Dear Church Family,

Recently our Supreme Court has been presented a case on abortion from the State of Mississippi that challenges Roe v. Wade at the core of the law.  Roe v. Wade was the 1973 landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court erroneously ruled that the Constitution of the United States gives a pregnant woman the right to choose to have an abortion without government restriction.  It struck down many U.S. federal and state abortion laws that protected life, and to this day it is a  sinful stain on America.  I can’t imagine what it does to the heart of God to observe a blessed nation like the United States legalize the murder of its own babies.  May God have mercy!

Why this case matters to the Christian:

The very fact that the current court, with its solid six-member conservative majority, agreed to even consider a state law that bans abortion could indicate that the court is prepared to scale back Roe v. Wade,  if not reverse it outright—this is something we have prayed about for a very long time!

Already, in a separate case, the court is considering a Texas law that bans abortion after six weeks.  The justices have allowed that law to remain in place for three months, rendering Roe v. Wade “dead” in the country’s second largest state!  This law isn’t perfect, but it saves lives and is a step in the right direction.

What do we pray for now?

Pray for the justices by name.  Pray that God will turn their hearts and minds towards what is right!  This week, the nine justices will sit alone in a conference room, away from the media and outside influence, to review the case.  They will speak in order,  with Chief Justice John Roberts explaining his vote and reasoning, then following by seniority: Clarence Thomas, Stephen Breyer, Samuel Alito, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett.

The senior justice in the majority and minority will get to choose who writes the Court’s opinion, a process that will take months, with plenty of drafts going back and forth          between the chambers.  As we’ve mentioned recently, prayer is a powerful weapon against the forces of evil and this will be an ongoing prayer effort as they deliberate on the future of this unthinkable crime against life and against our God, who gives life.

One national prayer group is making an emphasis to pray from 10:00 PM to 6:00 AM, the darkest hours of the night.  So much evil and darkness surround this satanic effort to end lives before they even get to start. It’s our duty to go to battle and pray for the far-reaching, ever-capable hand of God to intervene!

Will you join me in this effort?  Let us pray!

Pastor Winston Parrish

On Wednesday night, I preached a message entitled, “The Message Of The Magi.” We revisited the facts around the birth of Christ as it pertains to the wisemen from the east. We know from scripture that there were three gifts given to Jesus by these men: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. I want to remind you of the latter gift and the powerful implications that it had on the day it was given to Jesus.

The third gift the wise men brought was a very valuable gum-like substance called myrrh that was used in embalming process of that day. Can you imagine bringing a little baby something that would be used to embalm the dead?  They did this because they recognized that this little baby was born to die.  The gift of myrrh given to Jesus pointed to His sacrificial death.

Imagine being Mary. You have seen the gold and the frankincense, now the myrrh is the “dagger to the heart”; a chilling reminder that your precious little boy will have to die!  He’s just a baby—at the most a toddler— but it all comes back to her, this child is here for a reason.  He is the consolation of Israel!

The Myrrh brought by the Magi reminded Mary that the Messiah was mankind’s only way out—our only hope—this is the reason that these wisemen brought the components needed to prepare someone for death, because Jesus would die.

Jesus was the remedy, the perfect sacrifice!

The wise men may not have understood all of this, but the Holy Ghost did.  None of this was by accident.  Of everything that could be listed as gifts to the King, we know they brought gold, frankincense, and myrrh to recognize His sovereign dominion, sacred deity, and sacrificial death that was to come.

Jesus paid it all—All to Him I owe!

Merry Christmas

Pastor Winston Parrish