A recent copy of the cartoon “Family Circle “ by Bil Keane showed the four children gathered around a broken lamp. The caption read, “Okay, whose turn is it to take the blame?” Most of us are quite adept at the blame game! Trying to cover up for wrong doing has been a characteristic of human nature ever since Adam blamed both his wife Eve and God for their disobedience in the Garden of Eden, saying it was “The woman You gave me.” But every decision brings a consequence and we must all take responsibility for our actions. An Old Testament writer warned, “Be sure your sin will find you out.” And a New Testament writer commented, “Every knee shall bow, and every tongue shall confess“ to God, some day. We reap what we sow. Thankfully, John was inspired to write, “If we confess our sins, He (Jesus) is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Pastor Alex Rockwell

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“You only get what you pay for.” That is a common saying, often made by those who’ve tried to save money by buying the cheapest item they could find, only to learn that it was of poor quality. While this is certainly true in the world of commerce, when it comes to acquiring things in the spiritual realm, it does not hold true. That’s because none of us can buy forgiveness or a home in heaven. Thankfully though, the Lord Jesus Christ offers forgiveness, justification and peace of mind as a free gift. A New Testament writer put it as follows- “Grace and peace to you from God the Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for our sins.” In other words, God’s grace is not for sale. He offers us “free grace.” He seeks us, saves us, satisfies us and secures our future. Yes, it is difficult to wrap our minds around this, but it is true. And Jesus still invites us, “Come to me all you who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

Pastor Alex Rockwell

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Recently I heard of a God fearing man who was asked the following unusual question- “Did you lose anything when you became a Christian?” But it was the Christian gentleman’s answer that I found most fascinating and informative. He replied, “Yes- before, I had an old slouch hat, a ragged suit and holes in my shoes. I drank to excess and quarreled with my wife. I lost all that.” “Yes,” he concluded, “I lost many bad things when I accepted Christ.” Paul the Apostle, writing to the Corinthian believers of his day explained clearly what really happens when anyone sincerely invites Christ into his or her life, saying, “therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away, behold all things have become new.” When this takes place, you lose your fear of death, and your guilty conscience. In their place, you receive the forgiveness for all wrong-doing. That is surely the best bargain ever offered. Have you taken it?

Pastor Alex Rockwell

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There was a Provincial election recently in New Brunswick. There will be a Federal election next year. There are always promises, and more promises as we get closer to election day. Politicians of all stripes hold out hope that there will be lots of money to deal With education, infrastructure, and the ever present need to solve health care problems. Unfortunately, a large percentage of political promises are never kept. Thankfully, there is One Who always keeps His promises. I speak of the Heavenly Father. The Psalmist declared, “The Lord is faithful to all His promises.” And Joshua adds, “Not a word failed of any good thing which the Lord had spoken…all came to pass. And with regards to one’s personal relationship to God, and our future, we are promised, “…if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” God keeps His promises.

Pastor Alex Rockwell

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Last month, two young Canadian soldiers were murdered, adding to a growing number of terrorist related atrocities. Often people look at the violence and heartbreak in this world and ask, “why does God allow these terrible things to happen? If we are thinking people, we must remember that much of the violence and heartbreak comes because we have been given power to choose. And man has, for the most part, chosen rebellion and disobedience to his Creator, resulting often in harm coming to innocent people. From the beginning, we cannot deny the existence of evil or the main source of evil itself- Satan, called in the Bible, “the god of this age.” As a matter of fact, the Bible declares, “if our gospel is veiled, to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this world has blinded…lest the light of the glory of Christ should shine on them.” Say, isn’t it time to stop blaming God for what mankind has brought on ourselves?”

Pastor Alex Rockwell

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Dr. W. Gifford Jones’ M.D. says that medical advances now make it possible for doctors to predict ailments before they strike. He says that blood studies can now show a pre- diabetic state. Then helpful and appropriate steps can be taken. Like our medical condition, it is also possible to know our spiritual condition, as diagnosed by God. For example the Bible states clearly that every single person is a sinner, by nature and by choice- “There is none righteous, no not one!” That, is a hard pill to swallow. But when we honestly accept that fact, we can move on to acknowledging that on our own, we are incapable of pleasing God. Then, when we’ve admitted that humbling truth, we are ready to make the greatest decision of our lives- explained by John, in his gospel- “…as many as received Him,(Jesus) to them He gave the right to become the children of God, to those who believe in His name.” That’s the diagnosis and prescription of Jesus, the Great Physician.

Pastor Alex Rockwell

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“…there will be distress of nations, with perplexity…men’s hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on earth.” The events in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, and now right here in our country, confirm and illustrate the truthfulness of these words from the gospel of Luke. Around the world the threat of terrorism has indeed produced great fear, because it seems that there nowhere can one be safe. Into this crisis Jesus the Son of God comes, with these comforting words, “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in me.” So many today give lip-service to God, or a god, but do not believe in the Jesus of the bible. That is a fatal mistake in light of Jesus’ later words, when He said, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” As world conditions worsen, and fear increases, Jesus tells us that we can have peace when our hearts are troubled, by becoming personally related to Him by faith.

Pastor Alex Rockwell

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Charlie Brown, in the cartoon is up to bat. Strike one. Strike two, strike three. He has struck out again and slumps down on the player’s bench. He says, “Rats! I’ll never be a big league player. I know I’ll never make it.” Then Lucy tries to console him. “Charlie Brown,” she says, “What you need to do is set yourself more immediate goals.” Charlie Brown looks up and asks, “Immediate goals?” Lucy responds, “Yes, when you go out to pitch, see if you can walk out to the mound without falling down.” Interesting advice, Lucy. We too need to set an immediate goal and take the first step. True, we have all failed and done wrong. That’s because we are all sinners. “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” We cannot please God without Christ in our lives. Jesus said, “No one comes to the Father except through me. ”We all need to ask the Savior to forgive us and fit us for heaven, and for the life here and now. The best preparation for tomorrow is the right use of today.

Pastor Alex Rockwell

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He could receive mails, but could not send any. So he called his server for help. The young lady who answered, asked if he would allow her to take control of his computer remotely in order to solve the problem. The man agreed, and after a while he could see his cursor moving around on the screen of his computer, as if by magic. The technician then gave instructions as to what needed to be done. When her instructions were followed, the problem was solved. This rather common method of giving control of your computer to a technician is a very good illustration of what God expects of us. In a similar manner, God says to His children, “Put your hand in the hand of the Man Who stills the water. And the Bible says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths.” The Savior wants you and me to put our lives into His hands. We can trust Him to take good care of us.

Pastor Alex Rockwell

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Believe it or not, a study of Canadians’ body mass index and mortality suggests that people who are overweight live longer than people of normal weight. And the study says that slightly overweight people had a lower risk of dying than those of normal weight. Well what do you know about that? On one hand we’re told to get thinner, on the other we’re advised to put on weight. It seems like the rules change as often as the weather. But in regards to our spiritual health, God’s Word, the Bible is always consistent. It clearly tells us to admit our spiritual bankruptcy and inability to please God by good works. Then it tells us speaking of Christ, “… there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” Weather and medical people being human, make mistakes but our all-knowing Heavenly Father is never wrong, never has to say “oops.” And that applies to those thin or fat, young or old, and regardless of ethnic background.

Pastor Alex Rockwell

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