Blog

Pastor Ray’s thoughts on issues in the church and contemporary culture.

God’s Counsel

Job asked the question, “(Does God) see as man sees?” The obvious answer is no. Only God sees “the big picture”. Only God knows everything. The obvious, however, is not always so obvious in daily life. Amnesia in spiritual matters amongst Christians is the cause for...

The Oscars!

The cameras were flashing. Reporters and news media crowded around “The Stars”. This is Oscar night – the night set aside to acknowledge those who were the best in the various roles and aspects of the motion picture industry. Fashion and jewelry abounded. There is...

Works

Without a correct understanding of what the Bible says about “works”, it would be very easy to get confused about ones relationship with Jesus. We need to recognize the difference between the passage that some would claim explains that works are necessary to gain...

Unity In Jesus

Paul the Apostle called upon the church at Philippi to live in harmony in Jesus. There was no question that they were saved; in fact, he specifically wrote to two sisters in Christ whose names were written in heaven, but who couldn’t agree on spiritual issues. The...

Christianity “Lite”

We are living in very interesting times. People are becoming more and more health conscious. This has birthed an increase in reading the labels on the things that we eat and drink. There are now a wide variety of foods that are labeled “lite”, which supposedly means...

The Tragedy Of Rejecting Our Creator

The fall of mankind began when Adam and Eve believed the lie of the serpent instead of the truth of The Living God (Genesis 3). Ever since then, mankind has continued to fall for the devil’s lies about God. The most modern lie about God is found in the theory of...

Ready To Stand

A very popular boxing announcer precedes the introduction of the fighters with the words, “Let’s get ready to rumble!” I’m sure neither combatant thought the word “rumble” meant rhumba. Likewise, spiritual warfare is no dance. It is a fight to the finish. However, as...

Looking To The Lord

One of the benefits of belonging to the Father is that through Jesus we have direct access to God in prayer (Ephesians 2:18). How glorious it is to be able to call upon our Lord at any time throughout the day or night! “As for me, I will call upon God, and the LORD...

We Win!

As we begin our study on spiritual warfare and the armor of God, we must keep in mind the fact that when all is said and done, we win! Jesus Christ has obtained victory for each and every one of His children. Our victory is realized practically as we walk by faith....

Passing The Torch

Scripture tells us that children are the heritage of the Lord and the fruit of the womb is His reward. The responsibility of Christian parents is to follow the command to raise the children which God gives us “in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.” This training...

Dealing With Conflict

Every marriage can expect conflicts. No matter how young or old the couple is, no matter how many years they have been married, conflicts are inevitable. However, conflicts need not result in clashes. In fact, they can actually be unexpected blessings that draw us...

The Fruit Of Refreshment

Onesiphorus is referred to by Paul as a brother who often refreshed him.1 The Greek word for refreshed means “to relieve or cool down.” Paul, writing from prison acknowledges thanks for the refreshing ministry of his brother. How important for us to follow in the...

The True Spirit Of Worship

King Herod was troubled at the news of the birth of Jesus.1 This was because, if Jesus were King - and indeed He is2 - then Herod was no longer in that place of supremacy. How important it is for us to resist that spirit of Herod. Herod acted like he was interested in...

Back To Ground Zero

On my recent trip to India the Lord brought clarity in my heart about ‘Church life’ or life in the Spirit. Each of us who are in Christ craves for a deeper, more meaningful walk with Jesus. Likewise, we all seek to experience the moving of God’s Spirit as recorded in...

The Beauty And Power Of The Cross Of Christ

  What power there is in the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ! In His cross there is the power of God unto salvation (Romans 1:16,17). In His cross there is the power of God that enables us to walk in newness of life (Romans 6:4, 7:6). How different the cross is in the...

Our Faith Is Practical

In the last chapter of Galatians we are once again introduced to the practical application of the doctrines taught earlier in the book. A great example of this usefulness is found in the book of Romans: “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that...

How Is Your Hearing?

Jesus said to each church He addressed in Revelation chapters 2 and 3: “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” I find it interesting that each church was not only spoken to individually, but Jesus exhorted them to take heed to what the...

The Life After The Flesh

There are only two paths in life that a person may be on. One is the path of life through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the walk in the Spirit which benefits others and glorifies Jesus. The other is the walk after the flesh, which takes advantage of others,...

The Two Shall Become One

“And The LORD God said, ‘It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.’ Out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them. And...

God’s Will

As we begin another year, we embark into uncharted and uncertain territory in the pursuit of the will of God. Face it, even though we belong to Jesus, we have no absolute certainty of what each new day will bring. Generally speaking, “there is nothing new under the...

Wait, Not Haste

I don’t know about you, but at times I’ve got a tendency to try to “force” the hand of God to act. I confess that there are those periods in my life when I’m not so thrilled about the Lord’s timing. Of course, when the dust of my emotion clears, and I read the...

The Corinthian Test

The Church of Corinth was among the most gifted recorded in Scripture. However, as charismatic as they were, they were equally carnal. What was one of the manifestations of their carnality? Division within the visible body. There were social and economic divisions...

Christ Or Christianity?

We live in the era where “forms of Godliness” have replaced a living faith in the risen Jesus. The level of morality inside the majority of professing Christendom barely exceeds that of the unsaved. Why? Christianity has replaced Christ. We have adopted creeds to...

Cheerful Giving

Jesus said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” Of course we would all agree this is true intellectually, but have we discovered the truth of this scripture personally and experientially? Our example of giving is our gracious, loving heavenly Father. To...

The Day of The Lord

2 Peter 3:11-13 Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the...

The Commandment To Love

Obedience to the word of God is proof of our love for Him. It’s with this kind of person that Jesus finds a “home.” The greatest witness the Body of Christ can present to a lost and dying world is love. The greatest element within the Body of Christ is love. Love is...

The Doctrine Of Creation

The Bible teaches that God created the visible, material universe “ex nihilo” or “out of nothing.”. “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” All life and life forms as we see them today were created by Jehovah Elohim (Hebrew for “LORD God”). Recently,...

Jesus Builds His Church

The only individual who can claim exclusive ownership of the church is Jesus Christ. To build the church upon man is simply carnal. Yes, there are offices given to the church, but to be contentious over our preferences for the men of these offices is divisive. The...

Complete In Christ

One of the prominent messages of the Protestant Reformation was that salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, apart from any works, ritual or merit on the part of sinners. As we read in the Bible: “But God, who is rich in mercy, for His great...

Who Chooses Who?

If you have been a Christian for any length of time, you have more than likely been drawn into the Calvinism vs. Arminianism conversation regarding the method or process of man's salvation. Both systems of interpretation contain 5 points that contain biblical support....

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About Me








I am the Lead Pastor of Koinonia Fellowship, a husband, father and grandfather. I also serve on the worship team as one of the drummers.