Love!

August 26, 2024 Monday Message:

1 John 2:7 NLT: “Dear friends, I am not writing a new commandment for you; rather it is an old one you have had from the very beginning. This old commandment—to love one another—is the same message you heard before.”

John is endorsing the teaching of Jesus. The command to love the Lord and love our neighbors was included in the Old Testament, but was not being emphasized or being lived out. Temple leaders and Pharisees knew God’s laws, and their role had become that of enforcers. Their aim was to catch somebody doing something wrong, and call them on it.

John is trying to convince people to give the “Jesus plan” a try. Jesus was always honest, kind and helpful. He’d never sidestep someone’s problem. Jesus would always come to the rescue and repair a situation, heal someone or bring a body back to life. Jesus was always looking to do the next right thing. Jesus was always more concerned with others than with his own well being.

The “Jesus plan” certainly became popular. We’re still teaching it two thousand years later!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Heavenly Reward!

January 23, 2023 Monday Message:

Matthew 6:1 NLT, Jesus speaking: “Watch out! Don’t do your good deeds publicly, to be admired by others, for you will lose the reward from your Father in heaven.”

It’s always good to help others, but this teaching from Jesus comes down to motivation. If you’re doing a charitable thing, some benevolent act, only to attach your name to the project, that’s the wrong motivation behind it. For example, if you supported a hospital so that they’d name the new building after your family, that’s wrong. We all appreciate a pat on the back once in a while, but receiving accolades shouldn’t be our goal.

We should all love our neighbors because that’s what Jesus said to do. We need to be kind and helpful because it’s the right thing to do. Our goal should be to be helpful, not to let others know what a good person we are! Our reward for doing the right thing for the right reason will come from our Father in heaven. On earth he has given us hope, and there’s a lot more to come in heaven!

God will bestow us with something infinitely better than an earthly reward!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship