Richard Ellis Talks

Just as a man and woman are able to reproduce physically as God designed it out of intimacy, we are to spiritually reproduce disciples as we grow in intimacy in relationship with God. He works in us to help us grow and mature so that we can seek out others to be reborn and help them in the growing process.

The Bible tells us that we will face suffering and persecution merely for living godly lives, but that our relationship with God is more valuable than avoiding that suffering. Everyone suffers, but the difference between the world and us is that we have the power of God in us and His presence surrounding us at all times.

As Christians, God makes us a new creation, transforming our minds to be yielded to His ways that are opposite the world's way. Oftentimes, we choose to remain living like chickens even though He has given us wings like eagles. We must change our thinking to live the way He intended for us to live and change the world around us.

The Bible warns us many times about watching the words that come out of our mouths because it indicates what is in our hearts. If the words that we speak are not God-pleasing, Jesus-loving words then we should be asking ourselves where our heart is at and get right with God.

Worry and anxiety are things we all feel when faced with a difficult circumstance. When we find ourselves worrying about things, we are not able to trust God in the situation at the same time. We need to go to Him in prayer, release our anxiety, rejoice in His faithfulness and trust Him to take care of the situation.

The Bible says that God has specifically placed those in authority in their positions for His plans and purpose. We must trust that He knows what He's doing, and follow His lead on when and where we need to take a stand.

Discipline is a necessary thing for a parent to inflict on their children so that their children can grow to live in obedience. In the same way, our Heavenly Father disciplines His children so that we can learn obedience to Him and live the life He intends for us to live.

God designed His Church, His children to function in such a way where we link arms with one another and help each other in our Christian journey. While we can worship God alone anytime, we cannot be a working member of His family without actually being involved and living life together.

Alcohol is something that many have used to ruin their lives, but alcohol itself is not a sin. When we choose to do something, whether drink alcohol or any other thing, we need to make sure that we are doing it for the glory of God. Rather than getting drunk with alcohol, the Bible instructs us to get drunk in the Spirit and let Him lead us and guide us in the things He wants us to do.

Since the Church is made up of human beings it is inevitable to be messy because sin is involved. We need to understand for ourselves and for others that change is a process and God works on His people in His own timing and we must extend grace while He works.

God wants a relationship with us more than He wants to give us whatever we ask for. Rather than letting our prayers be all about asking for whatever we want, we must first seek a relationship with Him and then He will change our hearts to ask for what lines up with His will for us.

It's never wrong to ask God for something, whether it be a way to make our lives easier or a way to avoid suffering that is coming. But when we choose to ignore the answer He gives us because we don't like it, we set ourselves up for more suffering in the long run. We must first be willing to say “Yes” to God in anything He asks, and that is when we will learn to be content with Him when His answer is “No.”

There are many examples in the New Testament where the apostles were persecuted for preaching the Gospel, yet they responded by rejoicing in the Lord and He blessed them for it. When we follow their example, we may not receive the blessing here on earth but He gives us peace to endure the suffering and promises to bless us in Heaven.

When we find ourselves in difficult circumstances we need to call out to God and ask for His help, then keep our eyes open to recognize how He chooses to help us. We never need to fix ourselves before approaching God because only He can fix us anyway.

The Bible tells us that Jesus took on our sin so as to heal us from it, but that doesn't mean we won't face suffering in this life. It is better that we suffer for obeying Him than for choosing sin.

There are many women who have lost a child, either by their own sin of choosing to give up that life or by other causes. Though it should not be the reasoning for becoming a Christian so as to see a child who has passed from this world to be with God, there is hope for mothers who follow Christ that they will once again be reunited with their children who have gone to be with the Lord.

We all face moments in our lives where we feel under pressure, sometimes more than others. That pressure can either cause us to run to sin or run to God. We need to make sure that we are running to God because He promises to bring us through it.

The Bible tells us that as a child may not always understand the reasons of a parent, we may not always understand God's reasoning for things, however we are still called to trust Him even if we don't get it. God's Word may not always make sense but we know that He can be trusted, and so when He makes promises that declare His love for us we can cling to those promises in the midst of trials and pain.

There are times in our lives when we face suffering and pain, and we may pray fervently that God would just take it all away. Sometimes it is His purpose that we face those things in order to bring us closer to Him, and we know that we never face them alone.

The world offers all sorts of pleasures, falsely promising to be satisfying but always finding to be leaving you more empty than before. God offers us a full and abundant life through Jesus Christ. Because of His death and resurrection, we can live a life where our soul is satisfied in the Most High.

Mother's Day can be a difficult day for many women, as well as men, as it can bring up painful topics of loss. God addressed problems of motherhood in many places in Scripture, and He proved His ability and power to perform miracles. When we are in His family, He looks after us and discipline our disobedience because He requires obedience from all His children.

The sin of prejudice in all of us keeps us from being the unified Body of Christ that God calls His Church to be. We need to let go of our differences and love each other equally so that the world looks at us and sees that there is no way we could be unified like this unless God is at work. When we love each other and worship together, it is as if we are practicing for the way it will be in Heaven.

There is a difference between humble confidence and fake humility, and confidence is rightly available to us in Christ. There is nothing wrong with seeing ourselves how God sees us, and once we realize He loves us and we grow to love Him, we can then love others just as we love ourselves.

Instead of being intimidated by the Bible we need to open it up and read it, allowing God to use it in our lives to speak to us and change us. If there is something we don't understand then we need to find someone who can teach it to us. The Bible is full of treasures that God has given to us to reveal Himself and His love for us.

If there are things about ourselves that we are displeased with but can change, we should change those things. But for the things we cannot change we must learn to accept them and ask God how He can use those things for His glory. We can't spend our whole lives complaining about the things that feel unfair.

We all try to portray a certain image through the way we look, the things we have and the careers we choose. When God made us He put His own image inside each of us and the only way we can reflect who He is in us is if Christ is working and changing us from the inside out.

The Bible says that the only way we can get into Heaven is through Jesus alone, not our good works. Jesus paid the full cost for all of our sin, forgiving us completely and providing us with the free gift of salvation.

Just as going without food for a length of time can make us hungry, we can feel the spiritual need we have for God the more we go without Him. The problem is that we try to fill that need with other things. Jesus is the only one who can truly satisfy us and so we need to go to Him and allow Him to wine and dine.

Proverbs 31 describes a virtuous woman that every woman should strive to become. No matter how difficult or easy our circumstances, we cannot achieve this without Christ who gives us strength and who works in us and through us to make us more like Himself.

There are plenty of things about Scripture and the Gospel story that could bring a person to question its truth. If we are truly seeking God, He will reveal Himself to us. Then we must choose to put our faith in Him, follow Him, and love Him, ourselves and others as He calls us to.

When Jesus lives and is working in us, we can't help but to speak up and tell others about it. God will bring opportunities our way to tell others about Him and we need to have the boldness to step out of our comfort zones and say something.

The way God designed the family to work is for the man to be the head and take the responsibility. The only way this can work in the greatest way is if that man is following God as his head. God is good and full of grace to help pick the man up when he has stumbled so that he can continue moving forward, following after God's model of perfect love.

Encouragement, like dessert, is something that we can all live without but is wonderful when it happens. God can use things in our own lives to encourage us out of the blue, and when we are fulfilled by His encouragement then He can use us to help encourage others, too.

There is a difference between reading the Bible and applying what it says to our lives. We only start growing spiritually when we allow what we are reading to be applied to our lives. Once Scripture starts making a difference in us, we can begin to seek out other people to help them learn to do the same.

Once we become Christians we are only supposed to act like babies for so long until we begin to grow and mature. Too often Christians allow malice, envy and anger in their hearts that prevent them from growing. Baby Christians need to find someone to feed them pure milk, and then, letting go of certain sins in their heart, grow from there.

The Old Testament spoke of multiple temples that were built over different time periods used to worship the Lord and hold His presence. Now that through Christ we are offered salvation and relationship with God, our bodies become the temple of God where His Spirit resides. We must now walk through this dark world to bring light and rescue the lost.

We tend to be excellent at things that will not last forever such as our jobs, our families, or even our sin. Some of those things are not bad things to be skilled at, but we need to make sure that we are putting in all that it takes to be excellent in our spiritual lives rather than settling for being so-so.

When we choose to follow Jesus, we begin to learn the sound of His voice so that we walk in obedience to what He calls us to do. Our relationship with Him grows the more that we stay in two-way communication with Him and not just hear what He says but actually do it.

As Christians, we may face push back from people anywhere but when we take a stand no matter what it may cost us, it brings glory to God and we fulfill our ultimate purpose. Just as David was able to defeat Goliath because He had God on His side, we have God in us to protect us and be with us no matter what we face.

God did not have to create things so intricately, so beautiful, or even pleasure-filled, yet every bit of His creation speaks of His love for us. All we have to do is look around at the ways that He has blessed us, even in such a small thing as popcorn that is a seemingly silly treat.

Too often, we hold onto the life we have, no matter how hard or consequential, because we're more afraid of the unknown. God promises a future that is better than we could ever imagine, but the first step to getting there is letting go of all that we know to put it in His hands and see what He can do.

Instead of looking at people who are different as a barrier to connecting with them ourselves or for Jesus, we need to view people as equal in God's eyes. He made us all in His image, and it is only because of sin in society that has created barriers between the beauty of His creation on display in humanity.

God has already done the work for so many people in the world and calls us to gather His harvest. Instead of hesitating because of our own insecurities, we need to listen to His leading, step out in obedience and gather His harvest.

While we all desire independence to avoid vulnerability, we can learn to trust God as our rock and strength when we finally come to a place of admitting that we need Him. Knowing that we are secure in Him brings us peace beyond understanding in the midst of all adversity.

Even after accepting salvation, we often remain in our cell of bondage. That bondage could be to a number of things such as sin, religion, guilt, etc. Until we come to a full realization of God's love for us and His gift of freedom to us even in this world, we will remain in our cell. However, living in freedom does not mean that we should do whatever we want. God's grace still covers us, but there are consequences. Rather than falling on either side of the spectrum, God teaches us to live in freedom, but in the kind of freedom that is beneficial.

We can choose to wait around and do nothing for the Kingdom while waiting for the end of the world to come or we can serve as soldiers in the Army of God fighting for the souls of others. We need to focus on the work God has given us to do, and when He comes back we will be ready.

A sign of a mature believer is one who is involved in a biblical community. The Christian life was not meant to be lived alone, but instead God designed the Church to be His Body that supports each member through the struggles of life.

God had designed each unique person to accomplish His work in the world. When we discover what it is that we are passionate about, we can use that passion to help grow the Kingdom of God.

Once we are saved, there is nothing that we can ever do or that can ever be done to cause us to lose our salvation. When we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we become children of God, and there are various “DNA” tests that we can check to make sure that He lives in us. We need to pray to God, proclaim that Jesus is Lord, ask for forgiveness of our sins, begin a relationship with Him and move forward in that.

Many people see Christians as hypocrites, and that is because we proclaim one thing and do another in secret. If we're going to actually win anyone over to Christ, it is essential that we are vulnerable with them, showing them how Christ has redeemed us from our own sin and be transparent about how He is currently working in our lives and hearts.

God may not always give us the things we ask for, but He wants us to keep asking. As we grow in our relationship with Him, He begins to put things on our hearts to ask for that are according to His will and we see Him provide those things over and over.