Pastor Marc Bertrand

Is Sunday Worship Mentioned in the New Testament?.(Pt 2) The word "Sunday" does not appear any place in the Bible, but the phrase "first day of the week" is found in the New Testament. It occurs in exactly eight places. Examining these eight texts will prove insightful. If the day was changed by Bible authority—if Christians are to find any biblical authorization whatsoever for observing Sunday  as the "Lord's Day" today—then we must find that authority in one of these eight texts! Since the Bible clearly establishes the seventh day of the week as the Sabbath up to the time of the crucifixion, there can be no biblical authority for Sunday observance unless we find it clearly and plainly stated in one of these eight New Testament passages. We should examine them carefully, honestly, prayerfully. 1. Matthew 28:1: "Now after the Sabbath, as the first day of the week began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb." Matthew...

See Yourself As God Sees You How do you see yourself? Pause for a moment and think about it. What thoughts have you had about yourself today? So many of us find ourselves basing our self-worth on how others see us and on our accomplishments, feeling shame from our past, defining our value based on our looks, or setting unrealistic standards for ourselves. But it doesn’t have to be this way. If only we could see ourselves as God sees us! I want to look with you at three thought patterns that can act as roadblocks to thinking — and living — the way God desires for us. These destructive thought patterns were identified by psychologist Albert Ellis (1973). We will contrast these ideas with what 1 Peter 1 tells us about how we can “prepare our minds for action.” Adjusting our thinking to Scripture is the foundation of “be[ing] holy in all we do.” 1 Peter 1:15b 1. “I must be loved or approved by virtually every other person in my life.” If we are living to make sure that others love us, we...

Gideon the “mighty man of valor”. “Now the angel of the Lord came and sat under the terebinth at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, while his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the winepress to hide it from the Midianites. And the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, ‘The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valor’” (Judges 6:11-12, ESV). So here was Gideon, threshing out  his livelihood in a winepress to avoid being noticed by the Midianites. Which is all fine and good, and I suppose we can’t really blame Gideon for being prudent. After all, if Gideon had threshed his wheat on the threshing floor, the Midianite oppressors were sure to confiscate much of it. But as Gideon goes about his business, the angel of the Lord pays him an unexpected visit. But what is even more unexpected is the way in which the angel addresses Gideon: “The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valor.” Huh? If I were Gideon, I would be looking around, trying to figure out who this angel...

"How does God see me in Christ?" Several places in Scripture refer to believers being "in Christ" (1 Peter 5:14; Philippians 1:1; Romans 8:1). Colossians 3:3 gives a little more insight: "For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God." When we come to Christ as broken sinners, He exchanges our sin nature for His righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:21). We cannot remain as we were and e nter into the presence of a holy God. We must “die” to self and be “hidden” in the righteousness of Christ. Galatians 3:27 says, "For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ." Here the purity of Christ is presented as a garment we wear when we repent and accept God's offer of salvation. Imagine this scenario: A powerful king sits on his throne, judging the people. Guards attend him, and commoners wait in long lines for an audience. Suddenly, the doors of the throne room burst open. Heads turn, and everyone gasps. There stand t...

The Sabbath day Truth. Where did Sunday keeping come from? - "For although almost all churches throughout the world celebrate the mysteries on the Sabbath [7th day - Saturday] of every week, yet the Christians of Alexandria and at Rome, on account of some ancient tradition, have ceased to do this." (Socrates, Ecclesiastical History, b.5, ch.22, found in Nicene and Post-Nicene fathers) It is clea rly evident from the New Testament itself (Acts 16:13, Matthew 28:1, Luke 23:56), and historical writings like above, that the true believers and followers of Jesus Christ kept the 7th day sabbath as per the 4th commandment. But as we can see above, the professed Christians in Alexandria and Rome did not keep the Biblical sabbath. Instead, they started keeping Sunday in honor of 'some ancient tradition' - Pagan sun worship. "No evidence has been adduced, that before the enactment of this law [Constantine's Sunday law of AD 321], there was sabbatical observance of ...

Salt of the Earth What did Jesus mean when he said we should be the salt of the earth?. The interesting thing about salt is that although it is essential to life and good health on planet earth, too much of it can be harmful. Blood, sweat and tears have this mineral in them. The importance of salt in society goes back several millennia. Anciently, salt provided the financial support for pursuits like art. In Roman times, it was so precious it provided a means to pay soldiers. Our English word "salary" comes from the word salarium, a name given to the mineral when it functioned as currency. Its value as a rare commodity earned salt the nickname of 'white gold' sometime during the Middle Ages. Jesus, during his famous sermon given on a mount, stated that believers were the "salt of the earth" and warned that it was possible for them to lose their saltiness. If believers lost their "flavor," they would be of no benefit to others. They would then only...

Is Re-Baptism Ever Necessary?. Is it ever necessary to be re-baptized? Once you've been baptized, is it ever necessary to be baptized again? The answer is generally, "No." The Bible does not teach that baptism is a way of rededicating your life to the Lord. You don't have to do this every two or three years. So, if you found Christ as your personal Savior and have made a public profession of you r faith in the assembly of the saints, you never again need to be baptized. Are there some circumstances under which a person should be re-baptized? Yes, there are. Let me suggest to you three. First, a person should be re-baptized if the first baptism was not a Christian baptism. Some people have been baptized as part of a cult group or other non-Christian group. Even if they were born again at the time, that is not a biblical baptism since baptism has its meaning in the context of the assembly of believers. The second reason why a person may need to be re-baptized is if the...