Radical Transformation!

For Sunday, December 31, 2023:

Mark 2:15 NLT: “Later, Levi invited Jesus and his disciples to his home as dinner guests, along with many tax collectors and other disreputable sinners. (There were many people of this kind among Jesus’ followers.)”

Levi is known to us as Matthew, whose name graces the first book of the New Testament. He’s a former tax collector. Tax collectors were known for charging a bit extra and skimming a little off the top. Therefore we believe that Matthew lived a comfortable life, a life of opulence. Jesus was gathering disciples and apostles, many of whom had loathsome backgrounds. But Matthew had the resources to host a big dinner party for all of them. This would be their chance to learn from the Messiah!

Pharisees questioned the wisdom of people purporting to be holy hanging out with known sinners. But friends, that’s the only way evangelism works! If the saved never talked to those with questionable morals, there would be no new Christians! If your church is working right, there should be quite a number of disreputable citizens in the pews! Churches need to get off their high horse and get used to it! Jesus answered the Pharisees: “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do. I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.”

The first step may be casting out demons!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

Holy Spirit!

For Saturday, December 30, 2023:

Luke 3:16 NLT: “John (the Baptist) answered their questions by saying, ‘I baptize you with water; but someone is coming soon who is greater than I am—so much greater that I’m not even worthy to be his slave and untie the straps of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.’”

Everyone assumed the Messiah’s arrival was imminent, just around the corner. John was telling people to repent of their sins as he baptized them. They knew that only God could forgive sins against God’s law. So the question arose, is this “John” the one for whom we’ve been waiting?

John is quite clear in his response. He’s a number of things. He’s a baptizer, preparing the world for the soon-to-come Messiah. In a way he’s like a prophet, heralding the Messiah’s arrival. But he is not the one.

John makes mention of receiving the Holy Spirit, the ‘fire’ baptism. The gift of the Holy Spirit is received by believing in Jesus Christ. Peter explains in Acts 2:38 “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

The Holy Spirit never leaves a believer, but mankind can become lax in worshiping God-the-Spirit. That’s why it’s essential to stay plugged in to a church, to recharge your Holy Spirit battery, to top off your Holy Spirit tank.

With the Spirit, we are prepared to do battle in the world in the name of Jesus!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

Repent and Change!

For Friday, December 29, 2023:

Luke 3:8a NLT: “Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God.”

John the baptist was a strange one indeed! He lived in the wilderness, ate locusts and wild honey, and wore rough clothes made of camel hair. He told people to be baptized in the Jordan River as a sign that they had turned from sin. The thrust of his message was to repent and return, for the kingdom of God was at hand. After all, Jesus would be coming soon! John didn’t think this up by himself. He was commissioned by actions of the Lord himself.

John not only baptized people in water; he also baptized them with fire, meaning that following repentance and water baptism, they were filled with the Holy Spirit.

In this scripture, John chastises those who were baptized, but then returned to their old lives. Friends, you can’t declare loyalty to Jesus but go on sinning. Good and evil cannot coexist! Therefore a new Christian should exhibit a radical transformation in their behavior. When someone becomes a Christian, they should change for the better, a lot better! A baptized Christian is now part of a unique group, set apart from the rest of the world. At the time, they’d be joining followers of Jesus, but eventually they’d become part of “The Way,” the first church, the worshiping believers. It’s like if we joined a new church with rigid standards. Believers needed to adopt Christ-like behavior.

The Way shared their resources and loved everyone. Their church grew by attraction. People liked what they saw and wanted to become a part of it. Churches should be like that nowadays, but unfortunately many aren’t. Every church claiming to follow Jesus should show agape love to everyone!

See you at church!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

Son of God!

For Thursday, December 28, 2023:

Luke 2:43 NLT: “After the celebration was over, they started home to Nazareth, but Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents didn’t miss him at first, because they assumed he was among the other travelers.”

Have you ever lost a child, even for just a short time? In the Atlanta airport, my youngest daughter, about four years old, wandered off. She had been with us a minute ago, but now was missing. We were all franticly searching, calling out her name. Finally, we located her having quite a conversation with a kind, grandfatherly man. Problem quickly solved!

But Jesus and his parents were part of a large entourage that made the pilgrimage from their hometown to Jerusalem each year. As they were returning, Jesus wasn’t with his family, but they all assumed he was with friends. It wasn’t until they stopped for the night that Mary and Joseph confirmed his absence. There was no choice except to trace their steps back to Jerusalem and hopefully locate this precocious youth. After all, if you’re entrusted with the Son of God, you’d better not lose him!

For three days, Mary and Joseph searched high and low, until finally Jesus was discovered in the Temple conversing with the teachers. To all who witnessed this, Jesus appeared wise beyond his years. Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers!

I can just hear his mother: “Son, we were so worried! Why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.”

To which Jesus replied, “How is it that you searched for me? Did you not know that I must be about my Father’s business?” To Jesus, this all made perfect sense! This was just one of the many things Jesus pursued in his lifetime that others did not fully understand.

As Christians, we answer a lot of naysayers who question Jesus’ authenticity. They say he never stated who he was. But here he stated that God was his Father, and if God is his Father, then what does that make him? Son of God? I think so, no doubt!

Have a blessed day!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

Messiah!

For Wednesday, December 27, 2023:

Luke 2:26 NLT: “It had been revealed to Simeon by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah.”

Obedient, Mary and Joseph brought their first-born male child to the Temple, dedicating him to the Lord. But their heads must have been spinning as they lived through all the supernatural events surrounding Jesus’ arrival.

Mary conceived but hadn’t ever been with her husband. An angel appeared to the couple explaining what was to come, saying, “Fear not!” As Jesus was born, a heavenly chorus appeared directing shepherds to visit and worship the newborn. Then the shepherds left to tell everyone that the Messiah had arrived! Caesar regarded this baby, “the King of the Jews,” as a threat to his power. He wanted to murder the child, forcing the family to flee to Egypt. And now, back at the Temple, both Simeon and Anna called Jesus “Messiah, Redeemer of Israel.”

Mary and Joseph were both consistent and persistent. Their faith in God the Creator never wavered, and in spite of all the anomalies, they persisted in doing the right thing. But Mary was keeping track of all that happened. The Bible says that Mary treasured up all these things, and pondered them in her heart, wondering what lay in the future.

We are blessed that Luke had the tenacity of an investigative reporter. His goal was to author truth, to leave an account for the world of everything that occurred in the life of God’s Son. Therefore we don’t need to take years to discover the truth. By reading Luke’s account, we can quickly gain wisdom! Perhaps we all should re-read some of it today! Blessings!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship