by Pastor Ray Viola | Mar 9, 2024 | Devotionals
The Scriptures have a wealth of information regarding different desires that exist in humanity. For example, the desire of a righteous man is for good, but the greedy desire of the slothful is deadly; and the desire of the wicked shall perish. In other words, it will...
by Pastor Ray Viola | Mar 8, 2024 | Communion Messages
Luke 6:46 And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say? I remember singing that old Hymn “Trust and Obey” right after coming to faith in Jesus Christ. One verse says, “Not a burden we bear, not a sorrow we share, but our toil He doth richly repay:...
by Pastor Ray Viola | Mar 7, 2024 | Contemporary Christianity
Labor In Rest – Now if that doesn’t sound like a contradiction in terms! But it’s Biblical. In Hebrews 4:11 we’re exhorted to “be diligent” or “labor” to enter into the rest of God’s salvation. In fact, Jesus told the people who followed Him: “Do not labor for...
by Pastor Ray Viola | Mar 6, 2024 | Devotionals
Pleasing God doesn’t sound very theological, does it? The fact of the matter is, though, that it is the very essence of our theology. We would probably all agree that we like to be pleased, but how about doing the things that please Jesus? Our Lord said, “If you love...
by Pastor Ray Viola | Mar 5, 2024 | Devotionals
Pride is perhaps the gravest sin in humans. It overestimates self and underestimates God and others. The Bible tells us quite a bit about this ugly sin. For one thing, God hates pride and arrogance in any area of life, whether it is spiritual pride (like the Pharisees...