Category Archives: Saturday Sabbath

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Christmastime: A Talk about the Holiday

This Sabbath, Pastor Catron took time to speak about the upcoming holiday of Christmas. What did it mean to us before we became Children of God, what did it mean to us after believing in Christ, and this year what it means to us now.

We were asked these questions. For many, Christmas is a time of warmth, joy, and merriment. It means we can see our families, and give gifts not only of physical things, but gifts of love, goodness, and compassion. During this time, we remember those in need all the more, and we are very generous. We establish our traditions of putting up the tree, lighting the yule log, singing carols, eating pumpkin pie, decorating with green plants and lights, hanging the mistletoe, and waiting for Santa Clause. In addition to these things, it is acknowledged that Christ’s birth, although His true birth is unknown, is December 25. This is what Christmas meant to some before they became Children of God.

After believing in Christ, He now became the central theme of why we celebrated the holiday. Yet, what does Christmas mean, why do we celebrate it, even though it is not Christ’s true birthday?

Lady Catron did a little research to answer these very questions, and the results were shocking. It was from her finding that we read from during service. Ark of Covenant Ministries does not celebrate Christmas because it was discovered that before our Savior Jesus was born, the traditions of what we now know as Christmas were practiced as rituals by those who knew not God our Father. Infact, the rituals were in reverence to other gods. These traditions have no bases in biblical teaching, and Christ became associated with these traditions because the Catholic Church moved His birthday to December 25. Those who already looked to December 25 as a day to honor a pagan god with the traditions we now know from Christmas, were those whom the Catholic Church wished to draw into the Catholic faith with compromise.

With this knowledge, we could no longer celebrate Christmas in good conscience to the Father and to Jesus. We realize also that “we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places” (Ephesians 6:12). A mid the world that we live in today, we realize that even though unseen, evil spiritual forces are still at work among us and we must put on whole armour of God, that we may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil (Ephesians 6:11).

The holidays are no exception when it comes to spiritual warfare. Now that we realize the truth about Christmas, we should all the more be on guard against spiritual wickedness, tricks, and deception.

If you would like more information about our findings about the holiday, you can click the link bellow.

 

‘Tis the Season to be Pagan

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Be Encouraged

This Sabbath, we had a special beloved guest, in the person of Bishop James Hailey to bring forth a Word from God, on how we need to be encouraged in the times we live in.

 

John 14,  John 16, Colossians 2:7

Encourage one another. We can’t get wisdom from each other, we can get knowledge from one another, but wisdom comes from God.

In John 14 and 16, the disciples are preparing for Jesus to be leave. What will it be like when He leaves? How can we apply that to today?

1) What you see is not always what you get
2) We are encouraged by the Word of God

As we grow and move from dimension to dimension in Christ, then we are confronted with things that we have to deal with, and we have to use the Word of God to do so.

So here we have Jesus having an assignment to go back to God. That was His purpose. We too have a purpose. Never will it come to pass that when we come into knowledge of truth, then set things up the way we want to. No. Jesus purpose was to seek and to save those who were lost, so that is His will for all man kind. This is our purpose too, and we can only do it through Him.

Not all the disciples understood what we have to do in serving Him. Just as today we don’t know. But we must be encouraged by the Word of God.

As long as Christ was on earth, He was our comforter. But when He was on his way to go, he said another Comforter was to come. He sends us peace by a Comforter. When we come to trials and tribulation of life, He sends us peace.

Now we come to a conflict with this political world we live in. People say “why do you serve God, yet you lack?” Because Jesus said we would have tribulation in this world. It all comes along with it. It comes with a lot of baggage. That is what we call it until will finally understand His purpose for us; it is no longer baggage.

We have to build on what God’s given purpose for us while living, so that when we die, we can leave. If we do those things that the Word of God tells us to do, then we will stay in peace. But if we keep our minds on things of the world, we will not have peace.

We have to stay in the Word of God, under anointed teachers, saturating our mind and thoughts so we can reason with the help of the Holy Ghost, to rebuke those thoughts contrary to the Word of God.

Let not your hearts be troubled. He knew the lust of the eyes, flesh, and pride of life would come. What we’re going through, what we see through the eyes; He is much more than we see.

We must always remember that when we stay in the Word we will be encouraged. Don’t look with natural eyes, but listen to the Spirit of God that is within.

Whatever were going through, what ever happens. We know when God is speaking to us, let us be encouraged. Things are moving up. We can’t see it, but it’s coming because He said it. We must stay encouraged.

We all have a part of us that wants to make a decision ourselves, but God is saying, no you don’t have much knowledge to do this. We have to back down and say that you God give me the worlds to speak, accessing the thing according to the Word of God.

We all have a purpose that God has, we should seek it.

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Where are Your Bowels of Compassion?

But whoso hath this world’s good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him? –1 John 3:17

In this age we live in, we find that the love of men, women, and children has turned cold! It has even come to the point were children are killing people, to the extent that their actions have become an epidemic. Yet, over what? Video’s game; PlayStations, Xbox’s, smart phone, tablets, shoe’s, clothing , etc. Kids take lives for what… what? THINGS! Some material thing, man made that does not have have life or have intelligence! Something that you can buy it right off the shelve. [Selah]
You may ask if it is wrong to play video games. NO. However, for a child, before their parents or guardian allows them to touch that game, first they need to teach the child how to be human being!

Note the follow words of Jesus:

“Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division: For from henceforth there shall be five in one house divided, three against two, and two against three. The father shall be divided against the son, and the son against the father; the mother against the daughter, and the daughter against the mother; the mother in law against her daughter in law, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.”  (Luke 12:51-53)

Look further at the Savior’s words:
“Now the brother shall betray the brother to death, and the father the son; and children shall rise up against their parents, and shall cause them to be put to death. And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.”  (Mark 13:12)

As I mentioned earlier, in the world today the hearts of men, women, and even children have become cold. Did you not know that your heart is the core of your body? The heart generates and distributes heat, food, and oxygen throughout the whole body. When the body gets cold, God has designed it so that the arteries, veins, and capillaries constrict the amount of blood flow, thereby slowing down blood flow to the areas of the body that may be cold, and in severe cases the blood flow to those areas may even be stopped. This process keeps the heart from receiving returning blood that is too cold it. If the heart receives too much of the cold blood it will go into shock and you will die.
Doctors have found that your heart contains brain cell. This means that your very heart  has its own intelligence! No wonder David mentions the heart in ways that give it the character of the mind.

 

“Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.”  Psalm 119:11

“I will praise thee, O Lord, with my whole heart; I will shew forth all thy marvellous works.” Psalm 9:1

“The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him.” Psalm 28:7

 

Now to look at this spiritually, if the heart has brain cells, then the heart is located in the brain. The brain happens to be where the spirit (Pneuma in Greek)  and soul (Psyche in Greek) dwell. Now, according to Galatians 5:22-23, the spirit contains attributes of love, joy, peace, long suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance.The Soul, on the other hand, contains the human imagination, conscience, memory, reason, affections.

Now, if your heart is cold, that means you have shut off the heat representing the spirit, the oxygen representing the soul, and the nourishment representing the Word of God. So, in essence you have become a zombie for Satan to do his biding. That why so many people are falling the the wayside. The church is even now begun to mimic the world to the point that there is not concern about the Word of God, rather the pockets of people. They are trying to make a name for themselves, and not an eternal home with God! That why the word says this “But whoso hath this world’s good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?” 1 John3:17.

Conclusion:

Word says, “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.”

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The Time of Purging Part One

Psalms 51:1-13
To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet came unto him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba.
Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness:
according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. Wash me throughly from mine iniquity,
and cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions:
and my sin is ever before me. Against thee, thee only, have I sinned,
and done this evil in thy sight:
that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest. Behold, I was shapen in iniquity;
and in sin did my mother conceive me.
Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts:
and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom. Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Make me to hear joy and gladness;
that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice. Hide thy face from my sins,
and blot out all mine iniquities.
Create in me a clean heart, O God;
and renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from thy presence;
and take not thy holy spirit from me.
Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation;
and uphold me with thy free spirit.
Then will I teach transgressors thy ways;
and sinners shall be converted unto thee.

David was a man after God’s own heart, because he knew how to ask for forgiveness. David said: Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

What is hyssop? It is a plant, a cleaning plant. It looks a lot like lavender. Lavender cleans you out and calms your mind. Hyssop has the same effect. It is native of the Mediterranean and is considered a holy plant. It is used as a disinfectant and cleanser. The oil can be used to treat arthritis and respiratory issues. In Christianity, it is associated with a new and clean spiritual life.

So, David did not just mention hyssop sparingly.

Kath-arios is the Greek word for purge. It means to clean, purify from sin, or cast out whatever is not pure or desirable.

David said clean out all the unnecessary, things spiritually and physically. As a Christian God has to clean us up for us to be an example for Him.

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By the Leading of the Holy Ghost

The music of worship and praise played through the stereo as the congregation waited for Pastor Catron to arrive to give us a word from the Almighty God. He began to go right into teaching the word of God, speaking into the lives of everyone individually. By the time he knew it, much time had passed, and he suddenly exclaimed “I did not plan on talking about this, but the Holy Ghost has chosen to do this!” The Holy Ghost was using Pastor Catron to speak into our lives, giving us individual courage in the face of our individual needs and problems.

We were asked to turn in our Bibles to Matthew chapter 5: 1-10

And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him: And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying, Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

In the face of serious problems we may be facing, because “greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world” (1 John 4:4).

Greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world” (1 John 4:4). 

This recently has become the motto of the congregation, as we put on “the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil” Ephesians 6:11. Lately, the spiritual battle has been raging tough for we know that we “wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places” Ephesians 6:12. Yet we are encouraged that the name of Jesus and the power of God through the Holy Ghost, can cast down demonic strongholds if we have faith in Jesus!

We were encouraged this morning in the face of adversity,confessing our “faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much” James 5:16.