Psalms 83 - Choose Wisely

February 27, 2017 Monday Message:

“With cunning, your enemies conspire against your people; they plot against those you cherish.” Psalms 83:3 NIV

Standing up for God is a rough job, and according to the Bible, it will become more and more difficult as we get closer to the end times.

Satan and those who join him on the dark side are relentless. One by one, they hope to convince us to abandon the Lord in favor of some short-lived worldly pleasure.

But we know that decadent pleasure – which, by the way, angers God – only lasts for a moment. But God’s favor lasts for a lifetime. Psalm 30:5

Jesus, our Redeemer, showed us that “lifetime” means “eternal life” – being able to spend life-after-this-life in the presence of the Lord – forever!

It would be a pretty lopsided trade, a moment of pleasure vs eternity in the presence of the Lord.

Every day, standing up for God becomes more challenging, but it’s well worth your effort to choose wisely.

Norton Lawellin

Join us for worship! Jesus in the City Fellowship gathers next Sunday, March 5, 2017, at the Akina Church, 3249 30^th Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN 55406, 10:30am. We’ll open up 1 Cor. 10. See you at church!

Psalms 82 - Think About It!

February 20, 2017 Monday Message:

As you read through the Psalms, from time to time you’ll encounter the word, “Selah.” Some people think it means to pause, to think about what you’ve just read, to meditate upon the previous passage, or it sometimes signals a change in direction in the text. The truth is that we’ve lost the true ancient meaning of Selah. No one knows for sure. I might go with, “All of the above!”

In Psalm 82:2, the psalmist asks God a question: “How long will you defend the unjust and show partiality to the wicked?” And then the word, “Selah.” Think about the ridiculousness of what we just read. Does God REALLY favor the wicked? No, but sometimes it can seem that way to us. We need to pause and think about what’s actually transpiring.

Then, in verses 3-4, after the “Selah,” this psalm turns into a prayer: “Defend the weak and fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.”

Now THAT all makes more sense – that’s the same stuff Jesus told us to do! It was a good prayer 3,000 years ago, it was good when Jesus taught it 2,000 years ago, and it’s still true today.

I have never seen so many marches, so many protests as our country has experienced recently. But much of it still boils down to protecting the oppressed from the wicked. In some ways, things haven’t changed much in 3,000 years.

Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship gathers next Sunday, Feb. 26, 2017, at the Akina Church, 3249 30^th Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN 55406, 10:30am. Pastor Michael Pilla continues our study in 1 Corinthians as we welcome our New Hope guests.

Psalms 81 - Choose Wisely

February 13, 2017 Monday Message:

“Those who hate the Lord would cringe before him, and their punishment would last forever.” Psalm 81:15

God is telling the people he created to choose sides, once and for all. Those who are not for us are against us. Frankly, it’s God’s way or the highway to hell!

Those WITH the Lord will spend eternity in his presence, in what we call heaven, with all the rights and privileges of a child of God.

Those not on God’s side will go from the place of the dead to the eternal hell, forever suffering and regretting that they did not choose correctly when they had the chance.

A lot of things in this life really don’t matter all that much in the long run, but this decision – the decision to be on God’s side - has eternal consequences. Choose wisely.

God says, “In your distress you called, and I rescued you.” Psalm 81:7a

Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship gathers next Sunday, Feb. 19, 2017, at the Akina Church, 3249 30^th Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN 55406, 10:30am. Pastor Michael Pilla continues our study in 1 Corinthians.

Psalm 80 - Unfavored Nation

February 6, 2017 Monday Message:

Verses 3, 7 and 19 of Psalm 80 all say the same thing, words that are as applicable nowadays as they were 3,000 years ago:

“Turn us again to yourself, O God. Make your face shine down upon us. Only then will we be saved.”

Time after time, God’s chosen people lost their focus and drifted into the ways of the world. Today we live in a country that enforces laws favoring things that the Bible says are evil. Without God’s help, we may be unable to climb out of this pit.

If we are facing the wrong direction, it may require God’s intervention to turn us back the right way. We cannot grant ourselves eternal life, but if God looks upon us with favor, only then can we be saved. That’s what the Bible says.

Pray for God’s intercession on our behalf. Pray for revival in our country. And if you really want peace, pray, “Come quickly, Lord Jesus!”

Norton Lawellin

Come worship with us! Jesus in the City Fellowship gathers next Sunday, Feb. 12, 2017, at the Akina Church, 3249 30^th Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN 55406, 10:30am. We’ll continue our study of 1 Corinthians – this week, Chapter 8. See you at church!