Spiritually Curious

June 10, 2013 Monday Message:

“The crowds found out where Jesus was going, and they followed him. He welcomed them and taught them about the Kingdom of God, and he healed those who were sick.” Luke 9:11

Jesus had sent his disciples out to heal those who needed healing, to cast out demons, and to preach about the Kingdom of God. Now they had returned, and Jesus wanted to spend some time with them, choosing a quite place in Bethsaida. This didn’t work for long.

Word was out about Jesus. Nowadays we sing a song about this, calling Jesus, “the Famous One, the Famous One.” A New York City public relations firm would envy the size of Jesus’ following, and the persistent pursuit of his followers, especially with no TV, no Internet, no Facebook and no Twitter. The entire ad campaign was simply disciples and word-of-mouth: “Son-of-God speaking today – 9AM sharp – don’t miss it!” And 5,000 men and their families showed up!

People are spiritually curious when the Holy Spirit has opened their spiritual eyes. We’ve all sung the song, “Open the Eyes of My Heart.” Not the eyes on my physical face, but the eyes of my spiritual heart.

When people find out that I work for a church, they often have a question or two. I have personally seen these encounters spark new Bible studies and small groups, and increase church attendance. Not because of MY great evangelistic skills; it’s because once the Holy Spirit has paved the way, spiritual appetites are insatiable. It’s a God-thing.

Norton Lawellin

It’s Father’s Day this Sunday, and Jesus in the City Fellowship (JICF) is a great place to start the day. Pastor Michael Pilla teaches Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan from the Gospel of Luke. We gather at 10:30am in the North end (gym) of the Oliver Ministry Building, 2647 Bloomington Ave., Minneapolis. See you at church!

NL

  

In Your Light

June 03, 2013 Monday Message:

“No one truly knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.” Luke 10:22

When God realized that all humans had fallen short and would continue to do so, He sent His Son Jesus to ransom mankind. Therefore it’s the Son who will open the eyes, mind and heart of a non-believer, and allow him to see the gifts God has offered. Mankind cannot see heavenly things through his own spiritual blindness; the Son must first choose him and open his spiritual eyes.

With open eyes and a clear picture of the truth, mankind can still choose to say, “No.”

Consider the man in Luke 9:59-60 who wanted to follow Jesus, but chose to delay discipleship until he buried his father. Jesus said, “Let the (spiritually) dead bury their own (physically) dead.” (Parentheses mine) Think about it – Following our Lord Jesus would be something of substance, something with eternal ramifications. And while burying the dead, especially your father, would be a good thing to do, on God’s agenda it should be AFTER #1: Follow Jesus. Jesus says, “Your duty is to go and preach about the kingdom of God.” Substance before circumstance.

In Your light do we see light. Psalm 36:9

Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship (JICF) meets at 10:30am every Sunday. We’ll continue with the Martha and Mary story in Luke Ch. 10. We gather in the North end (gym) of the Oliver Ministry Building, 2647 Bloomington Ave., Minneapolis. See you at church!

NL