Jesus Christ

Christ is called:

Jesus

Matthew 1:21

She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

Luke 2:21

On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise him, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he had been conceived.

Acts 13:23

“From this man's descendants God has brought to Israel the Savior Jesus, as he promised.

Acts 10:38

how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him.

Hebrews 2:9

But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.

That Man

John 19:5

When Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe, Pilate said to them, “Here is the man!”

Acts 2:22

“Men of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know.

1 Timothy 2:5

For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,

Son of David

Matthew 1:1

A record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ the son of David, the son of Abraham:

Luke 1:32

He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David,

2 Timothy 2:8

Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel,

Revelation 3:5

He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his angels.

God’s Word for God’s People.

God’s Word for God’s People.

Backsliding, Spiritual Indifference

If you are a true believer in Christ, you are going to be at war.

Psalms 40:1-4  

1 I waited patiently for the LORD; he turned to me and heard my cry.

2 He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.

3 He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the LORD.

4 Blessed is the man who makes the LORD his trust, who does not look to the proud, to those who turn aside to false gods.

Evangelism:

"On the ground of our own goodness we cannot expect to have our prayers answered. But Jesus is worthy, and for His sake we may have our prayers answered. There is nothing too choice, too costly, or too great for God to give Him. He is worthy. He is the spotless, holy Child, who under all circumstances acted according to the mind of God. And if we trust in Him, if we hide in Him, if we put Him forward and ourselves in the background depend on Him and plead His name, we may expect to have our prayers answered." - George Muller

Quotes:

By perseverance the snail reached the ark. - Charles Spurgeon

Free will carried many a soul to hell, but never a soul to heaven. - Charles Spurgeon

Smile:

~ There is not one blade of grass; there is no color in this world that is not intended to make us rejoice…John Calvin

~ Let me live in a house by the side of the road and be a friend to man…Sam Walter Foss

Thoughts

~ The more fully that the gospel is preached, in the grand old apostolic way, the more likely is it to accomplish the results which it did in the apostolic days. - Horatius Bonar

~ There are two ways of spreading light- to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it. - Edith Wharton

Good Shepherd/Pastor

Titus 1:11

They must be silenced, because they are ruining whole households by teaching things they ought not to teach—and that for the sake of dishonest gain.

Acts 20:28-31

28 Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.

29 I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock.

30 Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them.

31 So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.

2 Timothy 2:2

And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.

1 Timothy 6:2-3

2 Those who have believing masters are not to show less respect for them because they are brothers. Instead, they are to serve them even better, because those who benefit from their service are believers, and dear to them. These are the things you are to teach and urge on them.

3 If anyone teaches false doctrines and does not agree to the sound instruction of our Lord Jesus Christ and to godly teaching,

1 Timothy 4:6-11

6 If you point these things out to the brothers, you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus, brought up in the truths of the faith and of the good teaching that you have followed.

7 Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly.

8 For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.

9 This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance

10  (and for this we labor and strive), that we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, and especially of those who believe.

11 Command and teach these things.

Examples of Evil – Thought Sins

Religious zeal without knowledge

Acts 26:9-18  

9 “I too was convinced that I ought to do all that was possible to oppose the name of Jesus of Nazareth.

10 And that is just what I did in Jerusalem. On the authority of the chief priests I put many of the saints in prison, and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them.

11 Many a time I went from one synagogue to another to have them punished, and I tried to force them to blaspheme. In my obsession against them, I even went to foreign cities to persecute them.

12 “On one of these journeys I was going to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests.

13 About noon, O king, as I was on the road, I saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, blazing around me and my companions.

14 We all fell to the ground, and I heard a voice saying to me in Aramaic, ‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’

15 “Then I asked, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ “ ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,’ the Lord replied.

16 ‘Now get up and stand on your feet. I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen of me and what I will show you.

17 I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them

18  to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’

Pride over human wisdom

1 Corinthians 3:18-21  

18 Do not deceive yourselves. If any one of you thinks he is wise by the standards of this age, he should become a “fool” so that he may become wise.

19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God's sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness”;

20 and again, “The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile.”

21 So then, no more boasting about men! All things are yours,

Partiality

James 2:1-4 

1 My brothers, as believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, don't show favoritism.

2 Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in shabby clothes also comes in.

3  If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Here's a good seat for you,” but say to the poor man, “You stand there” or “Sit on the floor by my feet,”

4 have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?

Unbelief – doubt

Luke 24:38  

He said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds?

Choosing to Become Like Jesus

"This will continue until we are . . . mature, just as Christ is, and we will be completely like him" (Ephesians 4:13).

Spiritual maturity is neither instant nor automatic; it is a gradual, progressive development that will take the rest of your life as God helps you make healing choices.

The Apostle Paul said, "This will continue until we are . . . mature, just as Christ is, and we will be completely like him" (Ephesians 4:13).

As you struggle with your hurts, habits, and hang-ups, it is important to remember you are a work in progress. God doesn’t expect you to be perfect; he knows you will make mistakes. The Bible says we won't be perfectly like Jesus until we’re able to see Jesus perfectly: "We can't even imagine what we will be like when Christ returns. But we do know that when he comes we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is” (1 John 3:2).

A simple truth to remember is that God is far more interested in building your character than he is anything else. We worry when God seems silent on a specific issue, but what God cares about most is that whatever you do, you do in a Christ like manner (1 Corinthians 10:31; 1 Cor. 16:14; & Col. 3:17,23).

In other words, God is interested in who you are. For instance, he's much more concerned about your character than your career, because you will take your character into eternity, but not your career.

The Bible warns, "Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out . . . Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you" - Romans 12:2

Becoming like Jesus means we must make choices that are countercultural. These kinds of healing choices will protect us from other forces trying to mold us into their image.

Jesus did not die on the cross just so we could simply live comfortable, well-adjusted lives. His purpose is far deeper: he wants to make us like himself before he takes us to heaven.

Examples of Spirit Being “Upon”

Moses

Numbers 11:17

I will come down and speak with you there, and I will take of the Spirit that is on you and put the Spirit on them. They will help you carry the burden of the people so that you will not have to carry it alone.

The 70 elders of Israel

Numbers 11:25-26

25 Then the LORD came down in the cloud and spoke with him, and he took of the Spirit that was on him and put the Spirit on the seventy elders. When the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied, but they did not do so again.

26 However, two men, whose names were Eldad and Medad, had remained in the camp. They were listed among the elders, but did not go out to the Tent. Yet the Spirit also rested on them, and they prophesied in the camp.

Balaam

Numbers 24:2

When Balaam looked out and saw Israel encamped tribe by tribe, the Spirit of God came upon him

Othniel

Judges 3:10

The Spirit of the LORD came upon him, so that he became Israel's judge and went to war. The LORD gave Cushan-Rishathaim king of Aram into the hands of Othniel, who overpowered him.

Gideon

Judges 6:34

Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet, summoning the Abiezrites to follow him.

Jephthan

Judges 11:29

Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jephthah. He crossed Gilead and Manasseh, passed through Mizpah of Gilead, and from there he advanced against the Ammonites.

Evangelism

Evangelism

"I am convinced that no Christian teacher can be a great spiritual power in China in whom this ideal is not embodied and manifested in an eminent degree. He must be more than a good man (shan jen); he must be a holy man (sheng jen), exhibiting the vigor of every right purpose, and the intensity of every devout affection. He must be a man full of the Holy Ghost, and the divinity within must energize mightily through him. He must be a man who will take time, not only to master the language and literature of this people, but also to be holy. It is not ourselves-our poor selves-the Chinese want to see, but God in us" – Griffith John

Bible

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. - Philippians 4:6

Let’s understand:

Anxiety is worry over things which we cannot control and which we do not remove from our thoughts. Anxiety dominates and controls a passive mind and a troubled heart, filling both with doubt, fear, and dread. But, anxiety cannot be removed; it must be replaced. We remove our anxiety by giving our concerns a dowries to the Lord, trusting him to care for us. Then, as we give him thanks for what he has done and what he is doing in our lives, we replace those concerns and worries with a genuine sense of his presence. As a result, our confidence in his future for us can return.

Righteousness

2 Peter 2:21  

It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known it and then to turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them.

2 Peter 3:11  

Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives

2 Peter 3:13  

But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.

1 John 2:29  

If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him.

God’s Word

God’s Word

~ Philippians 4:19

And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.

Let’s understand:

Throughout Scripture, God reminds us that if our trust is in him and if we share his blessings with others, he will make sure we have all that we need. How can we be sure? Look at Jesus!

~ 1 Corinthians 15:19

If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.

Let’s understand:

Wow, what a powerful and sobering thought. Our faith in Jesus' resurrection, and our faith in being joined to him, is so crucial that all else pales in comparison. Our hope in Christ is not just for here and now, but it is also a hope that transcends life and bursts the shackles of death. If it doesn't offer us this hope, then it is no hope at all; it is not really good news. We are deluded and to be pitied. But then, I do believe! That, my friend, changes everything!

Having an Affair

1 Thessalonians 4:3-5  

3 It is God's will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality;

4 that each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable,

5 not in passionate lust like the heathen, who do not know God;

1 Corinthians 6:18  

Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a man commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body.

James 5:16  

Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

Evangelism:

"Preachers who never have revivals never weary of calling attention to everything objectionable in the methods of those who have powerful revivals...O ye fault-finders, beware lest when your Lord come, ye be found smiting your fellow servants, instead of working with them!" - B. T. Roberts 

Gifts of the Holy Spirit

1 Corinthians 12:7-11

Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.

8 To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit,

9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit,

10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues.

11 All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.

1 Peter 4:10

Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms.

1 Corinthians 13:8

Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.

Evangelism:

"The one concern of the devil is to keep Christians from praying. He fears nothing from prayer less studies, prayer less work, and prayer less religion. He laughs at our toil, mocks at our wisdom, but trembles when we pray." - Samuel Chadwick

Thought:

There are two ways to live: you can live as if nothing is a miracle; you can live as if everything is a miracle…Albert Einstein

Smile:

 The reflections on a day well spent furnishes us with joys more pleasing than ten thousand triumphs.

Heaven, as we see in the Bible.

Revelation 14:1-4

1 Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father's name written on their foreheads.

2 And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder. The sound I heard was like that of harpists playing their harps.

3 And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders. No one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth.

4 These are those who did not defile themselves with women, for they kept themselves pure. They follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were purchased from among men and offered as first fruits to God and the Lamb.

Revelation 14:13

Then I heard a voice from heaven say, “Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them.”

Revelation 14:7

He said in a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water.”

Revelation 5:9 And they sang a new song: “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation.

1 John 5:5-8

5 Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.

6 This is the one who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth.

7 For there are three that testify:

8 the Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement.

1 John 2:3-4

3 We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands.

4 The man who says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him.

2 Peter 3:10

But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.

Early Rising

Early Rising

Mark 1:35  

Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.

Luke 1:78  

Because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven

Exodus 34:4  

So Moses chiseled out two stone tablets like the first ones and went up Mount Sinai early in the morning, as the LORD had commanded him; and he carried the two stone tablets in his hands.

God’s Love for You

John 3:16  

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

1 John 3:1

How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.

Hebrews 13:8  

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

Evangelism:

"I am convinced that no Christian teacher can be a great spiritual power in China in whom this ideal is not embodied and manifested in an eminent degree. He must be more than a good man (shan jen); he must be a holy man (sheng jen), exhibiting the vigor of every right purpose, and the intensity of every devout affection. He must be a man full of the Holy Ghost, and the divinity within must energize mightily through him. He must be a man who will take time, not only to master the language and literature of this people, but also to be holy. It is not ourselves-our poor selves-the Chinese want to see, but God in us" – Griffith John

Thought:

Ironically, many people can't afford to give precisely because they're not giving.  If we pay our debt to God first, then we will incur His blessing to help us pay our debts to men.  But when we rob God to pay men, we rob ourselves of God's blessing…Randy Alcorn

I will come like a thief.

Revelation 3:3

Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; obey it, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you.

Revelation 2:5

Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.

2 Peter 3:10

But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.

Revelation 16:15

“Behold, I come like a thief! Blessed is he who stays awake and keeps his clothes with him, so that he may not go naked and be shamefully exposed.”

1 Thessalonians 5:2

For you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.

2 Peter 3:1

Dear friends, this is now my second letter to you. I have written both of them as reminders to stimulate you to wholesome thinking.

Hebrews 2:1

We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.

2 Timothy 1:13

What you heard from me, keep as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus.

1 Timothy 6:20

Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to your care. Turn away from godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is falsely called knowledge,

Matthew 25:13

“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.

Revelation 3:19

Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent.

Revelation 3:11

I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.