April 8th, 2017

• 2 Thessalonians was written around 51d.C. Less than 20 years after Christ's death, Christians were already forgetting Jesus' teachings and warnings about deception, delusion…
• Paul explains that injustice was working. Jesus was almost gone out and  evil and deceit were already a problem. The situation was not worse because the hand of God was still holding the enemy. Our situation nowadays is not worse because God has control over everything.  There are still churches and leaders committed, teaching the truth, there are still true Christians, but things are no longer lost because of the Holy Spirit.
• But when the Lord withdraws, the enemy will really stand up and will deceive many. And according to the Bible it's going to be a spectacle! A show! Satan will try to copy the glorious deeds of God.
• The copy to deceive must be very similar to the original. Thinking about Christianity, unfortunately the enemy of our souls knows our God and His Word much better than many Christians. And people are fooled very easily. 
• This explains why we see so much gospel nonsense these days, in the doctrines imposed by men: sometimes too "heavy" - almost impossible fasts and extraordinary vows… And on the opposite side, we see a soft gospel, too light, where people rely on the lies like “no problem on doing/behaving/saying”, the gospel of permissiveness. And other problems as idolatry, trading of faith.
• The enemy will do everything to catch people. Those who let themselves be deceived will perish. Those who refuse to love the truth will accompany the devil.
• You will not be deceived if you love truth. The truth is Jesus.The more you know the Truth, the less cheated you will be. It is a growing, inexhaustible process of growth.
• Reading the Bible and praying are sine qua non conditions for Christians to survive in these end times.
• When Jesus comes, the church will rise and those who remain will still stand a chance of being saved, but it will be much more difficult without the help of the Holy Spirit.
• The man of sin will declare himself divine and sit in the temple of God, acting as if he were a god. He will not allow anyone but himself to be worshiped. And God will not be "here" to help people to resist.  
• Paul is alerting people! The New Testament had not yet been written, and the essential beliefs of the Christian faith were being communicated through preaching and letters from the apostles. Having believed the truth, the Thessalonian Christians should now keep it and stand firm in their faith. Using truth is a guaranteed way to keep it. Something you don´t use, you tend to lose. More than studying it is necessary to put into practice the Word of God. Everything that we experience is closer, more intelligible, more real ...
• God does not want us to get lost. He wants us to take possession of the glory of Jesus Christ. God chose us to be saved. But we must choose to be saved. We must have faith in the truth and allow the Holy Spirit to act in us by sanctifying ourselves.
• Salvation is accomplished by the Spirit as we place our faith in Christ. Salvation happens through a balance between the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit and faith in the truth. 
• What for would the Holy Spirit to speak to those who have no understanding of the Word? For nothing…
• And the Word without the Spirit? For those who have no understanding, the Bible would become just a collection of 66 books, written in a poetic or narrative way, with historical character in some parts ... 
• Choose salvation!  Seek the Holy Spirit and the Truth! Let us not be deceived! Let´s receive and embrace the saving grace of Christ obediently.

From Ana´s message.

 

April 1st, 2017

Paul´s heart was full of gratitude because the faith of the thessalonians was growing.

So, one reason you must be thankful is when you see that  your faith is growing more and more. Your faith is supposed to grow more and more.

Your faith is supposed to be stronger more and more.

Faith you had yesterday is not enough for you today, as yesterday´s meal is not enough now.

You need to grow in faith!

Life tries to blind you bringing so much worries, difficulties to your mind... Sometimes you get so concerned about natural things, that if you are not careful, you will start living like people who have no faith.

You need to read more the Bible! You need to pray more! You need to sing more songs of praise! You need to be in communion with the church of the Lord! All these things will help you to be built up in faith!

Why do you must be built up in faith?

One reason are these hard days we are all living...

Another reason is because you must be strong enough to face persecution that christians will suffer in the last days... The church of the Lord will face difficulties and it´s ok to cry and to weep but the joy of the Holy Spirit will fill the hearts and strength those who are grown in faith!

The assurance of a great reward waiting for you will bring joy!

"Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you." Matthew 5:10-12

There is a reward!

Don´t be ashamed! Don´t feel embarrassed!of the gospel! Talk about Jesus!

This must feel your heart with thanksgiving!

Stay among those who believe! Stay in the midst of this church that believes and is expecting the Lord!

A briefing from Pr. Poliana Vasconcelos' preaching

March 25, 2017

 It is very interesting how many times we listen to this phrase: "Jesus is returning."

Considering everything we have seen, how many times have we heard people repeating this phrase

 as if they knew  its real meaning?  

 Then Paul says to be attentive and sober ... 

Whether we are asleep or not, we must be ready for Christ's return. 

And this expectation must be contagious... 

 Does our expectation for Christ's return touch people around us? 

 Is our holy expectation something visible? 

Does it inspire others? Do we tell people close to us what are we waiting for? 

Are we taking more people to wait with us for Christ's return? 

When people look at us, do our behavior shows our expectation?

 We  have already experienced the light of God, but have we kept ourselves in the light?

The sun is always in the universe. It shines all the time. It does not stop shining but the Earth rotates and so we have the alternation between day and night. But the sun is shining 24 hours.

On the same way, are we following Jesus and shining His light for others to see it full time?

 Our job is  to encourage people to wait for the Lord. How do we encourage them?

 Paul instructs us to take care of each other.This way we´ll live in peace!  

We must live well with our leaders and with those we lead. We need to be grateful. We ought to understand each other's limitations, forgive and support each other.

We must watch ourselves. So that we do not want evil

 even to someone who has done us something wrong.  

We have a list of things to do to live well: 

"Rejoice always, 17 pray continually, 18 give thanks in all circumstances;for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

19 Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not treat prophecies with contempt21 but test them all; hold on to what is good, 22 reject every kind of evil." (1 Thessalonians 5:16-22)

"25 Brothers and sisters, pray for us. 26 Greet all God’s people with a holy kiss. 27 I charge you before the Lord to have this letter read to all the brothers and sisters." (1 Thessalonians 5:25-27)

Pay attention to Paul´s Words on verse 27: “I charge you!” In other translations we can find instead of "charge" expressions like "command", "put you under oath", "order"... Sharing the gospel is not an option! It´s an obligation! Can we feel how important it is?

Let´s stand and take position. We are these expected sons of God!

Say to the Lord He can count on us!

A briefing of Ana´s message

March 18, 2017

Are we waiting for the coming of the Lord!

As Christians, we must live a life worthy of the name of Jesus Christ! We must be different!

Things are happening around the world against the Word of God. 

People lack the fear of the Lord.

If we want to rise up with the Lord, we must have a different life!

"Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed 

by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve

 what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." Romans 12:2

We cannot conform to the pattern of this world: the way people behave, speak, dress... In everything!

Bible says encourage each other! Encourage each other with these Words! 

How can we know if we are going to meet the Lord in the air?

Some say that we are going to have three surprises when in heaven:

1st: "-Oh! That person is here? Can´t believe!"

2nd: "-Oh! That person is not here? I cannot believe because she seemed to be so holy..."

3rd: "-Oh! I am here!"

How are we going to participate in this glorious day?

Living to please God!

God gives us instructions to please Him:

1st: Love the Lord Jesus and know Him.We ought to know Jesus more and more! In our daily routines!  Know the Lord Jesus as Provider, Prince of Peace, Healer, Friend...You will always have more to know about Jesus!

2nd: Be sanctified! Sanctification is not for old people... It´s for all of us! Keep in mind that the freedom we have in God is a freedom for us to say no to sin! The Holy Spirit that abides in you enables you to live a holy life.

3rd: Live as brothers. Experience brotherly love.

4th: Make your ambition to lead a quiet life. Be well content!

5th: Work with your hands! Don´t be lazy!

Let´s take care of our daily lives... God is speaking about today, not tomorrow or yesterday!

How are we caring about today?

Live a life to please God!

Free summary of Pr.Poliana Vasconcelos´s preaching

March 11, 2017

Paul really cared about people and how they were in faith.

It´s very important to encourage each other in faith!

We must care about people´s needs in general but to strengthen each other in faith is very important!

We are the ones to preach and share the gospel all over.

So, as brothers and sisters, as church of God, we must care about faith.

We must take care about each other! That´s why we are together, united in the services.

We must feel important individually but considering that we are part of a body that works fine if all other parts does it well.

Stop looking inward and try looking outward!

Love for real your brother! Love for real your sister! Say that you need them, and really mean it!

The Holy Spirit can enable us to love this way, to love as Jesus loved us.

Sometimes it´s difficult to express this love. We are different, with different personalities.

But an unfailing way of showing love is to pray for each other.

Stay united!

In the midst of the church we will grow in faith, in wisdom and will be sustained.

Inside the church we find people to rejoice with us and also to cry with us.

Let´s search for this love set on the love God has for us.

(Free briefing of Pr. Poliana Vasconcelos´preaching.)

March 4, 2017

• No matter if you were called to be a singer, a preacher, whatever... The command of going and making disciples is for every minister.
• Congratulations to you if you are suffering, if you are attacked, questioned, because of the gospel. So was Paul.
• Your motivation has to be like Paul´s. (Verse 4). Please God! Know God and have confidence enough in Him to face every situation. Forget the idea of pleasing men.
• Face challenges with joy! Be cheerful! Be like Jesus! Open your Bible in Hebrews 12: 2. What joy was proposed to Jesus? The victory over sin. Our salvation. Jesus was already victorious. Jesus did not need salvation. But you and I need and for our sake, because of the joy of us in eternity He endured all.
• The  certainty of salvation is powerful and powerful to produce joy in you. (1 Peter 1: 6-9)
• The world will try to deceice you. As Paul´s time there was a strong philosophical thought. The same competition of ideas we face these days.  Other Christians are trying to intellectualize the Word of God, or to soften the gospel. 
• Another problem we face is competition among Christians. People take possession of the Word of God - as if it was possible - and worse: to make money ...
• Paul did not change his speech to turn it "convenient," even when it brought persecution. And just because of his conduct, theThessalonians understood that Pauls´s words were truly from God (2:13). With the conviction that they were serving God according to the truth, the Thessalonians stood firm in the tribulation, as well as others from Judea, and other churches, the apostles, and the Lord Jesus Himself .
• Paul uses the example of a mother caring for her children to explain his care for that community. No mother receives payment for taking care of her family, no mother expects anything in return. A mother cares for nothing.  A mother is ready to give her life for her son's. And the evangelist, the pastor, do too. They can pay a high price for a sheep's life. (Verse 8)
• Ministers of God must be: kind as a mother, holy, fair, blameless and zealous (as a father - who exhorts, comforts and admonishes).
• On verse 18, Paul reminds us that behind each of the struggles, difficulties, every obstacle, there is only one enemy that is Satan.
• When Jesus returns, He will surely ask  us about our our answer to the calling of going and making disciples… 
• Paul says that his interest for the Thessalonians is: hope, joy, crown and glory. This is the reward . (Verse 19) All this together is going to be reason to  glory before Jesus on His return.
• How am I facing the calling to make disciples?
• Am I taking care of my ministry?

                                                                                                             From Ana´s preaching

October 15, 2016

Chapter 3 

Verses 1-2

Peter is now instructing Christians and their duties in marriage. He's talking to the new converted: men and women. And more: men and women married to unbelievers... But there was a difference: a Christian husband with pagan wife was a very different thing from a Christian wife with pagan husband. If a man converted it was almost an imposition for his wife to follow him. But if it was the woman who was converted first? Poor wife! Peter instructed Christians about the importance of the example to transform lives. So he's not saying that women are less important! He is just giving more emphasis to the marital relationship.

Verses 3-6

Peter follows teaching that the true beauty of a woman does not depend on her image. Gold and the external apparatus are corruptible and disappear, but the gentle and quiet spirit is more precious in the sight of God.

However, we must not understand that if a woman takes care of her appearance this is wrong. Remember that Christ calls his people, his Church, his bride! Every bride is beautiful, even the most simple.

The question is what value adornments have for you. Vanity cannot be above your time with God.The point is: my outward appearance may not be up care with the appearance of my spirit ...

And although Peter was talking to women, you have men nowadays spending more time than women to get ready ... So attention men too!

Verse 5

In verse 5 Peter recalls the example of the holy women. The reference is "women who preeminently represented the holiness of Israel's vocation, the “ saints”. Christian wives become true daughters of Sarah in the spiritual likeness.

When Peter says "Do not give way to fear" I believe he said:"- Fear God and do not fear anything, that is trusting in God and being strong and courageous!"

Verse 7

Peter goes on and now urges husbands to fulfill their duties to their wives. They are to live as partners. Women are also important but more fragile ... Women were then called weakest part because they are physically weaker, in some aspects, in comparison to men. This is not intellectual or moral inferiority, although that in the ancient world were it was admitted.  Husbands must honor their wives because they are heirs together of the grace of life with them wisely.

Verses 8-12

Living together in the Christian community

Christians should be like-minded. Should be sympathetic, c and humble.

If we want to live with quality and have happy days, we should abstain from backbiting and whatever evil, indulging in the practice of what is just and true. It is to be tireless in seeking peace, remembering that God always watches to guide us to express his approval or disapproval, and His ears are attentive to the prayers for guidance or assistance . On the other hand the Lord's face, the eyes of the Lord, the presence of the Lord, is against those who do evil.

Verses 13-14

Christ teaches us how to face hostilities and suffering

If we plant goodness is goodness that we will reap. But even doing good, we can still suffer. But if we suffer because of righteousness, the Lord's blessings will be upon us!

Verses 15

Peter recommends Christians to be ready to answer.  Christians must know God and His Word in order to give a rational explanation of the hope for which they were generated again. And all this must be done with gentleness and respect ("reverence") to God. Behaving in this way, they have or maintain good conscience, taking his false accusers to be ashamed.

Verse 17

Peter turns back to the thought of 1 Peter 2:12: Christ is beside those who are suffering, sharing that suffering, as He who was also falsely accused, having died for sins that were not His. And His death on the cross is more than an example, He opened the way for us to the Father.

Verses 19-22

Noah and his family obeyed God, entered the ark and were saved through water. Like Noah in the ark passed safely through the waters of the flood, so the baptized become safe by the water of baptism for the Church, that is, as flood waters carried the ark safely, so baptism leads the Christian. The figure of baptism does not mean the removal of the filth of the flesh, that is, not the mere cleansing of the body, but the answer of a good conscience toward God; rather, a "pledge" to God, derived from "a clean conscience" because the promise made at baptism. Baptism is a Christian discipleship confession before men ... Before God, is a pledge to live pure before Him and man.

Christ was gone into heaven. Angels, authorities and powers are in submission to him.

We must walk toward heaven too.

From Ana´s preaching