Satan

You’re Being Watched

/ The Pastor

Here is my newest article for the Buffalo Center Tribune that was published today. To God be the glory!

Have you ever gone through your day thinking that someone is watching you? Do you ever look over your shoulder to see if someone is following you? Unnerving thoughts to say the least, but that is reality. For you see, your enemy, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8). But many people (maybe even you) don’t even give this a second thought. But the fact remains, Satan is prowling around waiting for an opportune time to attack. And then, when you least expect it, he pounces on his prey.


Now, maybe you’re thinking, “My faith is strong”; “I read my Bible”; “I pray every day”; “I go to worship”; “I attend Bible study”; “I hang out with Christian friends”. Basically, “What do I have to worry about?” Well, let me tell you, that is the opportune time for which Satan is waiting. A mentor of mine once told me that Satan likes to attack us where we are the strongest, where we feel the most comfortable. He likes to pounce on our strengths in order to tempt us to misuse them. If you are a strong orator, then the temptation will be to use your words to your own advantage through a distortion of the truth. If you are charismatic, then the temptation will be to use your personality to lead people astray. If you are good with numbers, then the temptation might be to embezzle. And you get the point. But the weak are not safe from the lion. They are just easier prey.


So, what is the hope? How do we stay strong? How to we withstand Satan’s attacks? Well, first you must admit that you are the problem; sin living in you. You were conceived in sin, born in sin and now live in sin. You cannot pass the buck here, “The Devil made me do it”. But there is Good News. The father of lies, Satan, has been defeated through the cross of Jesus. Jesus rose from the dead for the forgiveness of your sins. You have been redeemed from the power of sin and death. You have been set free from the taskmaster, Satan. Yes, you are still a sinner, and yes, Satan still stalks his prey. But God has won the battle. Look to him, not just in weakness but also in strength.


And so, I invite you to attend Holy Week services this week. There is a community Maundy Thursday service at Bethlehem Lutheran Church (also live streamed on our YouTube channel) and a community Good Friday service at the United Methodist Church. Both services are at 7 PM. And then on Sunday, attend Easter worship at the church of your choice. Here at Bethlehem we have a 7:00 AM Sunrise and 9:30 AM Festival service. Both are also live streamed on our YouTube channel.

Hear the Good news of Jesus’ death and resurrection and give thanks and praise for the salvation He freely gives to sinners. All is not lost, but rather, everything has been gained for you. Seek Jesus. Know Jesus. Praise Jesus. To God be all glory, forever and ever, Amen.

God Is Not Absent

/ The Pastor

In the midst of hardships and tragedies, our awesome God is not absent but ever present – longing to calm the storm. Maybe he does not calm the storm raging all around you, but through Jesus Christ he calms the storm in your heart. For these storms do not define you and they definitely do not direct your destiny. These storms are not your eternal reality and they are definitely not sovereign over you. Yes, storms do rage and toss you to and fro, but Jesus not only walks on the storm, he tramples it as he reaches out to you with grace and compassion. In no way are you required to fight the waves to get to a safe haven, but Jesus simply reaches out his hand upon your faith-filled plea for help.

No, storms are not a sign of God’s absence but just the opposite. Satan wants you to fail, crumble, knuckle under and give up, but God will be gloried and thus He will give you what you need to make that happen. Do not cry out wondering why God left, rather worship Him and know that He is faithful to not let Satan consume you.

Maybe you are not going through a storm at the moment, but someone is. Pray for them that they may see God through Jesus Christ. Pray for a hedge of protection around them to keep Satan at bay. Pray for God’s glory to shine through their storm. Pray, pray and then pray some more. God is not an absent God. He is an ever-present God in times of trouble. Do not forget this.

GOD – IS – NOT – ABSENT!

God is faithful and God is FOR YOU. Call out to Him. Go head. God is listening.

All glory, honor, praise and thanksgiving be unto our awesome God through Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen!

Forever and Ever

/ The Pastor

To You be the glory, forever and ever,
To You be the glory forever.
What a joy it is to proclaim Your story.
For You have made it my own.
You saved this miserable wreck of a sinner,
You redeemed this long lost life.
You rescued this life from the grips of death.
You rewrote my future story.
To You be the glory, forever and ever,
To You be the glory forever.
Through Jesus my Lord I stand on the Rock,
Through Jesus my Lord I am saved.
You have washed and cleaned my sin-stained clothing,
You have crushed the Deceiver’s head.
You have snatched me from the lion’s mouth.
You have secured my life in Yours.
To You be the glory, forever and ever.
To You be the glory forever.
I will worship Your name through Christ my Lord.
To You be the glory forever.

The Evil Monster

/ The Pastor

Satan,
you are an evil monster,
deceiving and leading away,
the father of lies,
hiding in the shadows,
a lurking lion waiting to pounce,
a wolf wearing sheep clothing.
To hell with you.
Away.
Your dominion has been conquered by my Lord Jesus Christ.
He has shattered your hold through his resurrection.
And that is no lie for Jesus is the Truth.
You try to sell despair, but Jesus is the giver of Life.
You try to blind hearts, but Jesus gives the Holy Spirit to reside therein.
You try to reign but Jesus is the King of kings and the Lord of lords.
You are nothing.
Defeated,
Crushed,
Condemned.
I will not listen to your whispers – no, I will not listen.
I will not buy what you are selling – throw it on the dung heap.
Silence and to hell with you –
forever.
My Lord Jesus reigns.
He is my Truth.
He is my Hope.
He is my Life.
Silence and away with you.

Never Alone

/ The Pastor

Have you ever felt discouraged, attacked, beaten down, driven away like chaff or defeated? Have you ever felt like running away, hiding or curling up into a ball to wait out what’s afflicting you? Have you ever felt alone, lost or hopeless? Have you ever wondered if God actually cares? Have you ever wondered if God really knows what is going on or is doing what He said He would do? Well, you are not alone – and in more ways than one. First of all, you are not the only one to feel this way and second, you are never alone. God, your Shepherd, is always watching His sheep – He is always watching over you. Satan may get his punches in, but Satan will never remove and devour the sheep of the Shepherd, our God through Jesus Christ. And so, raise your voice to the Shepherd, but know – you are never alone, and Satan will never win.

Satan is on the prowl,
Looking to devour,
And I feel so defenseless.
He bites and scratches,
Wounds are appearing,
Injuries sustained,
Energy is draining.
And there is nothing I can do to stop him.
Hopelessness is his goal.
Lostness is his desire.
Oh God, come and rescue me.
Smash out his teeth,
Destroy his goals,
Slay the lion,
Leave him defeated.
Oh my Shepherd,
Keep me close to You,
May Your rod and staff comfort me,
Lead me through this dark valley,
May I once again see green pastures and still waters,
As You lead me in Your path of righteousness;
Healing and restoring my soul.
Satan is on the prowl, but YOU, oh God, are my Shepherd.
And thus, I am yours,
In Your house dwelling,
Forever and ever to worship You.
Amen.

The One

/ The Pastor

You are the Way, the Truth and the Life.
You and only You,
You are holy and true,
You are my hope and salvation.
There are no other gods who can stand,
all have been outdone,
none can prove to be the one.
Many try to dethrone You,
but all fall short,
incomplete
impotent
Ineffective.
Only You is praise wholly due.
But the battle rages on,
my soul is conflicted.
Wolves in sheep’s clothing,
trying to pull off a big con.
I become deceived,
straying from the way.
Listening to the lies,
oh God, my soul is grieved.
Forgive and restore,
remake, for You I adore.
May it be You who I follow,
for there is no other way.
The gods of this world,
are nothing, only hollow.
So dethrone the gods I’ve crowned,
Show me again,
That Jesus, only Jesus,
is the way to truly abound.

I Will Not Live in Fear but in the Fear of the Lord

/ The Pastor / 1 Comment

Living in fear is never the answer unless, of course, we are talking about the “fear of the Lord”. In that case we aren’t really living in fear, per se, but rather in reverence and awe of our amazing God through Jesus Christ. It isn’t a fear that sends us running away. It isn’t a fear that causes us to cower and shake. It isn’t a fear to cause us to look over our shoulders. The fear of the Lord sends us running INTO the mighty arms of our Lord. We worship him. We revere Him. We stand in awe of Him.

Satan would have us do the opposite. So many people are fearful, today, as we process the horrific events in Sutherland Spring, Texas. People are wondering how to protect themselves, now, as we enter and worship in a sanctuary; a place that, by definition, is a place of refuge and safety. Do we need armed guards? Do we install metal detectors? Do we have bag searches at the visitor’s center? Do we lock the church doors after worship starts? Fear, fear, fear.

But I refuse to live in that kind of fear. I refuse to let Satan steer my eyes away from the One we ought to fear; God almighty, Creator of heaven and earth. No, I am not going to bury my head in the sand and pretend everything will be alright; that this will never happen to us, but I am not going to be held captive by Satan; by evil. I am going to enter my sanctuary each and every week with reverence and awe, and worship our awesome God through Jesus Christ. I will be aware of my surroundings but not at the expense of my God. Besides, if I die while worshiping, well, so be it. There are definitely worse ways to go and worse places.

Through Jesus Christ we are THE Church. We are his bride. Jesus died for us. Jesus redeemed us with his very blood. My friends, what is there to fear, then, outside of God almighty? So I am NOT going to live in fear, only in the fear of the Lord.

So with that said, there is only one thing left to do: Tell Satan to take his fear and go to hell.

The (feisty) Pastor -|—

Not Beaten Down

/ The Pastor

Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.
[Psalm 42:11]

Isn’t this something we need to hear each and every day?
Isn’t this something we need to remember?
Isn’t this something we need to lift up our soul?
Isn’t this something we need to encourage us along the way?

I don’t know about you, but I can feel discouraged from time to time. I can get frustrated with what I see around me. I can feel beaten down by the forces of the evil one. I can feel defeated.

But…

…the psalmist reminds us of our hope. Though you may feel discouraged or frustrated or beaten down or defeated, we have a hope to which to cling.  He says, “…for I SHALL again praise him…” Did you see that? Read it again, We SHALL praise him again; for our salvation is a sure and certain thing in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Satan rejoices when we feel discouraged or frustrated or beaten down or defeated, but instead of allowing Satan to rejoice, let us rejoice in our Lord; who has already beaten down Satan through the cross and the empty tomb.

So take courage and praise GOD; our salvation through Jesus; for Satan has nothing on you.

Oh God, when Satan comes at me and beats me down, remind me of your Son, Jesus Christ, who has already beaten down Satan. May I not wallow in defeat but rather in the victory I have through faith. All praise and worship be unto You, oh God, through Christ Jesus my Lord, Amen.

The Pastor -|—

Laughing

/ The Pastor

We turn our eyes away from God,
and Satan laughs.
We fight among ourselves,
and Satan laughs.
We seek our own agendas,
and Satan laughs.
We put our needs before other’s,
and Satan laughs.
We build earthly kingdoms,
and Satan laughs.
We worry,
and Satan laughs.

We do anything and everything but seek the glory of God,
and Satan laughs.

But…

Let’s look to God,
let’s seek reconciliation,
let’s seek God’s will,
let’s humble ourselves,
let’s seek to advance God’s kingdom,
let’s trust God.

Let’s do anything and everything we can to bring glory to God’s holy name through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Let’s laugh at Satan and tell him to go to hell. Our Lord, Jesus, reigns.

Praise be to God!

The Pastor -|—

To Silence Satan’s Laugh

/ The Pastor

And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one.[John 17:11]

I listened to a sermon recently where the pastor talked about oneness as the Father and the Son are one; using the above text. But something he said really caught my attention. He said that when we, as a church, get caught up in disputes or controversies or anything that takes our eyes off of Christ, Satan laughs.

He laughs.

Why?

Satan laughs because he won as he managed to get the church to take their eyes off of Christ. And ultimately that is what Satan is trying to do with all people. For you see, sin is a turning inward to see yourself as god; trusting oneself over God almighty. And when we look inward, we see only our agenda and our will. And let me tell you, our agenda and our will is not God’s.

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. [Isaiah 55:8-9]

And Satan knows this and thus tries get us to focus on ourselves. For if Satan can divert our attention away from Jesus, then the church is not going to be the church as God wants. In scripture, the relationship of Jesus and the Church is like that of a husband and a wife, but only better. But if a wife (the Church) is not focused on her husband (Jesus); or worse yet, looking for another, the marriage is in trouble. And therefore, as the Church, we need to be one with Christ. For it is only by looking to Christ that we see his purpose and will for our lives. And that purpose? Is to be one as the Father and the Son are one. And when we are in one accord with the Father, the Kingdom of God is advanced. We are called to glorify God through the proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ whereby letting the Holy Spirit add to “the numbers”.

But that won’t happen if the church is turned in upon itself. The Church MUST be Christ focused. The Church MUST humble itself before the throne of God. The Church MUST lay it’s burdens down and trust God to care for it’s needs. The Church MUST remain focused. The Church MUST be one as the Father and the Son (and the Holy Spirit) are one.

And so my prayer for the Church; the congregations I am leaving and the one I am heading to shortly, is that we are one; one in purpose. May our eyes remain fixed on Jesus, so much so, that we give no occasion for Satan to laugh.

All praise, honor, glory and worship be unto God our Father through Christ Jesus our Lord.

The Pastor -|—

P.S. If you want to listen to the sermon I referenced at the beginning, follow the below link.

Sermon by Pastor Gary Jepsen, May 1