where

September 11, 2017

“Where Could I Go, O Where Could I Go?”

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68 Simon Peter replied, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life. ​ – John 6;66 NLT


Jesus is asking us the same question today, “If you don’t accept Me and My words, whose words will you accept?” Do we answer as Peter did, “To whom would we go?” If we truly believe that Jesus is the Son of God, and His words give us eternal life, why would we look anywhere else? We must understand that hearing the Gospel and knowing the Scriptures is not salvation. The “head” knowledge has to become “heart” knowledge. The devil knows the Scriptures but he denies the Kingship of Jesus. Unless we become “born again” and allow the Holy Spirit to make us a new creation, we are not the children of God. There are people who go to church every Sunday, but never understand that they have to do more than just hear the Word. They have to believe it and allow it to work inside of them. Why did Jesus choose Judas knowing what Judas would eventually do? The same reason that He died on a cross for all of us knowing that not all of us would accept that truth. It is a love that the human mind cannot understand​.​

16 “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.–John 3:16 (NLT)


“The Gospel has come to you because it’s on its way to someone else.” -Anonymous

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November 10, 2014

Does Where Really Matter?

God is waiting to show you the Way.

God is waiting to show you the Way.

19 “Sir,” the woman said, “you must be a prophet. 20 So tell me, why is it that you Jews insist that Jerusalem is the only place of worship, while we Samaritans claim it is here at Mount Gerizim, where our ancestors worshiped?” 21 Jesus replied, “Believe me, dear woman, the time is coming when it will no longer matter whether you worship the Father on this mountain or in Jerusalem. 22 You Samaritans know very little about the one you worship, while we Jews know all about him, for salvation comes through the Jews. 23 But the time is coming—indeed it’s here now—when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way. 24 For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.”—John 4:19-24 (NLT)
​We might think it strange that the woman asks this question, but in her time and situation, it was a very important question. Under the law, there were specific feasts and celebrations that could only be carried out in Jerusalem. She wanted to know how this would affect her worship. So, if we wanted to update this question to now, we might ask Jesus, “How is this going to affect my lifestyle?” Jesus answers her question by introducing a whole new concept. The time is coming and it is actually here now that you will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. After Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension, He sent us the Holy Spirit, Now that we have the Holy Spirit abiding in us, we can worship God anywhere and anytime. This is true for individual worship. The answer for corporate worship is a little more complicated.
24 Let us think about each other and help each other to show love and do good deeds.25 You should not stay away from the church meetings, as some are doing, but you should meet together and encourage each other. Do this even more as you see the day coming.—Hebrews 10:24,25 (NCV)
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September 22, 2014

Let Your Light Shine by Loving Others

God is waiting to show you the Way.

God is waiting to show you the Way.

3 We can be sure that we know God if we obey his commands. 4 Anyone who says, “I know God,” but does not obey God’s commands is a liar, and the truth is not in that person. 5 But if someone obeys God’s teaching, then in that person God’s love has truly reached its goal. This is how we can be sure we are living in God: 6 Whoever says that he lives in God must live as Jesus lived.​ 7 My dear friends, I am not writing a new command to you but an old command you have had from the beginning. It is the teaching you have already heard. 8 But also I am writing a new command to you, and you can see its truth in Jesus and in you, because the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining.—1 John 2:3-8 (NCV)
​The religious leader asked Jesus: ” What is the greatest commandment?” Jesus answered with two commandments instead of one. Jesus said to love the Lord your God with all your heart and your neighbor as yourself. He went on to say that all the law hinged on these two commandments. God has put His light in us to light the world and dispel darkness. The way we let our light shine is to obey these two commandments. We must spend time with Jesus to get to know Him better so we can love Him better, Then, by loving our neighbors, we demonstrate the love of God in our lives. When we accepted Jesus, we became aliens to this world and citizens of heaven. As ambassadors of heaven, we represent Jesus. It is our duty to reconcile others to Christ by giving them the Good News. We want to wait for some big thing to do, but we shouldn’t wait for grand opportunities. Start by doing a good deed today and you will give life and light to someone. As the old song says:
Do not wait until some deed of greatness you may do,
Do not wait to shed your light afar,
To the many duties ever near you now be true,
Brighten the corner where you are.
Refrain
Brighten the corner where you are!
Brighten the corner where you are!
Someone far from harbor you may guide across the bar;
Brighten the corner where you are!
Ina D. Ogdon, 1913
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November 16, 2013

Work for a Bountiful Harvest

God is waiting to show you the way.

God is waiting to show you the way.

9 That night Paul had a vision: A man from Macedonia in northern Greece was standing there, pleading with him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us!” 10 So we decided to leave for Macedonia at once, having concluded that God was calling us to preach the Good News there. 11 We boarded a boat at Troas and sailed straight across to the island of Samothrace, and the next day we landed at Neapolis. 12 From there we reached Philippi, a major city of that district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. And we stayed there several days. Acts 16:9-12 (NLT)
In earlier verses, Paul had wanted to go into the province of Asia and preach the Gospel. It doesn’t seem like there would be anything wrong with that, but God had other plans for Paul. This is a good example of how God works. He has a specific plan for each of us. That plan includes the what, the when, and the where. He has prepared certain hearts to hear and respond to His word. That word must be spoken at the exact time and place He has prepared. As we are told in the Psalms 127:1 Unless the Lord builds a house, the work of the builders is wasted. Unless the Lord protects a city, guarding it with sentries will do no good Unless, we follow God’s plan, our work is in vain. Yes, God will honor it because His Word does not return void, but it won’t produce the harvest He had intended for you to produce. Complete obedience is the difference in 30 fold, 60 fold, or 100 fold.
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