Eternity!

For Wednesday, October 2, 2024:

1 John 4:9 NLT: “God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him.”

It appears that the “mankind experiment” was a failure. Soon after creation, mankind succumbed to the serpent's temptation and disobeyed God’s instructions. Furthermore, mankind could not pay the penalty for their own sin.

Consider this if you ever question the Father’s love for us: In spite of our shortcomings, God himself through his Son Jesus paid the penalty for the sins of the world. He still loved us, even in our flawed state. God’s desire is that all would repent and return to him. Jesus went ahead to prepare a place for believers in the hereafter.

Our faithfulness gift is eternity in God’s presence, quite a generous gift considering mankind’s disobedient behavior. But God’s love cannot be shaken. The Bible calls it everlasting lovingkindness. We are blessed that our God is so loving toward us!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

Day of Rest!

September 2, 2024 Monday Message:

Genesis 3:19 NLT: “By the sweat of your brow will you have food to eat until you return to the ground from which you were made. For you were made from dust, and to dust you will return.”

As the result of sin, mankind must work to obtain food. That’s actually good news, because God COULD have simply chosen to end his “mankind experiment.” This is more proof of God’s love for us.

In the US, this is Labor Day, when most folk take a holiday from back-breaking work, and that’s good. God said we should have a day of rest, although Labor Day is always on a Monday. Saturday would have been the original Hebrew day of Worship and rest, and Sunday is our day to honor Jesus.

So enjoy the day, and tomorrow back to work!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus In the City Fellowship

God's Unending Love!

For Saturday, September 23, 2023:

Romans 8:38a NLT: “I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love.”

Before Adam and Eve sinned, there was no religion in the world. There was only God the Creator. But the couple had been promised by the devil himself that they too could be like God. Regrettably, they took the bait. Suddenly there was unworthy competition for heaven’s throne, and sin had entered the world. Now God needed to make his laws and his value system known, so now we have religion.

Like any proud parent, God was disappointed when his children let him down, but the incident did not extinguish his love for us. God went so far as to send his own Son to pay the price for the sins of the world, so that we could join him in the hereafter. That’s how much God loves us! Paul goes on to say, “Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love.” His list is extensive but not exhaustive. In fact, nothing can separate us from God’s love.

Paul concludes v39: “No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Pastor Norton Lawellin

Jesus in the City Fellowship

God's Love!

For Sunday, September 25, 2022::

Galatians 3:28 NIV: “There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

All humans were created in God’s image. He loves each and every one of us, and his desire is that none would perish. You could be Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male or female, black or white or any other color. You could be short or tall, have a lot of money or be dirt-poor, it makes no difference. God shows no prejudice when it comes to our inclusion in his Kingdom. Those who are friends of Jesus are friends of God – no exceptions!

Paul writes that our devotion to Jesus is like donning a new set of clothes. Here’s an example: You may do manual labor all week, but pretend that your daughter is getting married. You clean up. If you’re a man, you put on a tuxedo. If you don’t own one, you rent one for the occasion. If you’re a woman, you get a fancy dress for this special event. In other words, we put on special clothes for a special celebration. It’s like that. You’ve been given an invitation to heaven, so it’s time to put on the special “Jesus” clothes!

After all, the church is the bride of Christ, so we ARE going to a wedding!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

God the Provider!

For Saturday, March 5, 2022

Matthew 6:33 NLT, Jesus speaking: “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.”

Life needn’t be overly complicated. Jesus had just counseled his listeners to stop worrying about things over which they have no control. And with fewer worries, the life simplified becomes the better life, becomes a life filled with hope!

Jesus points out that God already knows your needs. Just as he cares for the lilies of the field, he will provide for you. We pray to have a relationship with God, but don’t think for a minute that he doesn’t already know what’s going on!

Believers should count themselves as adopted into the Holy Family; we are children of God, and surely our good Father will take care of us!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

God Always!

For Tuesday, November 30, 2021

1 Chronicles 16:34 ESV: “Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!”

At church we shout out: “God is good – all the time!” That’s easy to believe when life is going well. But God is just as good when things aren’t going your way!

I love the story of the footprints in the sand, two sets of footprints walking along. As the story goes, one set of footprints is yours, the other is God’s. All of a sudden there was only one set of footprints, and the question is asked, “What happened?”

God answers, “That’s when I was carrying you!”

Last Sunday, Ken Wilson, a good friend of mine, was asked to share his testimony at Grace Church. It’s near the end of the service on their website. Ken spoke of God’s faithfulness, walking alongside him as he battles cancer. It’s a lot like Psalm 23, walking through the valley of the shadow of death, and not being afraid because God is with you – always!

Stick with God, “who will not leave you or forsake you!”

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

Love of God!

For Saturday, September 11, 2021

Romans 8:39a NLT: “Nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Believers are adopted into the Holy Family. The Bible says we become “Children of God.” And just as any parent has an everlasting love for their progeny, so our Father God loves ALL his children - forever!

This scripture grants us ‘Assurance of Salvation,’ a kind of guarantee. In spite of the fact that we all have sinned, God wants us to repent and return to Him. He will never stop loving us, and welcomes us with open arms.

The Father was watching for the Prodigal Son to return home.

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

God's Promise!

For Friday, August 6, 2021

Psalm 119:65 NLT: “You have done many good things for me, Lord, just as you promised.”

God has poured so much good into each of our lives. Surprised? You shouldn’t be! God loves everything he created with a love so great that it’s difficult for us to comprehend. God looked at all he created and declared it to be not just good, but VERY GOOD!

‘Chesed’ is the Hebrew word for the love and mercy of God toward humanity. The principle shows up in all the psalms. The best translation I have found is, “everlasting lovingkindness.”

Say ‘yes’ to God’s never-ending love.

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

God's Promise!

For Thursday, August 5, 2021

Psalm 119:49 NLT: “Remember your promise to me, Lord; it is my only hope.”

God has promised to be our God, and we are to be his people. The psalmist wants to remind God of his promise, but God has not forgotten. God is steadfast, unchanging in his ways. If in the past God said that he loves us and would care for us, that trend will continue today and tomorrow and as far into the future as we can imagine.

It’s we who need to remind ourselves of God’s promise. Depression and discouragement only take our eyes off the ultimate goal, being called to spend eternity in God’s presence. Focus on that. God loves us, and he won’t be changing his mind! With God’s love “locked in,” little things that happen around us – circumstances - don’t matter nearly so much.

Paul wrote, “Keep your eye on the prize!”

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

Closer to God!

For Saturday, July 17, 2021

James 4:8a NLT: “Come close to God, and God will come close to you.”

In the Bible, the Hebrews were God’s ‘chosen people.’ But sometimes, when consumed with themselves, God became an afterthought rather than the center of their lives. Understand that God still loved them, but God’s attention seems proportional to their devotion to Him. If they don’t spend any time with God, He won’t spend much time on them.

But when the Hebrews honored God, He would guide and protect them. It’s the same for each of us nowadays. If each day you strive to get closer to God, He will pour out more and more love upon you. Knowing that God makes time for those who seek Him gives us a lot of hope!

The closer you are to God, the more God can do for you!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

Faithful Love!

For Thursday, July 08, 2021

Psalm 138:8a NLT: “The Lord will work out his plans for my life—for your faithful love, O Lord, endures forever.”

David is counseling us to not concern ourselves with what life holds for us. Rather, concern yourself with being a true believer, having faith in God and his Son Jesus Christ. After all, your Father in Heaven wants only good things for you.

Quirky circumstances come and go; but the everlasting lovingkindness of the Lord endures forever, and that fills us with hope.

My God is like a rock, unchanging, the same yesterday, today and tomorrow! And it’s all good! Count on it!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

The Love of Christ!

For Tuesday, June 29, 2021

Ephesians 3:18 NLT: “May you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep is the love of Christ.”

God so loved the world that he had his only Son give his life to redeem mankind. Jesus loved us so much that he actually did it, gave his life to pay our sin penalty.

The song says, “Jesus loves me,” but it’s difficult to understand just how much. If you imagined the absolute most you could ever love someone – the love of Jesus is a little bit more than that!

God’s love is incomprehensibly immense!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

Love!

June 21, 2021 Monday Message

1 John 4:19 NIV: “We love because he first loved us.”

Who taught you to love? I’m not talking about romantic love, but rather the love a parent has for a child or the love you might have for a best friend. How about love for your God, your Creator?

The reason we know anything at all about love is because God first loved us. This turns out to be a really good thing. Mankind is the poster child for shortcomings, and it might make more sense if God had written us off long ago. But that’s not God’s nature! Our God is a God of second chances, and third chances, etc. God loves us so much that he wants to include everyone in his eternal Kingdom!

Looking at the original manuscripts, some read, “We love God…,” or, “We love each other…,” but it’s all using God as the model for love. 2,000 years ago, the norm was to look out for #1. “Loving your neighbor as yourself,” was a new concept set upon the world by the Son of God himself. Thankfully, we now know what to do!

The originator of love is God the Father!

Blessings to all this week!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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

Changed Lives!

For Thursday, April 8, 2021

Ezekiel 36:26 TLB: “I will give you a new heart—I will give you new and right desires—and put a new spirit within you. I will take out your stony hearts of sin and give you new hearts of love.”

Our God is a God of 2^nd chances – and 3^rd, 4^th, etc. God’s desire is that everyone would repent and return, that none would perish. God is in the rescue business!

Believers have been changed - changed hearts, changed minds, changed lives. God’s radical transformation occurs in believers. The world tells us to look out for # 1; Jesus teaches us to love God and care about our fellows. Self-centeredness is replaced by love and compassion.

God can restore entire countries, but he starts by changing individuals.

Blessings and safety today!

Pastor Norton Lawellin

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