In a Moment

The continual reading of this publication, Greatest of These by Author and Writer Matthew Pope is again read for the enjoyment of listeners and for the declaration of God's love for mankind. Focusing on the fulfillment and the sacrifice of love in this episode, the divine goodness we obtain from love is that of selfless acts of mercy and demonstration, as looked upon on The Cross. With Christ's death being the pinnacle of His love for us and the measure of God's love toward His creation, the themes of this segment of recording deal specifically with how love consummates and recognizes its own power. It is from The Godhead and from The Source of Our Lord's Spirit that we have this ability to love, drawing from the image of God as love, completely. As we endeavor to fill our lives with 1 Corinthians 13 and those Theological Virtues, may we appeal to the elements of sacrifice and fulfillment, loving greater, loving others, and loving God foremost. 

The final sermon in the series, Becoming Hungry: 40 Days of Lent, An Hungred is the exhortation on the true meaning and reality of Holy Communion. As we eat of this Bread and drink of this Cup, we do show the Lord's death until He comes. It is the value of The Eucharist that makes this Christian rite such a powerful devotion and is the center of the union of Christ and His Church, with His People. A mystery indeed, this episode looks to the Miracle of The Feeding of The 5,000 for context and encases the idea that Jesus performs miracles, not for their very sakes, but for ours. That, when we seek The Lord, we are not seeking after a miracle, but are seeking after Him. May our lives be testimonies to the witness of endeavoring to find Jesus Christ, whether in the Sop or in the Spirit, to be a part of His whole Self, as we present the fragments of our living to Him, that we would be made complete in His Body and Blood. Reading and preached in duplication from John 6, this Mount Hope Church delivery is again made available to more ears, that though this is a hard saying, we can hear it. 

The fifth sermon in the sermon series of Mount Hope Church, A Man Named John represents the peak of the Becoming Hungry Series, as the words of our prophet and preacher are explored and exposed to a hungry audience. The Living Word of Scripture breathes out the message of St. John the Baptist, as he expels demons in the Pharisees and Sadducees, questioning them, confronting them, and banishing them by truth. May our consciences be quenched by The Holy Spirit and our eyes be bathed in the glorious water of God, as this preaching investiture gives us lessons on how to defend Christianity, be Christians, and make way for The Christian God: Jesus Christ. Let us so find in Matthew 3 and in John 1, wherein there was, "a man sent by the name of John," coming down to be a light to testify of that Greater Light, and so do the same: going about in our ministries, to be about The Lord in word and in deed, screaming and crying out, Repent! For The Kingdom of God is at hand! Amen. 

The fourth message in the Becoming Hungry sermon series and the continuation of the theme of Lent, this duplication of 40 Nights, preached at Mount Hope Church in Salisbury, NC on March 14, 2021, exhorts the Scriptures of Exodus and Matthew, finding the connection. As Moses ascended Mount Sinai for the tables of the Commandments, so God offered the Law to the prefiguration of Christ, Moses being the intermediary. Into the New Testament, Jesus Christ becomes the Mediator of a New Covenant, and is the Law of God: eternal and true. While the dark of 40 nights is the same night that visits us through temptation, affliction, or something else, the Law (if we cling to it) will transform us. The Law (being Jesus Christ) will translate us if we cling to Him and keep His Commandments. Let us become spirited and lively by the life that the Law of God gives, even His Son, Whom we adore and obey, for it is right and just, as He. 

In this third message recorded as a duplication for the original (preached at Mount Hope Church in Salisbury, NC, on March 7, 2021) 40 Days and 40 Nights explores the parallel between Jesus' wandering in the desert (Matthew 4) and that of the 40 Days and 40 Nights of wicked that Noah suffered before building the Ark (Genesis 8). And, likewise, this sermon discusses the relatability between these two stories, one of The Old Covenant of Noah generating new life for humanity, as the world flooded and destroyed the population thereof, and the New Covenant of Christ, coming down in flesh and redeeming man to give us a new spiritual life. In this delivery, the powerful symbols of water and Baptism, day and night, and faithful Noah and The Eternal Savior are compared and shown to be in agreement. Throughout these 40 days of Lent, may our sacrifice be a reminder of what our ancestors in The Faith have done before, sacrificing all. Let us call to mind our selves in this time until Easter, and call upon their assistance for help, finishing strongly this Lenten season in The Church. 

The second sermon in the six week series, Becoming Hungry, "To Be Tempted" is the latest message discussing the thrice temptations of Jesus and His Biblical/spiritual responses. As we intend to break free of the wilderness, Lucifer meets us at the hallowed doorway to tempt us back to the desert areas of our lives. Met with Christian temperament, we are shown in The Scriptures (Matthew 4:3-11) the nature of Christ, Divine and human, checked in the balance by Satanic power. The defeat of the devil is pride and in this gesture, he sought to undermine the potential weakness of Jesus Christ, Whom has none at all, and is thwarted in His attempts. We model this from Our Lord, bound to be tempted, so we prove an example of grace and so rebuke the evil by profession of Christ and by reminder of His Word, which prunes, and pricks, and discerns correctly, growing us as we grow hungry during this season of Lent. 

The first sermon in a six-week sermon series, titled, Becoming Hungry: 40 Days of Lent, this initial message is named Led up of The Spirit, and is an introduction to the Church Season and Liturgical Feast of Lent. In this Lenten fast, we strive to put aside the works of darkness, rebuke the evil one, and so decide to grow into a unity of The Spirit with Jesus Christ. As we prepare these 40 days toward Easter Sunday, we enter in to self-denial, self-sacrifice, and a maturing of the Christian life, to reach newness of eternal life on Eastertide. It is the joy of God to chasten us and this Biblical tradition and practice finds itself in Matthew 4:1-2. As we endeavor to discover God in Christ once more, this series hopes to convince all of the saving power of Jesus and the suffering of the Christian toward right repentance and truthful display, as we deepen our faith. A duplication of the Sunday night service preached (February 21) at Mount Hope Church, in Salisbury, North Carolina, this reproduction is a lesson for those Christian and non. 

The second installation of the Greatest of These narration and study, this episode uncovers the third paragraph of Author and Writer Matthew Pope's book, Greatest of These, and seeks to have discourse on its meaning and Scripture involved. Investing into the idea of Biblical love, God reveals to us His perfect intention of what true love involves and what it demands of us as Christian persons. Discussing, in particular, the virtue of love, Christians live by virtue in the Faith and love is that sealing effort, that completion, that perfection that Christ gives life to. Without The Lord, even love is vain and empty, and without Christ's love, our faith and righteousness is nothingness. 

Influenced by the Epiphany Feast of Scripture, the lens show that we have tipped the scale and it is in favor of disunity and discomfort in the world. How shall we survive if even our people cannot unify? And, how can we come together when the trust is not in those who claim to defend us and who are sworn in to guide us in public office? This short episode is a reaction to the harrowing events of January 6, 2021 and to the overall effects of Christ's Church being ignored, closed down, and altogether found non-essential. How can we see the tyranny of sin in response? We look no further than yesterday's events. When fraudulent means and lying prevail, and when the only cure is Christianity and it is not preeminent in a nation any longer, the only result is overthrow and revelry and sinfulness. Let us pray firstly for America and for our leaders, and then pray for ourselves because we need the healing power of The Holy Spirit every single day. In this episode, learn again why Jesus is an important figure and why He's not held down by class, affiliation, or bias. 

Narrated by Author and Writer Matthew Pope, Matthew's own Greatest of These theology book is read aloud and discussed. Dividing the first few entries into the publication, paragraphs 1 and 2 are spoken by Matthew Pope and then broken down and analyzed in two different segments. Based on 1 Corinthians 13:13, the idea is to underline the importance of love and how it stems ultimately from God. God's love, then, is the performance of good to us and our neighbors, and is the real reason conversion and transformation can begin. When we understand that the human heart is incapable of love without God, we can then perceive why love is the greatest of the Theological Virtues. Love gives life to everything The Lord desires to show and to demonstrate toward us as sinners. For, Jesus died and rose again in true and defiant love, to see us love the same in abundance to one another.