Afton Community Church

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Afton Community Church

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Afton Community Church is your iconic small town Midwest church. Great people! Traditional Hymns, Biblical Preaching.

Sunday services start at 9:00 AM Children's Sunday School starts at the same time. Fellowship time immediately follows the service.

10/31/2026

The Coming of the King: The Message of the Gospel of Matthew: The Rapture? Matthew 24:40-42.

“At that time there will be two men in the field. One will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding at the mill. One will be taken and the other left. Therefore, stay alert! You don’t know what day the Lord is coming.”

At first glance this appears to be a passage that supports the idea of a rapture. Those who hold to a rapture say that Jesus will come and take up believers off of the earth before He pronounces and performs final judgment. But that would be inconsistent with other places in the New testament where Jesus returns and His followers come to meet Him in the air. Then they proceed back to this earth that Jesus renews. A new heavens and a new earth. A restoration or a recreation of God’s original design. (Read Revelation 21-22).

The ones taken are the ones who did not come to Jesus. They will not be allowed a place in the new heavens and new earth. What will happen to them was determined by them before the second advent of the Messiah. Separation from God and His kingdom for eternity.

But the point of the illustrations is this, be ready. Stay alert. Don’t let the world lull you to sleep. Be on your guard because Jesus will return someday.

Lord, help me to stay alert and read for Your return. Help me show others the urgency, no matter how long it is before You come. Amen.

Until next time,

TO THE GLORY OF GOD!

Pastor Ray

10/30/2026

The Coming of the King: The Message of the Gospel of Matthew: Like the Time of Noah. Matthew 24:36-39.

“But nobody knows when that day or hour will come, not the heavenly angels and not the Son. Only the Father knows. As it was in the time of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.

In those days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark. They didn’t know what was happening until the flood came and swept them all away. The coming of the Son of Man will be like that.”

It’s the final week of Jesus’ life and ministry in His human body. He is telling people what the day of judgment will be like. His first comparison goes back to a story everyone who was listening would have known about. Th flood at the time of Noah.

But before that He said an unusual thing. Nobody knows, not even the Son knows when that day will be. I am not sure why He said that unless his knowledge was limited while he was still in His human body. I can pretty much guarantee He knows when that day will be now that He is sitting at the right hand o the father.

But we still do not know when that day will come. The point of the flood reference is to admonish people to be ready. Those who were alive at the time of Noah kept living life like nothing bad was going to happen. They were eating and drinking. They were getting married and giving in marriage. Life was as it always was. Or so they thought.

Even with Noah’s admonition to repent, they did not listen. They laughed at him for building such a ridiculous thing in the middle of a dry region. The closest water was the Mediterranean Sea several miles to the west.

Then the flood happened and it was too late for repentance. And that is the point Jesus is getting at. When He returns as conquering King the people who laughed and scorned and didn’t believe will have lost their chance.

We don’t know the day or the hour. But we do know that when it happens the opportunity to accept Jesus as Lord and Savior will be gone.
Lord, help me to proclaim the truth of who You are with a sense of urgency and love towards my fellow human beings. Amen.

Until next time,

TO THE GLORY OF GOD!

Pastor Ray

10/29/2026

The Coming of the King: The Message of the Gospel of Matthew: The Parable of the Fig Tree. Matthew 24:32-35.

“Learn this parable from the fig tree. After its branch becomes tender and it sprouts new leaves, you know that summer is near. In the same way, when you see all these things, you know that the Son of Man is near, at the door. I assure you that this generation won’t pass away until all these things happen. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will certainly not pass away.”

Jesus uses a fig tree to explain what is about to happen. People can see the fig tree sprout new leaves then they know summer is near. God’s nature provides many such signs, right? The geese around Wisconsin always forecast the beginning of winter. They fly south like clockwork. Again the geese forecast springtime when they come back.

This is where the passage gets a little confusing. Jesus says, “I assure you that this generation won’t pass away until all these things happen.” I think He is referring to His resurrection here. It doesn’t really make sense to think this is about His second coming.

But then He says, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will certainly not pass away.” This heaven and this earth will pass away is clearly a reverence to his second coming which fits with the next paragraph.

The point behind all of this is a sense of urgency to come to Him whenever things might happen. His call, His words, are constantly urging people to come to Him. And that is what our message to the world should be.

Lord, I don’t understand how things in the future will work. But that doesn't really matter. What matters is I am ready for that day and I am expending my life helping others know that day is coming.

Until next time,

TO THE GLORY OF GOD!

Pastor Ray

10/28/2026

The Coming of the King: The Message of the Gospel of Matthew: The Coming of the Son of Man. Matthew 24:29-31.

“Now immediately after the suffering of that time the sun will become dark, and the moon won’t give its light. The stars will fall from the sky and the planets and other heavenly bodies will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky. At that time all the tribes of the earth will be full of sadness, and they will see the Son of Man coming in the heavenly clouds (Daniel 7:13) with power and great splendor. He will send his angels with the sound of a great trumpet, and they will gather his chosen ones from the four corners of the earth, from one end of the sky to the other.”

This is a clear reference to the Second Coming of Jesus the Son of Man. Jesus says there will be suffering up until this time. This statement flies in the face of the teachings of the Prosperity Gospel. Things are not going to get better and better In fact they are going to get worse before they get better.

So as believers in the Son of Man we should not be surprised that things continue to get worse. The suffering is leading up to the end and serves as a barometer of the faith of believers in Jesus.

The tribes of the earth will be full of sadness. Then Jesus will appear in the clouds. He will send His angels to the four corners of the earth, all of the tribes that are sad, and reap the faithful ones and bring them to Jesus.

They (and we if we remain faithful) are gathered around Jesus and are a part of the great procession back to this created world that Jesus will recreate (look at Revelation 21-22). The world as we know it will be recreated the way God intended it to be. The big difference? No sin.

I plan on being one of the gathered. How about you?

Lord, I/we await expectantly for the day of Your return. Until that day give us the strength and the courage to stay true to You in times of suffering. Amen.

Until next time,

TO THE GLORY OF GOD!

Pastor Ray

10/27/2026

The Coming of the King: The Message of the Gospel of Matthew: False Messiahs. Matthew 24:23-28

“Then if somebody says to you, ‘Look, here’s the Christ,’ or ‘He’s over here,’ don’t believe it. False christs and false prophets will appear, and they will offer great signs and wonders in order to deceive, if possible, even those whom God has chosen. Look, I’ve told you ahead of time. So if they say to you, ‘Look, he’s in the desert,’ don’t go out. And if they say, ‘Look, he’s in the rooms deep inside the house,’ don’t believe it. Just as the lightning flashes from the east to the west, so it will be with the coming of the Son of Man. The vultures gather wherever there’s a dead body.”

We always need to remember an hermeneutical principle. The Bible wasn’t written to us but for us. (My friend, Kevin Thompson, calls this the Thompsonian Rule of Hermeneutics.) This passage certainly serves as a continued message of watch out for the false ones who want to lead you astray. But it was the same message for the early church.

The implication for the first century is this, these false Christs will come back in secret. They will appear in the desert or in the deepest, darkest part of a home or another building. And the chilling reminder at the end here talks about vultures appearing to eat the carcasses of the dead. In other words, if you believe these false proclaimers, death awaits you.

The history of the Church has been riddled with false Christs, Yet the history of the Church is also full of stories of how Christians stood up to the challenge. And reformations and revivals happened. Today, our nation is full of false prophets. Anywhere from the prophets of profit to those who want to wed politics and Christian living that flies squarely into the face of the teachings of the real Messiah, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Beware unless you and I find ourselves being fed to the vultures.

Lord, help me to be discerning about what is out there in the guise of Christianity. Keep me wholly committed tro You as the true Messiah. Amen.

Until next time,

TO THE GLORY OF GOD!

Pastor Ray

10/26/2026

The Coming of the King: The Message of the Gospel of Matthew: Destructive Desolation. Matthew 24:15-22.

“When you see the disgusting and destructive thing that Daniel talked about standing in the holy place (the reader should understand this), then those in Judea must escape to the mountains. Those on the roof shouldn’t come down to grab things from their houses. Those in the field shouldn’t come back to grab their clothes. How terrible it will be at that time for women who are pregnant and for women who are nursing their children. Pray that it doesn’t happen in winter or on the Sabbath day. There will be great suffering such as the world has never before seen and will never again see. If that time weren’t shortened, nobody would be rescued. But for the sake of the ones whom God chose, that time will be cut short.”

Jesus refers to the prophet Daniel here. Daniel’s prophecy was penned during the 70 years of exile for the Israelites, around the 6th century BC. The people of Israel are in captivity, something they thought would never happen because they were God’s chosen people.

This exile was bad enough but Daniel refers to a time that will be even worse. After the exile the Israelites came back home to rebuild the Temple and Jerusalem’s walls under the leadership of Ezra and Nehemiah.
The vision of Daniel about the abomination of desolation is referring to Antiochus IV Ephipanes, the ruler of the Seleucid dynasty during the time of the Maccabeans. The Maccabeans were freedom fighters who were trying to retake Israel.

Antioches IV desecrated the Second Temple by calling it The Temple of Jupiter Hellenius. He also executed anyone practising the Jewish religion, including circumcised males. It is after the conflict between this evil king and the Maccabees that Hanukkah starts to be celebrated as a reminder of the victory won by the Maccabeans.

That brings us up to Jesus’ prophecy of a similar thing happening in Israel. The fulfillment of this prophecy would happen relatively soon. Not at the end of this age, but in 70 AD when the Romans destroyed the temple and caused another panic among the Jews.

Jesus’ warning is to let the disciples know that it is going to happen and gives advice on how to deal with it. Don’t take the time to get anything that you own. Run for your lives.

Yet even here God shows His mercy by cutting the time short. There are people around the world today that faces persecution similar to the events described here. Yet they remain faithful. Historically the church seems to thrive more when it is under persecution. People come to Jesus when they see how believers act when they are facing death at the hands of evil men.

So, what about you and me? Will we stay faithful no matter what comes down the pike? We don’t even come close to suffering the kinds of oppression our sisters and brothers deal with every day. Yet the temptation to denounce the faith is real. In our country it is not forceful coercion but the need for personal happiness tht gets in the way. In fact, a cultural seduction is probably more dangerous to christians.

Lord, keep me/us true to you regardless of the tools of Satan that he throws at me/us everyday. Amen.

Until next time,

TO THE GLORY OF GOD!

Pastor Ray

10/25/2026

The Coming of the King: The Message of the Gospel of Matthew: The End of the Age?: The Losers and the Winners. Matthew 24:10-14

“At that time many will fall away. They will betray each other and hate each other.

Many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because disobedience will expand, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be delivered. This gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the world as a testimony to all the nations. Then the end will come.”

“The love of many will grow cold.” Chilling words, right? But that is what Jesus said would happen. Jesus talks about deceivers again. But it is important that those who fall for the deception want to be deceived for whatever reason. This is not something new. Remember the Garden of Eden?

This also reminds me of the Parable of the Sower or the Four Seeds. Hardship, deception, personal desires, are all things that can lead people to a cold heart.

Let’s not be deceived about this. It is someone’s own disobedience, the desire for self instead of Jesus, which brings this coldness in someone’s life. Sort of sounds hopeless.

Yet there is a way to be a part of Christ’s eternal kingdom. Don’t fall into disobedience. Endure to the end. Don’t believe the lies of the deceivers. The ones who persevere will be saved on that day, the Day of the Lord.

But those of us who follow the Truth are not to just sit around on our hands and wait. The waiting we do is a life of spreading the good news about Jesus the Messiah, the King.

The gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed. Not just in words but also in deeds, in how we treat people who are on the outside looking in. Even how we treat those very deceivers who are trying to drag us down.

Lord, thank You for keeping me true to You. The deceivers will come and go, they will do their best to drag me back into the kingdom of darkness. But with the presence of Your Holy Spirit in my life, i will remain true to You until the end of the age. Amen.

Until next time,

TO THE GLORY OF GOD!

Pastor Ray

10/24/2026

The Coming of the King: The Message of the Gospel of Matthew: The End of the Age?: The Deceivers. Matthew 24:4-9.

“Jesus replied, “Watch out that no one deceives you. Many will come in my name, saying, ‘I’m the Christ.’ They will deceive many people. You will hear about wars and reports of wars. Don’t be alarmed. These things must happen, but this isn’t the end yet. Nations and kingdoms will fight against each other, and there will be famines and earthquakes in all sorts of places.

But all these things are just the beginning of the sufferings associated with the end. They will arrest you, abuse you, and they will kill you. All nations will hate you on account of my name. “
Over two thousand years ago Jesus summarized the history of the world, especially the history of Christianity. There have been many who claimed to be the Christ. There have also been many who say that the Christ never existed, that He is just a fabrication of the Church.

Jesus’ warning, “Watch out,” is still a very valid exercise that true believers need to act upon today. This is very true for believers in tortured cultures that are trying to wipe out all believers from their state. But there are other false Messiahs running around rampant right here in this country.

The message is ultimately the same from the deceivers. “Your belief in this man, Jesus, is unwarranted. Come out now.”

Yes, Jesus promises that trials and tribulations, suffering and persecution, is a part of the life that follows Him. Even wars and rumors of wars and earthquakes and famine. Walking the way of Jesus is not a rose garden. He never promised that it would be,

But He did promise an incredibly grand fulfillment of all time. The time when He will return and make all things right, the way God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit intended them to be “in the beginning.”

Yes, the end will come. Maranatha, Lord Jesus!

Lord, I look around me and everything You said would happen has happened and is happening. I look forward to the Day when You return in all of Your glory to restore Your creation. Amen.

Until next time,

TO THE GLORY OF GOD!

Pastor Ray

10/23/2026

The Coming of the King: The Message of the Gospel of Matthew: The End of the Age? Matthew 24:3.

“Now while Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately and said, “Tell us, when will these things happen? What will be the sign of your coming and the end of the age?”

The end of Jesus’ earthly life and ministry is drawing to an end. Jesus turns his attention to a question His disciples pose. “When is all of this going to happen?” A legitimate question. People want to know the future as much as possible.

I have been a Christian for 61 years. I have four degrees in Biblical Studies, Ministry, and Theology. In is sort of rare when I see something I haven’t seen before. But something dawned on me as I read this passage.

“The end of the age.” Where else in Matthew is this phrase used? Jesus said at the end of what we call the Great Commission. “I will be with you until the end of the age.”

Think about this for a moment. Jesus announces all kinds of disaster while the world waits for the end of the age. Yet the promise He gives is He will be with His disciples until that day comes. This promise is going to be tested in the next few days. The One who promised to be with them is heading to the cross. But the rest of the events of that week are the greatest example of snatching victory from defeat the world has ever known.

“The end of the age.” When is it? I don’t know and neither do you. The one thing we can hold on to until that day comes is the One who died and rose again.

Lord, protect me/us as we goer through times of trial, temptation, and suffering because ofYour Name. Amen.

Until next time,

TO THE GLORY OF GOD!

Pastor Ray

10/22/2026

The Coming of the King: The Message of the Gospel of Matthew: Demolition of the Temple. Matthew 24:1-2.

“Now Jesus left the temple and was going away. His disciples came to point out to him the temple buildings. He responded, “Do you see all these things? I assure that no stone will be left on another. Everything will be demolished.”

The Temple. The symbol of the Jewish nation. The symbol of a faith that has been around for hundreds of years, a place devoted to God. The domain of the Sadducees and the high priests.

And Jesus says it will be demolished. Why? Why would God allow His temple come to ruin? The most important reason is the complete disregard of the priests of the things of God, especially God's Messiah, Jesus.

This devastating event happened thirty some years later as the Romans completely demolished it in 70 AD. I don’t think this would have happened if the Jewish leaders had accepted Jesus as the long-awaited Messiah. But they did not.

In fact, they thought they had destroyed Him. But the first sign of how wrong they ere was when the veil in the temple was rent from top to bottom. This act exposed the Holy of Holies and it shattered the reign of the Sadducees for ever.

The building was demolished but the Sadducees thought theory had destroyed this galilean who claimed to be the Messiah. In one sense their attempt to destroy Him was an attempt to destroy His temple, His own body. But God raised Him up on the third day.
And now those who follow Him are his temple.

Lord, let me never forget that I am a part of Your temple. Help me to be holy in my living, speaking, and doing life. Amen.

Until next time,

TO THE GLORY OF GOD!

Pastor Ray

Address

5126 S County Road D
Afton, WI
53501

Opening Hours

9am - 11am

Telephone

+16087564921

Website

http://www.aftoncc.com/

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