Pastor Eduardo Alves was bringing a strong message for those who love money more than God.

You Cannot Serve Two Masters

Who am I really serving? What dictates my actions? Who has final authority? Will I do what gets me the most money? Or will I do what God says?

Matthew 6: 19 “Don’t save treasures for yourselves here on earth. Moths and rust will destroy them. And thieves can break into your house and steal them. 20 Instead, save your treasures in heaven, where they cannot be destroyed by moths or rust and where thieves cannot break in and steal them. 21 Your heart will be where your treasure is. 22 “The only source of light for the body is the eye. If you look at people and want to help them, you will be full of light. 23 But if you look at people in a selfish way, you will be full of darkness. And if the only light you have is really darkness, you have the worst kind of darkness.[c] 24 “You cannot serve two masters at the same time. You will hate one and love the other, or you will be loyal to one and not care about the other. You cannot serve God and Money[d] at the same time.

This is a simple yet profound, eternal truth -- always true in every situation. It is impossible to take orders from two places at the same time, without giving preference to one.

Jesus did not say it was hard. He said it was impossible. True, sometimes it can seem possible for a while. But invariably the time comes when the orders from each side are going to conflict, forcing a decision.

Put God’s Kingdom First

25 “So I tell you, don’t worry about the things you need to live—what you will eat, drink, or wear. Life is more important than food, and the body is more important than what you put on it. 26 Look at the birds. They don’t plant, harvest, or save food in barns, but your heavenly Father feeds them. Don’t you know

you are worth much more than they are? 27 You cannot add any time to your life by worrying about it.

From this verse we see that there will be times when God's direction will not be the most financially rewarding choice.

Yet far too many who call themselves Christians never even consider choices which would provide them with less money.

Money is supposed to be our servant, not our master. Instead of money dictating our decisions, we should tell money what to do. We should use money instead of letting it use us.

Money is just a tool to accomplish things on earth. Money should never be your master.

But, unlike what many think, Jesus did not say that you cannot serve God and have money.

None of this proves Christians should be poor, or that God is against His people having every need met and even being prosperous.

It simply means what it says. You can only have one Lord. So you have to make a choice.

If you are making every decision in life based on your finances, you need to realize you are not serving God, but serving money.

You can't be a soldier in two armies at the same time. You may pretend loyalty to more than one army, but you can only truly be loyal to one at a time. LUKE 14:33 So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.

SAY THIS: No person can truly serve two masters.

“Make a U-Turn”

Pastor Eduardo Alves was in a blessed service at Ministerios Adoracion church:

“Make a U-Turn”

God’s question is this, “What are you doing about Jesus Christ? What are you doing that will guarantee that you make Heaven your home?” We are always trying to make a better life here, and often fail to do so, but what about your Heavenly Home? Are you making plans to life there? Are you building the Kingdom of God in your own life? Are you living according to the Bible and adding to your reward in Heaven, or are you tearing it down by doing your own thing and living for the devil? You can’t have it both ways.

Jeremiah 6:16 Thus says the LORD: Stand in the ways and see, and ask for the old paths, where the good way is, and walk in it..."

We Can run though life blindly, running as fast as we can, but if we don’t stop and take account of where we came from, where we are and where we are going, then we will probably end up where we don’t want to be. Most people go from day to day with not much thought for tomorrow. What will life be life for me next year, in 5 years, later on, if Jesus tarries? And most of all, where will I be a thousand, or a million years from now. Your soul and your spirit will live forever somewhere. We need to make sure that we are headed for the right place.

Psalm 119:59 The Living Bible: “ I thought about the wrong direction in which I was headed, and turned around and came running back to you.”

Just think about it. Stop and think. Stop and examine your life and see if you need to make a change. If change needs to happen then it must begin with you and you alone. God has not changed, you have. His love for you is still the same, but is your love for Him different? God still wants you to be blessed, so if you aren’t experiencing those blessings then something in you is withholding them. It’s time for a change and it begins with you and the way you live your life.]

God says, “Be strong and hold on.” He has big plans for you and I. It won’t be long until God will come to your rescue. He will again open the windows of Heaven and pour out blessings if you will just make a U-Turn and come back to him.

Jesus preached it Matthew 4:17KJV "From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."

Because we refuse to obey the Lord’s call upon our lives, and we choose to do own thing instead, God withholds the blessings that should be ours.

“ALL ERASED”

Pastor Eduardo Alves was in a blessed service at Ministerios Adoracion church, preaching about:

“ALL ERASED” Nearly 2,000 years ago, on a hill outside Jerusalem, another victory was won. This was a victory in which the one life paid for the freedom of millions. His name was Jesus, and He gave His life to set captives free from slavery to sin.

Colossians 1:13 or he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

Our text deals, then, with this reality, that Jesus died for you and me. He died to set us free.

I. He rescued me

Deliverance from the authority or empire of darkness.

The word "Deliver" is the same word used by our Lord in Matthew 6:13 in the Lord's Prayer, "deliver us from the evil one." Second Peter 2:9 says God is able to deliver the godly out of temptation. It means to rescue. The Greek word means to draw to oneself, as a lifeguard would reach out to someone who was drowning and draw someone to himself.

II. He reestablished me

To remove me from one place and situation to another.

This word, translated "transferred," means to be transplanted, to be uprooted from one place and firmly planted or established in another place. God transplanted me. He took me from sinking sand and placed my feet on solid ground. He took me out from under the authority of sin and put me in His kingdom.

Jesus is the one who rescued me, and He is the one who reestablished me, moving me from the empire or rule of darkness into the kingdom of the Son of His love. He changed my destiny and He changed my citizenship.

III. He redeemed me

To repay a ransom payment with His life.

God created us and gave us life, but because of Adam's sin we are all born with a sinful nature that has betrayed us. Promising us freedom and joy, it sold us into slavery to sin out of which we could not purchase our freedom.

That's why it says in 1 Peter 1:18-19

"For you know that you were redeemed from your empty way of life inherited from the fathers, not with perishable things, like silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without defect or blemish."

With His blood He bought us back from the slavery into which our sin had sold us. That's what it means to be redeemed.

IV. He released me

To forgive, erase, to send my sins away.

When we place our trust in Jesus, asking Him to forgive us of our sins, God applies the blood of Jesus to our hearts. Those sins that had stained and marked us are erased. They are not simply whitewashed.

Psalm 103:11-12 says: For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His faithful love toward those who fear Him. As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.

How does this impact the way we live?

Application

1. I can live free from the power of sin.

2. I now live in the kingdom of God under His authority.

3. Since He bought me, I am His to do as He wills.

4. I can live free from the penalty, the guilt, and the shame of sin.

I wonder this morning if you are living in the joy, the freedom, the power, and the authority available to you as a citizen of the kingdom of heaven?

Saved by Grace

Pastor Eduardo Alves was leading Lord's Super service in Ministerios Adoracion

Saved by grace

For by grace you have been saved through faith; And this not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; Not by works, lest any man should boast. Ephesians 2: 8-9

These verses clarify the work of salvation: Everything is by God, not ours. We are saved by the grace of God through faith. Everything is a gift from God. We are not saved by our good works, so we have no reason to boast, as if being a Christian was a feat. The only way to be saved is by grace, which is the undeserved favor of God. If we deserve it, it would not be grace. We are not saved because we have been good, because we have done good things, or we have gained salvation in some other way.

The Bible is clear in saying that we can not earn salvation. Paul wrote in Romans 3:20: "By the deeds of the law no human being shall be justified before him." He wrote in Galatians 3:10 that those who depend on good works to be saved are under curse and none of us can keep that law. We are all rightly condemned to eternal and humiliating punishment that God intervene by grace. That is precisely what God has done.

God brings salvation by grace and our response is faith. But even our faith does not come from ourselves. "It is not of you" refers not only to grace but also to faith. We have to believe to be saved but as we are dead in sin we can not believe. So that was our condition before we were saved; In the darkness, dead in our sins, blind to the truth, without hope and without God (Ephesians 2:12). We are helpless, incapable of generating faith from our dry heart.

God has to give: life to our dry heart. God has to give sight to our blind eyes. God has to give understanding to our darkened minds. Therefore, the whole work of salvation is a miracle of God. We believe the gospel and receive the Lord Jesus Christ by faith but it is God who gives us the desire, the ability and the understanding to do that. None of us can boast about our faith or our salvation, for it is all because of the grace of God from beginning to end.

Mercy and Grace.

Mercy and Grace. 

"Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need" (Hebrews 4:16).

 

What is mercy and grace? In the Bible, the words "mercy" and "grace" are often mentioned within the same context and sometimes even within a single sentence. But do these concepts mean the same thing? If not, how do they differ from each other?

What is mercy?

Mercy is generally defined as patience or benevolence. It is one of the qualities of the character of God, who shows mercy to mankind constantly, as he did with the people of Israel: "When you are in anguish, and all these things overtake you, If in the last days you turn to the Lord your God, and hearken to his voice; For the Lord your God is a merciful God; He will not fail thee, nor destroy thee, nor forget the covenant which he swore unto thy fathers "(Deuteronomy 4: 30-31). Many times, mercy is demonstrated through forgiveness. Forgiveness is an act of mercy.

 

What is grace? Grace and mercy are different concepts. Mercy is undoubtedly an important part of God's grace, but the concept of grace goes much further. The word "grace" comes from the Greek charis, which, among other things, means "gift", "undeserved favor". It describes God's "undeserved favor" toward humanity, by which He forgives our sins (if we repent) and allows us to have a beneficial and edifying relationship with Him. Forgiveness of sins by the grace of God is what opens the Door to salvation (Titus 2:11). "The prophets who prophesied of the grace destined for you, inquired and diligently inquired about this salvation, searching what person and what time the Spirit of Christ who was in them, who announced beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glories that came after them "(1 Peter 1: 10-11). Grace is often mentioned in the context of guilt. We have all sinned and, therefore, we all deserve death. But our punishment was paid with the sacrifice of Jesus Christ;

 

 

"For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God, being justified freely by his grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus" (Romans 3: 23-24).

Grace is the undeserved forgiveness of our sins, which is possible only through the death of Christ.

 

Grace allows us to be clean from sin and reconciled to God; "The glory of his grace, with which he hath made us accepted in the Beloved, in whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins according to the riches of his grace" (Ephesians 1: 6-7).

 

Mercy and Grace Let us now see how the apostle Paul relates these two concepts: "I give thanks to him who strengthened me, Jesus Christ our Lord, because he counted me faithful, putting me in the ministry, having been formerly blasphemous, persecutor and injurious; But I was received unto mercy because I did it out of ignorance, in unbelief. But the grace of our Lord was more abundant with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus "(1 Timothy 1: 12-14). It is evident that the meaning of grace is broader than that of mercy. For having been a relentless persecutor of the Church, Paul had good reason to believe that he would receive a punishment or ill treatment. However, he received only unexpected benevolence and forgiveness; God not only called him to be a Christian, but also a minister of truth. We all need the grace of God; But none of us can win it or give it to another. Grace comes only through the sacrifice of Christ. Mercy, however, is something we will need many times in life and that God expects us to develop.

DEBT CANCELED

Pastor Eduardo Alves was in blessed service at Ministerios Adoracion church, preaching:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcsFFtl7e3s

DEBT CANCELED 

John 19:30 "When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.”
The last words of our Lord Jesus Christ before he gave up his spirit. "It's finished." Well, we do not use these words much today, do we? Maybe we're talking about a marriage being consummated ... But, well, it's something else, is not it? No, here when Christ says "finished is," is announcing something very important. In Greek, the original language of the New Testament, this phrase is nothing more than a word, and is the word used in accounts (in debts) when they were canceled. Christ with his last breath, announced the victory we have. "It is finished; All is paid; The debt of his sins is canceled. "Now in our meditation we are going to talk about these consoling words of Christ and we will see how he paid the debt of our sins: 1) He paid for it with his life and 2) He paid it With his death.

I. He paid with his life.
When your credit card receipt arrives every month, we get a little nervous. How do we accumulate so much debt? We want to know exactly where the charges came from. Then, we check the receipt, checking each expense to see where our money went. Well, on Good Friday we remember how Christ paid our debt, I think it is worth checking our receipt to remind us where our debt comes from. Let's see...

In part we inherit it from our parents ... that is to say that we are born with sin, with original sin. As the psalmist says Psalms 51:5,
sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
that from the moment of conception we have been sinners.
But the truth is that Christ began to pay our sins long before he was nailed to the cross, because he was born and lived as our substitute under the law. He led the perfect life which, as we have seen, we do not carry.

II. He paid for it with his death.
God had sent forth continual sacrifices to remind people of the cost of their sins, as a vivid illustration, that "the wages of sin is death," that is, that it is necessary to shed blood to remove sin. But the Jews stopped being moved by the sacrifices and carried them out without thinking about their meaning.
And, now let's see this cross. It does not matter? After hearing each year the story of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, after seeing the mini-series that are on television, after seeing so many crosses, are we still impacted by the cost of our sins?
John 19:30 “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

Well, let's see again what Christ suffered: He had not slept in more than 36 hours ... they put a crown of thorns on his head ... he suffered whips and taunts ... with a hammer they nailed his hands and his feet to wood ... And that's nothing compared to what he suffered while hanging on the cross. Because on the cross, he suffered what is eternal death, the punishment of God, the hell of all people of all times. Until the very Son of God shouted, Matthew 27:46 About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli,[a] lemasabachthani?” (which means "My God, my God, because you have forsaken me." Also in Psalms 22:1 This is the cost of our sins.
And this is the love of God for us sinners: that he suffered the punishment we deserve. And after suffering all, he shouted in victory, "It is finished." "All is paid." And he died. We have heard this story a thousand times. Has it stopped us from impacting? It was my debt that.