The church of Christ that meets at Cloud Nine

09/10/2026

09/02/2026

Weekly Encouragement - Those Who Practice Lawlessness - Matthew 7

Jesus taught in Matthew 7:21-23 "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'”

We have been given exceedingly great and precious promises to be partakers of the divine nature (2 Peter 1:4). Peter taught in 2 Peter 1:10-11 “Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble; for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” It should be the desire of every Christian to enter the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. But not everyone who says “Lord, Lord” will enter that kingdom. Jesus even says that there will be many who say “Lord, Lord” to Him who will not enter the kingdom. In other words, many who say that they are Christians will nor enter.

Jesus is talking about individuals who believed in Him, maybe even taught others about Him and even did many wonders in His name. These will be rejected in that day, not because they didn’t believe in Him or do the things they claimed they did, but because they did not do the will of His Father in heaven and they practiced iniquity or lawlessness. Jesus later taught in Matthew 13:41-42 “The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness, and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.” In His kingdom, the church, there will be things that offend and those who practice lawlessness; His angels will gather them out of His kingdom and cast them into the furnace of fire.

Some churches tolerate those who practice lawlessness. The church in Corinth tolerated sexual immorality. 1 Corinthians 5:1-2 “It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and such sexual immorality as is not even named among the Gentiles — that a man has his father's wife! And you are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he who has done this deed might be taken away from among you.” The church in Pergamos tolerated lawlessness. Revelation 2:14-15 “But I have a few things against you, because you have there those who hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit sexual immorality. Thus you also have those who hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate.” The church in Thyatira had a similar problem. Revelation 2:20 “Nevertheless I have a few things against you, because you allow that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, to teach and seduce My servants to commit sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols.” Many churches today tolerate lawlessness among their members. Maybe they don’t want to lose membership; maybe they choose the easy path of no conflict. Paul gave instruction to the Corinthian church in 1 Corinthians 5:12-13 “For what have I to do with judging those also who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside? But those who are outside God judges. Therefore ‘put away from yourselves the evil person.’”

A Christian believer may tolerate lawlessness in his own life. He may commit sexual immorality. He may look on a woman to lust after her and commit adultery in his heart (Matthew 5:28). He may envy other people or be covetous. He may be a drunkard or willfully come under the influence of illegal drugs. He may hate his neighbor or even his brother and not act in love. When confronted with his sin, he may deny that he has any problem. There can be any number of acts of lawlessness that a believer might tolerate in his own life. He may have the attitude “I know it is wrong, but I’ll go ahead and do it and then get forgiveness later.” If you are guilty of sin, you need to truly be sorry for your sin and not tolerate lawlessness in yourself. 2 Corinthians 7:10 “For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death.”

Seek for purity and do not tolerate any lawlessness in your life. Titus 2:11-14 “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.” When you truly appreciate the love and grace of God toward you, you will want to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts and be zealous for good works. Jesus has redeemed you from every lawless dead. 1 John 3:2-3 “Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.” You should seek to be pure from lawlessness in your life.

I encourage you to have the same heart as David expressed in Psalms 141:3-4 “Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips. Do not incline my heart to any evil thing, to practice wicked works with men who work iniquity; and do not let me eat of their delicacies.” The apostle Paul wrote in 2 Timothy 2:19 “Nevertheless the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: ‘The Lord knows those who are His,’ and, ‘Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.’” My encouragement is for you to depart from all iniquity or lawlessness. You do not want to come to Jesus at the end and have deceived yourself that just because you go to church and call Jesus Lord you will be accepted by Him. Not everyone who says “Lord, Lord” will enter the kingdom. Make sure that you will be welcomed by Jesus.

08/26/2026

Weekly Encouragement - Known By the Fruit - Matthew 7

Sheep are typically gentle and harmless. They have little ability to protect themselves from predators. They can’t run fast for long distances like a gazelle. They don’t have a hard shell like a tortoise. They have little by way of teeth, claws or horns to fight an enemy. They are basically defenseless. When a wolf or coyote is among a flock, a sheep is likely to be slain. But what if the wolf were to disguise itself and put on the wool of a sheep and look like the rest of the flock? Jesus taught about this in Matthew 7:15-20 "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them.”

Jesus says to beware of false prophets because they are like wolves in sheep’s clothing. False prophets claim to be bringing a message from God but in reality, their message is not from God. They know that they have not heard from God but they desire to deceive others. Over the years, there have been prophets who have claimed that God or an angel spoke to them and gave them a revelation. Beware if you encounter such a one. It is also possible that you will encounter religious leaders who intentionally misinterpret or misapply the biblical scriptures and deceive others to follow them. I do not think this applies to all individuals who have an incorrect understanding of the scriptures. Jesus called the false prophets ravenous wolves. That means that these individuals desire to deceive, cause harm and gain from their work. Jesus said “Therefore by their fruits you will know them.”

Jesus gave us an important principle. “Every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit … Therefore by their fruits you will know them.” A pecan tree bears pecans. A peach tree bears peaches. A sweet orange tree bears sweet oranges. An ornamental orange tree bears sour oranges which are not fit to be eaten raw. It is a simple truth that we know a tree by the fruit that it bears. When you look at people who claim to be Christians, how can you tell if they are genuine or not? You can tell by the fruit that they bear. Genuine followers of Jesus will bear good fruit. There are three kinds of fruit that I would like to address in this context.

The first kind of fruit is good works. There are many scriptures that teach us to have good works. Here are a few. Colossians 1:10 “That you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.” 1 Timothy 6:17-18 “Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy. Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share.” Examples of good works are given by Jesus in Matthew 25:31-36 as giving food to the hungry, drink to the thirsty, clothes to the naked, and visiting the sick and those in prison. James teaches us to help orphans and widows in their trouble (James 1:27). Praying for others is a good work. Telling others about Jesus is a good work. There are many opportunities to do good works. The genuine follower of Jesus will be rich in good works. The false Christian will not be busy in good works. Or perhaps some of the works of a false Christian are not good; maybe the works contain deceit or falsehood or immorality.

The second kind of fruit is the words that come out of the mouth. Jesus taught in Matthew 12:33-35 "Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit. Brood of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.” The words that are spoken show what kind of heart that someone has. If the words are critical, harsh, condemning, containing falsehoods, or expressing unrighteousness, that shows that the heart is not good. If the words are truthful, kind, loving, caring, praising, and blessing, then the heart is good. A tree is known by Its fruit. A heart is known by what comes out of the mouth.

The third kind of fruit is the fruit of the Spirit. Galatians 5:22-25 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ's have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” When one has the Holy Spirit of God living within him and leading him in his life, he demonstrates this fact by the fruit of the Spirit that he shows. He is loving, joyful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle and he demonstrates self-control in his actions and peace with God and his fellow man. You know the genuineness of a Christian by the fruit of the Spirit that he displays. A false Christian is missing this fruit.

What kind of fruit do you bear? Are you rich in good works? What kind of words come out of your mouth? Do you demonstrate the fruit of the Spirit in your life? Based upon the fruit in your life, what would others say about you? Does the fruit you bear demonstrate that you need to make some changes in your life? Matthew 7:3-5 “And why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, 'Let me remove the speck from your eye'; and look, a plank is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.”

People are known by their fruit. You will know others as true Christians by the fruit they demonstrate. Evaluate the fruit of your life and make whatever corrections are necessary.

08/23/2026

The Cloud Nine Church of Christ welcomes you!

Today's study is on Jesus on the Cross by Glenn Hart

08/20/2026

08/19/2026

Weekly Encouragement - Two Gates, Two Ways - Matthew 7

Jesus taught in Matthew 7:13-14 “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.”

Jesus describes two paths for life. One path has a wide gate, a broad way and it leads to destruction. Since the gate is wide, it is easy to enter; no special requirements. The way is broad. Just do what you want to do. Live life as you think best. It includes many ways of living. Follow your fleshly desires. Look out for yourself because you are the most important one. Believe whatever you want to believe. Maybe deny the existence of God and worship something else: your job, the earth, or riches. Seek pleasure. No need to follow moral rules. If you have rules, yours are as good as the next person’s rules. Anything goes. Many people live this way. It requires no change, no repentance, no discipline, no cross to bear. Ephesians 2:2-3 “In which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.”

Jesus said that this first path leads to destruction. Proverbs 14:12 “There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death.” 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9 “And to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power.” The broad way leads to destruction.

The second path has a narrow gate, the way is difficult, but it leads to life. Since the gate is narrow, it is harder to enter. It requires self-denial, taking up your cross and following Jesus. Matthew 16:24-25 “Then Jesus said to His disciples, ‘If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.’” It requires seeking and following the truth regardless of what the consequences might be. It insists on repentance and calls for obedience. It centers on Christ alone, not “Christ plus whatever I want”. Few are going to seek to enter this gate or follow the path because the gate is narrow and the way is difficult.

Jesus said that this second path leads to life. Romans 2:6-7 “Who ‘Will render to each according to his deeds’: eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality.” Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Galatians 6:8 “For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life.” 1 Timothy 6:12 “Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, to which you were also called and have confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.” James 1:12
“Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.” 1 John 2:25 “And this is the promise that He has promised us—eternal life.”

Jesus said that there are few that find the narrow path. One asked Jesus a similar question. Luke 13:23-30 “Then one said to Him, ‘Lord, are there few who are saved?’ And He said to them, ‘Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able. When once the Master of the house has risen up and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock at the door, saying, 'Lord, Lord, open for us,' and He will answer and say to you, 'I do not know you, where you are from,' then you will begin to say, 'We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets.' But He will say, 'I tell you I do not know you, where you are from. Depart from Me, all you workers of iniquity.' There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and yourselves thrust out. They will come from the east and the west, from the north and the south, and sit down in the kingdom of God. And indeed there are last who will be first, and there are first who will be last.’"

Jesus isn’t trying to scare us. He’s inviting us. Yes, the gate is narrow and the way difficult, but it is full of joy, peace, purpose and eternal life. The wide gate is easy, but it is empty, destructive and ultimately hopeless. The narrow way is not the path of misery. It is the path of true life. He encourages us to “enter by the narrow gate.”

Each of us has a choice. Will we choose the narrow gate? Will we choose life? The Bible multiple times encourages us to make the right choice. Moses gave the choice to the Israelites in the wilderness. Deuteronomy 30:15, 19 "See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil.” “I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live.” Joshua also gave the choice to the Israelites in Joshua 24:15 “And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD." A similar choice is given to us today.

I encourage you to choose the narrow gate, and the difficult way. Even though few find it, it is the wise choice that leads to life.

08/16/2026

08/12/2026

Weekly Encouragement - The Golden Rule - Matthew 7

Jesus taught in Matthew 7:12 “Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” This is known as the Golden Rule. It is often stated as “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” In applying the Golden Rule, think of putting yourself in the shoes of the other person. If you were facing the same situation as they face, what would you want someone to do for you? That tells you what you should do for them.

Jesus taught us that following the Golden Rule is a summation of the Law and the Prophets. The apostle Paul wrote in Galatians 5:14 “For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’” Jesus also later taught that all the law and the prophets hang on the commandments to love God and to love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22:40). It seems to me that the Golden Rule is basically a statement of how to practically show love to others. Love seeks the good of the person loved. We all want to be shown love. By treating others like we want to be treated, we are showing them love. Let us look at several areas where we can apply this principle.

Suppose your brother sins against you in some way and then he is sorry for what he has done to you. Do you forgive him? The Golden Rule teaches us to forgive others because we want to be forgiven when we sin. Ephesians 4:32 “And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.”

Suppose you gave a task to someone and they completed most of the task but not all at the end of the day; do you get angry with them or do you give them mercy? Or suppose someone owed you some money but they didn’t have enough to re-pay you; do you insist that they pay you in full or do your give them mercy? Or perhaps they borrowed something from you and then lost it so they cannot return it to you; do you insist on full restitution or do you give them mercy? You have many opportunities to give mercy to others. Do you want others and especially God to give you mercy? The Golden Rule teaches us to give mercy to others because we want to be given mercy. Matthew 5:7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.” Luke 6:36 “Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.”

Suppose you see that your brother has some need in his life. Perhaps he needs some money to buy something very important. Perhaps he is hungry. Or perhaps a storm destroyed his crops or his means of transportation. Perhaps he has a serious illness and cannot work. Do you ignore his need and tell yourself that it is his problem and not yours? Or do you help him. The Golden Rule teaches us to help another who has needs because we want to be helped when we have a need. 1 John 3:17-18 “But whoever has this world's goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him? My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth.”

Suppose you make an appointment to meet with someone at a specific time but they are late in arriving. Or perhaps they agree to give you something but they continue to delay giving it to you. Or perhaps they have a habit or way of doing things that is irritating. Do you get angry with them, say bad things about them to others, or reject them as your friend? The Golden Rule teaches us to be patient and longsuffering with them because we want others and God to be patient and longsuffering with us. Ephesians 4:2-3 “With all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”

Suppose you have a brother who loses a loved one or someone else close to him or has some tragedy in his life; do you ignore him? Or do you go to him and comfort him in his loss or tragedy? On the other hand, perhaps he gets the job he has always wanted or he marries the love of his life or he has a new baby; do you congratulate him and tell him how happy you are for him? The Golden Rule teaches us to empathize with others because we want others to empathize with us. Romans 12:15 “Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.”

Suppose you see that your brother has a weakness, is in poor health or is going on a long journey or needs guidance in his life. He needs help from God. Do you pray for your brother? The Golden Rule teaches us to pray for our brother because we would want him to pray for us. James 5:16 “Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.”

Suppose your brother expresses his desire about how something should be accomplished, some decision that is to be made. It isn’t wrong what he desires to do. Even though you see it differently, you yield to your brother and do as he desires. Paul wrote in Philippians 2:2-3 “Fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself.” 1 Peter 3:8 “Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous.” Are you not following the Golden Rule with such actions? If you have strong feelings about something, would you not want others to respect your wishes?

There are many other ways that you can apply the Golden Rule in your life as you deal with others. Some that come to mind are having compassion for them, bearing their burdens, edifying them, listening to them, being kind to them, giving what they request, greeting them warmly, and loving them. You do these things unto others because you would want them to do these things unto you.

My encouragement is that you apply the Golden Rule in all areas of your life. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

08/09/2026