Skubalon Happens

This is taken from a post I wrote in 2009, but since I referred to this in a recent message (Sunday, January 2, 2022) I wanted to repost it.

Philippians 3:7-8 - But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ...

The above verse illustrates that when it is all said and done the things that we seem to think are so important, really aren’t at all, not even close. And in my own life, I experience this over and over again. I will become concerned, disturbed, worried, troubled, and terrified over something that turns out, in the end, to be really insignificant. And I think about the lost sleep, the upset stomach, and the frustration, and yes even anger, and then realize it was all for nothing.

If my life is really in the hands of God, then aren’t I really just along for the ride? I keep forgetting that there is a God who loves me wants the best for me. He is way smarter than I am and He knows how to guide me into a life that I can’t even imagine. And here I am getting all stressed out, and for what? For nothing really all that substantial, because in 100 years (or during eternity in heaven) what will these things really matter?

Here is where “skubalon” comes in. Paul says that compared to knowing Jesus and having Him in my life all these other things can’t even come close to comparing. So he thinks of the most insignificant thing he can to compare how little these things are, he uses the word skubalon (skoo'-bal-on). The translators of the King James Bible can’t use this word in its literal meaning because it is deeply offensive to our sensibilities. And they translate it using the word “dung” or the New King James uses the word “rubbish”. But Paul is making a very important point that gets lost in the translation, his intent is to show how small and trivial the things of the world are compared to knowing Jesus. So he uses the example of, (WARNING: if you are easily offended by language then you should stop reading right now: YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!) are you ready for this…He compares the things of this world…dog poop compared to knowing Jesus. (BTW, I would have used Cat poop instead!)

So what are we so worried about? We know Jesus! And He knows Us! 

Covid-19 Response

Last night the Church Board of Deacons met and have decided to take the following course of action in response to Covid-19. There will be no Sunday or Wednesday services for the next two weeks. (March 22 & 29). We will be monitoring the situation to see if we can meet Palm Sunday, April 5th.

Please know that this was not an easy decision because we realize that you will be disappointed that we are not able to meet. But the leadership of the Church wants to follow the community guidelines during this time and follow God’s Word... Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. (Romans 13:1).

Please do me a favor and refrain from posting anything negative on this page. But DO contact me with your concerns. You can Facebook message, email, (scovert277@gmail.com), or call and text me. (765-430-7463) I will be glad to share with you and answer all your concerns. Remember the whole world is watching.

We are going to make an effort to have online services during this time. So, watch for more information.

Also, please remember that the Church will still be relying on your faithfulness in the tithe. You can mail your tithe to...

Chardon Assembly of God
103 Center St.
Chardon, OH 44024.

God bless you and know that God WILL bring us through all of this!

Healing in the Scriptures

God heals Abimelech, his wife, and his female servants. (Genesis 20:17)

Miriam stricken and healed of leprosy (Numbers 12:15)

The brazen serpent in the Desert of Zin (Numbers 21:8, 9)

Jeroboam's withered hand restored. (1 Kings 13:6)

Widow's son raised from the dead (1 Kings 17:17-24)

The Shunammite's son given, and raised from the dead at Shunem (2 Kings 4:32-37)

Naaman cured of leprosy (2 Kings 5:10-27)

Elisha's bones revive the dead (2 Kings 13:21)

Uzziah struck with leprosy - not healed but made sick (2 Chronicles 26:16-21)

Cure of two blind men (Matthew 9:27-31)

The deaf and dumb man (Mark 7:31-37)

The blind man of Bethsaida (Mark 8:22-26)

The raising of the widow's son at Nain (Luke 7:11-18)

The woman with the spirit of infirmity (Luke 13:11-17)

The man with the dropsy (Luke 14:1-6)

The ten lepers (Luke 17:11-19)

The healing of Malchus (Luke 22:50-51)

Cure of nobleman's son, Capernaum (John 4:46-54)

Impotent man at Bethsaida cured (John 5:1-9)

Man born blind cured (John 9:1-7)

Lazarus raised from the dead (John 11:38-44)

Syrophoenician woman's daughter cured (Matthew 15:28; Mark 7:24)

Centurion's servant healed (Matthew 8:5; Luke 7:1)

Blind and mute demoniac cured (Matthew 12:22; Luke 11:14)

Demoniac cured in synagogue at Capernaum (Mark 1:23; Luke 4:33)

Peter's wife's mother cured (Matthew 8:14; Mark 1:30; Luke 4:38)

Leper healed (Matthew 8:2; Mark 1:40; Luke 5:12)

Jairus' daughter raised (Matthew 9:23; Mark 5:23; Luke 8:41)

Woman's issue of blood cured (Matthew 9:20; Mark 5:25; Luke 8:43)

Man sick of the palsy cured (Matthew 9:2; Mark 2:3; Luke 5:18)

Man's withered hand cured (Matthew 12:10; Mark 3:1; Luke 6:6)

A lunatic child cured (Matthew 17:14; Mark 9:14; Luke 9:37)

Two blind men cured (Matthew 20:29; Mark 10:46; Luke 18:35)

Peter and John heal crippled man at Temple (Acts 3:7)

Peter’s shadow brings healing (Acts 5:15)

Philip heals in Samaria (Acts 8:7)

Saul healed of blindness (Acts 9:18)

Peter and the healing of the paralytic Aeneas at Lydda (Acts 9:32, 35, 38)

Peter raises Dorcas from the dead (Acts 9:40)

Paul heals crippled man (Acts 14:10)

Healing through handkerchiefs and aprons (Acts 19:12)

Eutychus raised from the dead (Acts 20:9)

Paul survives snake bite (Acts 28:5)

Publius healed of a fever and dysentery; others healed also (Acts 28:8-9)

Leaves of tree of life for the healing of the nations (Revelation 22:2)

6 Reasons to believe in healing

1.    Jesus based His credibility on the working of miracles; including healing.

(John 10:37-38 NIV) Do not believe me unless I do what my Father does. But if I do it, even though you do not believe me, believe the miracles, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father.

2.    Jesus’ power to heal was proof of His ability to forgive sins.

(Mark 2:9-11 NKJV) Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, 'Your sins are forgiven you,' or to say, 'Arise, take up your bed and walk'? "But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins"; He said to the paralytic, "I say to you, arise, take up your bed, and go to your house."

3.    It is God’s nature to heal.

(Exodus 15:26 NKJV) "If you diligently heed the voice of the LORD your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am the LORD who heals you."

*notice the present tense of God’s promise.

(Psalms 103:2-3 NKJV) Bless the LORD, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits: Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases,

4.    Healing is included in the ministry of the 70 Jesus sent.

(Luke 9:2 NKJV) He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.

(Luke 10:8-9 NKJV) Whatever city you enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you. And heal the sick there, and say to them, 'The kingdom of God has come near to you.'

5.    Jesus promised the work of healing to His followers as a sign.

(John 14:12-14 NKJV) Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.

(Mark 16:17-18 NKJV) And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.

6.    The gift of healings is included as a means to build up the church.

(1 Corinthians 12:7,9 NKJV) But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all…to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit,

It’s All About Love

This summer I’ve been preaching about the Holy Spirit after all our Church is Pentecostal! The book of 1 Corinthians contains an in-depth teaching about the gifts of the Spirit and how they are to be thought of and used in the Church. Chapter 12 teaches that the gifts are to be thought of as equally important. That the gift needed at the moment is the one to be desired. Chapter 14 has a very practical teaching about how the gifts should be used and operate in the Church. But right smack dab in the middle is chapter 13, which is known by everyone as the love chapter. There are very few weddings where this passage hasn’t been used as a description of true love. Here’s the thing this chapter has absolutely nothing to do with romantic love. The Greek word used is agape, meaning the all-encompassing love of God.

Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing. (1 Corinthians 13:1-3)

The Bible makes it very clear that without love, the gifts and demonstrations of the Spirit are of no value. Just to be clear, the Bible doesn’t say it is of lesser value it says no value, a big fat zero!

So here is the challenge for us in the Church. The Holy Spirit will teach us how to love. And the tool He uses most often is the Church. Through the Church, we have our best opportunity to love. The world is guided by anger and hatred and people are losing the capacity to love. Why? Because as our culture, especially in America, moves further from God, the ability to love is lost. Love is the reason we need to be Spirit-filled. Love is the reason we need to seek Pentecostal power! The Church is the place where you can practice loving God and loving people. The mark of the truly Spirit-empowered church is a Church that learns how to love God and to love people.

As we enter into the last days, the Church, through the power of the Holy Spirit, will be the last source of love. After the Church, there is no other entity that is capable of love. Once the Church is gone love will also vanish. The point of all of this is that in these turbulent days people need the Church more than ever! More importantly, people need the power of the Holy Spirit! 

The Summer of the Spirit

This week we are going to start a new series of messages about the Holy Spirit and how He operates in the Church. We are going to be looking at three chapters of the Bible throughout the summer; 1 Corinthians 12, 13, and 14…

My goal is this series is to talk about what it means to be Spirit-filled. When most people hear about Pentecostal churches they have some preconceived notions many of which are wrong. They think about the manifestations of the Holy Spirit such as speaking in tongues. Or they think about the emotional response of Pentecostals. They think that when we come together that we are jumping around, raising our hands, or swinging from the chandeliers, or rolling babies down the aisle. I think most people would be disappointed to see just how normal we are.

Being Pentecostal is much more than the outward manifestations. In fact, it goes much deeper than that. Being Pentecostal means that we expect, allow, and prepare for God to interrupt us so that He can guide us in our life. My prayer before every service is that God would interrupt whatever we have planned. Why? Because I want to make sure that you and I have a genuine experience in His presence. sometimes if we aren’t careful we can program God right out of our services.

I don’t know about you but I need God interrupt me… I need God to come down move powerfully…I need revival in my soul…

Some of you are out there in the world all week long being drained of every bit of God’s Spirit and you need to be refilled…That takes a powerful experience with God through the Holy Spirit.

‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ Says the Lord of hosts. (Zechariah 4:6)

It isn’t our might that will revive us!

It isn’t our power that will revive us!

It is the Spirit that will bring revival!

It is the Spirit that will bring life!

It is the Spirit that raises the dead!

It is the Spirit that brings the healing power of God!

It is the Spirit that will lift you up!

It is the Spirit that takes your prayers before God!

The Church doesn’t need might. It doesn’t need power. It needs the Spirit! We need to be interrupted by God’s Spirit! We need to hear from God!

What makes us Pentecostal is we expect God to interrupt us, we allow God to interrupt us, we are prepared for God to interrupt us, we want God to interrupt us…

More than ever we need a move of the Holy Spirit…

Now don’t minimize the manifestations of the Holy Spirit because those manifestations show us that the Spirit is at work. They show us the might and the power of the Spirit…

So, let’s jump in…

We are going to have a great summer learning about the Spirit…

Palm Sunday Message...

On the day Jesus rode into the city of Jerusalem the Bible says ALL the city was moved. Whether they realize it or not the Jews have already declared Jesus as their king. With their own mouths they did it…but they changed their mind by Friday when they called for Him to be crucified…But here’s the thing…You can’t take back a coronation…

Once your king is coronated the only way to get rid of Him is to overthrow Him.

So, the Jews have rejected Him as their king…The stone that the builders rejected…But there is one other little problem…

They crucified Him…

The killed Him…

They rejected Him…

Even Pilate coronated Him with the sign on the cross…

They buried Him…

But He didn’t stay dead…

He arose from the dead and so their coup didn’t succeed…They had proclaimed Him the king…The Devil pushed them into rejecting and killing Him…

But He lives…

He was wounded…

He was beaten…

He was killed…

But He has also risen from the dead…

The only way to get rid of a king is to kill him…

The King of Israel is still alive…

Just a Reminder!

This is from yesterday's message...

A reminder of who we really are:

God has amazing plans for you…

He has chosen you…

chosen you to be a saint…

chosen you to be holy…

chosen you to be blameless…

chosen you to be His child…

chosen to give you every spiritual blessing from heaven.

That is who you are…

That is who God wants you to be…

That is who the Holy Spirit will give you the power to be…

That is who you can be.

Next Week: We are alive!