Today Dave Koss, one of our elders is stepping in as guest speaker. Dave will be teaching about the story of Joseph, from the Book of Genesis. The story of Joseph, is one of heroic redemption and forgiveness. Joseph was the most loved son of his father, Israel, given the famous robe of many colors. When Joseph reported having dreams of his brothers, and even the stars and moon, bowing before him, their jealousy of Joseph grew into action. The brothers sold him into slavery to a traveling caravan of Ishmaelites who took him to Egypt and sold him to Potiphar, the captain of Pharaoh's guard.

Easter is a Christian holiday, and Christian celebrations focus on the true meaning of Easter: the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Two thousand years ago, a man died on a cross, was buried, and three days later rose to life again. This fact—that a dead man came to life again and lives evermore—is why we celebrate Easter. The meaning of Easter is that the Son of God paid the price for our sins and rose again to reconcile us to God (see Romans 4:25). Easter means that our greatest enemy, death, has been conquered. Easter means that our sins are forgiven and we are made right with God. Easter means that Christ is truly the King and Victor, seated “far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked” (Ephesians 1:21). The meaning of Easter is that Jesus is the Lord of new beginnings, new days, and new lives.

Today we are celebrating the Feast of Passover with our Passover Seder Haggadah. A Haggadah is a religious structure. During Passover, the Seder is led by reading aloud a Haggadah, a book detailing the story of the event. The Hebrew word “Haggadah”, which means “telling,” is said to have begun in the Old English language around the middle ages. According to Jewish history, it dates back more than a thousand years.

The Feast of Booths was a time of thanksgiving for the harvest. It was a happy time. Devout Jews lived outdoors in booths made of tree branches for seven days as a reminder of God’s provision in the desert during the wilderness wanderings. There were two practices that were not mentioned in Scripture but were included in the oral tradition passed on from Moses. One was the “special commandment of the willow,” and the other was the water libation. Each morning there was a solemn procession from the temple mount to the pool of Siloam for a pitcher of water. A priest would fill a gold pitcher with water as the people sang together from Isaiah 12:3. The procession would return to the Temple Mount with trumpets blasting and great fanfare; there the priest would pour the water into a silver basin by the altar of burnt offering each day for the first seven days…

Today Pastor Kevin is starting a new series titled, "21 Days of Prayer and Fasting". In today's message, Pastor Kevin will be teaching from the Gospel of Matthew chapter 17, verses 14-21. This passage of scripture is the story of the miraculous cure of a child by Jesus that was epileptic and vexed with a demon.

Think for example about a hiking trip. When hiking a mountain, have you ever had a choice between walking up the paved road and walking up an almost wild path with stones, and mud, and plants? The narrow way is the more difficult way. It requires more discipline. It requires sacrifice. It requires perseverance. Jesus is warning us not to be false disciples. In Mark 10:17-23 we saw one person who wanted to be a disciple of Jesus, but he turned away because Jesus asked something difficult of him. Jesus asked him to sell his possessions and he wasn’t willing. This man was not a real disciple. His decision to take the broad way shows us a glimpse of his heart which was not regenerated. The narrow way is the way that looks to do to others what you would have them do to you. The person on the narrow way has the right eye. He looks and sees the beauty of God and not the beauty and lure of money. See Luke 14:26. The narrow way chooses to follow God rather than giving in to pressure from parents. See Mark 8:34. The narrow way is saying “no” to self and saying “yes” to Jesus no matter what the cost. That is what a disciple is. A true disciple is willing to say “yes” to Jesus even at great cost to themselves because they know that Jesus is worth it.

Throughout the Sermon on the Mount, Christ has been warning his disciples about the false teaching and self-righteousness of the Pharisees. When Matthew 7:1-6 is considered in that background, it is clear that Christ’s command to not judge is another challenge for the disciples to not be like the Pharisees and other hypocrites. Since the religious leaders of Christ’s time desired to exalt themselves in the eyes of others, condemning and judging was another way of lifting themselves up.

What is success to you? What do you personally value? If you want to know what you value, then ask yourself where you put your time, energy and money. The answer to those questions will tell you what you value in life. The question of what you value in life is an important question because the answer has eternal ramifications. In today's reading from the gospel of Matthew chapter 6:19-24 , we meet a fellow that valued the things of this earth and forgot about the fact that he would soon be facing eternity. He prepared well for life on earth, but neglected to plan for that which was infinitely more important, life in eternity.

"So when you give to the needy..." Jesus says. Notice that he took for granted that we would give to the needy. What he was concerned about was the motive and attitude with which the alms were given. Without real love, there would be no reward. As Jesus begins to discuss expressions of piety in his day, he zeros in on the chief problem with spiritual life: its constant tendency to go to our head and turn into a hollow religiosity.