Tag Archives: Thom Rachford

Sunday – July 7, 2013 “For God So Loved the World”

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July 7, 2013 – Read the Word on Worship

For God So Loved the World from Sunrise Community Church on Vimeo.

We have seen how many people can reject the Bible as the Word of God. We have seen some treat the entire Bible as a fairy tale; a fairy tale made up by men to curtail the fun of others, causing them to have a joyless life. We have seen some treat parts of the Bible as true in a general sense, but untrue for specific situations or cases. We have seen some say the Bible is true, but then make translations or interpretations that even language experts who do not believe the Biblical agree are not the best way to translate specific words or in many cases are out-and-out false translations or interpretations.
Join Elder Thom Rachford in this study of some of the most familiar and often most misquoted passages of the Gospel of John

Word On Worship – July 7, 2013 Download / Print

John 3:16-18
16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. 18 He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. – NASB

We have seen how many people can reject the Bible as the Word of God. We have seen some treat the entire Bible as a fairy tale; a fairy tale made up by men to curtail the fun of others, causing them to have a joyless life. We have seen some treat parts of the Bible as true in a general sense, but untrue for specific situations or cases. We have seen some say the Bible is true, but then make translations or interpretations that even language experts who do not believe the Biblical agree are not the best way to translate specific words or in many cases are out-and-out false translations or interpretations.

Despite how people want to view or interpret the meaning of scriptures, more evidence exists for the accuracy of most Bible translations than any other book of ancient times. Let’s look at the Bible, applying the same standards for accuracy that would be applied to any historical book. The extremely large numbers of ancient copies, in which the texts agree, speak to the accuracy of the Bible. The extreme care in translating GOD’s word, not man’s word, caused translations to be more carefully made than other books, again insuring the accuracy from the original text. The nearness of the dates of the existing manuscripts to the time of recorded events help insure accuracy of the recorded text. The endurance of generation after generation of those who desire to read and study the Bible speaks to it accuracy and truth. And lastly, the millions upon millions of changed lives of those who follow the truth of the Bible prove its accuracy.

These standards make the Bible the most valuable book in the world. However the value is only realized when one studies, believes and applies what the Bible says. Otherwise, it is of no value. It is like a penniless person holding a check for a million dollars but never cashing it. One’s life does not change even though one has the thing that will change it at one’s fingertips.

Do you want to know where you are going in life? Do you want to know if you should go right or left at the fork in the path? How can you know which path to take in the dark? Do you want to see where your feet are going so you can avoid stubbing your toes on rocks on the road or falling into a hole? How can you see when the bridge ahead is so rickety that it will collapse the minute you step on it? God’s word is the answer. Psalm 119:105 says God’s word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. A lighted path shows you the only true route while illuminating your destination and a lamp allows you to safely avoid any obstacles you may encounter along the way.

That lamp and light, The Bible, is true and accurate and valuable beyond measure for those who will read, meditate or seriously consider what it says, and then follow what it says for it is the Word of the living God.

Sunday – April 28, 2013, “How Do You Understand Old Testament Prophecy?”

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April 28, 2013 – Read the Word on Worship

How Do You Understand Old Testament Prophecy? from Sunrise Community Church on Vimeo.

Everyone seems to have a opinion when it comes to the Scripture. Depending on where they went to school or what denomination they come from, opinions run all over, especially when it comes to Old Testament prophecy. So how do you know who is right? Even more, how can you understand for yourself what oes the Bible teach? Elder Thom Rachford takes us through Zechariah 12 breaking down the text so everyone can see for themselves what God is foretelling and explains simple questions you can ask for yourself as to the meaning and the purpose of God’s plan for His people.

Word On Worship – April 28, 2013 Download / Print

 II Timothy 16-17
“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

Often we can read God’s Word and come to certain conclusions about what it says and what it means to us. The process of looking into God’s Word to reach conclusions about His plans is the natural process the Lord has set up. He has given us the inner desire to know him and he has chosen to reveal himself and His plans for us through His scripture as we spend time in it.

We know the Lord usually does not reveal everything in only one section of scripture. He usually does not outline His plan or spiritual principle by listing step one in detail, then step two in detail, step three in detail, and so on. Frequently the steps or concepts are found in various portions of scripture and the whole of scripture has to be studied to fully grasp what the Lord is saying and what he wants in response from us.

This is good. For as, humans in this time in history, we tend to want it all wrapped up in one short package that we can consume in a very short time. In His wisdom the Lord has placed portions of His plans in various places. This requires us to fully study the complete message of God if we want to understand His communications.

Sometimes we approach God’s Word with pre-conceived ideas about His plan. These ideas may come from well-meaning counselors or even false teachers who want to make their comments sound good. More often preconceived ideas come from our own desires, fears, or human “wisdom.” We like what makes us feel good or seems to be an easy way or builds up pride in our own abilities or deeds. Then it is easy to find those passages or individual scriptures that support our view or seem to support our foregone conclusions. When we don’t find specific passages to support these conclusions we may distort or misquote the scripture to make them appear to support. Once we think we have the answers, human nature prompts us to not seek any further scriptural truth about the subject. This is the way heresy, false teaching and apostasy gain prominence and control. And in turn, the heresy, false teaching, and apostasy lead further away from studying the totality of scripture. It is a downward spiral.

The antidote to the downward spiral of erroneous views or incorrect interpretation is daily study of God’s word accompanied by prayer. Daily study has some conditions. First, ask the Lord to clear away our misconceptions and to reveal His truth in the scriptures even when the revelation does not agree with what we had made up as truth in our mind. Second, the daily study must eventually include all the scriptures, even those that seem boring or dealing with Old Testament actions or less than interesting genealogies. Third, we must take God’s Word as literal unless it is clearly allegorical or symbolic. We must take scripture literally even when the scripture seems to defy the rules of nature. Our God is the creator of nature and nature’s laws and can and does overrule them when it suits His purpose. He is, after all, the God of miracles. Daily study of the Word will lead us to a right view of God, His plan for relationship with man, our salvation, growth and blessing.

Sunday – April 14, 2013, “The Proper Wife”

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April 14, 2013 – Read the Word on Worship

The Proper Wife from Sunrise Community Church on Vimeo.

The prophetic allegory in the Old Testament illuminates the New Testament.

Word On Worship – April 14, 2013 Download / Print

John 5:39-40
You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me;and you are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life.

As the speaker, Jesus is referring to what we now call the Old Testament. Today, many assume that because we have a New Testament that the Old one is nullified or at best a historic curiosity and at worst a mythical depiction of a vengeful, almost sadistic God. Indeed, there are Christian groups and denominations that say they would not follow or want a God who would tell the Jews to slaughter the inhabitants of the land of Canaan. They only want a God of LOVE. And that love is defined by their limited understanding and desires, not necessarily as defined by God and revealed in the scripture Jesus is addressing.

However, Jesus gave validity to the Old Testament. He quoted the scriptures of the Old Testament a multitude of times, referring to them as absolute truth from God the Father. The problem is not that the scriptures are out of date, as some suggest. The problem is many don’t study the Old Testament, and don’t know the scriptures well enough to see the truth clearly. What they see they discount because it does not fit their preconceived notions. Also, they believe false assessments and interpretations of those who are advancing another gospel cleverly disguised as truth by their language or sincerity. The truth is that God the Father has revealed his plan for man’s salvation throughout the Old Testament.

This revelation is purposely deep enough to prevent a casual reader, curiously interested in the intellectual and informational content only, from grasping God’s deep truths. Yet, the revelation is simple enough for the sincere seeker to see the completeness and unity of God’s plan for the redemption of mankind throughout both Testaments. The plan remains unchanged from the God who is the same, yesterday, today and tomorrow. And Jesus makes it clear in John 5:39 that the scriptures testify about him – as the redeemer of mankind. As Jesus often said, “let he who has ears hear and he who has eyes see.”

Today, we have an advantage – we see the Old Testament through the magnifying glass of the New Testament. We can more easily see Jesus and his redemption through his sacrifice in the pages of the Old Testament. For example, in Isaiah 9:6,7 we see the prophesied miraculous birth of Jesus the savior and his reign as king in his kingdom forever. In Genesis Chapter 5 we see God’s complete plan of salvation of man explained by joining the root meaning of the succession of names in the chronology from Adam to Noah.

In the Genesis account of Abraham and Isaac we again see God’s salvation plan in an innocent willing to be sacrificed. Through Abraham and Isaac, we see the miraculous birth of a son, followed by a father willing to sacrifice this only son, the providing of the real sacrifice by God himself and finally the choosing of a willing and perfect bride for the son. All are prophetic allegories of the purchase of the bride of Christ for salvation and new life with him. Let he who has ears hear and he who has eyes see.