Junkyard Outreach

Send us a textThe city of Pergamos has been well documented in history and the believers in this city, during the time of John, experienced people in the church who had compromised their faith when they began to bring paganism into the church.   

Send us a textThe church in the city of Smyrna suffered severe persecution.  They were faithful and received no correction from Jesus rather they were called to be faithful until the death.  

Send us a textAs children of God we need to have the mind of Christ or in other words we need to think in a manner consistent with His will.  This is only truly possible when His Holy Spirit has the reigns of our lives.  And when we are loving one another we are doing His will.  But there are times when our liberty in Jesus can be a stumbling block to someone else's faith.  And we don't want that.  So being on guard so that we avoid hurting someone's relationship with the Lord is crucial in maintaining unity in the Spirit.  

Send us a textThe first church listed in chapter 2 is the church in the city of Ephesus.  This would be the church Timothy was involved with and John would return to after his exile.  Their church was solid but the love of God was shelved and they are called to repent.  

Send us a textKicking off the Book of Revelation, we see John and his interaction with the post-resurrected Jesus who gives John instruction to write this book and deliver it to 7 churches.   

Send us a textAmaziah was a king in the southern kingdom.  He started his reign well but went sideways and ultimately ended up dying in disgrace and leaving the kingdom in shambles.  What happened to Amaziah happens to many people in the church, they get tired of doing good and instead go after forbidden fruit which often times takes them down.  However there are others who continue to live their lives following Jesus and finish their life pleasing the Lord.  And that's where we want to be. 

Send us a textIn this episode I share my personal journey into studying the book of Revelation and what brought me to the Pre-Tribulation view.  While I don't expect this to change everybody's conviction to mine, this is why I land where I land based on by understanding of Scripture and experiences which lead me there.  

Send us a textPre-Millennial, A-Millennial, Post-Millennial, Pre-Tribulation, Mid-Tribulation, Post-Tribulation.  If a student of the Bible is interested in the End Times events or Eschatology, these are terms that they must be familiar with.  Each one takes a different spin on the book of Revelation.  In this episode we explore these camps. 

Send us a textThe Book of Revelation is a very intriguing book to many and to those who wish to delve into a study of the book there are many things that are helpful to the student that, if learned ahead of time, they learn these things it will be easier to navigate through the book.  One of those issues is how the book has been interpreted over the centuries.  And there are four main ways the book has been interpreted all of which are different.  

Send us a textThere are several places in the Scriptures where God's goodness and love are proclaimed.  One such phrase is "Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!"  If we delve into this we find interesting circumstances surrounding these verses that remind of us God's goodness and love.  

Send us a textKing Jehoshaphat was a good king reigning over the southern kingdom of Judah.  But he allied himself with Ahab, the wicked king of the north, and that caused a lot of issues not only in Jehoshaphat's life but in his son's life as well.  But Jehoshaphat was rebuked and made things right and in this story we see a process of repentance and trusting in the Lord which brings about the victory in our lives.  

Send us a textWrapping up this series on conflict we look at ways to avoid conflict and also ways to enter into conflict when appropriate.  The big issue is being led by the Holy Spirit so we know we are on the right track. 

Send us a textDealing with people who are annoying but their behavior doesn't rise to the point where they have sinned against you can be frustrating and cause conflict.  But ensuring we are walking in the Spirit and living a life pleasing to God can be a tremendous help in dealing with difficult people. 

Send us a textJesus gives us instruction on conflict resolution within the family of God that is very effective but sadly is not often used when conflicts arise.  The result is the conflict doesn't get resolved and in some cases destroys relationships among God's family.  But following these step (being filled with the Holy Spirit) brings about reconciliation which is very important in the Church.  

Send us a textMy friend Robert has led a very interesting life with a lot of hardship experiences including being homeless as a kid, a broken marriage, nearly dying twice while serving in the military in Iraq.  But when he came to Jesus things changed and now he is in the process of moving his family out of state because God called him to do so.  And in this process he has seen the hand of God move in many ways preparing the way into a new chapter in his life.  

Send us a textIf we are walking in obedience and allowing the Lord to guide us, then the things we are instructed to do by the Holy Spirit will come to be and remind us of how God provides for us in all things.  Let Him lead.  

Send us a textWhen we look at salvation from a biblical perspective, we see many things occur when a person receives Jesus and believes upon His name.  Forgiveness is one of those things we are granted when we come to Jesus.  And for many, who understand their need, being forgiven of their wickedness is absolutely liberating.  David mentions this in Psalm 32 when he suffered for his sin which tormented him but when he confessed he was liberated by forgiveness. 

Send us a textThe last chapter of this letter to the Ephesian believers, deals with more relationships and how believers are to behave also understanding our protection through spiritual warfare.  Paul then signs off this letter to a church very dear to him that would be a beacon of hope for many years.  

Send us a textMany of us will admit we want to be blessed by God in our lives and will try to do things where God will bless us.  And in the Scriptures there are many verses throughout the entire Bible that give us instruction on how to be blessed by God.  I did a search for the words "blessed is"  going off Ps 1:1 blessed is the man.... searching for more verses that indicate a path to blessing and these some of these verses I want to share.  These do not include Jesus' famous sermon on the mount in Matthew's Gospel chapter 5 so there are more to read and apply as well.  

Send us a textChapter 5 of the letter to the Ephesians, brings with it a lot of practical instruction for the "saints," or believers, to live a victorious life avoiding a lot of land mines that destroy lives daily in our world.  Chapter 5 also addresses the roles of wives and husbands which when looked upon through the eyes of a person who wants to please God, makes sense.  But through the eyes of those outside of a relationship with Jesus, the "rules" are not popular.  Great chapter for instruction in our walk with Jesus.   

Send us a textIn this Episode I share a few things that over the years have proven very valuable for me and our family.  These things were sometimes difficult but God was always there leading us through them even when my heart was rebellious.  Looking back on these biblical principles and commands, God has given us a good life and we can see His handiwork that brought us to this place.  

Send us a textAs believers out priorities change upon entering into this experience with Jesus.  Our human nature needs to be set aside and replaced with a willingness to give it all to Jesus.  This is where the power of God is.  And pursuing Jesus and His will for our lives is what is referred to as seeking the Kingdom of God.  This Kingdom exists currently within the believers but will one day be established on earth with Jesus as the literal King of the planet.  So we seek Him and all that He has for us to fulfill our ministry.  We don't want to waste our lives away seeking our own kingdom rather His.  

Send us a textPaul's letter to the believers in the city of Ephesus, is very instructive for the person sincerely desiring a closer relationship with Jesus.  In this chapter we find many concrete instructions for believers that if implemented draw us closer to our Lord.  

Send us a text Mi interpretación de la blasfemia contra el Espíritu Santo es un cargo para cualquiera que se haya resistido al esfuerzo de Dios por rescatarlo de su pecado, negándose a escuchar o ver la obra que Dios está haciendo por él para que sea perdonado. Me parece que esto será una acusación en el Juicio del Gran Trono Blanco, donde los presentes serán juzgados según sus obras. Si alguien ha hecho algo horrible hacia Dios o hacia los demás, siempre tiene la oportunidad de arrepentirse en esta vida. Pero en la eternidad, esa opción ya no es válida. 

Send us a textThe mystery of the church bringing into it's fold the non-Jews or "Gentiles" was likely something nobody saw coming.  But Jesus brings in those believers from outside the nation of Israel along with those faithful Jews of that day into what is called the "Church."  To many today, this is not that important but it was a very important shift that allows us to inherit eternal life.  

Send us a textFearing God brings about a lot of blessing in a believer's life and it's important to understand the fear of the Lord because without it, believers can be set adrift in their faith and not receive the blessings of God in their lives. 

Send us a textJesus not only created the way for man to be reconciled to God but also broke down the walls of separation among people so we can all be part of one family - the Church.  

Send us a textJesus was involved in many arguments with the leaders as He tried to teach the people the truths of God.  In John 8 Jesus is once again going toe to toe with leaders and teaches them and us valuable lessons which strengthen our relationship with God. 

Send us a textThe ancient city of Ephesus was home to a church started by the Holy Spirit using the Apostle Paul to teach the believers in this city the way to Jesus.  It is one of my favorite books in the Bible because it's packed with so many great truths that if the believer receives them, their lives are radically impacted by God.  

Send us a textIn the Old Testament there are many stories that teach us spiritual truth.  In 1 Samuel, there is a story of Israel's desperation leading repentance which serves as a great model for believers.  

Send us a textGod is in the midst of those who love Him.  If we desire to be close to Him, we need to understand He requires of us to love and trust Him.  When we do this we can experience that sweet fellowship and have confidence that we are truly a child of the King. 

Send us a textChapter 12 is the final chapter in the book of Daniel and explains what will happen at the end of the age.  3 1/2 years (1,260 days) after the abomination of desolation Jesus returns.  1,290 days Jesus' government is established on the earth.  1,335 days He judges the nations on earth and those found in the book of life are allowed to enter into His kingdom while those who are not will be destroyed and await the final judgement of Revelation 20.  

Send us a textGod commanded Joshua to meditate upon His word before Joshua set out to conquer the promised land.  Joshua's task was impossible and required him to completely trust in God and God's Law given to Moses.  The result of trusting in God and meditating on His word was victory in the impossible.  Same principle applies to believers today.  Trust Him and meditate upon His word.  

Send us a textIn our relationship with Jesus, our willingness to obey Him and follow wherever He leads us is critical if we want to see God's work being done in our life.  Those who have religion without a willing heart toward God, simply miss out on the glory of God being present in their lives.  Those who have a willing heart are those who please Him. 

Send us a textDaniel chapter 11 deals with the Grecian Empire and the history of it related to Israel and the end of the chapter appears to refer to the coming world leader (Antichrist) and his exploits.  

Send us a textI have discovered that a willing heart does a person a whole lot more good than a brain filled with theology.  Being willing to serve God with a heart that is grateful for Him and His grace and mercy allows us to experience more of Him and His goodness.  

Send us a text En el episodio cuento mi historia de cómo pude superar la dificultad que tenía al compartir mi fe en Jesús con los demás. 

Send us a textAs we begin season 5 at the Junkyard Outreach, I want to say thanks to all those listening and pray that God is impacting your life more each day.  Thank you for listening!  Todd

Send us a textWe as believers are living a life where God is using us to demonstrate His love, grace forgiveness, etc.  And our role in this life is to obey Him and demonstrate to this world what the life of the believer looks like.  The things we do are referred to, in Scripture, as "fruit."  As a tree naturally bears fruit, because it's designed to, so too we also produce things in our lives consistent with godliness if we are truly abiding in Jesus.  

Send us a textReading the Scriptures brings us to places where we see God's commands for His people.  In the Old Testament Law of Moses, we find many "you shall" commands.  And this may come across as oppressive to someone who is not familiar with the love of God but upon closer examination we, as believers, can find something special in the "you shalls" in Scripture.  

Send us a textMany promises in Scripture may seem to lofty to grasp but when we are still before God and obedient to His calling, these promises will begin to creep in.  We need to put in the work by being obedient to His calling and the prompting of the Holy Spirit, then we can see these promises more clearly. 

Send us a textIn the Bible the name Korah is synonymous with rebellion.  Korah was a cousin to Moses and Aaron and tried to overthrow them and assume the leadership of Moses and the newly created priesthood established by God for Aaron and his descendants only.  It's a tragic story that reflects many of our own rebellious desires against God and a careful study of the story reveals how human ambition and pride can easily destroy a family, community, church etc.  On the other hand, when we realize we are in God's will and things aren't going well with our leaders, we can trust that God is teaching us how to submit to Him by submitting to the leaders in a way that is pleasing to God.  

Send us a textDaniel receives another vision 2 years after the vision in Ch.9.  The introduction to this vision is contained in Ch.10 and the vision itself is in Ch.11.  

Send us a text"Be still and know that I am God" is a verse in Psalm 46.  In this psalm we see a picture of the believer's life and the things that can distract us from our relationship with Him and His command to us to simply be still reminds us that we are cared from by a great God.  

Send us a textDaniel Ch.9 is an important chapter in the Scriptures due to it's prophetic declarations.  While not all agree on one "end times" scenario, this chapter lays out important details worth studying in the area of prophecy.   

Send us a textAaron was made to be the first priest in the nation Israel.  He had four sons who were also commissioned by God to be priests as was the linage of Aaron forever.  But Aaron and his sons had to learn some lessons about being a spokesperson for God and some of those lessons were very difficult and many of the same lessons can be difficult for us.  However, staying faithful to our King gives us the assurance He is with us in the midst of these hard lessons. 

Send us a text La ley natural del pecado en nuestras mentes es algo que podemos abordar con el poder del Espíritu Santo. Somos criaturas caídas y necesitamos la santidad para compensar nuestra propia oscuridad interior. Esa santidad viene del Espíritu Santo que habita en nosotros. 

Send us a textIn Psalm 31 David boasts of his security in the Lord and how God has always watched his back.  It's starts with the fear of the Lord, then learning to trust Him.

Send us a textDaniel sees, in a vision, the second and third world empire battling it out.  He also sees a historical villain named Antiochus IV, who persecuted the Jews and defiled their temple.  This person is a forerunner to the coming world leader who will, in many ways, mimic him with persecution and hate for the Chosen People.  

Send us a textJesus speaks often about "the Kingdom."  Here we take a closer look at this kingdom from the point where it is physically established on Earth. 

Send us a textDaniel receives a vision of the four world empires , paralleling King Nebuchadnezzar's dream in chapter 2.  Daniel gets more insight on how the final empire transitions to the Messianic Kingdom or the Kingdom of Christ.