And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served (that were beyond the flood) or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell: but I and mine house will serve the Lord. Then the people answered and said, God forbid, that we should forsake the Lord, to serve other gods. Joshua 24:15-16 The Holy Bible, Geneva 1599 NOTICE: All messages posted by Sword Of Truth Church Of The First Century staff members are Copyrighted material and may not be reproduced in any manner or for any reason without the written permission from The Sword Of Truth Church Of The First Century.

About the Pentecost Celebration Posted by RevJoseph on May 25, 2013, 8:18 pm About the Pentecost Celebration Our recent episode on the Pentecost Celebration, was refreshing. 'This is not just another day. This is our birthday. Celebrate it. Celebrate it for God. Celebrate it for the world. Celebrate it for yourself.' Our text came from Acts, chapter 2. Are we aware? Are we painfully aware of the status of the Church? Are we in tune with the pulse of the Church? Of all of the Church holidays, Pentecost is the equivalent of the birthday of the Church. How sad it is, that many churches have been abandoned and placed up "For Sale". Often times, going un-noticed. Can you imagine? Nobody realizing that the church was closed up for good. Why don't they know that God's love is as real today as it was nearly two thousand years ago when tongues danced about the heads of those who had been touched by God and filled with God's Spirit. Why do so many people not know that the church is alive? God is not dead, and neither is the Church! But how will they know, if we don't tell them? Fortunately, although on this birthday of the church there are signs of sickness, there are also positive signs that point to a church that is starting to thrive. And there are other signs of health and vitality in the church. The church's well-being is evident wherever people care about each other. Prayer in action, people loving one another as Christ loved us; that is a sure sign of life in the church. Through prayer, through fellowship and the ministry of caring, through offering Christ in everything we do, we say to the world that the church born on Pentecost is not dead. What makes a church special is exactly what made the first Pentecost special. Enthusiasm. What I am saying is that God is in you. Like the followers of Jesus on the Day of Pentecost, I see people who have been transformed by God's presence. How will the people know that the church is not dead? They will know because you will tell them. You who are enthused with the love of God, you who pray and care and proclaim Christ, you will tell them. You will tell them with your lives, with your deeds and with your words, that God came to earth and loved us, all of us, and that no matter what we've done, God will always love us, and that if we will only ask, God will live in us and we will live in him. That is what Pentecost is all about. Rev. Joseph Holmin

Re: About the Pentecost Celebration Posted by Pastor Steve on May 29, 2013, 1:04 pm, in reply to "About the Pentecost Celebration" Amen Brother. It is sad to hear so many today say that the Church is dead. When, in fact, so many of the people are dead in spirit. The Church, as The Body of Yeshua, is alive. We, as ministers, need to find ways to wake up those in our charge and make them alive with actions and not just words. We need to be spiritual defibulators! Let's get out there and shock some folks with the love of Yeshua! "Here is the patience of the Saints: those here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." Rev. 14:12 (Geneva 1560) Rev. S.T. Butler Sr.-Pastor churchofthefirstcentury.org

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