ATTENTION: I was unable to go live on Facebook today. I will have to start looking into other methods to ensure that people can see, hear, and listen to my sermons from this point forward.
Welcome to Covenant of Hope Ministries and our live Sunday sermon. You will normally see us posted between 50 and 52 Sundays each year. I am Rev. Laura A. Neff. Our ministry was built on the truth of God’s love. This ministry shares the Word of God, the Spirit of Christ Jesus. Every sermon is through meditation and holy inspiration. It is God’s will that has brought this to be. We wish only that God’s truth will be shared within His words as brought to us by the Spirit as it fills my heart, mind, and soul to be shared with my hands, but with His words alone.
You will find us in the following location: http://www.covenantofhopeministries.blogspot.com
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Prayer List: We have many on our prayer list. Some wish to remain anonymous, and others only wish to have their first names mentioned. Our prayer list grows or changes every week. This is our current list.
- Please pray for Evangelist Cal Jennings who has been suffering greatly due to circumstances no one is able to control. He has had a lot going on lately. May the Lord keep his spirits up, allow him the time to share his love of God with others, and also to help heal him.
- Please keep several friends and other family members in prayer for their trials and tribulations. They have each requested to remain anonymous for the time being. Two have lost family members in the past month or two. One has just recently gotten out of the hospital. May they get well quickly. Another pair who have had serious issues with pain levels in recent weeks and months. Several have financial issues that are weighing on them. May their pain ease sooner rather than later.
- Pray for the economy around this world as inflation and supply chains suffer from extremely high prices for fuel.
- Be thankful for each day we live as we do not know what tomorrow brings.
- Pray for our nations that the voice of God be heard
through the Spirit.
- Pray for our friends and families that their tomorrows bring blessings and
pray our own be the same.
- Pray for those suffering as a result of the terrors that have occurred just this past week around this world.
- Pray for our sick and wounded that they may heal.
* Happy Fourth Anniversary to my son and daughter-in-law Royce and Victoria. Their anniversary was on the 22nd.
* Happy 29th Birthday to my son Royce, his birthday was on the 23rd.
Prayer: Father in heaven, our prayer today is to have the Spirit bring healing to each of our bodies, minds, spirits, and souls. We pray for enlightenment and understanding while studying Your Word. We thank You for these awesome gifts and the many more You have brought us. May pains, sorrows, and fears be drawn out and away from us. Help us to see the many gifts Your love brings and the unknown locations it might be found. May our pain and sorrow be eased. May Your many gifts of unconditional love shine through us toward others. We pray for the poor, the sick, the sorrowful, the wounded, and the frightened. We pray for the soldiers, the Samaritans, the children, and the rest. We pray in thanksgiving for every gift which has been brought us. We pray that every tomorrow would bring good things. For each of these we pray in Your Holy Name, through our Savior Jesus Christ, and the gift of the Holy Spirit, Amen and so it shall be.
Opening Song: Hillsong ~ Jesus I Need You https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKM-8CZRplI
Sermon: We are starting a journey into one of the shortest scrolls of the New Testament, Philemon (fuh·lee·muhn). This is a short, yet thorough letter to a man named Philemon, a disciple of Christ who was addressed in this letter from the Apostle Paul. Most likely, Philemon lived in Colossae, now known as modern day Turkey, part of Asia Minor. This letter speaks about freeing slaves, including one named Onesimus, whom Paul considered as a brother in Christ.
Remember, Jesus too spoke out about slavery, that continued even then. It is a subject that remains part of this world, much to God’s displeasure. We can be assured of that, as we continue to see slavery and other issues still occurring around this world to this very day. We begin this short epistle in the greeting from Paul to Philemon, where Paul gently teaches Philemon and those around him to end practices and traditions like slavery and other blasphemies. With that, let us begin at the beginning.
Philemon 1:1-2 KJV – Paul, a prisoner of Jesus Christ, and Timothy our brother, unto Philemon our dearly beloved, and fellowlabourer, And to our beloved Apphia, and Archippus our fellowsoldier, and to the church in thy house:
NIV – Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother, To Philemon our dear friend and fellow worker— also to Apphia our sister and Archippus our fellow soldier—and to the church that meets in your home:
When you hear these words they sound exactly like the beginning of just about every letter ever written by Apostles of Jesus Christ and their followers. They wish to be upbeat, and to treat those they are writing to and about respectfully. Paul does this quite easily with these first words. In the life and times of Christians in the earliest churches, it wasn’t easy to communicate freely in areas the likes of Asia Minor, Italy, Greece, and so forth. In fact, it was often clandestine, to ensure they would avoid persecution, imprisonment, or any of a number of styles of execution. Yet, there are some things that need to be said, regardless of the danger. That’s why Paul is sharing this with Philemon, Apphia (A-fee-yah) and Archippus (ahr-KIHP-uhs). We share now the additional verses of greetings from Paul here in Corinth and Colossae.
1 Corinthians 3:9 KJV – For we are labourers together with God: ye are God's husbandry, ye are God's building.
NIV – For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.
Colossians 4:17 KJV – And say to Archippus, Take heed to the ministry which thou hast received in the Lord, that thou fulfil it.
NIV – Tell Archippus: “See to it that you complete the ministry you have received in the Lord.”
We have to, all of us, remember to reflect on our friends, colleagues, coworkers, and family members and their situations, whatever those might be. This, simply because they are our friends, or share whatever relationship they might have with us. Kindness is the simplest of actions, and yet we often forget that fact in this world where we live. Kindness, mentioned in Scripture more than fifty times, yet only eleven in the New Testament, takes practice. That’s why it is mentioned so often in Scripture. Kindness is a first step in Unconditional love, which is exactly what Paul is working to instruct the disciples, including Philemon and Titus as we have already studied. Here we continue with the greeting from Paul to Philemon.
Philemon 1:3-4 KJV – Grace to you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank my God, making mention of thee always in my prayers,
NIV – Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I always thank my God as I remember you in my prayers,
Grace, the peace of God and Jesus, and prayer, that’s a fantastic combination to consider while we pursue understanding of the Word and how our lives can benefit from it. We have supporting verses from Paul in his travels to the churches in Rome, Ephesus, and Thessaly. We’ve seen similar greetings from this Apostle in many views.
Romans 1:7 KJV – To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.
NIV – To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be his holy people: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Ephesians 1:16 KJV – Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers;
NIV – I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers.
1 Thessalonians 1:2 KJV – We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers;
NIV – We always thank God for all of you and continually mention you in our prayers.
Paul says to always be thankful for our lives, for those who surround us as family, friends, neighbors, etc. Paul says specifically that he never stops giving thanks for having these fellow Christians in so many far off places. Paul also shares that he wishes each of them success, faithfulness, and building up of peace and more. This is all important, especially in the first few years after the Resurrection. Let’s return to the letter to Philemon.
Philemon 1:5-6 KJV – Hearing of thy love and faith, which thou hast toward the Lord Jesus, and toward all saints; That the communication of thy faith may become effectual by the acknowledging of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus.
NIV – because I hear about your love for all his holy people and your faith in the Lord Jesus. I pray that your partnership with us in the faith may be effective in deepening your understanding of every good thing we share for the sake of Christ.
Paul is in a great mood as he gushes over the outpouring of faith, hope, peace, and love from these churches all over the portions of the world where they had been, likely in the hopes that his letter will reach even further than where Philemon can share it alone. That’s something all of the Apostles did for as long as they were able to do so. Here we see supporting views in Paul’s words to the citizens of Philippi.
Philippians 1:9 KJV – And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment;
NIV – And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight,
Paul is reflecting on the words of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ back in the Gospel of Matthew. The fact that he reflects back to this particular verse should bring you to think of the situation Jesus was speaking of at that moment in time.
Matthew 5:16 KJV – Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
NIV – In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
In the case of Paul, Peter, Timothy, and the rest, this is a significant moment to reflect on, one that should always be referred to as true followers of Christ. Let His light shine through us as we teach His Word in a world that doesn’t always listen to or hear that which our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ would have to say. It’s exciting for Paul to share this with Philemon as he continues to do here.
Philemon 1:7-8 KJV – For we have great joy and consolation in thy love, because the bowels of the saints are refreshed by thee, brother. Wherefore, though I might be much bold in Christ to enjoin thee that which is convenient,
NIV – Your love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the Lord’s people. Therefore, although in Christ I could be bold and order you to do what you ought to do,
Love is one of the most diversified emotions of all humanity. It can be seen and shared in an infinite number of ways eternally. That’s what we should all realize and recognize. Yet, even then, as we still have today, we must be reminded that kindness is one of the simplest considerations of love, and yet, seems to be the most difficult to maintain. These supporting verses shared in Corinth and through the disciple Timothy share the joy, comfort, and mercy of our Savior Jesus Christ.
2 Corinthians 7:13 KJV – Therefore we were comforted in your comfort: yea, and exceedingly the more joyed we for the joy of Titus, because his spirit was refreshed by you all.
NIV – By all this we are encouraged. In addition to our own encouragement, we were especially delighted to see how happy Titus was, because his spirit has been refreshed by all of you.
2 Timothy 1:16 KJV – The Lord give mercy unto the house of Onesiphorus; for he oft refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain:
NIV – May the Lord show mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, because he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains.
Paul had met Onesiphorus in prison, learning that he had once been a slave to Philemon, but had since converted to Christianity. Because of this, Paul wanted Philemon to release Onesiphorus and the other slaves from his fields and home. This isn’t an easy thing for many landowners of the times. It was a sticking point for all Christians for far too many centuries after Jesus was resurrected from the dead. We continue with this pair of verses to Philemon.
Philemon 1:9-10 KJV – Yet for love's sake I rather beseech thee, being such an one as Paul the aged, and now also a prisoner of Jesus Christ. I beseech thee for my son Onesimus, whom I have begotten in my bonds:
NIV – yet I prefer to appeal to you on the basis of love. It is as none other than Paul—an old man and now also a prisoner of Christ Jesus— that I appeal to you for my son Onesimus, who became my son while I was in chains.
Well, we still have to remember, and be reminded, that we are vessels of faith and hope through Christ who offers salvation for all who believe. It’s no easy thing to remember not to destroy the perfection because we all fall off the path, most of the time without realizing we’ve even done so. That’s why we have the words of Paul, Timothy, and the other disciples, apostles, and followers of Jesus Christ our Savior. We see that here in these three final verses.
Romans 12:1 KJV – I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
NIV – Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.
1 Timothy 1:12 KJV – And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry;
NIV – I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me trustworthy, appointing me to his service.
Colossians 4:9 KJV – With Onesimus, a faithful and beloved brother, who is one of you. They shall make known unto you all things which are done here.
NIV – He is coming with Onesimus, our faithful and dear brother, who is one of you. They will tell you everything that is happening here.
I don’t know how many times I’ve read these very words over the years in which I have explored how I connect to the Scriptures and vice-versa. We all have a connection to God, to Jesus, to the Holy Spirit, the Scriptures, past, present, and future, so long as we remember Jesus Christ and the unfathomable sacrifice He made to ensure that we could have eternal life. His Apostles, Disciples, Siblings, and more have shared this time and again ever since that long ago day when He ascended into heaven to sit on the right hand side of our Heavenly Father. Now that’s something to think about as we pray in the prayer that Jesus taught us saying:
Our Father, which art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, in earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the
kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
(Matthew 6:9-13)
Closing Song: Matthew West ~ The God Who Stays https://youtu.be/QPwd_TQpsHY
~ Shalom ~
Rev. Laura A. Neff
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Evangelist Calvin Jennings
Covenant of Hope Ministries Main Site: http://www.covenantofhopeministries.blogspot.com
Scripture Excerpts: The New Open Bible Study Edition: Copyright © 1990: Thomas Nelson Publishers, Inc.
Scripture Excerpts: Holy Bible: Copyright © 1982: E. E. Gaddy and Associates, Inc.
Scripture Excerpts: Holy Bible: Copyright ©circa 1890-1910: International Bible Press, The John C. Winston Co.; Philadelphia, PA, USA
Sermon or Study Copyright © 2022 http://www.covenantofhopeministries.blogspot.com
Our mission for Covenant of Hope Ministries is not to exploit fear, but to conquer it, and overcome all that is created through fear together as the bringers of the light of Jesus found in the midst of darkness.
