Thursday, January 31, 2019
Update
I am sorry about not getting the review posted yesterday. It has been so cold where I live here in the Midwest part of the United States that it is dangerous to go out. It is warmer today, so I plan to post the sermon tomorrow as planned. Hopefully, I will be able to get a review posted next week. Please pray for all of those dealing with the brutal cold temperatures.
Monday, January 28, 2019
Verses For the Week
Romans 15:13 -- "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit."
Isaiah 12:6 -- "Shout aloud and sing for joy, people of Zion, for great is the Holy One of Israel among you."
Isaiah 12:6 -- "Shout aloud and sing for joy, people of Zion, for great is the Holy One of Israel among you."
Friday, January 25, 2019
Weekend Sermon -- Luke 9:51-56
Welcome to this week's edition of the Weekend Sermon. I am glad that you have taken the time to read the sermon. I hope that you all are having a very good week.
This week I've been dealing with very bad weather and cold temperatures. I hope that the weather will get better in the days to come. Work is going well, and writing has picked up after a down period. I thank the Lord for the work that He has allowed to come my way.
I am still having problems with arthritis in my hands and fingers. Please pray that this will begin to get a little better. Thank you for your prayers.
I want to thank the Lord that a friend of mine who had the flu has recovered. She was in the hospital, but she is home now and doing better.
In prayer this week, please remember to pray for those in Congo who are experiencing the Ebola outbreak. Pray that those who are sick will recover, and pray that this outbreak will be contained and put to an end.
Please continue to pray for peace in the troubled areas of this world. Pray for peace in Libya, Syria, Yemen and Afghanistan. Pray for peace wherever you know there is conflict.
For our prayer focus countries of the week, let us all pray for those in the nations of Albania and Oman. Pray that many will hear about the grace and love of Jesus.
Today, we are continuing with our series of messages dealing with the Lord Jesus' ministry while on this earth. Our passage of Scripture today is found in the Gospel of Luke.
In this passage, Jesus is preparing to leave Galilee and head to Jerusalem. On his trip, He is going to pass through the region where the Samaritans live. He is planning to stay in a certain Samaritan village, so He sends two of His disciples on ahead to make preparation for His arrival.
When the Samaritans learn the Jesus is planning to go through to Jerusalem, they don't want Jesus to stay in the village. This refusal makes Jesus' disciples James and John very angry. They ask Jesus if He wants them to call down fire from Heaven to destroy the village and its people.
Jesus rebukes them and states in Luke 9:55-56, "You do not know what kind of spirit you are of.; for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives but to save them." Jesus and His disciples then went on to another village. Let us exam what is going on in this passage and how it applies to us living in the world today.
In order to understand this passage, we have to understand the relationship between the Jews and the Samaritans. The Samaritans were a groups of people who had their own religious beliefs and their own temple. The Jewish people regarded them as being of mixed race, and they despised the Samaritans.
Jesus demonstrated His love and compassion for all people when He spoke to a Samaritan woman as recorded in John 4. Jesus stayed in the woman's village for a few days, and many Samaritans came to believe that Jesus was the Messiah.
Jesus also told the well-known story of the Good Samaritan. A Samaritan was the only one among ten lepers who were cleansed that came back to thank the Lord Jesus that he had been healed from his disease.
Both the Samaritans and the Jews were caught up in their hatred towards one another. Unfortunately, we see this same kind of hatred, racism and prejudice in our world today. People of one race or ethnic group feel that they are superior to those of another race or ethnic group. This type of behavior has no place among Christians.
Jesus clearly never demonstrated any type of prejudice while He was here on this earth. He said that whosoever could come to Him. Jesus extended His offer of love and forgiveness to people of every race, ethnic group and socio-economic class.
It makes me very sad when I hear those who claim to be followers of Jesus calling people of other races vile names. We are all brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ no matter what are race, gender, ethnicity or income level. Jesus loves everyone in this world, and those of us who follow the Lord Jesus should do the same.
John and James were offended when the people in the village didn't want Jesus to come. They wanted to call fire down from Heaven and kill all of the people. Jesus sternly rebuked them for this behavior. He let them know that He had come to save people not to destroy them.
When I was growing up in a very conservative type of church, I often heard pastors and evangelists speak with almost glee about how God was going to bring down judgment upon all the people that they considered to be evil.
Today, I still hear preachers and others speak about God bringing judgment and punishment on sinners. They act like they just can't wait to see it happen.
This isn't the spirit of Jesus Christ. Jesus made it quite clear that He came to preach a message of love and forgiveness. When the people in the village rejected Him, He moved on to the next village.
Jesus wants to have a relationship with all people. He wants everyone in this world to come to faith in Him. He is not seeking to condemn anyone. He is seeking to bring spiritual healing and hope to everyone.
With this in mind, let each of us be the kind of person who shows love and compassion to everyone. This includes those who we don't think are doing the right thing. By being hateful to others, we are driving them away from Jesus. We must show everyone the love of Jesus in order that they might come to Him and realize how much He cares about them.
Jesus loves you and He cares about you no matter who you are. He wants you to come to Him and believe in Him. I hope that you will turn your life over to the Lordship of Jesus today if you have never done so.
I hope that if you know Jesus, that you will seek to imitate His way of love in this world. This world is so filled with hate and prejudice. The world needs Christians to spread the love and hope of Jesus in order to make this world a better place.
Next week, we will continue with our messages about the Lord Jesus. I plan to post the sermon on Friday. I will post the verses of the week on Monday. I will be posting a review on Wednesday. May God bless you all. Amen.
This week I've been dealing with very bad weather and cold temperatures. I hope that the weather will get better in the days to come. Work is going well, and writing has picked up after a down period. I thank the Lord for the work that He has allowed to come my way.
I am still having problems with arthritis in my hands and fingers. Please pray that this will begin to get a little better. Thank you for your prayers.
I want to thank the Lord that a friend of mine who had the flu has recovered. She was in the hospital, but she is home now and doing better.
In prayer this week, please remember to pray for those in Congo who are experiencing the Ebola outbreak. Pray that those who are sick will recover, and pray that this outbreak will be contained and put to an end.
Please continue to pray for peace in the troubled areas of this world. Pray for peace in Libya, Syria, Yemen and Afghanistan. Pray for peace wherever you know there is conflict.
For our prayer focus countries of the week, let us all pray for those in the nations of Albania and Oman. Pray that many will hear about the grace and love of Jesus.
Today, we are continuing with our series of messages dealing with the Lord Jesus' ministry while on this earth. Our passage of Scripture today is found in the Gospel of Luke.
In this passage, Jesus is preparing to leave Galilee and head to Jerusalem. On his trip, He is going to pass through the region where the Samaritans live. He is planning to stay in a certain Samaritan village, so He sends two of His disciples on ahead to make preparation for His arrival.
When the Samaritans learn the Jesus is planning to go through to Jerusalem, they don't want Jesus to stay in the village. This refusal makes Jesus' disciples James and John very angry. They ask Jesus if He wants them to call down fire from Heaven to destroy the village and its people.
Jesus rebukes them and states in Luke 9:55-56, "You do not know what kind of spirit you are of.; for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives but to save them." Jesus and His disciples then went on to another village. Let us exam what is going on in this passage and how it applies to us living in the world today.
In order to understand this passage, we have to understand the relationship between the Jews and the Samaritans. The Samaritans were a groups of people who had their own religious beliefs and their own temple. The Jewish people regarded them as being of mixed race, and they despised the Samaritans.
Jesus demonstrated His love and compassion for all people when He spoke to a Samaritan woman as recorded in John 4. Jesus stayed in the woman's village for a few days, and many Samaritans came to believe that Jesus was the Messiah.
Jesus also told the well-known story of the Good Samaritan. A Samaritan was the only one among ten lepers who were cleansed that came back to thank the Lord Jesus that he had been healed from his disease.
Both the Samaritans and the Jews were caught up in their hatred towards one another. Unfortunately, we see this same kind of hatred, racism and prejudice in our world today. People of one race or ethnic group feel that they are superior to those of another race or ethnic group. This type of behavior has no place among Christians.
Jesus clearly never demonstrated any type of prejudice while He was here on this earth. He said that whosoever could come to Him. Jesus extended His offer of love and forgiveness to people of every race, ethnic group and socio-economic class.
It makes me very sad when I hear those who claim to be followers of Jesus calling people of other races vile names. We are all brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ no matter what are race, gender, ethnicity or income level. Jesus loves everyone in this world, and those of us who follow the Lord Jesus should do the same.
John and James were offended when the people in the village didn't want Jesus to come. They wanted to call fire down from Heaven and kill all of the people. Jesus sternly rebuked them for this behavior. He let them know that He had come to save people not to destroy them.
When I was growing up in a very conservative type of church, I often heard pastors and evangelists speak with almost glee about how God was going to bring down judgment upon all the people that they considered to be evil.
Today, I still hear preachers and others speak about God bringing judgment and punishment on sinners. They act like they just can't wait to see it happen.
This isn't the spirit of Jesus Christ. Jesus made it quite clear that He came to preach a message of love and forgiveness. When the people in the village rejected Him, He moved on to the next village.
Jesus wants to have a relationship with all people. He wants everyone in this world to come to faith in Him. He is not seeking to condemn anyone. He is seeking to bring spiritual healing and hope to everyone.
With this in mind, let each of us be the kind of person who shows love and compassion to everyone. This includes those who we don't think are doing the right thing. By being hateful to others, we are driving them away from Jesus. We must show everyone the love of Jesus in order that they might come to Him and realize how much He cares about them.
Jesus loves you and He cares about you no matter who you are. He wants you to come to Him and believe in Him. I hope that you will turn your life over to the Lordship of Jesus today if you have never done so.
I hope that if you know Jesus, that you will seek to imitate His way of love in this world. This world is so filled with hate and prejudice. The world needs Christians to spread the love and hope of Jesus in order to make this world a better place.
Next week, we will continue with our messages about the Lord Jesus. I plan to post the sermon on Friday. I will post the verses of the week on Monday. I will be posting a review on Wednesday. May God bless you all. Amen.
Wednesday, January 23, 2019
Verses For the Week and an Update
The weather has been terrible this week where I live. We had an ice storm last night. I did not get a chance to post the verses for the week, so I am going to do that today. I won't be posting the review this week, but I hope to get back to that next week if this weather will straighten up. I plan to post the sermon on Friday, but I may have to wait until Saturday depending on the weather.
Verses For The Week:
John 10:10 -- "The thief comes only to kill and steal and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly."
Romans 8:11 -- "If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you."
Verses For The Week:
John 10:10 -- "The thief comes only to kill and steal and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly."
Romans 8:11 -- "If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you."
Friday, January 18, 2019
Weekend Sermon -- Luke 9:1-9 and Luke 10:1-23
Thanks be to God for another opportunity to post the Weekend Sermon. I hope that all of you are having a good week, and I thank you for taking the time to read the sermon.
This has been a difficult week. We had a major winter storm in my area. We are recovering from that. There is supposed to be another winter storm this evening into tomorrow. Please pray that the weather will not be too bad. Also, please pray that my hands will stop hurting. They were doing better, but now they are doing poorly again. This morning, I could not fully close my right hand for almost one hour after I woke up. Thank you for your prayers.
Please pray for those in my area who are still without power due to the winter storm. Some have had no power for five days now.
Continue to pray for peace in the many troubled areas of this world. Pray for peace in Syria, Afghanistan, Libya and Yemen. Please pray that there will be an end to terrorist attacks as well.
Someone who I know online is very sick, and I would ask that you pray for her recovery. I also know someone online whose dog has passed away. Please pray for him as he is very sad.
For our prayer focus countries this week, let us pray for those in the nations of Algeria and Mongolia. Pray that many will hear the message of the love of Jesus.
For the past couple of weeks, we have been in a series of messages about the ministry of Jesus. Today, I want us to focus our attention on the time that Jesus sent out His 12 disciples and later a group of 72 disciples to tell people about the good news.
Luke 9 tells us that one day, Jesus called the Twelve and sent them out from village to village to proclaim the good news that He had come. Jesus gave the Twelve power and authority to cast out demons and to perform works of healing. They were told not to take any extra provisions for their journey. The Twelve went out preaching the message of the good news of Jesus, and they performed miracles as a sign to the people.
According to Luke 10, Jesus sent His disciples out again. This time, He sent out 72 disciples in pairs. Their mission was to go from town to town to the places that Jesus was going to come and preach. Once again, those going on the mission were given the power to cast out demons and perform miracles. The 72 did as Jesus commanded, and returned and reported to Jesus that even the demons submitted at the name of Jesus.
I would like us to focus our attention on what Jesus said to the 72 that He sent out. Luke 10:2-3 states, "He told them, ' The harvest in plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. Go! I am sending you out like lambs among the wolves.'"
While He was on this earth, Jesus recognized the great spiritual need of the people. At one time, Jesus said that the people were like sheep without a shepherd. He wanted to make sure that as many people as possible were reached with the good news that the Kingdom of Heaven was at hand.
Today, we have a situation where there are still so many people who need to hear the good news that Jesus loves them, and they can receive forgiveness of their sins. It is up to us to make sure that the message of the Lord Jesus is taken to as many people as possible.
If you count all of the people in the world that claim to be Christians, only about 30 percent of the people in the world are Christians. That means that about 70 percent of the people in this world do not have a relationship with Jesus. Many have never heard in a clear way who Jesus is and why He came to this earth.
If people are going to hear about the love of Jesus, it is up to all of us to be committed to sharing the love of Jesus. I believe that each of us knows someone who is not a believer in Jesus. We have the obligation to share the good news of Jesus' love with those who we know need to hear the message.
I want to try this year to tell more people about Jesus and His love than I have in the past. I hope that you will try to do the same thing.
Some may feel called to become a missionary and take the message of the Gospel to areas where there are not very many Christians. If the Lord Jesus is placing that call on your life, I pray that you will respond to what the Lord is calling you to do.
All of us can pray that the message of Jesus' love will reach others. Each week here on the blog I post the names of two countries where fewer than 50 percent of the people claim to be Christians. We can all pray that many in these nations will here the good news of the love of Jesus.
Each of us can find some way to tell others about what Jesus has done for us. I know that it can be intimidating to talk to people about Jesus. When I first started working in evangelistic ministry many years ago, I was very nervous. However, I have always felt the empowerment of the Holy Spirit whenever I start to tell someone about Jesus. I believe that if we make the effort to obey the Great Commission, the Lord will strengthen us as we endeavor to serve Him. I also believe that if the Lord is calling us to a specific ministry, He will provide the resources needed to accomplish the task.
So many people need to know who Jesus is and how He can change their lives. I hope that you will join with me in committing to tell more people about the love of Jesus this year.
Next week, I will post another message about Jesus. I am not sure yet if the sermon will be on Friday or Saturday as my work schedule is changing all the time. I will post the verses on Tuesday as the library is closed for the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday on Monday. I hope to have a review on Wednesday. May God bless you all. Amen.
This has been a difficult week. We had a major winter storm in my area. We are recovering from that. There is supposed to be another winter storm this evening into tomorrow. Please pray that the weather will not be too bad. Also, please pray that my hands will stop hurting. They were doing better, but now they are doing poorly again. This morning, I could not fully close my right hand for almost one hour after I woke up. Thank you for your prayers.
Please pray for those in my area who are still without power due to the winter storm. Some have had no power for five days now.
Continue to pray for peace in the many troubled areas of this world. Pray for peace in Syria, Afghanistan, Libya and Yemen. Please pray that there will be an end to terrorist attacks as well.
Someone who I know online is very sick, and I would ask that you pray for her recovery. I also know someone online whose dog has passed away. Please pray for him as he is very sad.
For our prayer focus countries this week, let us pray for those in the nations of Algeria and Mongolia. Pray that many will hear the message of the love of Jesus.
For the past couple of weeks, we have been in a series of messages about the ministry of Jesus. Today, I want us to focus our attention on the time that Jesus sent out His 12 disciples and later a group of 72 disciples to tell people about the good news.
Luke 9 tells us that one day, Jesus called the Twelve and sent them out from village to village to proclaim the good news that He had come. Jesus gave the Twelve power and authority to cast out demons and to perform works of healing. They were told not to take any extra provisions for their journey. The Twelve went out preaching the message of the good news of Jesus, and they performed miracles as a sign to the people.
According to Luke 10, Jesus sent His disciples out again. This time, He sent out 72 disciples in pairs. Their mission was to go from town to town to the places that Jesus was going to come and preach. Once again, those going on the mission were given the power to cast out demons and perform miracles. The 72 did as Jesus commanded, and returned and reported to Jesus that even the demons submitted at the name of Jesus.
I would like us to focus our attention on what Jesus said to the 72 that He sent out. Luke 10:2-3 states, "He told them, ' The harvest in plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. Go! I am sending you out like lambs among the wolves.'"
While He was on this earth, Jesus recognized the great spiritual need of the people. At one time, Jesus said that the people were like sheep without a shepherd. He wanted to make sure that as many people as possible were reached with the good news that the Kingdom of Heaven was at hand.
Today, we have a situation where there are still so many people who need to hear the good news that Jesus loves them, and they can receive forgiveness of their sins. It is up to us to make sure that the message of the Lord Jesus is taken to as many people as possible.
If you count all of the people in the world that claim to be Christians, only about 30 percent of the people in the world are Christians. That means that about 70 percent of the people in this world do not have a relationship with Jesus. Many have never heard in a clear way who Jesus is and why He came to this earth.
If people are going to hear about the love of Jesus, it is up to all of us to be committed to sharing the love of Jesus. I believe that each of us knows someone who is not a believer in Jesus. We have the obligation to share the good news of Jesus' love with those who we know need to hear the message.
I want to try this year to tell more people about Jesus and His love than I have in the past. I hope that you will try to do the same thing.
Some may feel called to become a missionary and take the message of the Gospel to areas where there are not very many Christians. If the Lord Jesus is placing that call on your life, I pray that you will respond to what the Lord is calling you to do.
All of us can pray that the message of Jesus' love will reach others. Each week here on the blog I post the names of two countries where fewer than 50 percent of the people claim to be Christians. We can all pray that many in these nations will here the good news of the love of Jesus.
Each of us can find some way to tell others about what Jesus has done for us. I know that it can be intimidating to talk to people about Jesus. When I first started working in evangelistic ministry many years ago, I was very nervous. However, I have always felt the empowerment of the Holy Spirit whenever I start to tell someone about Jesus. I believe that if we make the effort to obey the Great Commission, the Lord will strengthen us as we endeavor to serve Him. I also believe that if the Lord is calling us to a specific ministry, He will provide the resources needed to accomplish the task.
So many people need to know who Jesus is and how He can change their lives. I hope that you will join with me in committing to tell more people about the love of Jesus this year.
Next week, I will post another message about Jesus. I am not sure yet if the sermon will be on Friday or Saturday as my work schedule is changing all the time. I will post the verses on Tuesday as the library is closed for the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday on Monday. I hope to have a review on Wednesday. May God bless you all. Amen.
Wednesday, January 16, 2019
Update
There will not be a review today as there if very bad weather predicted in my area. Please pray that the weather will not be too bad tonight. The Weekend Sermon may be delayed because of weather. I will have to see what happens. Thank you for your prayers.
Monday, January 14, 2019
A Post About A Friend
January 13 was the anniversary of the day that my friend Toby came into my life all those years ago. I am thankful to the Lord that I was able to have Toby as a friend. On days like today when things seem very hard, I think about the fact that I had one great friend in this world. His memory keeps me going on the really hard days like today.
If Toby were still here with me today, life would be very different. I know that we would have traveled around a lot, because that is something that we really enjoyed. Neither of us liked the cold temperatures here in the Midwest. We would have tried to find a place that wasn't too hot in the summer and wasn't too cold in the winter. We probably would have had to travel around seasonally to find just the right place.
I would have liked to find a place, stay there a little while and find some type of seasonal job, and then move on to the next place. I can imagine all of it now.
The two of us had some really great times. Hopefully, it won't be too much longer until we are together again.
I've posted some of the chapters I've written about my friend Toby here on the blog. I invite you to find those posts and read them if you are interested in knowing more about him.
If Toby were still here with me today, life would be very different. I know that we would have traveled around a lot, because that is something that we really enjoyed. Neither of us liked the cold temperatures here in the Midwest. We would have tried to find a place that wasn't too hot in the summer and wasn't too cold in the winter. We probably would have had to travel around seasonally to find just the right place.
I would have liked to find a place, stay there a little while and find some type of seasonal job, and then move on to the next place. I can imagine all of it now.
The two of us had some really great times. Hopefully, it won't be too much longer until we are together again.
I've posted some of the chapters I've written about my friend Toby here on the blog. I invite you to find those posts and read them if you are interested in knowing more about him.
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