Raise the Dead!

For Saturday, October 17, 2026:

Luke 7:14-15 NLT: “Jesus walked over to the coffin and touched it, and the bearers stopped. “Young man,” he said, “I tell you, get up.” Then the dead boy sat up and began to talk! And Jesus gave him back to his mother.”

Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead and cast out demons. That’s what Jesus told us to do, and he leads by example. This is a teachable moment.

The disciples had crossed paths with a funeral procession. The deceased was his mother’s only son, and Jesus observed her extreme grief. He had the power to improve her situation, so he acted out of compassion, telling the boy, “Get up!” The boy in the coffin sat up and began to talk!

These people didn’t know that Jesus is the Son of the Most High, but they acknowledged, “A mighty prophet has risen among us,” and “God has visited his people today.” This resurrection confused and displeased the religious leaders, who had just conducted a funeral! They’d never even heard of anything like this!

This news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding countryside. That’s Good News for us all!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

The Father’s House

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Truth & Freedom Church

Eternal Life Formula!

For Friday, October 16, 2026:

John 17:3 NLT, Jesus speaking: “This is the way to have eternal life—to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth.”

The question isn’t if you’ll see life after this life. You will! What you want to pin down is where you’ll be spending your time.

Those with Jesus will find a place already prepared for them in God’s Kingdom. It will be heavenly! On the other hand, Satan and his demons will be bobbing in the lake of fire, hopefully going down for the third time! This life is our chance to make sure our names are written in the book of life. We don’t get a do-over, so choose wisely. Everyone must choose.

Even 2K years ago, people wanted to know about the life after this life. Jesus responded with this straight-forward answer: “Know the Father, and know me.” Access to an eternal residence is grace, God’s gift to us. We are saved by faith in that one God and the Son he sent to earth, Jesus! Jesus will welcome believers with open arms!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

The Father’s House

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Truth & Freedom Church

Redeemed!

For Thursday, October 15, 2026:

Romans 10:9 NLT: “If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

Since Paul isn’t omnipresent (like God,) he needed to send written messages to teach theology to the churches. These letters or epistles are as valued today as they were 2K years ago. If there had been Billboard charts back then, Paul’s letter to the Romans would be in the top 10!

Sidebar, my 2¢: A lot of people expect religion and salvation to be overly complicated. Man-made rules and ritual traditions add to deliverance’s confusion. In many people’s minds, the difficulty of obtaining redemption seems to add to its perceived value. But that’s not the way God wanted it to be.

Re-read today’s scripture. If you claim Jesus as the resurrected Lord of your life, you WILL be saved. Not you ‘might’ be saved, but you ‘will’ be saved for sure. Yes, friends, it’s that simple. Don’t over-complicate it!

I frequently mention Assurance of Salvation. Paul clearly states that principle in this scripture. You don’t have to belong to a church, be baptized or receive communion to get into heaven. Those are all good things to do, but your salvation isn’t hanging on anything that you can do other than loving the Lord. You will be redeemed because of your love for Jesus! That’s what the Bible says!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

The Father’s House

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Truth & Freedom Church