Mattoon East Side Nazarene

06/24/2026

What We Do In This Life Matters

Galatians 6:7

7 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.

Satan never mentions the consequences of sin. There are serious consequences to sin. Always. Without exception. Adam ate the forbidden fruit his wife had offered, “Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked” (Gen. 3:7).

Satan had told Eve her eyes would be opened, and she would be like God, knowing good and evil. In one sense, he had been right. Eve’s eyes were opened, but in a grotesque way. She knew good, but also that she was separated from it. She knew evil because now she was saturated in it. She knew good and evil in a way God never intended her to know — through her own experience. And she was deeply ashamed.

What we do in this life does matter, beyond even the question of whether or not we will see heaven. In eternity, our choices will be reflected in our heavenly rewards, for those who are saved (1 Corinthians 3:12–15; 2 Corinthians 5:10), or our eternal punishment, for those who are not (Revelation 20:11–14).

Until then, the "crop" we produce between now and the moment of our death is also determined by the "seeds" we plant along the way. God's natural laws of cause and effect still apply to believers and unbelievers alike.

06/23/2026

Finding Grace in a Broken World

Genesis 6:7-8

7 So the Lord said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.” 8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.

We’ve come to a day in which a man’s word means absolutely nothing, whether it’s a treaty between nations, a marriage contract, a business agreement, or a political speech. In Genesis 6, we read that people’s hearts were wicked continually before the Lord. And it had reached such a level that God said, “I’m sorry that I made them! I’m going to have to judge the Earth.” (See Genesis 6:6-7.) The same sins that produced the flood in Noah’s day have reached up to Heaven today.

But what did Jesus say the days of Noah were like? He said they were, “Eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage” (Matthew 24:38). They were going on with the same old routine of life. The problem in our society is that we’re standing right on the threshold of imminent judgment, but nobody seems to care. We just yawn in the face of God. In these dangerous days, we need to thank God we have His amazing grace. Genesis 6:8 says, “But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.”

- What are the signs that the world gives no thought to the things of God?
- How have you received grace like Noah?

06/22/2026

A Rebellious Generation

1 Samuel 15:23

23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft,
And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry.
Because you have rejected the word of the Lord,
He also has rejected you from being king.”

Saul has excused his disobedience to God's command by blaming the people. He claims "they" retained the spoil and said they were going to sacrifice it to the Lord (1 Samuel 15:2–3, 15, 20–21). Samuel explained to Saul that God desires obedience, not sacrifice (1 Samuel 15:22). We can't make better choices than God, and we can't bribe Him to excuse resisting Him. Samuel goes on to highlight the seriousness of Saul's sin.

It's not clear if Saul and the people originally intended to sacrifice the spoils at Gilgal, or if they first planned to keep the animals for themselves. Given that Saul set up a monument to himself (1 Samuel 15:12) and that the command from God about total destruction had been so clear (1 Samuel 15:3), the intent to use the animals for worship is extremely questionable. Even if it had been honest, Saul's disobedience was rebellion against the direct command of the Lord. Samuel now says that rebellion is just as bad in God's eyes as the sin of divination.

Divination is an attempt to persuade spiritual beings to reveal otherwise unknowable truths by offering them gifts. This often involved meals, money, or specific rituals involving animal parts. The same basic motive is behind mediums and necromancy: to learn what God has chosen not to reveal. Divination was clearly understood to be evil, and God forbade the Israelites from having anything to do with it (Deuteronomy 18:10; Ezekiel 13:23). Even today, those practices indicate a rejection of God's authority, and naivety about spiritual dangers (Ephesians 6:12).

Even so, Samuel's statement that disobeying God is as evil as practicing divination is almost shocking. He adds that presumption or arrogance is as evil as participating in idol worship. Saul had arrogantly presumed he could manipulate the Lord into giving His favor if he offered enough sacrifices. Or, that he could improve on the plans which God made, as if the Lord were just another house spirit to be appeased with rituals.

Finally, Samuel declares the Lord's decision to reject Saul as king. In response to earlier disobedience, the Lord had already declared that Saul's family line would not occupy the throne of Israel (1 Samuel 13:14). Now God rejects Saul himself. Saul had rejected God's word, and thus God would reject him as king. Saul's disobedience was egregious, and the consequences were severe.

06/21/2026

Congratulations to Mr. and Mrs. Colin Leggett! May God richly bless you and Aubrey.

06/19/2026

06/19/2026

The Proverbial Tongue

Proverbs 10:19

19 In the multitude of words sin is not lacking, But he who restrains his lips is wise.

The book of Proverbs has much wise counsel concerning the use of the tongue. It contains, for example, no less than 27 sober warnings against speaking lies! There are also at least eight condemnations of gossiping, such as “A talebearer revealeth secrets: but he that is of a faithful spirit concealeth the matter” (11:13).

Then there are warnings against using the tongue to criticize, slander, or hurt. A good example is in 12:18: “There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword: but the tongue of the wise is health.” And 18:8 says, “The words of a talebearer are as wounds, and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly.”

Too much talking is also dangerous, as our text for the day points out, for it often results in sin. In this connection, one of the most picturesque proverbs is the following: “A continual dropping in a very rainy day and a contentious woman are alike” (27:15). The virtues of silence are graphically pointed out in 17:27–28: “He that hath knowledge spareth his words . . . . Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace, is counted wise: and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding.”

Similarly, there are many promised blessings to those who speak carefully and graciously: “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver” (25:11). “The wise in heart shall be called prudent: and the sweetness of the lips increaseth learning” (16:21). “A wholesome tongue is a tree of life” (15:4). “The tongue of the just is as choice silver” (10:20). “A soft answer turneth away wrath” (15:1). “A word spoken in due season, how good is it!” (15:23).

May we, indeed, learn to make our speech like choice silver, apples of gold, and a tree of life!

~ HMM, ICR

06/18/2026

Excited About Jesus

Acts 1:8

8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.

The high service Jesus calls us to is that of being witnesses of Him as Savior and Lord. Witnessing is not necessarily preaching. For preaching is the exposition and application of God’s written Word, whereas witnessing has to do with what we ourselves, subjectively, have proved and experienced. The indispensable qualification and prime importance of a witness is firsthand experience. It’s like the healed man in John 9:25 who said, “One thing I know is that once I was blind, but now I see.” It is not cleverness or education or preaching ability that constitutes a witness, but firsthand experience of whatever is being testified to.

In our law courts, a witness is not asked what he or she thinks but what he or she actually knows by direct contact with the case under trial.

Friends, if we dare to be true witnesses of Jesus, we must have a firsthand, up-to-date experience with Him. We must be excited about Jesus in us.

You can’t sell what you are not sold on yourself. You can’t get someone else excited about something you are not excited about.

Answer this question: How excited am I about my relationship with Jesus?

~ Lenny Wisehart

06/17/2026

Right Isn’t Decided By the Crowd

Acts 27:9-11

9 Now when much time had been spent, and sailing was now dangerous because [a]the Fast was already over, Paul advised them, 10 saying, “Men, I perceive that this voyage will end with disaster and much loss, not only of the cargo and ship, but also our lives.” 11 Nevertheless the centurion was more persuaded by the helmsman and the owner of the ship than by the things spoken by Paul.

The question arose regarding whether to continue or not. Those leading the ship said, “What does everybody want to do?” Now there was a crowd on that boat, and Paul was outvoted. Despite Paul’s warning, they said, “Let’s sail.” But we should recognize that majority support doesn’t make a thing right. Morality is not set by the majority, but by God.

Twelve spies went out to spy out the land in Joshua’s day. Ten said, “It can’t be done.” Only two said, “It could be done.” The ten were wrong, and the two were right. Later, the people of Israel didn’t have a king, and they wanted a king. They should have been a theocracy, ruled by God, but they wanted a monarchy. They said, “How many of you want a king?” And they all voted for a king. They got Saul. God gave them what they wanted, but after a while, they didn’t want what they got. The majority was wrong. What is most important is what God is calling us to do, not what gains the most favor.

When was a time you felt led to go against the crowd in God’s name?
What makes this so difficult?

Consider today, where God might be calling you to go against the crowd for His sake. Take action toward faithfulness in this area.

~ Adrian Rogers