There were many different roles to fill in Israel, from gatekeeper to Temple servant and many more. When these people went into captivity, they continued in their roles because the gifts and calling of God are without changing. And when they returned to the land, they continued right along with those God-called roles.

Like a master author, the Lord always creates a strong lead and a supporting cast of characters in the stories He writes. This was true of the stories of Ezra and Nehemiah. In this first of a two-part series, Pastor Paul examines each of the characters that we are introduced to in the first chapter of Ezra.

Pastor Paul Torres continues with a message from last week, looking at the background of the story between the time that the nation of Judah went into captivity and when the LORD “stirred up” the heart of Cyrus, King of Persia, to send God’s people home. But no one should have been surprised. After all, Pastor Paul shows us how God always tells “the end from the beginning.” It’s part of His character. God always has a plan, and since He is sovereign, it will always come to pass. And for those who will listen, He will reveal His plans just to prove that.

Down the ages, many have questioned how a loving God can use evil people to judge those who are more righteous than they are, such as when He used the Babylonians to judge Judah. We also question what our role as Christians is when the Bible talks about discipline in the church. What are we to make of all this? In this message from Ezra, Pastor Paul takes a look at these questions and more.

Pastor Paul Torres continues with part two of an introductory message into the book of Ezra. Last week, Pastor Paul laid the groundwork for this important study by reviewing the history of the people of Israel from Abraham through the captivity. This week, Pastor Paul continues digging deeper into the national disaster that very nearly destroyed Israel. Pastor Paul tells us that the enemy has two main tactics to attack God’s people: Either he tries to annihilate them, or he tries to assimilate them. The second tactic nearly worked with Israel before the captivity. As they became curious about the immoral gods and goddesses of the nations around them, they fell into gross immorality. In this message, Pastor Paul shows us some of the stomach-twisting evil they participated in, and makes a connection to our tendency to love the world today.

Pastor Paul Torres begins a study of the book of Ezra by taking a look at the events from the time of Abraham to the fall of Judah that made it so necessary for the people of God to experience a spiritual renewal.

For those who are thinking about giving their lives to Christ, they must know some of the fine print. Serving the Lord is a joy and guarantees eternal life, but things on this earth may get hard as the Christian faces attacks from the devil and the world. But what happens if we reject His mercy and turn away from the world?

Pastor Paul Torres talks about how God put the Gospel into nature itself from the very beginning of Genesis, leaving us with no excuse if we reject His love.

While the adults projected their views of who the Messiah would be onto Jesus Christ and quickly became disillusioned and angry when He did not fit their template, the children saw Him as God and worshiped Him in joyful faith.

Pastor Paul starts a series on the last week of Jesus' life by examining the events of His entry into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey. He asks us to consider an important question: Are we so busy looking for something that we are missing God's best for us?