16.3K
Downloads
328
Episodes
Based in Hillsville, Virginia, this is the podcast of ReCreate Church. We are a community of Life and Love.
Episodes
Monday Jun 21, 2021
Monday Jun 21, 2021
Gone In A Snap!
Today Pastor Michael is continuing the theme of the “End Game” and we find Paul talking to the church in Thesselonica. Believers there were worried that others that had died before them would not be reunited with them or Christ. Paul counseled them that there were several truths that are undeniable. They are: (Bible for Hope Study Notes) Eternal life begins the moment a person accepts Christ as Savior. If the believer must experience death before Christ returns, that is merely the way to heaven. Believers who have died will experience a bodily resurrection, living believers will be changed, and all will receive new, glorified bodies that will never get sick or die. Christ will return to defeat evil and death forever. Believers will live forever in heaven with Christ.
(CSB Baker Illustrated Bible Study Notes) Paul’s comfort is firmly rooted in the resurrection of Christ (4:14). In response to the grief the Thessalonians experience in the face of death, Paul and his associates return to the creed of the church (cf. Ac 17:3). Paul presents the resurrection of Jesus as the guarantee of the resurrection of the believers, a denial of which was, in Paul’s eyes, a virtual denial of the resurrection of Christ (1 Co 15:12–28). The dead in Christ will be raised as Christ was (see 4:16).
Today’s bible verses are found in 1 Thessalonians 4: 13-18 and 1 Corinthians 15: 51-58.
Sunday Jun 13, 2021
Sunday Jun 13, 2021
A Storm on the Horizon.
Today Pastor Michael is continuing his studies on the end times. The message today is about knowing that end times (the ‘end game’ to use a term from chess) are coming and what we do to prepare for them. Jesus and His disciples are leaving the temple and his disciples point out the magnificence of the temple. Jesus warns his disciples not to be misled by the magnificence and that, “not one stone will be unturned”.
Essentially Jesus is letting his followers know that folks can be misled by earthly things and there is no permanence to them, either. Jesus is focusing on preparedness, on readiness to suffer and on trust.
So, if we see a storm system on the horizon, why not just get out the rain? Meaning, prepare!
Some background on the temple, to show how it so centrally figured on life in Jerusalem in those days and why it struck the disciples as such a statement from Jesus that it would not survive:
(New Living Translation (NLT) Study Bible Notes) Leaving the Temple, Jesus was heading to the Mount of Olives (13:3). • look at these magnificent buildings! The sight of the Temple would have been awe-inspiring. It was the largest temple complex in the world, with immense stones. One stone that has been uncovered in the the western wall is estimated to weigh 600 tons. With its white stones, gold trim, and the gold-covered roof, the Temple complex looked like a snow-covered mountain; in the sun it was a blinding sight (Josephus, War 5.5.6). The Talmud says that “He who has not seen the temple in its full construction has never seen a glorious building in his life” (Babylonian Sukkah 51b).
Today’s bible verses are found in Mark 13: 1-8. Additionally, this same message is covered, from a different view, in Matthew chapters 24 and 25 as well as Luke, chapter 21.
Tuesday Jun 08, 2021
Tuesday Jun 08, 2021
Living on Borrowed Time.
Today Pastor Michael is starting a new series on the end times. Today Michael is examining how Peter, in writing a letter to believers that are suffering, asks what kind of people should we be in view of the events of the end times?
(ESV Study Bible Notes) The people of God ought to live in holiness and godliness, to avoid the punishment coming to the ungodly and to devote themselves to things that will last beyond the judgment.
(Disciple's Study Bible Notes) Purity—What kind of persons ought people to be in view of the events of the end time? The answer is holy and godly, spotless and blameless, guarded and growing. Since God is holy, to be godly is to be holy. To be holy is to be distinct from the ordinary and worldly. Moral blamelessness must be maintained. The influence of error and evil demands persons who are on guard. The prospect of meeting the Lord encourages growth in grace and knowledge of Christ. The sincere expectation of the Lord’s coming promotes personal purity.
Today’s bible verses are found in 2 Peter 3: 9-13.
Sunday May 30, 2021
Sunday May 30, 2021
Following Jesus.
Today Billy Huneycutt is standing in for Pastor Michael and delving into Matthew on the topic of following Jesus. What it means to follow Jesus and how hard it can be to follow Jesus, as Peter found out. What is the cost? A LOT. But there is no better life than following Jesus, wholeheartedly. Having a personal relationship with Jesus and loving Him with all your heart, all of your soul and all of your mind.
(Disciple's Study Bible Notes) Jesus walked on water to help the disciples in distress. Instead of recognizing help coming, the disciples let the miracle terrify them. Peter tested Jesus by asking permission to walk on water, too. Jesus tested Peter’s faith by inviting him to come. Doubt made Peter fail. Jesus’s actions led the disciples to reaffirm their faith in Christ as God’s Son. God’s miracles reaffirm our faith and lead us to commit ourselves more deeply to his work.
Today’s bible verses are found in several chapters of Matthew: 14: 22-23, 16: 16 and 26: 31. Also, Phillipians 2: 12.
Sunday May 23, 2021
Sunday May 23, 2021
Don’t Trip!
Today Pastor Michael is studying Paul and the admonishment that we don’t live for ourselves; everything we do should be to please our Lord. Also, we should not cause others to trip up in their spiritual journey.
(New Living Translation (NLT) Study Bible Notes) As the Lord’s servants (14:4), Christians are to look to God for guidance and seek to honor him in all things (14:8). Because we are ultimately accountable to him, our desire should always be to please him, not to live for ourselves.
Don’t trip over things that don’t really matter…that are getting in the way of the things that matter most.
(ESV Study Bible Notes) Fundamental to the whole discussion is the reality that the Christian’s life is not his own. Both in life and in death, Christians belong to the Lord, and he alone is their judge.
Today’s bible verses are found in Romans 14: 7-8.
Sunday May 16, 2021
Sunday May 16, 2021
Plans for Building a Christian Home
Today Duncan Crooks is guest pastor and he is talking about building a Christian home. As the foundation of a home must be solid, a foundation in Christ is our solid foundation in faith.
(ESV Study Bible Notes) 127:1–2 All Effort Is in Vain without the Lord. A little reflection on v. 1 makes the point clear: of course those who build a house must labor on it, and certainly the watchman of a city must stay awake. At the same time they must carry out their efforts in faith, trusting God to make the work beneficial.
(Gospel Transformation Study Bible Notes) Although the people of God are commanded to “build” (v. 1a) and “watch” (v. 1b) and “toil” (v. 2) and bring forth children (vv. 3–5), they must always remember that their labors are in vain apart from the enabling and sustaining grace and power of God. As our Lord Jesus reminds us, “apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5).
We exercise our human responsibility along with complete and utter dependence on God. Neither one cancels out the other. Our labor does not preclude either the need for or the legitimacy of God’s sovereign oversight, just as the display of God’s sovereign and gracious power does not render our labor superfluous. Psalm 127 reminds us that as we labor to build, and watch to protect, and toil to eat, and bring forth children for blessing, our ultimate and perpetual dependence must be on the God who alone can make these efforts succeed and bear fruit for eternity.
Today’s bible verses are found in Psalms 127: 1-5, 1 Corinthians 3: 11, Genesis 3: 12, Zechariah 8: 5 and 8: 19 and 1 Peter 4: 8.
Friday May 14, 2021
Friday May 14, 2021
“If the Creek Don’t Rise”, Mother’s Day, 2021
Today Pastor Michael is expanding upon the old saying, “If the Lord is willing and the creek don’t rise”. The old Latin saying “Deo Volente”, used for centuries, had “…if the creek don’t rise” added somewhere in country sayings and stuck. James 4: 13-17 tells us why we should use the saying, “God Willing” and Michael is talking today about how our faith can end when the floodwaters begin and fear of failure limits us.
Don’t let fear limit you faith! Our theme today is, “Trusting God, even when we can’t see it working out”.
(CSB Baker Illustrated Bible Study Notes) Jesus also calls the disciples to a life free from worry, a life defined by trusting in their God, who cares and provides daily needs of food and clothing. This exhortation was a weighty one in a culture where many people lived at a subsistence level (e.g., the day laborers of Mt 20:1–15, who might need their end-of-day wage to feed their families). Jesus’s followers are to focus their energies and priorities on the kingdom—God coming to make all things right (6:33). Trusting in God’s righteousness eliminates worry and “little faith” (6:30; cf. 8:26).
Today’s bible verses are found in Matthew chapter 6: 25-34 and James 4: 13-17.
Monday May 03, 2021
Monday May 03, 2021
The Temptation of Jesus
Today Pastor Michael is embarking on something new and it’s about Jesus and his forty day ‘wilderness experience’ where he was tempted by the devil. And the devil was no dummy; he knew Jesus had been fasting and was weak and vulnerable. And that’s what the devil does: attack when you’re at your weakest! The good news is we have an ultimate truth against the devil: God’s word! The devil can’t do anything with that!
(CSB Baker Illustrated Bible Study Notes) Now the Spirit leads Jesus into the wilderness, where he will be tempted by the devil (also referred to here as the tempter and Satan). By indicating the setting of the temptations (4:1), Matthew ties Jesus’s temptation to the testing of Israel in the wilderness. The parallel “forty days and forty nights” (4:2) to Israel’s forty-year wilderness wanderings confirms this connection, which Matthew highlights through Jesus’s citation from Deuteronomy in response to each temptation.
The more you walk with God, the more the devil will try to trip you up!
Today’s bible verses are found in Matthew 4: 1-4, Deuteronomy 8: 3, Romans 8: 28 and Proverbs 3: 5-6.
Sunday Apr 25, 2021
Sunday Apr 25, 2021
Happily Ever After?
Today Pastor Michael is wrapping up his series on David, the Warrior King. David is being made the King of Israel at the age of thirty and will rule for forty more years. There were three reasons, listed below, for David being made king but the most important one is that he had been chosen by the Lord to be the king of Israel. There is a lesson here on holding on to faith and hope when God is in the equation. It took over fifteen years for David to see this but he did it the right way. He didn’t undercut or disparage Saul and he still had to fight battles even when he reached the throne. He was much closer to forty when he became absolute, overall leader of the nation of Israel.
Happily Ever After is not a destination. It’s a journey!
(MacArthur Study Bible Notes (ESV)) all the tribes of Israel. The term “all” is used three times (vv. 1 3 5) to emphasize that the kingdom established under King David was truly a united monarchy. The “elders” of Israel (v. 3), representing the “tribes” (v. 1), came to David at Hebron with the express purpose of submitting to his rule. Three reasons were given by the Israelites for wanting to make David king: 1) he was an Israelite brother (cf. Deut. 17:15); 2) he was Israel’s best warrior and commander; and 3) he had been chosen by the Lord to be the king of Israel.
Today’s bible verses are found in 2 Samuel 5: 1-5.
Sunday Apr 18, 2021
Sunday Apr 18, 2021
Stuck!
Today Pastor Michael is continuing our study on David and discussing when we feel stuck, in a place, in a situation or being in a situation you don’t want to be in. However, the Lord may have other plans there, as he did with David as he fled Saul and his persecution and went to the land of the Philistines. As in the land of Goliath. As in Goliath the PHILISTINE! So David was literally in the worse place he could be in, yet God had a reason for it.
In the land of the Philistines, David learned much of the Philistine army and how it worked along with developing his leadership and military skills. He was ‘stuck’ in the wrong place yet God used this time to help David learn more to become a better king to the Israelites. So even if you feel stuck, rest assured: God isn’t stuck!
Today’s bible verses are found in 1 Samuel 27: 1-11 and 1 Samuel 29: 1-11.