Podcasts about without jesus

Visit Renew.org to sign up for our email newsletter and be the first to know about new content, books and resources.  https://renew.org/ Join RENEW.org at an upcoming event: https://renew.org/resources/events/ Join RENEW.org's Newsletter: https://renew.org/resources/newsletter-sign-up/ Nate Ross unpacks Luke 19 and the story of Zacchaeus to show that being "lost" means perishing, and that Jesus' mission is to seek and save those who are dying spiritually. Through personal stories—from praying in the Indiana Senate to an unexpected encounter in Cancun—Nate urges listeners to let conviction fuel compassion and courage in reaching the lost.

Most people could answer this question without hesitation: What is the most important birth in the entire Bible? Christmas makes that one easy. But here's the harder question: What is the second most important birth in Scripture? In Genesis 21, a 90-year-old woman named Sarah finally gives birth to a son named Isaac, the child God had promised 25 years earlier. It sounds like a personal miracle for one elderly couple, but it was far more than that. That one birth set off a chain reaction, from Isaac to Jacob, from Jacob to Judah, from Judah to David, and from David to Jesus. Without Isaac, there is no Israel. Without Israel, there is no Jesus. Without Jesus, there is no Gospel. God is a missionary God, the Bible is a missionary book, and, if you have a heart for God, you will have a missionary heart.

Why is Christianity so exclusive, don't all religions lead to God? Pastor Adriel Sanchez answers a perennial question modern people struggle with about Jesus's words, "No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6). PARTNER WITH US - https://solamedia.org/partner/?sc=AS2502V When you become a partner today, you'll receive two remarkable books as our thanks: Rediscovering the Holy Spirit by Dr. Michael Horton and Praying with Jesus by Pastor Adriel Sanchez. We believe these books can guide you into a clearer understanding of the Spirit's work and a richer prayer life. FOLLOW US YouTube | Instagram | X/Twitter | Facebook | Newsletter WHO WE ARE Sola is home to White Horse Inn, Core Christianity, Modern Reformation, and Theo Global. Our mission is to serve today's global church by producing resources for reformation grounded in the historic Christian faith. Our vision is to see reformation in hearts, homes, and churches around the world. Learn more: https://solamedia.org/

Co-Pastor Rev. Colin Holtz preached on Sunday, Apr 26, 2026. The Church at Ponce & Highland is a multiracial, pro-LGBTQ, economically diverse, member-led church in intown Atlanta. We practice following the way of Jesus through radical inclusivity, thoughtful spirituality, and caring community. To learn more, hit subscribe or visit http://churchatponceandhighland.org/

Title: "Death is Meaningless without Jesus" Series: "Ecclesiastes" Date: Sun PM 2026-04-26 Listen to the full audio and view notes at https://www.sermonaudio.com/ebc We would love for you to join us in Fairview Heights, IL! Go to www.EdgemontBibleChurch.org for more info about our local church. Support more videos like this one by texting "EDGEMONTGIVE" to 77977 or giving at https://pushpay.com/pay/edgemontbiblechurch CCLI Licenses: Copyright License 573220 Streaming License 20321863

John 13:36-37 Simon Peter said to Him, "Lord, where are You going?" Jesus answered, "Where I go, you cannot follow Me now; but you will follow later. Peter said to Him, "Lord, why can I not follow You right now? I will lay down my life for You." In Luke's gospel account of the last supper, he recorded something John left out. Luke 22:22-24 “For indeed, the Son of Man is going as it has been determined; but woe to that man by whom He is betrayed!” And they began to discuss among themselves which one of them it might be who was going to do this thing. And there arose also a dispute among them as to which one of them was regarded to be greatest.” It is plausible that the spirit of that discussion has influenced Simon Peter. Deep within the recesses of his soul is the pride of life that thinks he is better than everyone else. With his “I'm great” filter on, he hears Jesus say he's going someplace others can't go, and he's thinking from an earthly perspective. “I'll follow Him anywhere at any cost.” The disciples had had this discussion only days earlier when they were trying to decide whether they were going to go with Jesus to Jerusalem upon hearing of Lazarus' death. In John 11:16 we read, “Therefore Thomas, who is called Didymus, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, so that we may die with Him.” So I conclude Peter and the rest of the disciples had already considered what they might have to go through if they followed Jesus to Bethany and then on to Jerusalem. Maybe Peter decided in his heart earlier that he was able to endure whatever befell them. Perhaps at this moment, Peter wanted to show how he was indeed the greatest of the disciples, so he began to see if this was the opportunity to prove himself. However, I think Jesus' response was puzzling to Peter. Basically Jesus told him, “You're not ready now to follow me where I'm going.” Whether Jesus was thinking of going to the cross or thinking of going to heaven; in both cases, Peter wasn't ready, but Peter thought he was. Why wasn't Peter ready for either place? I think it is because Peter thinks he is great without the Holy Spirit. Without the Holy Spirit, apart from the life of Jesus, Peter could do nothing. Nor can we. Is there any pride of life in us that thinks we can live our lives today without being filled with the Holy Spirit? Can we really lay down our lives for the glory of God if it is not the Spirit of the Son working in us? Without Jesus, we are nothing. With Him, we are ready to go anywhere He goes. Acknowledgment: Music from “Carried by the Father” by Eric Terlizzi. www.ericterlizzi.com

"But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I don't, the Advocate[a] won't come. If I do go away, then I will send him to you." -Jesus In this message we ask, "How can that be?"

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Felicia explores the biblical concept of bearing fruit through staying connected to God, emphasizing that true productivity comes from abiding in Jesus, not striving. She shares personal insights and practical steps to deepen spiritual connection, especially during challenging seasons. TakeawaysFruit is the evidence of connection, not effort.Much fruit requires consistent abiding, not occasional effort.Without Jesus, we can do nothing—true strength comes from Him.Seasonal pruning is necessary for abundant fruit.Bearing fruit reflects character and Christ-like qualities.

Just last week, we saw a shameless exploitation of the resurrection by prominent religious leaders, comparing our President to Christ, and blasphemously assigning the resurrection image to him. The resurrection of Christ was repurposed as a political propaganda event. This called to mind something that Jesus said to Martha on the way to raise her brother Lazarus from the dead. When Jesus informed Martha that Lazarus would rise again, Martha replied that she knew that Lazarus would rise again at the last day, but that she believed that Jesus could ask God, and God would grant it to Him now. This statement by Martha was incomplete and insufficient, because mere resurrection is not enough. Jews mostly believed in the resurrection of the just at the last day. The Pharisees believed it dogmatically, yet most of them died and went to Hell. It is not enough to believe in the resurrection! Christ's resurrection work includes resurrection unto eternal life, and resurrection to eternal torment and wrath. Now we can see why Christ corrected Martha, that her view of the resurrection was not acceptable. Jesus' point to Martha was this: the resurrection is not enough. Her error was, that she did not recognize the true power and authority of the Person standing before her. She did not recognize the Resurrector! Christ then made it clear to Martha. It wasn't good enough to know there would be a resurrection one day. It was not even good enough to assume that God would raise up His people. What was necessary was to believe that Jesus is the Resurrection, and Jesus is the Life! Without Jesus' life-giving power, the resurrection becomes an horrible judgment.

Our earliest ancestors went away from God, deciding to do their own thing. Due to His love for humanity, God had a plan to reconcile His creation back to Himself. On this Easter Sunday, we think again about how God so loved the world that He sent His only Son to die for all of us. Without Jesus dying for us, it would have been impossible to escape our eternal destination of hell. Jesus willingly humbled Himself to wear a crown of thorns and to die on the Cross. We need Him in our lives. We need to repent of our past wrongs and put Him and His desires first in our lives. Jesus is not just a person of history, but a living reality to many millions around the world today.The script for the whole Service can be read here.

Eating a donut for breakfast, a candy bar for lunch, and greasy pizza for dinner might sound great in the moment. But after a few days, your body starts craving something hearty and homemade. Today, Pastor Bill says your spiritual life works the same way. You can try to fill yourself with cheap substitutes — alcohol, parties, old memories— and they may feel good for a while. But if that's all you're feeding on, you'll end up empty. There is a way to be filled. That fulfillment has a name: Jesus.

There's nothing like stepping outside on a cool day and feeling the warmth of the sun on your face. Yet that same sun is so powerful you can't even look at it, and too much exposure can burn you. Still, without it, life on earth would not exist. Today, Pastor Bill reminds you that while every living thing depends on the S-U-N, there is One even more powerful and life-giving—the S-O-N. The question is, are you living under the life and authority of Jesus, the Son?

848 The Serpent is Cursed by God? A Guided Christian Meditation on Genesis 3:14-15 with the Recenter With Christ app The purpose of this podcast is to help you find more peace in  and connect with the true source of peace, Jesus Christ.  Outline: Relaxation, Reading, Meditation, Prayer, Contemplation and Visualization.  You can sit comfortably and uninterrupted for about 20 minutes.You should hopefully not be driving or anything tense or unrel axing.  If you feel comfortable to do so, I invite you to close your eyes.   Guided Relaxation / Guided Meditation:   Breathe and direct your thoughts to connecting with God. Let your stomach be a balloon inflate,  deflate. Scripture for Meditation Genesis 3 KJV 14 And the Lord God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: 15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. NET 14 The Lord God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, cursed are you above all the cattle and all the living creatures of the field! On your belly you will crawl and dust you will eat all the days of your life. 15 And I will put hostility between you and the woman and between your offspring and her offspring; he will strike your head, and you will strike his heel." Reflection on Scripture: In this chapter the serpent is not specifically identified as Satan, the adversary, the enemy of God but in other places in scripture that link is explicitly made. Why does God punish Satan? Satan tried to take the place of God. He tried to be the one to direct Adam and Eve in opposition to what God says. He does not fully understand the plan of God. His knowledge is limited. Even if he intellectually knows what God's intent is, which it is not even clear that this is the case, he certainly doesn't understand it. An intellectual understanding of the words of God is not enough. While in graduate school some of the books I read about the New Testament were written by incredibly knowledgeable atheists. This caused me to be suspicious of their insights about the true meaning of what the Word said. Satan intended to oppose and displace God, regardless of how futile that is.  Similarly how do we approach the wisdom of God? Do we do so indifferent to God's intent and presence? Where much is given, much is expected. When we approach God's word supported by God's Holy Spirit we are more prepared to understand it. As a result we should attempt to use every resource we have, intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually to draw unto the Lord and seek His riches. If we approach God's word with an intent to critique it and demonstrate why it doesn't fit with modern thoughts, we have a greatly diminished ability to be fed by it spiritually.  In all, Satan has been punished for rejecting the authority and supremacy of God. We are rewarded when we align with God's spirit and His purpose. If we choose the side of rebellion or pride we choose the side of the serpent whose head is crushed by Jesus. When we follow Jesus we take the side of the one who will crush the enemy. Use your time in meditation as a method for aligning your will, your mind, and your heart, to the Lord Jesus Christ that is the only path back to the Father. Without Jesus, we have no ability to overcome the effects of the fall of Adam and our resulting propensity to sin.  Meditation of Prayer: Pray as directed by the Spirit. Dedicate these moments to the patient waiting, when you feel ready ask God for understanding you desire from Him. Meditation of God and His Glory / Hesychasm: I invite you to sit in silence feeling patient for your own faults and trials. Summarize what insights you have gained during this meditation and meditate and visualize positive change in your life: This is a listener funded podcast at patreon.com/christianmeditationpodcast Final Question: If you consider the invitation and command to persevere in the faith, what change in your life does that bring to your mind?  FIND ME ON: Download my free app: Recenter with Christ Website - ChristianMeditationPodcast.com Voicemail - (602) 888-3795 Email: jared@christianmeditationpodcast.com Apple Podcasts - Christian Meditation Podcast Facebook.com/christianmeditationpodcast Youtube.com/christianmeditaitonpodcast Twitter - @ChristianMedPod

Sunday, 22 March 2026   “If your hand or foot causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you. It is better for you to enter into life lame or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet, to be cast into the everlasting fire. Matthew 18:8   “And if your hand or your foot, it ensnares you, you exscind them, and you cast from you. It is good – you enter into life lame or crippled, or two hands or two feet having, be cast into the ‘fire, the perpetual'” (CG).   In the previous verse, Jesus gave woe to the world because of snares. Moreover, He gave woe to the man through whom snares would come. He continues now, saying, “And if your hand or your foot, it ensnares you, you exscind them, and you cast from you.”   The precepts of this verse and the next are similar to Matthew 5:29, 30. This one more closely aligns with Matthew 5:30. As noted there, the words of Jesus need to be taken in their proper light. If a person has been ensnared by his hand or foot, the sin has already been committed. It would not be profitable to cut off a body part in such an instance.   Understanding the hyperbolic nature of the words, Jesus continues, saying, “It is good – you enter into life lame or crippled, or two hands or two feet having, be cast into the ‘fire, the perpetual'.”   A new word is seen here, aiónios, perpetual. It is used of past time as well as past and future time. It signifies that which is eternal in nature. The words clearly indicate that there is a final judgment for all people. It is a judgment that is both real and eternal in nature. Without Jesus, a sin against the infinite God requires an infinite purification.   Jesus' point is that there is a problem in a person's life that must be addressed. If it is not dealt with, there will be eternal consequences. Israel is being schooled on the ramifications of failing to meet the demands of the law.   As no person can perfectly meet what the law requires, there must be a total separation from God. But, in Christ, His satisfaction of the law is imputed to those who come to Him, trusting that what He did is sufficient for their salvation.   Life application: If Jesus' words were to be taken literally with every such snare in a person's life, nobody would have hands or feet. As such, nothing would ever get done. People would be busy cutting off body parts until there were none left to cut.   But this is the severity of the law. His point is that it certainly is better to take such strong action than to be cast into the Lake of Fire. But remember, cutting off a hand or foot cannot atone for one's sin. As the sin has been committed, it would be a pointless gesture.   Further, there is already the issue of inherited sin that needs to be dealt with. In and of himself, there is nothing a person can do about that. Despite this, it is an infection that must be dealt with for reconciliation with God to take place.   As reconciliation requires atonement, and only a perfect Substitute can atone for sin, the need for Jesus becomes crystal clear. People need Jesus. No other path can restore man to God. And more, after the cross, once sin is atoned for in those who have received the gospel, forgiveness for all such matters has been obtained.   Thus, no such infraction can ever be charged against a person in Christ again. He is under grace, not law. Without law, there can be no imputation of sin. In one fell swoop, all such matters are dealt with through the death of Jesus Christ for those who trust Him.   Lord God, when all hope was lost, You stepped in and restored it. In our state of assured condemnation, You brought about salvation. And in our pending judgment, You gave us reconciliation. Thank You, O God, for what You have done through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

Today's Reading: Introit for Lent 5 - Psalm 43:3-5; antiphon: Psalm 43:1-2aDaily Lectionary: Genesis 49:29-50:7, 14-26; Mark 14:1-11“Send out your light and your truth; let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling!” (Psalm 43:3)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Tomorrow we enter Passiontide - the final two weeks of the Lenten season. The light and truth of God's Word have guided us through this season, reminding us of all that Jesus has done for us as we prepare for the joy of Easter. But before we get there, the light and truth of the Word lead us to the holy hill of Calvary—to the cross of Jesus. To see the horrible consequences of our sin, but even more, to see the incredible love of Jesus in laying down His life for us.So, the light and truth of God's Word first show us our sin. And we confess, I am a poor, miserable sinner. I am by nature sinful and unclean. I have sinned in thought, word, and deed, by what I have done and by what I have left undone. I am not good. Without Jesus, I am dead in my trespasses and sins. That's why Lent starts with the ashes of death and ends with the cross. The wages of sin is death.But the light and truth of God's Word doesn't leave us there, cast down in death! The ashes of death are washed off us by Baptism, and we go to the altar of God with exceeding joy, because the Body and Blood that once hung on the cross rose from death and are now given to us for forgiveness and life. Even during Lent, we do not go about mourning. No, we praise God even as we confess our sins, for by so doing we are confessing the one whose forgiveness we take refuge in. Whose resurrection won the victory over sin, death, and Hell.So it is the light and truth of God's Word that lead us to Lent and through Lent to Easter. And it is the light and truth of God's Word that leads us through this life to the great and final Easter when Jesus comes again in glory. Until that day, Jesus defends us, delivers us, and leads us, and we take refuge in Him, praise Him, and hope in Him. For He is our salvation and our God.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.My son is love unknown, My Savior's love to me, Love to the loveless shown That they might lovely be. Oh, who am I That for my sake My Lord should take frail flesh and die? Here might I stay and sing, No story so divine! Never was love, dear King, Never was grief like Thine. This is my friend, In whose sweet praise I all my days Could gladly spend! (LSB 430:1, 7)

Without Jesus, we are spiritually blind. The same Jesus who miraculously gave physical sight opens our eyes to see our salvation in him.

It's Thursday, March 12th, A.D. 2026. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard on 140 radio stations and at www.TheWorldview.com.  I'm Adam McManus. (Adam@TheWorldview.com) By Jonathan Clark Nepal's new government less likely to feature Hindu nationalists Christians in Nepal are cautiously hopeful after recent elections in the Asian country located north of India and which features the Himalayan Mountains including Mount Everest. Youth-led protests toppled the government last year. The new government is poised to feature less Hindu-nationalist parties. Hindu extremists drive most persecution of Christians in Nepal.  One pastor in the country told International Christian Concern, “The [election] results are unexpected. Though the outcome is confusing, we remain hopeful, especially as there appears to be a decline in the influence of pro-Hindu nationalist parties.”  Franklin Graham preached to 90,000 in Lima, Peru Evangelist Franklin Graham shared the Gospel of Christ with over 90,000 people in Lima, Peru over the weekend.  Listen. GRAHAM: “The Bible says, ‘All we, like sheep, have gone astray. Each has turned to his own way.' But man has a problem. That problem is called sin. “Sin is a barrier. It's a wall between you and God, and sin has to be atoned, and the only way is through the shed blood of Jesus, Christ on the cross. “Without Jesus, you have no hope. You cannot save yourself, only the blood of Jesus. “You have a choice tonight.  Jesus said, ‘I'll never leave you nor forsake you.' Will you come to Him tonight?” Thousands responded to the message during the evangelical event. Peru is a predominantly Catholic country. However, the number of Evangelicals has been growing rapidly in the South American country in recent years.  Chile is first country to eliminate leprosy in the Americas Chile recently became the first country in the Americas to officially eliminate leprosy.  The World Health Organization and the Pan American Health Organization verified the achievement. Chile has not reported any locally acquired cases of the disease for over 30 years.  The World Health Organization noted, “Leprosy, also known as Hansen disease … primarily affects the skin, peripheral nerves, upper respiratory tract mucosa, and eyes. If untreated, it can lead to permanent nerve damage, disabilities, and social stigma.” U.S. and Ecuador team up to kick drug cartels out The United States and Ecuador launched joint military operations against drug cartels in the South American country last week.  Over a dozen other Latin American countries also plan to cooperate with the U.S. military against drug smuggling operations. U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth addressed these countries during the Shield of Americas Summit in Florida on Saturday. Listen.  HEGSETH: “We don't have to live with communities flooded with drugs or violence or cartels and gangs. We can seal our border, and we have to for our citizens. “We share a hemisphere and geography. We share cultures, Western Christian civilization. We share these things together. We have to have the courage to defend it. We have a Commander-in-Chief in our country who's set that compass heading.” New poll: Don't need to believe in God to be moral Pew Research reports fewer people around the world believe it's necessary to believe in God to be moral. A majority of adults in the United States, Canada, and Europe say it's not necessary to believe in God to be moral and have good values. People in Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America are much more likely to say belief in God is necessary for morality.  In the U.S., 31% of adults say it's necessary to believe in God to be moral. That's down from 42% in 2014. Wyoming passes Heartbeat bill Wyoming became the latest state to enact a fetal heartbeat law. Republican Governor Mark Gordon signed the Human Heartbeat Act into law on Monday. This makes Wyoming the fifth state to ban abortions on babies at about six weeks of pregnancy.  If a heartbeat is detected, the baby must be protected. Liberty Counsel noted, “The ‘Human Heartbeat Act' bans abortions after a heartbeat can be detected. However, it does include exceptions for medical emergencies when the mother's life is in danger, or her health is at risk of serious impairment. The law does not include exceptions for rape or incest.” John Newton, former slave ship captain, wrote “Amazing Grace” And finally, this week is the anniversary of John Newton's conversion.  Newton was a captain of slave ships in his early life. While at sea, a severe storm brought him to his spiritual senses. This led to his conversion on March 10, 1748. Newton went on to marry, become a pastor, and work to end the slave trade. Newton is well known for his hymns. Each week he would write a hymn to a familiar tune. Of his hundreds of hymns, he is especially remembered for “Glorious Things of Thee Are Spoken,” “How Sweet the Name of Jesus Sounds!” and “Amazing Grace.” WINTLEY PHIPPS: “Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me! I once was lost, but now I'm found, was blind, but now I see.” That was sung by Wintley Phipps. Newton wrote his own epitaph for his tombstone which says, “Once an infidel … was by the rich mercy of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ preserved, restored, pardoned and appointed to preach the faith he had long labored to destroy.” Reminds me of the Apostle Paul. Ephesians 2:8 says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God.”  Close And that's The Worldview on this Thursday, March 12th, in the year of our Lord 2026. Follow us on X or subscribe for free by Spotify, Amazon Music, or by iTunes or email to our unique Christian newscast at www.TheWorldview.com.  Plus, you can get the Generations app through Google Play or The App Store. I'm Adam McManus (Adam@TheWorldview.com). Seize the day for Jesus Christ.

Audio Transcript And the ruin of that house was great. It’s not God’s word for us this morning. Would you please pray with me? Lord, we pray that you would indeed speak through the preaching of your word. Lord, please help me to communicate this text. Well, Lord, please keep me from error, but to speak only that which is true. Lord, we do pray that you give the congregation here just ears to hear what the Spirit is saying. And Lord, please bring much glory to Jesus in this time. It’s in his name we pray. Amen. So let me share with you a story I think I may have shared in the past, but I think it’s been a little while since I’ve done it. It’s like every good story starts with me. So there we were. And this was when I was still in college and I had a summer job working for a carpenter who actually specialized in building log homes. Now, for me, my main job was donut pickup guy for the morning break. But I also had a number of other trivial jobs that come alongside some of the main carpenters just to kind of help them do their thing in ways to help them be efficient and able to concentrate on doing quality work. Well, in this story, one of the days when I was assisting one of the carpenters, things are just not coming together. So we just finished putting on the decking over the basement of the house, which I should mention was a huge home. This is the biggest home. The owner of the building company had to up to this point. But as we put the decking on and started to lay out the exterior walls, things were just not coming together. The walls were not lining up according to plan, even though from what we could tell, we were laying things out according to the blueprints. So after a while trying to figure things out on our own, trying to figure out why things are not coming together according to the design, the carpenter that I was assisting called over to the owner of the company to see if he could help us just understand why things were not working the way they should have. Which led to the owner also looking at the blueprints where he started to measure things out on the exterior walls. But as he did that, things were not coming for together for him either. So for the next, I don’t know, 30 minutes or so, we’re all scratching our heads trying to figure out what the issue was. Why were things not going the way they were designed? Why were they not coming together? Where did things go wrong? Only for the owner to realize what was wrong had nothing to do with the blueprints, nothing to do with the measurements of the walls, rather the basement foundation that was poured, the one that the company owner laid out like he didn’t do it right. So in the hustle and bustle, I’m sure the pressure excitement of building his biggest home to date, he got a little distracted. And the measurements, the layout of the foundation was off something like a foot or two, which might not seem like a big deal, but just that little bit off of the foundation put everything else off. And with everything because that was off, we just could not move forward. Because if we did so, not only did the house not come together according to plan, the house would have been structurally vulnerable, set up for a huge fall with the foundation off, everything else was off as well. Now, I tell you that story this morning to hopefully set us up for our text, a study, which is the final section, often referred to as the Sermon on the Plain, which is something we’ve been studying the last few weeks. This is called Sermon on the Plane, because in Luke 6 we see that the sermon that Jesus gave was to a great crowd of disciples, a great multitude of people from all over the region, while he gave this, while standing on a level place, a plane. So I mentioned a few times, and I’ll mention again here, this sermon plane is similar, but yet a little different to perhaps Jesus most famous sermon. The sermon is referred to as the Sermon on the Mount, which the Lord gave on the side of a mountain, which you can read about in Matthew, starting in chapter five of Matthew. And the sex is very similar, but different. In fact, the sermon is very similar, but different, including how similar actually is, how it ends. Both those sermons, the Sermon on the Mount, Sermon on the Plain, end very similarly. And I do think it’s important for us to see that each of these end with a very similar challenge to the listeners. A challenge that’d be good for us to hear this morning as well. A challenge that is meant to cut to our hearts, to show if our hearts indeed do beat for Jesus or not. So we’re talking more about this kind of throughout the sermon. Let me also just mention before we get dive back into the text, that throughout this sermon on the plain, Jesus is primarily speaking towards his disciples. So yes, it’s mentioned there’s a great crowd around Jesus from all over the region who he was speaking to as well in the sermon. But the primary audience for this sermon, the Sermon on the Plain, was his many disciples, as Jesus was helping them understand what it looks like to follow after him. Understanding if we’re going to Follow after Jesus. We need to follow him not just in word, but also in deed, meaning to be a disciple of Jesus, not simply acknowledging that Jesus is the Lord. We were to follow him joyfully submitting our life to him and as the Lord as the foundation of our life, where our desire is to build everything about our life off of him, knowing that if Jesus is not our foundation, everything is going to be off, which in terms of the plains, well, as the sermon, the Mount, everything be off in the most tragic and terrifying ways. Without Jesus as the foundation of one’s life, we are set up for a great fall. Okay, so that is the introduction. Please look back with me at the text, starting in verse 33, where Jesus spoke to the congregation on the plane by giving them another parable or illustration to help them understand, like an important spiritual truth. So in the text, verse 43, Jesus says, for no good tree bears bad fruit. Nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit. For each tree is known by its fruit. I’ll just say pause here for a second. Clearly here in this parable illustration, Jesus is using trees as a metaphor to address one’s heart, which is the thing that Jesus is after. He wants our heart. He deserves our heart. So in this illustration, when our hearts are good in ways that they’re good before God, because God has birthed inside us a new heart, we’re in the grace of God, he takes out like a heart of stone, that actually we’re all born with a heart that’s like spiritually dead before God in sin, that by his grace he gives us a new birth, he puts in a new heart, a heart of flesh, which is a heart that now beats for God. A heart that knows God, or better said, is known by God as his own. Because a new heart, this heart of flesh, this very spirit dwells within. The very presence of God, fills that heart. So from that new heart that was graciously given to us by God, now good things come out of it. Not bad things, not bad fruit. But in the text, good things, good fruit, which are good things. Good fruit that honor God, that communicate worship towards God. They have a real love for God, a desire to bring glory to God. In the New Testament, these good things, or these good fruit that come out of a new heart, it’s often referred to as the fruit of the spirit. Good fruit, not bad fruit. So Galatians 5 says this. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self control. So in this sermon, Jesus, in this illustration on the positive, when the heart is good because of God, putting a new heart like a good tree, good fruit will come from us. As a good tree does not produce bad fruit, a new good heart will not be characterized by having bad fruit. However, then on the negative, the challenge of warning for those who do not have the spirit of God dwelling inside, where they have not experienced, like, this new birth, where they do not have a new heart, where they’re still spiritually dead in their sins, spiritually dead before God, where they have this, like, heart of stone. Scripture refers to a heart that does not beat for God, does not desire to bring him glory. In the text, like a bad tree, they will not produce good fruit, Meaning they will not live a life seeking to worship God, obey God, love God, bring glory to God. Rather, without a new birth, the spiritually dead heart will produce fruit, which the New Testament refers to as like the works of the flesh. So once again, Book of Galatians, now the works of the flesh are evident. Sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. None of these things are good fruit. None of these things bring honor and glory to God. No, just a few things before we keep moving on. First, I just want to address maybe a couple related questions you have here. And then after that, I want to just stress something essential for us to see and understand in this passage. So first question, potential questions you might have. Does this mean that if one is a Christian who has a new heart, does this mean that, like, bad or sinful things cannot come out of them, where they’ll never sin, never do anything wrong? The answer is life is unfortunately, bad things, sinful things, even for Christians, for disciples of Jesus, unfortunately, these still will happen. Or, unfortunately, we still will stumble and fall in many ways. And if one says that he’s, like, not a sinner, not capable of sinning, like Scripture tells, like, they’re a liar and the truth is not in them. So Jesus is getting here. It’s not that we’re going to be perfect where we only give good fruit, but what he is saying is, like, bad, sinful things, bad fruit. These things will not mark our lives. We’re not gonna just, like, give in to bad fruit without seeking to put them away through repentance and faith. Like, there’s gonna be evidence of our life of good fruit when we have a good heart, they’re gonna be present. There’s gonna be a desire A longing, a joy for obedience, that we live a life that bears fruit for our good God. And they say things will mark one’s life. Our life will be one that’s lived. They’re seeking to honor and worship God once again. Just to be clear, in this life, unfortunately, they can be done in imperfect ways as a wait for and long for the next life. In the next life, all these things will be done in perfect life, in perfect ways, where in the next life only good fruit will come as sin is fully removed from us. Let me mention the context of sermon. Some of the good fruit that is to mark those who are Christians who have a new heart, those who are trusting in him, I’m positive, will include things like storing up treasures in heaven. Just something Jesus talked about kind of throughout this sermon on plain. It’ll include like loving our enemies. It’s going to include good fruit of like not being judgmental and condemning or unforgiving towards other Christians. Our lives can be marked, like trying to do to others which we wish others would do to us. Likewise, a good tree, the life is gonna be characterized by not like having this bad fruit, like trying to pull the speck out of someone else’s eye when there’s a plank in your own eye. Instead, when there’s a good heart that God has graciously put in the fruit of our life that comes from knowing God will have like the fruit of generosity, the fruit of love and mercy towards other and word. And indeed so once again, not perfect in this life, but there should be a life that produces good fruit because of God’s work. Second potential question then, is Jesus teaching those who are not Christians who still have a heart of stone, who are dead in their sin. Is Jesus saying that they cannot do good things? And the answer is kind of a yes and no here. So certainly non Christians can do morally good things towards others where they can show, like, love and kindness, where, in a sense, you can do good things to benefit society. In fact, I’m sure we all know those who are not yet Christians, who are like some of the nicest and kindest people that we know, who have done good things that we have benefited from. However, that being said, non Christians who are spiritually dead before God, who still have a heart of stone, they cannot do good things in ways that, like honor God, that reflect the heart of worship towards God to produce good things that bring glory to God in the end. This is what Jesus is getting at here. Bad trees cannot bear good fruit in their lives in ways that honor and glorify God, which is what we’ve been designed to do. God created us to obey him, to enjoy him forever, to bear fruit with our lives. But because of sin is in all of us on our own, apart from the grace of God in our life, we can’t bear good fruit for God. Like we need a new heart in ways we’re going to live, ways that we have been designed to live. And third, I just want to stress here before I move on within this illustration that Jesus is using here, something he continues to really teach throughout his ministry, including this sermon on the plain. There’s really only two ways that one can live. Either you know God by having faith in God through the Lord Jesus Christ, or to keep saying it, you have a new heart given to you graciously by God, with the Spirit of God living inside, where you’re blessed in God, where God is the foundation of your life, where you’re bearing good fruit for Him. That’s one way. Or you don’t know God and you still have a heart that’s spiritually dead before God. Where in the sermon on the plain, you’re under his woes because he is not your foundation. Like there’s no sliding scale here. Either a good tree or a bad tree. Either you have a new heart or you have a heart of stone. Either you’re alive to God because of his grace and the new heart is given to you, or you’re still dead, dead in your sin before Him. Either Jesus is the foundation or he’s not. There’s only two ways to live, and this is true for all of us here this morning. Either we are in Christ or we are not. Either we are a good tree or we are a bad tree. Keep going. Verse 44. For each of these two tree options we see it’s known by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered from bushes, nor grapes picked up from like bramble bush. Those types of trees don’t produce those types of fruits. It’s not in their nature. They can’t do it. It’s impossible. Verse 45. The good person out of the good treasure of his heart, then produces good. Once again. With the Spirit living inside, one will produce good fruit. It will happen. In fact, it’s impossible for it not to happen. But the evil person is referring to any and all who do not have faith in God through Jesus Christ, who is still dead in trespasses and sin. The evil person out of the evil treasure produces evil. How can it not? It’s in its nature. It cannot produce that which is good to bring glory to God in the text. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks, meaning that which is at our core in our heart, it will come out of us like whatever is at the core of a tree, that fruit will come out. Which by the way is why our words are so telling. A New Testament book of James says if anyone thinks he’s religious but does not bridle his own tongue, but deceives his heart, this person’s religious religion is worthless. Keep going. Verse 46. We see it’s not just our words that are telling when it comes to what kind of tree we are or what kind of foundation we’re built upon. We also see our deeds or their lack thereof are also so telling Jesus to the congregation on the plane and to us here this morning. So why do you call me Lord? Lord? Which calling Jesus Lord, like those are the right words for our mouth to speak yet. And this is a pretty massive three letter word here. Yet you do not do what I tell you. Verse 47. Everyone who comes comes to me and hears my word and does them. I will show you what he’s like, which here Jesus give another illustration or parable to communicate his point. And this is something that James also communicates about works and obedience. There’s a natural outflowing when one has faith, outflowing from the heart, there will be works. This is what Jesus is about to get at in our text. Verse 48. So that person, the one who hears and obeys, he’s like a man building a house who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. Now just for some historical context here, just to understand what Jesus is getting at. So in this time period houses actually were pretty heavy. These are often rebuilt with like either like large stones or bricks. And often these heavy houses were built on a terrain that was like not most level. So this can be kind of a hilly region. And because of these factors, the overall weight of the home, the uneven terrain, if a house was built in haste without taking time to dig into the bedrock to secure the home, the house would be set up for a fall like crumbling under its own weight. So the better, the necessary thing to do, the better long term picture here to do the right thing is to dig deep into the ground. Even though it cost time money to set the foundation of the house on a rock, building a house on the rock would make the house so much more secure, particularly when the storms blew in which in the text. So when the flood waters rose, which actually Something could be pretty common in this region of the world. Times like heavy rains might pop up from time to time. And as these storms pop up, maybe flood waters would join them, causing a stream to come, like rushing against the house. And the house that’s built on the deep, secure foundation of the rock, as a stream came rushing against it, the text tells us it will not shake because this has been built well, safely secured and tethered to the rock. I remember in verse 49, if you want to take your eyes there, the warning. But the one who hears the words of Jesus, the words found in sacred Scripture, but does nothing with them, rather hears but rejects God’s word as if it has no bearing on your life. Particularly what it says about the salvation found in Jesus Christ. It takes that person is like a man who built a house without a foundation, having no real care, no real concern, no real thought on that which might come rather just kind of quickly throw up the house just to get back to the cares of the world for that person. When the flood waters came, causing a stream to form that came crashing against that type of house with no foundation, immediately the house will fall and the ruin of that house will be great, where that person will lose everything. I think the reality of losing everything certainly is true in this life, but I think more importantly is true of the life that is to come. For those who reject Christ, who do not build their life upon him as the foundation, they will be forever lost apart from Him. Which is why this Sermon on the Plane is a heavy but important sermon for us to hear. Perhaps that’s why Jesus ended this sermon as well the Sermon on the Mountain. The same way for us to hear this warning, knowing that he, like, came to seek and save those which are lost so that they would be found by him, so they would have their foundation built on him as the rock of our salvation through his death and resurrection from the dead. For us, that ends the sermon on the plane. However, before we end this sermon here, just a couple things I just want to do. So first, I specifically just want to give us some thoughts from our text today. And then I just want to kind of back up and give you some thoughts on the Sermon on the Plane as a whole that’s mentioned. We’ve been looking at the last number of weeks. So first, let’s just start with our text today. As I mentioned, again, not only ends the Sermon on the plane, but very similarly ends a Sermon on the mount in Matthew 5. And I do think it’s important to see like this is the conclusion that Jesus has, as he preached to the crowds around him. And so for us, I just have one kind of major point of application, which is this, as we end this sermon on the plane, is just to examine yourself to see if you’re in the faith. Okay, so New Testament says this in Second Corinthians, it says, examine yourself to see if you’re in the faith. Test yourself, which testing through what Scripture tells us, test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourself, that Jesus Christ is in you, unless indeed you fail to meet the test? I think that’s what the heart of Jesus is getting at in the passage today, that for the crowds around him, they were simply to assume that because they were in the vicinity of Jesus, because they were hearing his Word preached like they were good, rather as they heard the word of the Lord, they were adhered in ways that the word is to examine the fruit of their lives, to examine the foundation of their life, to see where it’s at. And for us, I think it’s important for us to do as well. I think it’s important for us to let this passage, like, examine our hearts, discern if our life is producing the fruit of the Spirit that comes from a new heart that is alive towards God. So again, discernment do we see the fruit of like, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self control coming out of our lives. Furthermore, as we discern our lives, let Scripture and examine our hearts to see what’s coming out of our mouth in the text, out of the abundance of the mouth, the heart speaks. And as we do this, not only to serve our words that we might say in church life, but also the words we might say outside of church life to see if they match up. Remember back to the story I gave a few weeks ago where my hypocrisy was exposed. For the most part, my words in church life were pretty good, but they were far different from the words I used in all the other areas of my life. So can I just ask, as you discern the words that come out of you, like what are the words not just in church life, but what are the words that you use throughout your life out of the abundance of your heart, your mouth speaks. But it’s not just the fruit of our words that we’re to discern and examine in the text. We also need to see the fruit of our deeds. Jesus told us verse 46, we can say, Lord, Lord, but if we do not do what he tells us, those words are in vain. The Fruit of our life ought to be one who hears the words of God and does them no, keeps us saying this once again in this life. We’re not going to be perfect in this, even with a new heart, with the Spirit of God living inside. But as we examine our hearts, as we examine our life, there should be fruit. We’re seeking to bring honor and glory to God with our words and our deeds. Likewise, we need to examine to see where the foundation of our life lies. Are we building our life off of Christ? Is Jesus the cornerstone? Or as we examine our lives, we recognize our life is actually not built upon Jesus, but we’re, like, seeking to build our life off of something else, which could be a host of different things, perhaps in themselves not bad, but they’re not Christ. If you’re unsure what foundation life is built upon, just ask. As hard things come your way, as storms of life beat against you like floodwaters, like, what happens? Where do you look? Where’s your hope? As the floods come, does it result in, like works of the flesh come, continuing to bubble out of you where you, like, run and indulge in various types of sinful behavior? Or as the floods come, do you see the fruit of the Spirit even into difficulty, do the flood waters lead you to Christ? You know, the great Charles Spurgeon said this. He said, I’ve learned to kiss the wave, the Rock of Ages. Ben’s gonna ask, does hard things come your way? Do they take you to Christ, the rock of ages, once again, not that we’re gonna be perfect in this life. The storms come. Even those who have the spirit living inside, who maybe are mature in their faith and this life are not gonna be perfect, which is why we still need Jesus. We’ll talk about that more in the end. But for this morning, as you can see the text, how this passage ends, let me just invite us once again examine ourselves to see whether we are in the faith, to let this text test ourselves so that we might realize that Jesus Christ is in us so we do not fail the test. The weight of this passage, of how this sermon ends is so important for us to feel. It’s not enough to just be in the crowd, to just hear the words of Jesus, brother, we must put our faith in him. He must be the foundation of our life. This is a test. This is an examination that we all must pass, because if not in the passage, there will be a fall and it will be great. This actually leads to the second thing I want to do before we close, but I just Want to leave us just two things from the Sermon on the Plain as a whole. So first, the sermon does help us see what it looks like to follow after Jesus as one of his disciples. So, meaning the Sermon on the Plain is not like primary sermon on how to become a Christian. Rather, this is primarily a sermon on what it looks like to live out the Christian faith in faithful ways which. Including things we just talked about, like the fruit of our life, where the fruit of our life is doing things like storing up treasures in heaven. We’re in the Sermon on the Plain. We’re, like, willing to suffer for our faith. That’s what it means to follow Christ. That should be a fruit of our life. Through fruit of our lives. If we’re gonna follow Jesus, should be loving enemies, loving fellow believers. If we’re gonna follow Jesus, we need to be merciful. We need to do others what we wish others would do to us, Right? These are all things that are meant to be a disciple of Jesus Christ, to follow after him in faithfulness and in joy. And for us, you know, one of our church pillars is to grow. We want to continue to grow in our faith, to bear more fruit for. And the Sermon on Plain is just so helpful for us on that end. So if you want to grow, let the Sermon on Plain be part of your guide and just ask the Lord to help you to be obedient to these good words of our Lord Jesus Christ. Particularly, I think, when it comes to wanting to do to others or doing to others that you wish others to do to you, which I kind of think is a summary statement of the entire first half of the Sermon of Jesus. So this week, at home, at school, at work, at church, with all the different interactions you’re having with others, if you’re this Christian, a disciple who’s seeking to grow all those interactions, do them in ways that you want others to do to you, especially if you were in their shoes, doing so in ways you remember how much the Lord Jesus has done for you and how loving and merciful he continues to be to all of his people. Which leads to the second thing I just want to leave us with as we close the Sermon on the Plain. The Sermon on the Plain does help us see how much we need Jesus, friends. We all need the Lord Jesus Christ. So for those of us here who recognize that you’re not, like, passing the test, as you recognize that your life doesn’t match up what it looks like to follow Jesus as disciple, you see no fruit, you know, the foundation of your life is actually not on Christ. Like you’re not passing the test. If that’s you friend, you just need to see how much you need Jesus. And not only that, let me give you some good news. The promise of Scripture is that if you call upon his name, that by faith you would turn to him, trust in him. That indeed you would trust that he came to die for you on a cross to take on the punishment of your sin, only to rise again on the third day. The promise that indeed he will save you, that you have a new heart, that the Spirit will live inside. From the end of the sermon on the plane. This call to examine oneself so that’s not there, to like, to cripple us in ways that we just get so introspective, like forever and ever. We’re crippled under the weight of our own sin and our own guilt and our own shame and our own shortcomings, where all we see is like ourselves, our own failures, rather the examination of self. We’ve examined ourselves in ways that we see our need for Jesus, in ways that we call upon him, knowing that as we call upon him by faith, he will hear us. Scripture is so clear. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Whoever believes in him would not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but through him the world might be saved. And friends, that’s the heart of this sermon as it ends. This is why Jesus ends this way, including the Sermon on the Mount, in the same way so that you would hear the Word, in ways that you would turn and trust in him. So that not only we see your sin, your shortcomings, but more importantly, that you would see the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the Savior of our sin. So this morning as we close the sermon, playing for those who are here, who are not in Christ, who sure may say Lord, Lord, but you know your actions do not match up. I just want to invite you to turn from sin and turn to Jesus, asking Him to be the foundation of your life once again. Trust him that he did die for you and that he did rise again from the dead, trusting that he is worthy of building your entire life upon, knowing that as you turn to him, you’ll be securely and forever his. So if you don’t pass the test, don’t leave here this morning just looking at self, like feeling doomed because you didn’t pass the test. Rather, leave here feeling forgiven, have hope and joy because you’re now looking to Jesus, who passed the test for us, who is loving, who is merciful, who is calling people to Himself, including perhaps you this morning. This morning, it’s not just those who are not yet Christians, who need Jesus, who need to set their eyes on him, to close the sermon plain. They should help all of us, including those who already are disciples, just see how much we still need Jesus and the power of the Spirit to empower us to live out as disciples. This call in this sermon is a heavy call to live in this way. And this is called we just cannot do on our own. So we need Jesus. We need his example on how to live this out. But Jesus perfectly lived out the call in this sermon, including how he loved his enemies in ways that he died for sinners like you and me, including how he loves his people, his church, how merciful and generous he is towards us, including the example how his life is forever and always one that only bears fruit, good fruit for God. But not only do we need this example, we also, as mentioned, we need his power. If we can live this out. So Scripture tells, like he’s the vine and we’re simply branches and apart from him, we can do no good thing. It’s only in him by which we can bear much fruit. So even if you are a Christian, maybe you’ve been a Christian for a long time, you still need Jesus and you still need to continue to set your eyes on him, and you still need his love and his mercy. And this morning, if you know the areas of life where you’re not bearing fruit, where you’re. Perhaps you’re doing things on your own in ways that do not reflect Christ being your cornerstone. I also just want to invite you to turn to him as well, to confess and forsake your sin, to trust in him, knowing that he does forgive, that he is merciful, that he is loving, that as you turn to him, you will bear good fruit. So back to the story that I started out this time with. So as my boss realized that the foundation was off, he did the only thing that he could do. I mean, he didn’t keep trying to build a house, simply saying, well, we’re only off, like maybe a foot or two. So that’s pretty close. Let’s just keep going and I’m sure it will kind of work out close enough. Instead, he humbled himself. He admitted that he was wrong. He recognized he was just too hasty as he laid out the foundation through which we were to build off, and we stopped doing everything in order for him. To make a change, to like, reset the foundation to what it was designed to be. Friends, may that be true of all of us here today that we would not seek to live out our life with a faulty, wrong foundation. Rather, where we’re off, just humble ourselves by the grace of God. Make a change. Reset the foundation of your life on the Lord Jesus Christ, that you might live for him, that you might bear good fruit for him. I should say it again, that is our design. Knowing that as we live our life on the foundation that is Jesus, the rock of our salvation, we are eternally and fully secure, no matter what storms may come our way. Let’s pray. But thank you for Jesus and Lord, I do pray that by your grace and by the power of your Holy Spirit, that indeed all of us here today would have Jesus as the great foundation of our life. And Lord, we do want to bear good fruit for you. So please help us to abide in you. And Lord, I pray specifically for those here today who struggle to know if they are passing the test. And Lord, please help them to put their eyes in Jesus and to trust in him above all things. Pray that you might give them deep assurance because of the promises that you’ve given to us. Pray this on Jesus name. Amen. The post Examine Your Fruit and Foundation – Luke 6:43-49 appeared first on Red Village Church.

Remember God loves you so much he sent his Son Jesus Christ to take the punishment for your sins. You are of great value. Jesus loves you and He is just a prayer away! 

Saturday, 21 February 2026   But Jesus came and touched them and said, “Arise, and do not be afraid.” Matthew 17:7   “And He came, Jesus. He touched them, and He said, ‘You rouse, and you fear not'” (CG).   In the previous verse, after hearing the voice from heaven, the disciples fell on their faces and were greatly afraid. Matthew next records, “And He came, Jesus. He touched them.”   This is something seen elsewhere, in both testaments. When a person is presented with the presence of deity, it so overwhelms him that he falls to the ground in a stupor. But then, a comforting hand is presented to him –   “And I, Daniel, alone saw the vision, for the men who were with me did not see the vision; but a great terror fell upon them, so that they fled to hide themselves. 8 Therefore I was left alone when I saw this great vision, and no strength remained in me; for my vigor was turned to frailty in me, and I retained no strength. 9 Yet I heard the sound of his words; and while I heard the sound of his words I was in a deep sleep on my face, with my face to the ground. 10 Suddenly, a hand touched me, which made me tremble on my knees and on the palms of my hands. 11 And he said to me, ‘O Daniel, man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak to you, and stand upright, for I have now been sent to you.' While he was speaking this word to me, I stood trembling.” Daniel 10:7-11   “When I turned to see the voice that spoke with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands, 13 and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band. 14 His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and His eyes like a flame of fire; 15 His feet were like fine brass, as if refined in a furnace, and His voice as the sound of many waters; 16 He had in His right hand seven stars, out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and His countenance was like the sun shining in its strength. 17 And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, ‘Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last. 18 I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death.'” Revelation 1:12-18   Along with touching them, it says, “and He said, ‘You rouse, and you fear not.'”   The words of Jesus and the familiarity of His voice would have brought them to their senses and let them know that, despite the terror the manifestation of the voice brought, they were safe in His presence.   Life application: The lesson for the disciples is the same as the lesson for us today. Though humans throughout the world and in an almost unlimited number of religions constantly talk about God in their regular conversation, there is no fist-bumping fellowship between the two.   Rather, the perfections of God in contrast to the imperfections found in man mean that we should rather be terrified of encountering Him on our own merits. It cannot be known how the voice from the Father occurred, but it struck terror in the hearts and minds of the disciples.   It is the same reaction as occurred at Mount Sinai when Israel heard the words of the Lord God when the Ten Commandments were spoken. At that time, their response to Moses was, “You speak with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die.”   Jesus is there to mediate between His Father and us. It is His perfection that allows this. Without that, there would only be horror at the majesty of God in relation to our own infinitely fallen state.   It is Jesus who restores harmony between the two. It cannot come about through Muhammad, Buddha, Krishna, Mary, or any other person or figure who is prayed to by the deceived people of the world. Without Jesus, there is only the expectation of judgment and condemnation. Thank God for Jesus Christ, who makes our restoration with God possible.   Lord God, how grateful we are for the giving of Your Son to bring us back to You. We praise You, and we will praise You forever and ever because of Him. Thank You for Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

In Today's Secular Uncertainties, God is Sovereign; and God “the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he {God} will” MESSAGE SUMMARY: Political discord and health care uncertainties surround us in all directions today. Without Jesus in our lives, we have reasons to be anxious and fearful. However, Jesus tells us in Matthew 6:31: “Therefore, do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself.”. The future years may hurt our pride, wallets, and/or our freedom. On the other hand, we should not let the current secular political environment and culture hinder our resolve to continue in our fearless faith in the truth; our constant hope in the future; and our radical love for our neighbors. God has a plan; and, regardless of how things look from our eyes, we must remain faithful to His purpose. Now is the time to draw near to Jesus and to advance His Kingdom. Our gaze must remain on Jesus if we want to walk on the water during the storm. God is the King of Kings and the Sovereign God of the Universe. As Daniel interpreted King Nebuchadnezzar's dream in Daniel 4:17 when God told Nebuchadnezzar: “to the end that the living may know that the Most High {God} rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he {God} will and sets over it the lowliest of men.”. God is always involved in our lives, and He gives the government offices “to whom he will”, even if the political processes produce “the lowliest of men {or women}”. Sometimes, we receive the elected officials we need, and sometimes we receive the elected officials that we deserve; but God is always Sovereign and faithful.   TODAY'S PRAYER: Father, I confess that when difficulties and trials come into my life, large or small, I mostly grumble and complain. I realize the trials James talks about are not necessarily “walls,” but they are difficult to bear, nonetheless. Fill me with such a vision of a transformed life, O God, that I might actually consider it “pure joy” when you bring trials my way. I believe, Lord. Help my unbelief. In Jesus' name, amen. Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 94). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that, because I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be a complainer (Philippians 2:14). “I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.”. (Philippians 4:14). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Matthew 6:31; Philippians 4:5-7; Daniel 4:17; Psalms 106c:25-36. A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY'S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach's Current Sunday Sermon: “Essentials Part 2 – More than Just a Man”, at our Website: https://awordfromthelord.org/listen/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

We all by nature are children under wrath but the coming of Jesus is the good news that we need. Are you in or out?

Welcome to Christmas at Pursuit 2025. We pray God uses this message in your life today, to encourage you and grow your relationship with Him!Pursuit Church on Social Media:facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PursuitChurchDenver/?ref=bookmarksinstagram: https://www.instagram.com/pursuit_church/Pursuit Worship on Social Media:Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Pursuit-Worship-671274439695803/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pursuit.worship/

Introduction: I Want to Belong to Jesus… (John 1:4–13) Because He gives me an UNBEATABLE HOPE. (John 1:4–5) Because He gives me a MEANINGFUL MISSION. (John 1:6–8) Isaiah 40:3 – A voice cries: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God.” John 3:30 – He must increase, but I must decrease. Because He gives me a SPOT IN HIS FAMILY THAT I CANNOT EARN. (John 1:9–13) John 3:19–20 – And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. Sermon Notes (PDF): BLANKHint: Highlight blanks above for answers! Small Group DiscussionRead John 1:4-13What was your big take-away from this passage / message?Who or what do you often set your hopes on? Why can't these people and things satisfy you as Jesus can?What excuses are holding you back from bearing witness to the light? How will you bear witness to the light this week and next?How does Jesus give us the right to become children of God? Why can't this right be deserved or earned?BreakoutPray for one another. AUDIO TRANSCRIPT Well, as you turn to John chapter one, I want to ask you the same exact question that youjust heard in the video.I want to ask you a question that Pastor Jeff brought to your attention last week in hismessage.It's probably a question that you're tired of hearing and asking this holiday season.What do you want for Christmas?With Christmas being so close, you have asked and heard the answer to that question manytimes over the past several weeks.The questions you've, the answers you've heard and the answers you've given include an O'Wallahwater bottle.Isn't that popular?That's still popular.I don't really know.A red light therapy mask.Anybody want that?That's popular on Instagram, isn't it?A massive Lego set, a Nintendo switch to new AirPods, a smart ring, which I guess is kindof like an Apple Watch, but a ring on your finger.I don't really know.Or fancy golf clubs.But there are many things that you want for Christmas that you cannot write down on a wishlist.There are many things you want for Christmas that cannot be bought or wrapped.Maybe you want that big promotion.Maybe you want that bonus this year that you aren't sure is coming.Maybe you want healing in your own body or in the body of a loved one.Or here's a big one.Maybe you want to feel like you belong.You want to not be rejected.That is a desire that every single person in this room shares.It's a desire that starts when you're young and it continues on for the rest of your life.As a kid and then a teenager, every single one of us was desperate to fit in and havea group of friends to belong to.Rejection is painful.It leaves lasting memories, especially when you're a kid.You know, growing up, my friends and I used to have a sleepover almost every single Fridaynight.And during 11th grade, there was a month-long stretch where there was no sleepovers.And I was really confused.I didn't know why this routine had been broken.So one day at the lunch table, I said to my friends, "Hey, guys, we haven't had a sleepoverin a while.Do you guys want to come to my house this Sunday?"And whenever I said that, everyone at the table erupted in uncontrollable laughter.And I was, again, just very, very confused.After they were all done and calmed down, I said, "What's so funny?"They then proceeded to tell me that they thought it would be hilarious to not invite me tosleepovers for a while to see how long it would take me to notice and say something.I missed a whole month of sleepovers with my friends.And to be honest, in that moment, externally, I tried to laugh it off.I tried to act like it wasn't a big deal.But internally, I felt rejected.I felt like I didn't belong.You ever felt that way before?A friend stopped talking to you.A family member cut off communication for seemingly no reason.A boyfriend or girlfriend ended the relationship without warning.Your spouse chose to give up on the marriage and leave.You have felt rejected before.You have felt like you don't belong.You feel that way right now?Maybe you couldn't care less about what gifts you're going to get under the Christmas treethis year.Maybe you don't want anything from Amazon or the mall.More than anything this year, you just want to experience that sense of belonging.You want to know that there are people who love you, who care about you, and will neverlet go of you no matter what you do.I can't guarantee you that sense of belonging with your family and with your friends thisChristmas.I wish I could, but I can't.But I can guarantee there is someone infinitely greater who will give you that sense of belonging.I can guarantee there is someone who will not reject you, who will not turn away fromyou if you truly turn to him.That person is Jesus Christ.There is no one better to belong to.There is no one better to be loved by.There is no one with a tighter grip in all of existence than him.I want you to walk out of this service this morning if you're a believer with a greatersense of confidence that you were loved by Jesus Christ.That you are safe and secure in his steady hands.There is no better gift than that.And if you're not a Christian this morning, I want you to know that the invitation hasbeen extended to belong to Christ.He commands you to follow him.He invites you to enjoy his acceptance and not fear others' rejection.More than anything, I want all of you in this room to want to belong to Jesus this Christmas.So before we continue any further, let's go to the Lord and ask for His help.Please pray for me that I will faithfully represent God's Word and I will pray for youthat you will faithfully receive it.Father, we come to you and we bring all of our pain to you.All of our fears are all of our deepest, darkest worries that we're afraid to admit to otherpeople.Lord in this room, I'm sure there's many, many stories of rejection.Many, many stories of feeling like we don't belong and I'm sure if we brought everybodyup on stage to share how they feel that there wouldn't be a dry eye in the house today.Lord, we ask that you bring the comfort that only you can.That you would challenge us, you would tear us down so that you can build us back up again.Lord, I do ask for myself, Lord, your Word is perfect, but I am not.I do not feel up to the task of proclaiming such a glorious passage, but Lord, give meyour strength, give me your wisdom.I pray for everyone in this room that you would give them the faith to receive your Wordtoday.I pray that you would seek and save the lost.Thanks for the rest of us, Lord.We would walk out of this room with a greater sense of confidence in who we belong to.We ask all this in Jesus' mighty name.Amen.Was a quick refresher.Let's reread the verses that Pastor Jeff covered last week.This will set the table and help us to understand the context of our passage this morning.So John chapter one, verses one through three.In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.He was in the beginning with God.All things were made through Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made.These verses are all about who Jesus is.He is the Word of God who created all things.Without Jesus, this universe would not exist.This world would not exist.You would not exist.Jesus is the source and sustainer of everything that you can see and everything that you cannotsee.Jesus isn't just the Word of God.John says that He is God Himself.Verses one through three focus on who Jesus is, while verses four through thirteen focuson what Jesus gives.If you properly understand who Jesus is and what Jesus gives, you will want to belongto Him.You will want to belong to Him because no one can compare to who Jesus is, and nothingcan compare to what Jesus gives.So outline for this morning, I want to belong to Jesus.I want to belong to Jesus, first reason, because He gives me an unbeatable hope.Because He gives me an unbeatable hope.Let's read chapter one, verse four.In Him, in Jesus was life, and the life was the light of men.Life was and is found in Jesus and Him alone.As we already discussed, Jesus made all things.He is the source of all life on earth.He is the cause of everything.But He's not just the cause of physical life.He is the only supplier of eternal life as well.There is no other viable option to turn to or to search for besides Jesus.But that doesn't stop us from trying, does it?Millions have tried, and billions have failed in trying to find true life apart from Jesus.And you and I have tried our hand at this pointless search as well.Trying to find life in our jobs, in our finances, in our status, our stuff, and even our families.Life cannot be found in your job.You realize that one day you will have to retire.You may let go from that job.One day that job will belong to someone else.Your life is not found in how much money you have.Let me ask you a question.How much of the money in your various accounts will you be able to take with you when youdie?Do we not know the answer?Not a single dime.Life is not found in your status and popularity.There will always be someone bigger and better than you.In 150 or 200 years, how many people on this planet will be thinking about you?The most likely answer is not a single soul.Life is not even found in your family.As great as your spouse, your kids, your relatives might be, they cannot meet the deepest needsof your soul.Can your spouse forgive you of your sins?Can your kids give you that unbeatable hope that you're looking for?No.Can your family guarantee your eternity?No.All of those needs can only be met by Jesus Christ, who is the only source of life.And John goes on to say that this life was the light of men.That sounds pretty cool, right?But what does that actually mean?The life was the light of men.I'm no scientist, but let me give you a quick pop quiz in astronomy.What do all the plants in this solar system orbit around?You're all really tired this morning.What is it again?All right, very, very good.Could we survive without the sun?What does the sun do for us?Is the major source of life because it is the major source of light and heat on thisplanet without the sun shining as it does, we would all freeze to death without the sunshining as it does.We would not be able to see anything.We would be lost in the darkness without the light of Christ shining as it does.We would not be able to see and understand the truth without the light of Christ shiningas it does.We would not know how to be saved.We would not know how to have a relationship, a friendship with God without the light ofChrist shining as it does.We would be hopeless and lost in the darkness of our sin without the light of Christ shiningas it does.None of us would have any spiritual life.Who is the light of the sun offered to?The 8.3 billion people on this planet.Who is the light of the sun of God offered to?Same exact answer, the 8.3 billion people on this planet.As we'll see in a few minutes, many choose to hide from this light and by doing so, theymiss out on the life that he offers.But that does not stop Jesus from shining his light, which we see in verse 5.Read that with me."The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it."The word "overcome" in this verse can also be translated as "comprehended" or "understood."And many scholars believe that John picked this word for a very specific reason.He chose this word because it has a double meaning.Each of these words makes sense in context or flip sides of one another.Let's cover one side of the coin first.Let's cover the light, shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.I walk my dog Murdoch almost every single night at 10 p.m. after the family is asleep.And my wife hates this plan because she thinks I'm going to get pan-kicked by a car.It hasn't happened yet, so please just pray for me that this trend continues and I'm ableto be safe.But there is this one house in my neighborhood that fascinates me.This house has a lamppost in the front yard that shines brightly for about 10 to 20 seconds,then it just shuts off.And it comes back on a few seconds later and it happens every single night for the pastyear.And this may sound strange to you, but I think about that lamppost almost every single day.Every single time I exit the house to go take Murdoch on this walk, I wonder, is tonightgoing to be the night when that light is extinguished?Is tonight the night when darkness will overcome that person's yard?Because there's something wrong with that lamppost.There's something wrong with the bulb.There's something wrong with the wiring.It's just a matter of time.I don't have much faith in that lamppost.I don't think you would have much faith in that lamppost if you took a field trip tomy neighborhood and drove past it.But do you know who you should have total and complete faith in?Do you know whose light you should never wonder or worry about being extinguished?Jesus Christ.The light of His glory never flickers.The light of His gracious love never turns off.He is the same yesterday, today, and forever.No matter how dark this world gets, no matter how bleak your life looks, Jesus Christ isshining just as brightly as He always has.Sin, injustice, and evil cannot lower the intensity of who He is and what He has done.Nothing and no one can turn the dimmer switch down on the light of the world.Let's flip over to the other side of the coin.The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not understood it.You know, Satan and his demons are crafty.I'll give them that.They are intelligent.But at the same time, these evil forces are complete morons in comparison to the all-knowingall-wise God of the universe.The devil and his demons are fighting a losing battle because they cannot figure out a wayto extinguish the light of Christ.They're like a bunch of roided-up bodybuilders trying to push over a mountain with theirbare hands.It's just not going to happen.Their attempts to snuff out the light only fan it into flame even more.The harder they try, the harder they fail.No matter what they do, Jesus keeps forgiving more and more people.No matter what they try, the church keeps getting built up.No matter what scheme they hatch, the kingdom of God keeps advancing.Satan and his workers have already been defeated by the life, death, and resurrection of Christ.They know that eternal judgment awaits them.Are they going to go quietly without a fight until Jesus returns?No, they are kicking and screaming like bratty children.And I know that they're kicking and screaming causes a lot of pain and hardship to everysingle person in this room.But they cannot change the ending that God has already written.The light will win because the darkness cannot overcome it or understand it.That is certain.That is a fact.Maybe you've been a believer for months, for years, and maybe even for decades.And you know the truths of verses four and five intellectually.You have a very hard time believing these truths emotionally and experientially.You're in a tough season right now and you feel like the darkness is winning.You feel like the light is losing.You feel like the darkness understands how to overcome the light just fine.You feel like you cannot have victory over that sin pattern in your life.You feel like there is more sin in you than there is mercy in Christ.You feel helpless.You feel hopeless.If that's how you feel right now, my heart goes out to you because I've been there before.And I'm sure I'll be there again.If that's how you feel, I want to challenge you to stop looking at you.Stop looking at your circumstances.Fix your eyes on Jesus.Focus your attention on what He has given to you.Root your confidence in the new and everlasting life that has been given to you.Ask the Holy Spirit to re-energize you with the light you see when you open up the pagesof this book during your daily quiet time.You understand your hope is not found in you.You understand that your hope is not even found in your circumstances changing.Your hope is found in belonging to Christ.When you belong to Christ, you are given an unbeatable hope from an unbeatable Savior.I want to belong to Jesus because He gives me an unbeatable hope.I want to belong to Jesus because He gives me a meaningful mission.That's the second reason on your outline, because He gives me a meaningful mission.In verses 4 through 5, John talks about the message of the light.In verses 6 through 8, John talks about the messenger of the light.Let's read these verses together.There is a man sent from God whose name was John.He came as a witness to bear witness about the light that all might believe through Him.He was not the light that came to bear witness about the light.To be clear, John is referencing a totally different John here.It's kind of confusing.What John is he talking about?John the Baptist.Why couldn't they have had a different name?Why couldn't it have been like Bill the Baptist or Baron the Baptist or whatever?Why did it have to be John?Well, don't worry.We'll make it work.We'll deal with it.John the Baptist was sent by God as a messenger to prepare the way for the promised Messiahand Savior who was prophesied about all throughout the Old Testament.John was prophesied of in the Old Testament as well.Isaiah 40 verse 3, "A voice cries in the wilderness, 'Prepare the way of the Lord,make straight in the desert a highway for our God.'Malachi 3, 1, 'Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me.'"John the Baptist came to roll out the red carpet for the coming king.He didn't come so that others would believe in him and believe in his greatness.He came so that others might believe in Christ through him.John the Baptist's followers once came to him to give him the news that a lot of peoplewere following Jesus.He was getting more popular and his disciples were even baptizing people, which is kindof like John's main thing.It's his name, right?John the Baptist.Like, John, don't you realize that all this is happening?Jesus is getting more popular than you.Is this frustrate John?Was he jealous?Not at all.He was actually really, really excited because he was successfully carrying out the meaningfulmission that God had entrusted to him.Here's the response he gives his disciples.He says, "He, Jesus, must increase, but I must decrease."That was the slogan of John's life in ministry.That should be the slogan of your life in ministry as well.He must increase, but I must decrease.You realize you're not the point of anything.Jesus is.John the Baptist wasn't the point of anything either.Jesus was.His mission was to point everyone to Christ, to bear witness to his light.I know what some of you serious students of the Bible may be thinking right now.You're internally objecting a bit.Hold on a minute, Pastor Taylor.You're saying that Jesus is the light and John the Baptist wasn't.But later on in this gospel, didn't Jesus say that John was like a lamp that was shining?And doesn't Jesus tell us that all Christians are the light of the world?How does this all make sense?Yeah, Jesus does say that in Matthew 5, 14, and then John 5, 35.To help answer those great questions, let me slip on my lab coat again and give you anotherpop quiz in astronomy.When you look up in the night sky and you see the moon shining bright.Does that moon actually have any light of its own?Where does its light come from?The sun, the light of the moon is shared and reflected.It's the same for John and it's the same for you and me.We have a shared and reflected light that is given to us by Jesus Christ.All throughout John chapter one, verses four through 13, the Greek word "phos" is usedin reference to Christ and "phos" is the essence of light.In John 5, 35, the Greek word "looknos" is used to describe John.A looknos is a portable lamp.Jesus is the light while John is the lamp that displays the light.A candle cannot shine on its own.It needs to be given the light of a flame.A lamp in your house cannot shine on its own.It needs to be given the light of a bulb.Jesus Christ is the sun and you are the moon.Jesus Christ is the flame, you are the candle.Jesus Christ is the bulb and you are the lamp.You are here on this earth to display His light to everyone, to shine His light in thedarkness, to bear witness about His light because you have none of your own.And I know what some of you were thinking at this point.Okay, Taylor, I know I need to buckle down and share the gospel.I need to make disciples.I need to shine His light everywhere.I'll do that as soon as the holidays are over.Whatever Christmas is in the rear view mirror, I'll get right on that.No, you won't.And you're thinking, where is your Christmas cheer, Pastor Taylor?What do you mean, no, I won't.I mean, you won't.If you will not bear witness the light of Christ today, what makes you think you'lldo it tomorrow?If you were unwilling to bear witness the light of Christ at the end of 2025, what makesyou think you'll be willing to do it at the start of 2026?Do you understand that Christmas is the perfect time to bear witness to the light of Christ?This is the time when you're around people, you're not usually around.This time of season is all about joy, but most people are miserable.Most people are looking for something that they cannot find because they're looking inthe wrong place.Right now is the perfect time to bear witness to the light.Grab a bunch of the Christmas Eve invite cards at the back table and hand them out as ifyou were given $100 for each one you handed out.I'm not going to give you $100, but the rewards you get in heaven for that will be infinitelygreater.Grab one of those invites, put it in an envelope, put money in that envelope, put a personalnote in that envelope and give it to your mailman tomorrow.Take it upon yourself to read scripture, your family get together this week and talk aboutwhy you're even celebrating Christmas, why Jesus came in the first place.Stop putting off that gospel conversation with that unsafe family member at Christmas.Finally do it.Invite that unbeliever who has no family in the area to your Christmas dinner.Buy them a Bible.Write a note in that Bible and give it to them.I keep going and going and going.There are so many ways to bear witness to the light of Christ this week.Don't make excuses for why you can't.Don't point to your calendar and say you're too busy.This is the reason why you're here, isn't it?To bear witness to the light.If anything, there's other things getting the way of the most important thing on your calendar.Don't justify your fear and laziness by saying you don't want to stir the pot this Christmas.You just want to have a calm Christmas.Shouldn't you care more about sharing the peace of Christ with your family and friends?When you belong to Christ, you recognize that you've been given a meaningful mission.When you belong to Christ, you value your calling way more than your comfort.When you belong to Christ, you make disciples, you don't make excuses.When you belong to Christ, you bear witness to his light because the darkness is everywherethat you go.I want to belong to Jesus because he gives me an unbeatable hope.I want to belong to Jesus because he gives me a meaningful mission.I want to belong to Jesus, final reason, because he gives me a spot in his family that I cannotearn.Because he gives me a spot in his family that I cannot earn.We talked about the message of the light and the messenger of the light.Now we're going to wrap up by talking about the two responses to the message of the light.The first response is in verses 9 through 11.The true light which gives light to everyone was coming into the world.He was in the world and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him.He came to his own and his own people did not receive him.As I said earlier, the light of the Son of God is offered to everyone.Anyone is welcome to step into the light.Anyone is welcome to receive the life of Christ and be forever changed.But most choose to step out of the light rather than do it.Most choose to reject the life of Christ that is offered.And this is proven by verse 11.He came to his own people and his own people did not receive him.And this verse has two different focuses.When you zoom out, John is talking about mankind.Statistically and biblically, there are way more non-Christians than Christians.There are way more people who reject Christ than receive him.We all agree on that basic fact of life.But if you zoom in, John is talking about Israel.Many of Jesus' fellow Jews rejected him, hated him, called for his crucifixion.Many of the Jews rejected the message of Christ when it was shared by the apostles.Even to this day, many Jewish people refuse to accept that Jesus is the light.That's not always going to be the case.All does say in Romans that one day all Israel will be saved.Do you have time to talk about that right now?As Pastor Jeff often says, "Buy me some Pantera bread or Chick-fil-A."We'll talk about it across the street sometime.Here's an important question.Why do most people reject Jesus?Why do most people not receive the light of Christ?John gives us a very simple yet sad answer.Later on in this Gospel in chapter 3 verses 19 through 20, he writes, "And this is thejudgment.The light is coming to the world, and people love the darkness rather than the light, becausetheir works were evil.For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light,lest his works should be exposed."Have you ever been sleeping or laying in a dark room and suddenly someone turns thelights on?Are you overjoyed by this?Are you really excited by this?What's your natural human response?What do you do?You close your eyes, you cover your face with your hands and your blanket, you yell, "Turnthat light out!"That is the natural human response, physically and spiritually.It is far more comfortable to lay in the darkness than be in the light.It's simpler to be oblivious and not see yourself for who you really are.It's effortless to do nothing about your greatest problem, which is your sinful nature.It's easy to lash out at those who try to pull you into the light.That is why most people do not receive Jesus.They'd rather lay in the darkness.They love their sin more than Him.That's the first response to the message of the light.John says there's only one other response, and that's in verses 12 to 13, the best partof this entire passage.But to all who did receive Him, who believed in His name, He gave the right to become childrenof God, who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will ofman, but of God.The first and wrong way to respond to Jesus is rejection.The second and right way to respond to Jesus is receiving and believing.You reach out to receive the gift of eternal life by believing in the name of Jesus Christ.We say that all the time, but what does it mean to believe in the name of Jesus?Well a name represents all of who a person is and all that a person does.When you believe in the name of Jesus Christ, you are believing that He is who the Biblesays that He is.That He has done all the Bible says He has done.You wholeheartedly believe that He is the Word of God who created all things.You have faith that He is the light of the world.He is your only source of hope.You trust that He is the Savior who died on the cross for your sins, who took the punishmentthat you deserve.You submit to the reality that He is the Lord of your life, who has the divine right totell you what to think, say, and do.When you receive Jesus and believe in His name, John says that you are given the rightto become a child of God.There are only two children in this entire world who have the right to claim that theyare my kids.I love all the kids in this church, but I love two of those kids the most.Only two of those kids have a legal right to say that I am their father.Only Samuel and Emmy Brown have that legal right.What's the evidence of this?Well, Kate and I have their birth certificates at home as proof that those kids belong tous.When you belong to Christ, your spiritual birth certificate is signed and sealed by His ownblood.You are given the right to claim God as your father and Jesus as your big brother.You have given the right to declare that you belong to the greatest family imaginable.Can you earn this right?Can you work your way into the family of God?Not according to John at the end of verse 13, he says, "Who were born not of blood northe will of flesh, nor the will of man, but of God."You are not given the right to become a child of God because you're a good person who doesnice things for other people.You are not given the right to become a child of God because your parents are great Christiansand raised you in the church.You are not given the right to become a child of God because you come to church every oncein a while.You pray regularly and do community service projects.You are not given the right to become a child of God because of your track record and yourgood works.You are given the right to become a child of God because of the gracious work of God inChrist.That's it.That's the only source.How do you respond to Jesus?Do you reject Him or do you receive Him?Do you believe in His name, His work, and His reputation, or do you believe in your name,your works, and your reputation?One response leads to eternal destruction while the other leads to eternal life.One response leads to everything being taken away from you and the other leads to everythingbeing given to you.Please don't leave this room without considering who Jesus is and what He is offering you.Everything hinges on your response to Him.What do you want for Christmas?Do you want to belong to the world or do you want to belong to Jesus?Do you want to settle for the flickering hopes of this sinful culture or do you want theunbeatable hope of an unbeatable Savior?Do you want to lead a meaningless existence or do you want to carry out the meaningfulmission of pointing others to the point of life?Do you want to be a child of the devil who absolutely hates you or do you want to bea child of God who unconditionally loves you?If you have not yet believed and received Jesus, now is your chance.Now is your opportunity.You don't know if you're getting another opportunity past this one, so don't waste it.The life of Christ is being offered to you right now.Don't slap the gift away.The light of Christ is shining in this moment.Do not step back into the darkness once again.Now is your time.Now is your chance.You're alive right now.You're not guaranteed tomorrow.Life is hard.Discouragements and disappointments are all around us.It's so easy to lose track of what's important in the darkness.And we need the light of biblical reminders to let us know what is true, what is real,and what is right.This ring I wear on my left hand is a symbol that I belong to my wife.I'm taken.I'm out looking for anybody else to give me that feeling right to belong to.The Lord's Supper is a powerful symbol that you belong to Christ and no one else.You're spoken for by the Son of God and you're not looking for anyone else to give your life meaning.You're not looking to anything else to give your life meaning.

Have you ever wondered what the world would be like if Christmas never happened? The Bible, God's book of truth, says in Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin [that means the results of our sin] is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.” Without Jesus' birth, there would be no forgiveness, no free gift, no eternal life. But God was not willing to leave us in that state. On the first Christmas, He entered into the world He made. And He came to us as a baby. Jesus, God in human form, was really born—so that we could really be saved. This year, don't miss the reason that it all matters. You can pray, “Jesus, thank You for being born to save me. Forgive me for all my wrongs. Amen.” Always remember, there is hope with God. radio.hopewithgod.com

This weekend we come to the last Sunday in Advent, which is a time of reflection on our sin and our need for a Savior. Just as John the Baptist prepared the way for the Savior through a preaching of "repentance for the remission of sins" (Luke 3:4), so we also prepare through repentance over our sin. In the hymn "Ye Sons of Men, Oh, Hearken" we are reminded of the need for sinners to receive forgiveness through the work of Jesus. Without Jesus there can be no forgiveness, no hope of eternal life. God desires the salvation of every sinner, which is why He planned salvation through the incarnation and death of His own Son. He also sends His Spirit to work in our hearts to prepare us for receiving that gift, through true understanding of our sin, sorrow over it, and faith in Jesus' work for us. Through His Law and Gospel, this important work of preparation is carried out. "God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble" (1 Peter 5:6). With Valentinus Thilo, we join in praying: "Prepare my heart, Lord Jesus, Turn not from me aside,  And grant that I receive Thee This blessed Advent-tide. From stall and manger low Come Thou to dwell within me; Loud praises will I sing Thee And forth Thy glory show." May the LORD prepare each of us through true repentance and faith in Jesus during this Advent season and always, and enable us to thank Him through the loud praises we offer Him in our worship and with our lives!

without Jesus life is empty

God promised to give peace through the coming of his Son. Without Jesus, true peace - peace that lasts and is present despite of trouble - is impossible. What're you waiting for? Find peace with Jesus, the promised and risen Son.

The post “My friend says he’s going to live forever without Jesus. What do I say?” appeared first on Key Life.

“A good life must have God in it, for me. Without Jesus in my life, I wouldn't be living a good life.”In this special edition of The Providend Conversation: Living the Good Life, we are delighted to be joined by Mr Philip Ng, who reflects on his personal journey, his values, and how he leads his firm with a servant-leader mindset, guided by his faith.Mr Philip Ng is the CEO of the private real estate firm Far East Organization. He is the son of the late Mr Ng Teng Fong, who founded Far East Organization in 1960. Through his personal stories and professional journey, Philip illustrates how faith, values, and purposeful leadership can guide both life and business decisions.It has been a privilege to speak with Philip, and we hope you find his reflections as inspiring and thought-provoking as we did.Music courtesy of ItsWatR.The host of this episode, Christopher Tan, is Chief Executive Officer of Providend, Singapore's first fee-only wealth advisory firm and author of the book “Money Wisdom: Simple Truths for Financial Wellness”.The full list of Providend's Money Wisdom podcast episodes from Season 4 can be found here.Did you know that our Providend's Money Wisdom podcast is now available in video format on YouTube? Follow us on our YouTube channel for new episode on Thursday at 8pm.

This weekend we are entering a new church year with the season of Advent. Advent means "coming" and is a season of preparation for the celebration of the coming Savior at Christmas. It is also a time of reflection and repentance. Just as John the Baptist prepared the way for the Savior through a preaching of "repentance for the remission of sins" (Luke 3:4), so we also prepare through repentance over our sin. In the hymn "Ye Sons of Men, Oh, Hearken" we are reminded of the need for sinners to receive forgiveness through the work of Jesus. Without Jesus there can be no forgiveness, no hope of eternal life. God desires the salvation of every sinner, which is why He planned salvation through the incarnation and death of His own Son. He also sends His Spirit to work in our hearts to prepare us for receiving that gift, through true understanding of our sin, sorrow over it, and faith in Jesus' work for us. Through His Law and Gospel, this important work of preparation is carried out. "God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble" (1 Peter 5:6). With Valentinus Thilo, we join in praying: "Prepare my heart, Lord Jesus, Turn not from me aside,  And grant that I receive Thee This blessed Advent-tide. From stall and manger low Come Thou to dwell within me; Loud praises will I sing Thee And forth Thy glory show." May the LORD prepare each of us through true repentance and faith in Jesus during this Advent season and always, and enable us to thank Him through the loud praises we offer Him in our worship and with our lives!

Paul went from being “eager to kill the Lord's followers” to perhaps being the greatest ambassador for Christ who has ever lived. It all started with an interruption of his routine; a challenge to everything that he knew and held dear. Without Jesus interrupting Paul's status quo, Paul would have never flipped the script in his life from enemy to ambassador. What if God wants to use that inconvenient or life-shattering interruption in your life to change everything? Passage: Acts 9:1-31 Speaker: Kevin Stiles

Paul went from being “eager to kill the Lord's followers” to perhaps being the greatest ambassador for Christ who has ever lived. It all started with an interruption of his routine; a challenge to everything that he knew and held dear. Without Jesus interrupting Paul's status quo, Paul would have never flipped the script in his life from enemy to ambassador. What if God wants to use that inconvenient or life-shattering interruption in your life to change everything? Passage: Acts 9:1-31 Speaker: Bob Kadlecik

Paul went from being “eager to kill the Lord's followers” to perhaps being the greatest ambassador for Christ who has ever lived. It all started with an interruption of his routine; a challenge to everything that he knew and held dear. Without Jesus interrupting Paul's status quo, Paul would have never flipped the script in his life from enemy to ambassador. What if God wants to use that inconvenient or life-shattering interruption in your life to change everything? Passage: Acts 9:1-31 Speaker: Kevin Ozolins  

“Your regulations remain true to this day, for everything serves your plans.” (Psalm 119:91 NLT) In our next set of devotions, we’re going to look at God’s perfections. Our goal is not only to get to know Him better but also to prepare our hearts for Thanksgiving. The more we understand about who God is, the more our gratitude will grow. We’re going to start by looking at God’s sovereignty. The fact that God is sovereign means that He has the power and authority to do anything He chooses with His creation. He answers to no one. Luke’s Gospel tells the story of ten men with leprosy who needed Jesus’ touch. Leprosy was an incurable disease. Without Jesus’ intervention, the men had no hope. They asked Jesus for healing, and He extended it to them. But out of the ten, only one returned to give Him thanks. We read, “One of them, when he saw that he was healed, came back to Jesus, shouting, ‘Praise God!’ He fell to the ground at Jesus’ feet, thanking him for what he had done. This man was a Samaritan” (Luke 17:15–16 NLT). Earlier, he had prayed loudly for a healing, and then he was loud with his praise. I love the fact that the original language uses two words from which we get our English word megaphone. The man was loud in thanking Jesus for what He had done for him. As Christians, we should give thanks to God because we recognize that He is in control of all circumstances surrounding our lives. As Proverbs 16:9 reminds us, “We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps” (NLT). Because God is sovereign, He is able to do what He pleases with whomever He chooses whenever He wishes. Some people bristle at that truth. Control—or even the idea of control—is a difficult thing to surrender. They prefer to operate under the illusion that they control their own destiny. The Bible writers held no such illusions. In fact, they saw God’s sovereignty as something to celebrate—something to be thankful for. The prophet Jeremiah said, “I know, Lord, that our lives are not our own. We are not able to plan our own course” (Jeremiah 10:23 NLT). And we read in Proverbs 20:24, “The Lord directs our steps, so why try to understand everything along the way?” (NLT). That’s the sovereignty of God. But what about when bad things happen? Is God still in control? Yes. And the Bible tells us that despite the bad things that happen, which many times are inexplicable, God can work all things together for good for those who love Him (see Romans 8:28). As the psalmist wrote, “Everything serves plans” (Psalm 119:91 NLT). That’s cause for thanksgiving because God’s plans put us exactly where we need to be. We never have to wonder whether we’re doing the right thing when we submit to God. Because He is sovereign, we can trust Him as our ultimate authority. Reflection question: What difference does God’s sovereignty make in your life? Discuss Today's Devo in Harvest Discipleship! — The audio production of the podcast "Daily Devotions from Greg Laurie" utilizes Generative AI technology. This allows us to deliver consistent, high-quality content while preserving Harvest's mission to "know God and make Him known."All devotional content is written and owned by Pastor Greg Laurie. Listen to the Greg Laurie Podcast Become a Harvest PartnerSupport the show: https://harvest.org/supportSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Interior Life – Maintenance of the Inner Man -- Part 8: The Body; Giving Life to the Spirit Soul MESSAGE SUMMARY: It is important to understand the Spirit in our inner beings. The Spirit is that part of us which enables us to commune with the Lord – it is that part of us in which the Holy Spirit indwells when we become a Christian and through which God speaks to us. Without Jesus, we are not fully alive because, without Jesus one has a dead Spirit. The Spirit, body and soul are all interconnected; and neglecting one adversely effects the other two. The Psalmist defines this interconnection in Psalms 63:1: “O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.". If our bodies are out of sorts, our Spirits and Souls can be adversely impacted. To optimize the effect of our bodies on our Souls and Spirits, we need to consider: 1) an eating plan that helps us live; 2) exercise so that we can be all that we can be for the Lord; 3) adequate sleep and rest; and 4) righteousness. Paul tells about God's perspective of our bodies in 1 Corinthians 6:19 20 “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.". If we want to maintain our interior life, we must maintain our earth suits; this body that God has given us. Don't ignore the power of prayer to help in keeping our body, Soul, and Spirit interconnected and in positive rhythm. 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24: “Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it."   TODAY'S PRAYER: Lord, Sabbath rest is truly an unbelievable gift! Thank you that there is nothing I can do to earn your love; it comes without any strings attached. As I close my eyes for these few minutes before you, all I can say is, thank you! In Jesus' name, amen.  Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 133). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: Today, I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM A CHILD OF GOD. Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His Name, He gave the right to become children of God-- children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God. John 1:12f SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV):  Scripture Reference (ESV): Psalms 104:14; Psalms 145:15-16; 1 Corinthians 9:26; Psalms 127:2; Proverbs 20:13; Ecclesiastes 5:12; Romans 7:22-25; Proverbs 4:21; Proverbs 14:30; 1 Corinthians 6:13-20. (Click the blue below to read the full Bible text for these scripture references in BOLD.). A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH'S DAILY DEVOTIONAL – “Jesus Followers Should Fear, Respect, and Praise God's Power, Sovereignty, and Holiness; but in Life's Trials They Should “fear not for I {Jesus} am with you always””: https://awordfromthelord.org/devotional/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

Is there a way that you can be saved and go to heaven without Jesus Christ? Romans 2:3-9Michael Pearl teaches through scripture, answering this often asked question.Download the FREE Romans commentary: ⁠⁠https://nogreaterjoy.org/shop/romans-...⁠⁠Am I saved? ⁠⁠https://nogreaterjoy.org/shop/am-i-sa...⁠

Welcome to the Jesus Church in Watertown, South Dakota!Join us for service at: 500 14th Ave NW, Watertown, SD 57201 https://goo.gl/maps/WgUmDc1iH7jB8za98Our Service Times: Sunday Morning Service at 10:00 am CDT Sunday Main Service at 11:00 am CDT Wednesday Service at 7:00 pm CDTYou can find us online at: Website: https://jesuschurchsd.org/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JesusChurchSD Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jesuschurchsd/

It happened over 100 years ago, but we still seem to be fascinated with it - the Titanic. I mean, the Titanic has sailed into the Internet! You can find all kinds of information about the sinking of that "unsinkable" ship back in 1912. And then, there was the Academy Award-winning movie, endless TV shows, articles, and there was even a Broadway musical about it. It seems like fascination with the Titanic just never goes away. A lot of this information has been known for decades, but now there's a tremendous appetite for that information. Like the tragic mistake that fatal night by the radioman on the Titanic. The ship had received a number of warnings about ice ahead and had adjusted her course southward as a result. But two hours before the Titanic hit the iceberg, the radioman received a warning from another ship about a major iceberg, along with longitude and latitude coordinates. They put that iceberg right in Titanic's path. It's the one that sank the ship. But the radioman didn't know it was in their path. He was busy that night, so he stuck that message on a spindle to be dealt with later. That one choice doomed him and 1500 other passengers who died that night. I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Your Titanic Mistake." That just makes the tragedy even more tragic, doesn't it? The warning of what was coming was sent, it was received, but a man decided he'd deal with it later. And later was too late. When the warning is life-or-death, you don't wait to deal with it, especially if the warning is from God, especially if the warning is about what's ahead for you. Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Hebrews 2:3. "How shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation?" Ignoring God's warning - fatal results. What's the warning about our future? Here are God's words, "Whoever believes in Jesus is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's only Son" (John 3:18). Like the Titanic on her last night, steaming headlong for a deadly rendezvous. Again, God in His own words, "Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him" (John 3:36). God says there are people who are forever safe and people who are headed for eternal destruction. The difference is what they do with His Son, Jesus. You can do a lot of things with Jesus: you can reject Him, or ignore Him, or postpone Him, or you can even agree with Him. But all of those responses lead to the same place - eternity without God. You might say, "You mean agreeing with Jesus, isn't that enough?" Well, you see, I wasn't married to my wife based on my agreeing with her views. I was married to my wife for one reason - there was a time I committed my life to her. That's what you have to do with Jesus. Has there been a time when you did that? If not, you're still ignoring God's warning about eternity. He says we can't possibly escape if we neglect this great salvation. He calls it salvation because it's a rescue from a death sentence. Jesus dying on that awful cross - that was God's Son paying the death penalty for the sinning you and I have done. And our only hope is to put our total trust in Him - the only One who can rescue you from sin and its penalty. So you have the warning. Maybe you've been saying, like a radioman on the Titanic that night, I'll deal with it later. Don't do that. When a warning is life-or-death, the only time to deal with it is now while there's time. If there has never been a time when you have committed yourself to Jesus to be your Savior, tell Him right now you're putting your trust in Him and what He did on the cross for you. "Jesus, I'm yours." I hope you'll go to our website as soon as you can today, because you will find the information you need to secure and be sure you belong to Jesus. It's ANewStory.com. Without Jesus, you are steaming full speed into an eternity without hope. Deal with God's warning now. And you'll be on the course for a guaranteed arrival in heaven when your journey's done.

Angel Studios https://Angel.com/ToddJoin the Angel Guild today and stream Testament, a powerful new series featuring the retelling of the book of Acts. Alan's Soaps https://www.AlansArtisanSoaps.comUse coupon code TODD to save an additional 10% off the bundle price.Bizable https://GoBizable.comUntie your business exposure from your personal exposure with BiZABLE.  Schedule your FREE consultation at GoBizAble.com today.  Bonefrog https://BonefrogCoffee.com/toddThe new GOLDEN AGE is here!  Use code TODD at checkout to receive 10% off your first purchase and 15% on subscriptions.Bulwark Capital https://KnowYourRiskPodcast.comBe confident in your portfolio with Bulwark! Schedule your free Know Your Risk Portfolio review. Go to KnowYourRiskPodcast.com today. Renue Healthcare https://Renue.Healthcare/ToddYour journey to a better life starts at Renue Healthcare. Visit https://Renue.Healthcare/ToddLISTEN and SUBSCRIBE at:The Todd Herman Show - Podcast - Apple PodcastsThe Todd Herman Show | Podcast on SpotifyWATCH and SUBSCRIBE at: Todd Herman - The Todd Herman Show - YouTubeGavin Newsom Gives Birth to MAGA in Palisades, California // The Party of AOC is the Party of Always-On-Crime. // Christianity Without Jesus. Episode Links:Trump on the Los Angeles/Palisades fireThe State of Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife sends a letter to a home/landowner asking for permission to access a creek on his property to document the decline in a certain species of unheard of frogs.Activists in DC protesting about Trump cracking down on violence are starting to fight each other. How ironic.THIS Is Why Trump Is Cracking Down On Washington, D.C.How White Women Would Fix CrimeDC Mayor Muriel Bowser: “We're at a 30 year violent crime low!”These idiots in DC are protesting cleaning up crime. “Trump can't have it”Dana Bash response to Trump federalizing DC police to fight violent crime: “I should note that the most violent moment in recent DC history was January 6." This is CNN.Somewhere last night in New York City, a single mother and her children slept at a homeless shelter because you, assemblyman @ZohranKMamdani  are occupying her rent controlled apartment. - Andrew Cuomo. BREAKING: Mass ARRESTS are now happening at an anti-ICE protest in New York! Arrest them all!!!Reverend Al Sharpton attempted to link J6 to Trump's decision to deploy federal law enforcement to curb crime in DC, but the guest rejected it outright.The Rev. Gordon explains why monogamy isn't for him, and why he and his 'husband' have an 'open marriage.'"These questions are going to get me into so much trouble on the internet." 'Different Church' impastor Hannah Siegmund explains why Jesus didn't have to die on the cross.