November 29, 2010 Monday Message:
“The LORD upholds the cause of the oppressed.” Psalm 146:7a If it’s important to God, it should be important to us, so let’s look at “The Oppressed,” their situation, what God is doing for them, and what we should do for them.
Stronger people feel like they have it all together. They feel good today, and they’re that way most of the time.
Oppressed people feel all beat up, all the time. They may have failing relationships, financial challenges and spiritual questions with no answers. They may be fighting an illness, fighting an addiction or fighting for our country. Unfortunately, life is a battlefield, and the oppressed are oftentimes fighting the stronger people.
Stronger people force the weaker people to work for them. They don’t pay them enough for the work. The oppressed are often hungry. Sometimes they’re in a prison, and sometimes they just feel as if life is a prison. Oppressed people are people to whom stronger people are not kind. Orphans and widows, foreigners, the blind, people not like us—there are many who fall into the “oppressed” category.
But don’t write them off yet—these are GOD’s Oppressed People! “Blessed are those who trust in the LORD!” Jeremiah 17:7a Remember that God is the Creator, so he knows what everyone needs, and he remains faithful forever. “The LORD gives food to the hungry, sight to the blind, lifts up those who are bowed down, watches over the foreigner, sustains the fatherless and the widow, and loves those who love him. God loves the righteous, but subverts the plans of the wicked.” Psalm 146:7-9
So if God is an advocate for the oppressed, we should make sure we’re on His side, which, by the way, is the winning side! If you stick close to God, you can step past the problem and become part of the solution.
Norton Lawellin
Monday, November 29, 2010
Monday, November 22, 2010
Filled with the Spirit???
November 22, 2010 Monday Message:
Are you filled with the Holy Spirit? And why is that important? For followers of Jesus, it works like this…
Just as light and darkness cannot coexist in the same space, goodness and evil are forever separated. If you’re living your life filled with the Holy Spirit, you are separated from evil. Pretty cool, huh? Oftentimes, when sin is the issue, the more difficult solution is to try really, really hard to NOT sin. The easier—and I believe better—solution is to simply add more God. Since sin cannot exist in the presence of God, the best solution to our sinful nature is to get closer to the Lord, and stay there!
As you start your day, take your yellow pad and title it, “Agenda.” Now, fill it up with good stuff—the Bible, your church, serving others, doing acts of kindness, feed the hungry, clothe those who need help, love the Lord and then your neighbor. Is your page full yet? If you filled it with enough good stuff, there won’t be any room—or any time—for any bad stuff!
Paul puts it like this: “Here is my advice. Walk by the Spirit and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is against the Spirit, and the Spirit desires what is against the flesh; these are opposed to each other, so that you don't do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.” Galatians 5:16-18
That’s right—you have been freed from Law of Moses by the blood of Jesus Christ. How does it feel to have been rescued?
Norton Lawellin
Are you filled with the Holy Spirit? And why is that important? For followers of Jesus, it works like this…
Just as light and darkness cannot coexist in the same space, goodness and evil are forever separated. If you’re living your life filled with the Holy Spirit, you are separated from evil. Pretty cool, huh? Oftentimes, when sin is the issue, the more difficult solution is to try really, really hard to NOT sin. The easier—and I believe better—solution is to simply add more God. Since sin cannot exist in the presence of God, the best solution to our sinful nature is to get closer to the Lord, and stay there!
As you start your day, take your yellow pad and title it, “Agenda.” Now, fill it up with good stuff—the Bible, your church, serving others, doing acts of kindness, feed the hungry, clothe those who need help, love the Lord and then your neighbor. Is your page full yet? If you filled it with enough good stuff, there won’t be any room—or any time—for any bad stuff!
Paul puts it like this: “Here is my advice. Walk by the Spirit and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is against the Spirit, and the Spirit desires what is against the flesh; these are opposed to each other, so that you don't do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.” Galatians 5:16-18
That’s right—you have been freed from Law of Moses by the blood of Jesus Christ. How does it feel to have been rescued?
Norton Lawellin
Monday, November 15, 2010
Why have you forsaken me?
November 15, 2010 Monday Message:
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Jesus spoke these words from the cross during the final moments of his earthly life. But what you may not remember is that he was quoting King David, a man after God’s own heart, from Psalm 22:1a.
David prayed these words when his son Absalom, through lies and deceit, took over the throne of Israel. David found himself exiled from his own country, the country where he rightfully should have still been king. And yet Absalom was his son; David didn’t want to have to kill his own son to regain the throne. But Absalom was at the heart of the conspiracy. How could David reconcile this tension? How could things have gotten so messed up? Where was God when everything seemed to turn against David?
I believe the entire Bible is true, inspired words given to us by God. But as we read God’s word, it’s important to consider context and perception. The truth in this verse is that David felt alone. So much had been going wrong in his life for so long, that David truly felt abandoned. He hadn’t given up on God, but David felt far from God at that time. On the cross, bearing the sins of the world, Jesus felt far from the Father too. That was their perception.
So where did God go? The truth is that God is omnipresent; God is everywhere at all times. So God doesn’t go away. God doesn’t play tricks and try to hide from David, and God didn’t abandon his Son on the cross. God is always there, right where He’s always been. It’s us, you and I, who, in times of trouble, often turn away from God. When things go well it’s easy to sense the presence of God. When things don’t go well, we need realign ourselves, focusing on the Lord with extra diligence. We need to turn and face the light. And for us, Jesus is the light of the world.
God will always be right there when we need him, right where he’s supposed to be. That’s what the Bible says.
Norton Lawellin
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Jesus spoke these words from the cross during the final moments of his earthly life. But what you may not remember is that he was quoting King David, a man after God’s own heart, from Psalm 22:1a.
David prayed these words when his son Absalom, through lies and deceit, took over the throne of Israel. David found himself exiled from his own country, the country where he rightfully should have still been king. And yet Absalom was his son; David didn’t want to have to kill his own son to regain the throne. But Absalom was at the heart of the conspiracy. How could David reconcile this tension? How could things have gotten so messed up? Where was God when everything seemed to turn against David?
I believe the entire Bible is true, inspired words given to us by God. But as we read God’s word, it’s important to consider context and perception. The truth in this verse is that David felt alone. So much had been going wrong in his life for so long, that David truly felt abandoned. He hadn’t given up on God, but David felt far from God at that time. On the cross, bearing the sins of the world, Jesus felt far from the Father too. That was their perception.
So where did God go? The truth is that God is omnipresent; God is everywhere at all times. So God doesn’t go away. God doesn’t play tricks and try to hide from David, and God didn’t abandon his Son on the cross. God is always there, right where He’s always been. It’s us, you and I, who, in times of trouble, often turn away from God. When things go well it’s easy to sense the presence of God. When things don’t go well, we need realign ourselves, focusing on the Lord with extra diligence. We need to turn and face the light. And for us, Jesus is the light of the world.
God will always be right there when we need him, right where he’s supposed to be. That’s what the Bible says.
Norton Lawellin
Monday, November 1, 2010
Day of the Lord
November 01, 2010 Monday Message:
“See, the day of the Lord is coming - a cruel day, with wrath and fierce anger - to make the land desolate and destroy the sinners within it. Isaiah 13:9
What is this “Day of the Lord?” The phrase usually refers to eschatology, things happening at the end of man’s history on earth, the “end times” as described in the Bible. Maybe we should call it the Millennium of the Lord - we’re expecting Jesus to return to rule the earth, some say for 1000 years. That sounds pretty good, right?
It’s good if you’re with Jesus, but really, really bad if you’re not. When Jesus returns, He’ll separate the sheep from the goats, for this is also the day of judgment. “The fallen will go to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.” Jesus: Matthew 25:46
So it’s not just depressing news. The “Day of the Lord” is our day of salvation, and that good news is where Christians should focus their dreams. But remember - don’t show up at the Day of the Lord without Jesus.
It will be impossible to witness the Day of the Lord and not be humbled. What God will do will be so big, so powerful, so magnificent, so awesome, that mankind will have no doubt that this is God-in-action. On that day, time as we know it will cease; we will no longer have one more day to make our decision to follow Jesus, that decision with eternal consequences. We have had “free will” up to this day; now we must live (or die) with our decisions. It is now the day of reckoning.
The prophecies foretelling the day of the Lord will come to fruition at the end of history when God, with wondrous power, will call His children home.
Welcome home, brothers and sisters!
Norton Lawellin
“See, the day of the Lord is coming - a cruel day, with wrath and fierce anger - to make the land desolate and destroy the sinners within it. Isaiah 13:9
What is this “Day of the Lord?” The phrase usually refers to eschatology, things happening at the end of man’s history on earth, the “end times” as described in the Bible. Maybe we should call it the Millennium of the Lord - we’re expecting Jesus to return to rule the earth, some say for 1000 years. That sounds pretty good, right?
It’s good if you’re with Jesus, but really, really bad if you’re not. When Jesus returns, He’ll separate the sheep from the goats, for this is also the day of judgment. “The fallen will go to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.” Jesus: Matthew 25:46
So it’s not just depressing news. The “Day of the Lord” is our day of salvation, and that good news is where Christians should focus their dreams. But remember - don’t show up at the Day of the Lord without Jesus.
It will be impossible to witness the Day of the Lord and not be humbled. What God will do will be so big, so powerful, so magnificent, so awesome, that mankind will have no doubt that this is God-in-action. On that day, time as we know it will cease; we will no longer have one more day to make our decision to follow Jesus, that decision with eternal consequences. We have had “free will” up to this day; now we must live (or die) with our decisions. It is now the day of reckoning.
The prophecies foretelling the day of the Lord will come to fruition at the end of history when God, with wondrous power, will call His children home.
Welcome home, brothers and sisters!
Norton Lawellin
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)