Orchard Ridge Church

You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance. – Psalm 32:7 If you’ve ever led anything you know what comes with “leading.” On the positive side, you’re empowered to shape teams, churches, families, communities, businesses, schools, etc. for the good. Good leaders raise up young leaders. Good leaders see gifts and abilities in the people around...

Kish had a son named Saul, as handsome a young man as could be found anywhere in Israel, and he was a head taller than anyone else. – 1 Samuel 9:2 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” – 1 Samuel 16:7 The people...

So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. They said to him, “You are old, and your sons do not follow your ways; now appoint a king to lead (judge) us, such as all the other nations have.” – 1 Samuel 8:4-5 Israel had a King! They had the King of kings and the LORD of lords. Jehovah was His Name. But remember what Israel means… “One who struggles with God.” The name...

My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. – Psalm 121:2 We are currently making our way through the Book of 1 Samuel here at Orchard Ridge Church. There is a 3 chapter section of 1 Samuel (chapters 4-7) whereby the Ark of the Lord is captured by the Philistines then returned to Israel by a supernatural work of God alone! The Israelites had nothing to do with it. Israel had wander...

Now the people of Beth Shemesh were harvesting their wheat in the valley, and when they looked up and saw the ark, they rejoiced at the sight. – 1 Samuel 6:13 The Ark of the Covenant had been captured by the pagan Philistines after the Israelites had been routed in a battle against them. The spiritual leadership in Israel was at an all time low. Many had failed by egregiously sinning against the L...

But the following morning when they rose, there was Dagon, fallen on his face on the ground before the ark of the LORD! His head and hands had been broken off and were lying on the threshold; only his body remained. – 1 Samuel 5:4 Perhaps of all the Commandments given to Moses on Mount Sinai (aka The Ten Commandments), #1 and #2 might seem to be in our grasp… No other gods before God, and no idols...

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The LORD came and stood there, calling as at the other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” Then Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.” – 1 Samuel 3:10 Samuel. His name means, “The LORD hears.” It was in reference to his mother’s passionate prayer to the LORD asking for a child. She was barren and God had placed within her a longing to conceive. As is always the case, the LORD hears our sincere...

Eli’s sons were scoundrels; they had no regard for the LORD. – 1 Samuel 2:12 But Samuel was ministering before the LORD—a boy wearing a linen ephod. – 1 Samuel 2:18 The Priest Eli presided as the High Priest over the Tabernacle at Shiloh where the Lord’s Ark of the Covenant was located. He had two biological sons – Hophni and Phinehas – and a boy named Samuel who had been entrusted to Eli’s care b...

Commit to the LORD whatever you do, and He will establish your plans. – Proverbs 16:3 In 1 Samuel 1, a barren woman named Hannah poured out her heart to God – begging for a child. She vowed that if her request was granted, she would give the child back to God! She would consecrate her first born son to the service of God at the Tabernacle at Shiloh. We have a practice in our Christian tradition at...

Jesus sums up His entire Sermon on the Mount with a concluding statement that begins with one word: Therefore. What's that there for? Matthew says that the people who heard Him preach were "amazed" at His teaching because He taught as One having authority - not like the Pharisees. But you know what being amazed at a sermon gets you? Absolutely NOTHING... Hearing / listening is like b...

But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. – James 1:6 We are in the home stretch of our “Sermon on the Mount” series. Only two weeks to go! Tomorrow, we begin with Jesus’ encouragement to all of His followers to ask boldly for good things that God the Father wants to give us. The verse I’ve included (James...

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged.” – Jesus This Bible verse – Matthew 7:1 – might be the most quoted (and misquoted) Bible verse in all of scripture. Non-Christians are especially fond of it. “Don’t judge me!” they say to Christians around them. Are we to be void of all judgement? Understood in its proper context, these words of Jesus should make His followers more gracious when dealing wi...

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Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. – Psalm 139:23-24 As I type this sermon teaser devotional, it happens to be Valentine’s Day. I don’t have to tell you that expressions of love to our spouses or boyfriends / girlfriends are needed on a day like today. But I think the recipients have...

Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. – Luke 6:38 We are currently in a series on Jesus’ “Sermon on the Mount.” (Matthew 5-7). It’s considered by most to be His greatest teaching. It was directed to His disciples and followers (both then and now). He’...

Teachers and preachers tend to address issues that NEED addressing. Jesus, who was both Teacher and Preacher, was no different. As He spoke to His followers (disciples) in what has become known as the “Sermon on the Mount,” He speaks into six commands that every Jew in that day would’ve been familiar with. These commands had come from the Torah (which means instruction, teaching or guidance). It w...

For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven. – Matthew 5:20 I warned you before we began this series on the Sermon on the Mount (a.k.a. the Mountain of a Sermon), that we’d all end up feeling the sting that comes from the awareness that we are far from the goal of being “just like Jesu...

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” – John 8:12 Last week, as we launched our Sermon on the Mount series, we looked at the “Beatitudes” found in Matthew 5:3-12. In these verses, Jesus showed us the character of citizens in His Kingdom. In this week’s passage, Jesus uses the el...

Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. – Luke 8:1 The title of the greatest sermon ever preached by the greatest preacher who ever lived isn’t so great. “The Sermon on the Mount” isn’t the title Jesus gave it. It’s not in the Bible. It might be more correctly called a “Mountain of a Sermon!” In the three chapters (5-7) nestled in...

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After all this had happened, Paul decided to go to Jerusalem, passing through Macedonia and Achaia. “After I have been there,” he said, “I must visit Rome also.” – Acts 19:21 “And it came to pass” is a phrase that appears somewhere between 450-483 times in the Bible (depending on your translation). But whatever the count is, it is a lot! What does that mean? “And it came to pass” can mean many thi...

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But now I urge you to keep up your courage, because not one of you will be lost; only the ship will be destroyed. – Acts 27:22 There is great danger in only looking at part of a message. We need to get the whole message before drawing conclusions. The Bible is often taken out of context, twisted, contorted to say things that are “half true” or just untrue entirely. For example, Jesus said, “In thi...

Paul replied, “Short time or long—I pray to God that not only you but all who are listening to me today may become what I am, except for these chains.” – Acts 26:29 Here’s a question for your consideration: In the realm of faith in Christ, do you play the long game or short game? Let me explain. Do you need immediate results from God? Or does He primarily serve as your “go to” in a pinch? Alternat...