What Happened To The Eighteen Year Old Kid?

Good Monday Morning To You!!

Can you believe it is already the first week of June? They say time flies when you are having fun. If that is true I must be having a blast. Some people I graduated with reminded me that it was 42 years ago this past Monday the senior class of Norwood High School received their diplomas. As I look back at those earlier days, it is as if I am looking back at someone else’s life. That muscular, (yes, Bill Wolfe, I was) sandy haired kid disappeared somewhere and re-emerged as a father of five, and a grandfather of two. Those 42 years of life have been a roller coaster ride with the ups and downs, the twists and turns, and the exhilarations and the fears. All in all, I must say it has been a pretty good ride. It is very doubtful that I have another 42 years to look forward to, but wherever life takes me, I take comfort in the fact that I do not go alone. Jesus has promised He would, “…never leave me nor forsake me.” (Hebrews 13:5)

Yesterday was an awesome day at Friendship Harmony. The attendance was good, and the service was uplifting. On the first Sunday of each month we observe The Lord’s Supper. I took the occasion to preach a message on communion. Don’t worry about the technical, theological jargon, just understand that it means “fellowship.” When you have a right relationship with God, you have fellowship with Father, Son, and Spirit. This is Christian doctrine; other religions cannot comprehend a god that would want or have a close fellowship with man. Their thinking is that we are not worthy to have communion with someone as mighty, majestic, and magnificent as God. This would be correct except for the fact that we have been made worthy by our Lord, Jesus Christ. That is communion. It is not about us, it is all about Him. The video will be available tomorrow, and can be seen at www.facebook.com/friendshipharmony. Remember, you do not have to have a Facebook account to see it. This week’s message is slightly less than 10 minutes long, so I do hope you’ll check it out.

May the LORD bless your upcoming week. Stay safe and well. Remember, if you’d like prayer for any reason, be sure to write me at fhbcsjc@gmail.com. I always enjoy hearing from you. I’ll see you next Monday Morning With Pastor Vic!!!

Purple Grape Juice

Good Monday Morning To You!

What a busy week it has been! I’ve had something to do nearly every day. I love busy times though. One thing Bess and I was privileged to do was to attend a Pastor’s premier screening of a new movie to be released later this month. Our associate Pastor, Bob Felber, and his wife Wanda accompanied us to see The Christmas Candle. The film is set in a small village in England near the turn of the century. If I go into too much detail, I might spoil it for you. If you would like to see the preview, go to www.christmascandlemovie.com. Be sure your sound is turned on! I highly recommend this film and I heartily endorse it, and I hope to see it again when it is released. The movie is appropriate for all ages, and is very well done with a good story. If you do not see any other picture this Christmas season, do yourself a favor and treat yourself to this one. As soon as this movie is available on CD, it will definitely be added to the Cooper collection. Check out the preview and I hope you will enjoy it as much as Bess and I did.

Yesterday was Communion Sunday at Friendship Harmony. That is always a very special day. I had to announce to the congregation that the communion juice was clear. When I went to the store to buy a bottle, clear (they call it white) was all they had. I told the story of a dear little lady in my former church in Cincinnati who scolded me for having the wrong color grape juice. The deacons were supposed to take care of the supplies, and each of the men thought the other had done so. However, Kroger was less than a mile away, so I slipped out during Sunday School to buy a bottle. It never occurred to me that they might be out. “This is Kroger,” I told myself, “they never run out.” They ran out! All they had was white grape juice. I figured since it was 100% pure juice, it would not matter. It mattered! The elderly lady told me in no uncertain terms, “The Bible says the grape juice has to be purple, and it has to be Welch’s!” She was deadly serious and meant every word of it. I thought to myself that the school I had attended had cheated me because they never taught me that. Do you think that perhaps I should inform my students in my class later tonight that communion juice has to be purple and it has to be Welch’s? If I do, it’s likely the Dean of Old Testament Studies and the school’s president will call me into the office for a chit-chat. I think I’ll pass.

I hope you have a really good week, and that the LORD’s blessings come to you and your family abundantly. Pray for me when it goes well with you; I do so appreciate it. I’ll see you next Monday Morning With Pastor Vic!

Closed Doors

Good Friday Morning To You!

Yes, you read it right, I said good Friday morning. It seems that some of you did not receive last Monday’s blog, so I’m going to try again. I’m sure the problem was, “pilot error.” Any of my kids can tell you that I am not computer savvy. As a matter of fact, any tool in my hands: electronic, electrical, hand, or otherwise is a dangerous thing. My dad was very good with tools, as are my two boys, Jason and Kevin. That kind of talent skips a generation I am told.

Here is Monday’s blog, slightly updated.

Sunday at Friendship Harmony was a celebration of the Lord’s Supper. We have Communion with our Lord the first Sunday of every month. As we receive the bread and the juice, we think of the great sacrifice Jesus made on our behalf. It is hard to imagine Jesus loving me so much that He would suffer the horrors of the cross for me. I believe that if I was the only person on earth in need of redemption, Christ would still have gone to the cross. When I traveled the country singing Gospel music, we sang a song called, “When He Was On The Cross, I was On His Mind.” One of the most striking lines in the song says, “He knew me, yet He loved me.” Jesus loved me when I was in the filth and degradation of my sin. The Apostle Paul told the Romans, “For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. [7] For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. [8] But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:6-8

Sunday was the final message in the four part series “Open Doors.” The title was, “When God Closes The Door.” God not only opens doors, but He also closes them. According to the text verse, Rev. 3:7, when God closes a door, it stays closed. It also teaches when God opens a door, no man can close it. Has God closed some doors in your life? Are you just as thankful for the closed doors as you are for the open ones? You should be. When God closes a door, it is for the best. If you were wandering aimlessly and about to go into a place full of danger, when suddenly someone closed the door to protect you from going in, would you not be grateful? I’m sure you would. That is what God does for you when He closes a door. The sermon notes are below and the video is posted on YouTube. You can view it at www.youtube.com. From their home page type in Friendship Harmony Baptist Church. When our icon comes up, find the message you’d like to see. There are several to choose from, so be sure to take in the entire series. Thank you for being a faithful reader of the blog. Here are the notes.

God’s Open Doors
Revelation 3:7
Series: God’s Doors By: Pastor Vic Cooper
4 of 4

When God Closes The Door

I. Only God can open or close one of His doors.
A. Angels can, also, but only at God’s calling.
1. Angels never act independently from God.
B. “To try to open a door God has shut is an exercise in futility and foolishness.” Pastor Vic Cooper

II. When God closes a door, it stays closed until He decides to reopen it.
A. God closed the door of the ark.
Genesis 7:16 (NASB-Updated) Those that entered, male and female of all flesh, entered as God had commanded him; and the Lord closed it behind him.
B. Noah and all family stayed aboard until God told them to leave. Genesis 8:15-16 And God spake unto Noah, saying, [16] Go forth of the ark, thou, and thy wife, and thy sons, and thy sons' wives with thee.
C. God closed a door to Daniel. Daniel 12:9 And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.
D. God opened that door to John. Rev. 1:1, 19 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John: [19] Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter;

III. Some doors God has no intentions of ever reopening.
A. Satan’s destiny is sealed and it is for ever. Rev. 20:10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.
B. The sinner’s punishment is also for ever.
Rev. 20:15; 22:10-11 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand. [11] He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.
1. The rich man of Luke 16:26 was told his punishment was for ever.
2. Psalm 37:9 For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.
C. The backslidden Christian can also face a closed door. Jeremiah 15:6 Thou hast forsaken me, saith the Lord, thou art gone backward: therefore will I stretch out my hand against thee, and destroy thee; I am weary with repenting.

Conclusion: If God has opened a door, walk in. If God has closed a door, walk away.

I hope you are blessed with a safe and healthy week. Don’t forget to set your clocks ahead when you go to bed this coming Saturday night. If you’re in the area this coming Sunday, be sure to come to Friendship Harmony for a joyous time in the Lord. If not, be sure to visit us on YouTube, and again next Monday Morning With Pastor Vic!!!

Happy Hanukah???

Good Monday Morning to you!

I hope the past week was healthy and enjoyable for you. I’ll give you a bit of an update on Miss Bessie’s and my health. Bess saw the Doctor last week for her surgery follow-up. As you know, she has had three surgeries in the same area since last March. The Doc said there was “slight improvement.” He reminded her that her recovery would be very slow, and at times quite painful. He gave her a break this week, but wants to see her again next week. As for me, I am feeling a little stronger each day. I see my cardiologist this week, so I’ll update you next Monday. I am told that with heart stints it takes a few weeks to notice vast improvement. As I said, I can already tell there is improvement, and each day is a bit better than the day before. For now, Bess and I both thank you for your prayers.

Yesterday was an awesome day at Friendship Harmony Baptist Church. We began the day by having our first Sunday School class. We had ten attendees including myself. Several more could not attend due to illness. I am teaching the class for now, but in mid January, Bro. Burt Nelson will take over. He is one of the finest teachers I have ever learned from. Burt, a former professor of geography at Central Michigan University, brings a vast knowledge of Scriptures to the table each week. Our Church is so blessed to have him and his lovely wife Chris Ann with us.

For our lesson, I taught the meaning of Hanukah, and the fact that it was celebrated by our Lord Jesus Christ. As a matter of fact, it was at Hanukah that our Lord declared the fact that He indeed was the Messiah. This was not coincidental. Nothing Jesus ever did was, or even today is, coincidental. To take you back into Israeli history, the Seleucid King, Antiochus IV, declared himself to be God and committed the abomination by defiling the Jewish Temple. He set up a statue to Zeus inside the Temple and sacrificed a pig on the altar. He forbade the Jews to circumcise their eight day old infant boys, declared an end to the daily sacrifices, and forbade anyone from owning, keeping, or reading from the Torah. He also named himself Antiochus Epiphanes [God manifest]. By the use of this name, he was stating that he was God. The Bible tells us in John 10:22, “ And it was at Jerusalem the feast of the dedication, and it was winter.” The feast of the dedication is Hanukah, the celebration of throwing out Zeus and all that defiled the Temple and rededicating it to God.

The Jews in John chapter ten knew their history, and they knew exactly what Jesus hasd said. He declared Himself to be God as had Antiochus Epiphanes, and many were not going to have any of it. We are told in John 10:31 “Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him.” The difference between Jesus and Antiochus is that Antiochus died and remains dead until this very day. Jesus also died and raised from the dead on the third day meaning His claim to be the Messiah, the Son of God, indeed God Himself was a valid claim. Jesus is who He claimed to be and Easter is the proof.

“Preacher,” I can hear someone say, “Why are you talking about Easter, it’s Christmas time.” The reason is simple: if you take Easter out of the picture, all you have remaining is just another birthday. Christmas means nothing without the resurrection of Christ. It was on Hanukah that Jesus proclaimed who He was and is. If Hanukah was important enough for our Lord to celebrate it, and to choose that time to declare that He indeed was God incarnate, (in the flesh) then we as Christians are incomplete in our knowledge if we do not at least learn a bit about this most important Jewish holiday.

To end our day of worship, we celebrated The Lord’s Supper. This is a special time in the life of any believer, and it was the first time we celebrated it together at our new Church, Friendship Harmony. The plan is to observe Communion the first Sunday of each month. Many exciting things are happening at Friendship Harmony. I wish everybody in the world could attend one of our services. You definitely can tell God is in the building whenever this Church meets. Even though we meet in a secular clubhouse, for which we are very grateful, the Spirit of God meets with us and for that we are eternally grateful. I’ve been in services where the Lord’s presence was not felt, and I can assure you it was less exciting than watching grass grow.

If you are in the area, stop by the Church. We are located on Stringfellow Road, just south of mile marker 6 on Pine Island. We are in the Flamingo Bay clubhouse, next door to the St. John’s Episcopal Church. Our Sunday School begins at 9:00, and the Worship service is at 10:00. Come in any time. We will also be having a Christmas Eve service on December 24, at 6:00p.m.

May the Lord bless your upcoming week --- I hope you stay safe, healthy, and warm. As always, I look forward to seeing you again next Monday Morning With Pastor Vic.