Hey, what church do you go to, or what religion are you? Are you a Baptist, Methodist, Church of Christ, Catholic, or Lutheran?
Did you know that Jesus didn’t create religion? Man did, Jesus Christ died on the cross so that all people could be saved if they’d only turn to him!
We get all hung up on denominations while the world around us are going to hell in a hand basket!
What some people need to do is lose their religion and acceptJesus Christ as their personal Lord and Saviour!
Luke 9 26, For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father’s, and of the holy angels.
What kind of Christian are you today? Are you one who acknowledges Him and serves Him and attempts to glory Him, or do you tremble like a little mouse when it’s time to take a stand?
Friends, we need to take a long, hard look at ourselves to see if we’re doing everything we can to be pleasing to the Lord. This is all important in these days in which we live.
Jesus had just chosen his twelve disciples. He was out in the wilderness teaching the people all day long and it was late. The people were hot, tired and hungry. His disciples gave him some advice that was unneeded when they told him to send the people away so they could go into town and buy some food.
He told them to feed the people! They said we only have five fishes and two loaves of bread. Jesus immediately took control. He told his disciples to divide the crowd into 50’s and have them sit down. He took the fishes and loaves and blessed them.
When it was all said and done there were more than enough left over. Jesus not only met their needs spiritually but physically as well. You see, Jesus will always meet our needs and most of the time he gives us more than what we need!
Let’s praise God today for his provision in all things!
Luke says, Jarius had only one daughter who twelve years old and she was dying. He begged Jesus to go to his house and heal her. As Jesus went people thronged Him.
And a woman having an issue of blood twelve years, which had spent all her living upon physicians, neither could be healed of any, came behind Him and touch the border of His garment: and immediately her issue of blood stopped!
Two desperate people came seeding the help of Jesus and both received the help that was so badly needed!
You may be in a desperate situation today that you think no one knows about. Take courage my friend, Jesus knows and Jesus cares. Jesus will meet you right where you are if you’ll let Him!
Luke 8:1-3, And it came to pass afterward, that he went throughout every city and village, preaching and shewing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God: an d the twelve were with him.
And certain women, which had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary called Magdalene, out of whom went seven devils.
And Joanna, and Susanna, and many others ministered unto him of their substance.
These ladies came to minister to Jesus because he had healed some and cast out devils in others. They ministered to him with what they had! As Children of the King we are to minister to Jesus as well.
We can say a kind word to someone today. We can offer help to a fellow employee at work who might be struggling with a project. We can offer a coke or big mac to a stranger who is in need. We can listen, I mean really listen to someone who wants to share a problem with us! In doing these simply things we not only minister to people we know and don’t know, but we’re also ministering to our King!
Have you ever tried to work on your computer and it was as slow as a turtle crossing the street? Sometimes my computer seems slow because I don’t give it a chance to open properly and sometimes it doesn’t work right because it’s been infected with some kind of virus!
When this happens I run a scan that takes up to an hour or so to complete. This scan shows me what virus may have infected my computer and then removes it.
Sometimes I don’t act right, think right, or talk like I’m a Christian. The reason being is because I’ve allowed some type of virus or sin to enter my life. When this happens the Holy Spirit shows me exactly what I’ve done wrong and then He’ll remove it if I allow Him to do so.
You see, the Holy Spirit is a gentlemen! He doesn’t force me to get right, He shows me the things I’ve done to break fellowship with the Lord, and then He let’s me decide!
The Lord says to be holy as He is Holy! I don’t have to sin, and you don’t have to sin, it’s a choice we make daily!
I’ve got it figured out why people who say their Christians don’t have a daily Quiet Time!
Some who say their Christians may not be, they’re down right lazy, their to busy, or they don’t like what they see in themselves when they read the Bible.
I have three juggling swords. While preaching during a revival service God gave me a fantastic object lesson. I called a man to the front and gave him one of the swords and asked him to look into the metal part!
I said, “Can you see yourself?” He said, “Yes!” I then said, “If you had a zit on your nose could you see it in the reflection of the sword?” He said, “Yes!” The sword acted as a mirror and that man could have shaved himself looking into that thing!
God’s Word is like a mirror. It shows us who we really are. It show us the zits in our lives we need to get rid of. The thing is, at times we don’t want to get rid of sin in our lives. You see, sin looks good, feels good, and taste good, but only for a little while!
Let me encourage you to take a look at yourself in Gods Word daily. You may not like what you see in the beginning, but if you’ll allow God do a complete make over daily He’ll be pleased, and in the end that’s what really matters!
Before I left Georgia I was asked to go to a Nazarene Church. When I was there I went to the men’s Sunday School Class where an elderly man sat across the table from me.
He looked at me and said, “Pastor, you know us Nazarene’s believe differently from you Baptist.” He continued to tell me he’d been saved and he wasn’t a sinner any longer.
He said, “Don’t you believe that?” I said, “No Sir, I don’t!” I told him I was a sinner saved by grace and that I sinned everyday. I also told him that there were times I planned to sin!”
Another man spoke up and said what the elderly gentlemen meant was that he makes mistakes! I then said, “You do know what the Bible calls those mistakes? The Bible calls that sin!”
We had a great time in class and a great time during the preaching service. They must have liked what I shared because they asked me back next year to preach in both services.
I John 1:10, If we claim we have not sinned, we make Him out to be a liar and his Word has no place in our lives.
On October 31st I was at First Baptist Church in Perry Georgia doing a Falls Festival. That night I did a story called “Peter The Pumpkin!” Peter was a little pumpkin I met in the pumpkin patch. We became friends and he came to know Jesus as his Lord and Saviour!
Peter accepted the Lord immediately. He didn’t make excuses and he didn’t put accepting the Lord off at a later date! He wasn’t TRICKED into thinking that later would be better!
You see, the old devil tricks people into thinking everyday that later would be better. He knows if a person dies without Jesus they’ve been tricked and they’ll be his treat for an eternity.
2 Corinthians 6:2, For he says, “I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation!”
Prayer, I have a problem with it. Let me clarify, I don’t have a problem with prayer itself, I have a problem doing it. I pray, but I do know I don’t pray about decisions I need to make long enough.
When Jesus had to make an important decision He pray for a long time about it. When He had to make a decision concerning which men to choose as His disciples He spent time alone with God in prayer all night long, and still, He chose a traitor and others that would scatter like a covey of quail when the pressure was on!
Luke 6:12-16, And it came to pass in those days, that He went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God. And when it was day, He called unto Him His disciples: ad of them He chose twelve, whom also He called apostles!
Imagine this, Jesus, the Son of God spending all night long with God in prayer before choosing His disciples. Prayer was not an option to Him, it was His habit!