Judges 17:6 says, “In those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which was right in his own eyes.”

DANGER!!!  WARNING!!!  CAUTION!!!  The following is a warning from the pastoral broadcasting network.  This is not a test.  Failure to comply with this warning could be hazardous to your spiritual condition.  Your fellowship with God could be severely hindered by ignoring this truth.  Please be advised, DO NOT ALLOW YOUR EYES TO BE YOU GUIDE!!!

There are many illustrations in the word of God that gives us ample reason to submit ourselves to God’s word and not allow our eyes to be our guide.  Solomon and Lot were two men that throughout their lives they did what their flesh urged them to do. 

Notice the attitude that prevailed in Solomon.  Ecclesiastes 2:10 says, “And whatsoever mine eyes desired I kept not from them, I withheld not my heart from any joy; for my heart rejoiced in all my labour: and this was my portion of all my labour.”  Solomon tells us that whatever was set before his eyes, if he had a desire for it, he went after it with his heart.  What a dangerous way of living.  This path leads to destruction every time.  You cannot feed your flesh, act on every sinful desire, and still think that you are going to stay on the path of righteousness.  This is impossible!  When you allow the eyes of your flesh to be your guide, the enemy is ready to destroy your very soul. 

Genesis 13:10-13 says, “And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered every where, before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, even as the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt, as thou comest unto Zoar.  Then Lot chose him all the plain of Jordan; and Lot journeyed east: and they separated themselves the one from the other.  Abram dwelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent toward Sodom.  But the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the LORD exceedingly.”

Lot allowed his eyes to be his guide, and in the process lost everything, including his family.  I like what Theodore Cuyler said about Lot, “And soon Lot moved into Sodom; and before long Sodom moved into him.” This has been the fate of so many.  They get there eyes off the Lord, and they allow their own thinking and desires to guide them.  Thus it is by their own decision that their life is destroyed.

As we enter into a new year, I charge you to allow the WORD OF GOD to be your guide in every area of your life.  Do not allow your flesh to win.  Have the attitude of Paul and say, “But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.”  Subdue your desires.  Mortify your flesh and you will win in 2010!

Lord, my flesh is strong, but you are stronger.  Give me the power to conquer my flesh and the desire to submit to your Spirit.  I want the Word of God to guide me in every decision of my life.  I submit myself to you!  Amen.

Pastor Scott Coghill

 
 
John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

It is better to give than to receive.  Of course, this phrase is not original with me.  Whoever said it first really said a mouthful.  It is better to give, and no one has ever given more than God when he gave us his Son.  This truth alone holds the meaning of why the Christmas holiday is a season of giving. 

Giving is a large part of the Christmas season at the Coghill house, and not just because we give gifts to each other.   Now don’t get me wrong, I enjoy that part.  I love to see our children’s excitement when they open the presents that God has made provision for us to give to them.  Every parent knows that joy.  It is fulfilling to see the happy faces, the innocent smiles, and the visible gratitude.  Although these things are not wrong, I caution us all to make sure that we keep the precious gift in the manger priority this Christmas.  The reason for the season is GOD GIVING HIS SON TO THE WORLD. 

Think about that marvelous gift.  The Lord Jesus Christ was eternally rich, glorious, and exalted; but "though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor."  He left everything that was heavenly eternal, to robe himself in mortal flesh, to dwell in a flawed world.  God’s motivation for giving was His supreme love for you and for me.  He demonstrated and proved this love by sending Christ for sinners.  We read in Matthew 1:21, “and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.”  John said it well, “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God.”

Focus on this gift; the gift of His love, His Son, and eternal life.  See the great price that was paid for the gift to be possible.  Be grateful today for the greatest gift that has ever been given.  His name is “Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.”

Closing Prayer
God, you are a faithful Father and the source of life.  I thank you for the gift of Jesus.  Help me keep Christ as the focus of this Christmas season.  Provide me with opportunities to give as you gave.  Amen!

Pastor Scott Coghill

 
 
Ecclesiastes 1:14 says, “I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity and vexation of spirit.”

What a sad scene we find in this passage. Solomon, the king of Israel, looks back on a life that was completely spent on things that do not matter. He calls them vain. He tried every sin and pleasure that his flesh could consume, yet still lacked the fulfillment and peace he longed for. His own foolish choices caused vexation in his soul. A life that was filled with so much promise looked to end in utter disaster.

Are you interested in experiencing these same feelings of guilt and regret? If so, follow in these same footsteps. Follow after vanity. Pour your life into this world, and you to will find yourself looking back with shame. It pains me to think of all God could have accomplished through the life of Solomon, yet because of his appetite for sinful indulgence, he missed out on all that God had for him.

You can only spend your life once. This truth is one that we must grasp completely. “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”(Matthew 6:24) When Jesus spoke these words, He was stressing the point of impossibility. The attempt to serve two masters is not only disobedience, it is impossible. You are not capable of spending your life for the world and the Lord. It is one or the other.

Today, we are bombarded with attacks and temptations very similar to Solomon. The devil ask of you the same thing that God ask. The request is for you to spend your life on him and his pleasure. God ask you to surrender you life for His glory and His good pleasure.

I charge you today, live for God. Pour your life into what is godly. Offer yourself as a living sacrifice which is holy and acceptable to the Lord. May we be found guilty of spending our lives in Christ. This labor is not in vain. “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.” (I Corinthians 15:58)

Father, I pour myself out on you today. May the days of my life be spend for you. Keep me from that which would attract my surrender away from the One I love supremely. Lord, that is you. Amen

Pastor Scott Coghill