Pastor’s Page | June 18th, 2026
Sermon Prep (Read Ezekeil 13-14)
I once splurged on a gift for a girl I was dating. Okay, maybe splurged is not the right word. I knew a friend who knew a friend who had a great deal from a little pop-up shop in the mall (this was the 80’s and malls were still a big deal, especially in Elizabethtown, KY). I could get a gold chain at a ridiculously low price. I mean, it was such a great deal…and the guy was a great salesman. I paid $100 for a gold necklace that would normally cost me about $500. How could I pass this up for the love of my life that week (It was high school…people fell in and out of love on a weekly basis). So, I bought the necklace and gave it to my girlfriend, and she was ecstatic. Well, at least she was for about a week. First, the clasp on the back of the chain broke, which is common so that wasn’t that big of a deal. The big thing that happened was that this was in the summer and it was a hot and humid summer in Kentucky. She loved the necklace so much that she kept it on all the time. It didn’t take long before she realized that there was a greenish tint around her neck. Thinking something was wrong, she showed her dad who then told her that the gold necklace that I bought her wasn’t gold at all. I am not sure what it was because the little pop-up shop in the mall had popped up somewhere else. The salesman who was such a nice and sweet guy ended up being a con man who had a great sales pitch, but the product he was selling wasn’t the real deal.
The same thing could be said with what was going on in Jerusalem. There were many prophets in Ezekiel’s day but not every one of them was the bona fide thing. They were talking the talk, but the talk wasn’t actually from God. Instead of speaking the Word of God, they were instead just using their imagination to say things that they thought the people wanted to hear and that they could benefit from. Sometimes people do this for money, sometimes for attention, sometimes for validation, other times it is for more nefarious reasons. The question for us is, how can we tell when someone is speaking from God and when someone is not? No matter how solid we feel we may be, there is always a possibility that we can be deceived. You may think you know what a gold necklace looks like, until your girlfriend’s neck turns green.
This Sunday, we will be focusing on distinguishing the true message from God from the messages created from one’s imagination. We will be looking at the dangers of only seeking to hear what we want to hear rather than hearing the whole of God’s Word, the way we can distinguish the truth from what seems like truth but is actually false words, and how we can avoid becoming “heresy hunters” where we are always looking to argue with others about our faith. Also, connect the concept of “idols in their hearts” from chapter 14 with the willingness to believe the false lies of these prophets. How do we program ourselves to hear only what we want to hear? As you prepare for the message, read through Ezekiel 13 and 14 and notice the many ways God confronts these false prophets. As you do, also consider the huge responsibility that a teacher has to correctly handle the Word of God. Also, if you see a sleazy guy in the middle of the mall selling a gold necklace at a ridiculously low price…be prepared to have a green ring around your neck.
June Sermon Series
Crazy Times and a Steady God:
We Smell Like Sheep and Wolves
06/21 - Lying Preachers - Ezekiel 13-14
06/28 - Unfaithful People - Ezekiel 15-16
Updates, Thoughts and More
I want to say a big thank you to Izzy and all those who made this year’s VBS such a success. The kids not only had a blast, but they learned how Jesus is the Light of the world and how His love for us is so great. I know it was a lot of hard work, but if we impacted just one kid with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, we have made an eternal impact.
Acton Celebrates America is going to be bigger and better then ever this year. We are celebrating the 250th birthday of America and it is going to be a celebration at Acton Methodist! We have some postcards for you to pass out to your friends and family. Please pick them up in the Lobby and pass them to as many people as you can.
Even though summer is a slower time here at the church, don’t think that we have slowed down completely. We still have lots of opportunities for you to get involved in studies and serving. Check the calendar to see all the opportunities available.
I am almost at the end of my latest Brad Thor book. Man, has it been amazing! I am hoping to get to meet him this Friday in Dallas at a book signing. His latest book just came out and so I think I know which book I will be reading next.
Football Withdrawal
The Saturdays seem quieter,
The Sundays feel too long,
No marching bands, no tailgate crowds,
No referee getting it wrong.
The grill sits cold and lonely,
My lucky jersey’s packed away,
I check the sports app every hour
Though there’s still no game to play.
I watch old highlights on repeat,
I tell myself, “Be strong!”
But until kickoff finally comes,
The offseason feels way too long.
So here’s to training camps head,
And autumn’s glorious call—
For every football fan knows this truth:
Life is better with football.
What’s Going On This Week
Sunday (06/21)
Worship Services — 9:00am & 10:30am
Monday (06/22)
Alzheimer’s Support Group — 10am
Stitching Angels — 1:30pm
Tuesday (6/23)
Men’s Prayer Breakfast — 7:30am
Wednesday (6/24)
Prayer Warriors — 9:00am
Sip And Share — 10:00am
Youth and Kids — 5pm
Choir — 7:00pm
Joke of the Week
The church council met to discuss the pastor’s compensation package for the coming year. After the meeting the chair of council told the pastor; “We are very sorry, Pastor, but we decided that we cannot give you a raise next year.”
“But you must give me a raise,” said the pastor. “I am but a poor preacher.”
“I know,” the council chair said. “We hear you every Sunday.”
Memory Verse of the Week
“Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke, and encourage — with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.
~2 Timothy 4:2-4 (NIV84)
Quote of the Week
“There is one key which will open the Book to you and reveal its golden treasures. That key is Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the Foundation, the Center, and the Mainspring of all Divine Truth. This is what He said, “Search the Scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of Me.” If we would avoid error in interpreting and applying the Scriptures, we must understand that everything in the Bible speaks of and relates to Christ. Divorce any doctrine from Christ and that doctrine becomes heresy. Divorce any precept from Christ and that precept becomes self-righteous legality.”
~ Don Fortner
