Category: when you feel His call in your heart

Life sucks but…


I used to hear people talking about partying in hell with Satan but that is not how Jesus described it. He told a story of a rich man who didn’t care for anyone but himself. A man named Lazarus was a poor man begging at the gate to the man’s home but he never received anything. One day, the rich man died and was buried. Lazarus died and was taken by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. While there, the rich man called out to Abraham to ask for a drop of water to cool his tongue. No parties, no joy, no meeting with friends in hell, just punishment and pain. Abraham told him that there was a chasm between them that was there to keep anyone from crossing from the place of torment to paradise or from paradise to them.

God didn’t make hell to punish people. It was created to punish Satan and those who rebelled against God by not accepting Jesus as their Savior. That is the key to staying out of hell…believing in Jesus as your Savior. No amount of money or works will do it. Life doesn’t suck bad enough to waste your time following things that will lead you astray. But many people think that it does. Some even take their lives over trivial things that, in the long run, don’t matter all that much. I know there are veterans and drug addicts who take their lives because of the “demons” that they are living with but Jesus can fix those problems too if you will let Him.

God loves all of mankind not just one nation or a few people. Jesus died for all of us but there are so many who just refuse to believe this. It is spelled out in the Gospel but so many people won’t read it or they look at God’s Word like it is just some book written long ago and it isn’t relevant for our time. God knows each of us better than we know ourselves and when you think that the Creator of the entire universe even considers individuals on our little speck of dust, that is amazing!

We have trouble believing this but if you have given your heart to Jesus, it is easy to live this way because the Holy Spirit lives inside you. He will give you the strength and the ability to live your life this way and to forgive those who have hurt you in the past. Seek to know Jesus as your Savior because hell is the punishment that never ends and it wasn’t made for you.

Obedience


This is a core value of a Christian and their life in Jesus. When a Christian applies it to their daily life it separates church goers from disciples of Christ. Why should there be a difference? Because, people who go to church, regularly or not, are hearers of the Word but many don’t live that way. There are many who have heard many sermons during their lifetime but their life doesn’t reflect Him. It’s like a car that goes to the station for gas once a week. They get filled on Sunday and then try to run on that for a week or more. Their life and even their heart doesn’t show the transformative power of the sermon or of God’s Word.

I know that we aren’t supposed to judge people and I’m really not doing that. It’s just that there are certain things which show up in the life of a believer after they have given their life to Christ and for many “church goers” those changes aren’t there.

God’s one requirement for all of us, especially believers, is obedience. The Ten Commandments are a prime example of what all of us should be trying to follow in our lives daily. So many believers try to do this and many of us fall short. We let anger and frustration get in the way of our walk with Jesus. We let family squabbles get in the way too. Life is too short to allow things like arguments or hurt feelings get in the way of our walk with Jesus. It happens, but if you truly belong to Jesus, you are forgiven and can claim forgiveness from those sins, big or small.

Devote yourselves to honoring each other


Seek the Lord


So much trouble in the world…


There are so many things that are happening all over the world. In Asia, America, Israel and everywhere it seems, there is so much happening everywhere and the world seems to be ignoring a lot of it. Even the floods that happened in North Carolina have been ignored now that fires have destroyed so much of California. In North Carolina there were many houses destroyed and thousands who died but after a couple of weeks, this “news story” was pushed aside.

Why do the networks push aside stories so quickly? Likely because the new stories are more interesting, some because they are in California and near Hollywood. Flooding in the mountains of North Carolina doesn’t grab people’s attention like fires burning through cities in California.

These are just a couple of the news stories out there but you can tell how the news is decided. Why am I bringing this up on my website? Because there are many millions of Christians who are being tortured and killed in countries that don’t like Christians and we never hear about it either. We are living at the “end of the age”, the Church age, and life is getting harder to understand. Much of what we see depicted as “normal” today is not normal at all. God’s Word tells us that the world around us would become more like the world was when Noah built the Ark before the floods and it has become that way.

Read the sixth chapter of Genesis and then the 24th chapter of Matthew. The Lord describes much of what is happening today and He does it from 2,000 years ago. He is God the Son after all. My point is that we should be looking into eternity and where we will spend it. If you believe in Jesus as your Savior then your eternal home will be in Heaven. If you refuse to believe in Him for your Salvation and think that you can work your way into Heaven, your eternal home will be in hell. Take your pick.

God will help you in all things


He is with us


Creation or Creator?


The Creator is bigger than your problems and small enough to fit in your heart. He has stretched out the heavens with His hands and according to the James Webb telescope, the universe is approximately 93 billion light-years across. WOW! That is BIG! God is bigger!

When God calls each of us to be His children, the Holy Spirit creates a new creation in us so that we will become more like Jesus. Your salvation is a process and it begins with your repentance and acceptance of Jesus into your heart. Then you have to study the Bible and learn more about this Savior Who wants to live in your heart and change your life. Some of us actually read the Bible and learn more about Him, some of us just go to church for a little while and learn as little as possible.

If you are in a relationship, marriage or covenant, don’t you want to know your partner or your Savior as well as you can? The best way to learn about Jesus is to read the Bible and study it. Going to church for an hour or less every week is not enough to learn about Him. Your salvation doesn’t depend on your attending church but your faith will grow along with your knowledge of Him that you gain.

When you feel His call in your life, don’t turn away from Him.

The Return of Jesus


The Everlasting Hope: A Sermon on the Second Coming
Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
Introduction:
Brothers and sisters, today we turn our attention to a topic that has captivated believers for centuries – the glorious return of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. This is not a distant, ethereal concept; it is a cornerstone of our faith, a beacon of hope that illuminates our journey.
The Reality of the Resurrection:
Our text in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 addresses a very real concern among the early church: the fate of those who had died in Christ before the Lord’s return. Would they miss out on the joy of His coming?
The Apostle Paul emphatically answers, “No!” He reminds us that just as Christ was raised from the dead, so too will those who have fallen asleep in Him. Death is not the end; it is a temporary slumber, a prelude to the glorious resurrection.
The Order of Events:
The passage outlines the sequence of events:
* The Rapture: “For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17)
* The Second Coming: This is the visible, triumphant return of Christ to earth, where He will establish His righteous reign.
Living in Light of the Return:
The anticipation of Christ’s return should not be a cause for fear or anxiety, but rather a source of constant hope and encouragement. It should motivate us to:
* Live Holy Lives: Knowing that our Lord could return at any moment, we are called to live lives of holiness and integrity, reflecting His glory in all that we do.
* Serve Others: The return of Christ will be a day of ultimate justice and vindication. Until then, we are called to serve others, to alleviate suffering, and to spread the good news of salvation.
* Remain Vigilant: We are to be watchful and prayerful, ever mindful of the Lord’s imminent return.
Conclusion:
The return of Jesus Christ is a promise, a glorious hope that sustains us through life’s trials and tribulations. Let us live each day with this hope in our hearts, striving to be faithful servants of our Lord, eagerly awaiting His triumphant return.
Note: This is a general framework. You can adapt it to fit your specific congregation and the needs of your community. You may want to include personal testimonies, illustrations, or delve deeper into specific theological aspects of the Second Coming.
Disclaimer: This sermon reflects a particular theological perspective on the Second Coming. It is important to remember that there are diverse interpretations of this doctrine within Christianity.
I hope this sermon provides a helpful point for your reflection on the soon return of our Savior.

I used an AI helper to put this together, but it is on point. I pray that you will take this sermon into your heart and think about His coming because it is happening soon.

Are you feeling dead these days?


Before you come to know Jesus as your Savior, you are dead toward God. You are not seeking His favor nor His love or forgiveness…but you usually have a hollow feeling that tells you that Someone is missing. Something is missing but you don’t know what.

You are dead without Jesus in your life. The apostle Paul wrote this to the Ephesian church to let them know that they were dead toward God but they became alive in Christ when they accepted Jesus as their Savior. God loved us so much that He sent Jesus, His Son, to pay the price for all of our sins and give us the gift of eternity with Him if we will only accept Him as our Savior.

When you feel the Holy Spirit’s touch on your heart and you resist it and walk away you are risking a death that will take you before God without Jesus as your Savior. Eternity is and will be a very long existence for you without Jesus because you will not be in Heaven with Him. God created hell to punish the angels who rebelled with Satan against God, it was not made for us but it will be your destination if you turn away from Him when you feel His call in your life. Don’t walk away from Jesus when you know you need Him.