Kingdom At Hand!

For Saturday, March 14, 2026:

Luke 3:16 NLT, John the Baptist speaking: “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.”

In Jesus’ day, Hebrews were plagued with Roman oppression. They hung on tightly to a prophecy about a Messiah coming to rescue them. People would come to the Jordan and confess their sins, wanting to live a better life. They desired to get right with God. As John baptized the repentant, they questioned him: “Might you be the Messiah for whom we have been waiting?”

John assures them that he is not that Messiah. According to John, there’s a huge difference. He can only baptize with water. He warns the group that the Kingdom of God is near. They will see it soon, baptism with the fire of the Holy Spirit and the Son of God walking on Earth alongside mankind. It’s kind of hard to explain, as no one had ever seen anything like this before! John had a little inside information, being a cousin of Jesus.

I could repeat John’s message today, and the information would still be correct. We should all repent and return to the Lord, because the Kingdom is at hand. Jesus said he would return. Everything he told us has been true, and we expect that this would be likewise – true! Jesus gave us signs to watch for, hints that his return was imminent. We see more and more of them all the time as the date draws closer.

Churches pray for world peace, but Jesus said there will be wars and rumors of wars until he returns. There are currently about 40 wars in the world, people shooting real bullets at one another. The wars we hear about on the news are the wars in Ukraine and in the Middle East. Russia and communist North Korea are attacking Ukraine with soldiers and weapons. The US and other NATO allies are pouring defense assets into Ukraine. What we have here (just my opinion) is Communist Russia fighting a world war against Democratic countries. It’s just not obvious because the fighting is all on Ukrainian soil! That war is bigger than you think!

As for the Middle East, it’s Islam vs Judaism. Christians come down on the side of the Jews, our ancestors. Russia has been supplying intelligence and weapons to Iran, while Israel and the US intend to halt the proliferation of nuclear weapons. In 2001, when hijacked airplanes demolished the World Trade Center towers, I told my Jewish friends that this was a Holy War. I still believe that.

Jesus said that there will be wars and rumors of wars until he returns. If we read those signs, Jesus should be on the way. With each passing day, we’re one day closer to his return. Friends, the Kingdom of God is at hand!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

The Father’s House

Truth and Freedom Church