstable world, the only solution is to decisively prioritize our relationship with God. That relationship is the only secure footing at the end of an age.
Remember the Sabbath Day
Sermonette by Hunter D. SwansonAll of God's people have at times felt overwhelmed by grief and exhaustion, needing a genuine rehabilitative rest. The Sabbath restores spiritual strength.
Whatever Your Heart Desires
'Ready Answer' by StaffThe Bible tells us that at the Feast of Tabernacles, we can spend our money on whatever we desire. Do we indulge ourselves, or do we enhance the Feast for others?
Is God in All Our Thoughts?
Sermon by Richard T. RitenbaughWe must not allow the cares of the world, its pressures or its pride, to crowd God out of our thoughts, bringing about abominable works or evil fruits.
Hebrews 12 and 13: Advice for the End Time
Sermon by Richard T. RitenbaughWe must lay aside every weight, accept God's chastening, receive encouragement from those who have gone before, and get back into the spiritual race.
Strategies for Escaping Babylon (Part Seven)
Sermon by David F. MaasWe draw closer to God through Bible study and prayer. Here are practical techniques for augmenting our Bible study, gathering our daily spiritual manna.
Giving All Diligence!
Sermon by Martin G. CollinsThe recipients of Peter's epistle were having difficulty holding on to their faith, having succumbed to fear as a result of lack of discipline and laziness.
Teaching Children
Sermonette by John W. RitenbaughShould we teach our children or should we allow the church to do that? Do youth programs have a positive impact? Do they keep youth them in the church?
The World (Part 2)
Sermon by John W. RitenbaughOur intimate fellowship should not be with the world, but be concentrated upon God and those who have made the Covenant, loving them as we would ourselves.
Matthew (Part Twenty-Eight)
Sermon/Bible Study by John W. RitenbaughWhen God gives a responsibility, He gives all the tools to carry it out and the freedom to decide how to do it. He wants to see how we do with what He gives.