Pastor Marc Bertrand

  What did Jesus mean when He said, “Take up your cross and follow Me”? "What did Jesus mean when He said, “Take up your cross and follow Me” (Matthew 16:24; Mark 8:34; Luke 9:23)?" Let’s begin with what Jesus didn’t mean. Many people interpret “cross” as some burden they must carry in their lives: a strained relationship, a thankless job, a physical illness. With self-pitying pride, they say, “That’s my cross I have to carry.” Such an interpretation is not what Jesus meant when He said, “Take up your cross and follow Me.” When Jesus carried His cross up Golgotha to be crucified, no one was thinking of the cross as symbolic of a burden to carry. To a person in the first-century, the cross meant one thing and one thing only: death by the most painful and humiliating means human beings could develop. Two thousand years later, Christians view the cross as a cherished symbol of atonement, forgiveness, grace, and love. But in Jesus’ day, the cross represented nothing but torturous...

  Angels over the Ark. What Was the Ark of the Covenant? Its Meaning and Significance. The Ark of the Covenant was one of the most instrumental symbols of faith and God’s presence. The contents of which included the tables of the Mosaic law, a pot of manna, and the rod of Aaron. The Ark of the Covenant was one of the most instrumental symbols of faith and God’s presence. The contents of which included the tables of the Mosaic law, a pot of manna, and the rod of Aaron. The Ark’s origin stemmed from Exodus 25:10 when Moses was commanded by God to “make an ark of acacia wood.” The Ark of the Covenant Dimensions and Features. In Exodus 25:10-22, the specifics of the Ark were laid out. It needed to be two cubits and a half in length (one cubit being about 19.8-20.6 in.), a cubit and a half in breadth, and a cubit and a half in height. The Ark was overlaid inside and out with pure gold with a molding of gold around it. For transportation, the Ark had four rings of gold with two rings on ...

  Preachers Through the Years: Abraham, John the Baptist, Mode. A preacher is someone who delivers religious sermons, usually based on Christian doctrine, to groups of people. ... Those who lead congregations affiliated with a religious denomination and use titles such as pastor and minister have formal training from a theological school or divinity school. What Bible says about preachers?. A pastor is to be upright in his financial dealings and not accused of pursuing money over the kingdom of God. A pastor must be hospitable (Titus 1:8; 1 Tim 3:2). A pastor's home is to be open for others to enjoy. A pastor's home is not a heaven on earth, but rather a place of ministry. Does a preacher have to be ordained?. The short answer is YES. You don't have to be an ordained minister in order to pastor a church. However, in some mainline denominations, ordination is required. ... If you are called to pastor within a mainline denomination, then seek the counsel of existing pastors a...

  The Truth. A young man convicted by what he has studied in his Bible. He is in his living room with a bookcase full of books behind him, a world globe in the corner, a desk with lamp in front of him and a couch with pillows beside him. John 10:35 Jesus is engaged in a discussion in which He is accused of blaspheming God. He uses this scripture, quoting from Psalm 82:6, to support His assertion that He is the Son of God. That verse cannot be declared to be irrelevant; it carries the weight and authority of God because He inspired it. God's Word is truth; what He says is true. We cannot simply discard it because we disagree with it. If we do, we are, in effect calling God a liar. John 14:6 Not only does Jesus characterize Himself as truth in John 14:6, but He also adds in John 17:17 that "[God's] word is truth." In I Corinthians 15:45, 47, Paul refers to Jesus as "the last Adam" or "the second Man," the beginning of a new order, of an entire race o...

  Protector. Family studying Bible in secret with angel protecting them. Isaiah 54:17 ESV No weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall confute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord and their vindication from me, declares the Lord.”. God the Protector of His People. Psalms 124 1- What if the Lord had not been on our side? Answer, O Israel! 2 “If the Lord had not been on our side when our enemies attacked us, 3 then they would have swallowed us alive in their furious anger against us; 4 then the flood would have carried us away, the water would have covered us, 5 the raging torrent would have drowned us.” 6 Let us thank the Lord, who has not let our enemies destroy us. 7 We have escaped like a bird from a hunter's trap; the trap is broken, and we are free! 8 Our help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. PSALM 83 – GOD THE PROTECTOR OF HIS PEOPLE. In Psalm 82, we saw God portrayed as the She...

  Land of Liberty. Vintage painting of young people moving out in freedom. A American founder or judge holds a torch and gestures into the future. Proclamation of Liberty. Luke 4:18-19 - The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are downtrodden, to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord. Read Luke 4:14-30. Bicentennial celebrations throughout this year have called our attention to the principles on which this country was founded--political and religious freedom with liberty and justice for all. Election Day reminds us that we still have considerable civil liberty and power of choice--we are not under a dictatorship or military regime. Hey, wait a minute! Let's stop the flag waving and nostalgia and take a harder look at actual conditions in our country. Isn't it a stretch of the imagination to say that there is liberty ...

  Passing the Torch. Vintage painting of forerunners in history pass the torch to a new generation. Featuring African American characters. Where Is the Love? - 1 John 2. . Living in a fallen world, as we do, we are not only confronted by, but are often in the company of people who claim to love God, claim to be followers of Jesus, but in fact, are not. This is nothing new; it was certainly the case in the early church and particularly in the churches to whom John was writing this letter. It is for this reason that John went to great lengths to speak to this issue of how we can know that we know God. Remember, John was writing to help these early Christians confront the Gnostics, that group of heretics in the first few centuries of the church, which claimed that knowing God meant possessing some mystical, secret knowledge. Thursday's (March 16th, 2006) edition of the USA Today, carried several articles about the popularity of the DaVinci Code. One article noted how the DaVinci Code ...