URGENT PRAYER NEEDED: Chad Bowlen

theUPC — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 18:35:08 +0000

PLEASE PRAY! Just received word from Brother Rusty that his son Chad has just been involved in a car accident. They have taken him by ambulance to the Bloomington Hospital. The biggest concern here is that he is a free bleeder and any impact or injury can be very serious for him… I will update as more info is available.

theUPC Iphone App

theUPC — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 12:16:47 +0000

Iphone app coming soon

Church Family Camp Out

theUPC — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 23:54:11 +0000

Now and Later

theUPC — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 10:00:15 +0000

Kids went wild when, in 1962, the Phoenix Candy Company came out with a new
exciting product to further the expansion of tooth decay of kids across America.
Each bar of this new, delectable delight consisted of several individually wrapped
taffy squares, and were available in up to fourteen flavors. This product found
an instant success among children, as well as adults, and it’s catchy name nodoubt provided a boost of interest. They were simply called Now and Laters!
Can anybody testify to the goodness of Now and Laters! Has anybody been
blessed with a watermelon, banana, cherry, apple or my personal favorite
tropical punch mouthful of gooey goodness.
The name was selected to suggest to customers that they eat some of the taffy
squares in the bar right away and save the rest for another occasion.
I can remember as a kid stopping at the local convenience store there in
downtown Slagle when we would wait to catch the bus on occasion and buying a
bar of Now and Laters for 10 cents and stuffing them in my pocket in
anticipation of devouring them at my leisure at a later time in the day. Perhaps,
I would sneak one during first hour and maybe nibble on one during second hour
and save a few for recess and finish the last one off at the end of the day.
Amazingly my plan never seemed to work. I never experienced the later. The
word “now” always took precedent over the word “later” and those poor candies
never saw the hallway of my school.
I would roll off of that bus with nothing but wrappers in my pocket and
satisfaction on my lips.
My thought was always…….why wait for later, when you have access to it now!!
I just believed that my later was now!!
There is something about the innocence of a child! The simple focus of living for
now!
Amazingly the older I get I find the more that I have been trained to long for the
later.
It is seemingly ingrained into our culture. What do you want to be when you
grow up?
The fulfillment of now is replaced with the possibilities of later.“Just wait until you turn 12 then you can go on the youth trip.”
Then, once you turn 12, “just wait until your 15 then you can drive.”
Once 15 hits, “just wait til your 18 then you can get vote”
When you hit 18, “just wait til your 21 then your legal”
When you get 21, it’s “be sure to start putting money in your 401k for
retirement”
We seemingly are always casually sidestepping the possibilities of “now” while
reserving anticipation for the days to come
We don’t see “now” as an opportunity but rather an inconvenient pause to
something bigger and better on the horizon
We fill our calendars months in advance longing and anticipating seemingly
future dates with destiny all the while eroding the gift called “today”
If we are not careful, we can allow this same mismanagement of today to creep
it’s head into the church.
We sing it in our songs “Won’t we have a time when we get over yonder….”
Cause we can’t get together “now”
“When we all get together….” Cause we can’t get together “now”
We announce it in our services……”Thanks for coming tonight but be sure to be
here tonight”
That one was always my favorite. We have nothing planned for now but boy we
sure have a load of faith for our next service!!
Don’t miss next week!!!!
I will pick on the Youth a little bit! Don’t miss our big Youth Service next month!
You won’t get anything tonight because I haven’t fully prepared for it.
All the while, neglecting the majestic moment we know as “now”
Something amazing in the heavens every 24 hours. A brand new gift is delivered
from the throne of heaven filled with the opportunity for amazement and
wonder, known as today!!That why the Psalmist declared “This is the Day that the Lord hath made I will
rejoice and be glad in it”
II Cor 6:2 behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.
I’ve come to declare in your hearing that we need to seize Later, Now!!
Thank God for faith for the future! Thank God for a plan for tomorrow but
tomorrow can wait for just a moment! Next week can worry about itself and
next year is still a year away!
I don’t’ want to wait for Later to get here before I celebrate, I declare that Later
is here Now!!!
John 11 paints a picture of this internal dilemma that dwells within the body of
Christ
It tells the story of the sickness of Lazarus
(NIV)
4When he heard this, Jesus said, “This sickness will not end in death. No, it
is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.”
5
Jesus loved
Martha and her sister and Lazarus.
6
Yet when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he
stayed where he was two more days.
17
On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four
days.
18
Bethany was less than two miles
[a]
from Jerusalem,
19
and many Jews had
come to Martha and Mary to comfort them in the loss of their brother.
20When
Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed
at home.
21
“Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not
have died.
22
But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.”
23
Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.”
24
Martha answered, “I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last
day.”
Notice Martha had faith that he would rise again….just not “now”
Oh, I know he will rise again……”later”25
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me
will live, even though he dies;
26
and whoever lives and believes in me will never
die. Do you believe this?”
What Jesus is saying is “you need to understand that the “Later” has stepped
into your “now”
You don’t have to wait until resurrection morning! You don’t need to wait until
the sound of the trumpet. What you are anticipating in your future has just
stepped in to your present!!
27
“Yes, Lord,” she told him, “I believe that you are the Christ,

the Son of God,
who was to come into the world.”
30
Now Jesus had not yet entered the village, but was still at the place where
Martha had met him.
31When the Jews who had been with Mary in the house,
comforting her, noticed how quickly she got up and went out, they followed her,
supposing she was going to the tomb to mourn there.
32When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his
feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”
33When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also
weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled.
34
“Where have you laid
him?” he asked.
37
But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man
have kept this man from dying?”
The amazing thing is that everyone had faith for the past and for the future but
they were lacking faith for “now”
38
Jesus, once more deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone
laid across the entrance.
39
“Take away the stone,” he said.
“But, Lord,” said Martha, the sister of the dead man, “by this time there is a
bad odor, for he has been there four days.”
40
Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the
glory of God?”
41
So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, “Father, I thank
you that you have heard me.
42
I knew that you always hear me, but I said this
for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent
me.” 43When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!”
44
The
dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth
around his face.
Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.”
They had to remove the past in order to experience the present
I have heard long enough, revival is coming, revival is coming. I want to
declare that revival is here!!
I don’t wait to wait until football is over to have a move of God
Summer, fall, winter, spring, etc……..
God has always desired for you to experience the “now” while understanding
that your “now” will determine your “later”
God knew that we would struggle with the thought of today!
That’s why when he sent out his disciples, he said unto them in Matt 6
33
But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these
things shall be added unto you.
34
Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought
for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
Jesus was trying to teach a principle to his disciples to not be consumed with
“later” and be more focused on the “now”
By no mean was Jesus trying to teach them to be careless and wreckless but
what He was saying is that if you will cherish your “now” I will bless your “later”
It was engrained into the Jewish culture to look forward to “later”
The Old Testament was replete with prophecy pointing toward a day when the
Messiah would come.
It was taught daily in their home and in their chores and was a foundational
bedrock of their culture
Insomuch that they were so consumed with the later, that many of them missed
the “now”
That’s why Peter stood up on the Day of Pentecost and declared 14
But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them,
Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you,
and hearken to my words:
15
For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the
day.
16
But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel;
17
And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit
upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young
men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:
18
And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of
my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:
19
And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath;
blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke:
20
The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the
great and notable day of the Lord come:
21
And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord
shall be saved.
He wanting to let them know that the Later has become Now
Just in case you still don’t believe this is the case then visit Acts 12
Peter was imprisoned by Herod and was due to be beheaded just as James was
but vs 5 states that “prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God
for him.”
And God answered their prayer! An angel of the Lord delivered Peter out of
prison that very night and gave him a guided tour out onto the street and vs 12
states
12
And when he had considered the thing, he came to the house of Mary the
mother of John, whose surname was Mark; where many were gathered together
praying.
13
And as Peter knocked at the door of the gate, a damsel came to hearken,
named Rhoda. 14
And when she knew Peter’s voice, she opened not the gate for gladness, but
ran in, and told how Peter stood before the gate.
15
And they said unto her, Thou art mad. But she constantly affirmed that it was
even so. Then said they, It is his angel.
16
But Peter continued knocking: and when they had opened the door, and saw
him, they were astonished.
They were so looking forward to the “Later” that they almost missed the “now”
that was knocking at the door
Don’t miss your opportunity young person. God is wanting to do something
RIGHT NOW!!
It’s a shame that our dear Brother Van Halen had to provide any input but I
thought of an old song I heard in my worldly days while putting this sermon
together
Right now, hey
Its your tomorrow
Right now,
Cmon, its everything
Right now,
Catch that magic moment, do it
Right here and now
It means everything
What are you waitin for
I don’t think its an accident that every beggarly element of society that needed a
miracle from God received one.
Acts 3
1
Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer,
being the ninth hour.
2
And a certain man lame from his mother’s womb was carried, whom they laid
daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that
entered into the temple;
3Who seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple asked an alms.
4
And Peter, fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, Look on us. 5
And he gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something of them.
6
Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In
the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.
7
And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet
and ankle bones received strength.
8
And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple,
walking, and leaping, and praising God.
Every beggar’s mentality was for the moment. They understood the principle of
the “now” They knew they were not guaranteed tomorrow
Everday was a new day! Every day presented its own challenges
In addition, every one with a dire need received a blessing
Bartamaeus – decided now is the time I get my miracle –I can’t wait for Later
Man sick of the palsy – Mark 2 – They had carried him for the last time. We are
not missing this moment
Woman with the issue of blood – if I have to crawl through a crowd. I won’t
miss my moment
Matt 15 – a woman of Canaan with a vexed daughter cried out unto God – it
wasn’t even her time yet. She was supposed to wait until later but she needed
her answer NOW!! She wasn’t a Jew and Jesus referred to her as a dog. In
essence, she said, you can call me whatever you want, I know I don’t deserve it,
but I need you right now!!
There is something that pulls at the heart of God when somebody trades Later
for Now
On the other hand, you must be careful of just becoming a disciple:
If it was up to the disciples, the woman of Canaan would have had to wait for
her Later, as they asked Jesus “send her away for she crieth after us”
It was the disciples who asked Jesus to send the multitude away to find food and
lodging before Jesus broke the fishes and loaves to feed 5 thousand.
On the other side, there was a rich young ruler in Luke 1818
A certain ruler asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal
life?”
19
“Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God
alone.
20
You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery, do not murder,
do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.’

“
21
“All these I have kept since I was a boy,” he said.
22When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything
you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then
come, follow me.”
23When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was a man of great
wealth.
24
Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the
kingdom of God!
25
Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a
needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”
He was so invested into Later that he missed his “now”
He had done all the things from his Youth to prepare him for this moment and
he missed the “now”
Don’t miss this moment young people
Read II Cor 6:2
Somebody needs to seize now

Where’s Your Fruit?

theUPC — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 09:58:46 +0000

When your living for God becomes easy and battle free, check your fruit… Jesus and his disciples passed by a tree on the way through town one day and it was full of life, it looked like all of the other fig trees, it swayed in the breeze like all of the other fig trees, and produced shade like all of the other fig trees… but it produced no fruit. The Bible says that Jesus cursed the fig tree because it produced no fruit. The devil doesn’t care one bit about you looking the part or if you sway to the music in church, or if you put a couple of dollars in the offering plate, if that is all you do… he will leave you alone in that cursed state. So check your fruit, what have you done for God lately? Where has your passion to win souls and be a “Christian” gone? Maybe you haven’t been fighting battles lately because the devils just not that scared of you… It’s time to give him something to be scared of! To be a Christian is to be Christ like and he was always reaching for people, from the widows and the orphans to the undesirables, lets follow his passionate example. Remember going to church doesn’t make you a Christian anymore than standing in a garage makes you a car.

theUPC | Jacksonville First United Pentecostal Church

URGENT PRAYER NEEDED: Chad Bowlen

theUPC Iphone App

Church Family Camp Out

Now and Later

Where’s Your Fruit?