Jeremiah 19
Be a Vessel for God’s Glory!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Tuesday, April 9.
Considering Jeremiah’s recent visit to the potter’s house, he was instructed next to build upon the same illustration with a new symbolic act. In Jeremiah 19:1-2, the Sovereign Lord commanded the prophet, “Go and buy a potter’s earthenware jar, and take some of the elders of the people and some of the senior priests. Then go out to the valley of Ben-hinnom [aka Gehenna], which is by the entrance of the potsherd gate, and proclaim there the words that I tell you.” God declared His righteous judgment upon a people who had stiffened their necks and hardened their hearts against Him to worship idols and walk in rebellion. Then, like a master teacher, God emphasized His teachings in Jeremiah 19:10-15:
Then you are to break the jar in the sight of the men who accompany you and say to them, “Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘Just so will I break this people and this city, even as one breaks a potter’s vessel, which cannot again be repaired; and they will bury in Topheth [the valley of Ben-hinnom] because there is no other place for burial. This is how I will treat this place and its inhabitants,’ declares the Lord, ‘so as to make this city like Topheth. … because they have stiffened their necks so as not to heed My words.’”
As long as the clay remains soft and moldable in the Potter’s hands, He would not waste the precious resource by destroying it. Unless the hardened jar has been approved by the Potter for His intended purposes, His only recourse is to shatter the useless vessel so that it will not discredit His name.
Seize the moment and be a chosen vessel for God’s glory by allowing Him to shape you into a useable jar of clay, one which contains the treasure of His name (2 Corinthians 4:7; 2 Timothy 2:20-21; Ephesians 2:10).
God bless you!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
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Jeremiah 18
Remain Workable in the Potter’s Hands!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Monday, April 8.
When I was in high school, I took a potter’s wheel class, and I loved it. It never occurred to me that the clay would not become what I fashioned it to be. For the clay to become what I envisioned it to be, it had to be workable in my hands; it had to remain soft and moldable. This is the imagery invoked by the prophet in Jeremiah 18:2-6:
Then I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was, making something on the wheel. But the vessel that he was making of clay was spoiled in the hand of the potter; so he remade it into another vessel, as it pleased the potter to make. Then the word of the Lord came to me saying, “Can I not, O house of Israel, deal with you as this potter does?” declares the Lord. “Behold, like the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel.”
As I worked the clay on the potter’s wheel, I constantly wet it so that it would spin in my hands, minimizing the friction between my hands and the clay. I had to keep my eyes on the clay and use both hands to form it; it was amazing how subtle and gentle I had to be to form the clay into a usable vessel, with the pressure often coming from the inside of the forming vessel, even though I kept a supportive hand on the outside. As long as the clay remained soft and workable, I could start again with the same clay. Isn’t that what God is saying to each of us in our own lives, “Remain workable in My hands!”
Seize the moment and remain workable in the Potter’s hands! Trust the Sovereign God to work something beautiful out of your life.
God bless you!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
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Everyday Discipleship Wk 10
Everyday Discipleship with Real People
How to Share the Hope of Jesus!
2) Use the S.O.A.P. Bible journaling technique: Y or N
3) Pray & meditate upon the Lord’s Prayer daily: Y or N
4) Review all assigned memory verses, to include learning last session’s memory verse of Luke 9:23-25: Y or N
5) Manage your calendar for the “Big Three” and for gathering with your church: Y or N
Review of major concepts:
+ Discipleship = intentional journey and life-long commitment to learn and manifest the fruit of who I am in Christ
+ The “Big Three” transformative practices = Bible intake, prayer intimacy, and spiritual friendships
+ Church = intentional community of disciples who are called in love, gathered for love, and sent on the mission of love
+ Walk by the Spirit = empowered lifestyle of focused surrender
+ Walk in the easy yoke of Jesus = covenant faithfulness
+ Disciple’s Desire = “Well done, good and faithful servant”
+ Spiritual Warfare = a reality of everyday discipleship that must take seriously and plan for
AS A DISCIPLE OF JESUS CHRIST,
YOU ARE CALLED TO SHARE THE HOPE OF THE
RESURRECTION IN YOUR EVERYDAY LIFE.
+ Read the conclusion of the Gospel of Matthew 28.
+ Memorize the Great Commission: Matthew 28:18-20.
+ Did you notice the bookends of the church’s mission:
“All authority…” and “I am with you always…”?
THIS IS HOW YOU SHARE THE HOPE OF JESUS
AS YOU GO…
+ God will assist you! Read Luke 12:11-12. Invite Him daily!
+ Partner with others! Read Luke 10:1-2. Pray for workers!
+ Make this your lifestyle! Read 1 Peter 3:8-18.
MAKE DISCIPLES OF ALL NATIONS…
+ You are enlisted for the mission! Read 2 Timothy 2:1-4. Don’t get distracted! (Philippians 3:8-17)
+ Disciples carry the message! Read 2 Cor. 3:2-6 & 5:17-20. You are called to embody the message! (1 Cor. 4:16-17; 11:1)
BAPTIZING THEM … AND TEACHING THEM TO OBSERVE ALL THAT JESUS COMMANDED…
+ We do this together as fellow members of the body of Christ. Read Ephesians 4:11-16. You are invited to learn more.
Action Items moving forward:
2) Once you are done, start afresh with the New Testament or begin the epic journey through the Old Testament.
3) Take the 40 Days of the Easter Season to review all ten handouts. Invite the Holy Spirit to help you “become” conformed to the image of Jesus Christ (Romans 8:29).
4) Memorize and live out Matthew 28:18-20.
If you would like to watch this lesson on YouTube, click HERE.
If you would like to view the entire service including music, etc. click HERE.
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Hymn: God of Wonders
Today’s worship song focus :
God of Wonders
Psalm 148:13 (NASB95)
glory is above earth and heaven.”
God of wonders beyond our galaxy, You are holy, holy
The universe declares Your majesty, You are holy, holy
Lord of heaven and earth, Lord of heaven and earth.
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Ken reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
If you would like to listen to this song, click on this link:
God of Wonders
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Jeremiah 17
Know my Heart!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Friday, April 5.
Did you know that when you point your finger at someone else, three fingers are pointing back at the heart of the problem? We love to project blame onto others, to emotionally insulate ourselves from having to take responsibility for a situation. We do this as children by blaming our siblings or classmates. We do this as adults with even more elaborate schemes, but as we mature, we come to realize that the real problem is found within us. In Mark 7:20-23, Jesus made it very clear that it is not something outside of you that makes you unholy, but a condition of your heart:
That which proceeds out of the man, that is what defiles the man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed the evil thoughts, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, deeds of coveting and wickedness, as well as deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride and foolishness. All these evil things proceed from within and defile the man.
Jesus taught that the heart of the problem is found in the control center of your life, where your emotions and thoughts are derived. He was echoing an ancient truth, made visible through the first couple’s blame game, and clearly proclaimed by God through the prophet in Jeremiah 17:9-10, “The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; who can understand it? I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, even to give to each man according to his ways, according to the results of his deeds.”
Seize the moment and invite God to cleanse you from the inside out. Holiness is Christ in you, ruling from the throne of your heart, so invite the Holy Spirit every morning, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me and know my anxious thoughts; and see if there be any hurtful way in me, and lead me in the everlasting way” (Psalm 139:23-24).
God bless you!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
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Jeremiah 16
Embody the Message!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Thursday, April 4.
Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection clearly proclaim God’s love to the world (John 3:16). If it weren’t for Jesus’ crucifixion, humanity could never understand the fulness of the gospel, as explained in Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Jesus, as the Suffering Servant of Israel, was not the first messenger to Israel whose life embodied the message. Just like God used the intimate details of Jesus’ life to portray the message, God revealed Himself in the personal details of His prophets’ lives. Like Hosea’s broken marriage and Ezekiel’s loss of his wife, Jeremiah’s call to celibacy had symbolic meaning. In Jeremiah 16:2, God commanded Jeremiah, “You shall not take a wife for yourself nor have sons or daughters in this place.” He obeyed God and trusted Him for the future.
I can only imagine how costly such a command was to Jeremiah, but he was a man called to embody the judgments of God, demonstrating the prophetic message of God’s wrath for sin. No wonder he was called the weeping prophet. Even though he had been called to celibacy, later, in Jeremiah 29:5-7, God commanded him to encourage the people to marry and have families while in exile, which was a prophetic sign through the people’s lives. Jeremiah’s symbolic action of not having a family represented the coming destruction of Jerusalem, just like the people’s actions of having families while in exile was symbolic of God’s promise to restore them. We must do the same by discerning how we are to live our lives, “so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body” (2 Corinthians 4:7-11).
Seize the moment and obey God’s Word in the intimate places of your life. Tell a better story with your life by embodying God’s message in the personal choices you make.
God bless you!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
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Jeremiah 15
Fresh Bread!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Wednesday, April 3.
Do you like fresh bread? There is a significant difference between eating bread, baked fresh from the oven, versus bread that has been left out for days, which has become hard and stale. I compare my morning devotion time to that of a baker making fresh bread each morning.
In Jeremiah 15:16, the prophet describes the privilege of receiving God’s Word, “Your words were found and I ate them, and Your words became for me a joy and the delight of my heart; for I have been called by Your name, O Lord God of hosts.” Another prophet made a similar statement in Ezekiel 3:1-3, “Then He said to me, ‘Son of man, eat what you find; eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel.’ So I opened my mouth, and He fed me this scroll. He said to me, ‘Son of man, feed your stomach and fill your body with this scroll which I am giving you.’ Then I ate it, and it was sweet as honey in my mouth.”
What a privilege to be given God’s Word; to be chosen as a spokesperson of God to the nations. In 2 Corinthians 5:19-20, Paul speaks to all who have been reconciled to God through His Son Jesus Christ, “He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us.” Just like the prophets of old, you have been called to consume God’s Word so that you can give it to those in desperate need of their daily bread. What do you have to share with others?
Seize the moment and enjoy some fresh bread today by reading your Bible – “taste and see that the LORD is good” (Psalm 34:8). Don’t give people something dry and hard; give them something baked in your morning devotion time. That’s what I’m doing for you!
God bless you!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
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Jeremiah 14
Hope in Dark Days!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Tuesday, April 2.
A severe drought had come upon Jerusalem and the surrounding region of Judah. What were the people to do, knowing the drought was a righteous judgment for their rebellion? In Jeremiah 14:7-9, on behalf of the people, the prophet cried out to God for mercy:
Although our iniquities testify against us, O Lord, act for Your name’s sake! Truly our apostasies have been many, we have sinned against You. O Hope of Israel, its Savior in time of distress, why are You like a stranger in the land or like a traveler who has pitched his tent for the night? Why are You like a man dismayed, like a mighty man who cannot save? Yet You are in our midst, O Lord, and we are called by Your name; do not forsake us!
During dark days, Jeremiah boldly cried out for God’s mercy, concluding his plea in verse 21, “Do not despise us, for Your own name’s sake; do not disgrace the throne of Your glory; remember and do not annul Your covenant with us.” The prophet knew that the only hope for rescue and redemption was by invoking God and His ancient covenant.
When a nation is under judgment it may feel like God has forsaken His people, plunging them into darkness with no light to guide them. But God! He has a plan for even the darkest of days. In Romans 1:18-32, we learn how God gives people over to their own rebellion for the purpose of showing them the consequences of their choices; it’s God inviting His people, “Hope in Me! I am your way of escape. Repent and follow Me!”
Seize the moment and cry out to Jesus, “the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27), who promised in John 8:12, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.”
God bless you!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
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Jeremiah 13
Show Me, Don’t Tell Me!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Monday, April 1.
Have you ever tried to teach someone, but words were not getting through to the person? When words are not enough, showing is more powerful than telling. God knows His people better than any teacher knows her students, and He loves to use word pictures to get across complicated concepts. You may remember that Isaiah was tasked by God with walking around naked in Isaiah 20. That got everyone’s attention!
In the prophetic work of Jeremiah there are at least nine times that the prophet is commanded to show them through a symbolic action. In Jeremiah 13:1-7, he is tasked to buy fine linen, the cloth of a priest, and wrap it around his waist. Then he was told to hide it in the crevice of a rock where it was destroyed, rendering it useless for the purpose it has been purchased. God explained the living parable in Jeremiah 13:9-11:
Thus says the Lord, “Just so will I destroy the pride of Judah and the great pride of Jerusalem. This wicked people, who refuse to listen to My words, who walk in the stubbornness of their hearts and have gone after other gods to serve them and to bow down to them, let them be just like this waistband which is totally worthless. For as the waistband clings to the waist of a man, so I made the whole household of Israel and the whole household of Judah cling to Me,” declares the Lord, “that they might be for Me a people, for renown, for praise and for glory; but they did not listen.”
Seize the moment and abide in God, like a branch to a vine, so that He may bear fruit on your branch, demonstrating to the world that you are His disciple (John 15:1-8). God is still using word pictures today through our prophetic activity to the nations, so as you go, show them Jesus!
God bless you!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
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Easter Sunday 2024
Live with Faith, Hope, and Love!
Matthew 28:1-10 & John 11:25-26 (NAS95)
Nobody expected Jesus to rise from the dead. Nobody.
Not the soldiers who were experts at the brutal art of crucifixion. Nobody survived.
Not the rulers who sentenced him to death. Nobody resisted their will.
Not the empire of Rome that dominated the world. Nobody in the capital even noticed.
Not the religious leaders. They were now rid of him once and for all.
Not His disciples. This was the end of their promising movement.
Not the crowds in Jerusalem. Their hopes of a conquering hero were crushed.
Not the principalities and powers, the evil forces in high places, the ministers of hate and cruelty, that conspired to kill the Son of God.
Only Jesus knew, because He trusted His Father to keep His promise, to fulfill His purpose, to manifest His mercy, to save a lost world.
It was for the joy of a resurrection coming that He endured the pain, carried our shame, forgave His enemies, and gave His life as a sacrifice for us.
Jesus the Messiah, the Christ of God, died and rose again so that anyone who puts their trust in him can be rescued from sin and sadness, delivered from death and judgment, reawakened by the shock of this good news, and infused with hope.
On that morning, NOBODY imagined an outcome like this. But then there was no body in the tomb.
Now EVERYBODY is invited to take the gift that fills our hearts, stills our fears, and transforms all of life with an undying, everlasting love.[1]
The Easter proclamation is God’s invitation into a personal relationship with Him through faith in Jesus Christ – it is God’s adoption of His Children at the great cost of His only begotten Son Jesus Christ, who shed His blood for the forgiveness of our sins. It is through the promise of resurrection and life, as proclaimed by Jesus’ victory over death that we can have life with God, for this life and in the life to come. Listen to the Gospel of Matthew 28:1-10 and let us commemorate the historical event for which we celebrate Easter:
Now after the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the grave. And behold, a severe earthquake had occurred, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled away the stone and sat upon it. And his appearance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow. The guards shook for fear of him and became like dead men. The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified. He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying. Go quickly and tell His disciples that He has risen from the dead; and behold, He is going ahead of you into Galilee, there you will see Him; behold, I have told you.” And they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy and ran to report it to His disciples. And behold, Jesus met them and greeted them. And they came up and took hold of His feet and worshiped Him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and take word to My brethren to leave for Galilee, and there they will see Me.”
Let us pray.
Before Easter Sunday, Jesus promised in John 11:25-26, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?” That is the question of the age – “Do you believe this?” It is a question that Jesus asks all people through the Holy Spirit, and I voice it to you personally today.
The resurrection of Jesus Christ is our hope, not only for eternal life, but for today. It is important to realize this reality – there is more to the gospel of Jesus Christ than being saved from your sins so that you can enjoy eternity with God. While that is the best news ever proclaimed, the reality of the resurrection is that we are called to live with faith, hope, and love in this life, as ambassadors of Christ – we join with these first eyewitnesses of the resurrection to do exactly what they were told to do – “Go quickly and tell His disciples that He has risen from the dead; … Don’t be afraid, go!”
This is the mission of the church of Jesus Christ (Matthew 28:18-20)! This is what we were saved to do. Jesus’ victory calls us to receive salvation, not only so we can be saved, but so that we can join with Jesus in His magnificent work. Paul taught us this amazing truth in 2 Corinthians 5:17-21:
Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
Let’s take a few minutes this morning to be reminded of the life we are called to live as the people who gather on Easter Sunday. As ambassadors of Christ, we no longer represent ourselves – we represent Jesus! There are three things I believe maturing ambassadors of Christ will exhibit in their daily lives if we are going to accurately exalt Jesus as crucified, risen, and coming again, through our lives. These three characteristics are found in 1 Corinthians 13:11-13:
When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known. But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love.
First, maturing ambassadors of Jesus are messengers of faith in Jesus Christ. Faith is the entrance to the life of Christ, and it is impossible to accurately represent Him apart from God’s grace at work in your through faith in Jesus Christ. As Paul taught in Ephesians 2:1-10:
And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.
It is only through faith in Jesus Christ that we can please God, as Hebrews 11:6 teaches us, “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.” Faith is what marks our lives because it is only through faith that we can be pleasing to the Lord or manifest the good fruit of the Holy Spirit in other people’s lives, showing them the very character of Jesus Christ in our everyday lives – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
Second, maturing ambassadors of Jesus are proclaimers of hope. Be different than the rest of the world – be a hope-bearer, not a doomsdayer! Anyone can focus on what is wrong – sin is like gravity! Just like when you step out of the second story window, when you hold a grudge or gossip about someone, you end up broken! Hope is a game-changer! I like to say that hope is my superpower because without hope in the God who keeps His promises, doing what God said He will do, I take matters into my own hands. This is the meaning of Romans 5:1-5:
Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God. And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
Apart from hope in God, I can’t demonstrate my faith! Hope gives us the courage to act according to our faith, and that is most clearly seen in our love, poured out to us in abundance!
Third, maturing ambassadors of Jesus are heralds of God’s love. John taught us this love in 1 John 4:7-19:
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has seen God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. We love, because He first loved us.
The greatest test of your faith is often found in your daily relationships and how you conduct yourself under stress. How are you loving others? This is the greatest sign of your faith and hope; it’s how you persevere in love for the gospel message of love. Here’s a practical teaching on how to be an ambassador of Jesus, from Galatians 6:1-2, “Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted. Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.”
What is the law of Christ you ask? It’s love, as Jesus taught on the night He instituted the Lord’s Supper and washed the disciples’ feet, as an example of the kind of love we are to emulate. Jesus commanded in John 13:34-35, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
I return to the question that Jesus asked you, “Do you believe this?” Do you believe that Jesus is the Son of God and Savior of the world, who died on the cross for your sins, defeated death through His resurrection three days later, on the first Easter Sunday. Have you asked Jesus to forgive you of your sins and to fill that empty place with His Spirit, sealing you for the day of redemption. Do you believe this? If you do, are you living as an ambassador of God’s love?
To watch the complete service, CLICK HERE.
FOOTNOTE:
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