Mission!

June 1, 2026, Monday Message:

Matthew 10:8a NLT, Jesus speaking: “Heal the sick, raise the dead, cure those with leprosy, and cast out demons.”

There is only one Jesus, one Son of God. He is fully God, but while walking on earth, he’s also fully human. His goal is to share the Good News (Gospel) with all Israel. To multiply his efforts, he sends out the 12, 2 X 2, equipping them with his supernatural powers so the populous will understand the mighty power of God.

Jesus would not have told his Apostles to do these things unless it was possible for them to succeed. Jesus was known for healing, but now Jesus’ FOLLOWERS would be known for healing! Later, Jesus would include other disciples in the groups he sent out to evangelize. Everyone he sent would have power over Satan and his demons if they used the name of Jesus!

Faith can affect the success rate of miracles. We should pray as if the miracle had already happened. Jesus personally gave us this power – now claim it! A couple more things. Loud prayers aren’t necessarily better. Just explain what you need to happen, and use Jesus’ name, calmly. Our God is orderly. And leave out the “justs” and “onlys!” They usually add nothing to the praying. “Oh Father, we just come before you today asking only for mercy.” Bad example.

Jesus authorized proselytization. Believers have been called to make disciples of all nations, so let’s get out there, get busy and work our assignments. Use Jesus’ name. Smile!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

The Father’s House

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Truth & Freedom Church

Authorized!

For Saturday, April 11, 2026:

Mark 16:19-20 NLT: “When the Lord Jesus had finished talking with his disciples, he was taken up into heaven and sat down in the place of honor at God’s right hand. And the disciples then went everywhere and preached, and the Lord worked through them, confirming what they said by many miraculous signs.”

Jesus had prepared his disciples, saying that he would not be with them forever. He said that he would suffer and die, rise after three days, and eventually return to the Father. Everything happened exactly as he prophesied! It’s now time for these disciples to put Jesus’ final instructions into play.

Remember that “Apostle” refers to the original 12, but “disciple” is a much larger group of people, both men and women, who believed in Jesus, believed he was the Messiah and that his words were God’s words.

Mark just gives us the Reader’s Digest “condensed” version of the Great Commission: “The disciples then went everywhere and preached, and the Lord worked through them, confirming what they said by many miraculous signs.” When Jesus sent disciples on previous evangelistic mission trips, he told them to heal the sick, raise the dead and cast out demons, and it’s no different this time. They would preach the Good News, and God would prove them “authorized” by these miraculous signs!

Those original disciples covered most of Israel, but did not venture far into Asia Minor. God was preparing Paul, Timothy and Silas for that mission field. Where is your mission field? In my previous churches, we supported many missionaries in faraway foreign countries. And each summer, our youth group would lead a VBS in Mexico. I prayed and prayed about this, and finally God sent me to Lake Street in Minneapolis. Turns out He has plenty of work that needs doing right here in town!

So the best place to do ministry is wherever God calls you to do ministry! Pray and then be obedient. Do what Jesus asked you to do!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

The Father’s House

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Truth & Freedom Church

Disciple!

For Friday, April 10, 2026:

Mark 16:15-16 NLT: Jesus told his disciples, “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone. Anyone who believes and is baptized will be saved. But anyone who refuses to believe will be condemned.”

This scripture is very much like the ending of Matthew’s Gospel, which we title ‘The Great Commission,’ wherein Jesus tells us to make disciples of all nations. A commission is an assignment. If someone commissions a painting, you should get your little brushes out! If someone commissions a statue, start chipping granite! If you’re to make disciples, start chipping away at everyone you meet! Share the Gospel, the Good News. Let them know that you’re a Christian! Let everyone know that salvation, eternal life in the presence of the Lord, is possible if they say “yes” to Jesus! The Father wants everyone to have this opportunity.

Unfortunately, some people will make the wrong decision. It’s beyond me why anyone would choose misery over paradise. Pride, perhaps? A fear of letting a Savior be in charge? If you’re a believer, you already know the right choice, and have made a solid decision. Jesus loves you and would never lead you down the wrong path!

One more thing. Q: What is a disciple? A: A believer, a loyal follower of Jesus. Some who traveled with Jesus are Apostles, sometimes referred to as “the 12,” or “the 11” following the Judas incident. But there are many more disciples, people who committed to Jesus after the first 12 were already called. Also, the Bible makes slim mention of women, but there were plenty of them too!

If you’re a disciple, now is the time to assume disciple duties. Do your part toward making more disciples of all nations. That’s what Jesus said to do!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

The Father’s House

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Truth & Freedom Church

God's Presence!

For Tuesday, October 7, 2025:

John 14:15-17a NLT, Jesus speaking: “If you love me, obey my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth.”

Jesus wants us to obey his (and his Father’s) commandments. Sounds reasonable, but how does that work for mankind? Wasn’t it the Apostle Paul who said, “I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.” Paul was human. Paul experienced what we all experience: “shortcomings.”

The Bibles we read were translated from centuries-old writings that were hand-copied and therefore subject to minor differences. I discovered originals that said, “obey my commands,” “you will obey my commands,” and “you should obey my commands.” All of this tells us that following Jesus’ direction is a good idea, but we may not always get it right. After all, we’re flawed humans, subject to shortcomings. As pagans, we used to not care. But now that we know Jesus, we do the best that we can. We’re not perfect, but we have a goal in place of living our lives in a God-pleasing manner.

Jesus said he’d ask the Father to send the Holy Spirit to us. (Aha – so there are three of them – Triune God!) He is sending someone to advocate for us, to comfort, encourage and counsel us, someone to walk alongside us through this lifetime. The Greek writers call him “Paraclete.”

Jesus said, “I will never leave you or forsake you.” The “I” refers to the 3-in-1 God. Jesus was on earth with us and died so our sins could be forgiven. He ascended to Heaven, so the Holy Spirit will be our helper for the rest of our time here. And when we transition to God’s Kingdom, Heaven, the Father himself will be our master.

Pray that the Holy Spirit would keep all believers pointed in the right direction!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

You feed them!

For Thursday, January 18, 2024:

Mark 6:31a NLT: “Jesus said, ‘Let’s go off by ourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile.’”

A short time ago, Jesus had sent his apostles, two by two, on mission trips to nearby towns. To say these missions were successful would be an understatement! People flocked to hear the good news and to learn that God would accept a repentant individual. You could have sold tickets to watch the apostles cast out demons! What a show, and for all the right reasons. The people couldn’t get enough!

According to Jesus, it was time for a well-deserved break. “Let’s go off by ourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile.” He said this because there were so many people coming and going that Jesus and his apostles didn’t even have time to eat! They hopped in a boat, hoping to get away for a moment’s peace.

To understand why that didn’t work, we need to understand 2,000-year-ago maritime navigation. For the most part, it worked like this: sail far enough out to float the boat, but close enough to follow the shoreline. We have far better GPS in our cars nowadays! Consequently, the crowd could follow the boat by simply hiking up the beach! Wherever the boat stopped, the crowd could easily shout, “Here we are!”

Jesus, who always showed compassion, began teaching them, giving the crowd more heavenly information. Unfortunately, they had followed Jesus and his entourage to a very remote area. Since this was an impulsive gathering, not a planned event, there were no services available – no food, no water, no satellites! By now it was late in the afternoon and nightfall was imminent. The disciples wanted Jesus to end the meeting so everyone could obtain food. Jesus’ response must have surprised the entire staff: “You feed them!”

This is one of my favorite Bible stories. We’ll examine more miracles in tomorrow’s conclusion. Don’t miss it!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

Exponential Growth!

For Thursday, January 4, 2024:

Mark 3:14-15 NLT: “Then Jesus appointed twelve of them and called them his apostles. They were to accompany him, and he would send them out to preach, giving them authority to cast out demons.”

Jesus’ mission methods included principles still valid today. There is only one Jesus, but he can accomplish much more with 12 helpers. Example: McDonalds had a successful hamburger stand, but opening stores in every town allowed them to sell billions! More stores + more workers = exponential sales beyond their wildest dreams!

The message was “Repent and Return.” Clean up your act and give God the priority on your agenda that he deserves. Why? Because the Kingdom is closer than you think. Right now there’s still time to get it together. But we need to have our decisions in place by the time Jesus returns. We need to be the helpers who can assist others in making the right decision. That’s what Jesus said we should do.

We’re praying for changed minds, changed hearts and changed lives. If we all pitch in and complete our assignments, the growth will be exponential!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

Commissioned!

For Saturday, July 1, 2023:

Romans 1:1 NLT: “This letter is from Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, chosen by God to be an apostle and sent out to preach his Good News.”

Jesus had personally tapped Paul on the shoulder to be an apostle, a devoted follower of Jesus and a preacher of the Gospel. His conversion was beyond remarkable. He took his call very seriously. You might say that he jumped with both feet into the deep end! Paul never did anything half-way. While he accomplished a lot of ministry along the way, Paul’s ultimate goal was to bring the Gospel to Rome.

Jesus said we all should help with evangelism. Before he ascended, Jesus commissioned believers to make disciples of all nations. There were no exceptions and participation wasn’t optional. Our individual pieces of the evangelism puzzle may look different, but we’re all a necessary part of the equation.

Like Paul, we’ve all been chosen to help spread the Good News! We’re blessed to be a part of Jesus’ team!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

Fishing for People!

For Thursday, January 5, 2023:

Matthew 4:19 NLT: “Jesus called out to Simon and Andrew, ‘Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!’”

In a church, the lead Pastor can’t do everything! He builds a team with other Pastors, youth workers, musicians/singers and office support. Probably more! The point is that with servant leadership, a team can accomplish way more than any one of them could individually. And that’s why Jesus is assembling his team. Simon and Andrew will now be fishing for people!

Next, James and John, sons of Zebedee, were added to the team. In both cases, Jesus said, “Follow me,” and they immediately dropped what they were doing and joined the Lord in his mission. They left the fish, the nets, the boat and even their father. Family is important, but God is more important!

Before returning to the Father, Jesus commissioned the believers to make disciples of all nations. You and I are to fish for people! Jesus said so!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

Hope in Death!

For Thursday, November 17, 2022:

1 Thessalonians 4:13 NLT: “And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope.”

We know Paul as an Apostle and itinerant evangelist. We should also consider him a prophet. Jesus spoke directly to Paul, giving him not only proper theology but also information about the future. And now, Paul has been shown that it’s time to share some of this information with the church in Thessalonica.

It’s a good question that everyone has: “What happens when we die?” (Your Bible may say that some went to sleep, but that’s a euphemism for dying.) The point is that Paul wanted the church to have hope. We all have been given hope! Death is not the end for believers, and the church needed to replace worry about the life after this life with confidence.

We’ll dig in to what happens tomorrow. Hint: Jesus rose from the dead!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship, 3249 30th Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN 55406