Holy Hill Church

06/20/2026

1 Peter 4:14-16 NLT
If you are insulted because you bear the name of Christ, you will be blessed, for the glorious Spirit of God rests upon you. [15] If you suffer, however, it must not be for murder, stealing, making trouble, or prying into other people's affairs. [16] But it is no shame to suffer for being a Christian. Praise God for the privilege of being called by his name!

Peter tells the church, if we suffer pain or persecution let it be for good works, for following Christ, not for murder, stealing, stirring up trouble, or sticking our nose into other peoples business. Look again at what Peter tells us in verse 14.
“If you are insulted because you bear the name of Christ, you will be blessed, for the glorious Spirit of God rests upon you.”
Ask yourself this question, “Am I being persecuted because I adorn the Blood Mark of Christ?”.
In other words are you being persecuted because satan and his followers see the image of Christ upon you and His Spirit in you?
One of the highest compliments a child of God can receive on earth, is to be feared and persecuted by satan and his followers.
So, ask yourself another question, “Am I doing anything for Jesus and His church that would cause satan to hate me or fear me?”. If not, you need to change the way you are doing ministry because true ministry in Christ Jesus gets the attention of satan and others who hate Christ, that means persecution is inevitable for those who truly follow Christ.

Galatians 5:11 NLT
“…If I were no longer preaching salvation through the cross of Christ, no one would be offended.”

2 Thessalonians 1:5 NLT
And God will use this persecution to show his justice and to make you worthy of his Kingdom, for which you are suffering.

06/19/2026

1 Peter 4:12-13 NLT
Dear friends, don't be surprised at the fiery trials you are going through, as if something strange were happening to you. [13] Instead, be very glad-for these trials make you partners with Christ in his suffering, so that you will have the wonderful joy of seeing his glory when it is revealed to all the world.

Peter wrote this letter to Christians who were being extremely persecuted by Roman authorities and Jewish religious authorities.
Peter told the church “don’t be surprised at the fiery trials you are going through, as if something strange were happening to you”!
Peter was explaining to the church that persecution does not befall a child of God by chance, it’s not an accident, it is divine. God not only allows His children to be persecuted, it is part of His divine plan to test their faith, to purge their sins from them, to cleanse them, and to humble them.
Many of you reading this may not want to accept this truth. If you are one who refuses to accept that persecution upon a devout Christian is divine, then answer this question, “Why would Jesus tell us to rejoice when we are being persecuted?”
Matthew 5:11-12 NLT
"God blesses you when people mock you and persecute you and lie about you and say all sorts of evil things against you because you are my followers. [12] Be happy about it! Be very glad! For a great reward awaits you in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted in the same way.”
There are many who have quit following Jesus because they didn’t like the persecution that comes to those who fly the Christian flag. These that walk away from Christ and His church, they didn’t lose their salvation, no the fiery trials proved that they were never truly born again.
The hot furnace of persecution shows the purity of one’s soul and the truth of their salvation.

Proverbs 17:3 NLT
Fire tests the purity of silver and gold, but the LORD tests the heart.

06/18/2026

1 Peter 4:10-11 NLT
God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another. [11] Do you have the gift of speaking? Then speak as though God himself were speaking through you. Do you have the gift of helping others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies. Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ. All glory and power to him forever and ever! Amen.

God has gifted every one of His children with spiritual gifts as Peter tells us above and as Paul tells us below.
Romans 12:6-8 NLT
“In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. [7] If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. [8] If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.”
Every born again child of God has been given gifts and talents to use to minister to others and to bring glory and honor to the name of Christ.
Some believers have similar gifts, but some have different gifts, so don’t compare yourself to other believers who are gifted differently than you are and think that they are more blessed than than you are!
Every born again child of God receives the fullness of the Holy Spirit when they are born again in Him, and they are all equally gifted by the Holy Spirit to complete the body of Christ and to complement the works and gifts of all the other believers who work alongside them in the ministry that God has called His church to do.
The question you need to ask yourself is this, “Am I using my God given gifts, talents, and resources to personally and corporately push forth God’s Kingdom on earth?”

1 Corinthians 12:4-7 NLT
There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the source of them all. [5] There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord. [6] God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us. [7] A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other.

06/17/2026

1 Peter 4:9 NLT
Cheerfully share your home with those who need a meal or a place to stay.

The gift of hospitality is rarely exercised in our world today, especially in America. Why? There are three main reasons why people are no longer hospitable. The first reason is, most Americans are selfish and don’t want to share their money, home, or other resources with people who have legitimate needs, and sadly many of these selfish people call themselves Christians!
The second reason is, people are fearful, because there is so much evil in our world, it causes many to fear people even some of the people who attend church meetings with them. If you live in fear of being harmed by a person who has legitimate needs pray for discernment, ask God to give you peace and protection that will allow you to show hospitality to those with legitimate needs.
The third reason is, we have many in our society who take advantage of generous people, they have no desire to find a way out their poverty, sins, and addictions, they only desire handouts not a way out. Again pray for discernment, ask God to help you in your decisions on who to help and who to turn away.
And always remember, God didn’t suggest that we show hospitality, no He commands us to show hospitality!

Romans 12:13 NLT
When God's people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality.

Hebrews 13:2 NLT
Don't forget to show hospitality to strangers, for some who have done this have entertained angels without realizing it!

Isaiah 58:7 NLT
Share your food with the hungry, and give shelter to the homeless. Give clothes to those who need them, and do not hide from relatives who need your help.

Luke 14:12-14 NLT
Then he turned to his host. "When you put on a luncheon or a banquet," he said, "don't invite your friends, brothers, relatives, and rich neighbors. For they will invite you back, and that will be your only reward. [13] Instead, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. [14] Then at the resurrection of the righteous, God will reward you for inviting those who could not repay you."

06/17/2026

06/16/2026

1 Peter 4:8 NLT
Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins.

It’s not just love that covers a multitude of sins against us, it’s a deeper love that forgives others when they sin against us. The verse above calls this love deep love, other translations call this type of love, constant love, or fervent love.
Now, loving someone with this type of love does not mean we negate their sins against us, their rudeness, insults, lies, or unkindness. These sins should be brought to light and discussed, and then we should try to reconcile with one another and love one another as true children of God should do (1 John 4:20-21).
If you are a child of God hate should have no place in your heart, especially hate for a brother or sister in Christ. Our goal should be to love like our Master, He did not hold our sins against us, no to the contrary He loved us so much that He sacrificed His life to forgive our sins against Him, so we should do likewise towards people who sin against us!

Romans 5:6-11 NLT
When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. [7] Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. [8] But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. [9] And since we have been made right in God's sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God's condemnation. [10] For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son. [11] So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God.

06/15/2026

1 Peter 4:7 NLT
The end of the world is coming soon. Therefore, be earnest and disciplined in your prayers.

Most people tend to the think (based on science) that the earth will exist for thousands of more years. The problem with this type of thinking is, it excludes sound biblical doctrine and it excludes what the Author of the Bible and the Creator of all things said.
So, the better translation of what Peter is conveying to the church would be, “The end of all things is near”. Meaning the consummation or goal of God is achieved. In this verse Peter is not referring to the destruction of the earth, he is referring to the second coming of Christ Jesus. He’s telling the church that Children of God should live expectantly, we should live life each day as though it were our last day on earth, because in reality it could be.
Friends please know that there is nothing in the Bible that says or prevents Jesus from coming back today to redeem God’s children. The question you must ask yourself is this, will He find you living like you are expecting Him to return?

Matthew 24:42,44,48-51 NLT
"So you, too, must keep watch! For you don't know what day your Lord is coming. [44] You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected. [48] But what if the servant is evil and thinks, 'My master won't be back for a while,' [49] and he begins beating the other servants, partying, and getting drunk? [50] The master will return unannounced and unexpected, [51] and he will cut the servant to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

06/14/2026

1 Peter 4:5-6 NLT
But remember that they will have to face God, who stands ready to judge everyone, both the living and the dead. [6] That is why the Good News was preached to those who are now dead-so although they were destined to die like all people, they now live forever with God in the Spirit.

Peter tells us that God will judge everyone, “both the living and the dead”. Some who are alive now are living under God’s judgment. Some who appear to have escape God’s judgement, will not escape the final judgement of God when they die. No one escapes God’s Judgement, but we can escape God’s wrath by trusting in the shed Blood of Christ Jesus, as the verse below tells us.
Romans 6:23 NLT
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.
When you stand before God on Judgement Day, will you escape His wrath, the death and hell that awaits all those who refused to bow to Jesus as Lord and King of Heaven?
There will not be anymore invitation to repent sin and put your faith in Jesus once you have died! This invitation today may be the last one you receive.

Revelation 20:11-15 NLT
And I saw a great white throne and the one sitting on it. The earth and sky fled from his presence, but they found no place to hide. [12] I saw the dead, both great and small, standing before God's throne. And the books were opened, including the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to what they had done, as recorded in the books. [13] The sea gave up its dead, and death and the grave gave up their dead. And all were judged according to their deeds. [14] Then death and the grave were thrown into the lake of fire. This lake of fire is the second death. [15] And anyone whose name was not found recorded in the Book of Life was thrown into the lake of fire.