Rev. N.D. Smith's Message

Philippians 2:5 - Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
Home Page 1509 Edith Blvd. S.E. Albuquerque, NM 505-242-3682 Rev. N. D. Smith, Pastor	National Baptist Convention \| Church Song, Scripture, and Theme
Rev. Smith's Easter Message... God is Trying to get your attention! First: God Is Trying To Get Our Attention: God is trying to get your attention because He loves you. Lets just take a look at how God has been trying to get our attention because he loves us. And that’s the problem, he is trying to get our attention and were running around like we have everything under control and without God we can do nothing. Listen God is trying to get our attention. On January 27-28, 2009, Arkansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Texas: at least 23 people die due to severe storms that covered roads and power lines with snow and ice. Schools close and more than a million homes are left without electricity. God is trying to get our attention. September 30, Indonesia: a 7.6-magnitude earthquake hits the island of Sumatra, leaving more than 1,000 people dead and thousands trapped under the rubble of collapsed buildings in the city of Padang. January 12 2010 A 7.0-Magnitude Earthquake Devastated Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Though the dead are going uncounted and unidentified in Haiti while authorities attempt to bury those killed during the earthquake and its aftermath, experts estimate a staggering death toll of 200,000 people. God is trying to get our attention. Just because it’s not happening in Albuquerque it’s hard to really get us to focus in. We send a little money, we tell them that were praying for them, but does God really have our attention. Listen, We are no better that the people in Haiti or the people in Oklahoma. We have been spared by the mercy of God Almighty and I am here today to warn you not to take it for granted. Do not think that we are out of the woods. The rains can come the waters rise quickly and people begin to die, are you ready? Many people are ready to live but they are not ready to die. Is your heart right with God? Have you confessed your sins and made your peace with Almighty God? God is trying to get your attention. You know not the day, the time or the hour, when He shall come. God is trying to get our attention. Well you may say, “Pastor what are you talking about, I am fine. I never killed anybody I live a good honest life. I am not a sinner.” But listen to me for a moment. Hear what God says: Psalm 53:2-3 God looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, that did seek God. Every one of them is gone back: they are altogether become filthy; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. So don’t say that you're perfect. All I’m trying to say is that God is trying to get your attention because He loves you. Listen, Isaiah 1:6 From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment. The human condition is deplorable, despicable, disgraceful, dreadful, awful, shameful, shocking and terrible by reason of sin. Isaiah 53:6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way… Romans 3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God. Secondly, God provides a way out. Humanity was condemned to die. When I speak of death here, I am referring to more than the bodily death. Here I refer to the second death eternal separation from God in the eternal fires of hell. God had to step in and provide a way out for condemned humanity. So “On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross, The emblem of suff’ring and shame; And I love that old cross where the dearest and best For a world of lost sinners was slain. Refrain: So I’ll cherish the old rugged cross, Till my trophies at last I lay down; I will cling to the old rugged cross, And exchange it some day for a crown. Oh, that old rugged cross, so despised by the world, Has a wondrous attraction for me; For the dear Lamb of God left His glory above To bear it to dark Calvary. In that old rugged cross, stained with blood so divine, A wondrous beauty I see, For ’twas on that old cross Jesus suffered and died, To pardon and sanctify me. To the old rugged cross I will ever be true; Its shame and reproach gladly bear; Then He’ll call me some day to my home far away, Where His glory forever I’ll share. God pleads with us to turn away from sin. In Isaiah 1:18 The Lord says “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” Jesus says, I’ve made a way out for you by dying on that old rugged cross. God keeps giving us a way out. God keeps speaking to you. He speaks through His word, like you are hearing today. He speaks through the stars in the skies. He speaks through the beauty of nature. He speaks in the raging storms. He speaks in a still small voice. He has spoken through the rising flood God keeps speaking to us, giving us a way out, wanting us to pay attention. God is speaking so strongly to us. We treat God like He is bothering us. We treat Him like He is a nuisance. We treat Him like all we are doing and saying is so important. We treat Him like we want Him to bug off, get lost, stop trying to get our attention, when all He wants to do is to tell us one more time. God is trying to get you attention. God has given you a way out Third and lastly on this Resurrection Sunday. On This third day morning God is trying to say to us “I love you!” When Jesus came to earth He came because God loves you. When He was born in a Bethlehem stable to poor Jewish peasants, it was because God loved you. When Jesus was misunderstood and ridiculed, despised and rejected, He put up with it because God loves you. Finally the tide of public opinion turned against Him and they dragged Him through the mockery of a trial and condemned Him to die. He could have called ten thousand angels to set Him free, but He did not because God loves you. Then they took Him and nailed Him to an Old rugged cross. He said, “It is finished,” then He hung His head and died because God loves you. They buried Him in a borrowed tomb because God loves you. But the story does not end there because God loves you. On the third day He rose again because God loves you. “No one takes my life from Me” He said, “I lay it down and I take it up again,” because God loves you. Jesus rose from the dead, because God loves you. The grave could not hold Him, because God loves you. Death could not keep Him, because God loves you. There is no power on earth that could keep Him down because God loves you. God is calling your name over and over. Trying to speak to you over and over, trying to get your attention over and over because He just wants to tell you one thing, “I love you, I, love, you, I love you, I, love, you!”. Closing: Somebody needs to make the decision today to Love Him. All that He has done for us, somebody needs to decide that they love him today. He is trying to get your attention to tell you that He loves you. He is trying to get you attention to tell you that He loves you so much that he will never leave you along. He can’t get our attention My brothers and my sisters he has some good news for us on this Resurrection Sunday, the news is that He loves us. We have the best 99 want do you have to love him with all your heart, mind and soul. Does He have you attention, are you listening to him, do you believe that he loves you.
Getting to Macedonia
Order of Service
About Macedonia
Our Ministries
Our Pastor Office hours are: Monday - 5:p.m. - 8:p.m. Wednesday - 5:p.m. - 8:p.m. Saturday - 10:a.m. - 5:p.m.
Associate Ministers
Contact us Sunday School 9:30 a.m. Sunday Worship 11:a.m. BTU 6:p.m. Rev. Smith's Office hours Monday 5:p.m. - 8:p.m. Wednesday 5:p.m. - 8:p.m. Saturday 10:a.m. - 5:p.m.

Rev. Smith's Easter Message...
God is Trying to get your attention!

First:

God Is Trying To Get Our Attention:

God is trying to get your attention because He loves you. Lets just take a look at how God has been trying to get our attention because he loves us. And that’s the problem, he is trying to get our attention and were running around like we have everything under control and without God we can do nothing.

Listen God is trying to get our attention.

On January 27-28, 2009, Arkansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Texas: at least 23 people die due to severe storms that covered roads and power lines with snow and ice. Schools close and more than a million homes are left without electricity.

God is trying to get our attention.

September 30, Indonesia: a 7.6-magnitude earthquake hits the island of Sumatra, leaving more than 1,000 people dead and thousands trapped under the rubble of collapsed buildings in the city of Padang.
January 12 2010 A 7.0-Magnitude Earthquake Devastated Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Though the dead are going uncounted and unidentified in Haiti while authorities attempt to bury those killed during the earthquake and its aftermath, experts estimate a staggering death toll of 200,000 people.

God is trying to get our attention.

Just because it’s not happening in Albuquerque it’s hard to really get us to focus in. We send a little money, we tell them that were praying for them, but does God really have our attention.
Listen, We are no better that the people in Haiti or the people in Oklahoma. We have been spared by the mercy of God Almighty and I am here today to warn you not to take it for granted. Do not think that we are out of the woods. The rains can come the waters rise quickly and people begin to die, are you ready? Many people are ready to live but they are not ready to die. Is your heart right with God? Have you confessed your sins and made your peace with Almighty God?

God is trying to get your attention.

You know not the day, the time or the hour, when He shall come. God is trying to get our attention. Well you may say, “Pastor what are you talking about, I am fine. I never killed anybody I live a good honest life. I am not a sinner.”

But listen to me for a moment. Hear what God says:
Psalm 53:2-3 God looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, that did seek God.

Every one of them is gone back: they are altogether become filthy; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. So don’t say that you're perfect. All I’m trying to say is that God is trying to get your attention because He loves you.

Listen, Isaiah 1:6 From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment. The human condition is deplorable, despicable, disgraceful, dreadful, awful, shameful, shocking and terrible by reason of sin.

Isaiah 53:6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way…

Romans 3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.

Secondly, God provides a way out.
Humanity was condemned to die. When I speak of death here, I am referring to more than the bodily death. Here I refer to the second death eternal separation from God in the eternal fires of hell. God had to step in and provide a way out for condemned humanity.

So “On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross, The emblem of suff’ring and shame; And I love that old cross where the dearest and best For a world of lost sinners was slain. Refrain: So I’ll cherish the old rugged cross, Till my trophies at last I lay down; I will cling to the old rugged cross, And exchange it some day for a crown.
Oh, that old rugged cross, so despised by the world, Has a wondrous attraction for me; For the dear Lamb of God left His glory above To bear it to dark Calvary.
In that old rugged cross, stained with blood so divine, A wondrous beauty I see, For ’twas on that old cross Jesus suffered and died, To pardon and sanctify me.
To the old rugged cross I will ever be true; Its shame and reproach gladly bear; Then He’ll call me some day to my home far away, Where His glory forever I’ll share.

God pleads with us to turn away from sin. In Isaiah 1:18 The Lord says “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.”

Jesus says, I’ve made a way out for you by dying on that old rugged cross.

God keeps giving us a way out.

God keeps speaking to you. He speaks through His word, like you are hearing today. He speaks through the stars in the skies. He speaks through the beauty of nature. He speaks in the raging storms. He speaks in a still small voice. He has spoken through the rising flood God keeps speaking to us, giving us a way out, wanting us to pay attention.

God is speaking so strongly to us. We treat God like He is bothering us. We treat Him like He is a nuisance. We treat Him like all we are doing and saying is so important. We treat Him like we want Him to bug off, get lost, stop trying to get our attention, when all He wants to do is to tell us one more time.

God is trying to get you attention.

God has given you a way out

Third and lastly on this Resurrection Sunday.

On This third day morning God is trying to say to us “I love you!” When Jesus came to earth He came because God loves you. When He was born in a Bethlehem stable to poor Jewish peasants, it was because God loved you.

When Jesus was misunderstood and ridiculed, despised and rejected, He put up with it because God loves you. Finally the tide of public opinion turned against Him and they dragged Him through the mockery of a trial and condemned Him to die. He could have called ten thousand angels to set Him free, but He did not because God loves you.

Then they took Him and nailed Him to an Old rugged cross. He said, “It is finished,” then He hung His head and died because God loves you. They buried Him in a borrowed tomb because God loves you.

But the story does not end there because God loves you. On the third day He rose again because God loves you. “No one takes my life from Me” He said, “I lay it down and I take it up again,” because God loves you.

Jesus rose from the dead, because God loves you. The grave could not hold Him, because God loves you. Death could not keep Him, because God loves you. There is no power on earth that could keep Him down because God loves you. God is calling your name over and over. Trying to speak to you over and over, trying to get your attention over and over because He just wants to tell you one thing, “I love you, I, love, you, I love you, I, love, you!”.

Closing:

Somebody needs to make the decision today to Love Him. All that He has done for us, somebody needs to decide that they love him today. He is trying to get your attention to tell you that He loves you. He is trying to get you attention to tell you that He loves you so much that he will never leave you along. He can’t get our attention My brothers and my sisters he has some good news for us on this Resurrection Sunday, the news is that He loves us. We have the best 99 want do you have to love him with all your heart, mind and soul. Does He have you attention, are you listening to him, do you believe that he loves you.