107 Coldren Street, Johnstown, Pennsylvania 15904, United States
Upcoming Sermons & Devotional Message
March Sermons 2026
3-15 - Betrayed in a Garden
Genesis 2:15-17 + 3:1-6 , John 18:1-6
3-22 - Rooster Memories
John 18:15-18 , John 18:25-27
3-29 - A Crown of Thorns
Isaiah 53:1-10 , John 19: 1-7
Devotional Message : These will change 1-2 times a week. Stop by often to read the new message.
Some Thoughts on Making Excuses to Avoid Obedience
We choose every day to either live our lives obeying God or not. We first realize this choice as a subtle sense in our spirits that something's wrong, and we begin to open our hearts to the things of God. The Holy Spirit then draws us into a relationship. Our next choice happens when we cross the line of faith and begin to live our lives honoring God. We make these first two choices from a sense of gratitude in response to the grace we’ve received.
We often struggle, however, with the next two choices. The first is the choice to become more like Jesus. This requires turning away from our former way of life and instead turning instead toward the life God has called us to live. The choice to yield to sanctifying grace can be difficult. Crucifixion—putting to death our sinful nature—is often challenging. The second choice is whether we will respond to God’s call to serve with joyful obedience.
In Exodus chapters 3 and 4, we find God instructing Moses to be His instrument to return to Egypt and help deliver God’s people. Moses, however, tried to avoid God’s will by offering several excuses. First, he felt unequal for the task (Exodus 3:11). Second, he feared the people would not believe him (Exodus 4:1). Third, he did not speak very well (Exodus 4:10). Finally,
“Moses said, ‘Pardon your servant, Lord. Please send someone else’” (Exodus 4:13).
A stubborn will often leads to excuses. The Bible tells us that God became angry with Moses—and sent his brother Aaron to assist him so he wouldn't be alone. But God still demanded obedience.
Whoever serves God will feel reluctance at times, because God will often ask us to do things we’d rather not do. But if we always do what we've always done, we’ll never become all we can be for God. Like Moses, we may try to avoid doing God’s will—but that's never in our best interests.
Choose obedience, my friends!