We are located at the top of the intersection of NW 185th Avenue and Germantown Road. We're the "church on the hill."
18245 NW Germantown Road
Portland OR 97231
Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on January 31, 2010 under 2010 | 
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Preached on Sunday, January 31, 2010
from
Titus 1:5-9; with various passages
Theme: This passage highlights the high standard God places on the character of those who care for His church.
Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on January 27, 2010 under PM Bible Study | Be the First to Comment
PM Home Bible Study Group; January 27, 2010
Ecclesiastes 5:8-20
Theme: Solomon presents the vanity of all the ways people try to ‘get ahead’ of one another in material things ‘under the sun’.
Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on under AM Bible Study | Be the First to Comment
AM Bible Study Group; January 27, 2010
Revelation 22:6-11
Theme: This passage describes the angel’s testimony of the things spoken in the Book of Revelation.
Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on January 24, 2010 under 2010 | Be the First to Comment
Preached on Sunday, January 24, 2010
from
Psalm 8
Theme: Human life is sacred because of the high honor God has placed on mankind above all else that He created.
Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on January 19, 2010 under Ask the Pastor | Be the First to Comment
A visitor to our website writes:
Would you give a short explanation of I John 1:9?
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9, NKJV)
Dear friend,
I believe that the best way to understand verse 9 is by seeing it in the light of the verses that surround it. Verse eight says, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” That tells us that we are sinners in need of forgiveness from God; and that we would be kidding ourselves if we denied that fact. Verse 10 says something similar; but in it’s case, the focus is on the person of God Himself: “If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.” God Himself has testified that we are sinners (Romans 3:9-20; also Romans 3:23); and really, the fact that He sent His Son to die on the cross on our behalf is loud and clear proof of that fact! And so, the first step toward entering into genuine fellowship with God through His Son Jesus is to admit the truth—that we are sinners and are in need of a Savior. As John says in verse 9, “But if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (v. 9).
You can look at it this way. One of the things that would most hinder our entering into a deep friendship with someone would be by our offending them or hurting them in some way, and then refusing to admit the truth about it. We’ve all experienced that to some degree. Similarly, one of the things that most stands in the way of someone entering into fellowship with God is a refusal to admit the truth about their condition before Him; and to acknowledge the truth about the harmful nature of the sin in their lives. When they read the Bible, or they hear the scriptures preached in a sermon—and as the Holy Spirit uses such means to show them the truth about the sin in their lives—they dismiss it. They let themselves off the hook. They say that they’re not so bad; or that other people are way worse off than they are; or that those things aren’t really a problem—just “mistakes”. But the word “confession” means, literally, to ‘say the same thing’ as God says about our sin. And that’s what we need to do about our sin—say the same things that God says about it; and treat it as seriously as He treats it.
And that’s how we begin to walk in the light as He is in the light (verse 5-7). Once we admit the truth, we stop hiding from His moral spotlight and we step into its beam and allow the sin in our lives to be exposed for what it really is (see John 3:18-21). And the wonderful promise God makes for us in the verse you have asked about is that, when we confess our sins to Him, He is faithful and just to forgive those sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. God doesn’t simply ignore the punishment that is due to us because of our sin. All of the guilt for our sin was placed on His Son Jesus as He hung on the cross; and Jesus received the total punishment for our sins on our behalf. So God the Father is utterly just in forgiving us; because the debt was paid in the full. And He is utterly faithful to do so; because He was the One who sent His Son to pay the debt for us.
I believe that the way we apply this verse in our lives is through prayer. When we stumble into sin, or if the Holy Spirit brings to our recollection some sin that is keeping us from a full relationship with the Father, we must “confess” it to Him. We must admit to God in prayer what it was that we did—and name it as “sin”. We must admit the truth—that it was a sin so grievous to His holy character that it made the death of His own Son necessary. And we must then place all our trust in what Jesus did on the cross for us, thank the Father that Jesus died in our place, trust in His full forgiveness, and—in His strength—turn from that sin. Once we do so, we can move on and grow in fellowship with Him.
Blessings,
Pastor Greg
Bethany Bible Church
(All Scripture quotes are taken from the New King James Version.)
Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on under Ask the Pastor | Be the First to Comment
A visitor to our website writes:
“In the case of a person who was born prematurely, and that has mental disorders that cause them to not fully understand what is going on; are they competent enough to be held accountable before God on the Day of Judgment? Most of their emotions are due to their disability.”
Dear friend,
When I think of a question like this, one of the first things that comforts me with respect to the Day of Judgment is that our great God will always prove to be a righteous and just Judge. The Bible teaches us that He is a “God of truth and without injustice; righteous and upright is He” (Deut. 32:4). “Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” (Genesis 18:25). In the end, when all of the facts are known and all of the judgment of God completed, He will prove to have judged everyone in a completely faithful and righteous manner. He will have accurately taken all things into account, will have rightly measured the motives and intentions and limitations of people, and will always render a judgment that is fair and just.
Because that’s true, I also take comfort in the fact that He is a God of great mercy. Psalm 103:13-14 says, “As a father pities his children, so the LORD pities those who fear Him. For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust.” He knows and understands when someone truly loves Him and is genuinely seeking to live for him; and yet who also suffers under physical, mental, and emotional limitations. He will always take those things into account in a compassionate and gracious way.
As a just Judge, He holds us accountable to the degree we are genuinely “competent”. Some people can only know a little about Him, for example, because they were born in a part of the world in which the Bible had not been given. They may only be able to see the creation and know that He is the Creator. They may not have heard the full exposition of His commandments, or heard the message of the gospel. But they will not stand accountable for what they did not know. They will be held accountable for walking in the light of the truth that they had. As Paul writes in Romans 2:12-16; “For as many as have sinned without law will also perish without law, and as many as have sinned in the law will be judged by the law (for not the hearers of the law are just in the sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified; for when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do the things in the law, these, although not having the law, are a law to themselves, who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and between themselves their thoughts accusing or else excusing them) in the day when God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ, according to my gospel.”
I would also add that even if a person was suffering from the disabilities you mentioned, they would still need to place their trust in Jesus Christ and believe on Him with the best understanding they have. All of us, no matter who we are and what limitations we may have, were born of Adam and Eve and are sinners. We all need to be saved from our sins; and there is no other Savior than Jesus Christ. And when it comes to the matters of everyday life; if such a person were intellegently aware of ways that they may have sinned or caused harm to someone else, they are obligated to the best of their ability to confess their sin and trust in Jesus for forgiveness. Certain mental or physical limitations may cause us to be more prone to fall into certain sins, or to more easily say things that are hurtful to others; but if we are aware that we have done so, we still need to ask forgiveness from God and from others, and trust God for help.
Praise Him! He is not only the righteous Judge of all; He is also the great Helper of the helpless!
Blessings in Christ’s love,
Pastor Greg
Bethany Bible Church
(All Scripture quotes are taken from the New King James Version.)
